Middle East crisis

Gaza War
State of Emergency Lifted After October 7 Attacks

Israel has lifted the state of emergency for the areas near the Gaza border for the first time since the Hamas terror attack on October 7, 2023, Defense Minister Israel Katz announced, according to the Times of Israel. The decision “reflects the new security situation” in southern Israel, according to a statement from Katz’s office.

The state of emergency has meant that Israeli authorities have had expanded powers to, for example, close schools, restrict freedom of movement, order evacuations and mobilize civil defense and military personnel.

The ceasefire that began on October 10 is said to still be largely in place.

US: Israel’s attack not a violation of the ceasefire

The Israeli attack on targets in Gaza on Saturday was not a violation of the ceasefire, says US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to Reuters.

– Israel has not given up its right to self-defense. They have the right to defend themselves if there is an imminent threat to Israel, and all mediators agree on that.

According to Israel, the attack was aimed at members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad who were planning an attack. The organization has denied that they had any such plans.

Peace Talks
Jordan's King: No one wants to go into Gaza with weapons

Jordan's King Abdullah II warns that Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan for Gaza could become a kind of forced peace, maintained with weapons. Peacekeeping is something else, he emphasizes.

- Running around and patrolling Gaza with weapons, that is not a situation that any country wants to end up in, he says in an interview with BBC Panorama.

Jordan's close ties with the Palestinian people mean that the country does not intend to send any forces, according to Abdullah. However, he sees that Jordan can train Palestinian security forces, together with Egypt.

The BBC writes that the statement reflects growing concern in the US and other countries about being drawn into a continued conflict between Hamas and Israel, or between Hamas and other Palestinian groups.

According to the ceasefire, a coalition of mainly Arab and Muslim countries is expected to send troops.

Protests
British commentator arrested during tour in the US

The British media profile and political commentator Sami Hamdi has been detained by the US immigration agency ICE, several media outlets report. He is thus prevented from completing his ongoing lecture tour in the US.

Hamdi was arrested at San Francisco International Airport after speaking at an event for the organization Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR). CAIR believes that the arrest is a response to Hamdi's criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza and is demanding his immediate release.

Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman for the US Department of Homeland Security, commented on the arrest in a post on X.

“Under President Trump, those who support terrorism or undermine US national security will not be allowed to work or visit the country.”

The Guardian writes that Hamdi is the latest in a series of cases where people with pro-Palestinian views have been arrested and deported from the US. 

Israel-Hezbollah
Hezbollah tried to kill Netanyahu with drone

Last year's drone attack on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's summer residence was an attempt to kill him. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said this in an interview with the militia's own TV channel, which TT reports on.

The attack that occurred in October last year hit a bedroom window and caused minor damage. Netanyahu was not in the house at the time. Despite this, Qassem calls the attack an intelligence success.