Israel aims to ‘double population’ in annexed Golan
Israel aims to ‘double population’ in annexed Golan/node/2583172/middle-east
Israel aims to ‘double population’ in annexed Golan
Israeli military vehicles ride through Syria close to the ceasefire line between the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and Syria on December 15, 2024. (Reuters)
Israel aims to ‘double population’ in annexed Golan
Israel has occupied most of the Golan Heights since 1967 and annexed that area in 1981
Updated 16 December 2024
AFP
JERUSALEM: The Israeli government approved on Sunday a plan to increase the population of the annexed Golan Heights, while insisting it had no intention of confronting Syria after seizing a UN-monitored buffer zone.
As Islamist-led militant forces swept Syrian president Bashar Assad out of power last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered troops to seize the demilitarized zone between the two countries’ forces on the Golan Heights.
On Sunday, his office said the government approved a plan to double the population on the Israeli-held Golan Heights.
The government “unanimously approved” the 40 million shekel ($11 million) “plan for the demographic development of the Golan... in light of the war and the new front in Syria and the desire to double the population,” Netanyahu’s office said.
Israel has occupied most of the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau, since 1967 and annexed that area in 1981, a move recognized only by the United States.
Netanyahu said that “the strengthening of the Golan is that of the State of Israel, and it is particularly important at this time. We will continue to establish ourselves there, develop it and settle there.”
The occupied Golan is home to around 30,000 Israelis and about 23,000 Druze Arabs, whose presence predates the occupation and most of whom retain Syrian citizenship.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar swiftly denounced the Israeli move.
Riyadh’s foreign ministry expressed “condemnation and denunciation” of the plan in a statement, calling it part of the “continued sabotage of opportunities to restore security and stability in Syria.”
Doha said the Israeli declaration was a “new episode in a series of Israeli aggressions on Syrian territories and a blatant violation of international law.”
Last week, Netanyahu declared that the annexed Golan would be Israeli “for eternity.”
That followed an order he gave for troops to cross into the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces since 1974. Troops have also operated in some areas outside the buffer zone “to maintain stability,” according to the military.
Israel portrayed the move, which drew international condemnation, as a temporary and defensive measure after what Netanyahu’s office called a “vacuum on Israel’s border and in the buffer zone,” following Assad’s fall.
A UN official in New York confirmed to AFP that peacekeeping force UNDOF “has noted a number of daily instances of the IDF (Israeli army) operating to the east of the buffer zone.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered troops to “prepare to remain” in the buffer zone throughout the winter months.
In the aftermath of Assad’s overthrow, Israel launched hundreds of strikes on Syria targeting strategic military sites and weapons, including chemical weapons.
On Sunday, the Israeli premier said his country had “no interest in confronting Syria. Israel’s policy toward Syria will be determined by the evolving reality on the ground.”
In a video statement following a phone call with US president-elect Donald Trump, Netanyahu said Syria had attacked Israel in the past and allowed others including Lebanese Hezbollah to do so from its territory.
“To ensure that what happened in the past does not happen again, we have taken a series of intensive actions in recent days,” he said.
“Within a few days, we destroyed capabilities that the Assad regime had built over decades.”
The Islamist militant leader whose group spearheaded the offensive that toppled Assad on Saturday accused Israel of “a new unjustified escalation in the region” by entering the buffer zone.
However, Abu Mohammed Al-Golani, who now goes by his real name Ahmed Al-Sharaa, said that “the general exhaustion in Syria after years of war and conflict does not allow us to enter new conflicts.”
Washington in 2019 became the first and only country to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan, during Trump’s first term.
Israel has previously announced plans to increase the number of settlers in the Golan, with the government of then-premier Naftali Bennett approving a $317 million, five-year program to double the settler population in December 2021.
At the time, the Israeli population in the occupied Golan Heights was around 25,000.
Israel says it is cutting off its electricity supply to Gaza
Updated 6 sec ago
JERUSALEM: Israel says it is cutting off its electricity supply to Gaza. The full effects of that are not immediately clear, but the territory’s desalination plants receive power for producing drinking water. Sunday’s announcement comes a week after Israel cut off all supplies of goods to the territory to over 2 million people. It has sought to press Hamas to accept an extension of the first phase of their ceasefire. That phase ended last weekend. Hamas has pressed to start negotiations on the ceasefire’s more difficult second phase instead. Gaza has been largely devastated by the war, and generators and solar panels are used for some of the power supply.
US envoy says Gaza hostage deal possible ‘within weeks’
“I think something could come together within weeks... I think there is a deal where they can get all of the prisoners out, not just the Americans,” Boehler said
Updated 33 min 10 sec ago
AFP
WASHINGTON: The US hostage envoy who held unprecedented direct talks with Hamas said Sunday he was confident a deal could be reached “within weeks” to free all civilians still held by the Palestinian militants.
Speaking to CNN, Adam Boehler — a Jewish American — acknowledged it had been “odd” sitting face-to-face with leaders of a group that the United States has listed as a “terrorist” organization since 1997. The talks took place in recent weeks.
Boehler said he understood Israel’s “consternation” that the US had held talks at all with the group, but said he had been seeking to jump-start the “fragile” negotiations.
“In the end, I think it was a very helpful meeting,” he said, adding: “I think something could come together within weeks... I think there is a deal where they can get all of the prisoners out, not just the Americans.”
Boehler suggested there was a chance of further talks with the militants, telling CNN: “You never know. You know sometimes you’re in the area and you drop by.”
Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, taking 251 hostages — including a number of Americans. An estimated 58 hostages remain in Gaza.
Israel invaded Gaza in response, waging a relentless war for more than 15 months and displacing much of the population.
The first phase of a truce revolving around the release of some hostages ended earlier this month, and both sides are disputing when to move into the second phase, which aims at a more permanent peace.
Last week, US President Donald Trump threatened further destruction of Gaza if all remaining hostages were not released, issuing what he called a “last warning” to Hamas leaders.
“I understand the consternation and the concern” on Israel’s part at the talks, Boehler said, adding: “We’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel.”
He described his feelings on sitting across from the militants.
“I think when you walk and you sit in front of somebody, and you know what they’ve done, it’s hard not to think of it,” he said.
He said it was important to identify with their humanity, but admitted, “It definitely feels a little odd knowing what they really are.”
Hamas’s attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, according to official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,458 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The UN considers these figures reliable.
Frankly Speaking: Assessing the Arab League plan for Gaza
Saudi columnist Abdulrahman Al-Rashed says Arab League proposal may not be perfect, but presenting alternative to US and Israeli plans keeps negotiations moving
Believes President Trump should be given space to solve the Middle East crisis, but insists only the Palestinian Authority has legitimacy to govern Gaza
Updated 46 min 28 sec ago
Arab News
RIYADH: Although the Arab League’s plan for Gaza, announced at the Cairo summit on March 4, has faced outright rejection by the US and Israel, it still plays a crucial role in keeping negotiations alive, according to renowned Saudi columnist and political analyst Abdulrahman Al-Rashed.
Appearing on the Arab News current affairs program “Frankly Speaking,” Al-Rashed provided a candid assessment of the Arab League’s plan for postwar Gaza, how it stacks up against rival proposals, and the evolving political landscape in Lebanon, Syria, and Saudi Arabia.
The Arab League’s extraordinary summit took place last week in response to US President Donald Trump’s controversial suggestion that the US could take over Gaza, displace its Palestinian population to Egypt and Jordan, and redevelop the land as a leisure resort.
By contrast, the Arab League plan, which has won the backing of European leaders, calls for Gaza to be governed temporarily by a committee of independent experts and for international peacekeepers to be deployed to the territory.
The committee would be responsible for overseeing humanitarian aid and temporarily managing Gaza’s affairs under the supervision of the Palestinian Authority. The territory would be rebuilt at a cost of $53 billion without the need to displace the population.
“I think this leaves us with three plans now,” Al-Rashed told “Frankly Speaking” host Katie Jensen.
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed provided a candid assessment of the Arab League’s plan for postwar Gaza, how it stacks up against rival proposals, and the changing political landscape in Lebanon and Syria. (AN photos)
“One is the Arab League plan, which says people stay in Gaza and reconstruction should be done in five years. And the Israeli plan, which is basically occupation and probably continuation of military activities.
“And, of course, we have the Trump plan, which is ‘the riviera,’ two million people should leave, and reconstruction of the whole area to make it livable. I don’t know whether the two million will come back or not. But the three plans are now on the table.
“I am not really sure if the Cairo summit has succeeded in convincing the White House, but at least we have a plan. This is the point here — to negotiate.”
Despite concerns that the Israeli and Trump-backed proposals could amount to ethnic cleansing, Al-Rashed argued that the Cairo plan is essential in providing a framework for continued diplomatic engagement.
“This is really just a way to negotiate, to keep the momentum, so it’s not just Trump saying, ‘let’s have the two million people out’ and we have chaos in Egypt, Jordan, and the Middle East,” he said.
Al-Rashed admitted he was slightly cynical about the plan when he recently tweeted that Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit should present the proposals to Trump himself at the White House — even if it meant risking a public spat similar to that which erupted between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office.
“Mr. Aboul Gheit, in my opinion, should take the plan and take it directly to the Americans and talk to the Americans,” Al-Rashed said.
“We will have two possibilities. One, either they will negotiate and probably will reach an agreement, or probably Trump will do exactly what he did with Zelensky and say no, he will not accept it, he will push the Arab League to change the plan and come up with something more practical. So this is what I meant, actually.”
One of the primary objections to the Arab League’s plan stems from the role Hamas might play in Gaza’s future governance, particularly as Israel, the US, and many Western countries consider it a terrorist group, not least for its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel.
Asked if he believes that Hamas’s endorsement of the Cairo plan makes it harder to sell, Al-Rashed said the group has already shown willingness to step aside.
“Actually, Hamas made a statement almost close enough to say they accept the plan and they almost said that they are willing to accept whatever all Palestinian parties will agree to run Gaza, to manage Gaza,” he said. “So, I believe Hamas is getting closer to saying yes.”
However, he noted that while Hamas might agree to relinquish political control, the group has yet to commit to full disarmament.
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed provided a candid assessment of the Arab League’s plan for postwar Gaza, how it stacks up against rival proposals, and the changing political landscape in Lebanon and Syria. (AN photos)
Recent reports that the Trump administration has been in direct talks with Hamas came as a surprise to many observers. The US has issued an ultimatum, demanding the release of all remaining hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a lasting ceasefire.
While Al-Rashed sees this as a positive development, he criticized Hamas, which has been reticent about such a deal, for appearing to prioritize its public image over the well-being of Gaza’s population.
“I think we are right now on the edge of the second phase of the war,” he said. “So we will see, probably, more Israeli tanks roll into Gaza. And probably the warning might work like magic — probably Hamas will release most of the hostages or the remaining hostages in the coming weeks.”
He added: “I think the issue right now for Hamas is some sort of face-saving plan, something that will make Hamas look victorious, but they will not be in Gaza. I’m not really sure how it’s going to happen, but this is what is missing right now. It’s the Hamas image rather than, really, the lives of the two million Gazans or the remaining hostages.”
One positive, however, is that Egypt and Qatar have influence over Hamas, which could ease the process. “We have a window, a real window of solution this time, much more than before, after the conference,” Al-Rashed said.
“And I think the Egyptians and the Qataris have the leverage now. They can really pressure Hamas. And Hamas, if they accept the idea, will release all the rest of the hostages, they will have a safe passage from Gaza and they will live somewhere else, maybe Algeria or somewhere else. And the Palestinians, mainly the PA, rules Gaza.
“If this scenario happens — and I bet my money on it more likely — yes, we will have an end to hostility. I think Israelis will have some sort of supervision of Gaza. We will have the Palestinians finally at peace and we will have a new chapter start in the Middle East.”
However, Al-Rashed also criticized Israel’s refusal to consider a role for the Palestinian Authority or even the UN Relief and Works Agency in the governance of postwar Gaza.
“Right now, nothing will work unless we have a practical solution,” he said. “Trying to push two million people out is not a practical solution. It’s not going to happen. If it happens, it’s just, everybody will lose, including the Israelis.”
Al-Rashed insisted that the Palestinian Authority remains the most legitimate governing body for Gaza, despite its unpopularity in the West Bank.
“I think in terms of legitimacy, it is not Hamas, it is the PA,” he said. “The PA, the Palestinian Authority, is the one who has the legitimacy and is being recognized by everybody, including Western countries.”
Although events are hard to predict, Al-Rashed said he supports the view of Arab News columnist Hassan Yassin, who suggested in a recent op-ed that Trump’s unconventional style could help pave the way for a lasting peace in the region.
“I think we need to give President Trump the space and the chance because, look, Trump is not (Joe) Biden, and I think Trump is unique among all American presidents,” he said.
“He does definitely move mountains. And I think there is a great chance for the Middle East ... not only to sort out Gaza, but we can go beyond that to the two-state solution.”
He added: “Trump can convince anyone, to be honest, his own way; he has his own style. I’m sure (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu will not dare to treat Trump as he did Biden or (Barack) Obama before.
“Trump can make history and he can win the Nobel Prize. Definitely.”
Al-Rashed dismissed any notion that Egypt and Jordan might fight Israel over the displacement of Palestinians after Ayman Safadi, Jordan’s foreign minister, said such a move would amount to an act of war.
“I don’t think Jordan nor Egypt will go that far. I think these were the two best countries and governments in the region who know how to handle the crisis,” Al-Rashed said.
“They are concerned about the issue of Gaza. It’s just things going really too far in terms of devastation. We have more than 50,000 people killed there. We have Israeli hostages remaining there as well. So we are stuck.
“The issue here is how to get the Israeli hostages out, how to get Hamas out of Gaza, how to have peace in Gaza, and finally how to activate the peace plan. I don’t think what we heard about Egyptian and Jordanian readiness; I don’t take that seriously, honestly.”
Turning to Lebanon, Al-Rashed expressed optimism about the country’s future following the election of former army chief Joseph Aoun as president and former International Court of Justice judge Nawaf Salam as prime minister in January.
Having been trapped in the vortex of a major financial crisis since 2019 and more than two years without a formally recognized government, the country is now on track to make a recovery, not least from the recent conflict on its territory between Israel and Hezbollah.
Al-Rashed said President Aoun’s recent visit to Riyadh was indicative of the reset underway in relations between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon, but warned that Hezbollah — although significantly weakened by the conflict — remains a potentially destabilizing force.
“To a certain degree, the worst is behind us, but we still have problems,” Al-Rashed said. “Even with kitchen knives, Hezbollah could be a problem.”
He added: “Hezbollah, of course, are really facing a lot of problems right now. They have thousands of people who are running out of cash. They have houses destroyed. They have to be rebuilt. They have no routes to Iran anymore. They are disconnected from Iran.”
Discussing the downfall of the Bashar Assad regime in December and the rise of Ahmed Al-Sharaa’s transitional government in Syria, Al-Rashed said it was a significant shift for the region.
“I cannot really speak on behalf of Riyadh, but from my understanding, everyone — almost everyone — is extremely happy about the departure of the Assad regime,” he said. “It has been there for half a century. It was a contributor to chaos.”
Clashes between government security forces and suspected pro-Assad factions in the Alawite community escalated last week. The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has come out in full support of Al-Sharaa.
“Everyone extended their support to President Al-Sharaa, including Saudis,” Al-Rashed said. “He visited Riyadh. He made his first visit. And Saudis, they made sure to welcome him. So no excuse whatsoever that the new regime should be welcomed; of course, it is welcomed as long as it behaves like a normal one in the region.
“Saudi can contribute a lot to the development of Syria, but we need first, of course, to see the sanctions lifted. And this has to do with Washington more than with Riyadh. But yes, this is what we see right now — history in the making, definitely.”
He also warned against Israeli involvement with the Druze community in Syria, suggesting that moves toward creating a breakaway region led by the ethno-religious minority could create further instability.
“Israelis, whatever the objective is, they’re trying, of course, to create a buffer zone by encouraging bordering areas like the Druze area to be protected by them.”
Turning to Saudi Arabia, Al-Rashed reflected on the sweeping reforms implemented under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 agenda, which have positioned the Kingdom as a leading force for change in the region.
“We are seeing Saudi Arabia not only being developed and Saudi Arabia being moderate also in terms of Islam, but we are seeing a leadership that is trying to spread the word in the region and all over the Islamic world,” he said.
“Saudis will change the Islamic world, not just Saudi Arabia, as is already happening right now.”
Referring to the crown prince’s leadership, Al-Rashed said: “People, individuals make big changes in history. You have the leaders who make a big difference for their own countries. And I think the crown prince has shown his ideas and of course resilience from the beginning.”
Elaborating on the point, he said: “If you have listened to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the past 10 years, when he speaks to local or regional media, he talks about the economy, he talks about the welfare of the people, he talks about the future. These are three subjects which make a big difference.
“Unfortunately, politicians in the region spend 90 percent of their conversation about politics. And I think this is why Saudis have something called 2030, a vision for the future. And that is what everybody’s busy with.”
Qatar demands IAEA oversight of Israel’s nuclear facilities
Updated 09 March 2025
Arab News
DUBAI: Qatar on Saturday called for international efforts to bring all Israel’s nuclear facilities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The foreign ministry of Qatar, in a statement, called on Israel “to subject all its nuclear facilities to IAEA safeguards” and for Israel to join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
The statement followed a meeting of IAEA governors in Vienna attended by Jassim Yacoub Al-Hammadi, Qatar’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations in Vienna. The meeting addressed “the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel’s nuclear capabilities.”
Al-Hammadi noted during the meeting that “some of these resolutions explicitly urged Israel to join the NPT as a non-nuclear state.”
He also pointed out that “all Middle Eastern countries, except Israel, are parties to the NPT and have effective safeguard agreements with the agency.”
He further noted that Israel continues its aggressive policies, such as calls for a forced displacement of the Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, and its intensifying military operations in the West Bank, as well as the “obstruction of humanitarian aid to Gaza and continued restrictions on UNRWA’s operations.”
Qatar is a mediator for Gaza ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas.
Israeli air strike in Gaza ahead of new talks on truce with Hamas
Israel’s military said strike targeted militants who “were identified operating in proximity to IDF troops and attempting to plant explosive device” in Gaza
Updated 09 March 2025
AFP
GAZA CITY: Israel carried out an air strike on militants in northern Gaza on Sunday, rattling an already fragile ceasefire as it prepared for fresh talks in Doha on the future of its truce with Hamas.
The Palestinian militant group has repeatedly called for an immediate start to negotiations on the ceasefire’s second phase, which it hopes will lead to a permanent end to the war.
However, Israel says it prefers an extension of phase one until mid-April.
The disagreement over how to proceed came as the deal’s first phase ended at the start this month, with Israel cutting off aid to the territory over the impasse.
Hamas representatives met mediators in Cairo over the weekend, emphasising the urgent need to resume humanitarian aid deliveries to the besieged territory “without restrictions or conditions,” a Hamas statement said.
“Hamas stresses the urgency of forcing the occupation to immediately begin second-phase negotiations under the agreed parameters,” senior Hamas leader Mahmoud Mardawi told AFP, adding this would pave the way for a permanent end to the fighting.
Hamas’s key demands for the second phase include a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, an end to the Israeli blockade, the reconstruction of the Palestinian territory and financial support, Mardawi said.
Following talks with mediators, Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif Al-Qanoua said indicators were so far “positive.”
A Hamas source said Sunday its delegation had now left Cairo for Doha.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it would send delegates to the Qatari capital on Monday, and Israeli media reported the security cabinet would discuss the matter later on Sunday.
Despite the end of the truce’s initial phase, both sides have refrained from returning to all-out war, though there have been sporadic episodes of violence.
Israel’s military said its air strike Sunday targeted militants who “were identified operating in proximity to IDF troops and attempting to plant an explosive device in the ground in northern Gaza.”
The truce largely halted more than 15 months of fighting in Gaza, where virtually the entire population was displaced by Israel’s relentless military campaign in response to Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack.
The six-week first phase revolved around the exchange of 25 living Israeli hostages and eight bodies for the release of about 1,800 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
It also allowed much-needed food, shelter and medical assistance to re-enter Gaza.
After Israel again cut off the aid flow over the disagreement on the truce extension, UN rights experts accused the government of “weaponizing starvation.”
“To date, only 10 percent of the required medical supplies have been allowed in, exacerbating the crisis,” Gaza health ministry spokesman Khalil Al-Dakran said, adding that the “continued closure of the crossings threatens the lives of patients in Gaza.”
Displaced Palestinian widow Haneen Al-Dura told AFP she and her children spent weeks living on the street “among dogs and rats” before receiving a tent.
“As the family’s provider, it was distressing and I couldn’t sleep at all during the night,” she said.
Last week, US President Donald Trump threatened further destruction of Gaza if all remaining hostages were not released, issuing what he called a “last warning” to Hamas leaders.
He also alluded to repercussions for all Gazans, telling them: “A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD!“
Hamas said Trump’s threats would only encourage Israel to ignore the terms of the truce.
The Trump administration has also confirmed the start of unprecedented direct talks with Hamas, which Washington had previously refused contact with since designating it a terrorist organization in 1997.
Of the 251 hostages taken by the Palestinian militants during the October 7 attack, 58 remain in Gaza, including five Americans. Four American captives have been confirmed dead, while one, Edan Alexander, is believed to be alive.
Trump had previously floated a widely condemned plan to expel Palestinians from Gaza, prompting Arab leaders to offer an alternative.
Their proposal would see Gaza’s reconstruction financed through a trust fund, with the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority returning to govern the territory.
“We need more discussion about it, but it’s a good-faith first step,” Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, told reporters in Washington in response to the Arab plan.
Witkoff will be returning to the region this week as he travels to Saudi Arabia for talks on the war in Ukraine.
At a weekend rally in Tel Aviv, family members of Israeli hostages demanded the government fully implement the ceasefire.
“The war could resume in a week,” Einav Zangauker, the mother of Matan Zangauker, told the crowd.
“The war won’t bring the hostages back home, it will kill them.”
Hamas’s attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, according to official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,458 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The UN considers these figures reliable.
