Israel’s Netanyahu discusses ‘Iranian threat’ with Trump

Israel’s Netanyahu discusses ‘Iranian threat’ with Trump
Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a meeting in Jerusalem in 2017. (AP)
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Updated 06 November 2024
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Israel’s Netanyahu discusses ‘Iranian threat’ with Trump

Israel’s Netanyahu discusses ‘Iranian threat’ with Trump
  • Trump and Netanyahu agreed to work together for Israel’s security

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the “Iranian threat” in a call with US president-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday as the wars in Gaza and Lebanon show no sign of easing.
Netanyahu’s office said in a statement the Israeli premier “congratulated Trump on his election victory, and the two agreed to work together for Israel’s security.
“The two also discussed the Iranian threat,” it added.
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, said Wednesday tens of thousands of its militants were ready to fight Israel, adding that the US election result would have no bearing on the war in Lebanon.
Its leader warned that nowhere in Israel would be “off-limits” to attacks, as the Israeli military said about 120 projectiles were fired across the border on Wednesday.
Israel’s military also said a missile was fired into southern Israel from central Gaza, where it has battled the Tehran-backed Hamas group since Palestinian militants launched a deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Hezbollah’s main bastion of south Beirut came under Israeli air attack after a warning to evacuate.
Israel and Hezbollah have been at war since late September, when the Israeli military widened the focus of its Gaza war to securing its northern border with Lebanon.
Hezbollah began low-intensity cross-border attacks on Israel last year, in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas after the October 7 attack.
Efforts to end the war in Gaza sparked by the Hamas attack have yet to bear fruit, and the war in Lebanon has killed at least 3,050 people since October 2023, the health ministry said Wednesday.
In a televised speech marking 40 days since his predecessor Hassan Nasrallah was killed in a strike, new Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said: “We have tens of thousands of trained resistance combatants” ready to fight.
His address aired after Trump’s victory was announced, but had been recorded earlier.
Qassem said whoever won the election would have no impact on any possible ceasefire deal for Lebanon.
“What will stop this... war is the battlefield” he said, citing fighting in south Lebanon and Hezbollah attacks on Israel.
Hezbollah announced Wednesday it had Iran-made Fatah 110 missiles, a weapon with a 300-kilometer range that military expert Riad Kahwaji described as the group’s “most accurate.”
It also said it targeted a naval base near the Haifa in Israel with drones and missiles, the fourth attack on the base in as many weeks.
Earlier, Hezbollah said it targeted a military base near Israel’s main airport close to commercial hub Tel Aviv, but Israel’s Airports Authority said operations were not disrupted.


Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported Israeli air strikes on the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon and the southern city of Nabatiyeh.
An AFP correspondent in the eastern city of Baalbek reported intense strikes in and around the city.
Israel is “betting on prolonging the war so it becomes a war of attrition... We are ready,” Qassem said in his second speech since being named Hezbollah secretary-general last week.
He also called for Lebanese sovereignty to be safeguarded in any truce talks.
Qassem demanded explanations from the Lebanese army after Israeli commandos seized a man from north Lebanon on Saturday who they said was a senior Hezbollah operative.
He said the operation was “a great offense to Lebanon” and a “violation” of its sovereignty.
On Tuesday, a Lebanese judicial official told AFP Israeli commandos used a speedboat equipped with advanced devices capable of jamming UN peacekeepers’ radar in the operation, according to a preliminary probe.
The UN Maritime Task Force has helped Lebanon’s military to monitor territorial waters and prevent the entry of arms or related material by sea since 2006, according to the mission’s website.


In Gaza, where the 13-month war has had a devastating impact, people were desperate for a solution and voiced the hope Trump might offer one.
Hamas’s October 7 attack resulted in 1,206 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed 43,391 people in Gaza, a majority of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry the United Nations considers reliable.
“We were displaced, killed... there’s nothing left for us, we want peace,” said 60-year-old Mamdouh Al-Jadba, who was displaced to Gaza City from Jabalia.
“I hope Trump finds a solution, we need someone strong like Trump to end the war and save us...”
Netanyahu earlier feted Trump’s “huge victory” as “history’s greatest comeback.”
The United States is Israel’s top ally and military backer, and the election came at a critical time for the Middle East.
While maintaining the steady flow of aid to Israel, US President Joe Biden’s administration had for months piled pressure on Netanyahu to agree to a truce.
Analysts say Netanyahu wanted a Trump return, given their longstanding personal friendship and the American’s hawkishness on Israel’s arch-foe Iran.


UN to vote again on Gaza ceasefire, US plans unclear

UN to vote again on Gaza ceasefire, US plans unclear
Updated 3 sec ago
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UN to vote again on Gaza ceasefire, US plans unclear

UN to vote again on Gaza ceasefire, US plans unclear
  • The few resolutions that the United States did allow to pass by abstaining stopped short of calling for an unconditional and permanent ceasefire
  • The latest draft of the resolution demands “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” in the war between Israel and Hamas
United Nations: The UN Security Council is expected to vote Wednesday on another draft resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza in its latest attempt to exert pressure to end the war.
But the draft could be blocked by the United States, Israel’s main ally.
The latest draft of the resolution demands “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” in the war between Israel and Hamas and “the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.”
The wording has angered Israel and raised fears of a US veto.
Israeli ambassador to the UN Danny Danon has called the text “shameful,” adding: “We cannot allow the UN to tie the hands of the State of Israel from protecting its citizens, and we will not stop fighting until we return all the kidnapped men and women home.”
“For us, it has to be a linkage between a ceasefire and the release of hostages,” said Robert Wood, the deputy US ambassador. “It has been our principle position from the beginning and it still remains.”
The war was triggered by Palestinian group Hamas’s assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, a stunning cross-border raid that resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said the death toll from the resulting war had reached 43,972 people, the majority civilians. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
Of 251 hostages seized during the October 7 attack, 97 remain in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Almost all of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced by the war, which has caused a humanitarian catastrophe.
Since the beginning of the war, the Security Council has struggled to speak with one voice, as the United States used its veto power several times, although Russia and China have as well.
The few resolutions that the United States did allow to pass by abstaining stopped short of calling for an unconditional and permanent ceasefire.
In March, the council called for a temporary ceasefire during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, but this appeal was ignored by the warring parties.
In June, the council pledged support for a multi-stage US ceasefire and hostage release plan that went nowhere.
Some diplomats have expressed hope that following Donald Trump’s election win on November 5, President Joe Biden might be more flexible in the few weeks he has left in power.
They imagined a possible repeat of events in December 2016 when then-president Barack Obama was finishing his second term and the council passed a resolution calling for a halt to Israeli settlement building in the occupied territories, a first since 1979.
The United States refrained from using its veto in this case, a break from traditional US support for Israel on the sensitive issue of settlements.
The draft being voted on Wednesday also calls for “safe and unhindered entry of humanitarian assistance at scale,” including in besieged northern Gaza, and denounces any attempt to starve the Palestinians.
The Palestinian delegation at the UN has suggested this text does not go far enough.
“Gaza’s fate will haunt the world for generations to come,” ambassador Riyad Mansour warned.
He said the only course of action for the council is to call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire under Chapter 7 of the UN charter.
That chapter allows the council to take steps to enforce its resolutions, such as sanctions, but the latest text makes no reference to this option.

Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed

Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed
Updated 20 November 2024
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Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed

Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed
  • During Oct. 7, 2023 attack which triggered war in Gaza, Hamas took 251 hostages
  • Of those, 97 are still held in Gaza, including 34 who have been confirmed dead

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel was offering a reward of $5 million to anybody who brings out a hostage held in Gaza.
“Anybody who brings out a hostage will find with us a secure way for them and their family to leave” Gaza, Netanyahu said in a video filmed inside the Palestinian territory, according to his office.
“We will also give them a reward of $5 million for each hostage.”
Wearing a helmet and a bullet-proof jacket, Netanyahu spoke with his back to the Mediterranean in the Netzarim Corridor, Israel’s main military supply route which carves the Gaza Strip in two just south of Gaza City.
“Anyone who dares to do harm to our hostages is considered dead — we will pursue you and we will catch up with you,” he said.
Accompanied by Defense Minister Israel Katz, Netanyahu underlined that one of Israel’s war aims remained that “Hamas does not rule in Gaza.”
“We are also making efforts to locate the hostages and bring them home. We won’t give up. We will continue until we’ve found them all, alive or dead.”
During Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack which triggered the war in Gaza, militants took 251 hostages. Of those, 97 are still held in Gaza, including 34 who have been confirmed dead.


Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed

Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed
Updated 20 November 2024
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Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed

Netanyahu says Israel offering $5 mn reward for each Gaza hostage freed
  • “Anybody who brings out a hostage will find with us a secure way for them and their family to leave” Gaza, Netanyahu says

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel was offering a reward of $5 million to anybody who brings out a hostage held in Gaza.
“Anybody who brings out a hostage will find with us a secure way for them and their family to leave” Gaza, Netanyahu said in a video filmed inside the Palestinian territory, according to his office.
“We will also give them a reward of $5 million for each hostage.”
Wearing a helmet and a bullet-proof jacket, Netanyahu spoke with his back to the Mediterranean in the Netzarim Corridor, Israel’s main military supply route which carves the Gaza Strip in two just south of Gaza City.
“Anyone who dares to do harm to our hostages is considered dead — we will pursue you and we will catch up with you,” he said.
Accompanied by Defense Minister Israel Katz, Netanyahu underlined that one of Israel’s war aims remained that “Hamas does not rule in Gaza.”
“We are also making efforts to locate the hostages and bring them home. We won’t give up. We will continue until we’ve found them all, alive or dead.”
During Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack which triggered the war in Gaza, militants took 251 hostages. Of those, 97 are still held in Gaza, including 34 who have been confirmed dead.


Turkiye’s Erdogan says Israel’s Herzog was denied airspace en route to Azerbaijan

Turkiye’s Erdogan says Israel’s Herzog was denied airspace en route to Azerbaijan
Updated 20 November 2024
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Turkiye’s Erdogan says Israel’s Herzog was denied airspace en route to Azerbaijan

Turkiye’s Erdogan says Israel’s Herzog was denied airspace en route to Azerbaijan
  • “In light of the situation assessment and for security reasons, the President of the State has decided to cancel his trip to the Climate Conference in Azerbaijan,” the Israeli presidency said

ANKARA: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkiye refused to allow Israeli President Isaac Herzog to use its airspace to attend the COP climate summit in Azerbaijan, highlighting Ankara’s stance amid tensions with Israel.
“We did not allow the Israeli president to use our airspace to attend the COP summit. We suggested alternative routes and other options,” Erdogan told reporters at the G20 Summit in Brazil.
Herzog ended up canceling the visit.
“In light of the situation assessment and for security reasons, the President of the State has decided to cancel his trip to the Climate Conference in Azerbaijan,” the Israeli presidency said. Israel launched a devastating war against Hamas in Gaza a year ago after the Palestinian Islamist group’s deadly cross-border attack.
Turkiye withdrew its ambassador in Israel for consultations after the Gaza war broke out, but has not officially severed its ties with Israel and its embassy remains open and operational.
“But whether he was able to go or not, I honestly don’t know,” Erdogan said on Herzog’s visit to Baku.
“On certain matters, as Turkiye, we are compelled to take a stand, and we will continue to do so,” he said.

 


Hospital chief decries ‘extreme catastrophe’ in north Gaza

Hospital chief decries ‘extreme catastrophe’ in north Gaza
Updated 19 November 2024
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Hospital chief decries ‘extreme catastrophe’ in north Gaza

Hospital chief decries ‘extreme catastrophe’ in north Gaza
  • Kamal Adwan Hospital director Hossam Abu Safiyeh told AFP by phone: “The situation in northern Gaza is that of an extreme catastrophe

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: The World Health Organization expressed grave concern on Tuesday for hospitals still partly operating in war-stricken northern Gaza, where one hospital director described the situation as an “extreme catastrophe.”
“We are very, very concerned, and it’s getting harder and harder to get the aid in. It’s getting harder and harder to get the specialist personnel in at a time when there is greater and greater need,” WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris told journalists in Geneva.
She said the organization was “particularly concerned about Kamal Adwan Hospital” in Beit Lahia, where Israeli forces launched an offensive against Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups last month.
Kamal Adwan Hospital director Hossam Abu Safiyeh told AFP by phone: “The situation in northern Gaza is that of an extreme catastrophe.
“We’re beginning to lose patients because we lack medical supplies and personnel,” he said.
Abu Safiyeh added that his hospital had been “targeted many times by the occupation forces, most recently” on Monday.
“A large number of children and elderly people continue to arrive suffering from malnutrition,” the doctor said.
He accused Israel of “blocking the entry of food, water, medical staff and materials destined for the north” of the Gaza Strip.
The WHO’s Harris estimated that between November 8 and 16, “four WHO missions we were trying to get up to go were denied.”
“There’s a lack of food and drinking water, shortage of medical supplies. There’s really only enough for two weeks at the very best,” she said.
A statement from COGAT, the Israeli defense ministry body responsible for civil affairs in the Palestinian territories, said Tuesday: “COGAT-led humanitarian efforts in the medical field continue.”
It said that on Monday, “1,000 blood units were transferred” to Al-Sahaba hospital in Gaza City, outside the area where Israel’s military operations are taking place.
In its latest update on the situation in northern Gaza, the UN humanitarian office OCHA said Tuesday that “access to the Kamal Adwan, Al Awda and Indonesian hospitals remains severely restricted amid severe shortages of medical supplies, fuel and blood units.”