WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump told Israel on Monday to avoid destabilizing Syria and its new leadership, days after a deadly operation by Israeli forces killed 13 people. Trump spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and invited him for another White House visit, Netanyahu&#39;s office said shortly after Trump issued the warning. &quot;It is very important that Israel maintain a strong and true dialogue with Syria, and that nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria&#39;s evolution into a prosperous State,&quot; Trump said on his Truth Social platform. The US leader has been pushing for a security pact between Israel and Syria since President Ahmed al-Sharaa&#39;s coalition overthrew longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad a year ago. But tensions have risen over hundreds of strikes by Israel on Syria, and in the deadliest so far, Israeli forces killed 13 people on Friday in an operation in the southern village of Beit Jin. Syria called the Israeli operation a &quot;war crime.&quot; Israel said it targeted a fighter group. Trump said he was &quot;very satisfied&quot; with Syria&#39;s performance under former rebel Sharaa, who made a historic visit to the White House a few weeks ago. The US president insisted that Sharaa &quot;is working diligently to make sure good things happen, and that both Syria and Israel will have a long and prosperous relationship together.&quot; He added that the United States was &quot;doing everything within our power to make sure the Government of Syria continues to do what was intended&quot; to rebuild the war-torn country. &#39;Expanding&#39; peace agreements Good relations between Syria and Israel would add to his efforts for a wider Middle East peace following the fragile Gaza ceasefire in October, added Trump. The Trump administration lifted sanctions against Syria as part of its efforts to help Sharaa, while Washington says Damascus is joining the global coalition against the Islamic State group. Netanyahu and Trump discussed &quot;expanding&quot; regional peace deals when they spoke on Monday, the Israeli prime minister&#39;s office said in a statement that came hot on the heels of Trump&#39;s post. &quot;Trump has invited Prime Minister Netanyahu to a meeting at the White House in the near future,&quot; it said. Netanyahu has already made more visits to Trump than any other foreign leader since the US president&#39;s return to power. &quot;The two leaders stressed the importance and obligation of disarming Hamas and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, and discussed expanding the peace agreements,&quot; Netanyahu&#39;s office said. Israel has defended its right to keep on striking groups in neighboring countries despite the Gaza deal with the Palestinian group Hamas and last year&#39;s ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Israeli army said the targets of the Beit Jin operation were fighters from Jamaa Islamiya, an Islamist group based in Lebanon and allied with Hamas. Netanyahu, meanwhile, drew a sharp rebuke from Damascus and others in the region after visiting Israeli troops deployed in the buffer zone, which has separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights since 1974.

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US president speaks to Israeli PM Netanyahu, invites him for another White House visit; US leader has been pushing for a security pact between Israel and Syria since President Ahmed al-Sharaa's coalition overthrew longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad a year ago.


Trump warns Israel not to 'interfere' in Syria

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ISLAMABAD: Hundreds of thousands of children in Gaza are facing serious health risks after heavy weekend rainfall caused sewage to inundate temporary shelters, an aid agency has warned. In a report published last week, Save the Children said more than 13,000 families have been affected by the flooding, leaving children sleeping without proper cover, drenched in contaminated water while wearing only summer clothing. The territory&rsquo;s sanitation infrastructure, already weakened by two years of Israeli bombardment, cannot cope with rainfall. Wastewater has mixed with floodwater, sweeping through encampments and further endangering residents. Rain last Friday caused chaos at displacement sites, according to the charity&rsquo;s media manager in Gaza, who recounted witnessing residents discover their shelters submerged at daybreak. &quot;We&#39;ve had two years of living in tents, and they are already worn out; they cannot withstand the wind or the rain,&quot; she said. One scene particularly struck her: a mother clutching her six-month-old infant while frantically searching for safe refuge. Floodwaters have soaked bedding, clothing, and even food supplies. Many children lack footwear or alternative garments. Shelter cluster data indicates roughly 700,000 children, over two-thirds of Gaza&rsquo;s young population, face similar risks, living in structures significantly degraded over 24 months of bombardment and repeated displacement. Aid delivery hampered by restrictions Although 19,000 tents and 276,000 tarpaulins have entered Gaza since a peace agreement four weeks ago, Israeli authorities continue to block construction materials, including timber and tools, citing potential military use. The shelter cluster reports that more than 63,400 tents, 803,600 tarpaulins, and 278,000 bedding kits remain at crossing points awaiting clearance. Without repair equipment, families cannot restore damaged shelters. With over four-fifths of structures affected by bombardment, residents continue living in whatever tent remnants survive, stitching together fabric scraps and blankets to cover gaps.&nbsp; Fear of unexploded munitions, responsible for previous child deaths, and potential new strikes deter many from returning home. Even as market availability of some items has improved, essential winter supplies, including blankets, mattresses, and fresh clothing, remain scarce. Children are left in shorts and T-shirts despite dropping temperatures, while families prioritize food with limited resources. Combined with existing malnutrition and illness, cold weather poses a serious threat to vulnerable children. Gaza&rsquo;s Government Media Office reports that at least 14 children, including newborns, have died from hypothermia over the past two winters. Save the Children&rsquo;s regional director for the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe described the situation: &ldquo;Children and families have woken up submerged in sewage water. For the third winter now since the start of intense Israeli bombardment in October 2023, they are desperate not just for a lasting ceasefire but for secure, safe, and warm places to sleep.&rdquo; He added that the makeshift shelters, reduced to fragments of material, &ldquo;cannot protect occupants from harsh weather or prevent disease.&rdquo; &ldquo;We have already seen at least 14 children die due to hypothermia over the past two winters,&rdquo; he said. The charity also reported that it has been unable to bring its own stockpiles into Gaza since March, with materials continuing to wait at border crossings blockaded by Israel.

The deterioration of the territory's sanitation infrastructure over two years of Israel bombardment means drainage systems can no longer cope with rainfall. This has caused wastewater to mix with floodwater and sweep through encampments.

Thousands of Gaza children at disease risk after sewage floods tents

GAZA CITY: Israeli air strikes on Gaza killed 27 people on Wednesday, officials said, with Israel and Hamas each accusing the other of violating the fragile ceasefire in the Palestinian territory. The strikes were among the deadliest in Gaza since the truce entered into force last month, and came as Israel also announced a string of attacks targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon in spite of a nearly year-long ceasefire there. Fourteen people were killed on Wednesday in Gaza City in the north and 13 in the Khan Younis area in the south, according to the territory&#39;s civil defense agency. Two hospitals contacted by AFP gave the same toll. The Israeli military said it was striking Hamas after fighters opened fire toward an area where troops were operating in the south in &quot;violation of the ceasefire agreement.&quot; Hamas denied the accusation and denounced the attacks as a &quot;dangerous escalation&quot; that could jeopardize the truce, which has largely held since Oct. 10 despite flare-ups. Ahraf Abu Sultan, 50, told AFP he had returned to his home in Gaza City with his family on Sunday, after being displaced in the south for a year. &quot;We barely managed to repair one room in our destroyed house to try and settle down just two days ago, and the bombing and death has started again. They don&#39;t even give us a chance to breathe,&quot; he said. Fellow Gaza City resident Nivine Ahmed said she had been chatting with a neighbor when Israel&#39;s bombings &quot;turned everything upside down in a second.&quot; &quot;We heard the sound of explosions and saw the smoke rising. People were running and the ambulance sirens were wailing, carrying away the martyrs,&quot; she said. &quot;Next time the missile could fall on us.&quot; Trump peace plan&nbsp;Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by both sides. The highest daily toll registered since the truce took effect was on Oct. 29, when more than 100 people were killed in Israeli strikes, according to civil defense figures and data received by AFP from five Gaza hospitals. Israel has carried out repeated strikes against what it says are Hamas targets during the ceasefire, resulting in the death of more than 280 Palestinians, according to the health ministry in Gaza. The truce is based on a US-brokered deal that also included the return to Israel of the last 48 hostages held by fighters. While all the living hostages were handed over early in the ceasefire, the process of returning the dead has been slower, and the bodies of three hostages still remain in Gaza. The implementation of the second stage of US President Donald Trump&#39;s peace plan has yet to be agreed, particularly as it concerns disarming Hamas, establishing a transitional authority and deploying an international stabilization force. The UN Security Council voted on Monday in favor of a US-drafted resolution endorsing Trump&#39;s plan, though Hamas rejected the resolution as failing to meet Palestinians&#39; &quot;political and humanitarian demands.&quot; The war was sparked by Hamas&#39;s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people. Israel&#39;s retaliatory assault on Gaza has killed at least 69,513 people, according to figures from the health ministry that the UN considers reliable. Lebanon strikes, Syria visit&nbsp;Israel also conducted several strikes in southern Lebanon on Wednesday. The military said it targeted Hezbollah weapons storage facilities in several towns, and accused the group of trying to rebuild its capabilities. The Israeli military has kept up frequent air strikes in Lebanon in spite of a ceasefire sealed last November that sought to end more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah. The raids came a day after 13 people were killed in a strike that Israel said targeted Hamas members in a Palestinian refugee camp in the south of the country &mdash; the deadliest attack in Lebanon since the truce came into effect. Also, on Wednesday, Israel&#39;s top leaders visited Israeli troops stationed inside Syrian territory in a buffer zone intended to separate the two countries&#39; forces. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told troops that their presence was of &quot;immense importance&quot; to Israel&#39;s security. The visit was sharply condemned by Damascus, which called it &quot;a serious violation of Syria&#39;s sovereignty and territorial integrity.&quot;

Strikes among deadliest in Gaza since truce entered into force last month; Israel has also announced a string of attacks targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon in spite of a nearly year-long ceasefire there.

Israeli strikes kill 27 in Gaza in spite of fragile truce

GAZA CITY: Israel launched at least three air strikes on the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, killing at least 30 and wounding dozens, Gaza&rsquo;s civil defense said, shortly after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the military to carry out fresh attacks. Mahmud Bassal, spokesperson for Gaza&rsquo;s civil defense agency, told AFP that &ldquo;the occupation is now bombing Gaza with at least three air strikes despite the ceasefire agreement.&rdquo; Witnesses also reported hearing explosions. Basal, later on Wednesday, said, &ldquo;At least 30 killed and dozens of wounded as a result of the Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip, and our crews are still working to recover the dead and wounded from under the rubble.&rdquo;&nbsp; Israel&rsquo;s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, earlier said that Hamas had attacked Israeli troops despite the ongoing ceasefire, vowing that the group would &ldquo;pay a heavy price.&rdquo; &ldquo;Hamas will pay a heavy price for attacking IDF soldiers in Gaza and for violating the agreement to return the bodies of the hostages,&rdquo; Katz said in a statement. &ldquo;This is a crossing of a red line, and the IDF will respond with great force.&rdquo; Before the strikes, Prime Minister Netanyahu had instructed the military to conduct &ldquo;intense strikes&rdquo; in Gaza, accusing Hamas of breaking the US-brokered ceasefire. However, Hamas rejected the allegations, saying its forces had not carried out any attack on Israeli troops. &ldquo;Hamas affirms that it has no connection to the shooting incident in Rafah and reaffirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement,&rdquo; the group said in a statement.

"The occupation is now bombing Gaza with at least three air strikes despite the ceasefire agreement." 

Israel strikes kill at least 30 in Gaza as Hamas denies attacking troops

ISLAMABAD: Nearly 100 Palestinians have been killed and more than 230 others injured since a US-brokered ceasefire took effect on October 10, according to Gaza&rsquo;s Government Media Office, as both sides trade accusations of violating the fragile truce. In a statement, the office said Israel has violated the ceasefire 80 times, citing &ldquo;direct gunfire at civilians, deliberate bombardment, the execution of fire belts, and arrests of civilian citizens.&rdquo; The statement called the actions &ldquo;grave and repeated breaches&rdquo; of international humanitarian law. On Monday, Gaza&rsquo;s civil defense agency reported that four people were killed by Israeli forces in Gaza City. &ldquo;They were returning to check on their homes in the Al-Shaaf area, east of the Al-Tuffah neighborhood,&rdquo; said Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the rescue service, which operates under Hamas authority. He said the victims were killed in two separate incidents &ldquo;by Israeli gunfire.&rdquo; The Israeli military said it fired at armed militants who crossed the so-called &ldquo;Yellow Line,&rdquo; the boundary where Israeli troops remain positioned under the ceasefire. The army said the individuals &ldquo;approached troops in the Shujaiya neighborhood,&rdquo; adjacent to Al-Tuffah. Several similar confrontations have occurred since the truce began, resulting in repeated casualties and heightening concerns over its durability. On Sunday, Israel carried out a series of airstrikes across Gaza after &ldquo;two of its soldiers were killed in combat.&rdquo; The military called the operation a response to &ldquo;a blatant violation&rdquo; of the truce. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told parliament that Israel dropped 153 tons of bombs on Hamas positions. &ldquo;One of our hands holds a weapon, the other hand is stretched out for peace,&rdquo; Netanyahu said. Hamas denied responsibility for any attacks, accusing Israel of fabricating &ldquo;pretexts&rdquo; to resume fighting. The fragile ceasefire has allowed hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza, where many have found their homes reduced to rubble. With additional inputs from AFP

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel dropped 153 tons of bombs on Hamas targets, as Gaza authorities report more than 100 Palestinians have been killed and more than 230 injured since the US-brokered truce began

Israeli military actions in Gaza kill over 100 since US-brokered ceasefire began

RAFAH: Israeli military jets struck the Rafah area in southern Gaza on Sunday in response to alleged militant attacks on Israeli forces, Reuters reported. The Israeli military said that militants fired anti-tank missiles and opened fire on troops, actions described as a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement. It vowed to respond firmly to these provocations. According to the military statement cited by Reuters, &ldquo;militants opening fire on Israeli troops is a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement.&rdquo; The strikes were carried out to neutralize the threat posed by those militants. Meanwhile, AFP reported that&nbsp;Hamas&#39; armed wing stated on Sunday that the group is fully committed to the ceasefire agreement with Israel and denies any knowledge of clashes in Rafah, where Israeli air strikes occurred.&nbsp; The Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement, &quot;We reaffirm our full commitment to implementing all agreements, primarily the ceasefire throughout the Gaza Strip.&nbsp;We have no information about any incidents or clashes in Rafah, as these areas are controlled by the occupation, and our contact with remaining groups there has been lost since the war resumed in March this year.&quot;

The Israeli military said that militants fired anti-tank missiles and opened fire on troops, actions described as a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement.

Israel strikes Gaza after claiming attack on its forces

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday confirmed that 24 Pakistani crew members of an LPG tanker targeted by an Israeli drone off Yemen&rsquo;s coast have been released by Houthi forces, calling it a breakthrough secured &ldquo;when hope was fading.&rdquo;&nbsp;The liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier caught fire on September 17 after being struck while docked at Ras Al-Esa port, under Houthi control. &ldquo;An LPG tanker with 27 crew members (24 Pakistanis, including Captain Mukhtar Akbar; two Sri Lankans; and one Nepali) was attacked by an Israeli drone,&rdquo; Naqvi wrote on X, formerly Twitter.&nbsp;&ldquo;One LPG tank exploded, and the crew managed to extinguish the fire. The vessel was subsequently stopped by Houthi boats, and the crew were held hostage aboard the ship.&rdquo;&nbsp;Naqvi said the tanker and its multinational crew had now been released and were &ldquo;out of Yemeni waters.&rdquo; He praised Pakistani officials in Saudi Arabia and Oman for negotiating their safe passage.&nbsp;The foreign office also confirmed the incident, saying Pakistan&rsquo;s embassies in the region had been in constant contact with Yemeni authorities and with the families of the Pakistani crew.&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;Efforts were made to set the tanker underway again,&rdquo; spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said. &ldquo;Today, the LPG tanker has departed port and is making way out of Yemeni waters. The entire crew, including Pakistani nationals, is safe and sound.&rdquo;&nbsp;Local media had earlier reported the Pakistanis were &ldquo;stranded&rdquo; following the fire, which left the ship immobilized at port for several days.&nbsp;The episode adds to instability in the Red Sea region, where attacks and blockades have frequently disrupted energy shipments. Yemen itself is not a major exporter of LPG, but imports remain vital for households in the conflict-hit country.

Security

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi confirmed 24 Pakistanis aboard an LPG tanker targeted by an Israeli drone in Yemen were safely freed, with the vessel and crew now out of Yemeni waters.

Articles tagged with "Israel Strikes"