Category: 2. Middle East

France is not ruling out imposing sanctions on Israel if vital humanitarian aid isn’t allowed into the besieged Gaza Strip, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said today.

Called the situation in Gaza “unacceptable”, Barrot urged immediate action.

“The Israeli Prime Minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] must heed the near-unanimous call of the international community, deeply shocked by the catastrophic situation in Gaza, to implement a ceasefire and to allow the…

More than 295 million people faced acute hunger last year, a new high driven by conflict along with other crises — and the outlook is “bleak” for 2025 as humanitarian aid falters, a UN-backed report said Friday.

It was the sixth consecutive annual increase in the number of people hit with “high levels” of acute food insecurity, according to the Global Report on Food Crises.

A total of 295.3 million people endured acute hunger last year — almost a quarter of the population in 53 of the 65…

France will file a complaint against Iran at the International Court of Justice for what it says is a violation of its obligation to grant consular protection to French nationals detained in Iran, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said today.

“Today, I am filing a complaint before the International Court of Justice against Iran for violating its obligation to grant the right to consular protection,” Barrot said in an interview with France 2 television.

The Israeli occupation authorities banned Muslim Palestinian worshippers from performing the fajr – dawn – prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron this morning, the Palestinian Information Centre reported.

Local sources said that Israeli occupation forces fired stun grenades at the worshippers and forced them to perform their prayers outside the mosque.

The step falls in line with escalating repressive measures against the…

China reiterated its call for a two-state solution towards an independent State of Palestine to move past the Nakba of Palestinians “forever”.

Mentioning how in the 1948 Nakba, when Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes to make for the creation of the occupation state of Israel, Chinese Ambassador to the UN, Geng Shuang, told a UN event commemorating the Nakba yesterday: “Today… the historical injustice suffered by the Palestinian people…

Families of Israeli captives expressed serious concern today over the fate of their loved ones as the Israeli occupation army escalated its attacks on the Palestinian enclave.

In a statement, the families said they “woke up this morning with heavy hearts and great concern in light of reports about increased attacks in Gaza and the imminent conclusion of [US] President [Donald] Trump’s visit to the region.”

Over the past several days, Israel has intensified…

Cristiano Ronaldo topped Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid athletes for the third consecutive year and the fifth time in his career, Reuters reports.

Following his move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr, Ronaldo’s estimated total earnings are around $275 million.

The Portuguese forward increased his income by $15 million through off-field endorsements as well as lucrative sponsorship deals backed by his large social media followers: 939 million in…

US President Donald Trump said today that the United Arab Emirates and the United States have agreed to create a path for the Gulf country to buy some of the most advanced artificial intelligence semiconductors from US companies, Reuters reports.

The deal, which was finalised yesterday during Trump’s visit to Abu Dhabi, is a major win for the UAE, which has been trying to balance its relations with its longtime ally the US and its largest trading partner…

More than 100 Palestinians were killed in several attacks carried out by the Israeli occupation army in northern Gaza at daybreak today.

Medical sources told Anadolu that the Israeli occupation army carried out “horrific massacres” targeting civilians.

They reported several casualties when the Israeli army targeted an ambulance in the town of Jabalia in northern Gaza, the latest in a series of attacks on medics and healthcare facilities.

“Since early…