US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel

In this photograph released by the U.S. Navy, an F/A-18 Super Hornet prepares to launch off the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt July 5, 2024, in the South China Sea. (AP)
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In this photograph released by the U.S. Navy, an F/A-18 Super Hornet prepares to launch off the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt July 5, 2024, in the South China Sea. (AP)
US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel
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Workers carry a body returned by Israel to a cemetery in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024. (AP)
US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel
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People search for survivors and the bodies of victims through the rubble of buildings destroyed during Israeli bombardment, in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 26, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel
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Relatives of Palestinians killed when the al-Faqawi family home was hit during overnight Israeli bombardment, mourn over their bodies at the European hospital morgue in Khan Yunis on the southern Gaza Strip on March 5, 2024. (AFP)
US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel
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A Palestinian woman reacts while arriving to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital as casualties of Israeli bombardment on Deir el-Balah were rushed to the facility in the central Gaza Strip on August 6, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
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Updated 07 August 2024
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US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel

US sends ship-based Navy fighter jets to a base in the Middle East to help protect Israel

WASHINGTON: About a dozen F/A-18 fighter jets from the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier have flown to a military base in the Middle East, as part of the Pentagon’s effort to help defend Israel from possible attacks by Iran and its proxies and to safeguard US troops, according to a US official.
The F/A-18s and a E-2D Hawkeye surveillance aircraft took off from the carrier in the Gulf of Oman and arrived at the undisclosed base on Monday, said the official.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the increased military presence in the region as officials worry about escalating violence in the Middle East in the wake of the killings last week of a senior Hezbollah commander in Lebanon and Hamas’ top political leader in Iran, in suspected Israeli strikes. Both groups are backed by Iran.
The Navy jets’ land-based deployment is expected to be temporary, because a squadron of Air Force F-22 fighter jets is enroute to the same base from their home station in Alaska. The roughly dozen F-22s are expected to arrive in the Middle East in the coming days, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss troop movements.
It’s not clear how long all of the aircraft will remain together at the base, and that may depend on what — if anything — happens in the next few days.
The troop movements come as US officials released more details about the rocket attack that hit a military base in Iraq on Tuesday, injuring American personnel. Officials said five US service members and two contractors were hurt when two rockets hit the base.
The officials said five of those injured were being treated at the Al-Asad air base and two were evacuated, but all seven are in stable condition. They did not provide details on who was evacuated.
The rocket attack is the latest in what has been an uptick in strikes on US forces by Iranian-backed militias. It comes as tensions across the Middle East are spiking but is not believed to be connected to the Hezbollah and Hamas killings.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations.
In recent weeks, Iranian-backed Iraqi militias have resumed launching attacks on bases housing US forces in Iraq and Syria after a lull of several months, following a strike on a base in Jordan in late January that killed three American soldiers and prompted a series of retaliatory US strikes.
Between October and January, an umbrella group calling itself the Islamic Resistance in Iraq had regularly claimed attacks that it said were in retaliation for Washington’s support of Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza and were aimed at pushing US troops out of the region.

 


Hamas says Israel’s Netanyahu trying to ‘thwart’ Gaza truce

Hamas says Israel’s Netanyahu trying to ‘thwart’ Gaza truce
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Hamas says Israel’s Netanyahu trying to ‘thwart’ Gaza truce

Hamas says Israel’s Netanyahu trying to ‘thwart’ Gaza truce
  • Israeli premier says the Palestinian militant group has ‘rejected everything’ in negotiations
  • Netanyahu maintains that Israel must retain control over the Philadelphi Corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border

JERUSALEM: Hamas on Thursday accused Benjamin Netanyahu of trying to “thwart” a Gaza truce deal, after the Israeli premier said the Palestinian militant group has “rejected everything” in negotiations.

The blame trading comes as Netanyahu faces pressure to seal a deal that would free remaining hostages, after Israeli authorities announced on Sunday the deaths of six whose bodies were recovered from a Gaza tunnel.

“We’re trying to find some area to begin the negotiations,” Netanyahu said Wednesday.

“They (Hamas) refuse to do that... (They said) there’s nothing to talk about.”

Netanyahu maintains that Israel must retain control over the Philadelphi Corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border to prevent weapons smuggling to Hamas, whose October 7 attack on Israel started the war.

Hamas is demanding a complete Israeli withdrawal from the area and on Thursday said Netanyahu’s insistence on the border zone “aims to thwart reaching an agreement.”

The Palestinian militant group says a new deal is unnecessary because they agreed months ago to a truce outlined by US President Joe Biden.

“We do not need new proposals,” the group said on Telegram.

“We warn against falling into the trap of Netanyahu and his tricks, who uses negotiations to prolong the aggression against our people,” the Hamas statement added.

US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that Washington thinks “there are ways to address” the impasse.

At Israeli protests in several cities this week, Netanyahu’s critics have blamed him for hostages’ deaths, saying he has refused to make necessary concessions for striking a ceasefire deal.

“We are just waiting for them to come back to us, to come back alive and not in coffins,” said Anet Kidron, whose community of Kibbutz Beeri was attacked on October 7.

Netanyahu said questions remain in truce talks over the Palestinian prisoners who Israel would exchange for hostages.

Key mediator Qatar said on Tuesday that Israel’s approach was “based on an attempt to falsify facts and mislead world public opinion by repeating lies.”

Such moves “will ultimately lead to the demise of peace efforts,” Qatar’s foreign ministry said.

The October 7 attack by Hamas resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians including some hostages killed in captivity, according to official Israeli figures.

Of 251 hostages seized by Palestinian militants during the attack, 97 remain in Gaza including 33 the Israeli military says are dead. Scores were released during a one-week truce in November.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has so far killed at least 40,861 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

Most of the dead are women and children, according to the UN rights office.

While Israel presses on with its Gaza offensive, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the military should use its “full strength” against Palestinian militants in the occupied West Bank.

“These terrorist organizations that have various names, whether in Nur Al-Shams, Tulkarem, Faraa or Jenin, must be wiped out,” he said, referring to cities and refugee camps where an Israeli military operation is currently underway.

The Israeli military said Thursday its aircraft “conducted three targeted strikes on armed terrorists” in the Tubas area, which includes Faraa refugee camp.

A strike on a car left “five killed and (one) seriously wounded” in Tubas, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said.

Eyewitnesses told AFP they saw a large number of Israeli troops storming Faraa camp, where explosions were heard.

Israel has killed more than 30 Palestinians across the northern West Bank since its assault started there on August 28, the territory’s health ministry says, including children and militants.

One Israeli soldier was killed in Jenin, where the majority of the Palestinian fatalities have been.

“Panic spread as the army was blowing up everything around without taking into consideration that there were children,” Hanan Natour, a resident of Jenin refugee camp, told AFP on Wednesday.

Israeli troops have destroyed infrastructure in Jenin and elsewhere in the West Bank, with the United Nations reporting the military restricting hospital access and using “war-like tactics.”

Israel’s bombardment of Gaza has left the territory in ruins, with the destruction of water and sanitation infrastructure blamed for the spread of disease.

As part of its campaign, the military has razed neighborhoods and farms to expand a so-called buffer zone between Israel and Gaza.

Amnesty International said Thursday the policy “should be investigated as war crimes of wanton destruction and of collective punishment,” an accusation the military did not comment on when contacted by AFP.

The humanitarian crisis has led to Gaza’s first polio case in 25 years, prompting a massive vaccination effort launched Sunday with localized “humanitarian pauses” in fighting.

Nearly 200,000 children in central Gaza have received a first dose, the World Health Organization said, with a second stage set to get underway Thursday in the south before medics move north.

The campaign aims to fully vaccinate more than 640,000 children, with second doses due in about four weeks.


Palestinian medics report 5 killed as Israel raids West Bank’s Tubas

Palestinian medics report 5 killed as Israel raids West Bank’s Tubas
Updated 05 September 2024
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Palestinian medics report 5 killed as Israel raids West Bank’s Tubas

Palestinian medics report 5 killed as Israel raids West Bank’s Tubas

JERUSALEM: Palestinian medics reported Thursday that five people were killed in a strike targeting a car in the occupied West Bank area of Tubas, as the Israeli military said it carried out raids.
“Five killed and (one) seriously wounded in a strike (on) a car in Tubas,” the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said in a statement.
The Israeli military said its aircraft “conducted three targeted strikes on armed terrorists” in the Tubas area.
A large number of Israeli troops stormed the Faraa refugee camp in Tubas governorate, where explosions were heard, eyewitnesses told AFP.
Israel launched a massive offensive across the northern West Bank on August 28, fighting Palestinian militants and leaving widespread destruction.
Israel has killed more than 30 Palestinians in the assault, the territory’s health ministry says, including children and militants.
One Israeli soldier was killed in Jenin, where the majority of the Palestinian fatalities have taken place.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967 and the military has ramped up its deadly raids in the territory since its war in Gaza against Hamas militants erupted on Oct. 7.


Amnesty urges war crimes probe over Israel levelling east Gaza

Amnesty urges war crimes probe over Israel levelling east Gaza
Updated 05 September 2024
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Amnesty urges war crimes probe over Israel levelling east Gaza

Amnesty urges war crimes probe over Israel levelling east Gaza
  • The London-based rights group said the levelling since the start of the war on October 7 “should be investigated as war crimes of wanton destruction and of collective punishment”

PARIS: Amnesty International Thursday urged a war crimes probe into Israel razing homes and farms in eastern Gaza to expand a so-called buffer zone between it and the Palestinian territory.
“Using bulldozers and manually laid explosives, the Israeli military has unlawfully destroyed agricultural land and civilian buildings, razing entire neighborhoods, including homes, schools and mosques,” it said.
The London-based rights group said the levelling since the start of the war on October 7 “should be investigated as war crimes of wanton destruction and of collective punishment.”
Israel has in several cases said it was destroying “terror” infrastructure to protect Israeli communities living on the other side of the fence. It did not reply to a request from Amnesty for comment.
An Amnesty investigation, which examined satellite imagery and videos posted by Israeli soldiers between October and May, showed “newly cleared land along Gaza’s eastern boundary, ranging from approximately 1 to 1.8 km (0.6 to 1.1 miles) wide,” the group said.
The expanded buffer zone covers around 58 square kilometers (22 square miles), or about 16 percent of the Gaza Strip, it said.
More than 90 percent of buildings within that zone appeared to have been destroyed or severely damaged, it said.
More than half of the agricultural land in the area showed “a decline in health and intensity of crops due to the ongoing conflict,” it added.
“Our analysis reveals a pattern along the eastern perimeter of Gaza that is consistent with the systematic destruction of the entire area,” said Amnesty’s Erika Guevara-Rosas.
“The homes were not destroyed as the result of intense fighting. Rather, the Israeli military deliberately razed the land after they had taken control of the area,” she added.
“Israeli measures to protect Israelis from attacks from Gaza must be carried out in conformity with its obligations under international law including the prohibition of wanton destruction and of collective punishment.”
Palestinian armed group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians and including hostages killed in captivity, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.
Of 251 hostages seized by Palestinian militants during the attack, 97 remain in Gaza including 33 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign against Hamas has killed more than 40,800 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The UN rights office says most of the dead are women and children.


WHO hails success of polio first phase vaccination campaign in Gaza

WHO hails success of polio first phase vaccination campaign in Gaza
Updated 05 September 2024
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WHO hails success of polio first phase vaccination campaign in Gaza

WHO hails success of polio first phase vaccination campaign in Gaza
  • The campaign aims to fully vaccinate more than 640,000 children in the besieged territory, devastated by almost 11 months of war

GENEVA: The first phase of a large-scale polio vaccination campaign in Gaza has concluded successfully, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, providing nearly 200,000 children in the center of the Palestinian territory with their initial dose.
With Gaza lying in ruins and the majority of its 2.4 million residents forced to flee their homes due to Israel’s military assault — often taking refuge in cramped and unsanitary conditions — disease has spread.
After the first confirmed polio case in 25 years, a massive vaccination effort began on Sunday, aided by localized “humanitarian pauses” in fighting.
The campaign aims to fully vaccinate more than 640,000 children in the besieged territory, devastated by almost 11 months of war.
During the first phase of the campaign, conducted between September 1 and 3 in central Gaza, more than 187,000 children under the age of 10 were reached, the WHO said in a statement.
“We are grateful for the dedication of all the families, health workers and vaccinators who made this part of the campaign a success despite the dire conditions in the Gaza Strip,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X, formerly Twitter.
“We ask for the humanitarian pauses to continue to be respected. We continue to call for a ceasefire.”
The WHO had estimated that vaccines would be needed for nearly 157,000 children below the age of 10 in central Gaza, but acknowledged that that was an underestimate.
This it said was “due to population movement toward central Gaza, and expanded coverage in areas outside the humanitarian pause zone.”
More than 500 teams, consisting of nearly 2,200 health and community outreach workers, took part in the campaign in central Gaza, with vaccinations provided at 143 fixed sites across the area.
In addition, mobile teams visited tents and hard-to-reach areas, including those outside the agreed humanitarian pause zone.
While the large-scale campaign in central Gaza is over, the WHO said that vaccinations would continue at four large health facilities there over the next few days “to ensure no child is missed in the area.”
The main focus is meanwhile set to move to southern Gaza, where an estimated 340,000 children over the next four days will receive their first dose.
And finally, the campaign will be concentrated in northern Gaza between September 9 and 11, targeting around 150,000 children, the WHO said.
A fresh campaign to provide a needed second dose is due to begin in about four weeks time.
The WHO has stressed that it is vital to reach at least 90 percent coverage to avoid the spread of the disease both within Gaza’s borders and beyond.
“We want to ensure... there will be no other Gaza children who actually will suffer from polio,” Rik Peeperkorn, the WHO’s representative for the Palestinian territories, told reporters on Wednesday.
“But we also want to make sure that we prevent the spread from polio to neighboring countries.”
The October 7 Hamas attack that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians and including hostages killed in captivity, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.
Israel’s campaign against Hamas since October 7 has killed at least 40,861 people in Gaza, according to the territory’s health ministry. The UN rights office says most of the dead are women and children.


12 Syrian soldiers killed in suicide attacks: war monitor

12 Syrian soldiers killed in suicide attacks: war monitor
Updated 05 September 2024
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12 Syrian soldiers killed in suicide attacks: war monitor

12 Syrian soldiers killed in suicide attacks: war monitor
  • The death toll is the “highest among the regime forces in the region since last September,” according to the observatory

BEIRUT, Lebanon: Twelve Syrian soldiers were killed on Wednesday by an Al-Qaeda linked group in northwest Syria, according to a war monitoring organization, the highest such death toll in the region this year.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said “12 members of the regime forces, including an officer, were killed following suicide attacks carried out by special forces from the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group (HTS), targeting regime forces positions in the north of Latakia province” adjacent to Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in the northwest.
The death toll is the “highest among the regime forces in the region since last September,” according to the observatory.
Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Observatory, told AFP that the attack was part of “an escalation by HTS since Monday, which included attacks on regime forces on several fronts.”
The Idlib region is subject to a ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkiye after a regime offensive in March 2020. Despite being repeatedly violated, the ceasefire is still largely holding.
HTS controls swathes of Idlib province and parts of neighboring Aleppo, Hama and Latakia.
More than five million people, most of them displaced, live in areas outside government control in the Idlib region.
HTS, considered a terrorist organization by Damascus, the United States and the European Union, regularly clashes with Syrian and allied Russian forces.
It is the main rebel organization active in northwest Syria, but there are other groups, some backed by Turkiye.
Syria’s war broke out after President Bashar Assad repressed anti-government protests in 2011, and has killed more than 500,000 people, displaced millions and battered the country’s infrastructure and industry.