Israeli airstrikes overshadow French-US ceasefire push in Lebanon

Update Israeli airstrikes overshadow French-US ceasefire push in Lebanon
An Israeli military helicopter approaches Haifa’s Rambam hospital before landing there on October 11, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 12 October 2024
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Israeli airstrikes overshadow French-US ceasefire push in Lebanon

Israeli airstrikes overshadow French-US ceasefire push in Lebanon
  • Israeli planes target villages in Iqlim Al-Kharoub, and the districts of Jbeil and Batroun
  • Hezbollah targets Safed, Tiberias, settlements and military bases with rocket, drone strikes

BEIRUT: International diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon gathered pace on Saturday against a backdrop of destruction in southern border towns, the Bekaa, and Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri received a phone call from French President Emmanuel Macron, while US presidential envoy to Lebanon Amos Hochstein called Prime Minister Najib Mikati to discuss the deadly Israel-Hezbollah confrontation.
Macron said that he is “making the necessary contacts” to prevent Israel from continuing its ground military operations, but said that “the Lebanese must take the necessary steps to cease fire, implement Resolution 1701, and quickly resolve the presidential election to reach a political and diplomatic solution,” according to Berri’s office.
Mikati’s media office said the discussion with Hochstein focused on “ways to achieve a ceasefire and stop the military confrontations between the Israeli army and Hezbollah in order to return to discussing a comprehensive political solution based on the implementation of Resolution 1701.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called both Mikati and Berri on Friday. During a 40-minute conversation with Berri, they agreed on three points: “Committing to international resolutions, particularly Resolution 1701, preventing the expansion of the war, and reaching a diplomatic solution,” according to Berri’s office.
Political efforts to mitigate the losses Lebanon is suffering as a result of Israel’s war on Hezbollah are barely heard amid the noise of airstrikes, Israeli artillery, and the immense destruction in southern towns, the Bekaa, Beirut’s southern suburbs, and the cries of people who have lost everything and now find themselves in shelters or on the street.
A closed national meeting was held under the title “In Defense of Lebanon: Proposing a Rescue Roadmap” at the residence of the head of the Lebanese Forces Samir Geagea in Maarab. The meeting brought together Lebanese figures opposing Hezbollah’s ongoing war.
Geagea said the Lebanese people “deserve to live a dignified life free from the specter of wars. It is essential to restore the state amid the collapse of the structure over everyone’s heads and the dominance over the decision of war in Lebanon.”
He noted that “the accumulation of half-measures will not lead to solutions or stability without the establishment of a state.
“The international and Arab communities do not trust the current ruling system that is poised against the state.
“There is an urgent need to first achieve a ceasefire. We must proceed to elect a president who commits in advance to implementing international resolutions 1559, 1680, and 1701, as well as adhering to the provisions of the Taif Agreement.
“The elected president must ensure that the strategic decision-making authority resides solely with the state and grant the Lebanese Army all necessary powers.
“It is essential that the president is detached from all failed policies and is recognized for integrity and patriotism. Following this, binding parliamentary consultations should take place, leading to the election of a prime minister and the formation of a government.”
On Saturday afternoon, for the first time, the Israeli raids targeted the entrance to the town of Barja in the Iqlim Al-Kharoub and the main road of Nahr Ibrahim toward Qartaba in the Jbeil region in northern Lebanon. They also targeted the town of Deir Billa in the Batroun district.
Amid these developments, Hezbollah’s media relations official, Mohammed Afif, urged “against rushing to conclusions” regarding the political outcomes of the war.
“The struggle against the enemy is still in its early stages and the Israeli ground incursion into Lebanese territory will not be a picnic,” he said.
On Saturday, there were no further Israeli attacks on UNIFIL forces in the border area, in contrast to incidents over the previous two days that drew a wave of international condemnation. UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said “Israel is violating Resolution 1701 by targeting our forces.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammed Baqer Qalibaf arrived in Beirut after personally flying an Iranian aircraft to Rafic Hariri International Airport. Qalibaf said that his visit was made at the invitation of Berri, and that he brought “a message from the leader of the Islamic revolution, the president, and the Iranian people to the Lebanese people and the resistance.”
The Iranian official met Mikati and Berri, and inspected the site of the Israeli raid on the Basta area in the heart of Beirut, accompanied by a number of Hezbollah MPs.
He said: “We have always been on the side of the Lebanese people, their resistance and the Lebanese government. We extend our full assistance to the people and hope that they will be victorious. We will remain by their side in these challenging times. I will head from here to Geneva and I will carry with me the issues of the oppressed Lebanese and Palestinian peoples.”
However, the Iranian official heard from Mikati that “the government’s priorities at this stage are to work on a ceasefire, stop the Israeli aggression, preserve Lebanon’s security and the safety of its people, uphold Lebanon’s commitment to implementing Resolution 1701, strengthening the army’s presence in the southern region, and engage in necessary communications with influential countries and the UN to exert pressure on Israel for full compliance with the resolution.”
Israeli attacks continued on the south and Bekaa, while cautious calm prevailed in Beirut’s southern suburbs. The Israeli army claimed in a statement that “Hezbollah’s activities are forcing us to act against it.”
The Israeli army issued a new warning to the residents of 23 border towns and villages in the south to “evacuate and head north of the Awali River. It is forbidden to return to your homes until further notice.” Most residents of these towns left last year.
The most serious Israeli warning was directed at ambulances and Civil Defense vehicles, with the Israeli army claiming that “Hezbollah fighters are using them for transport.” The army warned that it would target the vehicles.
More than 25 devastating Israeli airstrikes were recorded on border towns, while Hezbollah reported “direct clashes with Israeli soldiers on the outskirts of the town of Dhayra, ambushing an Israeli force and blowing up an Israeli vehicle.”
The party counted “seven military operations carried out since dawn to counter incursion attempts.”
Lebanese Red Cross chief Georges Kettaneh said: “The movement of the Red Cross ambulances is carried out after informing the International Committee of the Red Cross and UNIFIL about our movements and missions, especially when traveling on the border, to ensure the protection of volunteers.”
In the Bekaa, the Israeli Air Force carried out airstrikes on Nabi Sheet, Saraain and Kfar Dan, killing one person and wounding three others. Two were wounded in Al-Kayyal, and four were killed in an airstrike on Boudai.
The Israeli army said that about 30 rockets were launched toward the Galilee panhandle. Israeli media reported “violent explosions” in the city of Safed, and others in Kiryat Shmona.
Hezbollah said it targeted “the occupied city of Tiberias with a salvo of rockets and targeted a military gathering on the outskirts of the town of Blida.”
It also targeted military gatherings in the Metula, Kfar Yuval, Khirbet Nafha, Kfar Giladi and Al-Manara settlements, and a communications base in Keren Naftali.
Hezbollah carried out a drone attack on Ein Margaliot, and another attack with assault drones on the air defense base in Kiryat Eliezer, west of Haifa.


Thousands in Israel protest sacking of defense minister

Thousands in Israel protest sacking of defense minister
Updated 06 November 2024
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Thousands in Israel protest sacking of defense minister

Thousands in Israel protest sacking of defense minister

JERUSALEM: Thousands of Israelis protested against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s dismissal of his defense minister, demanding the government do everything in its power to bring home hostages held in Gaza.
The demonstration erupted soon after Netanyahu’s office announced the sacking of Yoav Gallant on Tuesday following public differences over the war with Hamas.
The removal of Gallant — a hawk on the war Hezbollah in Lebanon who also pushed for a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza — coincided with the presidential election in the United States, Israel’s top military backer.
Netanyahu and Gallant have frequently clashed over Israel’s retaliatory military offensive against Hamas following the Palestinian militant group’s deadly attack on Israel on October 7 last year.
“Over the past few months... trust has eroded. In light of this, I decided today to end the term of the defense minister,” Netanyahu’s office said, adding that foreign minister Israel Katz would take his place.
Shortly afterwards, thousands of people took to the streets of commercial hub Tel Aviv, chanting slogans against Netanyahu and demanding the return of 97 hostages held in Gaza.
Protesters blocked traffic and lit fires, with some wearing “Bring them home now!” T-shirts referring to the hostages.
They held up signs with slogans such as “We deserve better leaders” and “Leaving no one behind!,” and one protester wore handcuffs and a face mask with Netanyahu’s likeness.
The reshuffle’s timing comes at a critical juncture in the Gaza and Lebanon wars, with both Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon massively weakened.
Jonathan Rynhold of the political studies department at Bar-Ilan University said Netanyahu was feeling “emboldened because he is improving in the polls.”
“He is also taking advantage of the fact that the US election is happening today... everyone’s focus is elsewhere,” he told AFP.
After his appointment, Katz vowed “victory over our enemies and to achieve the goals of the war,” including “the destruction of Hamas in Gaza, the defeat of Hezbollah in Lebanon” and the return of hostages.
Gideon Saar, a minister without portfolio, was appointed to replace Katz as foreign minister.
After being fired, Gallant posted on X that Israel’s security would remain his life’s “mission.”
He called on the government to bring home the hostages in Gaza while they were “still alive” and insisted all Israelis of draft age must serve in the military — a key issue that he and Netanyahu had disagreed on.
The sacked minister had been a key advocate for ultra-Orthodox Jews to be called up, but Netanyahu wanted their exemption to continue, fearing their conscription could break up his far-right coalition government.
Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed 43,391 people in Gaza, a majority of them civilians, according to Gaza health ministry figures which the United Nations considers to be reliable.
Hamas also seized 251 hostages in their attack, of whom Israel believes 63 people including two children are still alive in Gaza.
After Gallant’s dismissal, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group urged Katz “to prioritize a hostage deal... to secure the immediate release of all hostages.”
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri welcomed the sacking of Gallant, who especially in the early months of the war was seen as a key architect of the fight against the militant group.
“Netanyahu dismissed Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant, who was bragging that he would eliminate Hamas. Today, we say to them that Gallant is gone, but Hamas remains, and will remain, God willing,” Abu Zuhri said.


Aviv Bushinsky, a political commentator and former Netanyahu chief of staff, said Gallant’s dismissal was just “a matter of time.”
“I cannot recall an incident when Israel Katz was in opposition to Netanyahu,” he said.
“Besides, Netanyahu thinks he can run the show himself.”
Meanwhile, on the ground, the wars in Gaza and Lebanon showed no sign of abating.
Authorities in Lebanon reported raids across the country, and the toll from a strike on Tuesday in the town of Barja, south of Beirut, rose to 20.
Hezbollah on Tuesday claimed it had fired rockets and drones into northern Israel, and also targeted Israeli troops near the border inside Lebanon.
Tuesday’s fighting came more than a month into the Hezbollah-Israel war which has left at least 1,990 dead in Lebanon since September 23, according to an AFP tally of health ministry figures.
Palestinians in Gaza told AFP that whoever wins the US presidential election must end the conflict in the territory.
“We are hanging by a thread, and like every other people in the world, we are looking for someone who can stop the war,” said Ayman Al-Omreiti, 45, in Gaza City.


‘Bulldozer’ Katz, long-time ally of Israel’s Netanyahu

‘Bulldozer’ Katz, long-time ally of Israel’s Netanyahu
Updated 06 November 2024
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‘Bulldozer’ Katz, long-time ally of Israel’s Netanyahu

‘Bulldozer’ Katz, long-time ally of Israel’s Netanyahu
  • Katz, 69, labelled by Israeli media as a “bulldozer” for his direct and sometimes abrasive style, is considered both close and loyal to Netanyahu

JERUSALEM: Israel’s new Defense Minister Israel Katz, known for his abrasive style, is a long-time ally and loyalist of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In a dramatic announcement late on Tuesday, Netanyahu sacked defense minister Yoav Gallant over what he said was a breakdown in trust during the Gaza war against Hamas.
“Over the past few months that trust has eroded. In light of this, I decided today to end the term of the defense minister,” Netanyahu said in a statement issued by his office.
The statement added that he had appointed Foreign Minister Israel Katz to take Gallant’s place.
Katz, 69, labelled by Israeli media as a “bulldozer” for his direct and sometimes abrasive style, is considered both close and loyal to Netanyahu.
After his appointment, Katz vowed to defeat Israel’s enemies and achieve the country’s war goals.
“We will work together to lead the defense establishment to victory over our enemies and to achieve the goals of the war: the return of all hostages as the most important moral mission, the destruction of Hamas in Gaza, the defeat of Hezbollah in Lebanon, the containment of Iranian aggression, and the safe return of the residents of the north and south to their homes,” he said in a statement.
A member of Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party, in which he was previously president of the party’s convention, Katz has held multiple cabinet roles going back to 2003.
As foreign minister, Katz drew international attention for his pointed attacks on world leaders and international organizations that had expressed opposition to Israeli military actions, particularly in Gaza.
He spearheaded a diplomatic battle against the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, and last month Israel’s parliament banned the agency from working in Israel and occupied east Jerusalem.
On Monday, Katz instructed his ministry to formally notify the United Nations that Israel was canceling its agreements with UNRWA.
Last month Katz triggered outrage when he declared UN chief Antonio Guterres “persona non grata in Israel” and wrote in a post on X that he would ban him from entering the country.
Before serving as foreign minister, Katz’s most notable role was as minister of transport.
He spent a decade in the post from 2009-2019, but had also held the energy and finance portfolios in various Netanyahu cabinets.
Aviv Bushinsky, a political commentator and Netanyahu’s former chief of staff, told AFP that Katz was likely to be more in tune with the prime minister than his predecessor Gallant.
“I cannot recall an incident when Israel Katz was in opposition to Netanyahu with anything,” Bushinsky said.
“It is true he does not have any military experience, but he was a very good transport minister and has sat in the cabinet for many years,” he added.
“Besides, Netanyahu thinks he can run the show himself — and he has managed to run the show even though Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, two generals, quit the government.”
Born in the coastal city of Ashkelon, Katz has been a prominent player in Israeli politics since becoming a member of parliament, the Knesset, in 1998.
Today he is among the highest-ranking ministers in the Likud party.
Married with two children, Katz is a resident of Moshav Kfar Ahim in southern Israel.


Gideon Saar, Netanyahu rival turned Israel’s new wartime foreign minister

Gideon Saar, Netanyahu rival turned Israel’s new wartime foreign minister
Updated 06 November 2024
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Gideon Saar, Netanyahu rival turned Israel’s new wartime foreign minister

Gideon Saar, Netanyahu rival turned Israel’s new wartime foreign minister
  • Saar was appointed foreign minister to replace Israel Katz, who took over the defense portfolio on Tuesday after Netanyahu fired Yoav Gallant over an erosion of trust during the Gaza war

JERUSALEM: A self-styled political rebel and once a rival of the prime minister, Gideon Saar was named Israel’s new foreign minister on Tuesday.
Just five years ago Saar openly challenged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the leadership of Israel’s right-wing Likud party.
The former journalist and lawyer then left Likud in 2020, saying it had been corrupted under Netanyahu’s leadership, to form the hawkish, right-wing New Hope party.
Following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war last year, Saar joined the emergency war cabinet, before leaving the administration.
In September, he joined Netanyahu’s government as minister without a portfolio.
“As a long-time member of the government and cabinet, Gideon Saar brings substantial experience and sound judgment in security and policy matters, making him a valuable addition to our leadership team,” Netanyahu said Tuesday in a statement issued by his office.
“The addition of Saar and his party will strengthen the coalition and stabilize the government, which is crucial at all times, particularly in times of war.”
Israel has been fighting Hamas in Gaza since the militant group’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 43,391 Palestinians, a majority of them civilians, according to the territory’s health ministry, figures considered reliable by the UN.
Saar was appointed foreign minister to replace Israel Katz, who took over the defense portfolio on Tuesday after Netanyahu fired Yoav Gallant over an erosion of trust during the Gaza war.
Gallant had for months clashed with Netanyahu over his approach to talks on a possible hostage release deal and on the future of Gaza.
Israeli media earlier this year quoted Gallant as privately telling a parliamentary committee that a hostage release deal “is stalling... in part because of Israel.”
Netanyahu’s office accused Gallant of adopting an “anti-Israel narrative.”
Saar entered politics in 1999 as government secretary, before being elected to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, in 2003.
He rose through the ranks to become interior minister and education minister in previous Netanyahu governments.
In 2021 he joined the government of former prime minister Naftali Bennett as justice minister with the title of deputy prime minister.
His political star had, however, dimmed in recent years.
Though he participated in the emergency government formed in the wake of the October 7 attack, he joined the opposition in March after failing to get a seat in the war cabinet.
He is considered more right-wing than Netanyahu, but lacks his charisma.
He has spoken out in favor of the all-out annexation of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
His ideology is “that of the Likud” but he believes that the party has “abandoned its values under Netanyahu,” deputy Sharren Haskel, a close friend of Saar’s, told AFP.
With a father who grew up in Argentina and a mother with roots in Uzbekistan, Saar calls himself a practicing Jew while affirming that “every Israeli citizen must be able to live freely according to his conscience and way of life.”
He is married to high-profile Israeli journalist Geula Even, with whom he has two children.
A daughter from his first marriage, Alona Saar, is a popular actress.


Turkiye, Kyrgyzstan sign strategic partnership on Erdogan visit

Turkiye, Kyrgyzstan sign strategic partnership on Erdogan visit
Updated 06 November 2024
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Turkiye, Kyrgyzstan sign strategic partnership on Erdogan visit

Turkiye, Kyrgyzstan sign strategic partnership on Erdogan visit
  • Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov said in a statement: “We have taken an important decision to raise the level of strategic partnership between Kyrgyzstan and Turkiye to that of a ‘comprehensive strategic partnership’“

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan: Turkiye and Kyrgyzstan on Tuesday agreed to a “comprehensive strategic partnership,” boosting defense ties, during an official visit to the Central Asian state by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Ankara is strengthening its presence across the region, as it seeks to compete with the likes of Russia and China for influence.
Erdogan regularly visits Central Asia and will on Wednesday take part in a summit of the Organization of Turkic States, a Turkish-led initiative to promote its culture and ties across several former Soviet republics.
Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov said in a statement: “We have taken an important decision to raise the level of strategic partnership between Kyrgyzstan and Turkiye to that of a ‘comprehensive strategic partnership.’“
The two sides signed 19 agreements in areas including energy, defense and the fight against terrorism.
Japarov hailed “Kyrgyz-Turkish cooperation in the field of defense and the potential for further development.”
Amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Turkiye has stepped up military cooperation with Central Asian states, a challenge to Moscow’s historic supremacy in the region.
Turkiye was the third-biggest investor in Kyrgyzstan in the first half of 2024, behind Russia and China.
But it lags in terms of trade, accounting for 3.8 percent of Kyrgyzstan’s imports and exports, against 34.2 percent for China and 19.5 percent for Russia.
 

 


Turkiye sacks 3 pro-Kurdish mayors for ‘terror ties’

Turkiye sacks 3 pro-Kurdish mayors for ‘terror ties’
Updated 06 November 2024
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Turkiye sacks 3 pro-Kurdish mayors for ‘terror ties’

Turkiye sacks 3 pro-Kurdish mayors for ‘terror ties’

ISTANBUL: Turkiye on Monday sacked three mayors in the Kurdish-majority southeast on alleged “terrorism” charges, despite Ankara’s apparent desire to seek a rapprochement with the Kurdish community.

In a sweep, the mayors of the cities of Mardin and Batman as well as the Halfeti district in Sanliurfa province were all removed and replaced with government-appointed trustees, the Interior Ministry said.

All three belong to DEM, the main pro-Kurdish party, and were elected in March’s local elections, when opposition candidates won in numerous towns and cities, including Istanbul.

Among those removed were Ahmet Turk, Mardin’s 82-year- old mayor, along with Batman mayor Gulistan Sonuk and Mehmet Karayilan in Halfeti.

The ministry outlined a string of allegations against them, frommembershipinanarmed group to disseminating propaganda for the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, also known as PKK.

Since 1984, the PKK has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state in which more than 40,000 people have died. It is blacklisted as a “terror” group by Turkiye and its Western allies.

Kurds make up around 20 percent of Turkiye’s overall population.

DEM swiftly denounced the moveas“amajorattackonthe Kurdish people’s right to vote and be elected.”