Author: Gulf News Week

Fighting between Bedouin tribes and local fighters in Syria’s predominantly Druze city of Suwayda has killed dozens. Israel has attacked Syrian government forces in a wave of deadly air strikes, at the same time as violence has gripped the southern province of Suwayda. In the spotlight is Syria’s Druze minority, also present in Israel. What does the fighting spell for Syria’s future? In this episode: Osama Bin Javaid (@osamabinjavaid), media correspondent Episode credits: This episode was produced by Amy Walters and Tamara Khandaker, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Duha Mosaad, Melanie Marich, Marya Khan, Kisaa Zehra and our guest host, Manuel…

The Israeli bombings come after the Syrian government and a Druze leader both said the truce had been broken.Israeli forces have launched air strikes on Suwayda in southern Syria, as fighting returned to the predominantly Druze city hours after the Syrian government declared a ceasefire. The Syrian Ministry of Interior said in a statement on Tuesday that armed groups had resumed attacks on Syrian government forces with support from the Israeli Air Force. Syria condemned Israel’s intervention as a violation of international law, while influential Druze Sheikh Hikmat al-Hajri said in a statement that it was Syrian government troops who…

Francesca Albanese addresses delegates from 30 countries to discuss ways nations can try to stop Israel’s offensive.The United Nations’s special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territory has said that it is time for nations around the world to take concrete actions to stop Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza. Francesca Albanese spoke to delegates from 30 countries meeting in Colombia’s capital, Bogota, on Tuesday to discuss Israel’s brutal assault and ways nations can try to stop the offensive in the besieged enclave. Many of the participating nations have described Israel’s war on Gaza as a genocide against the Palestinians. More than 58,000…

Trump’s envoy Mike Huckabee calls the killing of 20-year-old Sayfollah Musallet in occupied West Bank a ‘criminal’ act.The administration of United States President Donald Trump has called on Israel to probe the killing of 20-year-old American citizen Sayfollah Musallet, who was beaten to death by settlers in the occupied West Bank, calling the incident a “terrorist act”. Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, said on Tuesday that he asked Israel to “aggressively investigate” the killing of the Florida-born Musallet, who was visiting family when he was attacked in the Palestinian town of Sinjil. “There must be accountability for this…

Famine looms in Gaza and strikes kill at least 30 Palestinians, but EU states remain divided over how to tackle Israel.EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the 27-member bloc was leaving the door open to action against Israel over its assault on the besieged and bombarded Gaza Strip if the humanitarian situation does not improve. Kallas put forward 10 potential options on Tuesday after Israel was found to have breached a cooperation deal between the two sides on human rights grounds. The measures range from suspending the entire accord or curbing trade ties to sanctioning Israeli ministers, imposing an…

The strikes targeted areas in the Bekaa Valley, including a Syrian refugee camp, Lebanon’s state news agency says.Israeli air strikes have killed at least 12 people, including five Hezbollah fighters, in eastern Lebanon, according to Lebanese state media reports, in what Israel said was a warning to the armed group against trying to re-establish itself. Eight other people were wounded on Tuesday in the Israeli air strikes that hit the Wadi Fara area in the northern Bekaa Valley, including a camp for displaced Syrians, Lebanon’s National News Agency said. The Israeli military said its air strikes targeted training camps used…

Ten years since JCPOA’s signing, Netanyahu’s fear of peace has fuelled chaos. West Asia must respond with unity.Ten years ago, on July 14, I joined my counterparts from China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union to announce the conclusion of a unique achievement of diplomacy, bringing a peaceful end to an unnecessary crisis founded on lies and a blatant policy of securitisation to divert global attention from the real nuclear threat to peace in West Asia. The entire world celebrated the conclusion of the Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive…

The PKK began its first phase of disarmament last week, analysts say the process will be felt regionally.On Friday, 30 fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) threw their weapons into a bonfire at a meeting in Sulaimaniyah, a city in the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq. After hiding out in Iraq’s Qandil Mountains for three decades, where they reportedly trained for combat and planned attacks against Turkiye, they were now renouncing their armed struggle. The symbolic gesture is the first phase of disarming the PKK as part of a rejuvenated peace process with Turkiye, which could end a…

The UN office reports 757 settler attacks on Palestinians since January, up 13 percent from 2024, as deaths since January near 1,000.Israeli settlers and security forces have intensified their killings, attacks and harassment of Palestinians in recent weeks in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the United Nations human rights office warns. The violence also includes the demolitions of hundreds of homes and forced mass displacement of Palestinians as well as annexations of more land in violation of international law, Thameen Al-Kheetan, spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), told reporters in Geneva…

Resignation of United Torah Judaism lawmakers leaves Netanyahu with razor thin 61-seat majority in the 120 seat Knesset.Israel’s ultra-Orthodox party, United Torah Judaism (UTJ), has announced it is quitting the country’s fractious right-wing coalition due to a long-running dispute over mandatory military service, threatening Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hold on power. Six of the remaining seven members of UTJ, which is comprised of the Degel HaTorah and Agudat Yisrael factions, wrote letters of resignation, Israeli media reported late on Monday. UTJ chairman Yitzhak Goldknopf had resigned a month ago. A spokesperson for Goldknopf confirmed that, in all, seven UTJ Knesset…