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  • Israel kills senior Gaza commanders as rockets cause first death in Israel


Israel kills senior Gaza commanders as rockets cause first death in Israel

Palestinian rescue workers walk amid rubble after Islamic Jihad commander Ahmed Abu Daqqa was killed in an Israeli strike, in the southern Gaza Strip May 11, 2023. (Reuters)
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Updated 11 May 2023
HAZEM BALOUSHA
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Israel kills senior Gaza commanders as rockets cause first death in Israel

  • 28 Palestinians killed in blockaded enclave since Tuesday
  • ‘Occupation forces continuing to target people safe in their homes’
Updated 11 May 2023
HAZEM BALOUSHA

GAZA CITY: Israeli military aircraft on Thursday bombed an apartment building in a residential complex in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Yunis, killing three Palestinians and wounding seven.

Islamic Jihad announced the killing of Ali Hassan Ghali, the commander of the rockets program of Saraya Al-Quds, the body’s military wing, during the attack, along with his brother Mahmoud and his nephew.

Ghali is the fourth prominent military commander killed by Israel during the current round of fighting that started before dawn on Tuesday.

He is a member of the military council and leads the military wing of Islamic Jihad.

The Israeli warplanes also completely destroyed three homes in Khan Yunis in the south, and Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, after warning its residents to evacuate, without causing any injuries.

“The Zionist occupation continues to target people who are safe in their homes and apartments with US-manufactured missiles, which the occupation planes struck again, targeting a residential building in Hamad Town in Khan Yunis,” the militant group said in a statement.

It said the attack led to the “martyrdom” of three people and the destruction of homes, apartments and residential buildings.

“The policy of assassination by bombing residential buildings will not give the enemy victory, and the upcoming strikes will reveal its weakness and impotence,” the statement added.

It said the “martyrdom of Commander Ali Ghali will not stop the rocket fire, and the Al-Quds Brigades are able to expand and increase the beam of fire.”

On Wednesday morning, the Palestinian Ministry of Health announced that the number of victims of the Israeli bombing had risen to 25 Palestinians, including six children and four women, and that more than 70 others were injured, with some of them in critical condition.

Palestinian militants continued to fire rockets at Israeli towns, despite the Israeli bombardment of various areas in the Gaza Strip, the largest of which was on the city of Tel Aviv on Wednesday evening.

Tariq Selmi, spokesman for the Islamic Jihad in Gaza, said: “The resistance is capable of confronting the occupation’s attacks and inflicting casualties on its ranks.”

The Israeli bombardment, and the firing of missiles from Gaza, continue amid attempts by Egypt and other parties to reach a ceasefire that will restore calm to the Gaza Strip.

Officials of Islamic Jihad had traveled to Cairo for the talks — most notably Muhammad Al-Hindi — the political official from the organization in the Gaza Strip, who is currently living in Istanbul.

“We received an invitation from our Egyptian brothers to discuss the details of the ceasefire, and a number of leaders traveled to Cairo for that,” Selmi told Arab News.

The Palestinian group requires that Israel stop the “assassination” policy against its leaders and Palestinian factions, in addition to returning the body of Khader Adnan, who died in an Israeli prison after a hunger strike.

“A ceasefire agreement will not be reached without the occupation’s pledge to completely stop the policy of assassinations,” the spokesman said.

The residents of the Gaza Strip continue to suffer as a result of the continued fighting with Israel, and the closure of the Erez and Kerem Shalom crossings.

The government’s information office stated that “the occupation prevented the supply of fuel needed for the only power plant in the Gaza Strip for the third day in a row, threatening the continuation of the work of the power plant and its ability to produce electricity.”

The statement added: “The quantities of fuel have begun to run out, and the countdown to shutting down the station has begun, which foreshadows a humanitarian, health and environmental crisis in the Gaza Strip.”

An Israeli political official, in a statement distributed to Hebrew-language media from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, said: “We will not stop the policy of assassinations, and we will not return the body of Khader Adnan under any conditions.”

The official added that “there are continuous contacts, and we did not promise Egypt anything, and we will not accept any conditions.”

Topics: Israel-Palestine Conflict Gaza

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US envoy has first meeting in Sudan with army chief

US Special Envoy for Sudan Tom Perriello (C) is welcomed by local officials upon his arrival in Port Sudan on November 18, 2024.
Updated 8 sec ago
AFP
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US envoy has first meeting in Sudan with army chief

  • Experts say both sides have stonewalled peace efforts as they vie to gain a decisive military advantage, which neither has managed to hold for long
Updated 8 sec ago
AFP

PORT SUDAN, Sudan: A US special envoy on Monday made his first visit to Sudan for talks with the country’s army chief and de facto leader to discuss aid and how to stop the war.
Tom Perriello met Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan in the Red Sea city for what Burhan’s ruling Sovereignty Council called “long, comprehensive and frank” talks.
It said Burhan and Perriello discussed “the roadmap for how to stop the war and deliver humanitarian aid.”
The envoy’s visit came as Russia on Monday vetoed a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate end to hostilities in Sudan.
Sudan’s war erupted in April 2023 between the regular army led by Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
It has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people and the displacement of 11 million, according to the United Nations.
The conflict has also resulted in what has been described as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises in recent history.
A US State Department release said Perriello “engaged in frank dialogue with Sudanese officials.”
It said these centered “on the need to cease fighting, enable unhindered humanitarian access, including through localized pauses in the fighting to allow for the delivery of emergency relief supplies, and commit to a civilian government.”
Monday’s visit was the special envoy’s first to Port Sudan, the Red Sea city where government offices and the UN have relocated since fleeing the war-torn capital Khartoum.
It is also the first diplomatic overture in months, since Sudan’s military opted out of US-brokered negotiations in Switzerland.
Experts say both sides have stonewalled peace efforts as they vie to gain a decisive military advantage, which neither has managed to hold for long.
Perriello’s trip comes after repeated failed efforts at mediation.
The statement from Burhan’s office said Perriello expressed the “shared ambition for an end to the war to put a stop to the atrocities and violations we have witnessed recently.”

Writing on social media platform X, the US envoy welcomed “recent progress to expand humanitarian access.”
“As the largest aid donor to Sudan, we will work around the clock to ensure that food, water and medicine can reach people in all 18 states plus refugees,” Perriello posted.
Peace efforts, including by the United States, Saudi Arabia and the African Union, have only succeeded in marginally increasing access to humanitarian aid, which both the military and the RSF are accused of blocking.
International pressure has managed to secure government authorization for aid to be delivered through Adre, a key border crossing with Chad and the only access point to famine-stricken Darfur in western Sudan.
However, on Monday Burhan told Perriello his government rejects “the exploitation of the Adre crossing to deliver weapons to the rebels,” a reference to the RSF’s reported use of the border as a weapons supply route.
Monday’s Russian veto at the UN came with the Security Council largely paralyzed in its ability to deal with conflicts because of splits between permanent members, notably Russia and the United States.
 

 

Topics: Sudan Unrest Sudan US

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Yemen’s Houthi militants linked to ship attacks in Red Sea and Gulf of Aden

Updated 1 min 32 sec ago
AP;
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Yemen’s Houthi militants linked to ship attacks in Red Sea and Gulf of Aden

  • The ship’s captain saw a missile splashing in close proximity to the vessel twice, once in the Red Sea and the second time in the Gulf of Aden.
Updated 1 min 32 sec ago
AP;

DUBAI: Suspected attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militants targeted a Panama-flagged bulk carrier traveling through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, though no damage or injuries were reported, authorities said Monday.
The attacks come as the the militant group continue their months long assault targeting shipping through a waterway that typically sees $1 trillion in goods pass through it a year over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and Israel’s ground offensive in Lebanon.
The bulk carrier Anadolu S first had been contacted over VHF radio by someone claiming to be authorities in Yemen, demanding the ship turn around, said the Joint Maritime Information Center, a multinational task force overseen by the US
“The vessel did not comply with the order and continued its transit,” the center said.
The ship’s captain later saw that “a missile splashed in close proximity to the vessel” as it traveled in the southern Red Sea near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting to the Gulf of Aden in the first attack late Sunday night, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said in an alert. The attack happened some 30 miles (48 kilometers) west of Yemen port city of Mocha.
On Monday, another attack some 70 miles (112 kilometers) southeast of Aden in the Gulf of Aden similarly saw a missile splash down close to the vessel, the UKMTO said.
“The vessel and crew are safe and proceeding to its next port of call,” the UKMTO added.
The Houthis did not immediately claim the attacks. However, it can take the group hours or even days to acknowledge their assaults.
The Houthis have targeted more than 90 merchant vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October 2023. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign, which also killed four sailors. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a US-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets, which have included Western military vessels as well.
The Houthis maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the US or the UK to force an end to Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza. The Joint Maritime Information Center said the Anadolu S had an “indirect association to Israel.” However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.
The Houthis have shot down multiple American MQ-9 Reaper drones as well.
In their last attack on Nov. 11, two US Navy warships targeted with multiple drones and missiles as they were traveling through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, but the attacks were not successful.

Topics: Red Sea Houthi attacks Gaza Lebanon;

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Nearly 100 food aid trucks violently looted in Gaza, UN agencies say

Updated 29 min 47 sec ago
Reuters
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Nearly 100 food aid trucks violently looted in Gaza, UN agencies say

  • This is one of the worst aid losses during 13 months of war in the besieged enclave
  • 98 of 109 trucks in convoy were raided and some transporters were injured
Updated 29 min 47 sec ago
Reuters

GENEVA/CAIRO: Nearly 100 trucks carrying food for Palestinians were violently looted on Nov. 16 after entering Gaza in one of the worst aid losses during 13 months of war in the enclave, where hunger is deepening, two UN agencies told Reuters on Monday.
The convoy transporting food provided by UN agencies UNRWA and the World Food Programme was instructed by Israel to depart at short notice via an unfamiliar route from Kerem Shalom border crossing, said Louise Wateridge, UNRWA Senior Emergency Officer.
Ninety-eight of the 109 trucks in the convoy were raided and some of the transporters were injured during the incident, she said, without detailing who carried out the ambush.
“This ... highlights the severity of access challenges of bringing aid into southern and central Gaza,” she told Reuters.
“⁠The urgency of the crisis cannot be overstated; without immediate intervention, severe food shortages are set to worsen, further endangering the lives of over two million people who depend on humanitarian aid to survive.”
The Hamas TV channel Al-Aqsa quoted Hamas interior ministry sources in Gaza as saying that over 20 gang members involved in looting aid trucks were killed during an operation carried out by Hamas security forces in coordination with tribal committees.
It said anyone caught aiding such looting would be treated with “an iron fist.”
A WFP spokesperson confirmed the looting and said that many routes in Gaza were currently impassable due to security issues.
An Israeli official said Israel had been working to address the humanitarian situation since the start of its war against Hamas, adding that the main problem with aid deliveries was UN distribution challenges.
A UN aid official said on Friday that access for aid to Gaza had reached a low point, with deliveries to parts of the Israeli-besieged north of the enclave all but impossible. Israel’s devastating military campaign in Gaza was triggered by the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel. 

 

Topics: Gaza Israel

UNESCO ‘enhanced protection’ for 34 Lebanon heritage sites

Updated 40 min 1 sec ago
AFP
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UNESCO ‘enhanced protection’ for 34 Lebanon heritage sites

  • Baalbek and Tyre ‘will receive technical and financial assistance from UNESCO’
Updated 40 min 1 sec ago
AFP

PARIS: Dozens of heritage sites in Lebanon were granted “provisional enhanced protection” by UNESCO on Monday, offering a higher level of legal shielding as fighting continues between Israel and Hezbollah militants.
The 34 cultural properties affected “now benefit from the highest level of immunity against attack and use for military purposes,” the United Nations cultural body said in a statement.
Several Israeli strikes in recent weeks on Baalbek in the east and Tyre in the south — both strongholds of Iran-backed Hezbollah — hit close to ancient Roman ruins designated as World Heritage sites.
UNESCO said the decision “helps send a signal to the entire international community of the urgent need to protect these sites.”
“Non-compliance with these clauses would constitute ‘serious violations’ of the 1954 Hague Convention and... potential grounds for prosecution,” it added.
Hezbollah and Israel have been at war since late September, when Israel broadened its focus from fighting Hamas in the Gaza Strip to securing its northern border, even as the Gaza war plows on.
UNESCO’s move followed an appeal Sunday by hundreds of cultural professionals, including archaeologists and academics, to activate the enhanced protection.
Baalbek and Tyre “will receive technical and financial assistance from UNESCO to reinforce their legal protections, improve risk anticipation and management measures, and provide further training for site managers,” the body said.

Topics: Battlefield Lebanon Lebanon UNESCO Israel Hezbollah

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Refugees who escaped from war-torn Tuti Island speak of hunger, disease

A Sudanese army soldier mans a machine gun on top of a military pickup truck outside a hospital in Omdurman on November 2, 2024.
Updated 48 min 52 sec ago
AFP
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Refugees who escaped from war-torn Tuti Island speak of hunger, disease

  • Charity kitchens have been forced to close in Tuti and elsewhere in the capital Khartoum due to lack of funding and supplies, and high prices
Updated 48 min 52 sec ago
AFP

JUBA: Mohammed Awad and his family are among dozens who escaped Sudan’s Tuti Island earlier this year amid a siege by the Rapid Support Forces, finding refuge at a shelter after surviving for months on scant food and the risk of disease.
The island in the middle of the Nile serves as a microcosm for the devastation unleashed by a war that began in April 2023.
More than 61,000 people are estimated to have died in Khartoum state during the first 14 months of Sudan’s war, significantly more than previously recorded, according to a new report.
Activists report that the Rapid Support Forces charged people large sums to evacuate them.

HIGHLIGHT

More than 61,000 people are estimated to have died in Khartoum state during the first 14 months of Sudan’s war.

“There is no good food, and there’s a lot of diseases, there is no sleep, no safety,” Awad said, holding one of his children at the shelter for displaced residents in Omdurman, an army-controlled refuge. The island is one of 14 places across Sudan at risk of famine, according to experts. Dengue fever has ravaged Tuti, a close-knit farming community.
Sarah Siraj, a mother who left with her two children, said six or seven people were dying daily, and that she was only able to have her children treated for dengue, a mosquito-borne disease, once she reached Omdurman.
Charity kitchens have been forced to close in Tuti and elsewhere in the capital Khartoum due to lack of funding and supplies, and high prices.
Rabeea Abdel Gader, a nutrition guide, has been treating newly arrived families at a city shelter.
“We ask the mother about what they eat ... Sometimes the mother responds with her tears,” she said.
Meanwhile, Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on Monday calling for an immediate end to hostilities in Sudan.

 

Topics: Sudan Unrest Sudan

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