Israel

Israel moves to shut down Doctors Without Borders in Gaza as Rafah crossing set for limited reopening Israel said it is terminating the humanitarian operations of Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) in the Gaza Strip after the group failed to provide a list of its Palestinian staff, as authorities prepare a partial reopening of the Rafah crossing for people. The Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism said it is “moving to terminate the activities of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in the Gaza…

WASHINGTON — The United States has approved $6.67 billion in arms sales to Israel, including 30 Apache attack helicopters and infantry assault vehicles, as a fragile cease-fire in the Gaza Strip faces repeated violations and international scrutiny. The State Department said Friday the package would bolster Israel’s “strong and ready self-defense capability,” a core U.S. policy priority. The approvals come as rights groups and United Nations experts intensify calls for Washington to halt military transfers they say risk…

Israel transferred the bodies of 15 Palestinians to Gaza in what officials said was the final exchange under the first phase of a U.S.-brokered cease-fire with Hamas, days after the country recovered the remains of its last Israeli hostage. The Gaza Health Ministry, part of the Hamas-run government, said the bodies were received and taken to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. The International Committee of the Red Cross said it helped facilitate the handover. Under the terms of the cease-fire struck in October, Israel agreed to…

WASHINGTON — Senior Israeli and Saudi officials are holding separate talks in Washington this week as U.S.-Iran tensions rise and President Donald Trump weighs possible military action, officials said. Israel’s military intelligence chief, Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, met Tuesday and Wednesday with senior officials at the Pentagon, the CIA and the White House, according to people familiar with the meetings. The discussions centered on updated intelligence assessments and potential targets inside Iran should strikes be…

MEITAR, Israel — Israel on Wednesday prepared to bury Ran Gvili, the last Israeli hostage recovered from Gaza, in a funeral that officials and mourners cast as both an intimate farewell and a national moment of closure. Gvili, 24, an off-duty police officer from the elite Yassam unit, was killed while fighting militants during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led assault on southern Israel. His body was taken back into Gaza by the Islamic Jihad militant group, Israeli officials say. He was among about 250 people abducted during the…

Prominent Somali cleric warns North Western State of Somalia against engagement with Israel HARGEISA, Somalia — One of Somalia’s leading religious scholars, Sheikh Mustafa Haji Ismail Harun, has sharply criticized reported steps by North Western State of Somalia toward engagement with Israel, warning that any move linked to a bid for recognition would be both morally and politically misguided. Speaking at a mosque in Hargeisa, the cleric urged the public and political leaders in North Western State of Somalia to distance…

Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia has jolted Somalia’s public square, igniting protests in the streets, on social media and from mosque pulpits. The outrage is understandable: for many Somalis, it feels like a direct strike at sovereignty and territorial integrity. But the larger truth can’t be shouted down. This moment is less a bolt from the blue than the culmination of long-standing vulnerabilities Somalis have allowed to deepen at home. This opinion argues that the crisis is a mirror, not a…

Israeli forces ordered dozens of Palestinian families in southern Gaza to leave their homes, residents and Hamas officials said Monday, describing the first forced evacuation since the October ceasefire and a sign the army is expanding areas under its control. Israel’s military confirmed it dropped warning leaflets but denied plans to forcibly displace residents. Leaflets written in Arabic, Hebrew and English were scattered over the Al-Reqeb neighborhood in Bani Suhaila, east of Khan Younis, according to residents. “Urgent…

Israel has demolished multiple structures inside the United Nations Relief and Works Agency’s east Jerusalem compound after seizing the site last year, an action UNRWA condemned as a violation of international law and UN privileges and immunities. Surrounded by Israeli forces, bulldozers razed several large buildings and smaller facilities within the compound, where dozens of agency staff once worked. UNRWA has not used the site since early last year after Israeli authorities ordered the agency to vacate all premises and…

Israel wary of Egypt’s expanding role in Somalia and Horn of Africa TEL AVIV — Israel is watching with growing unease as Egypt deepens its political and security footprint in Somalia and across the Horn of Africa, a volatile corridor that funnels global trade through the Red Sea and toward the Suez Canal. Israeli broadcaster i24 News, citing Israeli security sources, reported that Cairo has intensified its backing for Somalia’s federal government and is closely scrutinizing Israel’s reported move to recognize North Western…