War in the Middle East

Trump Announces US-Israeli Hostage to Be Freed 'in about Two Hours'
Trump Announces US-Israeli Hostage to Be Freed 'in about Two Hours'

US-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander, who has been held in Gaza since October 2023, will be freed within hours, President Donald Trump said Monday. "They're going to be releasing Edan in about two hours from now or sometime today," the US president told reporters at the White House. A source close to Hamas had told AFP the handover of ...

Hamas Releases Video of Two Israeli Hostages Alive in Gaza
Hamas Releases Video of Two Israeli Hostages Alive in Gaza

Hamas's armed wing released a video on Saturday showing two Israeli hostages alive in the Gaza Strip, with one of the two men calling to end the 19-month-long war. The pair were identified by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group as Elkana Bohbot and Yosef Haim Ohana, who were kidnapped during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on ...

 Israel Intercepts Missile Launched from Yemen
Israel Intercepts Missile Launched from Yemen

Israel's military said it intercepted a missile launched from Yemen on Friday, with AFP journalists reporting explosions heard in the Jerusalem area. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the missile fire, which follows attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, including a strike on Sunday on Israel's main airport. The Israeli ...

Israel Threatens Iran With the Same Fate as Hamas and Hezbollah
Israel Threatens Iran With the Same Fate as Hamas and Hezbollah

Israel will do to Iran what it has done to Hamas in Gaza, Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Thursday, days after an attack on Ben Gurion Airport by Iran-backed Houthis. "I warn... Iranian leaders who finance, arm, and exploit the Houthi terrorist organization: the proxy system is terminated, and the axis of evil has collapsed," Katz said in a ...

Hamas Insists on 'Comprehensive' Deal to End Gaza War
Hamas Insists on 'Comprehensive' Deal to End Gaza War

Hamas insisted Wednesday on a "comprehensive" agreement to end its war with Israel, as rescuers said Israeli bombardment of Gaza killed at least 26 people amid a growing humanitarian catastrophe. A two-month ceasefire in the war collapsed in March, with Israel resuming intense strikes and imposing a total aid blockade on the Palestinian ...

Hamas Reportedly Pledges to Halt Military Activity from Lebanon
Hamas Reportedly Pledges to Halt Military Activity from Lebanon

A Lebanese security source revealed on Wednesday that Lebanon has “received assurances from Hamas that no military action will be carried out from Lebanese territory.” The source, quoted by Sky News Arabia, also disclosed that Hamas is expected to “hand over in the coming hours” a fourth suspect wanted by the Lebanese authorities for ...

26 Killed in Israeli Strikes on Gaza, Including 15 at School Shelter
26 Killed in Israeli Strikes on Gaza, Including 15 at School Shelter

Gaza's civil defence agency said Wednesday that Israeli bombardment killed at least 26 people, 15 of them in a strike on a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza City. Israel has drawn international condemnation over its plans to expand its military offensive in the Palestinian territory, ravaged by 19 months of war. Israel's far-right ...

UN: Israel's Gaza Offensive Marks 'Very Dangerous Moment'
UN: Israel's Gaza Offensive Marks 'Very Dangerous Moment'

The UN's human rights chief told AFP Wednesday that Israel's plan for an expanded offensive in the Gaza Strip represented "a very dangerous moment" for civilians there. "What we see is only more destruction, more hatred, more dehumanisation," said Volker Turk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, during a visit to Copenhagen for ...

As Israel Plans Gaza 'Conquest', How Strong Is its Army?
As Israel Plans Gaza 'Conquest', How Strong Is its Army?

Israel's military has called up tens of thousands of reservists for its planned expanded offensive in Gaza, which an official said entails the "conquest" of the Palestinian territory. With one of the best equipped armies in the world, what forces are available to Israel? A large part of the adult population has completed military service and ...

Lebanon Steps Up Security as Gulf Tourists Set to Return
Lebanon Steps Up Security as Gulf Tourists Set to Return

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam met on Tuesday at the Grand Serail with ambassadors from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to coordinate preparations for the anticipated return of Gulf nationals to Lebanon. The meeting follows the United Arab Emirates’ recent decision to lift a long-standing travel ban on Lebanon, imposed during a previous ...