Author: Gulf News Week
Donald Trump unveils a complex three-tier governing structure for Gaza that places Trump and pro-Israel officials at the top, while Palestinians are relegated to municipal duties.US President Donald Trump has officially outlined the architecture of the “Board of Peace”, which is expected to “fulfill” Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza, days after US envoy Steve Witkoff launched “phase two” of the United States-brokered plan to end Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.A statement published by the White House on Saturday details a three-tiered power structure – with a US-led “Board of Peace” comprised of billionaires and figures close to Israel at the…
Any governance structure that does not take into account the Palestinian national aspirations is doomed to failure.Last week, just as Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip intensified, United States presidential envoy Steven Witkoff announced on social media that the “ceasefire” is entering its second stage. In the following days, the administration of US President Donald Trump unveiled the makeup of a foreign executive committee and a peace board that will oversee the provisional administration of Gaza composed of Palestinian technocrats.This setup reflects the wishes of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that neither Hamas nor the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority (PA) would…
Agreement will see government takeover of SDF-controlled areas, and SDF integration into the Syrian military.The Syrian government has announced a ceasefire has been agreed with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that will involve the withdrawal of the latter’s forces from areas west of the Euphrates River, according to Syrian state media.Sunday’s deal will also see SDF forces integrate into the Syrian military.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Recent fighting in Syria is “a nightmare scenario for the US”list 2 of 3Syrian army advances on SDF stronghold of Raqqa: What’s the latest?list 3 of 3Photos: Syrian government forces…
United Nations rights chief Volker Turk visits Sudan and says people in country are going through ‘hell’.United Nations rights chief Volker Turk says the war in Sudan has put its people through “horror and hell”, as Sudan’s population continues to face acute food insecurity and displacement.During his first visit to Sudan since the war began in April 2023, Turk said it was “despicable” that funds that “should be used to alleviate the suffering of the population” were instead spent on advanced weapons, especially drones.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Harrowing testimonies of sexual assault in Sudan brought to…
Gaza City, al-Mawasi, Bureij refugee camp and Rafah all come under Israeli air attacks and gunfire.Israeli forces have wounded several Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, firing on civilians and launching air and artillery attacks in the latest near-daily violations of the ceasefire in place since October, as its genocidal war on the besieged enclave continues unabated.Medical sources told the Palestinian news agency Wafa that Israeli drone fire on Sunday injured civilians in the Zeitoun neighbourhood in southern Gaza City. In southern Gaza, two people, including a girl, were wounded by Israeli gunfire in al-Mawasi, west of Khan Younis.Recommended Stories list…
Moscow is focused on winning in Ukraine; all else is a means to that end.The abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the United States military and the subsequent threats by Washington to intervene in Iran during its recent upheaval have generated a tide of enthusiasm in hawkish pro-Ukraine circles in the West. If Moscow’s allies are weakened, then Russia also gets weaker, the simplistic logic goes.Although he criticised US interventionism in the past, US President Donald Trump is newly infected with the regime change fever once spread by his Democratic predecessors.What it reminds one of most is the export…
Zeynep Sonmez runs and helps a fainting ball girl by guiding her to a seat during her shock win in the first round.Zeynep Sonmez has earned a place in fans’ hearts as well as the second round of the Australian Open when the Turkish qualifier rushed to the aid of a ball girl who had fainted in the punishing Melbourne heat.The world number 112 was locked in battle with 11th-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova on Sunday and waiting to receive serve in the second set when the girl, who was positioned beside the chair umpire, suddenly wobbled and fell on her back…
Senior clergy say outside agendas are fracturing Christian unity in the Holy Land and undermining their authority.Senior Christian leaders in Jerusalem have issued a warning against outside interference threatening the unity and future of Christianity in the Holy Land, singling out “Christian Zionism” and political actors linked to Israel.In a statement released on Saturday, the Patriarchs and Heads of the Churches in Jerusalem said recent activities by local individuals advancing “damaging ideologies, such as Christian Zionism”, “mislead the public, sow confusion, and harm the unity of our flock”.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Trump’s ‘board of peace’ appears…
Syria’s army accelerates its campaign, securing key infrastructure and forcing Kurdish-led SDF retreat.The Syrian army has taken full control of the strategic city of Tabqa and its military airport on the Euphrates River, expanding a rapid offensive in Raqqa province, state media reported.Information Minister Hamza al-Mustafa said early on Sunday that government forces had secured Tabqa and the nearby Euphrates Dam, Syria’s largest, after expelling fighters linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Syrian army takes control of east Aleppo towns as Kurdish fighters withdrawlist 2 of 3US urges de-escalation as Syrian army…
Legal appeals by Palestinians facing largest-scale evictions in occupied East Jerusalem since 1967 were denied in the new year.Batn al-Hawa, Occupied East Jerusalem – During his last days in the only home he’s ever known, Kayed Rajabi is spending most of his time on the family’s rooftop, gazing at Al-Aqsa Mosque just a stone’s throw across the Silwan valley. “Smoke, smoke, smoke,” Rajabi says anxiously, a cigarette in his hand. “That is all we can do.”A street sweeper for Jerusalem’s municipality, Rajabi has stopped going to work, afraid his family might be thrown out of their home while he’s out.…