Israeli strikes target Syria's Latakia, Tartous
CAIRO, May 30 (Reuters) - Israeli strikes targeted Syria's coastal cities of Latakia and Tartous, killing one person, the Syrian state news agency reported on Friday, despite recent talks between Israel and Syria's interim government.
The Israeli military confirmed shortly after it struck what it described as weapon storage facilities containing missiles that "posed a threat to international and Israeli maritime freedom of navigation" in Latakia.
One civilian was killed in the strike on Latakia, the Syrian state news agency reported.
Israel has for years waged a campaign of aerial bombardment that destroyed much of the country's military infrastructure and this ramped up since the Israeli war in Gaza.
But the strikes have largely stopped in recent weeks as the two sides engaged in direct talks aimed at avoiding conflict.
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The Guardian
5 hours ago
- The Guardian
Palestinians gunned down while trying to reach food aid site in Gaza, hospital says
More than 20 people were killed on Sunday as they went to receive food at an aid distribution point set up by an Israeli-backed foundation in the Gaza Strip, according to a hospital run by the Red Cross that received the bodies. Witnesses told the Associated Press that Israeli forces opened fire on people as they headed toward the aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). 'There were many martyrs, including women,' the 40-year-old resident said. 'We were about 300 metres away from the military.' Media reports said dozens of people were being treated at the hospital after the latest incident at the controversial site in Rafah. Officials at the field hospital did not say who opened fire but added that another 175 people were wounded. An Associated Press reporter saw dozens of people being treated at the hospital. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The foundation said in a statement that it delivered aid 'without incident' early on Sunday and has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones where independent access is limited. Ibrahim Abu Saoud, a witness who spoke to the Associated Press, said the Israeli military fired about 300 metres away. He said he saw many people with gunshot wounds, including a young man who he said died at the scene: 'We weren't able to help him.' Mohammed Abu Teaima, 33, said he saw Israeli forces open fire and kill his cousin and another woman as they were heading to the hub. He said his cousin was shot in his chest and died at the scene. Many others were wounded, including his brother-in-law, he said. 'They opened heavy fire directly toward us,' he said as he was waiting outside the Red Cross field hospital for word on his wounded relative. The hub is part of a controversial new aid system. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, while GHF said the private security contractors guarding its sites did not fire on the crowds. On 28 May, Hamas accused Israel of killing at least three Palestinians and wounding 46 near one of the GHF's distribution sites, an accusation the group denied. The Israeli military said its troops fired warning shots in the area outside the compound to re-establish control as thousands of Palestinians rushed to an aid distribution site. Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies in March, saying Hamas was seizing deliveries for its fighters, which the group denies. Earlier this month, a global hunger monitor said half a million people in the strip faced starvation. The IPC estimated that nearly 71,000 children under the age of five were expected to be 'acutely malnourished', with 14,100 cases expected to be severe in the next 11 months. The UN and other humanitarian organisations have rejected the new system for food distribution, saying it would not be able to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people and allowed Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. They have also said there was a risk of friction between Israeli troops and hungry people seeking supplies. The organisations added that the newly formed group had no experience and so would not be able to handle the logistics of feeding more than 2 million people in a devastated combat zone, a prediction the dangerous scenes in recent days appeared to confirm. The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa), Philippe Lazzarini, said on Wednesday that the new – US-backed – distribution model was a waste of resources and a distraction from 'atrocities'. 'We already have an aid distribution system that is fit for purpose,' Lazzarini said. 'The humanitarian community in Gaza, including Unrwa, is ready. We have the experience and expertise to reach people in need. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking towards famine, so humanitarian [work] must be allowed to do its life-saving work now.' The incident comes as Hamas on Saturday said it had submitted its response containing some amendments to a proposal presented by Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, to mediators, the most concrete sign of progress towards a ceasefire since March. The Palestinian group said in a statement that under the deal, it will release 10 living hostages and 18 bodies in return for Israel's release of Palestinian prisoners – a change to the US's latest proposal that will make it more difficult for Israel to resume fighting if talks on a permanent ceasefire are not completed by the end of the truce. The updated proposal includes a demand for an end to the war, which had previously been a red line for Israel, and envisions the release of the Israelis held captive in Gaza being spread out more throughout the 60-day truce, rather than in two batches on the first and seventh day as the US offer suggested. Witkoff responded on Saturday evening by saying the Hamas response was 'totally unacceptable and only takes us backward'. 'Hamas should accept the framework proposal we put forward as the basis for proximity talks, which we can begin immediately this coming week,' he said. 'That is the only way we can close a 60-day ceasefire deal in the coming days in which half of the living hostages and half of those who are deceased will come home to their families and in which we can have at the proximity talks substantive negotiations in good faith to try to reach a permanent ceasefire.' The Israeli prime minister's office said: 'While Israel has agreed to the updated Witkoff outline for the release of our hostages, Hamas continues to adhere to its refusal … Israel will continue its action for the return of our hostages and the defeat of Hamas.' A senior Hamas official responded that the group 'did not reject' the hostage release proposal, and that Witkoff's response to their answer was 'unfair' and showed 'complete bias' in favour of Israel. Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report
The Independent
7 hours ago
- The Independent
At least 21 Palestinians killed while heading to Gaza aid hub, hospital says
At least 21 people were killed on Sunday as they went to receive aid from an Israeli-backed foundation in the Gaza Strip, according to a hospital run by the Red Cross that received the bodies. Officials at the field hospital said another 175 people were wounded, without saying who opened fire on them. An Associated Press reporter saw dozens of people being treated at the hospital. Witnesses said Israeli forces opened fire on people as they headed toward an aid distribution site. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. New aid system marred by chaos The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation 's distribution of aid has been marred by chaos, and multiple witnesses have said Israeli troops fired on crowds near the delivery sites. Before Sunday, at least six people had been killed and more than 50 wounded according to local health officials. The foundation says the private security contractors guarding its sites did not fire on the crowds, while the Israeli military has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions. The foundation did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In an earlier statement, it said it distributed 16 truckloads of aid early Sunday 'without incident.' It dismissed what it referred to as 'false reporting about deaths, mass injuries and chaos.' Shooting broke out near distribution hub The gunfire on Sunday erupted at a roundabout around a kilometer (1,000 yards) from the distribution site, in an area that is controlled by Israeli forces, witnesses said. Ibrahim Abu Saoud, an eyewitness, said Israeli forces opened fire at people moving toward the aid distribution center. 'There were many martyrs, including women,' the 40-year-old resident said. 'We were about 300 meters (yards) away from the military.' Abu Saoud said he saw many people with gunshot wounds, including a young man who he said had died at the scene. 'We weren't able to help him,' he said. Mohammed Abu Teaima, 33, said he saw Israeli forces open fire and kill his cousin and another woman as they were heading to the hub. He said his cousin was shot in his chest and died at the scene. Many others were wounded, including his brother-in-law, he said. 'They opened heavy fire directly toward us,' he said as he was waiting outside the Red Cross field hospital for word on his wounded relative. The hub is part of a controversial new aid system Israel and the United States say the new system is aimed at preventing Hamas from siphoning off assistance. Israel has not provided any evidence of systematic diversion, and the U.N. denies it has occurred. U.N. agencies and major aid groups have refused to work with the new system, saying it violates humanitarian principles because it allows Israel to control who receives aid and forces people to relocate to distribution sites, risking yet more mass displacement in the territory. The U.N. system has struggled to bring in aid after Israel slightly eased its total blockade of the territory last month. Those groups say Israeli restrictions, the breakdown of law and order, and widespread looting make it extremely difficult to deliver aid to Gaza's roughly 2 million Palestinians. Experts have warned that the territory is at risk of famine if more aid is not brought in. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. They are still holding 58 hostages, around a third of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israel's military campaign has killed over 54,000 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. The offensive has destroyed vast areas of the territory, displaced around 90% of its population and left people almost completely reliant on international aid. ___ Magdy reported from Cairo. ___
Reuters
17 hours ago
- Reuters
Trump meets Syria's Sharaa, urges for normalized ties
U.S. President Donald Trump met with Syria's president Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday (May 14) and urged him to normalize ties with long-time foe Israel, after a surprise U.S. announcement that it would lift all sanctions on the Islamist-led government. Diane To reports.
