The impact of the conflict had reversed a slight recovery for Lebanon, which has battled a deep economic crisis for years, the Washington-based bank said in a report. "Prior to October 2023, economic growth was projected -- for the first time since 2018 -- to slightly expand in 2023," by...

President Emmanuel Macron told the France 5 broadcaster, "We cannot let the idea take root that an efficient fight against terrorism implies to flatten Gaza or attack civilian populations indiscriminately." While acknowledging "Israel's right to defend itself and fight terror", Macron said France called for the protection of civilians and...

The Israeli army said Wednesday that "ground, aerial and naval operations were carried out on dozens of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure" on military command and control centers in Khan Yunis. Israel's ensuing military campaign in Gaza has so far killed at least 20,000 people, the majority of them children and...

With the world's eyes on the Gaza Strip, the escalating violence in the West Bank represents an underreported yet critical dimension of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The United Nation says children make up half of the 1.9 million displaced Palestinians and a sizable number have been killed in Israeli strikes.

"Twelve martyrs and dozens of wounded, including women and children, were recovered from under the rubble when a house and a mosque were targeted hundreds of meters from Kuwaiti hospital," Gaza's health ministry.

According to a source close to the Palestinian Islamist group, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh is set to visit Egypt on Wednesday for talks on a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange with Israel. Haniyeh will head a Hamas delegation to Egypt, where he is due to hold talks with...

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL - One of the last remaining hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip stopped operating on Tuesday after being stormed by the Israeli army, its director said. Fadel Naim told AFP Israeli troops had attacked the Al-Ahli hospital and arrested doctors, medical staff and patients, destroying part of...

Geneva, Switzerland - Gaza is "the most dangerous place in the world" for a child, the UN children's agency spokesperson said Tuesday, expressing his rage at the situation there after returning from the Palestinian territory. "I'm furious that those with power shrug at the humanitarian nightmares unleashed on a million children,"...

A report by Washington's Director of National Intelligence, quoted by US media, said that nearly half of munitions dropped by Israeli aircraft on Gaza were "dumb" bombs -- unguided munitions with limited accuracy. Israel insists Hamas is to blame for mass civilian casualties, accusing the group of using innocent Palestinians...

Dubai, UAE--A Hamas official on Monday said one of the group's tunnels revealed by the Israeli army in Gaza had "successfully" accomplished its mission, downplaying the Israeli announcement of its discovery. On Sunday the Israeli army showed images of what it said was the biggest Hamas tunnel uncovered so far...

The outcome of the December 10-12 poll was widely expected after the former army chief with a fondness for infrastructure mega-projects campaigned against a small field of relative unknowns. It secures 69-year-old Sisi his third and, according to the Egyptian constitution, final term in office, starting in April and set...

Israeli forces shot dead four Palestinians in a West Bank refugee camp, the Palestinian health ministry said. Mohammad Samir Milhem, 17, his brother Hikmat, 24, and Yazan Khatib, 20, were shot in the head by Israeli troops in the Al-Fara camp near Tubas, the ministry said. Rashed Habib al-Aydi, 17,...

Nice, France - Algerian international footballer Youcef Atal goes on trial in France on Monday accused of inciting hatred after posting a video in which a Palestinian preacher purportedly threatens Israel with a "black day". Atal, who plays for Ligue 1 side Nice, shared the video on his Instagram account, which...

All health care facilities in the Gaza Strip have been hit hard by the bombardments and ground invasion launched by Israel following Hamas's unprecedented attack October. Israel's retaliatory strikes on the crowded enclave have killed 18,800 people, of which three-fourths are children, according to the Hamas-run health services.

Alon Shamriz, 26, was one of the three Israeli hostages shot dead by soldiers during an operation in the Gaza City suburb of Shejaiya, even as they carried a white flag and cried for help in Hebrew. Shamriz, Yotam Haim and Samer El-Talalqa were killed when troops mistook them for...

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna was the latest envoy to call for an "immediate and durable" truce leading to a lasting ceasefire as she visited Tel Aviv, stressing that "too many civilians are being killed".

The death toll from the raid on the Nur Shams camp in the West Bank city of Tulkarem climbed to five after the announcement of the deaths of two men aged 19 and 21 in hospital, the ministry said. The Israeli operation at the camp began during the night, according to...

The operation took place as Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin headed to the Middle East, where he would meet with Bahrain on "US efforts to convene multilateral coalitions to respond to aggression at sea that threatens shipping. Houthis have threatened to attack any vessels heading to Israeli ports unless food and...

In a joint article written in Sunday Times, UK foreign minister David Cameron and German counterpart Annalena Baerbock said the "need is urgent" for a "sustainable ceasefire" in Gaza. They said "too many civilians have been killed" in the conflict, and raised the pressure on Israel to bring its operation...

Israeli forces, according to the Gaza health ministry, fired at "patient rooms" and arrested staff at the Kamal Adwan hospital in Gaza City during a "siege" that lasted several days. The UN humanitarian agency OCHA said the same day that the hospital director and about 70 other medical staff were...

London, UK - A UK destroyer has brought down a suspected attack drone in the Red Sea, defense minister Grant Shapps said on Saturday, amid rising maritime tensions in the region. Britain announced last month that it was sending HMS Diamond, one of its most advanced naval vessels, to the Gulf to...

The Israeli army said that it had mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat, and fired, killing three of them. It added that "immediate lessons" have been learnt from the event, which have been passed on to all IDF troops in the field," it added, expressing "deep remorse over...

The Qatari network had first reported that cameraman Samer Abu Daqqa and Gaza bureau chief Wael Al-Dahdouh were wounded in a school in Khan Yunis, where they were hit by "shrapnel from an Israeli missile attack". In a subsequent statement condemning the Israeli military, Al Jazeera attributed the injuries to...

The US has suggested the internationally-recognized PA could play a role in governing Gaza after the war, though the Ramallah-based administration is deeply unpopular among Palestinians

Jerusalem, Undefined -- Multiple rockets were intercepted over central Jerusalem on Friday, AFP journalists reported. Staff saw two explosions and heard three blasts, as sirens warning of incoming fire blared in the city for the first time since October 30, according to the Israeli military. Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam...

The latest death was a 17-year-old boy who the ministry said was shot in the chest by the Israeli army in Jenin. In addition to 11 killed by Israeli forces, Palestinian health officials said a sick 13-year-old boy also died after Israeli forces prevented him from reaching hospital.

London, Britain - Saudi foreign minister on Thursday Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah called on the international community, especially the permanent members of the Security Council, including the United Kingdom, to fulfill their responsibilities towards intensifying efforts aimed at a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and ensure the availability...

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan made the push during talks in Tel Aviv with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials, discussing the war Israel launched after the October 7 attacks. Washington has strongly backed Israel's right to defend itself, but mounting civilian casualties in the Palestinian territory...

A US official earlier said "we have indications that a missile was fired at the Maersk Gibraltar from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen, and that it hit the water and missed the ship". The official was speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to make the statement...

Filippo Grandi, head of the UN refugee agency, warned Wednesday that pushing Gazans across the frontier would be "extremely destabilizing for Egypt". "It's very important to insist that this evacuation of people beyond (the border) must not be promoted, must not be advanced, forced," the UNHCR chief told journalists in...

Tzipi Hotovely told Sky News that she did not believe in the long-standing position of the UK government and the United Nations that an independent Palestinian state should be established.

The latest death was a 17-year-old boy who the ministry said was shot in the chest by the Israeli army in Jenin. In addition to 11 killed by Israeli forces, Palestinian health officials said a sick 13-year-old boy also died after Israeli forces prevented him from reaching hospital.

According to the military's official list of casualties, nine of those killed on Tuesday belonged to units that a military spokesman said were involved in a fierce battle in Shejaiya. Two of those killed in the battle were senior officers. The official noted that around 350 Hamas fighters had been...

In the first 11 months of 2023, 45 journalists were killed carrying out their work, down from 61 last year, according to the annual report by RSF. It was the smallest number since 33 died in 2002, largely due to a major drop in Latin America.

President Joe Biden while expressing his frustration with rightwing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred this week to "indiscriminate bombing" in Gaza". The Democratic US administration is even beginning to talk about a "timetable" for how long Israel's high-intensity military operations can continue.

The announcement came more than two months into the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza as international aid organizations have warned about the dire conditions in the crowded Palestinian territory. The ministry did not specify which vaccinations had run out, and its claim could not be independently verified.

Beirut, Lebanon - Lebanon's compounding crises are having a "devastating" impact on children and their education, a United Nations agency said Wednesday, warning of additional pressure as the Israel-Hamas war spills over into the country. UN children's agency UNICEF said more than a quarter of households surveyed last month reported children...

AFP and other international media groups had written to Blinken in late October urging his help in protecting journalists on the ground in Gaza after several were killed since the outbreak of fighting. "The United States has and will continue to underscore with Israel, and with all countries, that journalists...

Washington, US - The Israel-Hamas war in Gaza is having a severe impact on the Palestinian economy, according to the World Bank, which now estimates sharp economic contraction this year and next. The conflict, sparked by Hamas' cross-border attacks on October 7 that killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli figures, and...

CAMBRIDGE, US - Harvard University's president, under fire over testimony she gave about anti-Semitism on campus, will remain in her job after a meeting of the institution's governing body issued a statement backing her on Tuesday. Claudine Gay has been engulfed by criticism after she declined to unequivocally say whether calling...

At the annual Doha Forum that ended Monday, Qatar reiterated that no Arab country would send in forces to stabilize the situation after the guns of Israel and Hamas fall silent.

The chief of WHO said the convoy was stopped twice at the Wadi Gaza checkpoint on the way to northern Gaza and on the way back, adding that some Palestinian Red Crescent staff were detained both times and questioned for several hours.

The ministry did not provide further details on the fatalities, while the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said they were killed in a drone strike on the Old City. Around 270 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire and settler attacks in the West Bank, Palestinian officials say, as violence has...

With calls for a ceasefire multiplying, "it is safe to assume that the majority will be greater" this time, Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group told AFP. This may bring the Assembly closer to the 140 or so countries (out of 193 member states) that have repeatedly denounced the...

Israeli PM confronts one of the most challenging periods of his tenure as it intensifies military actions in Gaza amid mounting casualties and a deepening humanitarian crisis.

DOHA, QATAR - Mediation efforts are continuing to secure a new Gaza ceasefire despite ongoing Israeli bombardment that is "narrowing the window" for a successful outcome, Qatar's prime minister said on Sunday. "Our efforts as the state of Qatar along with our partners are continuing. We are not going to give...

The latest warning comes amid heightened tensions in the Red Sea and surrounding waters following a series of maritime attacks by Houthi rebels since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7. In a statement posted on social media, the Houthis said they "will prevent the passage of ships...

Carrying placards with messages like "bring them home now", hundreds of Israelis took to streets in Tel Aviv on Saturday to call for the release of nearly 140 people still being held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Hamas took 240 hostages back to Gaza during its bloody October...

Istanbul, Turkey - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday denounced the UN Security Council after the United States vetoed a ceasefire resolution for Gaza, describing the international body as the 'Israel protection council'. "Since October 7, the security council has become an Israel protection and defense council," Erdogan said. The United...