GAZA: The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Monday that an Israeli operation in Khan Yunis killed 70 people and wounded more than 200, after the military warned it would “forcefully operate” in the area.
The military warning affected the eastern Khan Yunis sector of the Al-Mawasi humanitarian zone in southern Gaza and sent thousands of Palestinians fleeing.
The military said it would act to curb rocket fire in the area. Khan Yunis had already seen heavy fighting earlier this year.
The latest incident comes nine days after the health ministry said 92 people were killed in a strike on Al-Mawasi, when Israel said it was targeting Hamas’s commander.
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas and has launched intense military operations in areas of Gaza that it previously had declared free of the militants.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under pressure to reach a truce and hostage-release deal, was on his way to Washington to address the US Congress.
Netanyahu will meet US President Joe Biden, who has pushed him to agree to a ceasefire, more than nine months into the Gaza war ignited by the Palestinian militant group’s October 7 attacks on Israel.
In late June Netanyahu had said the war “in its intense phase” was about to end.
The evacuation order for the Al-Mawasi area came just two months after the military directed Palestinians there for their own safety.
“Due to the Israeli occupation’s attacks and massacres in Khan Yunis governorate from the early hours of this morning until now, 70 people have been martyred and more than 200 wounded,” the Gaza health ministry said.
The Israeli military did not offer comment on the toll, when asked by AFP.
But in a statement, the military said its fighter jets and tanks “struck and eliminated terrorists in the area.”
It said forces targeted more than “30 terror infrastructure” sites in Khan Yunis. Israeli warplanes also hit a weapons storage facility, observation posts, tunnel shafts and structures used by Hamas militants, it added.
Facing yet another displacement, Palestinians filled the dusty streets of Khan Yunis with cars, motorbikes, donkey-drawn carts, and on foot, carrying what belongings they could.
Hassan Qudayh said his family fled in “panic.”
“We were happily making breakfast for our children, as we had been safe for a month, only to be stunned by shells, warning leaflets and martyrs in the streets,” he told AFPTV.
“This is the 14th or 15th time we’ve been displaced.
“Enough! We’ve been suffering for 10 months.”
Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,197 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
The militants also seized 251 hostages, 116 of whom are still in Gaza, including 44 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 39,000 people, also mostly civilians, according to data from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.
The relentless fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis.
Yussef Abu Taimah from Al-Qarara in Khan Yunis said his family went to the humanitarian zone but found no space.
“Even the sidewalks are full of people and tents. We are tired and fed up. Enough of this displacement and migration.”
Months of intermittent talks for the first ceasefire and hostage-prisoner swap since November have yielded little progress.
Netanyahu will meet Biden on Tuesday and deliver a landmark speech to Congress on Wednesday, amid unprecedented strains between Israel and its ally the United States.
The Israeli leader has repeatedly resisted pressure from the Biden administration to accept a truce, which far-right members of his coalition opposes.
Washington fears a voter backlash over the mounting civilian war toll in Gaza, while protests by anti-government demonstrators and families of hostages in Israel are pressuring Netanyahu at home.
“Never before has the atmosphere been so fraught,” said Steven Cook, a Middle East specialist at the Council on Foreign Relations.
“There is clearly tension in the relationship, especially between the White House and the Israeli prime minister,” Cook said in a commentary.
The visit comes with the Gaza war again fueling regional violence.
Israel on Saturday attacked Yemen for the first time, in retaliation for a deadly drone strike on Tel Aviv by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
There were also further exchanges of fire between Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah movement and the Israeli military at the weekend, as tensions remained high along the border.
An Israeli delegation will travel to Doha on Thursday to discuss new demands for a Gaza truce and hostage-prisoner exchange, a source with knowledge of the talks said.
Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been working to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas.
Gaza health ministry says dozens killed, after Israel evacuation order
https://arab.news/j88pt
Gaza health ministry says dozens killed, after Israel evacuation order
- The Palestinians were killed by tank salvoes in the town of Bani Suhaila and other towns fringing the eastern side of Khan Younis, with the area also bombarded by air
- “It is like doomsday,” one resident, who only identified himself as Abu Khaled, said
Tunisia opposition figures go on trial on state security charges
- The defendants include politicians Jawhar Ben Mbarek, Abdelhamid Jelassi and Issam Chebbi, founder of the opposition National Salvation Front coalition — all staunch critics of Saied
TUNIS: The trial of several prominent Tunisian opposition figures accused of national security offenses is set to begin Tuesday, with rights groups denouncing the case as politically motivated.
The around 40 high-profile defendants include former diplomats, politicians, lawyers and media figures, some of whom have been outspoken critics of President Kais Saied.
The charges against them are “plotting against the state security” and “belonging to a terrorist group,” which could entail hefty sentences and even capital punishment, according to lawyers.
Saied was elected in 2019 after Tunisia emerged as the only democracy following the Arab Spring. But in 2021 he staged a sweeping power grab, and rights groups have since warned of a rollback on freedoms.
The defendants include politicians Jawhar Ben Mbarek, Abdelhamid Jelassi and Issam Chebbi, founder of the opposition National Salvation Front coalition — all staunch critics of Saied.
In a letter from his cell, Ben Mbarek called the trial a form of “judicial harassment” aimed at “the methodical elimination of critical voices,” claiming the accusations were baseless.
Activists Khayam Turki and Chaima Issa, businessman Kamel Eltaief, and Bochra BelHajj Hmida, a former member of parliament and human rights activist now living in France, have also been charged in the case.
Some of the defendants have been detained since a flurry of arrests in February 2023, after Saied dubbed them “terrorists.”
Others remain free pending trial, as some have fled abroad, according to the defense committee.
On Sunday, during a visit to the streets of the capital Tunis, Saied told a woman who asked him to intervene for her imprisoned sons — unrelated to the trial — that he “never intervenes” in judicial matters.
“Let this be clear to everyone,” he was heard telling her in a video posted on the presidency’s official Facebook page.
Other critics of Saied have been detained and charged in different cases, including under a law to combat “false news.”
In early February, the leader of Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party Rached Ghannouchi, 83, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for plotting against state security, though in a separate case.
The United Nations urged Tunisian authorities last month to bring “an end to the pattern of arrests, arbitrary detentions and imprisonment of dozens of human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists, activists and politicians.”
Tunisia’s foreign ministry dismissed the UN statement with “astonishment” and denounced its “inaccuracies.”
“Tunisia can give lessons to those who think they are in a position to make statements,” it said.
Egypt’s alternative to Trump’s ‘Gaza Riviera’ aims to sideline Hamas
- The draft said the board would comprise key Arab countries, members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the United States, Britain, the European Union and its member states, and others
- The Egyptian draft does not tackle the issue of what actions could be taken if Hamas refuses to disarm or step aside from politics
DOHA: A plan for Gaza drawn up by Egypt as a counter to US President Donald Trump’s ambition for a Middle East Riviera would sideline Hamas and replace it with interim bodies controlled by Arab, Muslim and Western states, according to a draft seen by Reuters.
The Egyptian vision for Gaza, which is due to be presented at an Arab League summit on Tuesday, does not specify whether the proposal would be implemented before or after any permanent peace deal to end the war triggered by the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.
Trump’s plan, which envisioned clearing Gaza of its Palestinian inhabitants, appeared to back away from long-standing US Middle East policy focused on a two-state solution and sparked anger among Palestinians and Arab nations.
Who will run Gaza after the conflict remains the great unanswered question in negotiations over the future of the enclave. Hamas has so far rejected the idea of any proposal being imposed on Palestinians by other states.
Cairo’s plan does not tackle critical issues such as who will foot the bill for Gaza’s reconstruction or outline any specific details around how Gaza would be governed, nor how an armed group as powerful as Hamas would be pushed aside.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Egypt's draft Gaza plan has no role for Hamas - draft proposal
• Arab states seek to counter Trump's Gaza vision
• Governance Assistance Mission would replace Hamas-run government International Stabilisation Force would provide security
Under the Egyptian plan, a Governance Assistance Mission would replace the Hamas-run government in Gaza for an unspecified interim period and would be responsible for humanitarian aid and for kick-starting reconstruction of the enclave, which has been devastated by the war.
“There will be no major international funding for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Gaza if Hamas remains the dominant and armed political element on the ground controlling local governance,” a preamble outlining the draft Egyptian plan’s objectives said.
Details of Egypt’s proposed framework for Gaza’s future have not been previously reported.
Egypt, Jordan and Gulf Arab states have for almost a month been scrambling to formulate a diplomatic offensive to counter Trump’s plan. A number of ideas have been proposed, with Egypt’s considered the frontrunner.
Reuters was unable to determine whether Arab leaders would support the plan presented by Egypt.
The plan does not specify who would run the governance mission. It said it would, “draw on the expertise of Palestinians in Gaza and elsewhere to help Gaza recover as quickly as possible.”
The draft proposal was shared with Reuters by an official involved in Gaza negotiations who wished to remain anonymous because the draft has not yet been made public.
The plan firmly rejects the US proposal for mass displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, which Arab states such as Egypt and Jordan see as a security threat.
“President Trump has been clear that Hamas cannot continue to govern Gaza,” White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said when asked about Egypt’s Gaza plan and whether the US would support it.
“While the President stands by his bold vision for a post-war Gaza, he welcomes input from our Arab partners in the region. It’s clear his proposals have driven the region to come to the table rather than allow this issue to devolve into further crisis,” Hughes said.
STABILISATION FORCE
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters the group knows of no such proposal by Egypt.
“The day after in Gaza must only be decided by the Palestinians,” he said. “Hamas rejects any attempt to impose projects or any form of non-Palestinian administration, or the presence of any foreign forces on the land of the Gaza Strip.”
The Egyptian draft does not mention future elections.
Egypt’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did the office of Israel’s prime minister, whose support for any plan is seen as vital to secure a commitment that any future reconstruction will not be destroyed again.
Palestinian Islamist group Hamas has ruled the coastal enclave since 2007. It launched the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and started the Gaza war.
A January 19 ceasefire brought a temporary end to the fighting but the first phase of the deal expired on Saturday with no sign of an agreement to move to the second phase.
The Egyptian draft does not tackle the issue of what actions could be taken if Hamas refuses to disarm or step aside from politics.
The proposal envisions an International Stabilization Force drawn primarily from Arab states that would take over the role of providing security from the militant group, with the eventual establishment of a new local police force.
Both security and governance bodies would be “arranged, guided and supervised” by a steering board. The draft said the board would comprise key Arab countries, members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the United States, Britain, the European Union and its member states, and others.
The plan does not detail a central governing role for the Palestinian Authority (PA), which opinion polls show has little support among Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
A Palestinian official told Reuters that, like the West Bank, Gaza falls under the PA’s jurisdiction — and it must be run by Palestinians.
“We agreed with the Egyptians on a committee made of Palestinian experts that will help the Palestinian Authority in running the Gaza Strip for six months. The committee is made of Palestinian experts and coordinates with the PA, and doesn’t answer to non-Palestinian bodies,” said the official, who asked not to be named for sensitivity.
RECONSTRUCTION BILL
Since Hamas drove the Palestinian Authority out of Gaza after a brief civil war in 2007, it has crushed all opposition there. Supported by Iran, it built an extensive security apparatus and military organization based around a vast network of tunnels — much of which Israel says it has now destroyed.
The plan does not say who would pay to rebuild Gaza, a bill estimated by the UN at more than $53 billion. Two sources have told Reuters that Gulf and Arab states would need to commit at least $20 billion in the initial phase of reconstruction.
Egypt’s proposal envisions that states on the steering board could establish a fund to support the interim governing body and arrange donor conferences to seek contributions for a longer-term reconstruction and development plan for Gaza.
The plan does not contain any specific financial pledges.
Oil- and gas-producing Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates could be vital sources of funding from the region.
The United Arab Emirates, for instance, sees Hamas and other militant groups as an existential threat and is unlikely to offer any funding until Hamas has been sidelined.
The foreign ministries in Qatar and the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s international media office did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Egypt’s plan, or to questions about their willingness to commit funds to rebuild Gaza.
The draft plan also calls on the steering board to coordinate with a Civil Society Advisory Board, consisting of academics, NGO leaders and other notable figures.
Gaza aid stockpiles limited after Israel cuts flows, aid groups warn
- Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres warned that the suspension of aid will add significant pressure on the two million Palestinians in the enclave who are still suffering from shortages of essential goods following 16 months of war
- The subsequent Israeli campaign has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, displaced almost all of its 2.3 million population and left Gaza a wasteland
GENEVA: Food, medicine and shelter stockpiles in Gaza are limited and aid intended for Palestinians in desperate need may spoil following Israel’s suspension of deliveries to the enclave, humanitarian agencies said on Monday.
Israel blocked the entry of aid trucks into Gaza on Sunday as a standoff over the truce that has halted fighting for the past six weeks escalated.
“Much of what has come in over the past few weeks has already been distributed...Now, already we are seeing price increases,” a UN official in Gaza told Reuters.
Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres warned that the suspension of aid will add significant pressure on the two million Palestinians in the enclave who are still suffering from shortages of essential goods following 16 months of war. Israel has previously accused Hamas of hijacking aid, which the group denied.
“Any further challenges to access to food and access to clean water could have devastating consequences. The spike in food and good prices is creating fear and uncertainty,” Caroline Seguin, MSF emergency coordinator, in Gaza told Reuters.
Salama Marouf, head of the Gaza government media office, said enough food was in markets for at least two weeks and urged Gazans not to panic.
LOGISTICAL IMPACT
More than 300 trucks loaded with aid were stopped from crossing the border from Egypt on Sunday, according to the International Federation of the Red Cross.
Its five warehouses in Egypt that stock food, water and medicines are currently at 50 percent capacity and expiry dates are being checked.
“We have warehouse capacity for now, but we cannot be sure how long that will continue,” operations coordinator for the IFRC in Egypt, Jurgen Hogl, told Reuters.
Medecins Sans Frontieres has 14 trucks of aid shipments in Egypt and Jordan, mainly medical supplies, waiting to be shipped into Gaza.
“We are concerned that if drug supplies would be maintained in trucks for months at end, and exposed to the sun, it could shorten the lifespan of medicines and decrease the efficiency of the drugs,” said Seguin.
The Norwegian Refugee Council warned it could reach a point that agencies halt shipments of aid altogether, as was the case when aid was restricted at the beginning of the war.
“It’s costly for us to keep aid in warehouses or packed up on trucks, waiting in queues,” NRC spokesperson Shaina Low told Reuters.
Phase two talks to negotiate a final end to the war have barely begun. Israel, while announcing the halt to aid entry, said it will not allow a ceasefire without the release of all remaining hostages. Hamas has denounced Israel’s move as “blackmail” and a “blatant coup against the agreement.”
Hamas’s attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killed 1,200 people, and 251 people were taken into Gaza as hostages. The subsequent Israeli campaign has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, displaced almost all of its 2.3 million population and left Gaza a wasteland.
Morocco activist gets six-month sentence for online post: lawyer
- In his Facebook post last year, Abdelmoumni echoed accusations of Moroccan espionage against France
RABAT: A Moroccan court on Monday sentenced activist Fouad Abdelmoumni to six months in prison for “spreading false allegations” and other charges related to a post he had shared on Facebook, said his lawyer.
Abdelmoumni, a human rights advocate, was taken into custody in late October after alleging online that Morocco had spied against France, but released after a two-day detention.
His lawyer, Mohamed Nouini, told AFP that Abdelmoumni will only be imprisoned if a higher court upholds Monday’s verdict issued in Casablanca.
“He should have been prosecuted under the Press Code, which does not provide for prison sentences, rather than the Penal Code,” Nouini said.
The charges against Abdelmoumni include “spreading false allegations,” “defamation” and “insulting public bodies.”
In his Facebook post last year, Abdelmoumni echoed accusations of Moroccan espionage against France.
“France, which sees its position decline among all nations, would not want to give in to the blackmail of a weak state which uses all the means of pressure at its disposal... including espionage,” Abdelmoumni wrote at the time.
Prosecutors argued that his statements constituted “allegations harmful to the kingdom’s interests” and went “beyond the limits of freedom of expression, amounting to criminal offenses punishable by law.”
Abdelmoumni shared the post during a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, which had marked a thawing of diplomatic ties between Rabat and Paris after three years of strained relations, partially over the espionage allegations.
In 2021, Morocco was accused of deploying Israeli-made Pegasus spyware to monitor prominent figures including Macron.
The allegations were based on a report by investigative outlet Forbidden Stories and rights group Amnesty International, which Morocco called “baseless and false.”
The spyware, developed by Israeli firm NSO Group, can infiltrate mobile phones, extracting data and activating cameras.
Tunisia rescues 64 migrants off eastern Mediterranean coast
TUNIS: Authorities in Tunisia say 64 migrants were rescued from a boat that capsized off the country’s eastern Mediterranean coast after running out of fuel.
The country’s national customs agency said in a statement that maritime patrols sent to the capsized vessel rescued 64 people of various nationalities off the coast of Mahdia on Friday evening. No deaths were reported.
“The rescued migrants were trying to cross by boat toward the European space illegally,” the customs agency said.
Initial findings of the investigation suggest that the migrants had set off from an unnamed neighboring country, likely to be Libya.
The migrants were taken to the port of Chebba, 60 km north of Sfax, for further investigation.
More than 30,000 migrants set sail from Libya and arrived in Italy in 2024, according to UNHCR.
The UN refugee agency said 61 percent of those arriving in Italy by sea came from Libya, followed by 32 percent from Tunisia.
The UN’s International Organization for Migration estimates that more than 100 migrants have died or gone missing in the central Mediterranean off the coast of Tunisia and Libya since the beginning of 2025.
There is no official data about the actual number of migrants living in Libya.
