Category: 2. Middle East

Another Palestinian detainee from the occupied West Bank city of Nablus died in Israeli detention amid accusations of Israeli ill-treatment of Palestinians in Israeli jails, prisoners’ affairs groups said today.

Twenty-year-old Mosab Audaily was serving a 13-month sentence in Israeli jails when he was pronounced dead last night at the Soroka Medical Centre in Beersheva in southern Israel, the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner…

Egypt’s Foreign Minister, Badr Abdelatty, said on Wednesday that the Gaza agreement signed on 19 January is the only way to achieve a sustainable truce and permanent ceasefire, and to secure the release of all captives. Abdelatty made his comment during a joint press conference in Cairo with his Polish counterpart, Radosław Sikorski.

“Egyptian efforts are ongoing to reach an agreement quickly stipulating the release of additional groups of captives, which…

Two senior Hamas officials yesterday firmly rejected any proposal for the disarmament of the movement or other Palestinian factions, stating that Hamas will soon submit an official response to the latest Israeli proposal following internal consultations with other factions in Gaza, Al-Aqsa TV reported.

Mahmoud Mardawi, a senior Hamas figure, told the channel: “The resistance’s weapons represent the life of the Palestinian people and cannot be relinquished…

A former head of the Mossad Hostages and Missing in Action unit, Rami Igra, has described the Israeli proposal for a prisoner exchange with Hamas as “the most difficult proposal ever presented” to the resistance movement, “which will not accept it.” Igra made his comment to Radio 103 FM on Wednesday.

“The biggest question, and perhaps from it we will understand where we stand, is why the State of Israel presented this proposal, which clearly no one will…

Turkiye has paused its bid to pursue a deal for F-16 fighter jets in order to prioritise its attempts to acquire F-35 fighter jets from the United States, amid Ankara’s potential reaccession into the advanced programme.

In recent weeks, Turkiye has increasingly made moves to persuade the US and its administration under President Donald Trump to allow it access back into the F-35 fighter jet programme, after Ankara was kicked out of the joint production venture…

The Israeli army is taking punitive measures against reserve doctors who signed a petition demanding the return of Israeli captives even if it requires ending the war on Gaza, according to the petition’s organisers in a statement issued on Wednesday. They explained that officers from the army’s main medical unit headquarters contacted doctors who signed the petition while serving in the reserves and asked them to “withdraw their signatures”. They noted…

Israel’s foreign minister is reportedly set to be coming to the United Kingdom for a secret visit this week, in what would be the most high-profile trip to the country by an Israeli official since it launched its offensive on the Gaza Strip a year and a half ago.

Five unnamed sources informed news outlet Middle East Eye that Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar will be visiting the UK this week, in a trip that was to be unannounced prior to his arrival.

Due…

German police yesterday arrested students during a demonstration supporting Palestine at Humboldt University in Berlin.

According to a report by Anadolu, a group of students entered the university building housing the Emil Fischer lecture hall to protest against Israel’s attacks on Gaza and the Berlin state government’s plans to deport four pro-Palestinian activists.

They hung banners on the building’s windows with messages such as: “You are complicit in…

Signature flamboyance is on the menu when the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest opens next month in Basel — but looming large over the festivities is Israel’s participation in the event.

Switzerland’s third-biggest city of Basel hosts this year’s extravaganza, which is one of world’s biggest annual live television events.

The contest, nearly 70 years old, will bring together 37 countries, and conclude with the final on May 17.

Israel has taken part since 1973, because its public broadcaster was in…

This weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is the final leg of the first ‘triple header’ of the season.

From Suzuka in Japan, to the desert of Bahrain, Formula One now pitches up on the shores of the Red Sea in Jeddah.

AFP Sport looks at five talking points ahead of the fifth round of the 24-race season:

Advantage McLaren

Oscar Piastri put in a faultless display from pole last Sunday in Sakhir to make it three wins out of four for the British marque.

That moved the cool as ice Australian to within…