Germany plans talks with representatives of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Damascus on Tuesday, the foreign ministry said, joining the United States and Britain in establishing contact with the group after it led the overthrow of Syria‘s Bashar al-Assad.
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Israeli tanks cross into Syrian territory, beyond 1974 disengagement line
Israeli armoured vehicles on Tuesday entered the vicinity of Saida al-Golan, a village south of the Quneitra governorate, according to local media reports.
The area is beyond the disengagement line between Israel and Syria that was agreed in 1974.
Lammy: UK had ‚diplomatic contact‘ with HTS
„Using all the channels that we have available, and those are diplomatic and, of course, intelligence-led channels, we seek to deal with HTS where we have to.“
On Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States has had direct contact with HTS.
Israel approves plan to expand settlements on occupied Golan Heights
“Strengthening the Golan is strengthening the State of Israel, and it is especially important at this time. We will continue to hold onto it, cause it to blossom, and settle in it,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
Since Islamist rebels overthrew the decades-long Assad family regime on Dec. 8, Israel has launched hundreds of airstrikes across Syria and carried out a land incursion that stretches past the occupied Golan Heights into a previously demilitarized buffer zone.
Report: Israel Sees Opportunity To Bomb Iran After Downfall of Assad
Israeli officials now say they have total air superiority over Syria due to the lack of air defenses, which could make it easier to launch airstrikes on Iran. Israeli warplanes used to have to avoid air defenses when bombing Syria, but now Israeli officials say they’re able to fly over Damascus without having to worry about getting shot down by Russian-made air defenses.
‘As much and as quickly as possible’: Israeli settlers eye land in Syria, Lebanon
(December 12,2024)
With the Israeli army advancing into Syria following Assad‘s fall, a group promoting settlements in Lebanon is casting its gaze eastward.
Exclusive: Russia pulling back but not out of Syria, sources say
The bases in Syria are an integral part of Russia‘s global military presence: the Tartous naval base is Russia‘s only Mediterranean repair and resupply hub, with Hmeimim a major staging post for military and mercenary activity in Africa.
Russia also has eavesdropping posts in Syria which were run alongside Syrian signals stations, according to Syrian military and Western intelligence sources.
U.S. in Direct Contact With Rebels Who Took Over Syria
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said the United States was communicating directly with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the dominant rebel faction, despite its designation as a terrorist group.
Syria rebels appear to credit Israeli strikes on Hezbollah with aiding shock advance
(December 2, 2024)
“They accuse us of cooperating with you because we were quite happy when you attacked Hezbollah, really happy, and we’re glad that you won,” the source said.
Both said the rebels had no issue with Israel. “We love Israel and we were never its enemies,” the man from the Idlib area said. “[Israel] isn’t hostile to those who are not hostile toward it. We don’t hate you, we love you very much.”
Al-Qaeda-linked ‘rebels’ in Syria say they ‘love Israel’. USA gave them billions in weapons & support
The United States spent billions over years arming and training militants in Syria, many linked to Al-Qaeda and ISIS.
Current US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan admitted back in 2012 that “AQ [Al-Qaeda] is on our side in Syria”.
Syrian rebels sweep into Aleppo, nearby province in huge setback for Assad
(November 30,2024)
Opposition sources in touch with Turkish intelligence said Turkey, which supports the rebels, had given a green light to the offensive. Turkish officials were not immediately available to comment on Saturday.
Turkish intelligence directing extremist offensive in northwest Syria: Report
(November 30, 2024)
Militants from the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) currently invading Aleppo, Syria‘s second-largest city, are taking orders from Turkish intelligence, French news agency AFP reported on 30 November.
In meeting with Blinken, Egyptian FM says Lebanese army must control south
CAIRO – 26 November 2024: Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration Badr Abdelatty reiterated Monday in a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken the importance of empowering Lebanese state institutions, mainly the army so it would control the south.
Israeli army chief approves expansion of Lebanon ground invasion: Report
Israel‘s army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has approved the expansion of the ground invasion of southern Lebanon, according to Israel‘ Kan broadcaster.
The approval comes the same day Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said Israel had „defeated“ Hezbollah
Israel notifies UN of ending ties with UNRWA amid warning of famine in Gaza
In a statement on Monday, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it cancelled a cooperation agreement from 1967 which provided the legal basis of the country’s relations with UNRWA.
Bundestag verlängert Irak-Einsatz der Bundeswehr
Der Bundestag hat das Mandat für den Einsatz deutscher Soldaten im Irak um weitere 15 Monate verlängert. Für die Fortsetzung stimmte eine deutliche Mehrheit von 539 der anwesenden Abgeordneten (Nein: 93, Enthaltung: 2), wie das Präsidium nach namentlicher Abstimmung verkündete.
Jordan calls for UN Security Council to impose arms embargo on Israel
Jordan has called on the UN Security Council to impose a total arms embargo on Israel, citing its attacks on Palestinian and Lebanese civilians, UN peacekeepers, journalists, humanitarian workers, and Lebanese soldiers.
„Countries that truly want an end to the dangerous regional escalation and seek peace and security in the Middle East must immediately stop supplying Israel with the weapons it is using in its aggressions,“ Jordan‘s foreign minister Ayman Safadi wrote on X.
Netanyahu seeks continuous war as Israeli centre left favours state power
Even more surprising is the Israeli public’s near-total embrace over the last three weeks of Netanyahu’s declared desire to prosecute a war for “total victory”. Prior to this, hundreds of thousands of people were out on the streets, demanding a “deal now” and accusing the prime minister of prolonging the war for his own ends.
Now, it seems the majority of Israel’s Jewish public, from Ben Gvir supporters to fans of the centre-left Zionist Yair Golan, wants a never-ending war. Even the first casualties from the ground invasion of Lebanon are not shifting this support – at least so far.
Trump says Israel should ‚hit Iran‘s nuclear facilities first‘ days after Biden urges restraint
„Isn‘t that what you‘re supposed to hit? I mean, it‘s the biggest risk we have, nuclear weapons,“ he said.
„When they asked him that question, the answer should have been, hit the nuclear first, and worry about the rest later,“ Trump added.
Israel has given no assurances it won’t target Iran’s nuclear facilities, top State Department official tells CNN
The official added that it is “really hard to tell” if Israel will use the anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attacks to retaliate.
“We hope and expect to see some wisdom as well as strength, but as you guys know, no guarantees,” the official said when asked by CNN if Israel has assured the US that Iran’s nuclear sites are off the table.
U.S. downplays talk of Iraq withdrawal, says troops will stay in Syria
(September 27, 2024)
The announcement, coming two weeks after the Iraqi government said it had reached a deal with the Biden administration to remove most U.S. troops over the next two years, underscored Washington’s hesitancy to telegraph its military movements at a time of extreme volatility in the Middle East. But it also sowed confusion over the eventual end state of the Pentagon presence in the country.
Turkish president condemns Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, calls for global action
Erdogan criticized the international community for enabling Israel‘s actions, saying that as Tel Aviv continues to receive „weapons and ammunition support from its backers,“ it becomes „increasingly reckless, defying all humanity, humanitarian values, and international law.“
He stressed that Israel‘s „politics of madness,“ already seen in Gaza and Ramallah, must not be allowed to spread to Lebanon and other countries in the region.
„No person of conscience can accept, justify, or deem such a massacre legitimate,“ he said.
Netanyahu says security in Gaza is critical to stop Hamas smuggling hostages into Iran: ‚lost forever‘
According to Netanyahu, the best way to prevent these Hamas hostage smuggling efforts is through maintaining the contested Philadelphi Route – a security corridor that runs between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
Netanyahu is unequivocal about ceasefire and hostage agreement with Hamas: ‘There’s not a deal in the making’
(September 5, 2024)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday was as clear as he has ever been that he does not believe a ceasefire and hostage deal is likely in Gaza in a sharp rebuke to the Biden administration’s insistence it’s close at hand.
“There’s not a deal in the making,” Netanyahu told Fox News. “Unfortunately, it’s not close.”
Netanyahu derailed a potential Gaza hostage deal in July, Israeli newspaper reports
)September 4, 2024)
The report lends credence to charges often leveled at the prime minister – most notably by hostage families – of purposefully prolonging the war and torpedoing deals for his political benefit. Far-right members of Netanyahu’s coalition have pledged to bring down the government should he end the war.
Several news outlets, including CNN, have reported on the late July demands made by Netanyahu, but this is the first time the Israeli document has been obtained in full.
Israel, opposition leader accuses Netanyahu: He knew about the threat of October 7 and did nothing
In the weeks that followed, Lapid continued, he viewed classified intelligence provided to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that indicated that deterrence had indeed eroded. He also viewed highly classified material made available to him as a former prime minister. On September 18, 2023, there was “a further warning. For me, what was written there was unmistakable: Israel’s deterrence has eroded dramatically; our enemies think they have a rare opportunity to harm us,” Lapid said.
Netanyahu was warned a year before Oct. 7 that Hamas saw its ‘moment had arrived,’ Lapid tells civilian inquiry
“During the months leading up to the disaster, the prime minister and cabinet ministers received a series of serious, unprecedented warnings. From the middle of 2023 there were more and more voices within the terrorist organizations that said that the moment they had been waiting for had arrived,” he says.
Lapid recalls asking Bar “if these warnings were also brought before the prime minister and cabinet ministers, and the answer was: ‘Of course they were.‘”
Israeli opposition leader Lapid says Netanyahu was warned about Hamas
„I want to refute the statement that is made time and time again by the current government that, somehow, the political echelon was not aware that Hamas was not deterred,“ Lapid told the paper.
„It was indeed informed. I was informed,“ he said, adding that the intelligence material he saw „was of course, also seen by the prime minister and ministers of the Cabinet.“
„It was clear what they [Hamas] wanted,“ he said.
Netanyahu Let Hamas’ Oct 7 Attack Happen? Bombshell Claim By Arch Rival Amid 10 Months Of Gaza War
In a heated exchange, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Yair Lapid clashed over the handling of Hamas’ October 7 attack. Lapid accused Netanyahu of ignoring critical warnings that eroded national security, claiming the PM failed to act despite knowing a violent eruption was looming. In response, Netanyahu fired back, accusing Lapid of ‚spreading lies.‘ Watch for more.
Report: Gaza mediators setting aside Philadelphi Corridor for now, focusing on other issues
Unnamed senior officials tell Channel 12 news that mediators in ceasefire-hostage deal talks have decided to set aside the thorny issue of Israel’s presence in two Gaza corridors under a potential agreement, and are focusing on other matters.
US Won’t Sanction Israeli Military Units That Committed ‘Gross Human Rights Violations’
Blinken claimed that Tel Aviv had taken steps towards accountability and clarified the finding that five Israeli units committed “gross human rights violations” would have no impact on US aid to Israel.
“The Israeli government has presented new information regarding the status of the unit and we will engage on identifying a path to effective remediation for this unit,” Blinken wrote.
Exclusive: USAID officials say Israel breached US directive on Gaza aid
Israel is in violation of a White House directive requiring recipients of American military assistance to comply with international humanitarian law and permit the unimpeded delivery of U.S.-funded humanitarian support, USAID officials concluded in a confidential United States paper reviewed by Devex.
The findings earlier this month follow the Feb. 8 issuance of a national security memo from the White House instructing U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to “obtain credible and reliable written assurances” from U.S. weapons recipients that they will abide by international humanitarian law, and report those findings to the White House and Congress. In Israel’s case, it would only apply to offensive weapons.
Ukraine Sees ‘Hypocrisy’ in Western Allies’ Defense of Israel
The militaries of the United States, Britain, France and others stepped in to help Israel defend against the fusillade of more than 300 Iranian drones and missiles, nearly all of which were intercepted. A similar number of aerial weapons are fired at Ukraine on a weekly basis, its officials say, with many of the drones in those attacks designed by Iran and now produced by Russia.
Media In Tehran Accuse Russia, Syria Of Betraying IRGC
(10.04.2024)
In an editorial on April 8, Masih Mohajeri, the influential managing editor of Jomhouri Eslami daily, a newspaper that was founded by Ali Khamenei in 1979, asked: „Why Russia, which controls the Syrian airspace does not prevent air strikes on Iranian targets in Syria?“ Also implicating Syria and possibly Iranian infiltrators in tipping off the Israelis, Mohajeri wrote: „We have had too many losses in Syria during the past months and this is certainly because of the treason by infiltrators.“
Since December, Israel has eliminated 18 high ranking IRGC officers in Syria, in what appears to be a systematic campaign to limit the danger of Iranian proxies on its borders.
Scholz: Goals of Gaza war do not seem to justify the means
Germany has been one of Israel’s staunch allies in its war against Hamas.
In a manner akin to the Biden administration, Scholz has a stern message for Netanyahu about the IDF’s conduct during the war, particularly its failure to ensure the distribution of aid, which has led to a hunger crisis in Gaza.
Biden backs Schumer‘s criticism of Bibi
What they are saying: „I‘m not going to elaborate on his speech,“ Biden said in response to a question at the top of his meeting with the prime minister of Ireland at the White House.
„He made a good speech, and I think he expressed serious concern shared not only by him, but by many Americans,“ Biden added.
Israeli bombing of British doctors in Gaza may have used UK and US arms, investigators find
A UN investigation found that US and UK-manufactured weapons or parts may have been used to bomb British doctors working for British and American organisations in Gaza in January, the organisations involved have highlighted.
Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) also said this week that Israeli officials have offered six different explanations about why the residential compound housing their staff was hit.
The compound, which was not close to any other buildings, was struck around 6am on 18 January by an F-16 jet which „most likely'“ fired a 1,000-pound „smart bomb“, the UN investigation found.
The Republican Primary Is Over
The Republican presidential primary is over. Nikki Haley, the last remaining challenger to Donald Trump, plans to leave the race today, according to reports in The Wall Street Journal and other outlets, clearing the way for the former president to claim the GOP nomination.
UPDATED: German navy almost shot down US drone in Red Sea- Reports
The „Hesse“ frigate opened fire after efforts to identify an unknown drone „were unsuccessful“, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said during a visit to the German town of Oberviechtach, adding however that the target was „not hit“.
The drone later turned out to be a „reconnaissance drone“, he said.
According to Der Spiegel weekly, the frigate fired two missiles at the drone but both crashed into the sea because of „a technical defect“.