Tag Archives: Middle East

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s halt in renewing visas for international aid workers in the Gaza Strip and the Israeli occupied West Bank is kneecapping aid work just when it’s needed the most, a coalition of humanitarian and nongovernmental groups says. Israel’s welfare ministry has paused its work on providing documentation for the visa renewal process since early February, saying it …

BEIRUT (AP) — Austria’s foreign minister on Thursday urged Israel and Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group against escalating the conflict along the volatile Israel-Lebanon border and expressed hope for a pause in the fighting in Gaza in time for the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in March. The Middle East has witnessed enough devastation and cruelty, Austrian Foreign …

BEIRUT (AP) — Turkish drone strikes in northeastern Syria on Wednesday killed at least three members of a local Christian force and wounded others, including civilians, a Kurdish official and a Syrian opposition war monitor said. Also on Wednesday, reported Israeli airstrikes hit Damascus, and in the southern Syrian city of Sweida, security forces opened fire at protesters angry over …

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Times was honored Monday with George Polk Awards for Foreign Reporting and Photojournalism for its coverage of the war between Israel and Hamas. Photographers Samar Abu Elouf and Yousef Masoud captured “gripping and unforgettable images” as they chronicled the conflict from its opening hours on Oct. 7 until they escaped from Gaza two …

GENEVA (AP) — Switzerland’s government plans to boost its defense spending by up to 19% over the next four years, citing a rise in global instability, including wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and gaps created when Swiss authorities cashed in on a peace dividend from the fall of the Berlin Wall decades ago. Laying out mid- and long-range …

CAIRO (AP) — Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Edrogan and Egypt’s leader united their efforts Wednesday in Cairo, calling for a halt to Israel’s looming offensive on a southern Gaza city in its war against Hamas. Erdogan’s visit comes as ties between Ankara and Cairo are back on track after years of tensions and frosty relations. Turkey has long been a …

JERUSALEM (AP) — The family of a Palestinian-American woman arrested by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank says they still haven’t had contact with her, more than a week after she was seized from her home in an overnight raid. Relatives of Samaher Esmail say they are getting increasingly worried because they believe the 46-year-old woman has not received …

JERUSALEM (AP) — The population of Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank grew nearly 3% in 2023, according to a new report based on population statistics from the Israeli government. The report, released Sunday by the pro-settler group WestBankJewishPopulationStats.com, found the settler population jumped to 517,407 as of Dec. 31, from 502,991 a year earlier. The settler population has …

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israeli forces have arrested a 46-year-old Palestinian-American woman after breaking into her home and pulling her from her bed in the occupied West Bank, her family said Tuesday, saying they had no idea where she was nearly two days after she was detained. News of the arrest came just ahead of Secretary of State Antony …

Israeli-made Pegasus spyware was used in Jordan to hack the cellphones of at least 30 people, including journalists, lawyers, human rights and political activists, the digital rights group Access Now said Thursday. The hacking with spyware made by Israel’s NSO Group occurred from 2019 until last September, Access Now said in its report. It did not accuse Jordan’s government of …