Category: 2. Middle East

The Palestinian Authority (PA) yesterday lifted its ban on the Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera and its staff in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The suspension, which had come into place in January, was justified by the PA on grounds of what it called “repeated violations of Palestinian laws and regulations.”

Al Jazeera had faced criticism from the Palestinian Authority and the ruling Fatah movement, led by President Mahmoud Abbas, for what they viewed as biased reporting and…

More than 550 former officials from Israel’s security establishment have urged US President Donald Trump to use his visit to the Middle East to help end the war on Gaza and secure the release of captives held in the Strip.

The appeal came in a letter sent on Sunday by Commanders for Israel’s Security, a group that includes hundreds of former senior figures from the Israeli occupation military, intelligence agency (Aman), the Mossad, and internal security…

Hamas yesterday slammed Israeli settlers who attempted to slaughter a lamb in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound to mark the Jewish holiday of Passover, and described it as a “dangerous escalation” that calls for mobilisation, Anadolu reported.

Earlier yesterday, Al-Aqsa Mosque guards prevented Israeli settlers from bringing a lamb into the mosque for slaughter.

Hamas described the settlers’ attempt as a “flagrant violation” of Islamic sanctities which calls…

Israel yesterday claimed to have intercepted a missile coming from Yemen, after Tel Aviv launched a series of air strikes on the Red Sea city of Hudaydah, Hebrew media outlets reported.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported that “the missile launched from Yemen fell before reaching Israel.” There was no comment from the Houthis on the Israeli claims.

The missile came hours after the Houthis announced that Israeli aircraft had launched a series of air…

A months-long Israeli blockade is worsening acute malnutrition in the Gaza Strip, medical charity Medecins du Monde warned on Tuesday, accusing Israel of using hunger as “a weapon of war”.

Israel halted all aid from entering the war-ravaged Palestinian territory on March 2, days before resuming its offensive triggered by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.

The United Nations and aid agencies have repeatedly warned of a growing humanitarian catastrophe for the roughly 2.4 million people…

The United States Treasury Department yesterday imposed sanctions on two Iranian individuals and one company, a day after the fourth round of talks were held between Tehran and Washington in Oman.

The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said the new sanctions target Iranian nationals Mohammad Reza Seddiqi Sabir and Ahmad Haghighat Talab.

Pouya Tarh Pars engineering Company was also added to the sanctions list.

According to the US Treasury…

The Israeli occupation military resumed its attacks on the Gaza Strip late last night, killing a Palestinian woman and critically injuring a child following a temporary lull so Hamas could release Israeli-American soldier Edan Alexander, Anadolu reported.

The shelling targeted the Al-Daraj neighbourhood, an Anadolu reporter said, citing medical sources.

A shell struck near Al-Ramlah School, which shelters displaced families in the same neighbourhood.

In a…

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has condemned the United States’ plan to “forcibly transfer” migrants to Libya where “inhumane detention conditions are well-documented, including torture, ill-treatment, sexual assault, and unlawful killings.”

In a statement issued on Friday, the rights watchdog said the US plan is a “dangerous step resembling previous European cooperation with Libyan authorities on migration,” which could make “Washington complicit in…

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) has announced a new plan aimed at encouraging ships to travel through the canal after many changed courses to the Cape of Good Hope due to recent Red Sea security concerns.

According to local media, SCA Chairman, Admiral Osama Rabie, revealed that the authority is currently studying a proposal to offer shipping companies discounts of up to 15 per cent on transit fees. This initiative comes in response to a noticeable drop in…