Palestine-Israel war
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Blinken says the ball is in Hamas' court on Gaza ceasefire
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday it was up to Hamas to agree to a ceasefire that would allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza and pave the way for talks on an "enduring resolution" to the conflict.
The Palestinian militant group left talks in Cairo aimed at reaching an agreement to pause fighting ahead of Ramadan, amid fears violence could escalate during the Muslim fasting month.
Israel 'welcomes' planned opening of Gaza maritime
Israel has said that it “welcomes” a humanitarian aid corridor from Cyprus to the Gaza Strip, an initiative backed by the country’s key ally Washington and which the EU hopes can open on Sunday, AFP reports.
“The Cypriot initiative will allow the increase of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, after a security check according to Israeli standards,” foreign ministry spokesman Lior Haiat said on X, formerly Twitter.
New incident reported in sea off Yemen
British maritime agencies have said that an incident had been reported in waters around 50 nautical miles southeast of Yemen’s city of Aden where Houthi militants have been attacking ships, Reuters reports.
The Iran-backed group has launched drone and missile attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab Strait and Gulf of Aden since November. They say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians over the conflict in Gaza.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said that the authorities are investigating the incident while security firm Ambrey said it is aware of an incident nearly 52 nautical miles south of Aden and is also investigating.
EU sees maritime aid corridor to Gaza opening this weekend
The head of the European Commission said on Friday a maritime aid corridor could start operating between Cyprus and Gaza this weekend, part of accelerating Western efforts to relieve the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged Palestinian enclave.
Ursula von der Leyen's comments came a day after President Joe Biden announced plans for the U.S. military to build a temporary port on Gaza's Mediterranean coast, amid UN warnings of famine among the tiny territory's 2.3 million people.
Negotiations on a possible ceasefire in Israel's war against Hamas, now in its fifth month, remained deadlocked in Cairo, while the U.N. human rights office urged Israel not to extend its military offensive into the border town of Rafah, saying this would cause a further "massive loss of life".
Israeli tank ' fired machine gun' at reporters after deadly shelling
An Israeli tank crew killed a Reuters reporter in Lebanon in October by firing two shells at a clearly identified group of journalists and then "likely" opened fire on them with a heavy machine gun in an attack that lasted 1 minute and 45 seconds, according to a report into the incident published on Thursday.
The report, opens new tab by the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) - which was contracted by Reuters to analyse evidence from the Oct. 13 attack that killed visuals journalist Issam Abdallah - found that a tank 1.34 km away in Israel fired two 120 mm rounds at the reporters.
The first shell killed Abdallah, 37, and severely wounded Agence France-Presse (AFP) photographer Christina Assi, 28.
Death toll increases to 30,878 in Gaza: Ministry
The Health Ministry in Gaza says that 78 people have been killed in eight Israeli attacks on Palestinians in the last 24 hours, increasing the total number of deaths in the enclave since October 7 to 30,878.
The statement on Telegram added that 104 people had been injured by the Israeli army over the past day, raising the total number wounded to 72,402.
“A number of victims are still under the rubble and on the roads, as the occupation prevents ambulance and civil defence crews from reaching them,” the ministry added.
EU’s von der Leyen in Cyprus for Gaza aid coordination
The EU leader is visiting the island nation to check facilities at the port of Larnaca, where a stream of aid ships plan to leave for Gaza.
While it has not yet been announced when the maritime deliveries will begin, “it’s believed it could happen as early as Sunday”, reports the Reuters news agency.
The UN has insisted that deliveries by sea are no replacement for land shipments, which can bring in far more aid more quickly to people in Gaza who are at growing risk of starvation.
Israeli jets destroy house in southern Lebanon: State media
Israeli warplanes have raided a house in southern Lebanon, according to the Lebanese state media.
A report by the state-owned National News Agency said that the house located between the villages of al-Mansouri and Majdal Zoun was completely destroyed.
Both villages are located only several kilometres away from the border with Israel.
There have been regular exchange of fire between the Israeli army and the Hezbollah group over the border.
Al-Quds Brigades say fighters clashed with Israeli troops around Jenin
Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad group, has said that its Jenin Battalion engaged in armed clashes with the Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank’s village of Silat al-Harithiyain.
A statement on Telegram said that the clashes happened while Israeli forces were storming the village with heavy bullets and explosive devices, without giving any further details.
Silat al-Harithiya is located about 10km northwest of the occupied city of Jenin in northern West Bank.
Israeli military carries out mass arrest campaign in Khan Younis
Palestinians in Gaza have had to endure an intense bombing campaign in the northern parts, the central area and the city of Khan Younis, where the military headquarters and armoured vehicles of the Israeli military are still based.
In Khan Younis, the Israeli military is surrounding residential buildings and conducting mass arrests and aggressive searches from building to building in search of Hamas fighters. A statement released by the Israeli military says they’ve arrested almost 250 people they describe as Hamas associates.
But maybe the worst events to happen overnight were repeated air strikes in Deir el-Balah. A residential building full of displaced people was attacked in the city, with at least 11 people killed so far, with more still under the rubble and multiple other injuries reported. The injured were taken to al-Aqsa Hospital.
Gaza war a central point in US presidential election
Biden’s focus on foreign policy — specifically the war in Gaza — in his State of the Union address shows how central the issue is becoming as the presidential election heats up, says Marc Owen Jones, an associate professor of Middle East studies and digital humanities at Hamad Bin Khalifa University.
“It’s also Biden trying to reaffirm fundamentally his support for Israel, first, and trying to assuage some of the criticism he’s getting from members of his own party about the US response to Gaza,” Owen Jones told Al Jazeera. “I think it shows this is going to be one of the most important points leading up to the election.”
Owen Jones said the way Biden framed the war by “adopting the Israeli line that everything they are doing, the genocide, the mass killings, is a response to October 7” sent a clear message that the US still stood firmly with Israel, despite its expressed frustration with the lack of aid getting into Gaza.
UN envoy says sanctions, arms embargo only way to stop Gaza ‘genocide’
Posting on X, Francesca Albanese, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, has said an “arms embargo and economic sanctions on Israel are the only way to stop the genocide in Gaza”.
Albanese was responding to a post by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres highlighting his meeting with family members of victims in Gaza, some of whom had “lost over a hundred relatives”.
Israelis will be allowed to visit al-Aqsa during Ramadan: Report
Israel’s police forces say that Israelis will be allowed to visit the al-Aqsa compound during the first week of Ramadan.
The statement quoted by the Associated Press news agency raised concerns about the access for Palestinians to the revered site during the holy month.
The authorities in Israel say they will work to maintain freedom of worship for Muslims at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound during Ramadan, set to begin next week, while maintaining security and safety needs.
Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the same number of people as last year would be allowed to enter the al-Aqsa mosque for prayers during the first week of Ramadan.
CENTCOM announces strikes on more Houthi positions inside Yemen
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) says its forces carried out more strikes within Yemen yesterday, targeting four Houthi anti-ship cruise missiles and one unmanned aerial vehicle in the country.
CENTCOM forces also intercepted three UAVs shot towards the Gulf of Aden from Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen, it said in a post on X.
The announcement comes as Yemen’s Houthis ramp up attacks on what they say are Israel-linked vessels in the Red Sea area in reaction to the Gaza war – and after joint US and British air strikes hit Yemen’s Hodeidah airport on Wednesday, Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported.
The Houthis have blamed the US for backing Israel’s “genocidal crimes” and further inflaming tensions in the Red Sea. “We [the Houthis] hold America responsible for the repercussions of everything that happens in the Red Sea,” a Houthi spokesperson said yesterday.
‘State of the Union is genocide’ – Gaza protesters challenge Biden speech
United States President Joe Biden may have been preparing to address Congress, but protesters gathered outside of the US Capitol had their own message: “Stop funding Israel” and “Complete ceasefire now”.
About 150 protesters gathered on Pennsylvania Avenue – the arterial road that connects the White House to the seat of the US legislature in Washington, DC – ahead of the annual address on Thursday.
Organisers said they wanted to block Biden’s way, or at least make him find another route, as he travelled to the 9pm local (00:00 GMT Friday) speech. Five months into the war in Gaza, they said more pressure than ever was needed, with more than 30,000 Palestinians dead and nearly two million facing humanitarian catastrophe.
“As President Biden prepares to give the State of the Union address, we’re here to say, no more genocide with our tax dollars,” Cat Knarr, of the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, told Al Jazeera.
CIA director travels to Egypt and Qatar: Report
Bill Burns, the director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), is said to have arrived in Qatar in what may be a last-ditch attempt to secure a ceasefire deal before Ramadan, CNN reports citing an unnamed US official and a source close to the trip.
Burns, who has been leading the Biden administration’s negotiation efforts, was also in Egypt on Wednesday but is not expected to travel to Israel during this visit to the Middle East.
Hamas, Egyptian, Qatari and US officials had gathered this week in Cairo for more talks, but Israel has refused to send a delegation. Truce talks have stalled since Israel demanded that Hamas provide a list of captives still in Gaza.
When asked about the lack of a breakthrough in negotiations, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday that “we continue to believe that the obstacles are not insurmountable and that a deal can be reached”.
“The deal is in the interest of Israel. It’s in the interest of the Palestinian people. And it’s in the interest of the broader region, so we’re going to continue to push for one,” he said.
Biden further alienated voters with speech, Palestine advocate says
An organiser with the “uncommitted” campaign in the US, which seeks to pressure Biden over his support for Israel amid the Gaza war, has told Al Jazeera that she is unhappy with the US President’s State of the Union speech.
“I think that he further alienated voters who already were feeling like the president hasn’t been listening,” said Asma Mohammed, an organiser with the “no preference” voting campaign in Minnesota.
She added that Biden’s speech made her “angry” as it used “flowery language” around his sympathy for Palestinians but failed to reassess US policy.
Mohammed welcomed Biden’s announcement of the construction of a temporary port in Gaza to allow more aid to enter, but she questioned why Washington cannot pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to allow in the thousands of aid trucks waiting to enter the territory.
US to build temporary port to deliver Gaza aid
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden announced in his State of the Union speech on Thursday that the US military will construct a temporary port on Gaza's Mediterranean coast to receive humanitarian aid by sea.
The temporary port will increase the amount of humanitarian assistance to Palestinians by "hundreds of additional truckloads" per day, officials say.
Protesters gather outside the White House demanding Gaza ceasefire
Protesters have gathered outside the White House in Washington, DC, demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, as they mark US President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address.
Advocacy group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), has said that the speech is Biden’s “best and perhaps last chance” to announce concrete steps the US is taking to curb Israel’s war on Gaza.
AE, Egypt airdrop aid into Gaza, while UN says at least 300 aid trucks needed daily
The US, Jordan, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have airdropped more aid into northern Gaza. The UAE’s military says it delivered 53 tonnes of food and medical aid.
International pressure is growing on Israel to allow more aid into Gaza. Conditions remain dire in the north, and the UN says at least 300 aid trucks are needed every day to ease the suffering there.
Biden: ‘Temporary pier will allow massive increase in humanitarian assistance’
US President Joe Biden has said during his State of the Union address that “no US boots will be on the ground” during the construction of a new pier on Gaza’s coastline that will allow more humanitarian aid to enter the besieged enclave.
“Tonight, I’m directing the US military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean on the coast of Gaza. It can receive large shipments, carrying food water medicine to temporary shelters,” he said.
“A temporary pier will enable a massive increase the amount of humanitarian assistance getting in Gaza every day,” he added.
Earlier we reported that a senior US official said the pier would take several weeks to be built, and that the US would coordinate with the Israeli army regarding the security situation on Gaza’s coast.
Gaza ceasefire talks end in Cairo with 'no answer or solution'
(Web Desk) - Hamas says its delegation has left Egypt but talks on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will continue next week until an agreement is reached with Israel, whom the Palestinian group says has “thwarted” mediators’ attempts to broker a deal before Ramadan.
“Hamas’s delegation left Cairo this morning for consultation with the leadership of the movement, with negotiations and efforts continuing to stop the aggression, return the displaced and bring in relief aid to our people,” a Hamas statement said on Thursday.
