GAZA CITY: Khader Al-Najjar has been unable to leave the Gaza Strip since he returned to the Palestinian territory 25 years ago, not even to seek medical treatment for a spinal ailment or to bid farewell to his mother, who died in Jordan last year.
The reason: Israel refused to allow the Palestinian Authority to issue him a national ID. That made it virtually impossible to leave, even before Israel and Egypt imposed a punishing blockade when the Hamas militant group seized control of Gaza in 2007.
In recent months, Israel has approved residency for thousands of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza in an attempt to ease tensions while maintaining its decades-long control over the lives of more than 4.5 million Palestinians.
“My suffering was huge,” said Al-Najjar, a 62-year-old carpenter, who described a “nightmarish” series of failed attempts to get permits to leave the tiny coastal territory. Now he is among more than 3,200 Palestinians in Gaza who will soon get a national ID.
That will make it easier to travel, but he will still have to navigate a maze of bureaucratic obstacles linked to the blockade. Israel says the restrictions are needed to contain Hamas, while rights groups view the blockade as a form of collective punishment for Gaza’s 2 million Palestinians.
Israel withdrew soldiers and settlers from Gaza in 2005, and Hamas drove out PA forces two years later. But Israel still controls the Palestinian population registry, a computerized database of names and ID numbers. The Palestinians and most of the international community view Gaza as part of the occupied territories.
An estimated tens of thousands of Palestinians do not have legal residency, making it virtually impossible to cross international borders or even the Israeli military checkpoints scattered across the West Bank. Most are people who returned to the territory after living abroad, and Israel refused to place them into the registry.
Ahed Hamada, a senior official in the Hamas-run Interior Ministry, says there are more than 30,000 status-less residents in Gaza alone.
Israel agreed to grant residency to some 13,500 Palestinians in what it presented as a goodwill gesture following recent meetings between Defense Minister Benny Gantz and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. It is the first batch since peace talks broke down more than a decade ago.
Israel’s current government, which consists of parties that support and oppose Palestinian statehood, has ruled out any major initiatives to resolve the conflict but has said it wants to improve living conditions in the territories. It also wants to shore up the increasingly unpopular PA, which governs parts of the West Bank and coordinates security with Israel.
In a statement after meeting with Abbas, Gantz pledged to continue advancing “confidence-building measures in economic and civilian areas.”
Palestinians in Gaza rejoiced and danced as they lined up to receive letters from the PA’s civil affairs authority that will allow them to apply for national IDs and passports. Some shed tears of joy, while others looked on distraught after learning they were not on the list.
Hamas, which has fought four wars with Israel — most recently in May — criticized the Abbas-Gantz meetings, saying they “deviate from the national spirit” of the Palestinian people.
The residency issue dates back to 1967, when Israel seized east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza in a war with neighboring Arab states. The Palestinians want the three territories to form their future state alongside Israel.
Israel conducted a census three months after the war and only registered Palestinians who were physically present. Israel later allowed some without legal status to visit family on visitor permits. Many Palestinians returned after the Oslo accords in the 1990s and overstayed their permits, hoping their status would be resolved in a final peace agreement that never materialized. Family unifications largely ground to a halt after the outbreak of the second intifada, or Palestinian uprising against Israeli rule, in 2000.
Palestinians are also largely prohibited from moving to the West Bank from Gaza. The latest approvals grant West Bank residency to some 2,800 Palestinians who moved there from Gaza prior to 2007 and who had been at risk of deportation.
Gisha, an Israeli rights group that advocates freedom of movement, says that by presenting the expansion of residency as a goodwill gesture, Israel is merely repackaging something it is obliged to do under international law.
“This is a start, in some ways, but this whole problem has been created by Israel’s stringent policies toward Palestinians under occupation,” said Miriam Marmur, a spokeswoman for Gisha. “There are of course thousands that remain status-less and millions that are still subject to the permit regime.”
Al-Najjar, who lived in Jordan before moving to Gaza, was one of the lucky ones. This month he, his wife and their four children were all granted residency. “Thank God, I can go and visit my sisters and my family (in Jordan) now that we have passports,” he said.
Foreign nationals — mostly Palestinians born in other countries — who have married Palestinians in the territories have found themselves in a similar predicament.
Tareq Hamada said he is still waiting to get residency for his wife, a Palestinian who moved to Gaza from Kuwait in 1997. He said she has dreamed her whole life of making the Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah but has been unable to do so.
Fayeq Al-Najjar, a distant relative of Khader, tried to return to Gaza from Libya in 2008 but was turned away by Egypt because he did not have a national ID. Instead, he snuck in through the smuggling tunnels on the Egyptian border that have since been largely destroyed. He has applied for an ID but does not know if he will be granted one.
“I have sisters in Egypt who I wish to visit,” he said. “I’m 60 years old, when will I get an ID? When I’m on death’s doorstep?“
Some Palestinians get legal status after years in Gaza limbo
https://arab.news/597yx
Some Palestinians get legal status after years in Gaza limbo
- Palestinians and most of the international community view Gaza as part of the occupied territories
- An estimated tens of thousands of Palestinians do not have legal residency, making it virtually impossible to cross international borders or even the Israeli military checkpoints scattered across the West Bank
France congratulates new Lebanon president, calls for ‘strong government’
- French foreign ministry said Joseph Aoun's election “opens a new page" for Lebanon
PARIS: France on Thursday welcomed the election by Lebanese lawmakers of army chief Joseph Aoun as president after a two-year vacuum at the top, urging the formation of a strong government to drag the country out of a political and economic crisis.
Extending France’s “warm congratulations” to Aoun, the French foreign ministry said his election “opens a new page for the Lebanese” and urged “the appointment of a strong government” that can help the country recover.
Italian foreign minister to meet Syria's new rulers in Damascus
- Antonio Tajani said he would push Syria’s transitional government to pursue an “inclusive political process”
ROME: Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Wednesday he would travel to Syria Friday where he plans to announce an initial development aid package for the country ravaged by years of war.
Tajani’s trip follows those by his French and German counterparts, who visited the Syrian capital last week to meet Syria’s new rulers after they toppled Bashar Assad's regime in a lightning offensive last month.
“It is essential to preserve territorial integrity and prevent (Syria’s) territory from being exploited by terrorist organizations and hostile actors,” Tajani told parliament.
Western powers have been cautiously hoping for greater stability in Syria, a decade after the war triggered a major refugee crisis that shook up European politics.
Tajani did not provide any details about what he called a “first package of aid for cooperation and development.”
Tajani said he would push Syria’s transitional government to pursue an “inclusive political process” that “recognizes and enhances the role of Christians as citizens with full rights.”
Ahead of his trip, Tajani is set Thursday to meet with the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Britain and the United States over the Syria situation, with the drafting of a new constitution and Syria’s economic recovery on the agenda.
The EU’s foreign affairs chief, Kaja Kallas, was expected in Rome for the meeting.
Thousands of Alawites mourn 3 killed by foreign Islamists: monitor, witness
- “Thousands of mourners gathered at the funeral of three Alawite farmers from the same family,” said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
- The civilians were killed on Wednesday in the village of Ain Sharqia
DAMASCUS: Thousands of Syrians from ousted President Bashar Assad’s Alawite community mourned on Thursday three civilians killed by foreign Islamist allies of the country’s new authorities, a war monitor and an attendee said.
Since Assad’s ouster, violence against Alawites, long associated with his clan, has soared, with the monitor recording at least 148 killings.
“Thousands of mourners gathered at the funeral of three Alawite farmers from the same family, including one child, killed by foreign Islamist fighters allied to Syria’s new authorities,” said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.
The civilians were killed on Wednesday in the village of Ain Sharqia, in the Alawite heartland of Latakia province, the Observatory said.
“Down with the factions,” some of those in attendance chanted in reference to armed groups, according to footage shared by the monitor.
Mourner Ali told AFP that people had called for those responsible for the killings to be punished and for foreign fighters to leave so that local policemen affiliated with the new authorities could take their place.
“We can’t have people die every day,” he said, asking to be identified only by his first name to discuss sensitive matters.
“We want security and safety to prevail; we support the transitional authorities. We do not want any more killings after today.”
Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Observatory, told AFP the mourners also demanded that Syria’s new rulers free thousands of detained soldiers and conscripts.
The Alawite community was over-represented in the country’s now-defunct armed forces.
On Tuesday, three Alawite clerics were also killed by unknown gunmen on the road from Tartus to Damascus, the monitor said.
Another cleric and his wife were found dead in the Hama countryside Thursday after they were abducted a day earlier.
Last month, angry protests broke out in Syria over a video showing an attack on an Alawite shrine, with the Observatory reporting one demonstrator killed in Homs city.
Syrian authorities said the footage was “old” and that “unknown groups” were behind the attack, saying republishing the video served to “stir up strife.”
The alliance spearheaded by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), which seized Damascus and ousted Assad on December 8 after a lightning offensive, has sought to reassure minority communities in the Sunni Muslim majority country.
Assad had long presented himself as a protector of minority groups.
Lebanon’s new president promises to rebuild what ‘Israel has destroyed’
- The Mediterranean country has been without a president since the term of Michel Aoun ended in October 2022
BEIRUT: Newly elected Lebanese president Joseph Aoun has promised to rebuild what the Israeli occupation has destroyed, in a speech before parliament after taking his oath of office.
The Lebanese state will be able to remove Israeli occupation and the effects of its aggression, Aoun said, after hurdling the second round of voting in parliament to become the country’s new president.
“I promise to reconstruct what Israel destroyed in the south and Beirut’s southern suburbs,’ he said.
The newly elected president also touched on the Palestinian issue, saying he rejects the settlement of Palestinian people and guaranteed their right to return.
He also pledged to work towards the best of relations with Arab countries, and cooperate with Syria to control the borders from both sides.
The Mediterranean country has been without a president since the term of Michel Aoun – not related – ended in October 2022, with tensions between the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement and its opponents scuppering a dozen previous votes.
During parliament’s first session on Thursday morning, 71 out of 128 lawmakers voted in favor of the army commander, short of the required 86, in the first round of the vote.
Thirty-seven members of parliament voted blank, including 30 lawmakers from the pro-Hezbollah bloc, according to a source close to it.
Twenty ballots were declared null and void.
Aoun received 99 votes during the second round, more than the minimum votes required for him to be voted into office.
But international pressure has mounted for a successful outcome with just 17 days remaining in a ceasefire to deploy Lebanese troops alongside UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon after a Hezbollah-Israel war last autumn.
Speaker Nabih Berri then suspended the session until 2:00 p.m. sparking outrage from some lawmakers who demanded an immediate second vote.
The president’s powers have been reduced since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war. But filling the position is key to overseeing consultations toward naming a new prime minister to lead a government capable of carrying out reforms demanded by international creditors.
Lebanon’s divided political elite usually agrees on a consensus candidate before any successful parliamentary vote is held.
Aoun, who will turn 61 on Friday, appears to have the backing of the United States and key regional player Saudi Arabia.
US, Saudi and French envoys have visited Beirut to increase pressure in the run-up to the vote.
Pope Francis on Thursday expressed hope that Lebanon could “possess the necessary institutional stability... to address the grave economic and social situation.”
Several lawmakers have objected to what they see as foreign interference in the vote.
In protest, some rendered their ballot void by voting for “sovereignty and the constitution,” a reference to the fact that Aoun’s election would also require a constitutional amendment.
Under Lebanon’s constitution, any presidential candidate must have not held high office for at least two years. Aoun is still head of the army, after extending his mandate past his planned retirement.
Critics have accused Hezbollah and allies of scuppering previous votes.
But a full-fledged war between Israel and Hezbollah last autumn dealt heavy blows to the Shiite militant group, including the death of its longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah in an air strike.
In neighboring Syria, Hezbollah has lost a major ally after militants toppled President Bashar Assad last month.
Under multi-confessional Lebanon’s power-sharing system, the president must be a Maronite Christian. Aoun is Lebanon’s fifth army commander to become president, and the fourth in a row.
Military chiefs too are, by convention, Maronites.
The new president faces daunting challenges, with the truce to oversee on the Israeli border and bomb-damaged neighborhoods in the south, the east and the capital to rebuild.
Since 2019, Lebanon has been gripped by the worst financial crisis in its history.
The Hezbollah-Israel war has cost Lebanon more than $5 billion in economic losses, with structural damage amounting to billions more, according to the World Bank.
UN migration agency appeals for $73 million in aid for Syria
- UN’s International Organization for Migration more than doubling an appeal launched last month for Syria
- The Geneva-based agency said it was working to reestablish its presence inside Syria
GENEVA: The UN migration agency on Thursday expanded an aid appeal for Syria to over $73 million, as the country transitions after years of civil war and decades of dictatorship.
The United Nations’ International Organization for Migration said it was more than doubling an appeal launched last month for Syria, from $30 million to $73.2 million, with the aim of assisting 1.1 million people across Syria over the next six months.
“IOM is committed to helping the people of Syria at this historical moment as the nation recovers from nearly 14 years of conflict,” IOM chief Amy Pope said in a statement.
“IOM will bring our deep experience in humanitarian assistance and recovery to help vulnerable communities across the country as we work with all partners to help build a better future for Syria.”
The Geneva-based agency said it was working to reestablish its presence inside Syria, after exiting Damascus in 2020, building on its experience working there in the preceding two decades, as well as on its cross-border activities in the past decade to bring aid to northwest Syria.
It said it aimed “to provide immediate assistance to the most at-risk and vulnerable communities, including displaced and returning groups, across Syria.”
The requested funds, it added, would be used to provide essential relief items and cash, shelter, protection assistance, water, sanitation, hygiene and health services.
They would also go to providing recovery support to people on the move, including those displaced, or preparing to relocate.
The dramatic political upheaval in Syria after the sudden ousting last month of strongman Bashar Assad after decades of dictatorship has spurred large movements of people.
Half of Syria’s population were forced from their homes during nearly 14 years of civil war, with millions fleeing the country and millions more displaced internally.
The UN refugee agency has said it expects around one million people to return to the country in the first half of this year.
And by the end of 2024, the UN humanitarian agency had already recorded the returns of nearly 500,000 people who had been internally displaced inside Syria, IOM pointed out.
