PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 7:15 pm - Jerusalem Time

Hebrew media reveals the identity of the detainees who will be released by the resistance next Saturday

Hebrew sources reported that the six prisoners who will be released next Saturday are: Omer Shem Tov, Elijah Cohen, Omer Finkert, Tal Shoham, Avera Mangistu, and Hisham al-Sayed.


An Israeli occupation official confirmed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was able to reach an agreement to return all detainees in the first phase of the Gaza agreement.


The official added that security demands will be raised during negotiations on the second phase of the agreement, which will be led by Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and US President Donald Trump's envoy, Steven Witkoff.


The official indicated that Tel Aviv is ready to return to fighting in Gaza if necessary, stressing that the weapons stockpile has been replenished thanks to the support of US President Trump.


He also announced the occupation's approval to bring a limited quantity of mobile homes and heavy equipment into Gaza, within the framework of the current agreement.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 6:39 pm - Jerusalem Time

Tens of thousands of Palestinians leave refugee camps in the West Bank

Tens of thousands of Palestinians living in refugee camps in the occupied West Bank have fled their homes because of a weeks-long Israeli offensive that has demolished homes and destroyed vital infrastructure in densely built-up towns, Palestinian authorities said.


According to Reuters, Israeli forces began their operation in the refugee camp in the northern West Bank city of Jenin on January 21, deploying hundreds of soldiers and bulldozers that demolished homes and razed streets, displacing almost all of the camp's residents.


“We do not know what is happening inside the camp, but there are ongoing demolitions and street widening,” Mohammad al-Sabbagh, head of the Jenin camp services committee, told Reuters.


The operation has since spread to other refugee camps, notably Tulkarm and nearby Nur Shams, both of which were also destroyed. Israel says its goal is to suppress Iranian-backed militant groups in the West Bank.


The camps have long been a stronghold for armed groups, and are home to descendants of Palestinian refugees who left or were expelled from their homes in the 1948 war during the creation of the state of Israel.


The camps have been repeatedly raided by the Israeli army, but the current operation is on an unusually large scale, and began after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza.


According to Palestinian Authority data, about 17,000 people left Jenin refugee camp, leaving it almost completely empty. About 6,000 people left Nour Shams camp, about two-thirds of the total number in the camp, and another 10,000 left Tulkarm camp.


Nihad Al-Shawish, head of the Nour Shams Camp Services Committee, told Reuters: “The camp is home to 9,000 people, approximately 70 percent of whom have been displaced, and those who remain are trapped inside the camp.”


He added: "The Civil Defense, the Red Crescent, and the Palestinian security services brought them some food aid yesterday. The occupation army continues the bulldozing and destruction operations inside the camp."


The Israeli attacks led to the demolition of dozens of homes and the destruction of large areas of roads, in addition to the cutting off of water and electricity, but the Israeli army denied forcing residents to leave their homes.


"People certainly have the possibility to move or go wherever they want, but if they don't want to, they are allowed to stay," Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesman, told reporters.


The operation began when Israel moved to ban the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) from its headquarters in East Jerusalem and cut off all contact with Israeli officials.


The ban, which came into effect at the end of January, has affected UNRWA's work in the West Bank and Gaza, where it provides aid to millions of Palestinians in refugee camps.


Israel accused UNRWA of collaborating with the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and said that some of its employees participated in the movement's attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked a 15-month war on Gaza.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 6:16 pm - Jerusalem Time

Heavy equipment begins entering Gaza Strip through Rafah crossing

The Egyptian Al-Qahirah News Channel reported on Tuesday that heavy equipment had begun entering the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing.


In a related context, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoted a political source on Tuesday as saying that Israel will begin allowing the entry of heavy equipment and mobile facilities into the Gaza Strip in stages.


The source, who was not named by the newspaper, indicated that the mobile equipment and facilities will enter after being inspected, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement with Hamas.


The Hamas movement condemned the day before yesterday Israel's refusal to allow the entry of mobile homes and heavy equipment, and considered it a "clear evasion" of its pledges and obligations.


The ceasefire agreement clearly stipulates the entry of equipment into Gaza, to build at least 60,000 temporary homes.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 6:07 pm - Jerusalem Time

Suffocation injuries during Israeli occupation's storming of southern Nablus

Today, Tuesday, a number of citizens suffered from suffocation after the occupation forces stormed the town of Qusra, south of Nablus.


According to local sources, the occupation forces stormed the town of Qasra amid heavy gunfire and tear gas bombs, which led to a number of citizens suffering from suffocation.

OPINIONS

Tue 18 Feb 2025 5:47 pm - Jerusalem Time

US 'Fentanyl' Tariffs Violate WTO Rules

 Ji Wenhua

Ji Wenhua

Opinion Writer


The US imposition of additional tariffs on China over the fentanyl issue appears justified as a measure to protect public health and safety. However, from the perspective of international trade law, these tariffs lack acceptable arguments for exemption under the legal framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The additional tariffs imposed by the United States ignore core WTO obligations such as most-favored-nation (MFN) treatment and the schedule of concessions. The United States may cite Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 or Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act to justify its unilateral actions, but domestic legal provisions do not guarantee exemption from WTO obligations.

In order to successfully avail itself of the exceptions to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT 1994), particularly Article XX (general exceptions) and Article XXI (security exceptions), the United States must demonstrate that its customs measures are necessary and do not constitute arbitrary or unjustified discrimination in international trade. According to WTO precedents and interpretation of the rules, it is unlikely that the United States will be able to justify its measures through either the general exception or the national security exception.

If the US continues to implement these tariffs, affected countries may initiate consultations within the WTO, request the establishment of a panel to adjudicate the matter, or pursue trade retaliation proceedings in parallel, in accordance with the understanding on the rules and procedures governing the dispute settlement (DSU). Given the current global economic situation, the US abusing unilateral tariff measures will make the multilateral trading system less stable and predictable.

What is more important is that linking public health issues with customs pressure does not play a positive role in controlling drug flows or cross-border law enforcement cooperation. Rather, it increases political escalation and hinders effective governance based on consultation and cooperation. The solution is to take comprehensive measures with shared responsibility, including reducing drug demand, cross-border law enforcement cooperation, and strengthening multilateral cooperation, to create a more constructive plan for global drug control governance.

As a responsible country, China has adopted the strictest controls in combating drug production, trafficking and use. The continuous progress of China-US anti-drug cooperation is the right way to solve the fentanyl problem. The US's unilateral measures will undoubtedly undermine the authority and stability of the multilateral trading system and reject the call for joint response to global challenges in an expanding world. More importantly, unilateral tariff measures are far from addressing the root cause of the fentanyl crisis in the US. Major countries should act in accordance with their status and refrain from taking actions that benefit no one.

The writer is a professor at the School of Law, Shanghai University of International Business and Economics.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 4:58 pm - Jerusalem Time

Al-Aloul briefs a delegation from the European Parliament on developments in Palestine

Today, Tuesday, Deputy Chairman of the Fatah Movement, Mahmoud Al-Aloul, received in his office in Ramallah a delegation from the European Parliament headed by the head of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, Iraci Garcia.


The meeting discussed in depth the Israeli escalation in the West Bank, where the Palestinian leadership reiterated its categorical rejection of the ongoing crimes and violations, stressing the need for more effective European action to ensure the consolidation of the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, the provision of urgent humanitarian relief, and the start of the reconstruction process without obstacles.


Al-Aloul reviewed the developments in the West Bank, and the continued aggression of the occupation on cities, towns, villages and camps in the northern West Bank, where more than 40 thousand of our people were forcibly displaced, homes, facilities and infrastructure were demolished, settler attacks escalated, and more than 900 checkpoints were placed to impede movement and travel between Palestinian areas, in addition to the continuation of the financial war and deductions from Palestinian tax revenues.


For his part, Al-Aloul stressed the strategic role played by the European Union in supporting Palestinian national rights, expressing his deep appreciation for the constant European political and humanitarian support for the Palestinian people.


For their part, the delegation affirmed their commitment to defending international and humanitarian law and the values of peace and justice, and to emphasizing the two-state solution as the only path to peace and stability in the region as a whole, and the right of the Palestinian people to live on their land and in their independent state.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 4:44 pm - Jerusalem Time

Lazzarini: Israeli occupation's storming of UNRWA schools in Jerusalem and Qalandia Institute is a violation of the right to education and the immunity of the United Nations

The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said that the Israeli police’s storming of UNRWA schools in Jerusalem and Qalandia today, Tuesday, and ordering their closure, “constitutes a violation of the basic right to education, as well as a violation of the privileges and immunities of the United Nations.”


“Children’s right to access education must be preserved, and UN facilities must be protected and respected at all times and in all places,” Lazzarini said in a statement on the X platform.


He explained that the raid resulted in 250 children in 3 schools in East Jerusalem, and 350 students in the Qalandia Training Center, being deprived of education.


According to Lazzarini, "there were at least 350 students and 30 staff members on site, and they were all affected by this incursion," noting that "tear gas and sound bombs were fired" during the incursion.


He continued: "Earlier this morning, Israeli police officers accompanied employees from the Jerusalem Municipality to a number of UNRWA schools and issued orders to close them."


He explained that "today's events affected 250 children in three UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem, and more than 350 students at the Qalandia Training Centre, a large UN compound."

ARAB AND WORLD

Tue 18 Feb 2025 3:44 pm - Jerusalem Time

UN: Delaying Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon is a continuing violation of Resolution 1701

The United Nations confirmed, on Tuesday, that any further delay in the Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon to the south of the Blue Line constitutes a continuing violation of UN Resolution 1701.


This came in a joint statement by the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and the Head of the UNIFIL Mission and its Force Commander, General Aroldo Lazaro.


The statement said: "Today marks the end of the period specified for the withdrawal of the Israeli army to the south of the Blue Line and the parallel deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces in locations in southern Lebanon, as stipulated in the Cessation of Hostilities Understanding of November 26, 2024."


He added that "any further delay (after it was extended once until February 18) in this process (withdrawal) contradicts what we had hoped would happen, especially since it constitutes a continuing violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 of 2006."


The UN statement continued: "However, this should not overshadow the tangible progress that has been made since the understanding entered into force in late November."


He added: "The Israeli army withdrew from population centers in southern Lebanon, coinciding with the deployment of the Lebanese army in difficult circumstances, and this supported the return of local communities and worked to restore basic services."


He stressed that "the new Lebanese President (Joseph Aoun) and the government are determined to fully extend the authority of the state in all areas in the south and to enhance stability to prevent the return of conflict to Lebanon, and they deserve steadfast support in this endeavor."


But he added that "we still have a lot of hard work ahead of us to achieve the commitments made in the November understanding (ceasefire agreement) and in Resolution 1701," calling on the two parties to "fulfill their obligations" under it.


The statement considered that "the feeling of security among the residents of southern Lebanon, who are suffering from the widespread destruction that befell their villages and towns (as a result of the recent aggression), as well as among the residents of northern Israel who were forced to leave their homes, will not come overnight."


He stressed that the feeling of security "cannot come from continuing military operations, but rather sustainable political commitment is the only way forward."


"Ultimately, Lebanon and Israel must make the solutions stipulated in the November understanding and Resolution 1701 a reality, on both sides of the Blue Line," he added.


The statement concluded by noting that "the United Nations in Lebanon is ready to continue supporting all efforts in this direction."


Tens of thousands of Israelis have left their homes in settlements near the Lebanese border since the start of the war in October 2023.


Earlier on Tuesday, the Lebanese National News Agency confirmed the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the villages and towns it occupied in the south of the country, with the exception of 5 main points along the border.


She said, "The Israeli forces withdrew at dawn from the villages and towns they occupied in the south, namely Yaroun, Maroun al-Ras, Blida, Mays al-Jabal, Houla, Markaba, Adaisseh, Kfar Kila, and al-Wazzani."


In contrast, the agency reported that Israel maintained its presence at "five main points along the border," on the pretext that these points are opposite major settlement blocs.


Earlier on Tuesday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri stressed the necessity of the Israeli withdrawal from all of the country's territories, and the readiness of the army to carry out all its duties.


The Lebanese presidency reported this in a statement, following an "exceptional meeting" at Baabda Palace, east of Beirut, to discuss developments on the country's southern border, and the continuation of Israeli violations and breaches.


The Israeli army was supposed to complete its withdrawal from the areas it occupied in southern Lebanon at dawn on January 26, according to the deadline set in the ceasefire agreement of 60 days starting from its entry into force on November 27, 2024.


The current form of withdrawal also contradicts Beirut's demands for a complete Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.


Israel's aggression against Lebanon began on October 8, 2023, and turned into a full-scale war on September 23, leaving 4,104 martyrs and 16,890 wounded, including a large number of children and women, in addition to the displacement of about 1,400,000 people.


Since the agreement came into effect, Israel has committed at least 925 violations of it in Lebanon, leaving at least 74 martyrs and 265 wounded.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 3:27 pm - Jerusalem Time

Hamas: We decided to hand over 4 bodies of the occupation detainees next Thursday

The head of the Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, Khalil Al-Hayya, confirmed that the movement has proven its seriousness in implementing the agreement in coordination with the resistance factions and with full responsibility.


Al-Hayya accused, in a statement today, the Israeli occupation and Benjamin Netanyahu's government of procrastination and trying to evade implementing the agreed-upon obligations, pointing out that the occupation's intransigence is obstructing efforts to reach serious solutions.


Al-Hayya said that he decided to hand over the bodies of 4 of the occupation detainees next Thursday.


Hamas will release all 6 living detainees included in the first phase, and will also release 4 bodies on Thursday, including the bodies of the Bibas family, in preparation for engaging in the second phase of the deal negotiations and in response to the efforts of the mediators.


He explained that he decided to hand over 6 of the occupation's detainees next Saturday.


Al-Hayya stressed the need to oblige the Israeli occupation to implement all the terms of the agreement without delay, noting that "Israel" is still evading engaging in the second phase negotiations.


Al-Hayya explained that Hamas is ready to immediately engage in implementing the provisions of the second phase, which includes a complete ceasefire and the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Strip.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 3:05 pm - Jerusalem Time

Sa'ar: Negotiations for the second phase of the Gaza agreement begin this week

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said on Tuesday that talks on the second phase of a ceasefire in Gaza will begin this week, noting Tel Aviv's demand for "complete demilitarization" of the Strip.


The Israeli newspaper, "Jerusalem Post", quoted Sa'ar as saying in a press conference that the security cabinet "agreed yesterday evening (Monday) to begin negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire in Gaza this week."


Sa'ar added: "Talks on the second phase of the Gaza prisoner swap deal are expected to begin this week."


He also pointed out that "Israel demands the complete disarmament of the Gaza Strip."


The second phase negotiations were scheduled to begin on the 16th day of the Gaza ceasefire that went into effect on January 19.


On Tuesday, an unnamed Israeli political source said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had "pledged" to allow the entry of mobile homes (caravans) and engineering machinery into Gaza in exchange for the release of six living Israeli prisoners and the return of the bodies of four others.


Earlier on Tuesday, the official Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported, citing an unnamed Israeli source, that the "cabinet" proposed expanding the first phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza to include the entry of mobile homes and engineering equipment into the Strip in exchange for the release of six Israeli prisoners.


On Monday evening, a meeting held by the "cabinet" ended without the Israeli Prime Minister's Office issuing a statement regarding it or the results that were reached.


On Sunday, the Director General of the Government Media Office in Gaza, Ismail Al-Thawabta, confirmed that none of the mobile homes and heavy equipment required to rehabilitate the infrastructure destroyed by Israel had reached the Strip, “which exacerbates the humanitarian crisis.”



PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 3:03 pm - Jerusalem Time

Tubas: Israeli occupation forces arrest seven young men and a woman in Tamoun

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation forces arrested seven young men and a woman after raiding their homes in Tamoun, south of Tubas.


The director of the Prisoners Club in Tubas, Kamal Bani Odeh, reported that the occupation forces arrested Rashid Burhan Bani Odeh and his two sons, Ahmed and Amjad, the young man Aqab Nidal Bani Odeh, Bassam Muhammad Basharat, Louay Abdul Rahman Basharat, Anas Omar Basharat, in addition to Mrs. Ibtihal Jawdat Bani Odeh, after raiding their homes in the town.


The occupation forces had previously arrested two women and a young man from the town, after raiding their homes in the town.


The occupation is launching a campaign of arrests and field investigations in Tamoun, during the ongoing aggression on the Far'a camp and the town of Tamoun, for three days, and what accompanied it of the destruction of the infrastructure and citizens' property, and the expulsion of residents from their homes and turning them into military barracks.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 2:52 pm - Jerusalem Time

The forced displacement of Palestinians from the West Bank is the largest since 1967.


The New York Times reported on Sunday that the mass displacement carried out by the Israeli occupation forces in the occupied West Bank is the largest since 1967, according to experts who spoke with the newspaper.

“What makes this moment unprecedented is not only the scale of displacement but also the accompanying discourse, which increasingly normalizes the idea of permanent forced displacement,” Maha Nassar, a Palestinian historian at the University of Arizona, told the newspaper.

“This represents a major escalation in a long-running conflict that threatens to fundamentally change the political and demographic landscape of the region,” she continued.

The Israeli occupation army has killed at least 55 Palestinians since the army began its operations in the occupied West Bank last month - which began with a large-scale attack on Jenin and the refugee camp that is still ongoing.

The operation soon expanded to include other cities and towns, including Tulkarm, Tubas, and Nablus.

In Jenin and Tulkarm alone, at least 26,000 Palestinians have been uprooted from their homes, as the occupation forces have destroyed homes and obliterated infrastructure. The homes that have not been destroyed are being evacuated, seized by the occupation forces, and turned into military sites.

“The Israelis have two goals,” a Tulkarm resident told the newspaper. “First, to push refugees from the northern West Bank toward central areas, with the goal of completely erasing the refugee camps. The second goal is to eliminate the resistance and weaken the Palestinian Authority’s ability to govern.”

The Israeli army launched a new raid in Nablus on Monday, after a violent raid in the Old City the day before - which left at least 14 people injured, including several children.

Video footage showed Israeli forces opening fire on schoolchildren in the Old City of Nablus on Sunday.

Israeli military reinforcements continued to arrive in Jenin and Tulkarm. In Jenin, the offensive continued for about a month.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) warned last week that the forced eviction of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank was “escalating at an alarming rate.”

"Jenin camp is now empty of residents, reminiscent of the Second Intifada. This scene will be repeated in other camps," UNRWA said in a statement, noting that 40,000 Palestinians have recently been displaced from the occupied West Bank. The UN agency added that "repeated and destructive operations have rendered refugee camps in the north uninhabitable, trapping residents in a state of repeated displacement."

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 2:32 pm - Jerusalem Time

The death toll in the Gaza Strip rises to 48,291

The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced today, Tuesday, that the death toll in the Gaza Strip has risen to 48,291, the majority of whom are children and women, since the start of the Israeli occupation aggression on October 7, 2023.


It added that the number of injuries has risen to 111,722 since the beginning of the aggression, while a number of victims are still under the rubble, and ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them.


It pointed out that 7 dead (6 of whom had their bodies recovered, and one new dead) and 13 injuries arrived at Gaza Strip hospitals during the past 24 hours.


It is noteworthy that the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip entered into force on January 19, and since it came into effect, a number of citizens have been killed and injured in various parts of the Strip.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 2:12 pm - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation and settlers storm Al-Auja and arrest 3 citizens

Today, Tuesday, settlers, under the protection of the Israeli occupation forces, stormed the Ras Ein Al-Auja community, north of the city of Jericho, and arrested 3 citizens.


Local sources explained that the settlers stormed the community and grazed their sheep among the homes of the Bedouin citizens, while the occupation forces present at the site arrested the young men: Salman Mahmoud Kaabneh, Suleiman Salem Al-Omrain, and Suleiman Mahmoud Al-Omrain Kaabneh.


The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission said in its monthly report on “occupation violations and colonial expansion measures” that the occupation forces carried out 1,786 attacks, while the settlers carried out 375 attacks, ranging from armed attacks on Palestinian towns and villages, to imposing facts on the ground and field executions, to vandalism and bulldozing of lands, uprooting trees, seizing property, and closing and establishing military checkpoints that sever the ties of Palestinian geography.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 1:57 pm - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation seizes land to build a colonial road northwest of Nablus

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation authorities seized a plot of land to pave a new colonial road northwest of Nablus.


The head of the Joint Services Council for the villages of northwest Nablus, Muhammad Azem, said that the occupation forces delivered a notice to seize about half a dunum of land from Sebastia, Naqoura and Deir Sharaf, in order to pave a new colonial road for a new pastoral colonial outpost in the area.


He added that the targeted land is located in Basin No. 12 of Naqoura lands, Basin No. 14 of Deir Sharaf lands, and Basin No. 4 of Sebastia lands.


He pointed out that settlers established this colonial outpost in mid-2023, by erecting a tent for one of the settlers, and now it has expanded and includes a number of mobile homes.


According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, during the month of January, the settlers attempted to establish 10 new colonial outposts, which were predominantly agricultural and pastoral in nature. They were distributed as follows: 4 new colonial outposts on the lands of Tubas Governorate, 3 outposts in Nablus Governorate, and 3 others in Qalqilya, Ramallah, and Bethlehem.


During the same period, the occupation authorities seized a total of 262 dunums of citizens’ lands in the West Bank, including Jerusalem.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 1:34 pm - Jerusalem Time

Qatar: Negotiations for the second phase of the Gaza agreement have not yet begun, and what is happening on the ground affects them

The Qatari Foreign Ministry confirmed on Tuesday that the negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza have not yet officially begun, noting that what is happening on the ground affects them, but it stated that "there is a positive atmosphere" for their launch.


The Qatari Foreign Ministry stressed its commitment to "efforts to launch the second phase negotiations, and we are working with all parties; but it has not officially started yet."


She said, "There is no comment at present regarding coordination regarding the exchange of prisoners and hostages next week."


She added that "what is happening on the ground affects the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza," but she pointed out that "there is a positive atmosphere for the launch of negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire agreement."


The ministry said, "The arrival of delegations to Doha to begin the second phase negotiations is subject to the decisions of the countries concerned."


"We have repeatedly called for adherence to the ceasefire agreement and the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza," she added.


While Doha stressed its "rejection of any forced displacement of the Palestinian people," it confirmed its involvement "in the Arab working group on Gaza, and contacts are ongoing."

ARAB AND WORLD

Tue 18 Feb 2025 1:18 pm - Jerusalem Time

Egypt to host emergency Arab summit on March 4

The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced today, Tuesday, that the Arab Republic of Egypt will host the emergency Arab summit on developments in the Palestinian issue, on March 4, 2025 in Cairo, as part of completing the objective and logistical preparations for the summit.


The Egyptian Foreign Ministry had previously announced that the date of the emergency summit in the Arab Republic of Egypt would be set for February 27 in Cairo.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 1:14 pm - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation demolishes 4 homes of brothers in southeast Jerusalem

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation forces demolished 4 houses in the town of Jabal al-Mukaber, southeast of Jerusalem.


Eyewitnesses reported that police and occupation army forces stormed the town, accompanied by a bulldozer and crews from the occupation municipality, and demolished the homes of the brothers Ali, Amin, Hamed and Muhammad Halsa.


A report issued by the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission stated that the occupation authorities carried out 76 demolition operations last month, affecting 126 facilities, including 74 inhabited homes, 4 uninhabited ones, and 29 agricultural and other facilities. They were concentrated in the governorates of Jenin, with 47 facilities demolished, Jerusalem with 14, Qalqilya with 11, and Bethlehem and Nablus with 10 facilities each.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 11:57 am - Jerusalem Time

Israeli Settlers attack and damage two homes south of Bethlehem

Today, Tuesday, settlers attacked two houses in the Khallet al-Nahla area, near the village of Wadi Rahhal, south of Bethlehem.


Local sources reported that a group of settlers threw stones and sticks at the homes of citizen Muhammad Abdullah Abu Suri and his son, causing severe damage after breaking the windows and damaging a vehicle.


It is noteworthy that the "Khalat al-Nahla" area has been exposed for some time to repeated attacks by the occupation forces and its settlers, represented by attacking homes and firing live bullets, which led to injuries and the martyrdom of a young man.


The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission documented 2,161 attacks carried out by the occupation forces and terrorist settlers during the month of January 2025.


In its monthly report on "occupation violations and colonial expansion measures," it explained that the occupation forces carried out 1,786 attacks, while the settlers carried out 375 attacks, ranging from armed attacks on Palestinian towns and villages to imposing facts on the ground, field executions, vandalism, land leveling, uprooting trees, seizing property, closures, and military checkpoints that sever the ties of Palestinian geography.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 11:44 am - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation closes UNRWA school in occupied Jerusalem

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation authorities closed a school affiliated with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in the occupied city of Jerusalem.


The Jerusalem Governorate reported that an occupation force stormed the Jerusalem Boys' Elementary School, affiliated with UNRWA, in the Wadi al-Joz neighborhood of Jerusalem, and forced its staff to close its doors after evacuating the students from it.


Yesterday, Monday, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, issued an order to immediately implement the laws related to banning the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.


On October 28, 2024, the Israeli Knesset passed two laws by majority vote, the first of which prohibits UNRWA activity within “areas subject to Israeli sovereignty,” while the second prohibits any contact with the agency.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 11:42 am - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation forces demolish 7 homes, a sheep pen and a tent south of Hebron

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation forces demolished seven homes, a sheep pen and a tent in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron.


Local sources reported that the occupation forces raided the village of Umm al-Khair and demolished three tin houses owned by citizens Ammar Shuaib al-Hathalin, Fatima Ali al-Maazi, and Hamid Shuaib al-Hathalin.


She added that the occupation forces demolished a house belonging to citizen Fadl Ismail Al-Najjar in the village of Shaab Al-Batm in Masafer Yatta, which houses nine people. It is worth noting that the house was demolished five months ago and was rebuilt. The occupation forces also demolished a tent and a sheep pen belonging to citizen Yousef Mahmoud Al-Jabarin.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 11:12 am - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation arrests two brothers and paves the way for the demolition of homes in Jerusalem

The Israeli occupation forces arrested two brothers and paved the way for the demolition of homes in occupied Jerusalem.


In the town of Issawiya, an occupation army force arrested the two Jerusalemite brothers, Moatasem and Alaa Nabil Salah, after raiding their family’s home in the town at dawn.


In Jabal al-Mukaber, forces from the occupation police and army stormed the town of Jabal al-Mukaber, accompanied by a bulldozer and crews from the occupation municipality, to demolish homes belonging to the Halsa family.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 11:10 am - Jerusalem Time

Israeli occupation begins to demolish 14 houses in Tulkarm camp

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation forces began a large-scale demolition of homes in Tulkarm camp, in light of the ongoing aggression against it for the 23rd consecutive day.


The occupation forces had notified the demolition of 14 houses inside the camp, under the pretext of paving a street in the middle of the camp extending from the Agency area to the Balawneh neighborhood.


According to initial estimates monitored based on field observations and official data issued by the Governor of Tulkarm, the number of homes completely destroyed by the occupation during the ongoing aggression on Tulkarm camp was at least 22 homes, 300 homes partially destroyed, and 11 homes burned, while the number of forcibly displaced people was estimated at about 10,450.


The occupation forces deliberately destroyed the infrastructure, water, electricity, sewage and communications networks in the camp.


Tulkarm Governor Abdullah Kamil called on the international community and human rights and humanitarian institutions to pressure the occupation authorities to stop the crime and massacre against Tulkarm camp.


Kamil said in a press statement that the occupation forces aim through these crimes to strike the existential place of the camp, as it is a witness to the crime of the era, which is the Nakba, in addition to targeting the UNRWA institution, and other crimes that are practiced daily against our people everywhere.


He added that all the ongoing aggression carried out by the occupation forces against Tulkarm Governorate, and forcing the residents to forcibly leave Tulkarm and Nour Shams camps for 23 days, is a clear violation of international humanitarian law and all international conventions and norms.


He added: All of this increases our determination to adhere to the fixed and inalienable national rights, until ending the occupation and establishing our independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 11:06 am - Jerusalem Time

"The Wall and Settlements": Israeli occupation seized more than 72% of the lands classified as "C"

The head of the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, Mu'ayyad Shaaban, warned of the systematic plan through which the Israeli occupation seeks to control the West Bank, after the occupation government seized more than 72% of the lands classified as "C", which constitute 60% of the West Bank lands in total.


In a statement to Voice of Palestine Radio, Shaaban condemned the settlers' attack on the village of Susya in Masafer Yatta, indicating that it was not the first attack on the village this month, which indicates an escalation in the pace of attacks, especially in the northern Jordan Valley and southwest of Nablus.


He pointed out that the occupation government seized more than 16 thousand dunams in several areas east of Ramallah for the benefit of colonial pastoral outposts, in addition to its control over the archaeological sites southwest of Bethlehem, and transferring their affiliation to the occupation authorities.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 10:07 am - Jerusalem Time

Lazzarini: UNRWA collapse will create dangerous vacuum

The Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, renewed his warning of the collapse of UNRWA due to the Israeli Knesset laws targeting its operations and the suspension of funding by major donors.


The collapse of the agency would create a dangerous vacuum in the provision of basic services, creating “fertile ground for exploitation and extremism,” which would pose a threat to peace and stability in the region and beyond, Lazzarini said.


He added that UNRWA faces major operational challenges after the Knesset decisions came into effect, as it was forced to evacuate its headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem, while its international employees were expelled from the occupied West Bank.


In the same context, he pointed out that the courage and commitment of the agency's Palestinian employees kept UNRWA schools and health clinics open to enable it to provide basic services to Palestinian refugees.


Lazzarini explained that UNRWA's operations in the Gaza Strip continue through its local or international employees, whose entry or exit from Palestine is no longer facilitated by Israel.


He continued: "It is not clear to what extent our ability to operate will be further restricted by the ban on contact between UNRWA representatives and Israeli officials, but the agency will remain and will continue to implement its mandate until it is prevented from doing so."


The UNRWA Commissioner-General said that the Agency continues to play a crucial role in addressing the enormous needs of the people of the Gaza Strip, and stressed that reducing its operations now is unhelpful and would sabotage Gaza's recovery and political transition plans.


"Time is running out to preserve UNRWA operations, and decisive intervention is urgently required," he said.


He stressed that there is no alternative that can provide public services to Palestinian refugees in the Palestinian territories, and stressed the importance of allowing UNRWA to gradually end its mandate within the framework of a political process such as the two-state solution, and transferring responsibilities to capable and prepared Palestinian institutions.


He stressed that the success of these efforts depends entirely on the strength of the international community's commitment to the political track, which must be supported by funding to maintain the agency's operations until the transfer of its services to Palestinian institutions is completed.


The statements of the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees came within the framework of a speech he delivered at the fourth meeting of the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, which was held in Cairo yesterday, Monday.

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PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 10:03 am - Jerusalem Time

A Palestinian woman died succumbing to her wounds and three others were injured by the occupation's bullets in the Gaza Strip

A female citizen died today, Tuesday, from wounds she sustained during the Israeli occupation's aggression on the Gaza Strip.


Local sources reported that citizen Salima Abu Shaaban died of her injuries during the war of extermination on the Gaza Strip.


This morning, three citizens were injured by the occupation forces' bullets east of Al-Shawka town, east of Rafah.


Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli occupation has launched a war of genocide on the Gaza Strip, resulting in the martyrdom of 48,271 citizens, the majority of whom were children and women, and the injury of 111,693 others, in an incomplete toll, as a number of victims are still under the rubble, and ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them.

ARAB AND WORLD

Tue 18 Feb 2025 9:54 am - Jerusalem Time

Demands disarming Hezbollah: Israel withdraws, keeps forces in 5 locations in southern Lebanon

The deadline for Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon under a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah expired at dawn on Tuesday, hours after the Israeli army confirmed its intention to keep its forces at five strategic points on the border.


Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said this morning that "according to the decision of the political level, the Israeli army will remain, starting today, in a buffer zone in Lebanon through five positions that control the entire length of the border, in order to ensure the defense of all Israeli towns and deterrence against threats from Lebanon."


Katz added, "In addition, many positions have been established along the border line on the Israeli side and IDF forces have been reinforced. In parallel, IDF operations will continue in order to enforce strict and uncompromising measures against any breach by Hezbollah."


He continued, "Hezbollah is obligated to withdraw completely behind the Litani Line, and the Lebanese army is obligated to enforce and disarm Hezbollah under the supervision of the mechanism established under the presidency of the United States. We are determined to establish full security for all the towns of the north according to the principle that was decided after October 7, because only the Israeli army will guarantee security in all areas against any potential threat."


Before the deadline expired, a Lebanese security official confirmed that Israeli forces began withdrawing from border villages on Monday night, with the Lebanese army advancing to deploy there.


The Lebanese official said, "Israeli forces have begun to withdraw from border villages, including Mays al-Jabal and Blida, as the Lebanese army advances."


Hours before the deadline expired, the Israeli army announced that it would keep "limited forces temporarily deployed at five strategic points along the border with Lebanon," justifying this by continuing to "defend our residents and ensure that there is no immediate threat" from Hezbollah.


The Israeli announcement came despite Lebanon's affirmation of its absolute rejection of the continued presence of Israeli forces, and its call on the sponsors of the agreement to intervene to pressure Israel.


The ceasefire agreement stipulated a halt to the exchange of shelling across the Lebanese border between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, after a war that lasted for about a year and included an Israeli ground incursion into Lebanese border areas.


The official text of the agreement has not been published, but statements by Lebanese politicians and American and French envoys have spoken of its broad outlines, including strengthening the Lebanese army’s presence in southern Lebanon, supervising Hezbollah’s withdrawal from the area south of the Litani River, and dismantling its military infrastructure. The agreement also stipulates Israel’s withdrawal from all areas it occupied in southern Lebanon.


The Israeli decision puts the Lebanese authorities in a predicament in confronting Hezbollah, which had held them responsible for working to achieve the withdrawal of Israeli forces by the end of the deadline.


Israel's decision came after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that "Hezbollah must be disarmed," adding, "Israel prefers that the Lebanese army carry out this mission."


Amid the controversy over Hezbollah's weapons, the Lebanese government affirmed in its ministerial statement its commitment to "liberating all Lebanese territories, the state's duty to monopolize the carrying of weapons, and extending the state's sovereignty over all its territories exclusively with its own forces."


Since the ceasefire came into effect, Israel has been carrying out airstrikes and bombings of homes in border villages, killing more than sixty people, about 24 of them on January 26, the first date scheduled for the ceasefire, while they were trying to return to their border towns.

PALESTINE

Tue 18 Feb 2025 9:31 am - Jerusalem Time

Israeli Settlers destroy and burn agricultural property and water pumps in Ramallah

At dawn on Tuesday, settlers destroyed agricultural property in the village of Beitillu, northwest of Ramallah.


Local sources reported that settlers infiltrated the land of citizen Mahmoud Radwan and his sons in the Ein al-Zarqa Reserve in the village after cutting the check, and burned four pumps that distribute water to about 200 cultivated dunams, and vandalized a greenhouse, and wrote hostile slogans.


She explained that citizens' losses due to the sabotage amounted to more than 100 thousand shekels.


The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission documented 2,161 attacks carried out by the occupation forces and terrorist settlers during the month of January 2025.


In its monthly report on "occupation violations and colonial expansion measures," it explained that the occupation forces carried out 1,786 attacks, while the settlers carried out 375 attacks, ranging from armed attacks on Palestinian towns and villages to imposing facts on the ground, field executions, vandalism, land leveling, uprooting trees, seizing property, closures, and military checkpoints that sever the ties of Palestinian geography.



OPINIONS

Tue 18 Feb 2025 9:28 am - Jerusalem Time

The ominous promise

op-ed "AlQuds" dot com

op-ed "AlQuds" dot com

Opinion Writer

The clock has struck, and the time has come for the negotiations of the second stage of the exchange deal between Israel and Hamas to begin in earnest, even though the real negotiations were supposed to begin on the sixteenth day of the first stage. However, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich received an ominous promise from Netanyahu stating that the decision to begin negotiations for the second stage will be subject to discussion by the political and security cabinet that met yesterday. Therefore, the decision is likely to be in the context of courting the Americans only, with greater procrastination, as a number of officials in the circle of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu indicate that there is almost no one in Israel who believes that it is possible to reach the second stage of the deal, because the gaps are very large, and Israel will not be able to give up any of its demands.


Israel is thus striving with all its might to extend the first phase and include more hostages on the humanitarian list. It seems that some of the items on this list have been agreed upon, as a number of Israeli bodies are scheduled to be released the day after tomorrow, Thursday. Expectations also indicate the possibility of releasing six living detainees in a batch next Saturday. The question that now arises is: Will this change be acceptable to Hamas, and what valuable compensation will it receive, especially since Netanyahu is still hesitant about the issue of bringing in mobile homes and equipment for the relief protocol.


It is worth noting that Israeli estimates that the chances of advancing towards the second phase of the agreement are not great, due to Hamas’s refusal to give up the Gaza Strip on the one hand, and in light of the threat to the stability of the Israeli government on the other hand, according to what was reported by the Haaretz website, the priority of the political level in Israel to push towards extending the first phase is considered a pressure card, but Hamas may reject it unless Israel commits to implementing the relief protocol.


Netanyahu continues to play on all strings, and he is eager to receive the decision of his Defense Minister, Yisrael Katz, to establish a special department in the Defense Ministry to evacuate the residents of Gaza “voluntarily.” Netanyahu seeks to strengthen this approach by presenting an initial plan on the subject from the Israeli army, which contains many temptations, including extensive aid, allowing any resident of Gaza who wishes to immigrate voluntarily to a third country to obtain a package that includes special exit arrangements by sea, air, and land.


If the Gazans insist on their steadfastness and remaining on their land, Netanyahu threatens to use Trump’s threat card, and thus resume the aggression based on the data of the current discussions, in addition to his ominous promise to Smotrich, otherwise his government may collapse at any moment.

OPINIONS

Tue 18 Feb 2025 9:26 am - Jerusalem Time

Between blackmailing Gaza with displacement and uprooting the West Bank camps...what should be done?!

Jamal Zaqout

Jamal Zaqout

Opinion Writer

Between the hammer of Trump’s threat of displacement, the hammer of his threat of hell, and the repercussions and consequences of that on the Arab arena and Arab national security, the features of Washington’s targeting, led by Trump and his Zionist team and his priestly alliances, to implement the Netanyahu government’s plans to eradicate everything related to resistance to the racist Zionist project to liquidate the Palestinian cause have become clear.


This comes after the failure of the occupation army to achieve any of its military goals in the war of extermination against the Strip, except for the shame it achieved by killing and wounding what may reach two hundred thousand people, or about 10% of the Strip’s population, most of whom are civilians, especially children and women, in addition to the deliberate destruction of the infrastructure of all sources of people’s livelihood and their homes, and making the Strip an environment that repels life and lacks any of its components, in preparation for displacing them in a pre-prepared plan, and they brazenly claim that it is a voluntary exit.


The features of the end of the war according to the ceasefire agreement are not yet clear, as Netanyahu is still defying the entire world, not just the mediators, in an attempt to buy time to protect his coalition, which is hanging on Smotrich’s tail, while the real reason is to use Trump’s positions to reap what he failed to achieve militarily by imposing a “solution” that matches the vision of the Zionist Kahanists by blackmailing the Palestinian people, and not just the resistance forces, by seeking a blatant trade-off between displacement and reconstruction, which oscillates between Trump’s Rivera and Smotrich-Ben Gvir’s settlement.


The importance of the Arab position rejecting displacement cannot be denied, not only in support of the right of our Palestinian people to remain on their homeland and determine their fate, but also based on the national and pan-Arab interests of the Arab countries themselves and the region as a whole. The threat of exchanging the possibility of reconstruction for the evacuation of the resistance forces is not only an unfair equation, but it is also a malicious attempt first to show the resistance as if it is the one obstructing the possibility of reconstruction, and more dangerously is the return to the tune of holding the resistance responsible for the destruction of the Gaza Strip and the crimes of genocide against its people, and acquitting the criminal killers, without abandoning the displacement plans by obstructing shelter, reconstruction and restoring life to the Strip.


What reveals the truth about the Tel Aviv government's adherence to these plans is the gradual and systematic uprooting of the West Bank camps and their north, which is expected to extend to various areas of the West Bank for the same strategic goal, which is to eradicate any thought... even a thought of rejecting the plans to liquidate the Palestinian cause, and resisting them by legitimate and available means. This comes at a time when the racist fascist government is banning the work of UNRWA, which exposes this plan aimed at liquidating the essence of the Palestinian cause, which is the refugee issue. This is at a time when plans to decide the fate of the land continue, in addition to criminalizing the national struggle, by eliminating the status of prisoners, the wounded, and the families of martyrs as a third main component of the Palestinian cause alongside the refugees and the land.


Does the Authority realize the extent of the strategic danger it has placed itself and our people in by issuing a decree abolishing the Prisoners and Martyrs’ Families Law, or when it tried to demonize and impose a siege on Jenin Camp? Isn’t this serving the occupation’s pre-prepared plans to uproot the camps in the context of its attempts to liquidate the refugee issue and overthrow the legitimacy of resisting these plans that target the mere right to survive, let alone the right to self-determination?


This is the essence of the Zionist project, while the powerful leadership is still betting on a political settlement that Netanyahu and his gang are working to destroy any possibility of reviving. Netanyahu’s peace revolves only around Smotrich’s trilogy of determinants: submission, departure, or death. And it, the powerful leadership, continues the policy of appeasing the enemy under the pretext of containing its brutality, which was not limited to the Gaza Strip under the pretext of October 7, but rather continues brutally in various parts of the West Bank that the Authority believes it controls.


In this climate, the emergency Cairo summit will be held, preceded by a mini-five-nation summit without Palestine’s participation, and without a clear Palestinian vision for the future. A vision based on the enormous energies of our people in rejecting and resisting the occupation’s plans. Instead, we will continue to turn our backs on any national agreements, and continue to exert internal pressures to impose acceptance of the policies of exclusivity and the fait accompli that have brought us to the existential dangers we are facing. The call for national reconciliation is no longer just an intellectual luxury in elite salons and meetings, but has become an existential need and not just a political necessity. As for any party’s reluctance to take this path, it is nothing but a recipe for falling into the dangerous traps that are being woven against our people, which do not exclude the Palestinian Authority, not just the factions, forces and culture of resistance. What we demand is compliance with the popular will embodied in the Beijing Declaration regarding a government of consensus necessity to save our future in this country led by the Palestine Liberation Organization that includes everyone, a government based on international legitimacy resolutions and international law, a government of steadfastness and construction capable of rebuilding the Gaza Strip and strengthening the steadfastness of the West Bank, with Jerusalem and the camps at its heart. A government that thwarts liquidation plans in preparation for holding criminals accountable and achieving self-determination, a government that restores the legitimacy of institutions through comprehensive elections, and the legitimacy of the right to national struggle to defeat the occupation. Is this too much and are these impossible demands or are they truly an existential need?