US promises Gaza food plan after envoy visit
The visit by Steve Witkoff came as a report from global advocacy group Human Rights Watch accused Israeli forces of presiding over "regular bloodbaths" close to US-backed aid points
Israeli forces kill two Palestinians in Nablus raid
Israeli forces have carried out a number of deadly raids in the The raid came two days after a peak in violence that saw two killed in confrontations with Israeli forces, amid fears of escalation in the conflict during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In a Monday statement, the...Israeli government approves formation of a national guard
The Israeli government approved a decision to form a national guard, officials said, which opponents warn would function as a "private militia" of firebrand National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. A statement from Ben-Gvir's office said the guard, which would operate under his ministry, would deal with "emergency scenarios, nationalistic crime,...Israeli air strike near Homs injures five Syrian soldiers
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, said the strikes targeted several military positions of Syrian government forces and pro-Iran groups in Homs. The NGO said explosions rocked the city and a fire broke out in a research centre, with ambulances heading to the scene of the...Man killed by police in old Jerusalem, says Israel
Israeli police said they shot dead an Arab Israeli who grabbed a gun from an officer and fired it in a scuffle in the Old City of Jerusalem. Police said the attack took place around midnight near the Chain Gate, an access point to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Israeli-annexed...Pakistani businessman exports food products to Israel
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN - The American Jewish Congress celebrated the arrival of the first shipment of food products from Pakistan to Israel, marking a milestone in bilateral trade between the two nations, media reports said.The transaction reportedly involved Pakistani-Jewish businessman Fishel BenKhald and three Israeli entrepreneurs.Based in Karachi, BenKhald operates a...Iran’s Revolutionary Guards officer killed in Israeli strike on Syria
Tehran, Iran--An officer from Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards was killed in Israeli air strikes on Syria early on Friday, a website affiliated with the Guards said.During more than a decade of civil war in Syria, Israel has launched hundreds of air strikes on Syrian territory, primarily targeting Iran-backed forces and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters,...Blinken affirms Israel ties, warns on peace after Netanyahu spat
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and "reaffirmed the importance of the enduring US– Israel bilateral relationship. The top US diplomat "emphasized the importance of refraining from unilateral actions that exacerbate tensions," a statement said.Two soldiers injured in Israeli aerial attack, says Syria
Syria's foreign ministry condemned the strikes, accusing Israel in a statement of trying to "escape internal divisions", as the country faces a severe domestic crisis over controversial judicial reforms.Morocco finds it difficult to straddle Israel, Palestinians
A case in point is the royal palace's reaction after the opposition Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) "deplored" the Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita for allegedly defending Israel publicly, even as it commits "criminal aggression against our Palestinian brothers". King Mohammed VI's office hit back, accusing the PJD of voicing...ADNOC, BP place $4bn bid for half of Israel’s NewMed Energy
The participation of Emirati firm ADNOC is the latest sign of the quickening normalisation of relations between Israel and the UAE since their opening of diplomatic ties in 2020.Israel PM caves in, pauses judicial reform that split nation
Lawmakers were scheduled to vote this week on a central part of the proposals, which would change the way judges are appointed. That has now been put off. A parliamentary committee has already amended the draft law to make it more acceptable to opponents.FIFA U-20 World Cup draw in Indonesia nixed after call for Israel ban
Organisers had hoped hosting Israeli games on the Hindu-majority island of Bali would offer a buffer against local backlash, but Koster's opposition has cast that into doubt. Officials in Jakarta said they feared losing hosting rights to the country's first major tournament and being isolated by the world governing body...UAE-Israel free trade deal to take effect on April 1
The customs deal is viewed as the concluding phase of a free trade agreement following the normalization of relations between the two countries. Netanyahu describes it as historic.GCC letter seeks US response to Israeli Palestinian comments
The letter from the six-member GCC's foreign ministers also called on the United States "to play its role in reaching a just, comprehensive and lasting solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, speaking earlier this month, said that the Palestinians did not exist as a people,...Israeli defence minister calls for pause to reforms as protests continue
The latest demonstration to hit Israel's commercial hub came days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to press on with the changes despite mounting international alarm. But his defence minister said Saturday that "we must stop the legislative process" for a month in view of the divisiveness of the reforms.Israel attorney general criticizes judicial reform move
JERUSALEM -Israel's attorney general on Friday accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of "illegal" public intervention on the government's divisive judicial reform program, citing his ongoing corruption trial.After largely staying on the sidelines of the discussions, Netanyahu said in a televised address on Thursday he was "entering the arena" and determined...Israeli judicial reforms: Netanyahu vows unity as protests linger
Netanyahu, in a televised address, said he was determined to advance the reforms but wanted to reach a solution acceptable to both supporters and critics of the proposal. Lawmakers earlier on Thursday approved legislation restricting grounds for declaring a premier unfit for office, a move opposition chief Yair Lapid called...Israeli parliamentarians adopt strict limits on removing PM
Israeli parliament approved legislation restricting grounds for declaring a premier unfit for office, a move the opposition has called a "personal law" that serves Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The vote came as Netanyahu's government pushes forward with a judicial reform program, which critics say threatens Israeli democracy and has sparked...Oldest known Hebrew Bible displayed in Israel ahead of sale
Tel Aviv, Israel -- The oldest known near-complete Hebrew Bible was presented to the press on Wednesday in Tel Aviv, where it will be displayed for a week before going under the hammer in New York.The Codex Sassoon is one of only two codices, or manuscripts, containing all 24 books of...No plans of reviving West Bank settlements, says Israel
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the parliamentary vote scraps "a discriminatory and humiliating law, that prohibited Jews from living in areas in northern Samaria, which is part of our historic homeland," using the biblical name for the northern West Bank.Israel missiles hit Syria’s Aleppo airport: monitor
It was the second such attack in a month on the airport in Syria's second city, which has been a major conduit for relief flights since a February 6 earthquake devastated swathes of northern Syria and neighboring Turkey. The pre-dawn strike targeted "the airport compound and a weapons depot belonging to...Israel annuls law banning settlers from residing in West Bank areas
The parliamentary vote notably paves the way for Israeli authorities to formally allow settlers to return to Homesh, the only one of the four sites whose residents were forcibly removed before their homes were demolished. Most governments around the world consider all Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territories as illegal...Israel’s ruling coalition amends key judicial reform proposal
Jerusalem--Israel's ruling coalition presented on Monday an amended version of a key element in its contentious judicial overhaul, in hopes of allaying concerns at home and abroad for Israeli democracy.The country has seen 11 consecutive weeks of mass demonstrations against the proposed reforms, which are already moving through parliament and...Israel minister’s ‘there are no Palestinians’ remarks condemned
"There are no Palestinians, because there are no Palestinian people," far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said at an event in Paris. Smotrich and his Religious Zionism group have a history of making incendiary remarks about Palestinians.West Bank shooting injures Israeli as talks in Egypt seek ‘calm’
The attack in Huwara came three weeks after the fatal shooting of two Israeli settlers, also in the same occupied West Bank town, adding to a surge in violence this year and to fears of escalation during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan starting in the coming week. Neither the...Israel, Palestine seek ‘to restore calm’ in West Bank at Cairo meet
Cairo, Egypt - Israeli and Palestinian officials were holding talks in Egypt on Sunday "to restore calm" after a surge in deadly violence in the occupied West Bank, Egypt's foreign ministry said.The meeting, which follows similar talks last month in Jordan where both sides pledged to prevent more violence, comes amid...100 killed in Israeli-Palestinian conflict this year
The Palestinian health ministry announced the death of Yazan Omar Jamil Khasib, 23, who died "after the occupation (Israel) opened fire on him at the northern entrance of Al-Bireh" city near Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli army said "soldiers spotted a suspect and asked him to identify...Israelis protesters return to streets as Netanyahu rejects reforms compromise
Demonstrators gathered in Jerusalem and the northern city of Haifa to denounce the overhaul that would, among other things, allow lawmakers to scrap supreme court rulings with a simple majority vote. Some opposition leaders joined a later rally in central Tel Aviv.UAE pledges $3m for rebuilding Huwara raided by Israeli settlers
Thirty houses were burned and damaged, according to local officials, after dozens of Israeli settlers set them ablaze. Bezalel Smotrich, Israel's finance minister and an extreme-right settler, later said "Huwara needs to be wiped out", sparking widespread condemnation, including from the UAE, the UN, the United States and France.No recent crossings of Lebanon-Israel border, say UN peacekeepers
BEIRUT, LEBANON - The UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon said Thursday it had not observed any border crossings after Israel said it killed a suspect wearing an explosive belt who may have entered from Lebanon.The Israeli army said on Wednesday it was probing the possible involvement of Lebanon's Hezbollah movement after...Israel lawmakers inch closer to pass judicial reform law
JERUSALEM- Israel's parliament took another step Tuesday to push forward a legal reform package that has sparked mass protests against the hard-right government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.Lawmakers in a 3:00 am (0100 GMT) vote approved a bill in first reading that would, among other things, allow the Knesset to...UAE-Israel ties solid despite clashes in Palestine
The Israeli-UAE trade is likely to get an added boost in the next few weeks as an anticipated signing of a customs agreement will enable the FTA signed last year to go into effect.Israeli army shoots dead three Palestinians in West Bank
Nablus, Palestinian Territories - Three Palestinian gunmen were shot dead after they fired at Israeli soldiers in the northern West Bank near Nablus, the Israeli army said on Sunday, as violence in the region continued.The military said that "armed gunmen opened fire" on soldiers at an army position near the Jit...Israeli strikes kill two pro-Iran fighters in Syria, says war monitor
Israeli airstrikes targeting a weapons depot in Syria killed two pro-Iran fighters and wounded three soldiers, a war monitor said. "Israeli strikes targeted a weapons depot belonging to pro-Iran forces located... between Tartus and Hama provinces," said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.Syria’s Aleppo airport operational after Israeli air attack
DAMASCUS, SYRIA - Syria's Aleppo airport, a key conduit for relief flights after the devastating February earthquake, reopened on Friday, an official said, following Israeli air strikes this week that hit its runway.The damage caused by Tuesday's raid forced aid deliveries and all flights to be diverted to Latakia and Damascus...Israeli settler kills suspected Palestinian gunman in West Bank
An Israeli settler killed an assailant in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military said, the latest bloodshed in a surge of violence in the Palestinian territory. The incident occurred at Dorot Illit settlement in the north of the West Bank, the army said in a statement.In Israel, Pentagon chief raises Iran, Ukraine concerns amid judicial reform stir
Austin's talks with his hosts were centred on the changing geopolitics of the region, which is currently roiled by rising threat from Iran and the ongoing war in Ukraine.Violence, Israel reform protests overshadow Pentagon chief’s visit
A planned mass rally in Tel Aviv by Israeli protesters opposed to the government's controversial legal reform plans forced an 11th-hour change of venue for Lloyd Austin's talks, throwing an international spotlight on Israel's domestic divisions.Israeli operation in Jenin kills six Palestinians including militant
The Palestinian health ministry said six men had been killed, one aged 49 and the rest in their 20s, in clashes that the army said included soldiers launching shoulder-fired rockets amid ferocious gunfire. On Tuesday, Jordan foreign ministry spokesman Sinan Majali condemned what he called Israeli "aggression", warning it "will...Israeli forces kill Palestinian, injure several others in West Bank
Two witnesses said rockets had been fired at the building housing a group of militants, and reported gunfire in the streets of the northern West Bank camp, the latest in a string of fatal military operations in the territory. The raid comes amid a surge in violence in the Israeli-Palestinian...Israeli warplanes hit Syria’s Aleppo airport, says ministry
Israeli warplanes struck Aleppo airport before dawn, causing significant damage that halted flights to and from Syria's war- and quake-battered second city, the defense ministry said. The airport has been a major conduit for aid flights since a February 6 earthquake devastated southeastern Turkey and Syria, a transport ministry official...Israeli Air Force reservists protest over legal reforms
Dozens of Israeli Air Force pilots have said they will boycott military training in protest at government legal reforms that critics see as threatening democracy. In a letter sent to the chief of staff, 37 pilots threatened to not attend a training day due on Wednesday. The pilots' statement was...Israelis take to streets for ninth week to protest judicial reform
The latest rally in Tel Aviv came after a similar demonstration on Wednesday when police employed stun grenades and water cannon in a rare use of force that led to about 39 arrests and 11 injuries in the coastal city. Judicial reform is a cornerstone of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's...Six EU countries urge Israel to stop settlement expansion in West Bank
LONDON, UK- Six European countries on Saturday called on Israel to stop expanding its settlements in Palestine's West Bank.Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland have also jointly condemned the recent attack on Israeli citizens by Palestinian groups.In a joint statement, they said, "We urge the Israeli government to reverse...Saudi, Qatar slam Israel minister’s Palestinian town remarks
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia--Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Friday condemned a call by an Israeli minister for a flashpoint Palestinian town to be "wiped out", with Riyadh describing it as "racist and irresponsible".Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right member of Israel's coalition government, made his comments on Wednesday, days after two...Hungary unsure of shifting Israeli embassy to Jerusalem
"I also read news in the press,” the Hungarian President Novak said. “In Hungary, a decision so far has not been made on moving our embassy in Israel,” he added. “The ministry would provide updates on any changes to the embassy in all cases,” Hungary’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mate Paczolay...Palestinians form night vigil groups after Israeli settler attacks
Tensions are high, especially after the nearby Palestinian town of Huwara came under attack by Israeli settlers on Sunday, hours after two Israeli settlers were shot dead as they drove past.Israel police clash with protestors marching against judicial reform
Demonstrators in Tel Aviv blocked some streets, and police employed stun grenades, water cannon and officers on horseback in a rare use of force in the coastal city. Some 39 people were arrested for "allegedly rioting and not obeying instructions by police officials", police said in a statementPalestinians reel from Israeli reprisals in West Bank
Dozens of Israeli settlers set homes and cars ablaze in the northern town of Huwara overnight Sunday, after a day of Israeli-Palestinian talks in neighbouring Jordan aimed at quelling escalating unrest in the Palestinian territory. More than 350 Palestinians were injured, most suffering from tear gas inhalation, the Palestinian Red...Israeli settlers torch Palestinian homes, cars in West Bank
Dozens of Israeli settlers set homes and cars ablaze in the northern town of Huwara overnight, after a day of Israeli-Palestinian talks in neighboring Jordan aimed at quelling a surge in violence in the Palestinian territory. The violence came hours after two Israeli settlers -- brothers Yagel Yaniv and Hallel...