Brussels – The European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee called on the European Union on Wednesday to assist the International Criminal Court in prosecuting Israel for its war crimes.

The committee said that it “regret[s] the limited progress on the ICC infestations in war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the occupied Palestinian territories and commit to help the ICC and its prosecutor move forward with the investigation and the prosecution.”

Their statement said that the illegal settlements constitute a major obstacle to the viability of the two-state solution, He and called for new efforts to end the latest cycle of settler violence. They added that the EU should consider measures specifically addressing settlement expansion in the West Bank.

The vote passed with 41 votes in favor, 24 votes against, and nine abstentions. 

The resolution was introduced by the committee's rapporteur, Swedish MEP Evin Incir, who said that the "Palestinian people have been living under the yoke of occupation for more than 50 years, and the European Union must show its true commitment by strengthening its cooperation with the Palestinian Authority and working to end the occupation."

The committee had expressed concern about the European Union's policy and financial assistance in the Palestinian territories undermined by illegal Israeli settlements, and demanded compensation for the demolition of all EU-funded infrastructure in the area.

The text of the statement indicates that in 2022, 101 buildings funded by the European Union or member states worth €337,019 ($369,000) were demolished or seized by Israeli occupation authorities.

The committee also requested the European Union to issue a legal opinion to assess the political and economic consequences of the Israel's decision to transfer broad authority over civil issues in the West Bank to the far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

The committee also wants the European Union to launch negotiations on a full partnership agreement with Palestine as soon as possible and to hold an Association Council, noting that the European Union had concluded a similar partnership agreement with the Israeli occupation since 2000.

These recommendations will be submitted to the full European Parliament for adoption as a whole with a vote scheduled for next July.

Israeli occupation forces arrested a child at the Shuafat refugee camp checkpoint, northeast of occupied Jerusalem.

Local sources said that the arrested child is 12-years old.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, Wednesday, at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York that the confrontations in the occupied West Bank, "including settlement building and settler attacks on Palestinian villages, are making it difficult for the United States to broker a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia." Despite the interest of Saudi Arabia and Israel in the possibility of normalization.

Blinken added: “It (Saudi-Israeli normalization) is very difficult, and it is not something that can happen overnight, but it is also a real possibility and we are working on it. We have told our friends and allies in Israel that if there is a fire burning in their backyard, it will be even harder. If not impossible, deepening existing agreements, as well as extending them to Saudi Arabia.

Blinken indicated that he had spoken about the issue with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on Tuesday.

Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signed administrative arrest warrants against four settlers on Wednesday, based on a recommendation from the Shin Bet security service.

According to the Hebrew website Ynet, the four settlers who were detained had been involved in acts of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank for several years.

The four had been arrested previously, but this did not deter them for continuing to carry out attacks in the last week.

Israeli settlers assaulted a Palestinian man in Masafer Yatta in the South Hebron Hills on Wednesday.

Mahmoud Ali Harizat was beaten by settlers in the Umm Likhous area of Masafer Yatta, and was transferred to a nearby hospital for treatment, according to local sources.

Israel's Supreme Court approved the eviction of more than 1,000 Palestinians last year, claiming that they did not prove that they permanently resided in the area that was declared a "firing zone" for military training purposes.

Israeli occupation forces arrested a Palestinian from the village of Arana, northeast of Jenin, on Wednesday while he was passing a military checkpoint near the town of Ya'bad, southwest of the city.

Palestinian sources stated that the detainee is that the man, Omran Nasser Al-Khalidi, and that he was taken to an unknown location.

The ongoing wave of homicides has claimed the lives of another five Palestinian citizens of Israel in the last 24 hours.

A father and son, 61-year-old Omar Khalidi and 35-year-old Muhammad Khalidi, were shot dead in the northern city of Shefa 'Amr, following on the heels of three deaths on the eve of Eid al-Adha on Tuesday evening.

In a separate incident, a gang of criminals tried to assassinate the two sons of the head of the local council in

Tuba-Zangariyye. The bullets hit the car they were travelling in. No immediate injuries were reported.

Since the beginning of this year, the death toll from murders in the Arab community has reached 104, including six women and two children, according to the news site Arab48.

In the northern city of Shefa 'Amr, Amir Sawaed was killed in a shooting; In Kafr Qanna, Ashraf Nassar was killed; and in Rahat in the Negev, another young man, Hassan Abu Latif, was killed.

According to the Hebrew website Ynet, these incidents took place in approximately one hour timeframe.

During that period, several shooting crimes took place in several areas, including Taibeh, Iksal, Kafr Qara, and Baqqa Al-Gharbiya, leaving several injuries, some of them serious. Five others were injured in these incidents, including one minor.

Israeli police arrested a group of Palestinians from the Bab Al-Rahma cemetery around the Al-Aqsa Compound on Tuesday.

According to sources in Jerusalem, Israeli occupation forces stormed the abandoned site and arrested a group of Palestinians.

Official Israeli data published on Wednesday revealed that there has been a significant increase in shooting attacks against Israeli targets on settlement roads in the occupied West Bank.

According to the Hebrew newspaper Maariv, 167 attacks were recorded in the first half of this year, compared to 53 in the same period last year.

Fifty-nine of the attacks were directed at Israeli settlers, while 108 targeted military forces.

In the same period this year, 1,369 stone-throwing incidents took place, 147 with Molotov cocktails were thrown at targets, and 85 homemade explosive devices were used. 

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed his concern to Israel's Foreign Minister Eli Cohen about settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, putting a particular emphasis on harming Palestinians of American citizenship.

"Secretary Blinken conveyed concern over the recent escalation of violence, which has directly affected U.S. citizens in the West Bank, and underscored the need for all parties to work to further de-escalate the situation. The Secretary expressed condolences for the recent terrorist attack against Israeli citizens in the West Bank," the statement said.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller also said the two discussed "efforts to advance Israel’s integration into the region and countering Iran’s destabilizing behavior." 

Three Palestinian citizens of Israel were killed in separate incidents on Tuesday, the first night of Eid al-Adha, as crime-related violence continues to soar unchecked in the community.

In the northern city of Shefa 'Amr, Amir Sawaed was killed in a shooting; In Kafr Qanna, Ashraf Nassar was killed; and in Rahat in the Negev, another young man, Hassan Abu Latif, was killed.

According to the Hebrew website Ynet, these incidents took place in approximately one hour timeframe.

During that period, several shooting crimes took place in several areas, including Taibeh, Iksal, Kafr Qara, and Baqqa Al-Gharbiya, leaving several injuries, some of them serious.

Israel's occupation army claimed on Tuesday evening that they have identified the individual responsible for the rare rocket strike from Jenin, and that he did not belong to any Palestinian faction, including Hamas.

The homemade missile exploded barely 100m from its launchpad, an Israeli military source told the Hebrew publication Ynet. It was also fired without an explosive warhead.

The Israeli army maintains that there is no significant missile infrastructure in the occupied West Bank, and that the main remains drive-by shootings and the detonation of explosive devices.

The United Nations Security Council expressed its "sorrow" over the civilian deaths in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, and "called on all parties to refrain from unilateral actions that further inflame tensions." 

In a statement issued unanimously by its fifteen members, the Council expressed its "sorrow over the killing of civilians" and called on both sides to work toward a "durable calm." 

Read by Lana Nusseibeh, the UN ambassador from the United Arab Emirates, which currently holds the council's rotating presidency for June, the statement also encouraged both sides to "fight and condemn terrorism in all its forms in a manner consistent with international law. They further emphasize the importance of holding accountable those responsible for such acts of violence."

Around 20 people, the majority of which were Palestinians, were killed in the occupied West Bank last week.

In her capacity as a national representative, she was asked for a response to Israel's recent approval to 5,700 settler homes and about Netanyahu's recent remarks that Israel "need[s] to eliminate their [Palestinians'] aspirations for a state." Nusseibeh says the UAE "condemned" the steps, and says it remains "fully committed to a two-state solution."

In the last week, attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank have spiked. 

Last Monday, two Palestinian gunmen were shot dead after they killed four Israelis at the settlement of Eli.

In light of his snub from Washington, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday evening that he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Netanyahu revealed that he had been invited to Beijing in a meeting with members of the U.S. Congress, according to the Hebrew news site Ynet. No date has been set for the visit. 

The prime minister's office said in a letter of clarification: "The planned visit will be the fourth visit by Prime Minister Netanyahu to China, and the U.S. administration was informed of this a month ago."

Despite several high-level visits between Israeli and American officials, U.S. President Joe Biden is yet to invite Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House. 

Israel's President Isaac Herzog called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday to condemn the recent settler attacks in the West Bank.

During the phone call, Herzog stressed the need to "fight terrorism, hatred and incitement," as reported by the Hebrew Walla website.

This came after a phone call from Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to Palestinian Civil Affairs Minister Hussein Al-Sheikh, who also censured the recent attacks against Palestinians and said that his forces will work to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Galant also stressed the need to restore calm in the West Bank, calling on Minister Al-Sheikh to work against what he described as "dens of terrorism." He added that Israeli forces will not hesitate to act against "terrorists," if they so nedded.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry announced Tuesday that it had summoned the Ukrainian ambassador to seek clarification, after his embassy accused the Israeli government of adopting a "clearly pro-Russian stance" on the war in Ukraine.

"In light of his repeated remarks about Israeli policy, Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk was summoned for clarification to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on July 3," the ministry said in a statement.

"The Israeli government continues to advance cooperation with Ukraine as agreed between the two countries," she added, adding that "the ambassador's behavior is not helpful."

Israel has adopted a cautious approach since Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, in an attempt to maintain neutrality between the two warring parties.

On Sunday, the Ukrainian embassy said that "the current Israeli government ... has chosen the path of close cooperation with the Russian Federation."

And she talked about the "almost complete absence of Israeli humanitarian aid to Ukraine," recalling a statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he said that Israel needs to cooperate with Russia to continue its long air campaign against Iranian targets in Syria.

In an interview with The Jerusalem Post last week, Netanyahu said that weapons delivered to Ukraine could fall into the hands of the Iranians and be used against Israel.

The Ukrainian embassy responded to this on Sunday, saying, "The Israeli leadership, hiding behind rhetorical demagoguery about its neutrality, is maintaining active relations with the Russian Federation."

"In fact, on the ground, what the Israeli government says is neutrality is clearly a pro-Russian position," she added.

"We urge the government of Israel to change its position and support Ukraine with defensive means, to support freedom and a democratic world order," she added.

The embassy published its statement on its social media accounts, four days after it was announced that Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov had "very fruitful contact" with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant.

"We discussed the current situation on the ground and the prospects for a project to protect Ukrainians from air threats. Iranian drones pose a security threat to both countries. We count on Israel's help to confront them," Reznikov said in a statement.

Palestinian journalist networks strongly condemned Israel's detention of 41-year-old reporter Muhammad Anwar Muna in a dawn raid on Tuesday. The arrest raises the total number of Palestinian journalists in occupation prisons to 21.

The Palestinian Journalist Support Committee said it "deplored" the arrest of a journalist as he was covering the occupation forces' incursions into Palestinian cities, while the Palestine Media Forum also condemned the "continued targeting of journalists in the West Bank" and the Israeli authorities' serious violations to freedom of press.

Muna has worked as a director for the local radio station Hawa Nablus and a correspondent for the U.K.-based Quds Press Agency, and has spent seven-and-a-half years in occupation prisons.

Muna was one of six people detained overnight in a raid in the West Bank city of Nablus. 

The Palestine Media Forum also called on international organizations dealing with freedom of the press and the protection of journalists to pressure the occupation authorities to release Palestinian journalists.

Three Palestinians, including a child, were injured on Tuesday in an attack by Israeli settlers on a road northwest of Jericho.

Palestinians said that a group of armed settlers forced the shepherds from the al-Mleihat community off their own pastures. Three people, including a 10-year-old boy, were lightly injured in the incident. 

Local sources added that they seized the flock of sheep and dispersed them.

The killing of Nizar Banat is a political assassination! But the most serious crime is the attempt to protect the killers, and to cover up the criminal who bears the responsibility for committing it, and it is the one that will continue to haunt us with the shame of facilitating the shedding of Palestinian blood until justice is achieved for Nizar Banat and all the victims of opinion in Palestine.

In an attempt to undermine the noble goals of the campaigns that rejected the assassination, and protested against its perpetration in the streets and squares of Palestine, some skeptical voices came out to justify the crime and say: "...why are you silent about what accompanied the black coup in Gaza in terms of killings and witchcraft that reached the point of throwing anyone Citizens from the height of a building in Gaza City. Here it is correct to say that this is a word of truth, but unfortunately it does not mean anything but falsehood. The crimes that accompanied the coup, and the perpetrators of which must be prosecuted no matter how long it takes, cannot justify such a heinous crime regardless of the circumstances of each one of them. The most dangerous thing facing the situation of human rights and freedom of opinion and expression guaranteed in the Palestinian Basic Law is the politicization of this matter, and the attempt to bury people's rights in the clutches of division, whose mere continuation is considered a major crime against the Palestinian people and their just cause.

The attempt to bury Nizar's case in the corridors of delay and procrastination will not drop this case, no matter how long it takes. It may derail it from the course of applying justice, but such an approach will only lead to chaos and exacerbate the lack of confidence in the entire justice system, not just the executive authority. In any case, it seems that the defect has affected this system as much as it did.

Lawyer Gandhi Amin, who was assigned by Nizar's family to follow up the assassination case, told local media: "The martyr Nizar, two years ago, did not obtain justice, and there is no prospect of achieving it in Palestine." He attributed "the reasons for not achieving justice in the case of girls to the slow process of litigation, although the crime and evidence are clear, and because of the arrest of witnesses and harassment during court sessions, and the release of detainees - accused of murder - without the knowledge of the court and the prosecution." He added that these reasons indicate the unwillingness and seriousness of the authority to achieve justice and hold the killers accountable, noting that the family of the murdered girls filed a lawsuit in the Ramallah Court of First Instance, according to the Civil Violations Law, against the Minister of Interior, the directors of the security services and those accused of the crime, adding: “.. The lawsuit has been filed for eight months before the courts. And he indicated that Ghassan Banat, the brother of the murdered Nizar, went to the International Criminal Court to investigate the crime and hold the perpetrators accountable, adding: "We are waiting for the Public Prosecutor's Office in the Criminal Court to request a referral."

The question that should be bothering us all about this matter is; It is not why Nizar's brother went to the International Criminal Court in an attempt to obtain justice for his murdered brother, but rather why justice is stalled in Palestine, a case whose essence, since the Nakba, is based on the aggressiveness of the occupation and attempts to obliterate the justice of the national cause. And how will we, as Palestinians, be able to proceed with confidence in our quest to bring the occupation to justice in the International Criminal Court, while we are negligent, and what prompts the family of the deceased to take the same national authority to the International Criminal Court? It is a sad paradox, and the victim cannot be blamed here, as much as it reveals the extent of the disgrace that has come to envelop us, and threatens our national cause and justice in Palestine.

Yes, we are not well. The task of the intellectual elites is not only to diagnose "self-defeat", and to raise the voice and the values ​​of freedom and justice to the importance of that. Rather, suggesting visions capable of turning into action strategies that challenge their causes and enable people to confront them. Our responsibility is to protect the homeland and the different opinion. Let everyone know that we are a free people and we deserve a homeland for the free.

It was and still is expected that the president will bear the responsibility of stopping the collapse, whose title has become the authority and its security institution in the face of the people who resist the occupation, and to announce immediately the formation of a national unity government that enjoys national consensus, whose priority is to strengthen the steadfastness of the people and not to confront those with opinion among them, and to heal the wounds of Gaza and not To be silent on moving forward with its division towards secession in order to share with the separatists mere cantons that represent the essence of the strategy of the occupation governments to liquidate the rights of our people. Resilience in Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank, including the popular ability to resist the terrorism of the settlers and the occupation army, and certainly the serious preparation for comprehensive general elections.

And before and after all of that, by restoring the independence of the judiciary, citizens their dignity, and security is a national belief to protect the citizen and not bully him, and a public trial is held for the murderers of girls. Perhaps, and this is not certain, such a step will save the country's fate from the flames of chaos and perhaps worse. It is our duty for all of us not to let our country collapse, and this is the responsibility of every free citizen!

And if this does not happen, the collapse will continue until a broad national democratic movement rises, led by a young woman who believes in political and intellectual pluralism, to lead the process of comprehensive change, as the wreckage cannot be repaired.

After the formation of the Jewish extreme right-wing government, seven months ago in the entity state, in which sovereign portfolios were assigned to the ministers of Jewish fascism and religious Zionism, Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the religious Zionist movement, as minister of national security and the formation of his own militia of extremists, under the name of the National Guard, and an extension His responsibility rests with the Israeli police, with the exception of his responsibility for border guard units in the West Bank, while the leader of the extremist Zionist movement, Smotrich, was appointed minister of finance and half a minister of security and assumed responsibility for the work of the civil administration in the West Bank, as well as responsibility for the settlement file there.

It was clear from these appointments, and in light of what these two fascists said that they were coming to achieve their programs and goals, regardless of the political stage, that our Palestinian people would face great challenges and dangers. Smotrich clearly announced that he would drown the West Bank in settlements, and he would work to transfer a million settlers to the West Bank. Western, and that he will work to legalize no less than 70 isolated outposts, and will return the settlers to the settlements that were evacuated in what was known as the process of disengagement from the Gaza Strip in 2005, where the return began to the “Homesh” settlement, and the return to the “Saris” and “Kadim” settlements will take place. and Ghanem.

It is clear that the two security summits that were held in February and March in Aqaba and Sharm Al-Sheih in the presence of Jordan, Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, the State of the Entity, and America, the owner of the project, which some tried to dress as political, i. There is no temporary freeze on settlements in the West Bank, nor a halt to the demolition of Palestinian homes in the West Bank and Jerusalem. Rather, what we are currently witnessing is a settlement “tsunami”, where 13,000 settlement units were approved, i.e. double the settlement units that were approved during the Bennett-Lapid government. Recently, Smotrich announced the establishment of 4,560 settlement units in the West Bank, not to mention thousands of settlement units in Jerusalem in the north, south, and east, and even in the heart of the Jerusalemite neighborhoods within the apartheid wall, as is the case in approving the initiation of establishing the "Kidmat Zion" settlement on the eastern slopes of Jabal Mukaber - Deir El-Sunna area, 379 settlement units, on an area of ​​79 dunums, to be expanded later to 1,200 settlement units.

In order to expedite the implementation of these settlement projects and plans, Smotrich announced his plan to reduce and shorten the stages of establishing settlements in the West Bank from 6 stages to two, planning and then direct approval of budgets and bidding without the need for government approval.

This settlement "tsunami" is associated with an all-out war waged by settler militias and their flocks against our Palestinian people, as militias above the law of Jewish fascism, as they attack Palestinian villages in large numbers under the protection and guarding of the entity's army, killing and burning crops, homes and cars, destroying property, stealing and burning crops as well. Mosques are desecrated and copies of the Holy Qur’an are torn. Perhaps the examples in memory of these militias and their criminal role are the burning of the boy Muhammad Abu Khudair alive in July 2014, the burning of the Dawabsha family in the village of Duma, July 2015, and the crime and massacre committed against the village of Hawara. February 2023, and today, after the operations that were carried out in Jenin and the “Eli” settlement at the hands of Palestinian resistance fighters, the settlers launched an all-out war under the protection and guarding of the army in a distribution of roles, against the villages of Turmusaya, Hawara, Urif, Umm Safa, Burqa, Sinjil, Beitin, and a number of villages in Bethlehem and Hebron. Support and endorsement by the leaders of Jewish fascism Ben Gvir and Smotrich, who called for the removal of Palestinian villages from existence, Huwara as an example, and in parallel with that, the Prime Minister of the State of Israel, Netanyahu, announces the establishment of 1,000 units in the "Eli" settlement as a response to the commando operation in the settlement.

Yes, it is an all-out war waged against our people, in which the roles between the extreme right and Jewish fascism are complementary, stealing and seizing land, and targeting people by killing, burning and destroying, with the aim of expelling, uprooting and displacing this people, as well as the Palestinian stone, where the “tusks” of bulldozers and bulldozers of the entity state continue. "Instilling" it in the walls and foundations of the homes of our Palestinian people non-stop.

All this is happening and some of us are still betting on the international community and international legitimacy and on the illusions of what is known as the two-state solution, the peace of the brave and the Abrahamic peace, while they are fully aware that they are chasing a mirage under a fascist government that does not recognize us as a people.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s refusal to establish a Palestinian state is a new confirmation, as we have confirmed more than once, that the occupying state does not want peace, and that what it is doing on the ground in terms of settlement, annexation, expansion and Judaization, in addition to settler attacks, is clear evidence of that, except for those whose eyes are cloudy. And those who are still betting on the outside for the two-state solution, which has become elusive, as US President Biden mentioned shortly after he assumed the US presidency, which makes us say that this rejection is nothing new in it, but rather a reaffirmation of what is certain.

The occupying state, which claims day and night that it is with peace and that there is no Palestinian partner to achieve this peace, is a lie and an attempt to buy time to implement its policies on the ground to prevent the achievement of peace and without the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967 AD, according to the international vision that confirmed this. However, the occupying power has worked and is still working to thwart this vision through its imposition of a fait accompli on the occupied territory.

The frantic and escalating settlement attack, especially under the current Netanyahu government, which is more right-wing, extremist and racist, as well as the establishment of more settlement outposts and the call of the hilltop gangs to establish more of these outposts on the tops of the hills, in addition to the crimes and attacks carried out by the occupation forces and herds of settlers against our people, their land, property and sanctities. Recently, the burning of houses, cars, agricultural lands, and olive trees, and the firing of live bullets at citizens, led to martyrs and injuries, as well as the arrest campaigns that affected the elderly, the young, and women, all of which aim to put pressure on our people to leave their land and country, to replace them with more settlers. On Palestinian land, and this matter is the biggest evidence that the occupying state does not want peace, but is working to annex the West Bank and carry out the widest ethnic cleansing operations if circumstances permit, and if it is not possible, the terror of the settlers and the occupation forces will do the job in the belief of the occupying state, its security services and herds of settlers Supported by the state and its various agencies.

More than one official in the Netanyahu government and other officials in all the occupying governments have stated that the West Bank is Jewish, that there is no place for the Palestinians in it, that its annexation is only a matter of time, that the Palestinians must leave it, and that all of Palestine is Jewish, but rather that the greater goal is to establish the occupying state from Nile to the Euphrates.

This clear and explicit recognition by Netanyahu that their aspirations for the establishment of a Palestinian state should be cut off, should prompt all Palestinians to reconsider the current policies, whether internally or externally. The occupying state puts pressure on it, as well as calling on the international community to stop the policies and crimes of the occupation.

Before that, the internal Palestinian house must be rearranged on unitary foundations, end the black division, and develop a unified program of action and a strategic plan that will be implemented on the ground to confront what the occupying state is doing in order to resolve the conflict in its favour. Without that, the occupying state will continue its policies, and then regret will not work, and our people will pay more sacrifices, and history will not be merciful to anyone.

The commander of the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan, Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, "Hemedti" announced a 48-hour truce unilaterally for the two days of standing at Arafah and Eid.

Hamidti said in an audio recording he posted today (Monday) on ((Facebook)), "This war was imposed on us, not against the Sudanese army, but against the remnants of the former regime."

Hemedti announced the formation of a committee and a field court to resolve any violations against citizens, and said, "We are following with interest the violations against civilians, and they will be dealt with firmly."

The commander of the Rapid Support Forces expressed his readiness to provide protection and assistance to the Sudanese people, and said, "We have begun to cooperate with the citizens to confront any escape by all parties."

The Sudanese army did not issue any comment on the truce announced by the Rapid Support Commander.

Since April 15, Sudan has been witnessing armed confrontations between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces in the capital, Khartoum, and other cities.

The clashes killed more than 3,000 people and injured more than 6,000 others, according to the Sudanese Ministry of Health.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the number of people who fled Sudan more than two months ago has exceeded 500,000, while two million people have been internally displaced.

The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said, on Tuesday, that the recent escalating events from the northern West Bank indicate that we are at the beginning of a new era.

In a report by its correspondent and military analyst, Yossi Yehoshua, the newspaper indicated the development of events, since the detonation and development of explosive devices in Jenin, then the aerial bombardment for the first time since the second intifada, to eliminate an armed cell, and this was followed by what was published yesterday about the firing of missiles from Jenin also for the first time since Years.

The newspaper considered that these developments, and although there are no actual missiles reaching from Jenin to Afula, unlike in the past, it can be estimated that a limited military operation is closer than ever before.

The newspaper pointed out that since Operation Eli, behind which Hamas stands, calls have returned for the implementation of a large-scale military operation, and this was discussed again to find out the extent of the need for it, noting that the talk is about a specific operation, not Defensive Wall 2, and not the goal of occupying areas or presence. In it in a prolonged manner, but rather the entry of large forces in a targeted manner to specific targets for a period of up to 48 hours, to damage the armed infrastructure, and to bring a price to achieve the necessary deterrence. as you say.

The newspaper says: Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant objected last week, as did senior army officials, but it now appears that in light of this development and assessments of the situation that took place in the past two days, the possibility of this measure has increased, and there are other indications that indicate this, including condolence. The massive military forces in the West Bank, some of which are dedicated to military action inside Palestinian cities.

Israel's security establishment accused the government of sabotaging its efforts to deal with spiralling settler violence against the Palestinians in the West Bank.

One source told the Hebrew newspaper Haaretz that "The Israeli army and the Shin Bet have lost control and the ability to act against settlers in recent months, who act as they please with the encouragement of the government ministers and members of the coalition."

The sources said that politicians have prevented the security establishment from ramping up their forces in the West Bank in order to halt nationalist attacks, and has not allowed them to evacuate outposts. They added that the government demanded that no restrictions would be imposed on the entry of equipment to new outposts.

An Israeli security source said: "We are already virtually unable to control the rioters on the ground who are doing whatever they want in the West Bank. The police are not in the field, nor does it look like they will come any time soon."

Another senior official told Haaretz that "We are not talking about a handful of settlers, but hundreds, and the phenomenon is expanding. They used to operate in the dark, but today they operate in the middle of the day."

Investigators in the Netherlands have arrested a man and his daughter on charges of sending five million euros ($5.4 million) to Hamas in breach of European Union sanctions, the public prosecutor said Monday.

The 55-year-old man and his 25-year-old daughter, from the town of Leidschendam near The Hague, were arrested on June 22 on suspicion of providing "extensive financing" to Hamas, according to the Public Prosecution Office.

Investigators found the money during house searches in Leidschendam and a commercial headquarters in Rotterdam, and confiscated a bank balance worth about 750,000 euros, according to the Public Prosecution Office.

And it stated that "the Public Prosecution Service is suspected of having sent funds in the amount of approximately 5.5 million euros to groups linked to the Hamas organization."

"They are also suspected of participating in a criminal organization whose goal is to support Hamas financially," it added.

It is suspected that the man and his daughter, who are currently under arrest, had ties to an institution that replaced a sanctioned organization that was sending money to Hamas, according to the prosecution.

She stated that the investigation was opened after reports of unusual financial dealings and after press reports spoke of an event to collect funds in Europe for Hamas.

The European Union included Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, on its blacklist of terrorist groups after the September 11, 2001 attacks that targeted New York and Washington.

While a lower court of the European Union removed Hamas from the list in 2014, the bloc's supreme court reinstated it in 2017.

The pilgrims began to pray and supplicate at Mount Arafat near Makkah Al-Mukarramah since dawn on Tuesday, at the peak of the Hajj rituals, which are expected to record record numbers this year in very hot weather.

The nearly two million pilgrims spent the night in air-conditioned camps in the Mina Valley, seven kilometers from the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims.

And in the early hours of Tuesday morning, they headed to the Arafat area, to perform the greatest pillar of the Hajj.

And they will stay all day in the same location, praying and supplications and reciting the Holy Qur’an, and many of them will ascend Mount Mercy and sit among its rocks.

After sunset, the pilgrims head to Muzdalifah, halfway between Arafat and Mina, to sleep in the open air, before stoning the Jamarat begins on Wednesday, the first day of Eid al-Adha.

The Egyptian teacher, Tasneem Gamal, 35, still cannot believe that she is among the pilgrims this year, after previous attempts failed.

The young woman, who lives in the Kingdom, said, "I cannot describe my feelings, I live with great joy." Jamal, who came with her friends, benefited from the Saudi authorities' decision to cancel the requirement for a man to accompany women.

The Hajj season is being held this year without any restrictions in terms of numbers or ages of pilgrims, after three years of organizing a limited Hajj due to the outbreak of the Covid pandemic.

The Hajj is usually one of the largest annual religious gatherings in the world, and it is among the Five Pillars of Islam, and every Muslim who is able to perform it must do it at least once.

In 2019, about 2.5 million Muslims from all over the world participated in the rituals. However, the outbreak of the Corona virus forced the Saudi authorities to significantly reduce the numbers, so only 60,000 citizens and residents participated in it in 2021, compared to a few thousand in 2020, and 926,000 pilgrims in 2022.

Pilgrims perform rituals, many of them outdoors, despite the sweltering heat.

The National Center of Meteorology predicted that temperatures in Makkah would range between 43-45 degrees during the day during the Hajj season.

The authorities set up many health facilities and mobile clinics, equipped ambulances, and deployed 32,000 paramedics to meet the needs of the pilgrims. She warned the pilgrims against exposure to "sunstrokes".

At Mount Arafat, pilgrims wept as they prayed, holding umbrellas in preparation for the rising temperatures later in the day.

Before heading to Arafat, the American engineer, Ahmed Ahmadine, 37, expressed his happiness that "God chose him from among millions" of Muslims to perform the Hajj.

He continued enthusiastically, "I try to focus on praying for my family and friends, and praying because it is an opportunity that will not be repeated."

And on Wednesday, the pilgrims participate in the stoning of the Jamarat, the last of the most important rituals - which in past years have led to deadly stampedes - before heading to the Grand Mosque in Mecca to perform the "farewell circumambulation" around the Kaaba, on the first days of Eid al-Adha.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stressed the need not to politicize the file of the return of Syrian refugees, during his meeting with Martin Griffiths, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, according to what the Syrian official media reported on Monday.

And the Syrian News Agency (SANA) reported that President al-Assad stressed the need not to politicize the file of the return of Syrian refugees to the country, pointing out that the safe return of Syrian refugees is the supreme goal of the Syrian state. And he added, explaining that it is related to providing the necessary requirements for the reconstruction of damaged buildings in the villages and cities to which they will return, and the rehabilitation of service facilities in all its forms.

He also stressed the need to implement early recovery projects necessary for their return.

In the same context, he indicated that the Syrian state institutions have taken many necessary measures for the return of the refugees, as they are working to secure what supports their stability after their return to the country in light of the available capabilities.

At the same time, the President discussed with Griffiths mobilizing the necessary efforts to support early recovery projects related to the return of Syrian refugees and their requirements, and keeping the refugee file within its humanitarian and moral framework.

For his part, Griffiths presented to President Al-Assad the international organization's plan of action for the next stage in supporting early recovery projects in Syria, and mobilizing the necessary efforts to help secure appropriate conditions for the return of refugees.

The United States announced that it would stop funding scientific research with Israeli academic institutions in the West Bank, taking a new step away from the policy of the Jewish state in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The decision by President Joe Biden's administration reverses a step taken by former President Donald Trump's administration that rejected the broad international consensus that Israel has illegally occupied the West Bank since 1967.

The new guidance to US government agencies states that “engaging in bilateral scientific and technological cooperation with Israel in geographic areas administered by Israel after 1967 and still subject to final status negotiations is contrary to US foreign policy,” State Department spokesperson Matthew said. Miller.

The spokesman stressed that the United States "highly values ​​scientific and technological cooperation with Israel," adding that the restrictions imposed on funding scientific research in the West Bank "reflect the long-term American position."

The decision particularly affects Ariel University, a major academic institution established in 1982 on the lands of a then-new settlement in the West Bank.

Members of the Republican Party quickly attacked the decision.

In this regard, Senator Ted Cruz criticized what he described as "anti-Semitic discrimination" against Jews in the West Bank, saying that the Biden administration is "morbidly obsessed with undermining Israel."

As for David Friedman, the US ambassador to Israel under Trump and supporter of Ariel University, he accused the Biden administration of adopting the proposals of the Boycott Israel movement.

But the Joe Biden administration says it opposes the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, which calls for cutting ties with Israel as a whole, not just the settlements.

Under Mike Pompeo, Trump's secretary of state, Washington has taken action in favor of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including allowing its products to be labeled "Made in Israel."

The Biden administration has returned to the old American position calling for a two-state solution and criticizing settlement expansion.

Washington has stopped making any substantial efforts in the peace negotiations, considering that the prospects for their success are very slim under the rule of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who leads the most right-wing government in Israel's history.

Israeli police arrested six protesters against the judicial overhaul following a demo in front of the home of Justice Minister Yariv Levin in the city of Modi'in.

The demonstrators closed off the entrance to the street with barbed wire and rubber tyres, leading to friction with the police.

The judicial overhaul was partially suspended during ongoing negotiations between the government and opposition, but looks set to go full steam ahead. The whip of the government coalition, Ofir Katz, has asked ministers and coalition lawmakers not to travel abroad between July 10 and July 26, to ensure they are present to vote for bills related to judicial reforms.

Last night, settlers expelled the commander of the Ramallah region in the Israeli army, Eliaf El-Baz, upon his arrival at the house of settler Harel Masoud, who was killed in a shooting attack at the Eli settlement.

The settlers prevented Al-Baz from entering the house inside the Yad Binyamin outpost, and expelled him from there while chasing him outside the settlement, insulting him and describing him as a traitor, a murderer, and a coward, holding him responsible for the operation and the security failure, and that the four settlers who were killed in the operation were killed because of his failure.

The family of the dead settler said that they were not aware of the arrival of the district commander, and that they deplored the event and would arrange another visit for the officer.

Various Israeli political parties, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, condemned this attack, while military sources accused unspecified political parties of being the reason for encouraging settlers to such policy and incitement.

The sources said, "This is a direct result of the brutal incitement in recent days by political figures who encouraged extremist elements in the West Bank to work against the law," in a clear reference to the extremist ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir.