Members of al-Qassam Brigades, military wing of Hamas, hold parade in Rafah, Gaza. AFP
Members of al-Qassam Brigades, military wing of Hamas, hold parade in Rafah, Gaza. AFP

2007 - Hamas takes over the Gaza Strip

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Updated 19 April 2025
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2007 - Hamas takes over the Gaza Strip

2007 - Hamas takes over the Gaza Strip
  • When the militant group seized the territory in 2007, it marked the beginning of an 18-year struggle for control and survival in the enclave

CAIRO: For decades, Gaza has been at the center of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, serving as a flashpoint for political and military struggles.

Once part of British-controlled Palestine, the territory came under Egyptian administration following the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, only to be occupied by Israel in 1967 after the Six-Day War.

In 2005, Israel withdrew its settlers and military forces from Gaza, in a process known as the “Disengagement Plan,” and transferred control to the Palestinian Authority. Just two years later, however, a new chapter in the territory’s history began, one that would redefine the political dynamics of the region and deepen Gaza’s isolation.

The turning point came on June 15, 2007. In a dramatic and violent shift, Hamas, the Islamist political movement that had won the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, seized control of Gaza, expelling the forces of the rival Fatah party in a brutal series of clashes. The fighting left 188 people dead and more than 650 wounded, marking the final rupture between the two factions.

Ismail Haniyeh, the newly appointed Hamas prime minister, solidified the movement’s grip on the territory, sidelining political rivals and assuming control of key governmental institutions.

The consequences of this takeover quickly became apparent. The rise to power of Hamas effectively split the Palestinian territories in two: The West Bank remained under the control of the Palestinian Authority, led by Mahmoud Abbas and Fatah, while Gaza became an isolated Hamas stronghold.

How we wrote it




The compelling front-page headline ‘Palestine Divided’ captured a pivotal event shaping the region’s future.

This division had profound political and humanitarian consequences. Within months, Israel imposed a strict blockade on Gaza. The aim of this was to restrict the military capabilities of Hamas, but it also constrained economic activity and impoverished the Palestinian population.

Compounded by recurring Israeli military offensives, the blockade, which remains in place 18 years later, caused widespread unemployment, poverty, and food and water insecurity among the people of Gaza.

The dire conditions prompted UN Trade and Development to publish a report in 2015 in which it warned that Gaza might be unlivable by 2020.

Efforts to bridge the divide between Hamas and Fatah repeatedly failed. The first attempt, known as the “Prisoners’ Document,” in May 2006 failed to resolve the ideological differences between the two factions. Subsequent mediation efforts, including the intervention of Qatar in October 2006 and the Saudi-brokered Makkah Agreement in February 2008, similarly faltered.

Each attempt to mediate an agreement raised hopes for unity, but every one of them ended only in a renewed sense of distrust.

Perhaps the most notable failure came in 2014, when a unity government was formed but never took full control in Gaza.

Similar setbacks occurred in 2017, and tensions rose further in 2018 when an assassination attempt targeted Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah. The Palestinian Authority accused Hamas of orchestrating the attack, and the political rift widened.

Attempts to hold the first elections in 15 years fell through in 2021, and a reconciliation agreement signed in Algeria the following year failed to achieve any lasting results.

Key Dates

  • 1

    Withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza is completed, 38 years after capture of territory from Egypt, leaving it under the control of the Palestinian Authority.

  • 2

    Hamas defeats Mahmoud Abbas’ long-dominant Fatah party in parliamentary elections.

    Timeline Image Jan. 25, 2006

  • 3

    Hamas government sworn in, headed by Ismail Haniyeh. Fatah refuses to join. Western backers, including the US and EU, declare Hamas a terrorist organization and refuse to recognize the group as the legitimate authority.

    Timeline Image March 2006

  • 4

    Hamas captures Israeli army conscript Gilad Shalit. Israeli responds with air raids and incursions. Shalit eventually released in 2011 in exchange for 1,027 Palestinians.

  • 5

    Hamas seizes control of Gaza from Fatah, which remains in control of the occupied West Bank, after a series of violent clashes. Israel imposes a land, sea and air blockade on the Gaza Strip.

    Timeline Image June 15, 2007

  • 6

    Israel launches “Operation Protective Edge” against Gaza after Hamas kidnaps and kills three Israeli teenagers.

  • 7

    Fatah and Hamas reach a reconciliation agreement, brokered by Egypt, after a decade of failed attempts but efforts to form a unity government stall soon after.

    Timeline Image Oct. 12, 2017

  • 8

    Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah survives assassination attempt during visit to northern Gaza. Fatah blames Hamas.

  • 9

    War begins in Gaza after unprecendented attacks by Hamas on Israel, during which more than 1,200 people are killed and about 250 taken hostage.

    Timeline Image Oct. 7, 2023

  • 10

    Leaders of Hamas, Fatah and other Palestinian factions sign “Beijing declaration,” an agreement to form a national unity government in the foreseeable future.

Over the years, Hamas has aligned itself with Iran and the so-called “Axis of Resistance,” a coalition that includes Hezbollah and other militant groups in the region. This alignment has fueled accusations that Hamas prioritizes foreign alliances over the well-being of the people of Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israel cites the policies of Hamas as justification for the rise of its own far-right political movements, further entrenching the cycle of violence.

One of the most contentious aspects of Hamas and its rule has been its extensive network of tunnels, originally built to smuggle goods and weapons into Gaza. Egyptian authorities accuse Hamas of using the tunnels to support militant groups operating in Sinai, particularly in the aftermath of the fall of Egypt’s government in 2011. This strained relations between Hamas and Cairo, adding another layer of geopolitical complexity to Gaza’s predicament.

Despite claims by Hamas that it seeks a political resolution to the conflict with Israel, the group’s rhetoric and military engagements suggest otherwise.

Israel has conducted several military operations against Gaza since Hamas took over the territory, culminating in the war that began in 2023. “Operation Summer Rains” in 2006 began following the capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, just months after Hamas achieved its election victory.

Two years later, Israel launched a 22-day military offensive, “Operation Cast Lead,” after Hamas fired rockets at the southern Israeli town of Sderot. There was further violence in 2012, which Israel said was a response to an increase in rocket attacks from Gaza. This escalated after the killing of Ahmed Al-Jabari, head of the military wing of Hamas.




Displaced by the immense damage caused by Tel Aviv’s conflict with Hamas in the southern Gaza Strip, a Palestinian man navigates the rubble of the Hamad area, west of Khan Yunis, with his belongings. AFP

Israel’s seven-week “Operation Protective Edge” in 2014, which began after Hamas kidnapped and killed three Israeli teenagers, resulted in widespread devastation in Gaza. The operation was described by the UN at the time as “the most devastating round of hostilities in Gaza.” It has been dwarfed by the effects of the 2023 war.

The latest military confrontation began in retaliation after the unprecedented attacks by Hamas against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel’s subsequent “Al-Aqsa Flood” offensive reduced the majority of Gaza to rubble, uprooted nearly the entire population and killed more than 47,000 Palestinians.

The toll of these recurring conflicts has been staggering. Infrastructure in Gaza has been decimated repeatedly, with estimates suggesting the latest devastation could take decades to rebuild. The cost of reconstruction is projected to be between $80 billion and $200 billion.

Meanwhile, much of the population remains displaced; 70 percent of Gaza’s inhabitants are refugees, and it is estimated the most recent Israeli military action displaced about 90 percent of them.

Seventeen years after Hamas took control of Gaza, the consequences of its rule continue to shape the territory’s reality. The ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that came into effect on Jan. 19 halted the violence, at least temporarily, but the underlying tensions remain unresolved.

The people of Gaza, trapped in a relentless cycle of war, displacement and economic hardship, continue to bear the brunt of this ongoing struggle.

  • Hani Nasira is an Egyptian academic and political expert, and the director of the Arab Institute for Studies. He is the author of more than 23 books.


Karachi markets strike today over new tax measures seen as ‘anti-business’

Karachi markets strike today over new tax measures seen as ‘anti-business’
Updated 8 sec ago
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Karachi markets strike today over new tax measures seen as ‘anti-business’

Karachi markets strike today over new tax measures seen as ‘anti-business’
  • Traders demand rollback of FBR arrest powers, limits on large cash transactions and e-invoicing
  • Karachi Chamber leads the strike, the federal trade body withdraws after talks with government

KARACHI: Businesses in Pakistan’s commercial capital of Karachi are observing a strike today, Saturday, to protest tax provisions in the country’s new Finance Act, as a growing number of trade bodies express frustration over what they say are “anti-business” measures that threaten to paralyze economic activity.

The Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), which spearheaded the strike call, said dozens of major trade and market associations from across the city had endorsed the shutdown, including those representing restaurants, motorcycle spare parts, iron and steel merchants and packaging manufacturers.

“All of Karachi will be closed,” KCCI President Muhammad Jawed Bilwani said at a news conference on Friday after an emergency meeting with market leaders.

“This is just a one-day strike for now,” he added. “But if we do not get written assurances before the next meeting, we will escalate, striking once a week, twice a week or even for entire weeks.”

Bilwani said KCCI had already conveyed its concerns to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and called on the government to roll back provisions that authorize the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to arrest traders, impose penalties on cash transactions above Rs200,000, and enforce mandatory digital invoicing for goods transport.

“We are the ones who keep the economy running,” he said. “If our issues are not resolved, there will be no industry left in this country and we will take our businesses to Dubai.”

Saturday’s strike follows a previous warning issued by the chamber earlier this week, when it said over 50 trade associations across Pakistan had endorsed the protest. It also described the level of support as unprecedented in the country’s history.

Despite the broad show of unity in Karachi, the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), the country’s top business body, said on Friday it had postponed its own plans to participate in the strike after what it described as successful talks with the government.

“FPCCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh has announced the July 19 strike has been deferred following positive engagement with the government,” a statement from the federation said.

The split reflects a growing divide within the business community, with some factions seeking negotiation while others escalate their protest campaign.

Traders and transporters say the new tax provisions will burden already-struggling businesses and increase harassment by tax officials, especially in cities like Karachi, where law and order challenges, inflation and declining purchasing power have hurt commercial activity.

The KCCI has insisted that only written guarantees from the government will convince traders to call off the broader strike campaign.

Until then, Bilwani said, the protest will continue.


Trump sues Murdoch, Wall Street Journal over Epstein sex bombshell

Trump sues Murdoch, Wall Street Journal over Epstein sex bombshell
Updated 19 min 58 sec ago
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Trump sues Murdoch, Wall Street Journal over Epstein sex bombshell

Trump sues Murdoch, Wall Street Journal over Epstein sex bombshell
  • Trump lashed at WSJ as a ‘useless ‘rag’ for publishing what he called a “false, malicious, defamatory, FAKE NEWS article”
  • Dow Jones, the Journal’s longtime publisher, responded to Trump’s libel suit Friday saying it is standing by the story

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal for at least $10 billion Friday over publication of a bombshell article on his friendship with the infamous alleged sex trafficker of underage girls, Jeffrey Epstein.

The defamation lawsuit, filed in federal court in Miami, saw the 79-year-old Republican hitting back at a scandal threatening to cause serious political damage.

“We have just filed a POWERHOUSE Lawsuit against everyone involved in publishing the false, malicious, defamatory, FAKE NEWS ‘article’ in the useless ‘rag’ that is, The Wall Street Journal,” Trump posted on Truth Social late Friday.

The Journal reported Thursday that in 2003, the then-real estate magnate wrote a suggestive birthday letter to Epstein, illustrated with a naked woman and alluding to a shared “secret.”

The lawsuit, which also names two reporters, the Dow Jones corporation, and Murdoch’s parent company News Corp. as defendants, claims that no such letter exists and that the paper intended to malign Trump with a story that has now been viewed by hundreds of millions of people.

“And given the timing of the Defendants’ article, which shows their malicious intent behind it, the overwhelming financial and reputational harm suffered by President Trump will continue to multiply,” it said.

Dow Jones, the Journal’s longtime publisher, responded to Trump’s libel suit Friday saying it is standing by the story.

“We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit,” a Dow Jones spokesperson said in a statement.

 

 

In another bid to dampen outrage among his own supporters about an alleged government cover-up of Epstein’s activities and 2019 death, Trump ordered US Attorney General Pam Bondi to seek the unsealing of grand jury testimony from the prosecution against the disgraced financier.

In a filing in New York, Bondi cited “extensive public interest” for the unusual request to release what is typically secret testimony.

Epstein, a longtime friend of Trump and multiple high-profile men, was found hanging dead in a New York prison cell while awaiting trial on charges that he sexually exploited dozens of underage girls at his homes in New York and Florida.

The case sparked conspiracy theories, especially among Trump’s far-right voters, about an alleged international cabal of wealthy pedophiles. Epstein’s death — declared a suicide — before he could face trial supercharged the narrative.

When Trump returned to power for a second term this January, his supporters clamored for revelations about Epstein’s supposed list of clients. But Bondi issued an official memo this month declaring there was no such list.

The discontent in Trump’s “Make America Great Again” base poses a rare challenge to the Republican’s control of the political narrative in the United States.

It remained unclear whether a court would authorize the unsealing of the grand jury testimony.

But even if such material were made public, there is no assurance it would shed much, if any, light on the main questions raised in the conspiracy theories — particularly the existence and possible contents of an Epstein client list.

Asked Friday by reporters if he would pursue the broader release of information related to the case, Trump did not answer.

This undated trial evidence image obtained December 8, 2021, from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York shows British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and US financier Jeffrey Epstein. (AFP)



Trump was close with Epstein for years, and the two were photographed and videoed together at parties, although there has never been evidence of wrongdoing.

The Wall Street Journal article published late Thursday was damaging because it indicated a shared interest in sex.

The Journal reported that Trump had wished Epstein a happy 50th birthday in 2003 with a “bawdy” letter, part of an album of messages from rich and well-known figures.

According to the Journal, the Trump letter contained the outline of a naked woman, apparently drawn with a marker, and had the future president’s signature “Donald” mimicking pubic hair. It ends, according to the newspaper, with “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.”

Trump reacted in a series of furious social media posts, saying “it’s not my language. It’s not my words.”

“I never wrote a picture in my life. I don’t draw pictures of women,” he said.

US media has published multiple drawings done by Trump in the past, with several dating to the early 2000s when he used his celebrity status to donate sketches for charity.

 


Australia delivers Abrams tanks to Ukraine for war with Russia

Australia delivers Abrams tanks to Ukraine for war with Russia
Updated 19 July 2025
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Australia delivers Abrams tanks to Ukraine for war with Russia

Australia delivers Abrams tanks to Ukraine for war with Russia
  • Ukraine has taken possession of most of the 49 tanks given by Australia, says defense minister
  • Australia is one of the largest non-NATO contributors to Ukraine as it defends itself from Russian aggression

SYDNEY: Australia’s government said on Saturday it had delivered M1A1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine as part of a A$245 million ($160 million) package to help the country defend itself against Russia in their ongoing war.

Australia, one of the largest non-NATO contributors to Ukraine, has been supplying aid, ammunition and defense equipment since Moscow invaded its neighbor in February 2022.

Ukraine has taken possession of most of the 49 tanks given by Australia, and the rest will be delivered in coming months, said Defense Minister Richard Marles.

“The M1A1 Abrams tanks will make a significant contribution to Ukraine’s ongoing fight against Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion,” Marles said in a statement.

The tanks formed part of the A$1.5 billion ($980 million) that Canberra has provided Ukraine in the conflict, the government said.

Australia has also banned exports of alumina and aluminum ores, including bauxite, to Russia, and has sanctioned about 1,000 Russian individuals and entities.

Australia’s center-left Labor government this year labelled Russia as the aggressor in the conflict and called for the war to be resolved on Kyiv’s terms.


Trump says he thinks 5 jets were shot down in India-Pakistan hostilities

Trump says he thinks 5 jets were shot down in India-Pakistan hostilities
Updated 19 July 2025
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Trump says he thinks 5 jets were shot down in India-Pakistan hostilities

Trump says he thinks 5 jets were shot down in India-Pakistan hostilities
  • New Delhi blamed the attack on Pakistan, which denied responsibility while calling for a neutral investigation

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Friday up to five jets were shot down during recent India-Pakistan hostilities that began after an April Islamist militant attack in India-administered Kashmir, with the situation calming after a ceasefire in May.

Trump, who made his remarks at a dinner with some Republican US lawmakers at the White House, did not specify which side’s jets he was referring to.

“In fact, planes were being shot out of the air. Five, five, four or five, but I think five jets were shot down actually,” Trump said while talking about the India-Pakistan hostilities, without elaborating or providing further detail. Pakistan claimed it downed five Indian planes in air-to-air combat. India’s highest-ranking general said in late May that India switched tactics after suffering losses in the air on the first day of hostilities and established an advantage before a ceasefire was announced three days later. India also claimed it downed “a few planes” of Pakistan. Islamabad denied suffering any losses of planes but acknowledged its air bases suffered hits.

HIGH LIGHTS

• Hostilities rose between India and Pakistan after April attack in Kashmir

• Ceasefire was announced on May 10 • Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for ceasefire, India has differed from his claims

Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for the ceasefire between India and Pakistan that he announced on social media on May 10 after Washington held talks with both sides. India has differed with Trump’s claims that it resulted from his intervention and his threats to sever trade talks.

India’s position has been that New Delhi and Islamabad must resolve their problems directly and with no outside involvement.

India is an increasingly important US partner in Washington’s effort to counter China’s influence in Asia, while Pakistan is a US ally.

The April attack in India-administered Kashmir killed 26 men and sparked heavy fighting between the nuclear-armed Asian neighbors in the latest escalation of a decades-old rivalry.

New Delhi blamed the attack on Pakistan, which denied responsibility while calling for a neutral investigation.

Washington condemned the attack but did not directly blame Islamabad.

On May 7, Indian jets bombed sites across the border that New Delhi described as “terrorist infrastructure,” setting off an exchange of attacks between the two countries by fighter jets, missiles, drones, and artillery that killed dozens until the ceasefire was reached. 

 


Brazil police raid home of Bolsonaro, accused of plotting coup

Brazil police raid home of Bolsonaro, accused of plotting coup
Updated 19 July 2025
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Brazil police raid home of Bolsonaro, accused of plotting coup

Brazil police raid home of Bolsonaro, accused of plotting coup
  • The case against Bolsonaro carries echoes of Trump’s failed prosecution over the January 6, 2021 attacks by his supporters on the US Capitol to try and reverse his election loss to Joe Biden

BRASILIA: Brazilian police raided Jair Bolsonaro’s home Friday, as a judge imposed further restrictions on the far-right former leader while he stands trial on coup charges that have vexed US president and ally Donald Trump.

His son Eduardo Bolsonaro, a congressman who recently moved to the United States to lobby for his father, wrote on X that federal police carried out a “raid on my father’s home this morning.”

He lashed out at Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes, a Bolsonaro adversary who on Friday ordered the ex-president to wear an electronic ankle bracelet, not leave his home at night, or use social media.

Moraes, one of the judges in Bolsonaro’s trial for allegedly seeking to nullify leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s 2022 election victory, said the measures were necessary given the “hostile acts” against Brazil by the accused and his son.

This came after Trump announced a 50 percent tariff on the South American powerhouse for what he said was a “witch hunt” against his ally Bolsonaro.

Moraes, said Eduardo Bolsonaro, “has long abandoned any semblance of impartiality and now operates as a political gangster in robes, using the Supreme Court as his personal weapon.”

The judge was “trying to criminalize President Trump and the US government. Powerless against them, he chose to take my father hostage,” he added in a letter he signed as a “Brazilian congressman in exile.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Friday Washington was revoking a US visa for Moraes for his “political witch hunt against Jair Bolsonaro.”

Accusing him of creating a “persecution and censorship complex,” Rubio also announced visa restrictions on other judges who side with Moraes, as well as their immediate family members.

Bolsonaro, 70, described the Moraes order Friday as a “supreme humiliation” and said the prohibitions were “suffocating.”

It also prohibited him from approaching foreign embassies, and confined him to his home on weekdays between 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 am, and all day on weekends or public holidays.

“I never thought about leaving Brazil, I never thought about going to an embassy,” Bolsonaro insisted on emerging from the justice secretariat offices in Brasilia. He had been taken there after the raid, during which police seized cash.

His defense team in a statement expressed “surprise and indignation” at the new measures.

The former army captain denies he was involved in an attempt to wrest power back from Lula as part of an alleged coup plot that prosecutors say failed only for a lack of military backing.

After the plot fizzled, rioting supporters known as “Bolsonaristas” raided government buildings in early 2023 as they urged the military to oust Lula. Bolsonaro was abroad at the time.

The case against Bolsonaro carries echoes of Trump’s failed prosecution over the January 6, 2021 attacks by his supporters on the US Capitol to try and reverse his election loss to Joe Biden.

Both men have claimed to be victims of political persecution, and Trump has stepped in in defense of his ally, to the anger of Lula who has labeled the tariff threat “unacceptable blackmail.”

Washington also announced an investigation into “unfair trading practices” by Brazil, a move that could provide a legal basis for imposing tariffs on South America’s largest economy.

On Tuesday, prosecutors asked the trial judges of the Supreme Court to find Bolsonaro guilty of “armed criminal association” and planning to “violently overthrow the democratic order.”

The defense must still present its closing arguments, after which a five-member panel of judges including Moraes will decide the ex-president’s fate.

Bolsonaro and seven co-accused risk up to 40 years in prison.

He has repeatedly stated his desire to be a candidate in presidential elections next year, but has been ruled ineligible to hold office by a court that found him guilty of spreading misinformation about Brazil’s electoral system.

Lula, for his part, said Friday he intends to seek another term.

“You can be sure that I will be a candidate again... I will not hand this country over to that bunch of lunatics who almost destroyed it,” the 79-year-old said at a public event in the state of Ceara.

Moraes has repeatedly clashed with Bolsonaro and other rightwing figures he has accused of spreading fake news.

Last year, the judge suspended tech titan Elon Musk’s X network in Brazil for 40 days for failing to tackle the spread of disinformation shared mainly by Bolsonaro backers