Israël

Iran Sets up New Defense Council After War With Israel

Iran's top security body has approved the creation of a new defence council, state media reported on Sunday, more than a month after a ceasefire ended a 12-day war with Israel. "The Supreme National Security Council approved the establishment of the National Defence Council," state television said. The new body -- which will be ...

Israel Says Ground Troops Conducted Raids in Syria

Israel's military said Sunday ground troops had operated in southern Syria, seizing weapons and questioning individuals suspected of arms trafficking, in the latest cross-border raid since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December. A military statement said that troops had completed overnight "a mission involving on-site questioning of several ...

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As soon as press leaks emerged suggesting that the Lebanese file was being taken away from US envoy Tom Barrack and handed back to former envoy Morgan Ortagus, a certain optimism resurfaced among the Lebanese. This might be explained by the fact that Ortagus is seen as more than just a US envoy; she has indeed become some kind of celebrity in ...

US Envoy Meets Israeli Hostage Families in Tel Aviv

US envoy Steve Witkoff met anguished relatives of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza on Saturday, as fears for the captives' survival mounted almost 22 months into the war sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack. Witkoff was greeted with some applause and pleas for assistance from hundreds of protesters gathered in Tel Aviv before going into a ...

Humanitarian Aid to Gaza: Berlin Says Progress Remains “Highly Insufficient”

The German government said Saturday that the “limited initial progress” in delivering humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip remains “highly insufficient,” though it has not proposed any sanctions against Israel despite increasingly stern rhetoric. Following a visit by Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul to the region on Thursday and Friday, ...

Geagea Accuses Hezbollah of Setting Lebanon “a Hundred Years Back,” Calls for Weapons to Be Returned to the State

During the annual dinner of Radio Liban Libre, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea delivered a sharp speech against Hezbollah, accusing it of being the primary cause of Lebanon’s political, economic, and institutional decline. “We don’t need Israel to attack us to push us back a century: Hezbollah is already doing that,” Geagea said, ...

Israel Says Intercepted Missile From Yemen

The Israeli military said it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen on Friday, which the Iran-backed Huthi said they had launched. "Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile that was launched from Yemen was intercepted," the Israeli military said. The Huthis targeted Israel's Ben ...

Hamas Armed Wing Publishes Video of Gaza Hostage

The armed wing of Palestinian militant group Hamas released a minute-long video Friday of an Israeli hostage held in Gaza looking weak and malnourished inside a narrow concrete tunnel. The Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades video showed an emaciated and bearded man that AFP and Israeli media identified as Evyatar David, seized on October 7, 2023. AFP ...

From Strategy to Reality: What Will It Take to Disarm Hezbollah?

The question of disarming Hezbollah in Lebanon, long a political taboo, is now back at the heart of both political and diplomatic discussions. This shift comes amid mounting international pressure and a changing balance of power in the region. Although the topic remains deeply divisive within Lebanon’s political class, experts believe there are ...

Trump Envoy to Inspect Gaza Aid as Pressure Mounts on Israel

President Donald Trump's envoy met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday ahead of a visit to inspect aid distribution in Gaza, as a deadly food crisis drove mounting international pressure for a ceasefire. Steve Witkoff, who has been involved in months of stalled negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal, met ...

Haykal Marks Army Day with Border Pledge and Tribute to Troops

Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Commander General Rodolphe Haykal reaffirmed on Friday the army’s firm commitment to national security, announcing a “large-scale and important deployment” in the southern Litani region, conducted in close coordination with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), as Israel continues to occupy several ...

Trump Expresses “Discontent” Over Plans To Recognize a Palestinian State

Donald Trump “expressed his discontent and disagreement with the leaders of France, the United Kingdom and Canada” over their plans to recognize a Palestinian state, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Thursday. The U.S. president has thus somewhat hardened his stance on the matter. While he had already sharply criticized ...