Page 42 - Hamas

Yemen's Houthi rebels fire missiles at ship bound for their supporter Iran

The Star Iris had been heading from Brazil to Bandar Khomeini in Iran, the main backer and armer of the Houthis in Yemen's years-long war

Israeli military rescues 2 hostages from Hamas' captivity in Gaza Strip

The Israeli military said it rescued two hostages from captivity in the Gaza Strip early Monday. It identified the men as Fernando Simon Marman, 60, and Louis Har, 70. It said both men were kidnapped by Hamas militants from Kibbutz Nir Yizhak in the Oct. 7 cross-border attack that started the 4-month Israel-Hamas war. The rescue took place in the southern border town of Rafah. The army says both men are in good medical condition. They are among the 136 hostages that Israel says remain in Hamas captivity.

What would be the implications of collapse of Israel-Egypt peace treaty?

It was a warm handshake between the unlikeliest of statesmen, conducted under the beaming gaze of President Jimmy Carter. Sunlight streamed through the trees at Camp David, Maryland, as Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin solidified a landmark agreement that has allowed over 40 years of peace between Israel and Egypt. It has served as an important source of stability in a volatile region. That peace has held through two Palestinian uprisings and a series of wars between Israel and Hamas. But now, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to send Israeli troops into Rafah, a city in Gaza on the border with Egypt, the Egyptian government is threatening to void the agreement. Here's a look at the history of the treaty and what could happen if it is nullified. HOW DID THE TREATY ORIGINATE? It was 1977, and Begin, Israel's new prime minister, opposed ceding any of the land Israel had conquered a decade earlier in the 1967 Mideast war. Those lands

Gaza mediators warn Israel of disaster if it launches invasion on Rafah

Israel's neighbours and key mediators warned on Saturday of disaster and repercussions if its military launches a ground invasion in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, where Israel says remaining Hamas strongholds are located -- along with over half the besieged territory's population. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 44 Palestinians -- including more than a dozen children -- in Rafah, hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he asked the military to plan for the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people ahead of an invasion. He gave no details or timeline. The announcement set off panic. More than half of Gaza's 2.3 million people are packed into Rafah, which borders Egypt. Many fled there after Israeli evacuation orders that now cover two-thirds of the territory following the October 7 Hamas attack that sparked the war. It's not clear where they could go next. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said any Israeli ground offensive on Rafah would have "disastrous ...

UAE warns Israel against launching military operation in Rafah, Gaza

The Ministry reaffirmed the UAE's position, calling for a return to negotiations to achieve the two-state solution with an independent Palestinian state

Israel unveils tunnels underneath Gaza City HQ of UN agency for refugees

The Israeli military says it has discovered tunnels underneath the main headquarters of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees in Gaza City, alleging that Hamas militants used the space as an electrical supply room. The unveiling of the tunnels marked the latest chapter in Israel's campaign against the embattled agency, which it accuses of collaborating with Hamas. Recent Israeli allegations that a dozen staff members participated in the Hamas attack on Israel Oct. 7 plunged the agency into a financial crisis, prompting major donor states to suspend their funding as well as twin investigations. The agency says that Israel has also frozen its bank account, embargoed aid shipments and canceled its tax benefits. The army invited journalists to view the tunnel on Thursday. It did not prove definitively that Hamas militants operated in the tunnels underneath the UNWRA facility, but it did show that at least a portion of the tunnel ran underneath the facility's courtyard. The military

Israeli strikes kill 9 after Biden calls Israel's approach 'over the top'

At least nine people, including children and women, were killed in Israeli airstrikes overnight into Friday in the central area of the Gaza Strip and in the southern city of Rafah on the border with Egypt, witnesses and hospital officials said. The overnight airstrikes came hours after US President Joe Biden said Thursday that he considers Israel's conduct of the war to be over the top. The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, left Israel on Thursday as the divide grows between the two close allies on the way forward. More than half of Gaza's 2.3 million population has been driven by Israel's military offensive toward the border with Egypt. Unable to leave the tiny Palestinian territory, many are living in makeshift tent camps or overflowing UN-run shelters. The Palestinian death toll from the war has surpassed 27,840 people, the Health Ministry in Gaza said. A quarter of Gaza's residents are starving. The war began with Hamas' Oct 7 assault into Israel, in which militants kille

Netanyahu orders population of Gaza's Rafah evacuated ahead of invasion

Israel says Rafah is the last remaining Hamas stronghold and it needs to send in troops to complete its war plan against the Islamic militant group

India Inc shows signs of the Red Sea conflict in Q3FY24 performance

Capital goods and engineering companies - Bharat Electronics, TD Power Systems and KEC International, all have noted some operational strain owing to Red Sea woes

Hamas war: Israeli forces kill senior terrorist operative near Tulkarm

In the operation, the fighters also killed two armed terrorists who tried to escape from the house where the wanted man was staying

Netanyahu rejects Hamas cease-fire demands, vows to fight until victory

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected Hamas demands for a cease-fire and vowed to press ahead with Israel's military offensive in Gaza until achieving absolute victory. Netanyahu made the comments Wednesday shortly after meeting the visiting U.S. secretary of state, Antony Blinken, who has been traveling the region in hopes of securing a cease-fire agreement. We are on the way to an absolute victory, Netanyahu said, adding that the operation would last months, not years. "There is no other solution." He ruled out any arrangement that leaves Hamas in full or partial control of Gaza. He also said that Israel is the only power capable of guaranteeing security in the long term. Netanyahu also called for the replacement of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. Blinken was scheduled to give a news conference later Wednesday.

No Israeli ties unless Gaza 'aggression' halted, says Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has resumed talks with the US about forging closer defense ties after a pause following the start of the Israel-Hamas war, people familiar with the discussions said in late January

Government as job contractor

The govt's plan to send Indians abroad as labourers is seen as a practical acknowledgment of the constraints in the domestic economy. However, the larger issue here is an ethical one

Blinken to brief Israeli leaders on ceasefire, hostage talks as war rages

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was set to meet Israeli leaders on Wednesday as Hamas suggested it was open to a new ceasefire and hostage release deal, but both sides remain dug in on thus far elusive goals as the war enters its fifth month. The deadliest round of fighting in the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has killed over 27,000 Palestinians, levelled entire neighbourhoods, driven the vast majority of Gaza's population from their homes, and pushed a quarter of the population to starvation. Iran-backed militant groups across the region have conducted attacks, mostly on US and Israeli targets, in solidarity with the Palestinians, drawing reprisals as the risk of a wider conflict grows. Israel remains deeply shaken by Hamas' Oct 7 attack, in which militants burst through the country's vaunted defenses and rampaged across southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting some 250, around half of whom remain in captivity in Gaza. The Unit

Hamas proposes three-stage ceasefire over 135 days, leading to end of war

According to a draft document seen by Reuters, the Hamas counterproposal envisions three phases lasting 45 days each

Still seek complete ceasefire in Gaza, end to Israeli offensive, says Hamas

Hamas says it has responded in a positive spirit to the latest proposal from the US and Mideast mediators for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages. But the militant group said in a statement on Tuesday that it still seeks a comprehensive and complete" cease-fire to end "the aggression against our people". Israel has ruled out the kind of permanent cease-fire sought by the militant group. Qatar's prime minister said on Tuesday that Hamas' reaction to the latest plan for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages was generally positive" as he met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was making his latest visit to the Middle East. Qatar, which has long mediated with Hamas, has been working with the US and Egypt to broker a cease-fire that would involve an extended halt in fighting and the release of the over 100 hostages still held by Hamas after its October 7 cross-border raid that ignited the war nearly four months ago. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman ..

Qatar PM says Hamas had positive response to Gaza cease-fire proposal

Qatar's prime minister said on Tuesday that Hamas' reaction to the latest plan for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages was generally positive" as he met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was making his latest visit to the Middle East. Qatar, which has long mediated with Hamas, has been working with the US and Egypt to broker a cease-fire that would involve an extended halt in fighting and the release of the over 100 hostages still held by Hamas after its October 7 cross-border raid that ignited the war nearly four months ago. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani did not provide any details on Hamas' response but said the group had comments. Blinken confirmed that officials had received Hamas' response and said he would brief Israel's leaders when he visits the country on Wednesday. Hamas said in a statement that it responded in a positive spirit to the latest proposal from the US and Mideast mediators. But the militant group said it still seeks a ...

Hamas war: IDF carries out airstrike on Hezbollah site in Southern Lebanon

Meanwhile, the IDF has time and again responded by striking the terror group's cells and posts in southern Lebanon

Hamas deploys police, distributes funds in sign of resurgence in Gaza

Hamas has begun deploying police forces and making partial salary payments to some of its civil servants in Gaza City in recent days, resurfacing in areas from which Israel had withdrawn the bulk of its troops a month ago, four residents and a senior official in the militant group said on Saturday. Signs of a Hamas resurgence in the Gaza Strip's largest city underscore the group's resilience despite Israel's deadly air and ground campaign against it over the past four months. Israel has said it's determined to crush Hamas militarily and prevent it from returning to power in Gaza, an enclave it has ruled since 2007. In recent days, Israeli forces renewed strikes in the western and northwestern parts of Gaza City, including in areas where some of the salary distributions were reported to have taken place. Four Gaza City residents told The Associated Press that in recent days, uniformed and plainclothes police officers deployed near police headquarters and other government offices, ...

Gaza's economy post war could take decades to recover, says UN trade body

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development said the conflict had precipitated a 24% contraction in Gaza's GDP (gross domestic product) and a 26.1% drop in GDP per capita for all of 2023