In photos: Aftermath of Israeli strikes on Gaza
This is an entry from: Gaza live: Israel kills 31 Palestinians since midnight
In photos: Aftermath of Israeli strikes on Gaza
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Middle East Eye
3 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Trump calls Netanyahu's corruption trial 'witch hunt' as he eyes progress on Gaza ceasefire
US President Donald Trump called for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption trial to be cancelled, calling it a 'ridiculous Witch Hunt', in an unprecedented intervention into Israel's domestic affairs. Trump, who is widely popular in Israel, wrote on his Truth Social media platform that Netanyahu's five-year trial was a 'TRAVESTY OF JUSTICE' and 'CAN NOT BE ALLOWED!' 'Bibi Netanyahu's trial should be CANCELLED, IMMEDIATELY, or a Pardon given to a Great Hero, who has done so much for the State,' Trump added. Netanyahu's corruption trial has been regularly delayed since the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023. The attack triggered a devastating years-long Israeli war on Gaza that Israel expanded into a regional war. Many analysts say Netanyahu has tied his political survival to continuing the regional war, particularly in Gaza, where Israeli troops continue to occupy land and engage Palestinian fighters. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Trump's comments on the corruption trial come as his administration turns its focus from Israel's "12-day war" with Iran, back to Gaza. 'I think great progress is being made on Gaza,' Trump told reporters at the Nato summit in The Hague, Netherlands. 'I think we're going to have some very good news.' On Thursday, Israel's Kan public broadcaster said Trump's post 'wasn't sent out for no reason" and was part of an effort to end the war in Gaza. 'It is part of a larger move that is meant to bring an end to the war in Gaza, the release of all the hostages, an end to Netanyahu's trial, and a serious regional move,' Kan cited an Israeli official as saying. More than 56,0000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel's offensive, and the besieged enclave is on the verge of famine. Israel has allowed a trickle of aid into the enclave through a programme controlled by an American private military contracting firm that has led to at least 549 Palestinian aid-seekers being killed. Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, has denied any wrongdoing in the trial, which began in May 2020. In one case, Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods, including cigars, jewellery, and champagne, from billionaires in exchange for political favours. In two other cases, Netanyahu is accused of attempting to negotiate more favourable coverage in two Israeli media outlets. Trump says he 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear programme. So does he need a deal? Read More » Trump's intervention comes after a whirlwind week which saw the US launch strikes on Iran's Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities. In return, Iran choreographed a retaliatory strike on a US military base in Qatar. Then Trump brokered a ceasefire between Iran and Israel. Trump lashed out at Israel and Iran on Tuesday as his ceasefire appeared to falter, saying the two foes 'have been fighting so long and so hard that they don't know what the fuck they're doing". Trump said he was especially mad at Israel, which he said 'unloaded' bombs on Iran because of an Iranian rocket 'that didn't land anywhere", adding, "I've got to get Israel to calm down now.' After warning Israel to turn its bombers around, Trump thanked Israel. He also profusely thanked Iran for giving the US advance warning about its retaliatory strike. Trump's intervention on behalf of Netanyahu could boost the Israeli leader at home. According to a Pew Poll released in June before Israel's attack on Iran, 73 percent of Jewish Israelis said they had confidence in Trump. However, Israelis are deeply divided, especially over internal differences such as ultra-Orthodox conscription into the army and the country's judicial crisis that had consumed the public before 7 October 2023. One of Netanyahu's coalition allies, Simcha Rothman of the far-right Religious Zionism party, called for Trump to stay out of Netanyahu's court case. "It is not the role of the president of the United States to interfere in legal proceedings in the State of Israel," said Rothman, who chairs the Israeli parliament's judicial affairs committee. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said it was "distorted, unreasonable, contrary to the basic sense of justice" to continue Netanyahu's trial while Israel is at war, also backing Trump's call to drop the charges.
Middle East Eye
6 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Israeli forces kill three Palestinians in violent West Bank settler assault
Israeli forces killed three men on Wednesday after intervening to protect settlers during a violent assault on a Palestinian town near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. The incident began at around 7pm when over 50 Israeli settlers descended on Kafr Malik from a recently established outpost between the town and Al-Mazra'a al-Sharqiya, east of Ramallah. The settlers set fire to parts of three homes and completely torched four vehicles. As residents gathered to confront the attackers, Israeli soldiers stormed the town and began firing live ammunition. Three men were killed and at least seven others were wounded, local officials said. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Jihad al-Qaq, a resident of Kafr Malik, told Middle East Eye that the settlers had targeted the southern part of the town. 'When residents gathered in large numbers, they surrounded the settlers, who were armed and began shooting at us,' he said. 'The army then stormed the town to protect them and opened fire on the residents. All injuries were to the upper body, showing that soldiers intended to kill or seriously injure,' Qaq added. 'All injuries were to the upper body, showing that soldiers intended to kill or seriously injure' - Jihad al-Qaq, Kafr Malik resident Emergency medical crews were reportedly blocked from reaching the wounded. Residents had to use private vehicles to transport the casualties to ambulances stationed outside the town. The main entrance to Kafr Malik has been closed off by Israeli forces with an iron gate for the past six months, forcing ambulances to take a longer route. 'The delay caused a deterioration in the condition of the wounded. Three of them died despite being conscious when we evacuated them. Seven others are being treated in hospital and are in stable condition,' Qaq said. In addition to the gunshot victims, 10 people suffered from teargas inhalation and bruises sustained during physical clashes with the settlers. Grief and anger On Monday, Israeli forces shot and killed 13-year-old Ammar Hamayel while he was walking on the outskirts of Kafr Malik with a friend. Ambulances were reportedly prevented from reaching him for 40 minutes. At the time of Wednesday's settler attack, residents of Kafr Malik were still mourning the boy's death and offering condolences to his family. The grief and anger fuelled a collective response, as residents mobilised to confront the settlers. 'He lay bleeding for a long time. By the time we managed to get him to hospital, he had died' - Munjed Hamayel, brother of killed Palestinian Among the three men killed during the confrontation was Lutfi Sabri, who had been released from Israeli detention in October 2023 after serving eight months in prison. Another was Muhammad al-Naji, a resident who was among those resisting the settler assault. The third fatality, 30-year-old Murshid Hamayel, was shot outside his home while trying to protect his children. His brother, Munjed Hamayel, told MEE that Murshid heard screams from outside and went to investigate. 'He found groups of settlers in front of him. Suddenly, the Israeli army opened fire. He was shot directly in the head and collapsed,' Munjed said. 'We couldn't reach him because of the gunfire. He lay bleeding for a long time. By the time we managed to get him to hospital, he had died.' Ali Salama, a community activist in Kafr Malik, said this was the first settler attack to target homes in the town in years. Even during the funeral procession for the three men on Thursday, he added, settlers stormed the town's outskirts again. Fear of annexation The homes attacked on Wednesday lie in Area C of the West Bank, under full Israeli control. Palestinians fear that such assaults are part of broader efforts to displace them and seize land under Israel's annexation policies. 'The eastern side of the town is surrounded by settlement outposts,' Salama said. 'Every hilltop is occupied by settlers who block residents from grazing livestock or farming while using the land themselves, part of a strategy to eventually take it over.' The southern side of Kafr Malik is bordered by a settlement road, while the Israeli army has kept the town's main entrance sealed since the start of the year. 'We raised funds to build a new road through a neighbouring town,' Salama said. 'We now have to travel over 40 kilometres to leave the area, instead of the usual 15. Ramallah is only 15 minutes away, but it now takes over an hour to reach.' Israel to take full control of land registry in West Bank's Area C, cementing annexation Read More » Ain Samia, a freshwater spring that once supplied the town, was seized by settlers at the beginning of the war on Gaza in October 2023. Since then, Palestinians have been barred from accessing it, and nearby Bedouin communities have been forcibly removed. According to the Palestinian Authority's Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, settlers have carried out over 5,000 attacks and assaults across the West Bank since October 2023. In a recent statement, the commission said 26 Palestinians have been killed by settler gunfire during this period. It accused Israeli authorities of enabling the violence. 'Settlers have intensified terrorist attacks against defenceless civilians as a result of the job-sharing and full support they receive from the occupying state's official institutions,' the statement read. 'We call on the international community and human rights organisations to act by protecting the Palestinian people and imposing sanctions on the occupying power.' Around 700,000 Israeli settlers live in roughly 300 illegal settlements in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem. Under international law, settlement construction in an occupied territory is illegal.
Middle East Eye
7 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
How supporters of 'Woman Life Freedom' in Iran rejected Israel's assault
The protests that followed the death in custody of Kurdish woman Mahsa Jina Amini in 2022 were arguably the most significant to rock Iran in decades. Tens of thousands took to the streets, enraged by the apparent killing of a woman arrested by morality police over how she wore her hijab, which exposed a range of other grievances that exploded into public view. The slogan "Woman Life Freedom", which has its roots in the pro-Kurdish groups associated with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), was taken up as the mantra of the movement and quickly spread among reformists and opponents of the Islamic Republic. When Israeli and US attacks began raining down on Iran on 13 June, some critics of the ruling establishment, particularly westerners and Iranians in the diaspora, began talking up the assault as an opportunity for regime change. That rhetoric was echoed by Israeli officials and even Donald Trump. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters But despite their animosity towards the Islamic Republic, few activists and critics in Iran see a change of governance being born from Israel or the US, or would welcome such a process. The East Kurdistan Free Women's Society (KJAR) is one of the most prominent Iranian groups associated with the Woman Life Freedom movement. Letter from death row Politically followers of PKK co-founder Abdullah Ocalan, the group is no stranger to repression in Iran. One of their members, Verisheh Moradi, who fought against the Islamic State group in Syria, is facing a death sentence for "armed rebellion" over her support for the 2022 protests. Speaking to Middle East Eye, Deniz Derya - a member of the group's coordination council - said Moradi was currently suffering from serious health issues, including a "cervical disc rupture and spinal canal stenosis". She also highlighted the deteriorating conditions facing their comrade Zeynab Jalalian, who has endured "years of severe torture" since being first arrested in 2008. Pakhshan Azizi, another KJAR member, was also sentenced to death in July 2024 over her involvement in the Mahsa Amini protests. Despite the hardships faced their activists at the hand of the state, however, KJAR has refused to back calls for the US or Israel to overthrow the Islamic Republic by force. Derya said a project is underway by "global powers" to "reshape the region" through Israel. 'Both the Israeli and Iranian states are fully aware of the transformative power of women' - Deniz Derya, KJAR "Wars between nation states have brought nothing but massacres, displacement, poverty and exile to the Middle East and beyond, because such conflicts are driven by state interests, not the interests of the people," she said. In spite of a ceasefire between Israel and Iran commencing on Tuesday under US pressure, few believe the conflict between the two countries is over, even if it has died down for the moment. Last week, Moradi joined fellow prisoners Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee, Sakineh Parvaneh and Reyhaneh Ansarinejad to issue a letter, published by the pro-Kurdish Firat News Agency, from the notorious Evin prison in Tehran. They accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and said its goal was to create a "weak and submissive" Middle East. Israel then bombed the prison. Derya said there was no real understanding of the implications or desires of the Woman Life Freedom movement by those still wedded to patriarchal ideologies. "Both the Israeli and Iranian states are fully aware of the transformative power of women. One seeks to co-opt it; the other, to crush it," she said. "However, the revolutionary uprising [of 2022] showed that, by relying on their own will, the people can bring about profound changes." Co-opt or crush The most prominent figure in the Iranian opposition to throw his weight behind the Israeli assault has been Reza Pahlavi, son of the former ruler of Iran whose ouster in 1979 led to the rise of the Islamic Republic. He expressed a desire to take power in Iran in the wake of the collapse of the current regime, and has praised Israeli and US strikes on the country. At a speech on Monday hours before the beginning of Trump's ceasefire announcement, Pahlavi gave a news conference in which he mentioned speaking to a woman whose brother was killed during the Woman Life Freedom protests in September 2022. Deniz Derya, member of the Coordination Council of the Free Women's Community of Eastern Kurdistan (supplied) "When security forces raided her home, she cried out: 'Oh God, where shall we go? Where shall we go to flee from your tyranny?'" he said. "One by one, her neighbours began to respond to her: 'We're not going anywhere! They, the regime, are the ones who've got to go!' These words echo in my heart - and should echo in every corridor of power around the world." Yet many in the opposition, particularly inside Iran, are less than thrilled by the prospect of a Pahlavi returning to power - not least the Kurdish groups who remember the repression meted out against them by his father. 'The regime cannot be done in from the sky. It must be on the ground' - member of Kurdish Iranian party They have balked at the use of the "Woman Life Freedom" slogan in social media by Pahlavi, or by his wife Yasmine, or by Benjamin Netanyahu. A member of a Kurdish independence party - who did not want to be identified - said that Iran's non-Persian population looked on Pahlavi being promoted by foreign media and politicians with dread. "The non-Persian nations are afraid that he will massacre and oppress them like their fathers and grandfathers," she said. She added that the dominance of the Persian majority in Iran meant there was little prospect of a popular uprising in the country any time soon and that an "external army" was needed to "liberate" Iranians of other backgrounds. "The regime cannot be done in from the sky. It must be on the ground," she said. 'Civil society of Iran' Some supporters of the Woman Life Freedom movement, however, have been somewhat more nuanced in their attitude to the most recent developments. While refusing to back the attacks on Iran, there are some Iranians who squarely lay the blame for the destruction on the Islamic Republic. Kawsar Fattahi, a senior member of the left-wing Komala party, said Iran had spent more than 40 years playing up the prospect of war with Israel and the current situation was the result. 'Stop seeing Israel and instead hear the voice of opposition groups' - Kawsar Fattahi, Komala "Despite widespread opposition from the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' movement, many hold the belief that this conflict might potentially undermine the government even further," she told MEE. "But the Iranian people should put an end to the regime." She said that Komala had no desire for outside forces to overthrow the Islamic Republic - just for the international community to stop "compromising" with it. Fattahi, who also previously fought the Islamic State group in Iraq as a Peshmerga commander, said the Iranian people began to shatter the Islamic Republic's "gender apartheid" in 2022 with the Mahsa Amini protests The Israeli co-opting of the "Woman Life Freedom" slogan, she added, was irrelevant in this context. "Stop seeing them and instead hear the voice of opposition groups," she said. "Woman Life Freedom is the soul of the civil society of Iran. The movement that can lead Iran to democracy and peace." What now? Both Israel and Iran launched missiles on Tuesday after the supposed beginning of Trump's ceasefire. However, the US president has responded forcefully to Israel, warning Netanyahu against further attacks. The assault seems to have hardened some views towards outside intervention. Violins over violence: Tehran's musicians fought fear with music Read More » Narges Mohammedi, a Nobel Prize-winning women's rights campaigner and former political prisoner, who was under house arrest, advocated an end to Iran's nuclear ambitions and the "resignation of the current leaders" of the country during the strikes. In the wake of the attacks on Tehran, which forced her to flee the capital, she became much more forcefully critical of the strikes, warning like many others that "democracy cannot come through war". While few believe this marks the end of conflict between Iran and Israel, the pause is likely to lead to recriminations domestically in both countries. Iranian authorities are already thought to have arrested scores of alleged Israeli spies since Israel launched its attacks on 13 June. Fattahi said that she was concerned that in the coming days - assuming no more Israeli or US strikes were forthcoming - the Iranian state would come down on suspected collaboraters and opposition groups like a tonne of bricks. "For the time being, it is unclear what the outcome of this conflict will be, but if it does not destabilise the Iranian government completely, it will lead to even more repression of its own people, particularly Kurdish groups," she said. "For the simple reason that they are so terrified of a popular rebellion that they are willing to resort to extreme measures like mass imprisonment and executions of inmates to prove that they are still in control."
