Four Palestinians wounded in Israeli strike on a car in Gaza

A Palestinian girl wounded in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip is carried by medics before crossing the Rafah border into Egypt on Feb. 1, 2025. (AP)
A Palestinian girl wounded in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip is carried by medics before crossing the Rafah border into Egypt on Feb. 1, 2025. (AP)
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Updated 02 February 2025
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Four Palestinians wounded in Israeli strike on a car in Gaza

A Palestinian girl wounded in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip is carried by medics before crossing the Rafah border.
  • Israeli military said Israeli aircraft fired on what military described as suspicious vehicle moving toward northern Gaza outside the inspection route laid down by ceasefire

CAIRO/JERUSALEM: At least four Palestinians were wounded in an Israeli strike on Sunday on a vehicle on the coastal road west of the Nuseirat camp in the central part of the Gaza Strip, medics told Reuters.
Medics first announced that a young boy had been killed in the strike, but later said they had managed to resuscitate him.
The Israeli military said an Israeli aircraft fired on what the military described as a suspicious vehicle moving toward northern Gaza outside the inspection route laid down by the ceasefire agreement.
“The IDF (Israeli military) is prepared for any scenario and will continue to take any necessary actions to thwart any immediate threat to IDF soldiers,” it said, giving no details on the impact of the strike or any casualties.
Several Palestinians have been reported killed by Israeli fire since a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas took effect on Jan. 19. Israel said its forces have opened fire in incidents where “suspicious” figures, sometimes armed, posed a risk to Israeli forces deployed at some areas of Gaza as stipulated by the phased deal.
Hamas has described these incidents as violations of the truce.
During the first phase of the ceasefire, 33 children, women and older male hostages as well as sick and injured, were due to be released. Of these, 18 have been freed so far. More than 60 male hostages of military age will remain captive until a second phase is negotiated.
Negotiations are due to start by Tuesday on agreements for the release of the remaining hostages and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza in a second phase of the deal, which is intended to lead to a final end of the war in Gaza.
Later on Sunday, Hamas accused Israel of stalling over the implementation of the humanitarian part of the deal, saying Israel has yet to permit the entry of the needed medical, relief, fuel, and reconstruction supplies as per the agreement.
“We urge the mediators and guarantors of the ceasefire agreement to compel the occupation (Israel) to allow the entry of relief materials according to the agreement, most urgently needed are tents, fuel, food materials, and heavy machinery,” said the group’s spokesperson, Hazem Qassem.
There was no immediate Israeli comment on Hamas’ remarks.


Sudan army says retakes key district in Khartoum North

Sudan army says retakes key district in Khartoum North
Updated 41 sec ago
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Sudan army says retakes key district in Khartoum North

Sudan army says retakes key district in Khartoum North
Military spokesman Nabil Abdullah said that army forces, alongside allied units, had “completed on Friday the clearing of” Kafouri and other areas in Sharq El Nil
The army has in recent weeks surged through Bahri pushing the paramilitaries to the outskirts

PORT SUDAN: Sudan’s military said Saturday that it had regained control of a key district in greater Khartoum as it presses its advance against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The district of Kafouri in Khartoum North, or Bahri, had been under RSF control since war between the army and the paramilitaries began in April 2023.
In a statement, military spokesman Nabil Abdullah said that army forces, alongside allied units, had “completed on Friday the clearing of” Kafouri and other areas in Sharq El Nil, 15 kilometers to the east, of what he described as “remnants of the Dagalo terrorist militias.”
The army has in recent weeks surged through Bahri — an RSF stronghold since the start of the war — pushing the paramilitaries to the outskirts.
The Kafouri district, one of Khartoum’s wealthiest neighborhoods, had served as a key base for RSF leaders.
Among the properties in the area was the residence of Abdel Rahim Dagalo, the brother of RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and his deputy in the paramilitary group.
The recapture of Kafouri further weakens the RSF’s hold in the capital and signals the army’s continued advance to retake full control of Khartoum North, which is home to one million people.
Khartoum North, Omdurman across the Nile River, and the city center to the south make up greater Khartoum.
On Thursday, a military source told AFP that the army was advancing toward the center of Khartoum, nearly two years after the city fell to the RSF at the start of the war.
Eyewitnesses in southern Khartoum reported hearing explosions and clashes coming from central Khartoum Saturday morning.
The developments mark one of the army’s most significant offensives since the war broke out between army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and his erstwhile ally Dagalo’s RSF, which quickly seized much of Khartoum and other strategic areas.
The conflict has devastated the country, displacing more than 12 million and plunging Sudan into the “biggest humanitarian crisis ever recorded” according to the International Rescue Committee.

War-torn Lebanon forms its first government in over 2 years

War-torn Lebanon forms its first government in over 2 years
Updated 6 min 25 sec ago
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War-torn Lebanon forms its first government in over 2 years

War-torn Lebanon forms its first government in over 2 years
  • Salam’s cabinet of 24 ministers, split evenly between Christian and Muslim sects, was formed less than a month after he was appointed
  • Lebanon is also still in the throes of a crippling economic crisis, now in its sixth year

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s new prime minister on Saturday formed the country’s first full-fledged government since 2022.
President Joseph Aoun announced in a statement that he had accepted the resignation of the former caretaker government and signed a decree with new Prime Minister Nawaf Salam forming the new government.
Salam’s cabinet of 24 ministers, split evenly between Christian and Muslim sects, was formed less than a month after he was appointed, and comes at a time where Lebanon is scrambling to rebuild its battered southern region and maintain security along its southern border after a devastating war between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group. A US-brokered ceasefire deal ended the war in November.
Lebanon is also still in the throes of a crippling economic crisis, now in its sixth year, which has battered its banks, destroyed its state electricity sector and left many in poverty unable to access their savings.
Salam, a diplomat and former president of the International Court of Justice, has vowed to reform Lebanon’s judiciary and battered economy and bring about stability in the troubled country, which has faced numerous economic, political, and security crises for decades.
Though Hezbollah did not endorse Salam as prime minister, the Lebanese group did engage in negotiations with the new prime minister over the Shiite Muslim seats in government, as per Lebanon’s power-sharing system.
Lebanon’s new authorities also mark a shift away from leaders that are close to Hezbollah, as Beirut hopes to continue improving ties with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations that have been concerned by Hezbollah’s growing political and military power over the past decade.
In early January, former army chief Aoun was elected president, ending that position’s vacuum. He was also a candidate not endorsed by Hezbollah and key allies.
Aoun has shared similar sentiments to Salam, also vowing to consolidate the state’s right to “monopolize the carrying of weapons,” in an apparent reference to the arms of Hezbollah.


Hamas accuses Israel of ‘slow killing’ of Palestinian prisoners

Hamas accuses Israel of ‘slow killing’ of Palestinian prisoners
Updated 59 min 3 sec ago
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Hamas accuses Israel of ‘slow killing’ of Palestinian prisoners

Hamas accuses Israel of ‘slow killing’ of Palestinian prisoners
  • Seven prisoners were transferred to hospitals immediately after their release
  • The Palestinian Red Crescent confirmed that seven inmates had been admitted to hospitals

GAZA CITY: Hamas accused Israel of adopting a policy it described as the “slow killing” of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails after seven inmates freed on Saturday were admitted to hospital.
“The fact that seven prisoners were transferred to hospitals immediately after their release... reflects the systematic assaults and mistreatment of our prisoners by the Israeli prison authorities,” Hamas said in a statement, adding that it was “part of the policy of the extremist Israeli government, which pursues the slow killing of prisoners inside the prisons.”
Meanwhile Abdullah Al-Zaghari, head of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club told AFP: “All the prisoners who were released today are in need of medical care, treatment, and examinations as a result of the brutality they were subjected to during the past months. There are seven who were transferred to the hospital.”
The Palestinian Red Crescent confirmed that seven inmates had been admitted to hospitals.


Kingdom’s security ‘red line’ for Egypt, says Cairo

Kingdom’s security ‘red line’ for Egypt, says Cairo
Updated 08 February 2025
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Kingdom’s security ‘red line’ for Egypt, says Cairo

Kingdom’s security ‘red line’ for Egypt, says Cairo

CAIRO: Egypt condemned on Saturday as “irresponsible” statements by Israeli officials suggesting establishing a Palestinian state on Saudi territory, according to a statement by Egypt's foreign ministry.

The foreign ministry said it considered the suggestion a “direct infringement of Saudi sovereignty”, adding that the Kingdom's security was a “red line for Egypt”. 


Head of UN chemical weapons watchdog to meet Syrian leader: authorities

Fernando Arias, Director General. (X @OPCW)
Fernando Arias, Director General. (X @OPCW)
Updated 08 February 2025
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Head of UN chemical weapons watchdog to meet Syrian leader: authorities

Fernando Arias, Director General. (X @OPCW)
  • The OPCW has asked the authorities in Syria to secure all relevant locations and safeguard any relevant documentation

DAMASCUS: The head of the world’s chemical weapons watchdog will meet Syria’s new leader Saturday, in a first visit since the ouster of Bashar Assad, who was repeatedly accused of using such weapons during Syria’s 13-year civil war.

“We will broadcast the President of the Syrian Arab Republic Ahmad Al-Sharaa and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Asaad Al-Shaibani receiving a delegation from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW),” an official Syrian Telegram channel said in a statement.

The statement said the delegation was headed by OPCW chief Fernanado Arias.

In 2013, Syria agreed to join the OPCW shortly after a suspected chemical gas attack killed more than 1,000 people near Damascus.

It handed over its declared stockpile for destruction, but the OPCW has always been concerned that the declaration made by Damascus was incomplete and that more weapons remained.

Assad’s government denied using chemical weapons.

But in 2014, the OPCW set up what it called a “fact-finding mission” to investigate chemical weapons use in Syria, subsequently issuing 21 reports covering 74 instances of alleged chemical weapons use.

Investigators concluded that chemical weapons were used or likely used in 20 instances.