Israel says no change in defense policy for ‘now’

Israel says no change in defense policy for ‘now’
A man carries the body of a girl killed during Israeli bombardment on the Al-Nassr school that houses displaced Palestinians, West of Gaza city, on August 4, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the militant Hamas group. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 05 August 2024
Follow

Israel says no change in defense policy for ‘now’

Israel says no change in defense policy for ‘now’
  • Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's killing last week has triggered fears of regional conflict
  • Israel’s statement comes amid warnings of retaliation from Iran, Lebanon-based Hezbollah 

JERUSALEM: Israel’s army said Sunday it had not changed “as of now” its policy for protecting civilians, as Iran and Hezbollah are expected to avenge killings blamed on Israel of two senior members.
“I would like to refer tonight to the various reports and rumors that we are on alert for the enemy’s response to the territory of the State of Israel,” military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in an online briefing to journalists.
“I emphasize that as of now there is no change in the Home Front Command’s defense policy,” he said of a branch of the army that deals with the protection of civilians in times of war and emergency, including natural disasters.
Hagari and other top Israeli military and government officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have repeatedly said the country is prepared for any attack.
But Hagari said that Israel’s protection is not “hermetic.”
“We strive to give you the necessary warning to prepare for any threat,” he said.
“The protection is not hermetic. Therefore, every citizen is required to know what the instructions are, wherever he is and to be vigilant.”
Hagari also announced that the Home Front Command has launched a new system to alert citizens in the event of any emergency.
“The alert will be sent to mobile phones in the area under threat,” he said.
“This is done without the need for an application and without any action on the part of the citizen.”
Fears that the almost 10-month-old Gaza war could become a regional conflict after the killings Tuesday of Hezbollah top commander Fuad Shukr in a Beirut suburb and Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh the following day in Tehran.
Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah have vowed to avenge the deaths which they blame on Israel.
Israel has claimed responsibility for killing Shukr but remained silent on Haniyeh’s death.
Hezbollah has been trading near-daily cross-border fire with Israel since war erupted in Gaza on October 7 following Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel.


Tunisia Jewish pilgrimage sees low turn out amid security concerns

Tunisia Jewish pilgrimage sees low turn out amid security concerns
Updated 2 sec ago
Follow

Tunisia Jewish pilgrimage sees low turn out amid security concerns

Tunisia Jewish pilgrimage sees low turn out amid security concerns
The pilgrimage to the Ghriba synagogue, Africa’s oldest, has in the past drawn thousands of pilgrims from Europe, Israel and beyond
This year’s activities were restricted to indoor events at the place of worship

DJERBA, Tunisia: Only about 30 people turned up Thursday at this year’s Jewish pilgrimage on Tunisia’s island of Djerba amid safety concerns following a deadly 2023 attack and as the war in Gaza rages on.
The pilgrimage to the Ghriba synagogue, Africa’s oldest, has in the past drawn thousands of pilgrims from Europe, Israel and beyond, attracting international and local tourists as well.
But after a 2023 deadly attack on the synagogue that killed two worshippers and three police officers, fewer pilgrims have been turning out to make the pilgrimage.
“It has been difficult for people to come, given what’s happening in the world,” Rene Trabelsi, the event organizer, told AFP.
“The pilgrimage has gone through many difficult periods in its history,” he said.
This year’s activities were restricted to indoor events at the place of worship.
“In 30 years, I have never seen the Ghriba synagogue so empty,” said Khoudhir Hanya, the synagogue’s manager.
“Usually even a week beforehand, pilgrims begin to arrive — sometimes up to 1,000 people.”
Earlier this month, a knife attack injured a local Jewish jeweller, but Trabelsi said it was unclear whether it was motivated by anti-Semitism, as authorities have not provided further details.
The pilgrimage is at the heart of Jewish tradition in Tunisia, where only about 1,500 members of the faith still live — mainly on Djerba. Many have left for Israel and France.
Organizers say more than 5,000 people, mostly from abroad, attended the pilgrimage in 2023, whereas up to 8,000 pilgrims had attended in previous years.
Security at the synagogue had already been tightened after previous attacks.
A suicide truck bombing in 2002, claimed by Al-Qaeda, killed 21 at the synagogue, and another attack in 1985 killed four worshippers and a police officer.

US top diplomat Rubio meets Syrian counterpart; discuss Israel, human rights

US top diplomat Rubio meets Syrian counterpart; discuss Israel, human rights
Updated 13 min 19 sec ago
Follow

US top diplomat Rubio meets Syrian counterpart; discuss Israel, human rights

US top diplomat Rubio meets Syrian counterpart; discuss Israel, human rights
  • Rubio underscored the critical importance of protecting the human rights of all Syrians

ANTALYA: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan Al-Shaibani in Turkiye on Thursday, the State Department said in a statement.

“(Rubio) welcomed the Syrian government’s calls for peace with Israel, efforts to end Iran’s influence in Syria, commitment to ascertaining the fate of US citizens missing or killed in Syria, and elimination of all chemical weapons,” the department said.

“The Secretary underscored the critical importance of protecting the human rights of all Syrians regardless of ethnicity or religion,” the department said.


UN rules out role in US-backed foundation’s Gaza aid operation

UN rules out role in US-backed foundation’s Gaza aid operation
Updated 42 min 45 sec ago
Follow

UN rules out role in US-backed foundation’s Gaza aid operation

UN rules out role in US-backed foundation’s Gaza aid operation
  • UN participates in aid operations if they are in accordance with its basic principles, spokesperson says

UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations on Thursday ruled out involvement with a new US-backed foundation for aid to Gaza, as Israel’s months-long blockade brings severe shortages to the war-battered territory.
“I made it clear that we participate in aid operations if they are in accordance with our basic principles,” said UN spokesman Farhan Haq.
“As we’ve stated repeatedly, this particular distribution plan does not accord with our basic principles, including those of impartiality, neutrality, independence, and we will not be participating in this,” he added.
The US State Department said last week the non-governmental foundation would soon announce its plans, effectively sidelining the UN.
Israel has imposed a blockade for over two months on Gaza, leading UN agencies and other humanitarian groups to warn of shrinking fuel and medicine supplies to the territory of 2.4 million Palestinians.
Since returning to office in January, US President Donald Trump has stopped the vast majority of the country’s international assistance.
Israel has already leveled most of Gaza’s buildings following militants’ unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack on the country.
But it has rejected claims that a humanitarian crisis is unfolding and has vowed to increase pressure on Hamas.
Israel has long criticized involvement of the UN, seeing it as biased, and has banned work of the UN agency that supports Palestinian refugees.
Little is known about the new organization, although a listing in Switzerland showed the establishment in February of the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.”
Swiss newspaper Le Temps earlier reported that the foundation was looking to hire “mercenaries” to work in the distribution of aid, sparking alarm in Amnesty International’s Swiss chapter.
Haq said: “The UN have a plan, an excellent plan, that is ready to be implemented as soon as we’re allowed to do our work.”
“I’ve talked about how we have trucks ready to go. We have more than 171,000 metric tons of food, on top of other life-saving supplies, and they’re ready to go the minute that Israel opens the gates,” he added.
But Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the UN, called on UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to “recalculate” the body’s approach to what would be a “major” operation.
He added that Israel would not be contributing to its costs, but would allow it to go ahead.
“We will not fund those efforts. We will facilitate them,” he said.
“We will enable them. Some of them will have to cross through territory that we operate, but we will definitely not fund them.”


At UN Nakba commemoration, Palestinian president urges action on Gaza

At UN Nakba commemoration, Palestinian president urges action on Gaza
Updated 15 May 2025
Follow

At UN Nakba commemoration, Palestinian president urges action on Gaza

At UN Nakba commemoration, Palestinian president urges action on Gaza

UNITED NATIONS: Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, at a UN event Thursday commemorating the Nakba, urged more action to end the war in Gaza, linking the historical displacement during Israel’s creation to the current conflict.

The United Nations has since 2023 commemorated the “Nakba” — “catastrophe” in Arabic — which refers to the flight and expulsion of an estimated 700,000 Palestinians during the creation of the State of Israel in 1948.

This year the anniversary is particularly painful, as Palestinians say history is being repeated in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Tens of thousands have been killed in Gaza and an aid blockade threatens famine, while Israeli leaders continue to express a desire to empty the territory of Palestinians as part of the war sparked by Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 attack.

“History is indelible and justice is not time bound,” Abbas said in a speech read out here by the Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour.

“Today we stand before you, not only to commemorate the somber anniversary, but to renew the pledge that the ‘Nakba’ was not and will not be the permanent and inevitable faith of our people.”

Abbas said the war Israel has been waging for 19 month is a continuation of the “Nakba,” with the world standing by as Israel engages in “genocide” and starvation.

He said Israel’s goal was to remove the Palestinians from Gaza and steal land that should be part of a sovereign Palestinian state.

“The time has come for real and effective international action to stop this historic injustice and ongoing tragedy which has become a disgrace to humanity,” Abbas said.

The UN General Assembly is scheduled to hold a conference in June to promote a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It will be co-sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia.

“Peace will require tangible, irreversible and permanent progress toward the two-state solution, an end to the occupation and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, with Gaza as integral part,” said Khaled Khiari, assistant secretary-general for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific.

 


Satellite images show Israel’s aid distribution hubs under construction in Gaza

Satellite images show Israel’s aid distribution hubs under construction in Gaza
Updated 15 May 2025
Follow

Satellite images show Israel’s aid distribution hubs under construction in Gaza

Satellite images show Israel’s aid distribution hubs under construction in Gaza
  • BBC Verify says satellite images show work underway on sites believed to be part of Israeli’s control of aid supplies
  • Israel has cut all aid into the territory since March, leading to increasing fears over famine

LONDON: Israel has started building distribution hubs in southern and central Gaza under plans to control aid supplies in the territory, the BBC reported on Thursday. 

Satellite images showed four sites being prepared in Gaza, including three near Rafah in the south.

Israel cut off all aid supplies into Gaza in March after ending a ceasefire and resuming widespread bombing of the devastated territory.

Israel said that it will only allow aid into Gaza once it has prepared its new distribution system and taken over operations from the UN and aid groups. 

Aid agencies warned last week that the Israeli plans will increase suffering and death in Gaza. The plan is also staunchly opposed by Arab and European governments.

The report by BBC Verify said that analyzes of the satellite images showed land had been cleared, with new roads and staging areas prepared in recent weeks.

The sites are similar in size and design to existing distribution hubs in Gaza. 

One of the sites in the south is near a new Israeli military base, and images from early April showed a large staging area and new road surrounded by defensive berms 650 meters from the border with Egypt.

An image from May 8 showed earth-moving machinery working on an eight-hectare area of land.

Images from May 11 and May 12 showed the three other sites expanding, with one located half a kilometer from UN warehouses. 

An imagery intelligence analyst told the BBC that the sites were likely to be secure distribution centers and that some were in “close proximity to IDF forward operating bases, which ties in with the IDF wishing to have some control over the sites.”

The newly created US-backed NGO, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, said on Wednesday that it would begin work distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza this month but has urged Israel to resume aid flow immediately through the existing distribution systems.

The Israeli plans to focus the distribution hubs in the south has led to accusations that Israel aims to force the Palestinian population into that area.

Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation has become even more desperate, with food security experts warning this week that Gaza will soon descend into famine if the blockade is not lifted.