Page 13 - Israel

Winter rain floods Gaza camps as Netanyahu heads for meeting with Trump

Winter rain lashed the Gaza Strip over the weekend, flooding camps with ankle-deep puddles as Palestinians displaced by two years of war attempted to stay dry in tents frayed by months of use. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu travelled for an expected meeting on Monday with US President Donald Trump in Florida about the second phase of the ceasefire. The first phase that took effect on October 10 was meant to bring a surge in humanitarian aid for Gaza, including shelter. Netanyahu made no public statement as he departed. Nowhere to escape In the southern city of Khan Younis, blankets were soaked and clay ovens meant for cooking were swamped. Children wearing flip-flops waded through puddles. Some people used shovels or tin cans to remove water from tents. Others clawed at the ground to pry collapsed shelters from the mud. "Puddles formed, and there was a bad smell," said Majdoleen Tarabein, displaced from Rafah in southern Gaza. "The tent flew away. We do not know what to

What is Somaliland and why Israel's recognition has stirred tensions?

Israel's recognition of Somaliland has triggered opposition from Somalia, the African Union and Arab nations while drawing a cautious response from the US

Palestinian attacker kills 2 in car-ramming, stabbing in northern Israel

A Palestinian attacker rammed his car into a man and then stabbed a young woman in northern Israel on Friday afternoon, killing both, police said. The Israeli military swiftly launched an operation in the assailant's hometown in the occupied West Bank. The attack started in the northern city of Beit Shean when the Palestinian man rammed his vehicle into people, killing one man and injuring a teenage boy. He then drove off onto a highway, where he fatally stabbed the woman, and injured another person near the entrance to the city of Afula. Authorities say the attacker was shot and injured in Afula. He was then taken to hospital; his condition was not immediately known. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified the victims as Aviv Maor, a teenager, and Shimshon Mordechai, 68. Paramedics pronounced both dead at the scene. Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that he was shocked by the "horrific killing spree". He said that Israel was "committed to reinforcing and strengtheni

Israel becomes 1st country to recognise Somaliland as independent state

Netanyahu said Israel now plans to expand cooperation with Somaliland across multiple sectors

14 nations condemn Israel's proposed new settlements in West Bank

According to the joint statement, the list includes the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Germany, Canada and Japan

Israeli Cabinet approves 19 new settlements in occupied West Bank

The approval increases the number of settlements in the West Bank by nearly 50 per cent during the current government's tenure

Israeli PM approves $35 bn gas export deal to Egypt, biggest in its history

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that he has approved a USD35 billion natural gas export deal to Egypt, the biggest gas deal in Israeli history. The agreement could also help repair relations between the two countries strained during the two-year war in the Gaza Strip. The gas will be delivered to Egypt over the next 15 years by US energy giant Chevron, a key owner of the gas field off Israel's coast in the Mediterranean Sea. Half of the proceeds are expected to go to Israel's state coffers. In a recorded video statement, Netanyahu said the deal "greatly strengthens Israel's position as a regional energy power, and it contributes to stability in our region. Egypt, which borders both Israel and Gaza, has served as a key mediator between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas group leading up to the US-brokered ceasefire that was agreed on in October. Cairo has also has been a vocal critic of Israel's offensive, which has killed tens of thousands of ...

Jaishankar holds talks with Israeli PM on deepening ties in mutiple sectors

Jaishankar expressed confidence that the Strategic Partnership will grow from strength to strength

Global politics in 2025: Protests, peace deals and shifting alliances

Nepal's Gen-Z protests, a fragile Gaza ceasefire and Donald Trump's return reshaped global politics in 2025, as nations grappled with unrest, wars and shifting alliances

IDF kills senior Hezbollah leader, 2 others in strike in southern Lebanon

In a separate post, the IDF stated that in the Yater area, it killed a Hezbollah operative who was involved in attempts to re-establish the group's terrorist infrastructure

Netanyahu, PM Modi to meet 'very soon', says Israel PMO after phone call

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday spoke to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi and the two leaders agreed to meet very soon, officials here said. Sharing about the talks between Netanyahu and Modi over the telephone, the Israeli PMO in a social media post said, At the end of the warm and friendly conversation, the two leaders agreed to meet very soon. The much-anticipated trip of the Israeli prime minister would come on the heels of several high-level ministerial visits from both sides. Minister of Tourism Haim Katz, Minister of Economy and Industry Nir Barkat, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Avi Dichter, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich had visited India earlier this year as the strategic partners build up momentum to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The two countries signed a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) during Smotrich's visit and then a Terms of Reference (TOR) leading to FTA during the visit of Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyu

Ceasefire enters tougher phase as Trump plan aims to reshape Gaza's future

With the remains of one hostage still in Gaza, the first phase of the US-brokered ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas is nearly complete, after a two-month process plagued by delays and finger-pointing. Now, the key players including Israel, the Palestinian militant Hamas group, the United States and a diverse list of international parties are to move to a far more complicated second phase that could reshape the Middle East. US President Donald Trump's 20-point plan which was approved by the U.N. Security Council lays out an ambitious vision for ending Hamas' rule of Gaza. If successful, it would see the rebuilding of a demilitarized Gaza under international supervision, normalized relations between Israel and the Arab world and a possible pathway to Palestinian independence. But if the deal stalls, Gaza could be trapped in an unstable limbo for years to come, with Hamas remaining in control of parts of the territory, Israel's army enforcing an open-ended occupation an

'Yellow line' under Trump's peace plan is new border: Israel military chief

Eyal Zamir, who is the chief of the general staff, said Israel would hold onto its current military positions, adding that those positions give it control of more than half of Gaza

Netanyahu cites 'close ties' with Trump, Modi as he defends his leadership

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a fiery speech at the Knesset (Israeli parliament) on Monday, defended his handling of the country's affairs, asserting that despite a wave of anti-semitism against the Jewish state, it enjoys an unprecedented support from many countries and leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Speaking during a so-called '40-signature debate', a parliamentary mechanism that allows the opposition to compel the Prime Minister to appear once a month at the Knesset forum, Netanyahu put up a strong defence of his government's policy on various fronts, including Israel's foreign relations. "Israel is today stronger than ever," he said. The Israeli Premier hit back at what the opposition described as the collapse of Israel's international standing, arguing that Israel remained diplomatically, militarily, and economically dominant despite its two years at war with Hamas, highlighting his ties to global leaders. Sitting through a series of scathing

As tensions flare on Israel-Lebanon border, communities struggle to rebuild

Ilan Rosenfeld walks through the burnt-out shell of his former business, stepping over crackling pieces of clay plates that used to line his cafe and past metal scraps of Hezbollah rockets littering the rubble. It's all that's left for him in this small, war-ravaged town the northernmost in Israel, surrounded on three sides by Lebanon. Everything I had, everything I saved, everything I built it's all burned, he said as he scanned the damage of the business he'd run for 40 years in Metula, which has long been at the crosshairs of flare-ups along the volatile border. Every day I wake up, and all I have left are tears. Rosenfeld was among tens of thousands of people forced from their homes when war broke out between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah in October 2023, following Hamas' attack in southern Israel. One year into a shaky ceasefire on this heavily fortified border, Israel's government says most of those displaced have returned to their homes in the north, where they .

Christmas celebrations return to Bethlehem after 2 years of war in Gaza

For the past two Christmases, John Juka's family restaurant looked about the same as any business in Bethlehem: shuttered and eerily empty. But on Saturday evening, it bustled with families and was lit by strings of red lights, a hopeful change in the Palestinian city that's been reeling since war broke out in Gaza. Christmas celebrations are slowly returning to the traditional birthplace of Jesus in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. While a shaky ceasefire holds in Gaza, Palestinians hope the festivities are a step toward a more peaceful future in a region shaken by tragedy. "It's not like it was before the war," 30-year-old Juka said. "But it's like life is coming back again." Muslim-majority city thrives on Christmas Tourism and religious pilgrims have long been a prime economic engine for Bethlehem. Around 80 per cent of the Muslim-majority city's residents live off it, according to the local government. Those earnings ripple out to communities across the West Bank, a territor

Gaza ceasefire is at critical moment as first phase winds down: Qatar PM

Qatar's prime minister on Saturday said the Gaza ceasefire has reached a critical moment as its first phase winds down, with the remains of just one Israeli hostage still held by militants in Gaza. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told an international conference in the Qatari capital that international mediators, led by the US, are working to force the way forward to the second phase to cement the deal. What we have just done is a pause, he told the Doha Forum. We cannot consider it yet a ceasefire. A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of Israeli forces, there is stability back in Gaza, people can go in and out, which is not the case today, he said. While the ceasefire halted the heavy fighting of the two-year war, Gaza health officials say that over 360 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the truce took effect in October. In new violence, two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike northwest of Gaza City, Shifa Hospit

Israel receives remains of possible hostage, plans to reopen Gaza crossing

Israel received remains of what could be one of the last hostages in Gaza on Wednesday and said it will begin allowing Palestinians to leave the war-torn territory through a border crossing with Egypt. The remains found by militants in northern Gaza have been returned to Israel, where they will be examined by forensics experts. Remains militants handed over on Tuesday did not match either of the last two hostages in Gaza. The return of all the hostages taken on the October 7, 2023, attack that started the war is a key element of the first phase of the ceasefire that began in October. In exchange, Israel has been releasing Palestinian prisoners. Under the terms of the ceasefire, the long-closed Rafah crossing is to be opened for medical evacuations and travel to and from Gaza. The World Health Organization says there are more than 16,500 sick and wounded people who need to leave Gaza for medical care. It was not immediately clear when the border crossing would be opened, however. E

India in talks with Israeli firm for world's 1st computerised rifle system

The Arbel system employs advanced sensors, real-time ballistic computation and target-acquisition capabilities to help soldiers achieve greater hit probability

Israeli forces kill 2 suspected Palestinian attackers in West Bank

Israeli forces on Tuesday shot and killed two suspected Palestinian assailants wanted in a pair of attacks that wounded three Israelis in the occupied West Bank. It was the latest burst of violence in the territory, where fighting has spiked in recent weeks. The Israeli military said that troops shot and killed a suspect who stabbed two soldiers as they were confronting him near Ateret, an Israeli settlement in the central West Bank. It said the incident was under review. Israel's Mada rescue service said two soldiers were lightly wounded. In the southern West Bank, the army said it shot and killed a Palestinian who had earlier carried out a car-ramming attack that wounded a female soldier. The army said the man attempted to flee as they tried to arrest him near the city of Hebron while endangering the soldiers and he was shot dead. The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the suspect as a 17-year-old resident of Hebron. The Israeli army has stepped up its activities in the We