Israel’s Rafah attack set Hamas talks ‘backward’: mediator Qatar
Doha – Israel’s military operation in Rafah has set truce negotiations with Hamas “backward”, mediator Qatar said on Tuesday, adding that talks have reached “almost a stalemate”. “Especially in the past few weeks, we have seen some momentum building but…
Israel attacks Gaza after truce talks end
– Israel launched fresh strikes in the Gaza Strip Friday after negotiators pursuing a long-stalled truce agreement left talks in Cairo without having secured a deal. AFP journalists in the Gaza Strip early Friday witnessed artillery strikes on Rafah on…
Israel launches fresh Gaza strikes as negotiators work towards truce
Rafah – Israel struck targets in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday after seizing the main border crossing with Egypt, where negotiators were working to make good on their “last chance” to cement a ceasefire deal. After weeks of vowing to…
Israel orders evacuation from Rafah area in south Gaza
Rafah – Israel’s military on Monday called for the evacuation of Palestinians from eastern Rafah, ahead of a long-threatened ground invasion of the southern Gaza city, the prospect of which has triggered widespread global alarm. The evacuation announcement followed intensified…
Baghdad, Qatar’s UrbaCon discuss setting up 2,100 megawatt power plant
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Minister of Electricity, Ziyad Ali Fadel, announced on Sunday that the government is studying setting up a 2,100 megawatt power plant in Baiji in the northern governorate of Salah Al-Din. The Iraqi Electricity Ministry mentioned…
Biden to speak with Netanyahu as Rafah fears mount
Washington – President Joe Biden will hold urgent talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Monday after Israel defied repeated US warnings and told Palestinians to evacuate part of the southern Gaza city of Rafah ahead of an offensive. The call…
Netanyahu shuts down Al Jazeera in Israel
Jerusalem – Al Jazeera went off-air in Israel Sunday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government decided to shut it down following a long-running feud, a move the Qatar-based channel decried as “criminal”. Netanyahu declared on X that the government had…
Ceasefire should be ‘no-brainer’ for Hamas, Blinken says
Washington – Accepting a ceasefire deal with Israel should be a “no-brainer” for Hamas, but the motivations of the militants’ elusive Gaza-based leadership remain unclear, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has announced…
Biden to host Jordan king next week amid Gaza talks
Washington – US President Joe Biden will host Jordan’s King Abdullah II next week, the White House said Friday, as negotiations continue in the Middle East for a ceasefire in Gaza. The meeting will be “private” and will be followed…
Hamas delegation heads to Cairo for truce talks
Hanoi – Hamas said its delegation was heading to Cairo on Saturday to resume Gaza truce talks, as the United Nations warned that Israel’s threatened assault on the city of Rafah could produce a “bloodbath”. Foreign mediators have been waiting…