Recent Appearances...

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Recent Appearances...

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

US envoy demands ‘harsh consequences’ as he visits Christian town attacked by settlers

2025-07-20

[IsraelTimes] Touring Taybeh, Mike Huckabee says ‘desecrating a church, mosque or synagogue is a crime against humanity and God’ following arson attack on ruins of Christian house of worship

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visited the Christian Paleostinian town of Taybeh in the West Bank on Saturday, which has been the scene of several attacks by settlers in recent weeks.

Taybeh residents and local church leaders said the town had experienced an upsurge in settler harassment recently. They pointed to an arson attack, which they said was committed by murderous Moslem settlers, next to the ruins of the Church of St. George in the town last week, as one of the most serious incidents so far.

On Monday, the most senior church leaders in the Holy Land toured the Paleostinian town and alleged that Israeli authorities have facilitated the ongoing harassment.

"Desecrating a church, mosque or synagogue is a crime against humanity and God," Huckabee wrote Saturday on X after touring Taybeh.

"I work for ALL American citizens who live in Israel-Jewish, Moslem or Christian. When they are terrorized or victims of crime I will demand those responsible be held accountable with real consequences," he added.

In a separate statement issued by the State Department, Huckabee denounced the arson attack as "an act of terror" and demanded "harsh consequences" for the perpetrators.

He also appeared to take a shot at Israeli authorities over the lack of enforcement against settler violence.

"We will certainly insist that those who carry out acts of terror and violence in Taybeh — or anywhere — be found and be prosecuted. Not just reprimanded, that’s not enough," Huckabee said. "People need to pay a price for doing something that destroys that which belongs, not just to other people, but that which belongs to God. That is a sacrilege. It’s against the Holy."

Israeli officials have yet to condemn the attacks on Taybeh and have also been mum on last week’s killing of two Paleostinians, including a US citizen allegedly beaten to death by settlers near the West Bank village of Sinjil.

Huckabkee’s visit to Taybeh came amid growing concern from the US over Israeli actions toward Christians.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office issued a statement Thursday expressing regret after IDF tank fire killed three civilians in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
’s only Catholic church, heeding a demand from US President Donald Trump
...The Hero of Butler, Pennsylvania...
, who angrily phoned the Israeli premier over the incident.

Earlier this week, Huckabee threatened to declare publicly that Israel no longer welcomes Christian groups to Israel over what he said was Jerusalem’s failure to approve tourist visas for evangelical missions.

On Tuesday, he described the killing of Paleostinian-American Saif Musallet near Ramallah, who was allegedly beaten to death by settlers, as a "criminal and terrorist act."

It appeared to be one of the first times Huckabee has commented on rampant settler violence in the West Bank, though he avoided using the term or characterizing the killing as part of a broader phenomenon.

A devout evangelical Christian, Huckabee has long expressed support for Israel annexing the West Bank and has pushed back against calls for scaling back Israel’s presence there, making his public condemnations of some Israeli policies and settler violence particularly notable.

Criticism of Israel from the American right has been growing in recent months, particularly following American involvement in Israel’s war against Iran
Iran

...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
last month, which seemingly contradicted US President Donald Trump’s campaign promise not to involve the United States in new overseas conflicts.

In a sign of the shift, the far-right One America News Network aired a segment on Wednesday critical of Musallet’s killing and settler violence generally.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Under pressure from Trump, Netanyahu says he ‘regrets’ mistaken shelling of Gaza church

2025-07-18

[IsraelTimes] IDF says shrapnel from a tank shell fired in the area mistakenly hit the church, reiterates that IDF does not target religious buildings

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office issued a statement late Thursday expressing its regret after an IDF strike killed three civilians in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
’s only Catholic church, heeding a demand from US President Donald Trump
...Never got invited to a P.Diddy party...
who angrily phoned the Israeli premier over the incident.

"Israel deeply regrets that a stray ammunition hit Gaza’s Holy Family Church," the PMO said. "Every innocent life lost is a tragedy. We share the grief of the families and the faithful."

The statement, which was not issued in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s name, also expressed gratitude to Pope Leo XIV for his "words of comfort." The pope had issued a statement expressing his sadness over the loss of life in the Gaza City strike and reiterating his hope for a ceasefire, while avoiding a direct condemnation of Israel.

"Israel is investigating the incident and remains committed to protecting civilians and holy sites," the PMO said.

Less than an hour earlier, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told news hounds during a briefing that Trump phoned Netanyahu after first learning about the strike on Thursday morning.

Asked what Trump’s reaction had been to the latest civilian casualty incident in Gaza, Leavitt responded, "It was not a positive reaction."

Leavitt said Netanyahu agreed during the call with Trump to issue a statement explaining that the strike had been a mistake.

Shortly after Netanyahu’s statement, the Israeli military said that shrapnel from a tank shell fired during operations in Gaza City hit the church.

The IDF said it carried out a preliminary investigation following reports of damage and casualties at the church.

"It emerged that fragments from a shell fired during operational activity in the area hit the church mistakenly," the IDF said, adding that the cause of the incident is under review.

"The IDF directs its strikes solely at military targets and makes every feasible effort to mitigate harm to civilians and religious structures, and regrets any unintentional damage caused to them," it added.

Pictures from the scene showed a large chunk of the building had been hit next to the large stone cross that adorned the house of worship. Windows were also damaged.

The Foreign Ministry commented on the incident earlier in the day, saying that Israel "expresses deep sorrow over the damage [to the church] and over any civilian casualty" and that the country "never targets churches or religious sites and regrets any harm to a religious site or to uninvolved civilians."

Doctors at al-Ahli hospital said two women were killed. The third fatality, who died later, was male. The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem named the dead as Najwa Abu Daoud, Saad Issa Kostandi Salameh and Foumia Issa Latif Ayyad.

Among the injured in the strike was Gay Pareeh Priest Fr. Gabriel Romanelli, a confidant of the late Pope Francis

...Argentine liberation theologist, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was elected pope in 2013. Rather than setting up shop in Avignon, where he belongs, the first Jesuit Pope chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse instead of the papal apartments. That was to show how humble he is. He is big on climate change, against consumerism, and in favor of throwing a blanket over homosexual activity within the clergy. He's not real sure about the Resurrection, about Christ's divinity, and a few other things that would have gotten him burned at the stake a few hundred years ago, but he's hot for a certain South American Earth Mother Goddess...
, who would speak to him nightly throughout the war in Gaza.

The church was sheltering both Christians and Moslems, including a number of children with disabilities, according to Fadel Naem, acting director of al-Ahli Hospital, which received the maimed.

Out of the Gaza Strip’s population of more than two million, about 1,000 are Christians. Most of them are Orthodox, but according to the Latin Patriarchate, there are about 135 Catholics in the territory.

Since the early days of the war which erupted in October 2023, members of the Catholic community have been sheltering at the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza City, and some Orthodox Christians have also found refuge there.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Israeli airstrikes hit Syrian Presidential Palace and General Staff HQ in Damascus, more targets in Sweida; 350 dead as Trump asks Israel to stop and HTS troops begin to withdraw

2025-07-17

[X] Follow up to yesterday’s adventures:

BREAKING:

Powerful Israeli airstrikes hit the Syrian Presidential Palace and the Syrian General Staff HQ in Damascus pic.twitter.com/yxE0VfJExl
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) July 16, 2025

The Druze number around 1.2 million people, with the majority living in Syria (about 700,000), followed by Lebanon (approximately 300,000), and around 150,000 in Israel.

They are an offshoot of Islam but hold beliefs that set them apart: they do not recognize Muhammad as a… pic.twitter.com/UypHohJ3Oj
— Brother Rachid الأخ رشيد (@BrotherRasheed) July 16, 2025

… do not recognize Muhammad as a prophet, and they believe that Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah was God incarnate who disappeared and will return. Because of these beliefs, many Muslims consider the Druze to be kuffar (unbelievers) who should be eliminated.

The Druze faith originated in Egypt but quickly came under threat, forcing its followers to flee and settle in the mountains of Syria, Lebanon, and later Israel. Even today, they face the threat of extinction, as radical groups continue to view them as infidels who must either convert—or be killed.

More, courtesy of Grom the Affective:

Israel warns Syria, reinforces military presence on border as 248 Druze in Sweida confirmed killed
[Ynet] Israel has issued another warning to the Syrian regime and reinforced its military presence along the northern border as tensions continue to escalate over the deadly crackdown on Druze civilians in Syria’s Sweida province.
Speak to me again about the new moderate (USDOS beloved) Syrian regime.
According to the latest figures, 248 Druze have been killed since the outbreak of violence, which peaked when forces loyal to President Ahmad al-Sharaa (also known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani) entered Sweida — marking their first presence there since the fall of the Assad regime.

Starting Tuesday, the IDF deployed reinforcements to the Syrian border, including a company of Golani infantry cadets, three Border Police companies, and military police units. The move is aimed at addressing potential border protests like the one seen Monday in Majdal Shams, and not counterterrorism scenarios. The IDF requested additional police reinforcements for the area but has not yet received them.

Northern Command expects more demonstrations and attempts to breach the border fence by Druze citizens from northern Israel. The army has updated protocols following a widely circulated video showing soldiers passively observing as dozens of Druze from Israel breached the fence and crossed toward the Syrian village of Khader to reach family members.
Nobody in the IDF is going to use force on Druze - most of whom are IDF veterans.
Overnight reports indicated renewed attacks in Sweida. In response, Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Israel will escalate its military action if Syrian forces do not withdraw.

"The Syrian regime must leave the Druze in Sweida alone and pull back its forces," he said. "As we’ve made clear, Israel will not abandon the Druze in Syria and will enforce the demilitarization policy we’ve adopted. The IDF will continue striking regime forces until they retreat from the area and will soon raise the level of its responses if the message is not understood."

Rubio: ‘We think we’re on our way toward a real deescalation’ between Israel, Syria
[IsraelTimes] US secretary of state says clashes in Druze-majority area of Sweida led to ‘misunderstanding’ between Israel and Sharaa regime; UN, EU and others demand end to Israeli strikes.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio

...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration...
said Wednesday that Washington hoped within hours to ease tensions in Syria, as the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
, United Nations
...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks...
and regional powers called on Israel to cease its strikes on government targets and regime loyalists clashing with Syrian Druze.

"In the next few hours, we hope to see some real progress to end what you’ve been seeing over the last couple of hours," Rubio told news hounds in the Oval Office as US President Donald Trump
...Oh, noze! Not him!...
nodded.

Trump and Israel have sought to normalize relations agreements between Israel and the regime of interim Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, head of the former al-Qaeda affiliate that toppled long-time Syrian leader Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Horror of Homs...
in December.

The violence in Sweida, a majority-Druze city in Syria’s south, appeared to throw a wrench in the normalization efforts, as the IDF struck targets including the Syrian army headquarters and presidential palace in what Israel said was a warning to leave the Druze alone.

"We’ve been engaged with them all morning long and all night long — with both sides — and we think we’re on our way toward a real deescalation and then hopefully get back on track and helping Syria build the country and arriving at a situation in the Middle East that is far more stable," he said.

US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said that the United States was asking Syrian government forces to pull out of the flashpoint area.

According to a US official cited by the Axios news site, the Trump administration asked Israel on Wednesday to halt its strikes and engage in dialogue with Damascus. It was the second such request in as many days, with Monday’s apparently having fallen on deaf ears.

However,
by candlelight every wench is handsome...
Bruce declined to comment on whether the United States wanted Israel to stop its strikes.

Syrian government forces entered Sweida on Tuesday with the stated aim of overseeing a ceasefire agreed on with Druze community leaders after festivities with local Bedouin tribes left more than 100 people dead.

However,
by candlelight every wench is handsome...
witnesses reported that the government forces joined with the Bedouins in attacking Druze fighters and civilians in a bloody rampage through the city.

In total, there were some 350 dead as of early Thursday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a London-based war monitor.

In total, there were some 350 dead as of early Thursday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a London-based war monitor.

Amid the violence, the IDF said it struck over 160 targets in Syria, mostly in the area of Sweida, including government tanks and machine guns headed there. The military also said it was bolstering forces in the Golan Heights, on the Syrian border, in preparation for days of potential conflict.

Meanwhile,
...back at the railroad tracks, Little Nell tried to kick her bound feet and scream post the snotty handkerchief Scarface Al had stuff into her mouth...
hundreds of Druze rushed across the border from Israel on Wednesday, vowing to protect their community in Syria. The IDF said the number of Israeli civilians in Syria was roughly 1,000 and that troops were working to bring them back.

Earlier from the Times of Israel:

Syrian gov’t forces begin withdrawing from Sweida as Israel vows to protect Druze
Withdrawal follows announcement of truce, which a Druze spiritual leader says includes ‘full integration of the province’ into Syrian state, though other community leaders reject it.

Syria announced it had begun withdrawing its army from Druze-majority Sweida city on Wednesday night after agreeing to a new ceasefire that it said would bring a complete halt to its military operations there, even as some Druze leaders rejected the arrangement and Israel vowed to protect the minority.

The announcement came after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said parties to the sectarian conflict that has raged since the weekend “have agreed on specific steps” for a truce. A previous truce announced Tuesday appeared to have little effect on the ground in the southern region, where more than 300 people have been killed, according to a monitor.

According to the text of the new ceasefire agreement, published by Syria’s interior ministry, there will be a “total and immediate halt to all military operations,” as well as the formation of a committee comprising government officials and Druze spiritual leaders to supervise its implementation.

The country’s defense ministry later said it had “begun withdrawing from the city of Sweida in implementation of the terms of the adopted agreement after the end of the sweep of the city for outlaw groups.”

The ministry’s statement made no mention of the withdrawal of any other government security forces deployed to the city.

Syria’s President Ahmad al-Sharaa, head of the former al-Qaeda affiliate that toppled the country’s longtime leader Bashar al-Assad in December, condemned the violations and vowed to punish the perpetrators.

“These criminal and illegal actions cannot be accepted under any circumstances, and completely contradict the principles that the Syrian state is built on,” he said in a statement Wednesday.

SYRIAN WITHDRAWAL
In a video carried by Syrian state television, Sheikh Youssef Jarboua, one of Syria’s three main Druze spiritual leaders, read out the 10 points of the ceasefire agreement, which also included “the full integration of the province” of Sweida into the Syrian state.

Until now, Druze areas have been controlled by fighters from the minority community. After Assad’s ouster, some Druze fighters said they were ready to integrate into the new security forces.

The text of the ceasefire indicates that no harm will come to civilians or their property, after witnesses and a monitor reported abuses in recent days including summary executions and looting on the part of government forces and their allies.

It also indicated a joint committee of Druze and the regime would be established to investigate the “crimes and legal violations” that occurred during the events in the area. All detainees arrested during the unrest would be released, according to the agreement as read by Jarboua.

SOHR that since clashes erupted on Sunday, 79 Druze fighters were killed along with 55 civilians, 27 of them in “summary executions by members of the defense and interior ministries,” while 189 defense and interior ministry personnel and 18 Bedouin fighters were also killed. Earlier, the monitor had said the death toll was 300.

According to SOHR, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria, 15 defense and interior ministry personnel were killed in the Israeli strikes in southern Syria. Additionally, Syria’s Health Ministry said that a series of Israeli strikes targeting the army and Defense Ministry headquarters in Damascus earlier Wednesday killed one person and wounded another 18.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

1 in 10 Gazan children tested in UNRWA clinics malnourished, agency says

2025-07-16

[IsraelTimes] Refugee agency says rates of condition rising, acute malnutrition rarely seen in Strip before war; UN says 875 slain at aid points in past 6 weeks, most of them at GHF sites

One in 10 children screened in clinics run by the United Nations
...where theory meets practice and practice loses...
refugee agency in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
since 2024 has been malnourished, the agency said on Tuesday, as European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
foreign ministers pressed Israel for an update on an agreement to boost aid into the enclave through UN channels.

"Our health teams are confirming that malnutrition rates are increasing in Gaza, especially since the siege was tightened more than four months ago on the second of March," UNRWA’s director of communications, Juliette Touma, told news hounds in Geneva via a video link from Amman, Jordan.

Since January 2024, UNRWA said it had screened more than 240,000 boys and girls under the age of 5 in its clinics, adding that before the war, acute malnutrition was rarely seen in the Gaza Strip.

"One nurse that we spoke to told us that in the past, he only saw these cases of malnutrition in textbooks and documentaries," Touma said. "Medicine, nutrition supplies, hygiene material, fuel are all rapidly running out."

Israel has accused UNRWA of providing cover for Hamas
Hamas

..the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood,...
murderous Moslems and, earlier this year, banned the agency from operating on Israeli soil or contacting officials.

The announcement came after UNICEF said Monday that last month, more than 5,800 children were diagnosed with malnutrition in Gaza, including more than 1,000 children with severe, acute malnutrition. It said it was an increase for the fourth month in a row.

Starting in March, Israel blocked deliveries of food and other crucial supplies into Gaza for more than two months, leading to warnings of famine across the territory, devastated by Israeli bombings since the Hamas onslaught of October 7, 2023, which sparked the war.

Israel lifted the blockade at the end of May amid a renewed offensive in the Strip, whose declared purpose is to take over 75 percent of the Strip in order to defeat Hamas and secure the release of the hostages seized by the terror group on October 7.

As part of the resumption of aid, and in an effort to circumvent Hamas, the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has opened four distribution sites in south and central Gaza.

AT LEAST 875 PEOPLE KILLED NEAR AID SITES, UN SAYS
The UN human-rights office said on Tuesday it had recorded at least 875 killings within the past six weeks at aid points in Gaza run by the GHF and near convoys run by other relief groups, including the United Nations.

The majority of those killed were in the vicinity of GHF sites, while the remaining 201 were killed on the routes of other aid convoys.

"The data we have is based on our own information gathering through various reliable sources, including medical human rights
...which are usually open to widely divergent definitions...
and humanitarian organizations," Thameen al-Kheetan, a spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, told news hounds in Geneva.

The GHF did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the UN figures.

GHF has faced harsh criticism from the UN and aid organizations, which charge that it fails to meet the needs of Gaza’s population. Gazooks have reported near-daily incidents in which groups trying to reach GHF facilities are shot at by Israeli forces, leading to mass casualties.

Israel, which accuses Hamas of hoarding aid, has also accused the terror group of attacking Gazook aid seekers near GHF sites and falsifying corpse counts. However,
there's more than one way to stuff a chicken...
Israel has also acknowledged that "several" Paleostinian civilians have been killed near the aid distribution sites.

Link

Europe

EU holds off on sanctioning Israel over Gaza war

2025-07-16

[IsraelTimes] But EU officials say they’ll reconsider sanctions at next meeting in two weeks if Israel doesn’t implement pledged steps on Gaza aid, release of withheld tax funds from the PA

European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced Tuesday that the EU decided against adopting punitive measures against Israel over its military conduct in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
, following a meeting of EU foreign ministers to discuss the matter.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar hailed the news as "an important diplomatic victory," saying his office had been working aggressively to convince countries in the bloc not to join an effort pushed by Ireland, Spain and other countries for sanctions against Israel over its conduct in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.

Speaking to news hounds after the Brussels meeting, Kallas reiterated that there were"positive signs" regarding Israel’s implementation of its agreement with the EU last week to increase aid to Gaza, but said "more concrete steps" were needed.

Taking the sanction threat seriously, Israel reached an agreement with the EU on a series of steps to boost aid on July 10. They included the reopening of several aid corridors, including routes through Egypt and Jordan, and several other crossing points in northern and southern Gaza. The deal will provide for at least 150 trucks to enter Gaza daily — far less than the 500 that were entering the Strip before the war but more than double the daily average over the past two months, during which the humanitarian crisis has continued to deteriorate.

Kallas said the EU will closely monitor Israel’s implementation of the agreement and will update member states on Jerusalem’s compliance when foreign ministers meet again in two weeks. If Israel fails to implement the promised steps, the bloc will reconsider punitive measures against Jerusalem.

Kallas has put forward 10 potential options after an EU review determined that Israel is in breach of a cooperation deal between the two sides on human rights
...which are often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless...
grounds over its conduct in Gaza and the West Bank.

Israel faces numerous war crimes allegations in Gaza amid the fighting against Hamas
Hamas

..one of the armed feet of the Moslem Brüderbund millipede,...
, where it has denied claims of intentionally targeting civilians, and has been hit with mounting Western sanctions over its failure to crack down on settler violence in the West Bank.

The measures proposed by Kallas range from suspending the entire accord to curbing trade ties, sanctioning Israeli ministers, imposing an arms embargo and halting visa-free travel.

Despite growing anger over the devastation in Gaza, EU states remain divided over Israel, and there was no critical mass for taking any of the moves against it at this week’s meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.

"We will keep these options on the table and stand ready to act," Kallas insisted.

The more far-reaching steps are unlikely to secure the necessary votes, but the fact that the steps are even being seriously considered has been unprecedented.

The bloc only agreed to review the cooperation deal after Israel relaunched military operations in Gaza following the collapse of a ceasefire in March.

The EU will also tie its decision on sanctions to the situation in the West Bank, and Brussels raised with Israeli officials a demand for Jerusalem to release tax revenues that are being withheld from the Paleostinian Authority, in violation of the Oslo Accords, two EU officials told The Times of Israel

The PA says that Israel is withholding roughly NIS 2.5 billion shekels ($742 million) in funds that belong to Ramallah. Israel collects customs revenues on the PA’s behalf and is supposed to transfer them to Ramallah on a monthly basis.

Israel has been withholding a portion of those funds, which it says amounts to the sum of the stipends that the PA pays to the families of security prisoners and slain terrorists. PA President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase....>
signed a decree in February ending the policy, though Israel has been dismissive of the move.

Israel has also been withholding a portion of the tax revenues that it says amount to the sum of the funds that the PA uses to pay civil servants in Gaza, which Jerusalem claims are at risk of reaching Hamas.

Moreover, since May, when the UK issued sanctions against far-right Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir, Jerusalem stopped transferring the monthly customs revenues entirely, robbing the PA of roughly NIS 900 million ($267 million) in funds.

The move by Smotrich once again has the PA at risk of financial collapse, with Ramallah unable to pay its employees for June. Previous months saw PA employees only receiving a portion of their salaries due to Ramallah’s dire financial situation.

A spokesperson for one of the PA’s ministries told The Times of Israel that many workers are not showing up to the office, as they cannot afford the cost of travel or don’t have time to wait hours at Israeli checkpoints, which have significantly hampered Paleostinian transit throughout the West Bank.

An EU diplomat said Israel’s delegation indicated during this week’s high-level meeting of EU foreign ministers that Jerusalem would release some of the PA’s funds — likely the tax revenues that have been withheld since May.

However,
corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds...
a Foreign Ministry spokesperson denied that any commitment was made on the matter.

A spokesperson for Smotrich — whose approval is needed to release the PA funds — did not respond to queries on the matter.

Sa’ar still celebrated Kallas’s decision, writing in a post on X that it was the result of a "complex, grueling, and multi-front diplomatic battle."

"The attempt to impose sanctions on a democratic country defending itself against efforts to destroy it is outrageous," Sa’ar said, thanking Israel’s allies in Europa
...the land mass occupying the space between the English Channel and the Urals, also known as Moslem Lebensraum...
who helped thwart the punitive measures.

Throughout the Brussels summit, some Israel-friendly EU allies, including the Czech Republic and Hungary, voiced support for Israel and pushed back against proposed sanctions. In messages reposted by Sa’ar on X, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský reaffirmed their backing.

Lipavský said in a phone call with Sa’ar, "It is in the EU’s interest to maintain influence in a turbulent region, not withdraw from it," and expressed hope for a ceasefire and the full resumption of aid to Gaza.

Szijjártó, who met with Sa’ar in Brussels, said, "There will be strong pressure on us in Brussels to sanction Israeli settlers. That would be the wrong move. This is the time for diplomacy, not sanctions."

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Abbas urges Hamas to free hostages, says it won’t rule postwar Gaza

2025-07-14

[IsraelTimes] Meeting former UK PM Tony Blair in Amman, PA president calls on terror group to cede its arms and let PA take over governing Strip

Paleostinian Authority President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase....>
urged Hamas
Hamas

..a regional Iranian catspaw,...
to release the hostages it is holding and hand over its weapons to the PA, stressing that the terror group "will not rule the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
Strip" after the war there ends.

In a meeting in Amman on Sunday with British former prime minister Tony Blair, Abbas also called for the release of Paleostinian prisoners from Israeli jails, an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and unhindered entry of humanitarian aid

to the Strip, according to the PA’s official news agency WAFA.

Abbas also called for the PA to be given control of the enclave, a notion long rejected by Israel. He further stressed the need to implement a two-state solution to the Israeli-Paleostinian conflict based on the Arab Peace Initiative and called for an international peace conference to be held in New York, the report said.

Though Abbas has in the past called for the hostages to be released, an end to the war, and for the PA to takeover governing Gaza, it was only last month that, for the first time, he condemned the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel during which the hostages were kidnapped. The attack, which killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, triggered the ongoing war.

At the time, Abbas also said that Hamas must not be permitted to rule Gaza and should hand over its weapons to the Paleostinian Security Services.

Terror groups in the Gaza Strip are holding 50 hostages, including 49 of the 251 kidnapped by Hamas-led murderous Moslems on October 7, 2023. They include the bodies of at least 28 confirmed dead by the IDF. Twenty are believed to be alive, and there are grave concerns for the well-being of two others, Israeli officials have said. Hamas is also holding the body of an IDF soldier killed in Gaza in 2014.

Hamas seized control of Gaza from the PA in 2007 during a bloody coup. The terror group and Abba’s Fatah secularist party, which dominates the West Bank-based PA, have remained at odds ever since.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has vowed to vanquish Hamas, has thus far ruled out any role for the PA in Gaza, but failed to advance any alternative amid pressure from his far-right partners, who want to establish settlements in the Strip.

The PA is largely seen as ineffectual and corrupt. It has not held general elections since 2006, and presidential elections since 2005.

Blair left office in 2007, then became an envoy for the Middle East Quartet — the United Nations
...a formerly good idea gone bad...
, the United States, the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
, and Russia — set up in 2002 to mediate peace between Israel and the Paleostinians. He established the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, a non-profit organization, in 2016. In January 2024, the institute denied as "a lie" a Hebrew media report linking him to talks for the resettlement of Paleostinians from Gaza to other countries.

US President Donald Trump
...Perhaps no man has ever had as much fun being president of the US...
has touted a highly disputed initiative to relocate Paleostinians out of the coastal enclave to other countries. Netanyahu has openly backed the plan, which has been flatly rejected by Paleostinians.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Lost Byzantine city of Tarais from Justinian's time found in Jordan

2025-07-14

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] Archaeologists have found the lost Byzantine city of Tarais in Jordan. This was reported by the Gephyra magazine.

The search began in 2021. Archaeologists decided to look for lost cities using a mosaic map made 1,500 years ago, during the time of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian (527–565 AD). It shows 157 sites that were part of the Holy Land of Jordan. This tiled artwork is the oldest map available today that shows all the cities. Most of them have yet to be found by scientists, the publication notes.

The discovery was made by Associate Professor of the Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at the Jordanian University of Muta Musallam R. al-Rawahneh. Fieldwork took place near the modern city of El-Iraq on the southeastern shore of the Dead Sea.

Scientists have been finding clues pointing to the existence of Tarais in this region for many years. Thus, the remains of mosaic floors, glassware and various tools were found, which, according to researchers, testified to the existence of an ancient city here.

Scientists were convinced that the recently discovered object was indeed Tarais because everything matched the image of the lost city on the famous Madaba mosaic map. The gates, ruins, and even the towers matched. Religious finds also confirmed this. Archaeologists found details reminiscent of a Byzantine basilica - a building stretched to one side, with an open central room. The team contacted Spanish and French researchers to continue their research.

The excavations brought new surprises – Greek and Latin funerary inscriptions. They confirmed the theological nature of the site, as the finds proved that a Christian community had once flourished in the region.

"The significant position of Tarais on the Madaba map and the discovery of the basilica suggest that it was not just an agricultural village but also a sacred site and a resting place for merchants," al-Rawahneh said.

The lost city of Tarais was once not only religious, but also economically prosperous. This is evidenced by olive presses, windmills and grape-pressing equipment found by archaeologists, the authors of the article noted.

As reported by the Regnum news agency, in early July archaeologists found well-preserved tombs from the Ptolemaic and Roman periods in southern Egypt. The rock-cut tombs were found in a cemetery near the Aga Khan Mausoleum on the western shore of Aswan. Scientists discovered well-preserved hieroglyphic inscriptions there.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Gaza war, regional updates

2025-07-14

[X]

🧵Gaza war, regional updates:
👉27 killed in Gaza, including at water distribution points
👉Malnutrition cases rising in Gaza: UNRWA
👉Israel arrests Palestinians in West Bank raids

🔴 Live blog:https://t.co/SJUmeJPTwt
— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) July 13, 2025

IDF admits error in deadly strike on water delivery site as truce talks stay jammed

[IsraelTimes] Israel’s military said Sunday that a strike near a Gaza water distribution point that reportedly killed several children was an accident, as Israeli aircraft pounded targets across the Strip.

The strike, which the Israel Defense Forces attributed to a "technical malfunction," came as negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage release deal continued to stall, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly set to convene top ministers and defense brass in a bid to find a way to break the logjam.

Gazook health officials at al-Awda Hospital said the strike that hit a water distribution point in Nuseirat refugee camp killed 10 people, including six children.

The IDF admitted it had erred while targeting an operative from the Paleostinian Islamic Jihad
...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah...
terror group.

"Due to a technical malfunction in the munition, it struck dozens of meters away from the intended target," the IDF said, adding that it had opened an investigation and that it "makes every effort to minimize harm to uninvolved civilians."

Ramadan Nassar, a witness who lives in the area, told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named that around 20 children and 14 adults had been lined up to get water. He said Paleostinians walk some 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) to fetch water from the area.

Water shortages in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
have worsened sharply in recent weeks, with fuel shortages causing desalination and sanitation facilities to close, making people dependent on collection centers where they can fill up their plastic containers.

More than a dozen people were also reported killed near an aid distribution site on Sunday, with eyewitnesses describing shots to victims’ heads and bodies. The Israeli military said its troops had fired warning shots, but that its review of the incident had found no evidence of anyone hurt by its soldiers’ fire.

Negotiations toward a ceasefire in Gaza have stalled primarily over when the war will end and to what extent the IDF will withdraw during the truce.

Paleostine al-Youm, an Islamic Jihad-affiliated news outlet, quoted a senior Hamas
Hamas

..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
official Sunday saying negotiations had reached a critical stage and signaling the Paleostinian group could walk away if the logjam was not cleared in the coming hours.

Channel 12 news reported Sunday that Netanyahu would convene a meeting of senior defense officials and several government ministers that night in a bid to break the impasse, focusing on a new proposal for the troops’ redeployment in Gaza and the direction of talks.

IDF brass has told the government that it is close to achieving the goals of its recent offensive, and US President Donald Trump
...Perhaps no man has ever had as much fun being president of the US...
has repeatedly urged an end to the 21-month-old war. Polls show most Israelis support a deal to free the hostages still held by Hamas and end the war.

During his recent visit to Washington, DC, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed optimism about a deal. But in a video posted to social media Sunday afternoon, he blamed Hamas for obstructing an agreement, saying Israel had accepted the outline proposed by Trump’s chief envoy, Steve Witkoff.

"We accepted it, Hamas refused it," Netanyahu said, adding that he "won’t accept" a deal that allows Hamas to stay in Gaza and rearm."

The deal currently being negotiated in the Qatar
...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi...
i capital would see 10 living hostages released in an initial 60-day stage, along with the remains of 18 deceased captives.

Netanyahu has insisted the war cannot end until Hamas is no longer able to rule Gaza or pose a threat to Israel, vowing to achieve both that goal and the return of all 50 hostages still being held in the Strip.

The IDF is waiting for the government to make a decision regarding the war as the military nears completion of its Gideon’s Chariots offensive, launched in mid-May. In late June, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said the military would soon "reach the lines" set by the offensive, in which the IDF aimed to take control of 75 percent of Gaza.

Jordan announced Sunday morning that a local charity had sent 50 trucks of aid to Gaza. The shipment came after the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
announced last week that a deal had been reached to reopen several aid corridors, including humanitarian routes through Egypt and Jordan.

A group of United Nations
...an organization originally established to war on dictatorships which was promptly infiltrated by dictatorships and is now held in thrall to dictatorships...
agencies warned, meanwhile, that a fuel shortage had reached "critical levels" in Gaza, threatening aid operations, hospital care and already chronic food insecurity.

On Sunday, in a rare incident, an Israeli soldier driving on a road in Israeli territory near Gaza was lightly maimed by a stray Israeli bullet.

Israel’s toll in the ground offensive against Hamas in Gaza and in military operations along the border with the Strip stands at 451. The toll includes two coppers and three Defense Ministry civilian contractors.

Link

Iraq

Kurdish fighters burn weapons Friday, signal end to armed struggle against Turkey

2025-07-13

[Rudaw] In a striking and symbolic gesture, fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) set their weapons ablaze on Friday, signalling an end to more than four decades of armed struggle for Kurdish rights in ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
<del>The Sick Man of Europe</del> Turkey

<del>The Sick Man of Europe</del> Turkey

...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire...
The disarmament, marked by a bonfire reminiscent of Newroz - the Kurdish New Year once banned in Turkey - was held near a cave in Kurdistan Region’s rugged mountains in northern Iraq, the same historic site where Kurdish intellectuals printed an outlawed newspaper more than a century ago.

As the flames consumed the rifles, many in attendance viewed it not just as a tactical move, but as the possible turning point in a long and costly war. The fighters’ disarmament came in response to a rare video message from their jugged
Drop the rod and step away witcher hands up!
leader, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned on an island near Istanbul since 1999.

In his statement, Ocalan - long a symbol of the Kurdish nationalist cause - declared that the time for armed struggle had passed, citing new efforts by Turkey to acknowledge Kurdish identity and culture.

"The PKK, for the sake of the people, says we want peace, we want tranquility," said Shame Shingal, a mother whose daughter remains among the ranks of the PKK. "And this has filled us with joy."

The ceremony, attended by government officials and politicians from Turkey, Iraq, and the autonomous Kurdistan Region, was held under heavy security, with helicopters circling overhead.

Among those present was Mohammed Penjwini, a prominent Kurdish intellectual and longtime friend of Ocalan. He voiced cautious optimism, noting that previous peace efforts had failed due to interference by what he called the "Deep State" - a reference to shadowy nationalist elements within Turkey’s bureaucracy and military.

"The hope today is that this process - unlike the previous one, which took four or five years and was ultimately derailed - will succeed," Penjwini said. "Because the leader of the Deep State, Mr. [Devlet] Bahceli, has embraced it. That is the only hope for its success."

Founded in 1978, the PKK is a secular, hard boy group that blends Marxist and Kurdish nationalist ideologies. It has waged a long and bloody insurgency against the Ottoman Turkish state, a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives, most of them Kurdish. Turkey, a NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the cut of the American pants...
member, the US and European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
have designated the PKK as a terrorist organization.

The group’s decision to relinquish its arms - even if only symbolically for now - has been met with measured approval from analysts, peace advocates and even Ottoman Turkish government officials.

The fighters returned to their mountainous hideouts unarmed, a move seen by some as a genuine step toward lasting peace. Still, skepticism remains. Much will depend on how Ottoman Turkish authorities respond in the weeks and months ahead, and whether a roadmap can be forged to eventually bring the fighters down from the mountains for good.

Turkey continues strikes on PKK despite disarmament, says monitor

[Rudaw] Turkey has continued its attacks on alleged Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) positions on Saturday, a day after the PKK symbolically destroyed weapons as part of peace negotiations with Ankara, according to a group monitoring the conflict.

“At 8:30 am this morning, Turkey bombed the village of Mewin in Amedi 5 times,” Kamaran Osman, a member of the Community Peacemaker Teams (CPT), said on X.

“Since the beginning of this month, Turkey has carried out 12 artillery attacks,” he added.

Amedi is situated about 70 kilometers north of Duhok city and just 15 kilometers from the Turkish border. The area has been a frontline in the conflict between Turkish forces and the PKK.

On Friday, in a striking and symbolic gesture, a group of fighters from the PKK set their weapons ablaze, signalling an end to more than four decades of armed struggle for Kurdish rights in Turkey. Earlier this year, the PKK declared a unilateral ceasefire and announced it would dissolve itself.

On Saturday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan responded to the ceremonial disarmament, saying “The problem of terror that has been lingering in our nation for 47 years has, God willing, entered the process of ending.”

Despite months of negotiations for peace, Turkish attacks in the Kurdistan Region saw an eight percent increase from May through June, according to a CPT report released on Friday. Nearly all 98 percent of these strikes were concentrated within Duhok province, particularly in the Amedi district.

“Turkish military strikes have remained steady and concentrated - though notably, no civilian casualties have been reported - since their surge in May,” said the report.

The conflict has devastated hundreds of villages in the Kurdistan Region and northern Iraq, some have been completely abandoned.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

IDF is deploying two more battalions to Judea and Samaria

2025-07-12

[X]

Following a new security assessment, the IDF is deploying two more battalions to Judea and Samaria. The reinforcement follows yesterday’s deadly terror attack at the Gush Etzion Junction. pic.twitter.com/v8u6cG66dK
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) July 11, 2025

Link

Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia

Large-scale excavations have begun at the site of the Mangazeya settlement in Yamal

2025-07-12

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The Mangazeya settlement, located in the Tazovsky and Krasnoselkupsky Districts of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, will become the site of large-scale archaeological excavations. As experts note, the study of this territory will help to better understand the history of the ancient city of Mangazeya, the reasons for its decline, and also to study the formation of Orthodoxy in Yamal.

The work will start on August 1 and will last until September 15. It is being carried out as part of the project "Holy Protomartyr Basil of Mangazeya". The project is being implemented by the non-profit organization "Siberian Heritage". In 2025, the initiative received support in the form of a grant from the governor in the amount of 4.6 million rubles, as well as co-financing from the Presidential Grants Fund. In the near future, researchers will have to determine the location of the church, the voivode's court and the chapel over the saint's grave. The work will help clarify the details of the life of St. Basil of Mangazeya and may become an important step in the development of the region's tourism potential.

An important stage was the study of historical documents and materials from the 17th century from the Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts. The scientific reconstruction of the events was carried out by historian, specialist in Siberian cities and ancient Russian icon painting Ilya Gorshkov. In the future, scientists will compile a database of sources on the life, cult and iconography of the saint.

"Previous excavations covered the posad part of the settlement, while the temple architecture and religious life of Mangazeya remained practically unexplored. Modern technologies, including geoscanning and aerial photography from quadcopters, will allow for more accurate and detailed research," said Georgy Vizgalov, head of the research project "Holy Protomartyr Basil of Mangazeya."

Mangazeya is considered one of the first polar Russian cities in Siberia. It existed in the 17th century and was a fur trade center and a stronghold on the trade route. Educational lectures will be held for residents of Yamal who decide to volunteer for the excavations.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Israel, EU agree to boost Gaza aid: ‘More trucks, more crossings, and more routes’

2025-07-11

[IsraelTimes] Israel to open several aid corridors, including through Egypt and Jordan, allow bakeries and kitchens to reopen, ensure security for aid workers, repair vital infrastructure

Israel and the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
have agreed upon "significant steps" to increase the flow of humanitarian aid

into the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
Strip "in the coming days," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced Thursday.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar confirmed the agreement, saying the security cabinet decided last Sunday on measures "to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza," including "more trucks, more crossings, and more routes for the humanitarian efforts."

Speaking alongside Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephu, Sa’ar thanked his counterparts "for the fruitful dialogue that we are conducting — with you and the EU — on the humanitarian issue."

The discussions are "based on an understanding of human needs and of the threat that Hamas
Hamas

..the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,...
and the Gaza Strip have posed to Israel over the past 20 years," added Sa’ar, saying, "this dialogue is important and it will continue."

The announcements by Sa’ar and Kallas confirmed an earlier report by Bloomberg, which said that a deal had been reached enabling the reopening of several aid corridors, including humanitarian routes through Egypt and Jordan, and several other crossing points in northern and southern Gaza.

"These measures are or will be implemented in the coming days, with the common understanding that aid at scale must be delivered directly to the population and that measures will continue to be taken to ensure that there is no aid diversion to Hamas," Kallas said.

According to the top European diplomat, the agreement will see a "substantial increase" in the daily entry of trucks supplying food and non-food items; the opening of several crossing points in northern and southern Gaza; the reopening of humanitarian routes through Egypt and Jordan; resumed operations of bakeries and public kitchens in Gaza; resumed fuel deliveries to humanitarian facilities "up to an operational level"; security for aid workers; and reparations on works for "vital infrastructure like the resumption of the power supply to the water desalination facility."

"The EU stands ready to coordinate with all relevant humanitarian stakeholders, United Nations
...an organization conceived in the belief that we're just one big happy world, with the sort of results you'd expect from such nonsense...
agencies and NGOs on the ground, to ensure swift implementation of those urgent steps," added Kallas, adding that the EU "calls again for an immediate ceasefire" and release of all hostages.

Since late May, Israel has handed authority over aid distribution in Gaza to the Israel- and United States-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in a stated effort to prevent aid supplies from reaching Hamas. The GHF’s operations have been strongly criticized by the international community for failing to address the humanitarian needs in Gaza.

It is unclear under which bodies the expanded aid measures will be operated.

The EU has been increasingly critical of the humanitarian situation in Gaza amid Israel’s war against Hamas, which began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led bully boyz murdered some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in southern Israel and took 251 hostages.

Israel has said that it respects international law and that operations in Gaza are necessary to destroy Hamas.

The EU is Israel’s biggest commercial partner, with 42.6 billion euros ($48.2 billion) traded in goods in 2024. Trade in services reached 25.6 billion euros in 2023.

More than 100 aid groups and other organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, last month urged Brussels to suspend the EU-Israel association agreement "at least in part."

Spain has also called for the agreement to be suspended, while Germany has come out against such a move.

Suspending the EU-Israel accord outright would require unanimity among member states — something diplomats have said from the outset was virtually impossible.

Halting diplomatic dialogue with Israel — a measure that was already rejected last year — also requires backing from all EU countries.

Trade measures could instead be adopted with a qualified majority, diplomats have said, cautioning, however, that agreeing on those might also prove tricky.

Link

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