‘Stop the fight and start negotiations,’ Israel hostage families say
‘Stop the fight and start negotiations,’ Israel hostage families say/node/2426916/middle-east
‘Stop the fight and start negotiations,’ Israel hostage families say
Relatives of Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 attack lift portraits as they deliver a statement to the media in Tel Aviv on Dec. 16, 2023. (AFP)
‘Stop the fight and start negotiations,’ Israel hostage families say
“We only receive dead bodies. We want you to stop the fight and start negotiations,” Noam Perry, daughter of hostage Haim Perry said
Updated 16 December 2023
AFP
TEL AVIV: The families of hostages held in Gaza called on Israel Saturday to stop fighting and make a deal to secure their release after the army admitted “mistakenly” killing three captives in the Palestinian territory.
The Israeli army has said the three hostages killed by troops on Friday were carrying a white flag and had cried for help in Hebrew.
The news of their killing has sparked protests in Israel, and the relatives of the remaining hostages are terrified their loved ones could be next.
“We only receive dead bodies. We want you to stop the fight and start negotiations,” Noam Perry, daughter of hostage Haim Perry, said at an event in Tel Aviv organized by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
“We feel like we’re in a Russian roulette game (finding out) who will be next in line to be told the death of their loved one,” said Ruby Chen, father of 19-year-old soldier Itai, who is among the captives.
“They explained to us first that the ground operation would bring back the abductees,” he said.
“It doesn’t work. Because since then, abductees have been seen returning, but not so much alive. It’s time to change this assumption,” he said.
Around 250 people were taken hostage during Palestinian militant group Hamas’s October 7 attacks on Israel, which killed around 1,140 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.
Vowing to destroy Hamas and bring back the hostages, Israel launched a massive offensive against the Palestinian Islamist movement that has left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins.
The territory’s Hamas government says the war has killed at least 18,800 people, mostly women and children.
Frankly Speaking: How do Palestinians perceive a new Trump presidency?
Foreign minister says Palestinians are hopeful about the next US administration as there is now global momentum behind the two-state solution
Varsen Aghabekian Shahin tells “Franking Speaking” coalition spearheaded by Saudi Arabia to help realize statehood represents a source of hope
Updated 2 sec ago
Arab News
DUBAI: Although the previous administration of US President-elect Donald Trump was seen as a staunch ally of Israel, Varsen Aghabekian Shahin, Palestine’s minister of state for foreign affairs and expatriates, says Palestinians remain hopeful about his return to the White House.
In large part this is due to a perception that the international climate surrounding the issue of Palestinian statehood is fundamentally different to that which prevailed during Trump’s last administration, owed in large part to events in Gaza and the resulting wave of solidarity.
“I have to be hopeful. We have to remain hopeful,” said Aghabekian Shahin during an appearance on the Arab News current affairs program “Franking Speaking,” a week after President-elect Trump secured a powerful mandate in a deeply polarized US election race.
Her optimism, however, is tempered by the decades of frustration that Palestinians have felt under Israeli occupation. “What we have been hoping for, as always, is a Palestinian state with our sovereignty and our self-determination,” she told “Frankly Speaking” host Katie Jensen.
While Trump’s first term was marked by controversial moves such as recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and relocating the US embassy there from Tel Aviv, Aghabekian Shahin believes there remains a possibility for change.
“With the incoming president in the United States, our hope remains the same. We hope President Trump will take a more balanced approach ... and put on his agenda the rights of the Palestinians.”
Aghabekian Shahin said she hopes the incoming administration of Donald Trump takes a more balanced approach to the Palestinian question. (Brad Penner-Imagn Images)
During his last administration, Trump championed normalization agreements between Arab states and Israel under the Abraham Accords. However, Aghabekian Shahin says “peace will not be sustainable if Palestinians’ rights are not taken into consideration.”
In contrast with the period coinciding with Trump’s last administration, Aghabekian Shahin says there is now a global momentum behind Palestinian statehood, catalyzed by shifting alliances and growing public outrage over Israeli actions in Gaza.
“I think times today are different than they were a couple years ago,” said Aghabekian Shahin.
“The ongoing genocide in Gaza, the mounting pressure and dissatisfaction all over capitals in Europe … and the coalition today led by Saudi Arabia on the materialization of the state of Palestine — these are new dimensions that cannot be ignored.”
Israel’s military campaign in Gaza came in retaliation for the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, which killed more than 1,200 and saw 250 taken hostage. The conflict in the tiny Palestinian enclave has resulted in more than 43,700 dead and 1.9 million displaced.
International criticism of the scale of destruction in Gaza has intensified over the past year, with many questioning Israel’s adherence to international law. Israeli leaders could face war crimes charges before the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.
One positive to emerge from the conflict is renewed interest in the long-dormant effort to achieve the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which envisions an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital living peacefully alongside Israel.
Lauding Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic and humanitarian efforts, Aghabekian Shahin said a new international coalition spearheaded by the Kingdom to help expedite the two-state solution represented a source of hope for Palestinians.
This ambition was given further weight by the joint summit of the Arab League and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation that took place in the Saudi capital on Nov. 11, during which the leaders of 57 Arab and Islamic countries called on Israel to negotiate an end to the decades-old conflict.
Displaced Palestinians fleeing Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip walk on the main Salah al-Din road on November 17, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
“Saudi Arabia has been extremely important for aid and its support to the Palestinian people,” said Aghabekian Shahin. “The summit that was held in Riyadh is a very important message. Fifty-seven countries were present in the meeting, with clear decisions and a focus on ending the occupation.”
Saudi Arabia has explicitly linked the normalization of ties with Israel to progress on Palestinian statehood. Aghabekian Shahin said this position is “a very important step and something that pushes forward and brings a lot of hope to the Palestinian people.”
During the recent joint summit, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman described Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide, marking the first occasion that a Saudi official had publicly done so. Nevertheless, there are still several nations, including many of Israel’s Western allies, who have avoided using the term.
While acknowledging the scale of human suffering in Gaza, Aghabekian Shahin said the precise terminology is less important than addressing the atrocities that are taking place.
“Even if 300,000 people are killed in Gaza, God forbidding, some countries will not call it a genocide,” she said. “What is happening is a humanitarian catastrophe. ... Governments and people are more and more realizing that these atrocities cannot continue.”
Asked whether Hamas bears responsibility for triggering the carnage that has befallen Gaza, Aghabekian Shahin did not condemn the Palestinian militant group outright, focusing instead on the underlying conditions that have fueled the cycle of violence.
“Who takes the blame first and foremost is the belligerent occupation that has been suffocating Palestinian lives over seven decades,” she said. “Gazans were living in an open-air prison… When people as human beings are cornered and they don’t see a light at the end of the tunnel, then obviously violence erupts.”
Despite the grim reality of the situation and the intense animosity between the warring sides, Aghabekian Shahin underscored the importance of diplomacy and adherence to international law to resolve the conflict.
“Any violence perpetrated by any side is unacceptable,” she said. “We need to put violence aside and resort to mechanisms that will bring us closer to our liberation as per international law.”
This commitment to seeking peaceful solutions aligns with Aghabekian Shahin’s extensive background in academia, human rights advocacy, and as a veteran member of the Palestinian negotiations unit.
Before her ministerial appointment in April, she served in various roles, including as director of the Capacity and Institutional Building Project at the Office of the Palestinian President and commissioner-general of the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights.
A member of Jerusalem’s Armenian community, Aghabekian Shahin has witnessed firsthand the pressures faced by minority groups in the city. She highlights the significance of the Armenian Quarter in the Old City, which has come under growing threat by far-right Jewish settlers.
As a member of Jerusalem’s Armenian community, Aghabekian Shahin has witnessed firsthand the pressures faced by minority groups in the city. (AN Photo)
“The land in question is invaluable,” she said, referring to a bitter ongoing legal dispute between the Armenian Patriarchate and an Australian-Israeli developer to lease an area of land in the Armenian Quarter to build a luxury hotel.
“This land is part and parcel of the heritage of the Armenian people for decades in Jerusalem,” said Aghabekian Shahin. “The community has a very good team of Israeli lawyers along with international lawyers who are working on the case.”
The Armenian Quarter in Jerusalem’s Old City has long been a symbol of Armenian identity and presence in the region. Aghabekian Shahin believes its preservation is vital not just for Armenians but for Jerusalem’s multicultural heritage.
The flight of Christian communities more broadly from Palestine and the wider Middle East is itself a bellwether of the decline of religious pluralism in the region. Aghabekian Shahin attributes this trend to the hardships of living under occupation.
“People are sick and tired of occupation,” she said. “They want a better future for their children. This better future cannot happen under occupation… With an end of occupation, there is an economic horizon and a future that people can look to.”
As Palestinians await clarity on the global stage, Aghabekian Shahin remains resolute. “What we hope for today is what we have always hoped for — a sovereign Palestinian state living in peace next to Israel.”
The stakes are high, however, not only for Palestinians but for the broader Middle East, where peace remains elusive. Aghabekian Shahin believes the next US administration will have to address the root causes of the conflict.
“Without justice for Palestinians, there will be no sustainable peace.”
“The Israeli enemy directly targeted an army center” in Mari in the Hasbaya area
Updated 17 November 2024
AFP
BEIRUT: The Lebanese army said an Israeli attack on Sunday killed two soldiers, accusing Israel of directly targeting their position in south Lebanon where the Israeli military is fighting Hezbollah.
“The Israeli enemy directly targeted an army center” in Mari in the Hasbaya area, causing “the death of one of the soldiers and the wounding of three others, one of whom is in critical condition,” the army said in a statement.
A separate statement shortly afterwards said “a second soldier” had died of his wounds.
Israeli fire has killed more than a dozen Lebanese soldiers since all-out war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group erupted in September, according to an AFP tally of official announcements.
Egypt’s middle class cuts costs as IMF-backed reforms take hold
The world lender has long backed measures in Egypt including a liberal currency exchange market and weaning the public away from subsidies
Updated 17 November 2024
AFP
Cairo: Egypt’s economy has been in crisis for years, but as the latest round of International Monetary Fund-backed reforms bites, much of the country’s middle class has found itself struggling to afford goods once considered basics.
The world lender has long backed measures in Egypt including a liberal currency exchange market and weaning the public away from subsidies.
On the ground, that has translated into an eroding middle class with depleted purchasing power, turning into luxuries what were once considered necessities.
Nourhan Khaled, a 27-year-old private sector employee, has given up “perfumes and chocolates.”
“All my salary goes to transport and food,” she said as she perused items at a west Cairo supermarket, deciding what could stay and what needed to go.
For some, this has extended to cutting back on even the most basic goods — such as milk.
“We do not buy sweets anymore and we’ve cut down on milk,” said Zeinab Gamal, a 28-year-old housewife.
Most recently, Egypt hiked fuel prices by 17.5 percent last month, marking the third increase just this year. Mounting pressures
The measures are among the conditions for an $8 billion IMF loan program, expanded this year from an initial $3 billion to address a severe economic crisis in the North African country.
“The lifestyle I grew up with has completely changed,” said Manar, a 38-year-old mother of two, who did not wish to give her full name.
She has taken on a part-time teaching job to increase her family’s income to 15,000 Egyptian pounds ($304), just so she can “afford luxuries like sports activities for their children.”
Her family has even trimmed their budget for meat, reducing their consumption from four times to “only two times per week.”
Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous country, is facing one of its worst economic crises ever.
Foreign debt quadrupled since 2015 to register $160.6 billion in the first quarter of 2024. Much of the debt is the result of financing for large-scale projects, including a new capital east of Cairo.
The war in Gaza has also worsened the country’s economic situation.
Repeated attacks on Red Sea shipping by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza have resulted in Egypt’s vital Suez Canal — a key source of foreign currency — losing over 70 percent of its revenue this year.
Amid growing public frustration, officials have recently signalled a potential re-evaluation of the IMF program.
“If these challenges will make us put unbearable pressure on public opinion, then the situation must be reviewed with the IMF,” President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said last month.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly also ruled out any new financial burdens on Egyptians “in the coming period,” without specifying a timeframe.
Economists, however, say the reforms are already taking a toll.
Wael Gamal, director of the social justice unit at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, said they led to “a significant erosion in people’s living conditions” as prices of medicine, services and transportation soared.
He believes the IMF program could be implemented “over a longer period and in a more gradual manner.” ’Bitter pill to swallow’
Egypt has been here before. In 2016, a three-year $12-billion loan program brought sweeping reforms, kicking off the first of a series of currency devaluations that have decimated the Egyptian pound’s value over the years.
Egypt’s poverty rate stood at 29.7 percent in 2020, down slightly from 32.5 percent the previous year in 2019, according to the latest statistics by the country’s CAPMAS agency.
But Gamal said the current IMF-backed reforms have had a “more intense” effect on people.
“Two years ago, we had no trouble affording basics,” said Manar.
“Now, I think twice before buying essentials like food and clothing,” she added.
Earlier this month, the IMF’s managing director Kristalina Georgieva touted the program’s long-term impact, saying Egyptians “will see the benefits of these reforms in a more dynamic, more prosperous Egyptian economy.”
Her remarks came as the IMF began a delayed review of its loan program, which could unlock $1.2 billion in new financing for Egypt.
Economist and capital market specialist Wael El-Nahas described the loan as a “bitter pill to swallow,” but called it “a crucial tool” forcing the government to make “systematic” decisions.
Still, many remain skeptical.
“The government’s promises have never proven true,” Manar said.
Egyptian expatriates send about $30 billion in remittances per year, a major source of foreign currency.
Manar relies on her brother abroad for essentials, including instant coffee which now costs 400 Egyptian pounds (about $8) per jar.
“All I can think about now is what we will do if there are more price increases in the future,” she said.
Iraq blast kills three security personnel: officials
Updated 17 November 2024
AFP
A blast from an explosive device on Sunday killed three members of Iraq’s security forces and wounded three others in the northern province of Salaheddin, officials said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in Tuz Khurmatu, which borders a province plagued by sporadic jihadist attacks.
Iraq declared victory over the Daesh group in late 2017, but its jihadists remain active in the country, particularly in rural areas.
Sunday’s blast killed an army regiment commander, another officer and a security service member, said Zulfiqar Al-Bayati, mayor of Tuz Khurmatu.
A security official confirmed the death toll to AFP, adding the victims had been in a vehicle when the explosion occurred.
Those killed were members of the Peshmerga forces of the autonomous northern region of Kurdistan, while the wounded were members from the Iraqi army.
The Iraqi defense ministry paid tribute to the three soldiers who “fell as martyrs... while carrying out their duty.”
The Daesh group overran large swathes of Iraq and neighboring Syria in 2014, proclaiming its “caliphate” and launching a reign of terror.
It was defeated in Iraq in 2017 by Iraqi forces backed by a US-led military coalition, and in 2019 lost the last territory it held in Syria to US-backed Kurdish forces.
A report by United Nations experts published in July estimated there were around 1,500 to 3,000 jihadists remaining in Iraq and Syria.
Gaza civil defense says 30 dead after Israeli air strike
The Gaza health ministry said 43,799 people have been confirmed dead since Oct. 7, 2023
Updated 17 November 2024
AFP
GAZA: Gaza’s civil defense agency said 30 people were killed on Sunday, including children, and dozens were missing after an Israeli air strike hit a building in the Palestinian territory’s north.
Israel’s army told AFP that it had conducted overnight strikes and hit “terrorist targets” in the area.
After the strike early Sunday, 30 bodies were pulled from the rubble of the five-story residential building in Beit Lahia, “including children and women,” civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP, updating a previous figure of 26.
Seven people were injured, Bassal added. Earlier on Sunday he said at least 59 people were missing.
“The chances of rescuing more wounded are decreasing because of the continuous shooting and artillery shelling,” Bassal said.
AFP images showed men covered in dust scrambling to reach people under the rubble, as some of the bodies were taken away on a donkey-pulled cart.
Other AFP images showed the flattened building with broken concrete and twisted metal sticking out from the ruins as more bodies covered in blankets lay nearby.
Vowing to stop Hamas militants from regrouping in already ravaged north Gaza, Israel on October 6 began a major air and ground assault that began in Jabalia and then expanded to Beit Lahia.
Israel’s army said there were “ongoing terrorist activities in the area of Beit Lahia,” adding: “Overnight, several strikes were conducted on terrorist targets in the area.”
“We emphasize that there have been continuous efforts to evacuate the civilian population from the active war zone in the area,” the ministry said in a statement.
Hamas, which runs the territory, accused Israel of committing a “massacre” which it said is “a continuation of the genocidal war and revenge against unarmed civilians.”
Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh condemned the United States, Israel’s biggest supporter, for “enabling this continued bloodshed.”
In a statement issued from Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, he also demanded that “the United States force Israel to stop its aggression and comply with international law.”
The Palestinian foreign ministry urged the international community to act to “immediately halt these atrocities.”
Earlier on Sunday, Gaza’s civil defense said other Israeli strikes killed at least 20 people, including four women and three children, across the war-torn territory.
Gaza’s health ministry on Sunday said the overall death toll in more than 13 months of war had reached 43,846.
The majority of the dead are civilians, according to ministry figures, which the United Nations considers reliable.
Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
