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Hungary plans to withdraw from ICC as Netanyahu arrives despite warrant

Hungary said Thursday it will begin the procedure of withdrawing from the world's only permanent global tribunal for war crimes and genocide. Hungary will withdraw from the International Criminal Court, Gergely Gulys, who is Prime Minister Viktor Orbn chief of staff wrote in a brief statement. The government will initiate the withdrawal procedure on Thursday, in accordance with the constitutional and international legal framework. The announcement came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, despite an international arrest warrant against him over his conduct of the war in the Gaza Strip. Hungary's government, led by right-wing populist Orbn, extended the invitation to Netanyahu in November after the ICC, based in the Hague, Netherlands, issued the warrant accusing him of crimes against humanity. Orbn, a close Netanyahu ally, has called the arrest warrant outrageously impudent and cynical. Member countries of the ICC, such as Hungary

More than 50 Palestinians killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on Gaza

Overnight strikes by Israel killed at least 55 people across the Gaza Strip, hospital officials said Thursday, a day after senior government officials said Israel would seize large areas of Gaza and establish a new security corridor across the Palestinian territory. Israel has vowed to escalate the nearly 18-month war with Hamas until the militant group returns dozens of remaining hostages, disarms and leaves the territory. Israel has imposed a month-long halt on all imports of food, fuel and humanitarian aid that has left civilians facing acute shortages as supplies dwindle. Officials in Khan Younis, in the southern part of the strip, said the bodies of 14 people had been taken to Nasser Hospital nine of them from the same family. The dead included five children and four women. The bodies of another 19 people, including five children aged between 1 and 7 years and a pregnant woman, were taken to the European hospital near Khan Younis, hospital officials said. In Gaza City, 21 bodie

Netanyahu rocked by new scandal as aides arrested for links with Qatar

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office is once again ensnared in scandal after police arrested two of his close associates this week on suspicion of accepting money from Qatar to promote a positive image of the Gulf Arab state in Israel. The affair has gripped Israelis because Qatar, a country that many view as a patron of Hamas, and which has no formal diplomatic ties to Israel, appears to have penetrated the highest corridors of power. Qatar, which is a key mediator for Hamas in its ceasefire negotiations with Israel, denies backing the militant group. Netanyahu has given a statement to police on the matter but is not a suspect in the case, which he says is baseless and meant to topple his rule. The investigation is just the latest scandal to roil Netanyahu, who is the subject of a long-running corruption trial and regularly rails against a deep state that is out to get him. Critics say Netanyahu, the country's longest-serving prime minister, has worked in recent years to ...

Israel to create new Gaza security corridor to pressure Hamas: Netanyahu

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel is establishing a new security corridor across the Gaza Strip to pressure Hamas, suggesting it would cut off the southern city of Rafah, which Israel has ordered evacuated, from the rest of the Palestinian territory. The announcement came after Netanyahu's defence minister said that Israel would seize large areas of Gaza and add them to its so-called security zones. A wave of Israeli strikes, meanwhile, killed more than 40 Palestinians, including several women and children, according to Palestinian health officials. Israel has vowed to escalate the nearly 18-month war with Hamas until the militant group returns dozens of remaining hostages, disarms and leaves the territory. Israel ended a ceasefire in March and has imposed a monthlong halt on all imports of food, fuel and humanitarian aid. Netanyahu described the new axis as the Morag corridor, using the name of a Jewish settlement that once stood between Rafah and Khan ..

Israel announces plan to seize parts of Gaza as military operation expands

Israel's military operation in the Gaza Strip is expanding to seize large areas of the Gaza Strip, the defence minister said Wednesday. Israel's offensive in the Palestinian territory was expanding to crush and clean the area of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure and capture large areas that will be added to the security zones of the State of Israel," Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a written statement. The defence minister called on Gaza residents to expel Hamas and return all hostages. The militant group still holds 59 captives, of whom 24 are believed to still be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages. Israel's offensive has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, including hundreds killed in strikes since a ceasefire ended about two weeks ago, according to Gaza's Health Ministr

At least 3 people killed in Israeli airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs

The Israeli military struck a building in Beirut's southern suburbs early Tuesday, killing at least three people, in an attack it said targeted a member of the Hezbollah militant group. The airstrike came without warning days after Israel launched an attack on the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Friday for the first time since a ceasefire ended fighting between Israeli forces and the Hezbollah militant group in November. At least seven other people were wounded in Tuesday's airstrike, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. The Israeli military said in a statement the latest strike targeted a Hezbollah member who had been helping the Palestinian Hamas group in the Gaza Strip in attacks against Israel. Here's the latest: Netanyahu withdraws his nomination to lead internal security agency Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has withdrawn his nomination of a former navy commander to lead the country's internal security agency after a flurry of criticism. Netanyahu's office sa

Fifteen aid workers found buried in Gaza, UN demands answers and justice

The Israel Defense Forces acknowledged last Friday that it had fired on ambulances and fire engines, saying they had identified them as "suspicious vehicles"

Israel strikes Beirut overnight, claims targeting Hezbollah official

The Israeli military struck a building in Beirut's southern suburbs early Tuesday, saying it targeted a member of the Hezbollah militant group. The airstrike came without warning days after Israel launched an attack on the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Friday for the first time since a ceasefire ended fighting between Israeli forces and the Hezbollah militant group in November. The Israeli military then had warned residents in the crowded suburbs before the attack after two projectiles were launched from southern Lebanon, which Hezbollah denied firing. The Israeli military said in a statement the latest strike targeted a Hezbollah member who had been helping the Palestinian Hamas group in the Gaza Strip in attacks against Israel. It said the attack was under the direction of the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic intelligence agency. Hezbollah did not comment on the strike. There was no immediate word on casualties. Photos and videos widely shared on local and social media showed the top .

Israeli troops killed 15 Palestinian medics, buried them in mass grave: UN

Palestinians held funerals Monday for 15 medics and emergency responders killed by Israeli troops in southern Gaza, after their bodies and mangled ambulances were found buried in an impromptu mass grave, apparently ploughed over by Israeli military bulldozers. The Palestinian Red Crescent says the workers and their vehicles were clearly marked as medical and humanitarian personnel and accused Israeli troops of killing them in cold blood. The Israeli military says its troops opened fire on vehicles that approached them suspiciously without identification. The dead included eight Red Crescent workers, six members of Gaza's Civil Defense emergency unit and a staffer from UNRWA, the UN's agency for Palestinians. The International Red Cross/Red Crescent said it was the deadliest attack on its personnel in eight years. Since the war in Gaza began 18 months ago, Israel has killed more than 100 Civil Defense workers and more than 1,000 health workers, according to the UN. The emergency tea

Israeli military orders mass evacuation of Gaza's southern city of Rafah

The Israeli military on Monday issued sweeping evacuation orders covering most of Rafah, indicating it could soon launch another major ground operation in the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip. Israel ended its ceasefire with the Hamas militant group and renewed its air and ground war earlier this month. At the beginning of March it cut off all supplies of food, fuel, medicine and humanitarian aid to the territory's roughly 2 million Palestinians to pressure Hamas to accept changes to the truce agreement. The evacuation orders appeared to cover nearly all of the city and nearby areas. The military ordered Palestinians to head to Muwasi, a sprawl of squalid tent camps along the coast. The orders came during Eid al-Fitr, a normally festive Muslim holiday marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. Israel launched a major operation in Rafah, on the border with Egypt, last May, leaving large parts of it in ruins. The military seized a strategic corridor along the border as well a

UAE conducts urgent evacuation of injured people, family members from Gaza

The patients departed from Ramon airport in Israel via Karam Abu Salam crossing to receive medical treatment in the country's hospitals

Gaza's bakeries may close within week under Israel's blockade of supplies

Gaza's bakeries will run out of flour for bread within a week, the UN says. Agencies have cut food distributions to families in half. Markets are empty of most vegetables. Many aid workers cannot move around because of Israeli bombardment. For four weeks, Israel has shut off all sources of food, fuel, medicine and other supplies for the Gaza Strip's population of more than 2 million Palestinians. It's the longest blockade yet of Israel's 17-month-old campaign against Hamas, with no sign of it ending. Aid workers are stretching out the supplies they have but warn of a catastrophic surge in severe hunger and malnutrition. Eventually, food will run out completely if the flow of aid is not restored, because the war has destroyed almost all local food production in Gaza. We depend entirely on this aid box, said Shorouq Shamlakh, a mother of three collecting her family's monthly box of food from a UN distribution center in Jabaliya in northern Gaza. She and her children reduce their meals

Hamas accepts new Gaza ceasefire proposal, Israel makes counter-offer

The Hamas militant group said Saturday it has accepted a new Gaza ceasefire proposal from mediators Egypt and Qatar, but Israel said it has made a counter-proposal in full coordination with the third mediator, the United States. Egypt early in the week made a proposal to get the troubled ceasefire back on track, following Israel's surprise resumption of fighting. It was not immediately clear whether the proposal changed before Khalil al-Hayyah, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, announced it had been accepted. Early in the week, an Egyptian official described the proposal to The Associated Press, saying Hamas would release five living hostages, including an American-Israeli, from Gaza in return for Israel allowing aid into the territory and a weekslong pause in fighting. Israel would release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media on the closed-door talks. On Saturday, the office of Israeli Prime ...

Hezbollah leader warns of action if Israeli attacks on Lebanon continue

The leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah group warned Saturday that if Israel's attacks on Lebanon continue and the Lebanese state does not act to stop them, the group will eventually resort to other alternatives. Naim Kassem's comments came a day after Israel launched an attack on Lebanon's capital for the first time since a ceasefire ended the latest Israel-Hezbollah war in November. The strike on Beirut came hours after two rockets were fired from Lebanon toward Israel and Hezbollah denied it fir Preview ed them. There was no immediate response from Israeli officials. Kassem was supposed to give his speech on Friday to mark Jerusalem Day that is usually held on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. However, it was postponed because of the Israeli airstrikes on different parts of Lebanon including a suburb of the capital. Jerusalem Day is an annual international day launched by Iran's first supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979 in which Iranians and many of ..

Israel anticipates more Indian tourists amid possible easing tensions

As gunfire echoed and smoke filled the air, a steadfast stream of pilgrims from Kerala made its way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Israel. Undeterred by the region's unrest, these devotees undertook a journey to the Holy Sepulchre, which houses Christ's tomb, driven by faith. For centuries, Christians worldwide have flocked to this revered site, and for Keralites, especially Christian faithfuls, its appeal remains strong. The data from the Israel Ministry of Tourism (IMOT) reveals that 9,600 Indian tourists visited Israel in 2024, with 50 per cent of them travelling for pilgrimage--most of them from Kerala. According to an IMOT spokesperson, in the current scenario, Israel expects more pilgrim tourists from Kerala. "We are expecting around 70,000 tourists travelling to Israel from India this year, and of this, 48 per cent are pilgrims," Amruta Bangera, Director of Marketing, IMOT-India told PTI. All the tourist attractions are completely safe, and the safety of tourists i

Israel hits Beirut for first time since ceasefire ended war with Hezbollah

Israel has launched an attack on Lebanon's capital for the first time since a ceasefire ended the latest Israel-Hezbollah war in November. Associated Press reporters in Beirut heard a loud boom and witnessed smoke rising from an area in the city's southern suburbs that Israel's military had vowed to strike. It marked Israel's first strike on Beirut since a ceasefire took hold last November between it and the Hezbollah militant group, though Israel has attacked targets in southern Lebanon almost daily since then. Israel's army said it hit a Hezbollah drone storage facility in Dahiyeh, which it called a militant stronghold. The strike came after Israel, which accuses Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields, warned residents to evacuate the area. The area struck is a residential and commercial area and is close to at least two schools. Israeli officials said the attack was retaliation for rockets it said were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel. They promised strikes on Bei

Israeli strikes kill family of 6, Hamas spokesman Abdel Qanoua in Gaza

Israeli strikes overnight and into Thursday killed a family of six and a Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip. A strike hit the tent where Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua was staying in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza, killing him, according to Basem Naim, another Hamas official. Another strike near Gaza City killed four children and their parents, according to the emergency service of Gaza's Health Ministry. Israel ended its ceasefire with Hamas last week, launching a surprise wave of strikes that killed hundreds of Palestinians. It has vowed to escalate the offensive if Hamas does not release hostages, disarm and leave the territory. Hamas has said it will only release the remaining 59 hostages 24 of whom are believed to be alive in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal.

Thousands of Palestinians protest in Gaza in rare call to end Hamas's rule

The demonstrations against Hamas have been largely peaceful, with the militant group's police and security forces rarely appearing in public

Mass protests erupt outside Israel Parliament before key judicial vote

Tens of thousands of Israelis flocked to Jerusalem on Wednesday to protest a bill that would change the way judges are selected. It's the latest in a series of anti-government demonstrations that have rocked the country in recent weeks. The proposed bill is up for a final vote overnight and is expected to pass. Critics say the changes would dangerously politicise the process of judicial appointments. An earlier version of the bill was a cornerstone of the sweeping overhaul of the judiciary launched by Prime Minister Netanyahu's government in early 2023. That process touched off months of mass protests that only ground to a halt after the October 7 attack triggered the war in Gaza. Israelis have taken to the streets for several days to protest the government's failure to secure a deal to free hostages held in Gaza and its recent moves to fire top legal and security officials, which many view as further steps that threaten the balance of powers in Israel.