Hezbollah is a ‘cancer,' Iran brought region to ‘dangerous place,' Morgan Ortagus says
US Special Envoy for Middle East Peace Morgan Ortagus has called for the complete disarmament of Hezbollah, comparing the Iran-backed group to a 'cancer' within Lebanon that must be excised if the country is to have any hope of recovery.
In a Special Interview on Al Arabiya News presented by Hadley Gamble, the senior Trump administration official accused Iran of dragging the Middle East into a perilous new phase of instability.
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Saudi Gazette
35 minutes ago
- Saudi Gazette
Palestinians say local gunmen and Israeli forces opened fire near Gaza aid site
GAZA — Palestinians in Gaza say they were fired on once again as they headed to one of the aid distribution centres run by the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation on Monday. Witnesses said that for the first time they were fired on by Palestinian gunmen near the GHF site in the Tal al-Sultan area of Rafah, in the south. They also said Israeli troops fired on them. Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry said six people were killed and 99 injured from areas designated for aid collection. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. The GHF said the Tal al-Sultan site did not open on Monday and that there were no incidents at two other sites which did hand out aid. It comes days after Israel's prime minister acknowledged that it was arming Palestinian clans in Gaza who were opposed to Hamas. Almost every day since the GHF began distributing aid on 26 May, there have been deadly incidents near one or other of the four centres it has so far opened. Dozens of Palestinians have been killed while approaching one site in the Tal al-Sultan area of Rafah on a route that runs through an Israeli military zone. In the previous incidents, witnesses have said that Israeli forces opened fire at crowds. The Israeli military has denied that troops fired at civilians within the site, but it has said that troops fired at "suspects" who ignored warning shots and approached them. In Monday's incident, people at the scene said that Palestinian gunmen shot at them, as well as Israeli forces. They said the gunmen appeared to be allied with the Israeli forces, as they were operating near them and moved back into an Israeli military zone. One witness told BBC Arabic's Middle East daily programme that he saw a group of young men dressed in civilian clothes and with their faces completely covered when he arrived in the area to get a box of food aid from the GHF site. "At first, we thought they might be Palestinian youths helping with the process, but suddenly, they began shooting at us," Hisham Saeed Salem said. "Even those who managed to get a box of aid were targeted and shot. We still don't know who these attackers are. They took everything from us - some even stole from us during the chaos," he added. Another man, Mohammed Sakout, said: "Several young men were shot and killed right behind me. I narrowly escaped death - some bullets passed just inches from my head." "At first, it was the Israeli army that was shooting at civilians. But today, we were shocked to discover the presence of gangs and militias," he added. At Nasser hospital in the nearby city of Khan Younis, a seriously injured man being treated for a gunshot wound to his neck, Mohammed Kabaga, told the Associated Press: "A group of masked armed men who were organising us starting firing towards us directly." "We went to get aid. They said to stand in line. We stood in line and suddenly they started shooting at us. While I was standing, I was surprised when a bullet hit me, I got dizzy and fell down," he said. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told the BBC that it was looking into the reports. The GHF said in a statement that it opened two sites on Monday in the Saudi neighbourhood of Rafah and Wadi Gaza, in the centre of the Strip, and that "aid distribution at both sites proceeded without incident". When asked by the BBC about the reports from Tal al-Sultan, a GHF spokesperson said there was "nothing around our sites". However, a post on the group's Facebook account did say on Monday afternoon that the Tal al-Sultan centre was closed due to the "chaos of the crowds". The GHF's interim executive director, John Acree, said it had delivered more than 11 million meals over the past two weeks "without an injury or major incident at our distribution sites". Gaza's health ministry said hospitals had received a total of 127 dead and 1,287 injured people from "areas designated for aid distribution" during the same period. The GHF, which uses US private security contractors, aims to bypass the UN as the main supplier of aid to Palestinians. The UN and other aid groups refuse to co-operate with the new system, saying it contravenes the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality, and independence. They also warn that Gaza's 2.1 million population faces catastrophic levels of hunger after an almost three-month total Israeli blockade that was partially eased three weeks ago. The US and Israel say the GHF's system will prevent aid being stolen by Hamas, which the group denies doing. The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. At least 54,927 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's health ministry. — BBC
Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
Trump says Iran is involved in Gaza hostage negotiations
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Monday Iran is involved in negotiations aimed at arranging a ceasefire-for-hostages deal between Israel and Hamas. 'Gaza right now is in the midst of a massive negotiation between us and Hamas and Israel, and Iran actually is involved, and we'll see what's going to happen with Gaza. We want to get the hostages back,' Trump told reporters during an event in the White House State Dining Room. Trump did not elaborate and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for details of Iran's involvement. Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The United States has proposed a 60-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Israel said it would abide by the terms but Hamas thus far has rejected the plan. Under the proposal 28 Israeli hostages — alive and dead — would be released in the first week, in exchange for the release of 1,236 Palestinian prisoners and the remains of 180 dead Palestinians. The United States and Iran are also separately trying to negotiate a deal on Tehran's nuclear program.
Al Arabiya
10 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Israeli military spokesperson urges evacuation of three Yemeni ports
The Israeli military's Arabic spokesperson urged the evacuation of the Houthi-controlled Yemeni ports of Ras Isa, Hodeidah and Salif, in an X post on Monday. The Iran-aligned Houthi group and Israel have been exchanging attacks since October 7, 2023, as the Yemeni group vowed to target Israel in what it says is support of Palestinians in Gaza during the war with Israel.
