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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will outline its stance on Israel&rsquo;s recent move to annex parts of the occupied West Bank at an upcoming ministerial meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), according to Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi on Thursday. Speaking at a weekly press briefing, Andrabi said that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will represent Pakistan at the OIC&#39;s Open-Ended Extraordinary Ministerial Session, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 26-28. The meeting &ldquo;has been convened to consider the illegal decision by the Israeli occupation authorities aimed at expanding settlements, pursuing annexation, and attempting to impose Israel&#39;s sovereignty over the occupied West Bank,&rdquo; the spokesperson said. Dar will present Pakistan&rsquo;s case during the session. <div class="fr-embed"><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fphoto.php%3Ffbid%3D1374272581405477%26set%3Da.251429287023151%26type%3D3&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="748" style="border:none;overflow:hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div> In a Facebook post, the Foreign Office said Dar will &ldquo;hold sideline meetings with counterparts from OIC&rdquo; member states. Andrabi said Israel&rsquo;s measures in the occupied West Bank have drawn condemnation from the OIC and other Muslim states, as well as &ldquo;European and other world countries,&rdquo; including Brazil, France, Denmark, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. &ldquo;In this statement, we described these changes as wide-ranging and amounting to reclassifying Palestinian land as so-called Israel state land, accelerating illegal settlement activity, and further entrenching Israeli administration,&rdquo; he said. Restating Pakistan&rsquo;s long-standing position on Israel&rsquo;s occupation of Palestinian lands, Andrabi said the country issued &ldquo;a joint statement&rdquo; with &ldquo;eight other countries&rdquo; condemning a statement by the US ambassador to Israel suggesting it would be acceptable for Israel to exercise control over territories belonging to Arab states. He said Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, along with the OIC Secretariat and the League of Arab States, &ldquo;strongly condemned&rdquo; the remarks. The US envoy&rsquo;s comment was &ldquo;dangerous, inflammatory, and clear violation of international law and the UN Charter,&rdquo; Andrabi said. He added that it threatened regional security and stability. Separately, Andrabi addressed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif&rsquo;s recent state visit to Qatar at the invitation of the emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. PM Sharif met the Qatari emir and discussed enhancing cooperation in several areas, including economic ties. Both sides agreed on resolving international disputes peacefully through &ldquo;dialogue&rdquo; and &ldquo;diplomacy.&rdquo; Sheikh Tamim will &ldquo;visit Pakistan later this year,&rdquo; he added. During the visit, PM Sharif also met Qatar&rsquo;s defense minister, Sheikh Saud Al Thani, who expressed interest in expanding defense cooperation between the two countries and &ldquo;appreciated the professionalism and expertise of Pakistan&#39;s armed forces.&rdquo;

Foreign Office Spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi speaking at a weekly press briefing in Islamabad, on February 26, 2026. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs/X)

Foreign Affairs

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will represent Pakistan at the Open-Ended Extraordinary Ministerial Session of the OIC.

Pakistan to raise concerns over Israel actions in West Bank at OIC Ministerial: Foreign Office

JERUSALEM: Arab countries condemned on Saturday remarks by US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who appeared to suggest in an interview that Israel had a biblical right to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/un-says-israeli-actions-raising-ethnic-cleansing-fears-in-west-bank-gaza" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">vast swath</a>&nbsp;of the Middle East. Huckabee, a former Baptist minister and a fervent Israel supporter, was speaking with far-right commentator and Israel critic Tucker Carlson. In a podcast episode released Friday, Carlson pushed Huckabee on the meaning of a biblical verse sometimes interpreted as saying that Israel is entitled to the land between the river Nile in Egypt and the Euphrates in Syria and Iraq. In response, Huckabee said: &quot;It would be fine if they took it all.&quot; When pressed, however, he continued that Israel was &quot;not asking to take all of that&quot;, adding: &quot;It was somewhat of a hyperbolic statement.&quot; Several Arab countries condemned the American diplomat in harsh terms. Saudi Arabia described his words as &quot;reckless&quot; and &quot;irresponsible&quot;, while Jordan said it was &quot;an assault on the sovereignty of the countries of the region&quot;. Egypt&#39;s foreign ministry wrote that it &quot;reaffirms that Israel has no sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territory or any other Arab lands&quot;. The Palestinian Authority said on X that Huckabee&#39;s words &quot;contradict US President Donald&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/hamas-says-israel-must-end-aggression-as-trump-board-plans-gaza-future" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Trump</a>&#39;s rejection of (Israel) annexing the West Bank&quot;. On Saturday, Huckabee published two posts on X further clarifying his position on other topics touched upon in the interview, but did not address his remark about the biblical verse. The speaker of the Israeli parliament, Amir Ohana, praised Huckabee on X for his general pro-Israel stance in the interview, and accused Carlson of &quot;falsehoods and manipulations&quot;. Carlson has recently found himself facing accusations of antisemitism, particularly following a lengthy, uncritical interview with self-described white nationalist Nick Fuentes &ndash; a figure who has praised Hitler, denied the Holocaust and branded American Jews as disloyal.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee (R) is shown a painting of Jerusalem during a visit to the Beit Hanassi presidential residence, in Jerusalem, on September 15, 2025. (AFP)

Middle East

Arab nations condemned US Ambassador Mike Huckabee's comments suggesting Israel's biblical right to vast Middle East lands. Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt criticized his remarks as reckless and harmful to regional sovereignty.

Arab countries condemn US ambassador's remarks on Israel's right to Mideast land

JERUSALEM: Israeli NGOs have raised the alarm over a settlement plan signed by the government which they say would mark the first expansion of Jerusalem&#39;s borders into the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/israels-west-bank-mega-land-grab-draws-international-outrage" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">occupied West Bank</a> since 1967. Israel has occupied east Jerusalem since 1967 and later annexed it in a move not recognized by the international community. Palestinians view east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state. The proposal, published in early February but reported by Israeli media only on Monday, comes as international outrage mounts over <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/pakistan-condemns-israeli-west-bank-land-seizures-demands-international-action" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">creeping measures</a> aimed at strengthening Israeli control over the West Bank. Critics say these actions by the Israeli authorities are aimed at the de facto annexation of the Palestinian territory. The planned development, announced by Israel&#39;s Ministry of Construction and Housing, is formally a westward expansion of the Geva Binyamin, or Adam, settlement situated north-east of Jerusalem in the West Bank. In a statement, the ministry said the development agreement included the construction of around 2,780 housing units for the settlement, with an investment of roughly 120 million Israeli shekels (around $38.7 million). But the area to be developed lies on the Jerusalem side of the separation barrier built by Israel in the early 2000s, while Geva Binyamin sits on the West Bank side of the barrier, and the two are separated by a road. In a statement, Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now said there would be no &quot;territorial or functional connection&quot; between the area to be developed and the settlement. &quot;The new neighborhood will be integral to the city of Jerusalem,&quot; Lior Amihai, Peace Now&#39;s executive director, told AFP. &quot;What is unique about that one is that it will be connected directly to Jerusalem, but it will be beyond the annexed municipal border. So, it will be in complete West Bank territory, but just adjacent to Jerusalem,&quot; he said. &#39;Living there as Jerusalemites&#39; The move comes days after Israel&#39;s government approved a process to register land in the West Bank as &quot;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/israel-approves-west-bank-land-as-state-property-continues-gaza-bombardment-report" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">state property</a>&quot;, drawing widespread international condemnation and fears among critics that it would accelerate annexation of the Palestinian territory. Days earlier, Israel&#39;s security cabinet approved a series of measures to tighten control over areas of the West Bank administered by the Palestinian Authority under the Oslo accords. Those measures, which also sparked international backlash, include allowing Jewish Israelis to buy West Bank land directly and allowing Israeli authorities to administer certain religious sites in areas under the Palestinian Authority&#39;s control. Amihai said that the current government &ndash; one of the most right-wing in Israel&#39;s history &ndash; was &quot;systematically working to annex the occupied territories and to prevent Palestinian statehood&quot;.&nbsp;The case of Jerusalem, he said, was particularly symbolic. &quot;Every change to Jerusalem is sensitive to both the Israeli public, but also to the Palestinians,&quot; he told AFP. Aviv Tatarsky, a researcher at Ir Amim, an Israeli NGO&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/palestinian-ngo-condemns-israeli-act-of-revenge-after-prisoner-abuse-video" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">focusing</a>&nbsp;on Jerusalem within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, said the latest planned development amounted to a de facto expansion of the city of Jerusalem. &quot;If it is built, and people live there, the people who will live there, they will be living there as Jerusalemites,&quot; he told AFP. &quot;In all practical terms, it&#39;s basically not the settlement that will be expanded, but Jerusalem.&quot; &#39;Facts on the ground&#39; The development agreement was signed by Israel&#39;s Construction and Housing Ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Binyamin Regional Council, which represents settlements north of Ramallah in the central West Bank. It has yet to be reviewed by the Civil Administration&#39;s Higher Planning Committee, in a process which could take several months or years. Tatarsky said that international pressure had so far made it difficult for recent Israeli governments to make formal declarations on annexation. &quot;It&#39;s much easier to create facts on the ground, which, altogether... actually add up to annexation,&quot; the researcher said. The West Bank, occupied since 1967, would form the largest part of any future Palestinian state but is seen by many on the religious right as Israeli land. Some 200,000 Israelis live in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, while more than 500,000 others live in West Bank&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/new-israeli-west-bank-measures-draw-palestinian-regional-backlash" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">settlements</a>&nbsp;and outposts, which are illegal under international law. Around three million Palestinians live in the territory. The current Israeli government has fast-tracked settlement expansion, approving a record 52 settlements in 2025.

This picture taken from Umm Safa village, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, shows a Palestinian flag (foreground) and Israeli flag fluttering on a hilltop overlooking the village on February 16, 2026. (AFP)

The proposal, published in early February but reported by Israeli media only on Monday, comes as international outrage mounts over creeping measures aimed at strengthening Israeli control over the West Bank.

Israel accused of move expanding Jerusalem borders for first time since 1967

JERUSALEN: A senior imam of the Al Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem said Tuesday that Israeli authorities have barred him from entering the compound, just days before the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. &quot;I have been barred from the mosque for a week, and the order can be renewed,&quot; Sheikh Muhammad al Abbasi told AFP. He said he was not informed of the reason for the ban, which came into effect from Monday. &quot;I had only returned to Al Aqsa a month ago after spending a year in the hospital following a serious car accident,&quot; Abbasi said. &quot;This ban is a grave matter for us, as our soul is tied to Al Aqsa. Al Aqsa is our life.&quot; The month of Ramadan, during which Muslims observe a fast from dawn to dusk, is expected to begin this week. During the holy month, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians traditionally attend prayers at Al Aqsa &ndash; Islam&#39;s third holiest site, located in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured in 1967 and later annexed. On Monday, Israeli police said they had recommended issuing 10,000 permits for Palestinians from the occupied West Bank, who require special permission to enter Jerusalem. Police did not specify whether age restrictions would apply. The Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate however said it had been informed that permits would again be limited to men over 55 and women over 50, mirroring last year&#39;s criteria. It added that Israeli authorities had prevented the Islamic Waqf &ndash; the Jordanian run body that administers the site &ndash; from carrying out routine preparations, including installing shade structures and setting up temporary medical clinics. A Waqf source said 33 of its employees had been barred from entering the compound in the week leading up to Ramadan. Under long standing arrangements, Jews may visit the Al Aqsa compound &ndash; &nbsp;which they revere as the site of the first and second Jewish temples &ndash; but they are not permitted to pray there. Israel says it is committed to upholding this status quo, though Palestinians fear it is being eroded. In recent years, a growing number of Jewish ultranationalists have challenged the prayer ban, including far right politician Itamar Ben Gvir, who prayed at the site while serving as national security minister in 2024 and 2025.

Muslim worshippers walk next to the Dome of the Rock mosque at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City on October 17, 2025. (AFP)

On Monday, Israeli police said they had recommended issuing 10,000 permits for Palestinians from the occupied West Bank, who require special permission to enter Jerusalem.

Al-Aqsa imam says Israel barring him from entering mosque ahead of Ramadan

ISLAMABAD: Israeli forces imposed a lockdown on a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, their second day of operations there after a local resident killed two people in Israel. &quot;The IDF (Israeli army) is operating forcefully against terror hubs in the village of Qabatiya... accompanied by a lockdown and a complete cordon around the locality,&quot; Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement published by his office on Saturday. &quot;We will continue to pursue an uncompromising offensive policy against Palestinian terror,&quot; he added. Bilal Hunaisha, a resident of Qabatiya, south of Jenin in the northern West Bank, said the town &quot;is being subjected to collective punishment by the Israeli occupation&quot;. &quot;As you can see, they blocked the way to my house and I am no longer able to move around,&quot; he told AFP, pointing to a pile of rubble obstructing the road. In the attack on Friday a 34-year-old Palestinian man killed two people in northern Israel. The assailant, who had been working illegally in Israel, had used his employer&#39;s vehicle to ram into a 68-year-old man and then stabbed an 18-year-old girl to death, according to Israeli police. A few hours later, the Israeli army and the Shin Bet domestic security agency began operating in Qabatiya. They searched the perpetrator&#39;s house and questioned suspects, the army said. On Saturday, the army&#39;s Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir ordered the reinforcement of troops deployed in the area. &quot;This period is characterized by lone attackers and individuals staying illegally in (Israel). Enforcement against those who transport and employ them must be strengthened and improved,&quot; he said, according to an army statement. &quot;At the same time, we must continue to enhance our capabilities to identify and thwart these attackers.&quot; Qabatiya resident Muhannad Zakarneh told AFP that the army arrested him at home at 6 am &quot;for no obvious reasons&quot; and kept him handcuffed for hours. &quot;When I asked what my charge was, there was no response,&quot; he said. The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that besides blocking entrances and conducting interrogations and home searches, Israeli forces also took over a school and used it as a &quot;detention and interrogation center&quot;. Since the start of the war ON Gaza, at least 38 people, including two foreigners, have been killed inside Israel, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. During the same period, violence has also surged in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967. Israeli troops and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank, according to an AFP tally based on figures from the Palestinian health ministry. According to official Israeli figures, at least 44 Israelis, both soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations in the same period in the West Bank.

Israeli forces imposed a lockdown on Qabatiya village in the West Bank after two Israelis were killed.

Israel seals off Palestinian village after deadly attack

ISLAMABAD: An Israeli reservist soldier ran over a Palestinian man while he was praying by the roadside, according to footage broadcast by CNN.&nbsp;The incident, which has been widely reported by international media citing Reuters, shows the man being struck as he prayed, sparking condemnation and raising questions over the conduct of Israeli security personnel in the occupied territories.&nbsp;In a statement, the Israeli military said it had received footage showing an armed individual running over a Palestinian man, adding that the driver was a reservist whose military service had since been terminated.&nbsp;The military said the reservist acted in severe violation of his authority and that his weapon had been confiscated.&nbsp;Israeli media reported that the reservist was placed under house arrest following the incident.&nbsp;The Palestinian man was taken to hospital for medical checks after the incident, as per media reports.&nbsp;In a separate incident, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli forces on Friday fatally shot a Palestinian man east of Gaza City. The victim, identified as Uday al-Maqadma, was reportedly sitting near the entrance of a school when Israeli forces opened fire. He was taken to hospital in critical condition and later died of his injuries.&nbsp;Wafa said the killing comes amid continued Israeli military operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces have carried out near-daily raids, arrests and use of live fire since the start of the war.&nbsp;Palestinian health officials say dozens of Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank during these operations, which Israeli authorities describe as security measures targeting militants.&nbsp;The agency also reported that two Palestinians were shot dead earlier this week in Gaza City&rsquo;s Shujaiya neighborhood during Israeli military activity in the area.

The footage, shared by CNN, shows the man being struck as he prayed, sparking condemnation and raising questions over the conduct of Israeli security personnel in the occupied territories.

Israeli reservist rams vehicle into praying Palestinian man

GAZA CITY: The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza on Saturday said more than 70,000 people have been killed since the war between Israel and Hamas erupted more than two years ago.&nbsp;The milestone comes as a fragile US-brokered ceasefire largely holds, but with both sides accusing the other of violating the terms of the deal.&nbsp;In a statement, Gaza&#39;s health ministry said the death toll from the war had risen to 70,100.&nbsp;The ministry said that since the ceasefire came into effect on October 10, 354 Palestinians had been killed by Israeli fire.&nbsp;Two bodies arrived at hospitals in the Gaza Strip in the past 48 hours, the ministry said, one of which had been recovered from beneath the rubble.&nbsp;It noted that the spike from the last death toll was due to the fact that the data relating to 299 bodies had been processed and approved by the authorities.&nbsp;Despite the ceasefire, the Palestinian territory remains in a deep humanitarian crisis.&nbsp;The Gaza war was sparked by Hamas&#39;s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people.&nbsp;On that day, militants abducted 251 people into Gaza.&nbsp;At the start of the latest ceasefire, militants were holding 20 living hostages and 28 bodies of deceased captives.&nbsp;Hamas has since released all the living hostages and returned the remains of 26 dead hostages.&nbsp;In exchange, Israel has released nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in its custody and returned the bodies of hundreds of dead Palestinians.

Gaza’s health ministry reports over 70,000 deaths since the Israel-Hamas war began, as a fragile ceasefire holds amid violations. Hostage and prisoner exchanges continue, but Gaza faces a severe humanitarian crisis despite reduced fighting.

Death toll from Gaza war surpasses 70,000: health ministry

JENIN: The Israeli army and police said on Thursday they were investigating the circumstances in which two Palestinians were shot dead in the occupied West Bank while seemingly surrendering to Israeli forces. The incident in Jenin in the northern West Bank, a stronghold of Palestinian armed groups, was filmed from several angles, including by AFP. The Palestinian Authority named the two men killed as 37-year-old Yussef Ali Asa&#39;sa and 26-year-old Al-Muntasir Billah Mahmud Abdullah. It said they were killed in a &quot;brutal&quot; summary execution and condemned the incident as a &quot;war crime.&quot; Israel&#39;s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir swiftly backed the forces who opened fire, saying: &quot;Terrorists must die!&quot; Blood-soaked floorVideos circulating on social media and on television channels showed two men emerging from a building with their arms raised, surrounded by Israeli forces. They were then seen lying on the ground before being directed back inside the building. Gunshots rang out, and the two men were seen lying on the ground. AFP footage showed the two men exiting the building, then entering it again before the shots were fired. A building between the camera and the scene partially obscured the image. Troops were later seen removing a body. AFP pictures from the scene showed the blood-soaked floor of a building. People helped to clear up the damaged site afterwards, moving sheets of corrugated metal. In a joint statement, the Israeli military and the police &mdash; which oversees the border guard unit &mdash; said they attempted to apprehend &quot;wanted individuals who had carried out terror activities, including hurling explosives and firing at security forces.&quot; They said they &quot;enclosed the structure in which the suspects were located, and initiated a surrender procedure that lasted several hours. Following the use of engineering tools on the structure, the two suspects exited. &quot;Following their exit, fire was directed toward the suspects. &quot;The incident is under review by the commanders on the ground, and will be transferred to the relevant professional bodies.&quot;&nbsp; &#39;Apparent summary execution&#39; The killing of two Palestinians shot dead in the West Bank while seemingly surrendering to Israeli forces was an &quot;apparent summary execution,&quot; the United Nations said Friday. &quot;We are appalled at the brazen killing by Israeli border police yesterday of two Palestinian men in Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, in yet another apparent summary execution,&quot; UN rights office spokesman Jeremy Laurence told reporters in Geneva, calling for &quot;independent, prompt and effective investigations into the killings of Palestinians.&quot; &#39;Brutal field execution&#39;Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. The Palestinian Authority&#39;s health ministry said the two men were &quot;shot dead by Israeli forces in the Jabal Abu Dhahir area in the city of Jenin,&quot; adding that their bodies were being held by Israeli forces. The foreign ministry in Ramallah said it &quot;strongly condemns the brutal field execution carried out by the Israeli occupation army against two Palestinian youths,&quot; calling it a &quot;deliberate Israeli war crime.&quot; It urged the international community to take &quot;immediate action to stop the Israeli killing machine, deter these crimes, and impose urgent international protection mechanisms for the Palestinian people.&quot; The Palestinian group Hamas called it a &quot;cold-blooded execution of two unarmed Palestinian youths.&quot; Meanwhile, Ben Gvir offered his total backing to the Israeli forces involved. &quot;I fully support the border guard members and Israeli army soldiers who shot at wanted terrorists who emerged from a building in Jenin,&quot; he said on X. &quot;The forces acted exactly as expected of them &mdash; terrorists must die!&quot; &#39;Dehumanisation&#39;Israeli human rights group B&#39;Tselem said the two men were killed &quot;while posing no threat.&quot; &quot;The execution documented today is the result of an accelerated process of dehumanisation of Palestinians and the complete abandonment of their lives by the Israeli regime,&quot; said B&#39;Tselem&#39;s executive director, Yuli Novak. Violence in the West Bank has soared since Palestinian group Hamas&#39;s October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the Gaza war. It has not ceased despite the fragile truce between Israel and Hamas coming into effect last month. Israeli troops or settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza war, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian health ministry figures. At least 44 Israelis, including both soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations, according to official Israeli figures.

Palestinian Authority says men were killed in a "brutal" summary execution and condemns the incident as a "war crime."


Israeli forces shoot dead two Palestinians apparently surrendering in West Bank

CAIRO: Delegations from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, mediators along with the United States of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, met on Tuesday in Cairo to discuss the second phase of the deal, Egyptian state-linked media reported.&nbsp;Al-Qahera News, which has ties to Egyptian intelligence, said the meeting included the Egyptian and Turkish intelligence chiefs alongside the prime minister of Qatar.&nbsp;The delegates discussed working with the US &quot;to ensure the successful implementation of the second phase of the ceasefire agreement&quot; between Israel and Hamas, the channel reported.&nbsp;Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the US act as both mediators and guarantors for the Gaza deal, which came into effect on October 10 after two years of war.&nbsp;Their meeting in Cairo came two days after a senior Hamas delegation met with Egyptian spy chief Hassan Rashad to discuss the second phase of the truce.&nbsp;That phase concerns disarming Hamas, establishing a transitional authority and deploying an international stabilisation force of foreign troops to the Gaza Strip.&nbsp;According to Al-Qahera News, Tuesday&#39;s meeting addressed &quot;overcoming obstacles and limiting violations to ensure the ceasefire holds&quot;.&nbsp;Israel and Hamas have repeatedly accused each other of violating the truce.&nbsp;According to the Gaza health ministry, Israeli fire has killed more than 300 Palestinians since the truce took hold.&nbsp;The mediators on Tuesday also &quot;agreed to continue strengthening coordination and cooperation with the Civil-Military Coordination Centre&quot; -- the truce monitoring centre set up by the US and its allies in southern Israel.

Egyptian, Qatari, Turkish and US mediators met in Cairo to advance the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire, discussing disarmament plans, a transitional authority, and an international stabilisation force amid ongoing truce violations and rising casualties.

Gaza truce mediators in Cairo to discuss second phase: Egyptian Media   

Romesa Umar

ISLAMABAD: Israel has approved a plan to resettle the entire Bnei Menashe community from India, accelerating settlement expansion with nearly 5,800 members of the group to emigrate by 2030, according to Israeli officials and local media outlets. The proposal, endorsed at a cabinet meeting and submitted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Immigration and Absorption Ofir Sofer, sets out a two-phase arrival schedule. By the end of 2026, 1,200 people are expected to arrive, with the remaining 4,600 arriving by 2030, according to the Times of Israel. Who are the Bnei Menashe?The Bnei Menashe identify as descendants of the biblical tribe of Manasseh, regarded as one of Israel&rsquo;s &ldquo;lost tribes.&rdquo; For decades, members practiced a form of Judaism mixed with local traditions before seeking formal recognition. Their immigration has taken place in waves, supported largely by private organizations and the state. Resettlement plan and costsUnder the plan, the first phase will cost approximately 90 million shekels ($2.75 million), covering immigration arrangements, conversion, accommodation in absorption centers, Hebrew language training, and integration into education and employment.&nbsp; According to the official Israeli press statement, the Jewish Agency will manage and finance pre-immigration preparation and flights, investing additional funds in support of diaspora communities. Although members of the Bnei Menashe began arriving in the 1990s, Israel formally recognized the group as descendants of a biblical &ldquo;lost tribe&rdquo; only in 2005, when the then-Sephardi chief rabbi issued an endorsement, according to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Settlement expansion&nbsp;The decision comes as Israel continues significant settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank. Earlier this month, the Times of Israel reported that tenders for a record number of housing units were published in 2025. A joint statement by Katz and Smotrich described the security cabinet&rsquo;s decision as &ldquo;a step that will change the face of the area and shape the future of settlement for years to come,&rdquo; the Times of Israel reported. &ldquo;The new settlements are all placed within a long-term strategic vision, whose goal is to strengthen the Israeli hold on the territory, to avoid the establishment of a Palestinian state, and to create the basis for future development of settlement in the coming decades,&rdquo; Katz&rsquo;s office said as reported by Times of Israel. In May, the International Center for Transitional Justice, a non-profit human rights group, reported that Israeli ministers said 22 new Jewish settlements had been approved in the West Bank &mdash; the largest expansion in decades.&nbsp; Some settlements already exist as illegal outposts and will now be legalized under Israeli law, while others are newly planned as stated by Defense Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. India-Israel tiesThis week, PM Netanyahu said Israel and India were strengthening their strategic partnership following a meeting with India&rsquo;s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal in Jerusalem. Netanyahu said in a post on X that both sides were advancing investments, innovation and plans for an economic corridor linking India to Europe through Israel. The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, announced during the 2023 G20 Summit in New Delhi, is progressing on schedule, according to its official website. Goyal also met the Israeli president and said Israel&rsquo;s innovation ecosystem, combined with India&rsquo;s scale and talent, could serve as a &ldquo;force multiplier.&rdquo; According to India&rsquo;s Ministry of External Affairs, bilateral trade reached $6.53 billion in FY 2023-24, while investment ties continue to deepen, including India&rsquo;s $1.18 billion acquisition of a majority stake in Israel&#39;s Haifa Port in 2022.

Asia

Israel has approved a plan to resettle the entire Bnei Menashe community from India, accelerating settlement expansion with nearly 5,800 members of the group to emigrate by 2030, according to Israeli officials and local media outlets.

Articles tagged with "Israeli Occupation"

Pakistan to raise concerns over Israel actions in West Bank at OIC Ministerial: Foreign Office

Arab countries condemn US ambassador's remarks on Israel's right to Mideast land

Israel accused of move expanding Jerusalem borders for first time since 1967

Al-Aqsa imam says Israel barring him from entering mosque ahead of Ramadan

Israel seals off Palestinian village after deadly attack

Israeli reservist rams vehicle into praying Palestinian man

Death toll from Gaza war surpasses 70,000: health ministry

Israeli forces shoot dead two Palestinians apparently surrendering in West Bank

Gaza truce mediators in Cairo to discuss second phase: Egyptian Media

Israel to resettle thousands from India's Jewish tribe ‘Bnei Menashe’

Pakistan to raise concerns over Israel actions in West Bank at OIC Ministerial: Foreign Office