Biden envoy in Israel as northern border tensions flare

US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein. (AFP)
US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein. (AFP)
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Updated 17 June 2024
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Biden envoy in Israel as northern border tensions flare

US Senior Advisor for Energy Security Amos Hochstein. (AFP)
  • Hochstein also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, with whom he discussed “the relentless attacks and rocket fire from Hezbollah

JERUSALEM: A US envoy was in Israel to press for deescalation with Lebanon, as an Israeli official said Hezbollah had fired more than 5,000 projectiles across the border since the start of the Gaza war.
Israel and Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, have traded near-daily cross-border fire since the Palestinian group’s October 7 attack on Israel which triggered war in the Gaza Strip.
US Presidential Special Envoy Amos Hochstein met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his team in Jerusalem days after Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on a Middle East tour that a Gaza ceasefire was the best way to resolve the Hezbollah-Israel violence.
“I can confirm that (US President Joe) Biden’s envoy... met with our prime minister,” Israeli government spokesman David Mencer told a press briefing.
It came as Mencer said Hezbollah has fired over 5,000 rockets, anti-tank missiles and explosive UAVs at Israeli territory since hostilities started.
“We are defending against Hezbollah aggression. There is no territorial dispute between Lebanon and Israel,” Mencer said.
Hochstein also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, with whom he discussed “the relentless attacks and rocket fire from Hezbollah, instigated by Iran, toward Israel’s northern towns and cities,” according to a statement from the presidential office.
Hezbollah says it has carried out more than 2,100 military operations against Israel since October 8, the day after Hamas’s attack, according to a statement released by the militant group last week.
Hezbollah escalated attacks last week after its leading commander Taleb Abdallah was killed in an Israeli strike in the village of Jouaiyya on Tuesday. The Israeli army described him as “one of Hezbollah’s most senior commanders in southern Lebanon.”
That prompted the Iran-backed Lebanese movement to launch targeted strikes on several Israeli army bases, it said.
Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari on Sunday warned that “Hezbollah’s increasing aggression is bringing us to the brink of what could be a wider escalation — one that could have devastating consequences for Lebanon and the entire region.”
The United Nations has expressed concern about the recent escalation on the Israel-Lebanon border and warned of the danger of miscalculation causing a wider escalation.


Palestinian Authority says Israel fired on diplomats visiting West Bank

Palestinian Authority says Israel fired on diplomats visiting West Bank
Updated 36 sec ago
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Palestinian Authority says Israel fired on diplomats visiting West Bank

Palestinian Authority says Israel fired on diplomats visiting West Bank
RAMALLAH: The Palestinian Authority accused Israeli forces of firing on diplomats as they visited the flashpoint West Bank city of Jenin on Wednesday, releasing video of two soldiers aiming rifles at a group of people.
It condemned “the heinous crime committed by the Israeli occupation forces, which deliberately targeted by live fire an accredited diplomatic delegation to the State of Palestine during a field visit to Jenin Governorate.” A diplomat present during the visit confirmed to AFP he had heard “repeated shots” coming from inside Jenin refugee camp. An Israeli army spokesperson said: “I am looking into it.”

EU review of Israel ties ‘devastatingly late’: Amnesty

EU review of Israel ties ‘devastatingly late’: Amnesty
Updated 26 min 51 sec ago
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EU review of Israel ties ‘devastatingly late’: Amnesty

EU review of Israel ties ‘devastatingly late’: Amnesty
  • Association agreement to be examined over Gaza concerns
  • ‘Emboldened by EU inaction — and even backed by some EU states — Israeli leaders have flaunted their genocidal aims’

LONDON: The EU’s decision to review trade and cooperation with Israel in light of concerns over the Gaza war is “devastatingly late,” Amnesty International has said.

On Tuesday, the European Commission agreed to conduct a review into Israel’s potential violation of Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. The article mandates respect for human rights and democratic principles from both parties.

Seventeen EU member states raised objections to Israel’s conduct in Gaza and demanded the review.

Eve Geddie, director of Amnesty’s European Institutions Office, said: “While this is a welcome first step, it also comes devastatingly late. The extent of human suffering in Gaza for the past 19 months has been unimaginable. Israel is committing genocide in Gaza with chilling impunity.”

The NGO has long called for a review of the EU’s association agreement with Israel. It has cited Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territory as a key violation of the agreement.

Israel’s conduct in Gaza has only strengthened calls for a review into European trade with the country.

“Emboldened by EU inaction — and even backed by some EU states — Israeli leaders have flaunted their genocidal aims,” Geddie said.

“The EU’s unofficial policy of appeasement towards Israel is contrary to its member states’ obligations and will forever be judged in the annals of history.”

Geddie warned that any delay in European action would “cost human lives in Gaza.” She called for the EU to immediately suspend all trade linked to Israel’s settlement industry, which has expanded significantly amid the war in Gaza.

“The stakes are too high. If the EU fails to live up to these obligations as a bloc, and seeks to shield itself from its clear legal obligations, its member states must unilaterally suspend all forms of cooperation that may contribute to violations of international law,” Geddie said.

After the EU agreed to probe ties with Israel, Amnesty said it would now focus on pushing for a “meaningful review which takes evidence and international standards into account.”


US to appoint Thomas Barrack as special envoy for Syria, sources say

US to appoint Thomas Barrack as special envoy for Syria, sources say
Updated 21 May 2025
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US to appoint Thomas Barrack as special envoy for Syria, sources say

US to appoint Thomas Barrack as special envoy for Syria, sources say

DAMASCUS/ISTANBUL: The United States will appoint President Donald Trump’s longtime friend and current US ambassador to Turkiye, Thomas Barrack, as a special envoy for Syria, a person with direct knowledge of the matter and a diplomat in Turkiye said.
The decision follows Trump’s landmark announcement last week that US sanctions on Syria would be lifted. It also suggests US acknowledgement that Turkiye has emerged with key regional influence on Damascus since Syrian strongman Bashar Assad’s ouster by rebels in December, ending 14 years of civil war.
Asked for comment, a US State Department spokesperson said: “There is no announcement at this time.”
Speaking to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Rubio said he was allowing Turkish embassy staff, including Barrack, to work with local officials in Syria to understand what kind of aid they need.
“We want to help that government succeed, because the alternative is full-scale civil war and chaos, which would, of course, destabilize the entire region,” Rubio said.
A US-Turkish meeting focused on Syria took place in Washington on Tuesday with Barrack in attendance, according to Turkiye’s foreign ministry, which said sanctions relief and efforts to counter terrorism had been discussed.
The US had sought a step-for-step approach to Syria sanctions relief until Trump’s announcement that he was ordering “the cessation of sanctions,” which he said aimed to give Syria a chance to recover from devastating war. He said he made the decision after discussions with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.
Trump also met with Syria’s interim president Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia on May 14 and urged him to normalize ties with longtime foe Israel following his surprise sanctions announcement.
Removing US sanctions that cut Syria off from the global financial system would clear the way for greater engagement by humanitarian organizations working in Syria, and ease foreign investment and trade as the country looks to rebuild.


South Sudan’s President Kiir promotes sanctioned ally as ruling party deputy

South Sudan’s President Kiir promotes sanctioned ally as ruling party deputy
Updated 21 May 2025
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South Sudan’s President Kiir promotes sanctioned ally as ruling party deputy

South Sudan’s President Kiir promotes sanctioned ally as ruling party deputy
  • The reshuffle follows months of political uncertainty in which authorities placed Kiir’s longtime rival First Vice President Riek Machar under house arrest

NAIROBI: South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has reshuffled the senior leadership in the ruling party, according to an official decree, as the country faces fresh fighting between rival armed factions and widespread speculation about Kiir’s succession plans.
Kiir, 73, promoted sanctioned ally Second Vice President Benjamin Bol Mel as his SPLM party’s deputy chairperson, according to a decree read on the state broadcaster on Tuesday night, weeks after the United Nations said the country was on the brink of civil war.
Seen widely by political analysts as Kiir’s chosen successor, Bol Mel was sanctioned by the United States in 2017 over suspicions his construction company received preferential treatment in the awarding of government contracts.
If Kiir stepped down, Bol Mel’s new role as the SPLM party’s deputy chairperson would make him acting president of the country.
The reshuffle follows months of political uncertainty in which authorities placed Kiir’s longtime rival First Vice President Riek Machar under house arrest, accusing him of trying to stir a rebellion.
Machar’s opposition party denied the charges, and said the move effectively voided a 2018 peace deal that ended a five-year civil war between Kiir’s Dinka forces and Nuer fighters loyal to Machar.
Western countries, including the United States, Britain and Germany closed embassies or cut back operations in South Sudan.
Tuesday night’s ruling party shake-up saw Kiir demote three veterans of South Sudan’s liberation struggle, including former Second Vice President James Wani Igga, according to the decree read on state television on Tuesday night.


Muslim World League backs UK, France, Canada statement on Gaza, West Bank

Muslim World League backs UK, France, Canada statement on Gaza, West Bank
Updated 21 May 2025
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Muslim World League backs UK, France, Canada statement on Gaza, West Bank

Muslim World League backs UK, France, Canada statement on Gaza, West Bank
  • MWL urges international community to act, force Israel to comply with international law, hold perpetrators accountable

DUBAI: The Muslim World League on Wednesday welcomed the joint statement issued by the UK, France and Canada regarding Israel’s war on Gaza and the West Bank.

The statement warned of concrete measures, including targeted sanctions, should the Israeli occupation government fail to halt its military operations, stop settlement expansion, and lift restrictions on humanitarian aid.

The MWL’s Secretary-General Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, who is also chairman of the Muslim Scholars Association, praised the joint stance.

In a statement, Al-Issa described it as “an important and just step in the right direction for the Palestinian people, whose suffering has been prolonged under the killing and destruction machine of the Israeli occupation government.”

He urged the international community to fulfill its legal and moral responsibilities by increasing pressure to end the ongoing violations, and for the perpetrators to be held accountable.

Al-Issa said the Israeli government should be compelled to immediately comply with UN resolutions and international humanitarian law.