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NDTV
a day ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Gaza Militia Leader Yasser Abu Shabab Denies Israeli Ties, Urges Hamas To Step Down
Yasser Abu Shabab, the controversial leader of an armed militia in Gaza, has denied working with Israel, insisting his group's mission is to protect Palestinian civilians from Hamas. The remarks, shared through Israeli Army Radio, the Center for Peace Communications, and CNN, come amid growing scrutiny over Israel's alleged support for rival factions inside Gaza. "We do not work with Israel. Our goal is to protect the Palestinians from Hamas terror," he was quoted as saying in a series of text messages to Army Radio. "Our weapons are not from Israel, they are simple arms we collected from the local population." He added, "These rumours are meant to harm our reputation and create hostility between us, Israel, and Arab states." Abu Shabab told CNN that his group, called the 'Popular Forces', has local citizens who "volunteered to protect humanitarian aid from looting and corruption." While Abu Shabab insists his group acts independently, Israeli defence sources confirmed last week that Israel is secretly arming local clans in Gaza, including Abu Shabab's, to weaken Hamas. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the move, saying security forces "activated clans in Gaza which oppose Hamas," without naming Abu Shabab, as per The Times Of Israel. Israeli officials also told CNN that Abu Shabab was part of the programme. He responded, saying, "Our forces do not engage in any form of communication with the Israeli army, neither directly nor indirectly." "If any coordination takes place it will be humanitarian, for the benefit of our people in eastern Rafah, and will be carried out through mediation channels," he added. In an audio clip published by the New York-based Center for Peace Communications, authenticity unverified, a voice identified as Abu Shabab's said, "We are not working with the occupation," while calling on Hamas to "step down from government." Abu Shabab told CNN his group's gear is "extremely basic, passed down by volunteers from their forefathers or assembled from limited local resources." Once linked to drug smuggling and extremist groups like Daesh, Abu Shabab has rebranded as a civilian protector in Gaza. Social media videos show his fighters unloading aid and building camps in Israeli-controlled zones, raising questions about his movements. A late-May video, verified by CNN, shows him near the Kerem Shalom crossing speaking with a Red Cross official. Muhammad Shehada, a Gaza analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said, "It's nearly impossible this is being done inside Gaza. It's probably someone outside that is running this entire psy-op." Hamas, which reportedly killed Abu Shabab's brother last year, has condemned him as a "traitor and gangster." A recent statement by the group pledged to "continue confronting the dens of that criminal and his gang, no matter the cost." Abu Shabab claims his group operates under "Palestinian legitimacy," hinting at ties with the Palestinian Authority, though the PA has not confirmed this. His militia has expanded recently, building tent camps in eastern Rafah and urging displaced families to return with promises of food, shelter, and security. He said his fighters escorted 101 aid trucks, mostly from the World Food Programme. "Protecting vulnerable civilians is one of our top priorities," he told CNN. The US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation denied any connection, saying none of their workers are armed or linked to Abu Shabab's group.
Fox News
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Iraqi activists seek to oust Iranian influence, normalize ties with Israel
FIRST ON FOX - A group of young Iraqis launched an initiative called "Iraq Only" with the goal of having better relations with the U.S. and eliminating Iranian militia's hold over Iraq. The campaign, which involved posting stickers printed with the Iraqi flag and placed over images of militia leaders in Iraq, was a grassroots initiative started by young people to empower the rule of law and build a democratic and citizen-based state in Iraq, free of Iranian influence. Fox News Digital spoke exclusively with one of the activists who spearheaded the recent effort, Muqtada al-Tamimi, about his experience of social activism, their goals for Iraq's future, and being kidnapped for his activity of sounding the alarm on Iranian influence. "We as activists suffer the most from Iranian influence over Iraq. Many of us have been kidnapped and taken into illegal detention centers run by Iranian-backed militias. And some were killed," al-Tamimi, who is a businessman and in his late 20s, told Fox News Digital through his interpreter. Al-Tamimi and some of his fellow activists were kidnapped by Iranian-aligned armed groups and were tortured for five days. They were shackled, abused, tortured and had their phones and personal data confiscated without any legal document or judge's signature proving they had the right to access these documents. "We as activists are persecuted for simply trying to raise our own flag, the Iraqi flag," al-Tamimi lamented. Al-Tamimi said the Iranian militias act with impunity and don't respect the Iraqi constitution or Iraqis' rights as citizens. "The people most harmed by Iranian militias are people like us who call for peace and co-existence in Iraq and with our neighboring countries," he said. Al-Tamimi and his fellow activists want a strong Iraq that has a stable and integrated economy with the West. "We believe that an Iraqi alliance with the West would make Iraq stronger, stable, and more prosperous." Al-Tamimi and his associates' desire to remove Iranian influence and move Iraq closer to the U.S. and the West is what leaders in Tehran fear most. The groundwork for the activism was first laid in 2021 when 312 Iraqis from the Shi'a and Sunni communities convened in Erbil in a conference facilitated by the Center for Peace Communications (CPC), and called for peace and normalization with Israel. Once word of the conference spread across international media, the Iran-backed militias issued death threats, and the Iraqi government issued arrest warrants for conference organizers. CPC took measures to protect all participants from jail or being harmed. "The Iraq Only movement speaks to pent-up Iraqi demand for peace, development, and an end to Iranian domination. We wish these young men and women Godspeed in driving change, and hope the U.S. will do everything it can to help them," CPC's founder and president Joseph Braude told Fox News Digital. Iraq has become a central battleground for regional dominance between U.S. and coalition forces and Iran. Tehran uses allies in Iraq to exert its regional influence and also undermine Iraqi sovereignty through various proxy forces. The Islamic Resistance of Iraq is a group of armed Islamic resistance factions under the umbrella of the Iran-backed "Axis of Resistance." These groups are the most difficult for the Iraqi government to manage and were responsible for the attack that killed three U.S. service members in Jordan in January 2024. The IRI has been engaging in armed operations against Israel and U.S. coalition forces since Oct. 7. Also operating in Iraq are the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), which were formed in 2014 to fight ISIS. Iraq Only is also supportive of U.S. forces on Iraqi soil, even as the status of the 2,500 troops in the country remains uncertain. "The American presence in Iraq does not at all contradict a strong Iraq but the opposite. A good relationship with the United States means a strong Iraq." Al-Tamimi said he understands and appreciates the heavy price paid by American forces in upholding the stability and security of Iraq since the invasion of 2003. One aspect of their platform that may raise eyebrows is their recognition of Israel's place in the Middle East and their desire for closer ties with Israel. "Israel is a great country and has a great culture. We share with them a lot of the geography and as we are looking at and seeking a strong Iraq, we need to seek a strong partnership with a country like Israel if needed." Al-Tamimi also notes that everyday Iraqis have suffered and paid a high price because of the alliance between Iraq and Iran. Physical infrastructure was destroyed, and Iranian interference undermined state institutions. Eradicating Iranian influence will help Iraq, in their view, ultimately become safer and more prosperous. "We think once we have a strong relationship with Israel and the United States, we will have a strong Iraq." Al-Tamimi also sees positive signs for Iraq and the Middle East after the fall of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad in Syria. "We believe the removal of the Assad regime is a very good step for undermining Iranian influence in the region and gives us as Iraqis hope for better change in the region."
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump's Gaza relocation proposal sparks heated debate among Palestinians: ‘no life left here'
President Donald Trump's suggestion that Palestinians should leave Gaza to rebuild their lives after months of war has triggered a wave of reactions, exposing deep divisions within the enclave and across the Arab world. Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House last week, Trump outlined his vision for Gaza's future, describing it as "the Riviera of the Middle East." His proposal to relocate 1.8 million Palestinians sparked outrage among Palestinian leaders and drew mixed reactions from Gazans. While some Gazans have rejected emigration, others see it as their only hope. "I'm asking Donald Trump himself to relocate us as he suggested. And I'll be the first one to go," one young man told the Center for Peace Communications team in Gaza during a camera interview. The man described his bleak reality, saying, "I want to leave because there's no life left here. Life here is gone. I mean, just look around you." The History Of Gaza Amid Trump's Plan To Rebuild Enclave Another Gazan called on neighboring Arab countries to provide an escape route. "To our brotherly Egyptian and Jordanian people and King Abdullah—we hope they open the crossing for the youth who are leaving, for the wounded, for the sick, and the elderly who need treatment." Read On The Fox News App Jordan's King Abdullah is set to meet with President Trump on Tuesday, having rejected his plan for annexing Gaza and displacing Palestinians, Reuters reported. The Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research poll conducted before the October 7 terror attacks found that 31% of Gazans were already considering emigration—44% among young people. The most popular countries were Turkey, followed by Germany, Canada, the United States and Qatar. The poll's authors said, "The main drivers seem economic, political, educational, security and concerns about corruption." Joseph Braude, founder and president of the Center for Peace Communications, told Fox News Digital that the number has grown significantly due to the ongoing devastation. "Through our daily contact with Gazans from all walks of life across the coastal strip, we have seen that proportion grow, amid the destruction of the present war, to a substantial majority of the population." Ayman Khaled, a Palestinian journalist, echoed similar sentiments, pointing to the grim prospects for rebuilding Gaza after months of relentless Israeli bombardment. "Gaza will need to go through a very long period of reconstruction. In that long period of time, where will the youth go? Where will the wounded go? We have more than 100,000 wounded. Even before the last war, a stream of people were leaving Gaza—workers, students, business people. That's how it looked then. Now, those trends will double. There is no hope for the reconstruction of Gaza, not in a year nor 10 nor 15." 'Level It': Trump Says Us Will 'Take Over' Gaza Strip, Rebuild It To Stabilize Middle East He also warned that as long as Hamas remains in power, cycles of violence will continue, pushing more people to flee. "If Hamas remains on the scene, this will keep happening. Every day, we'll have new killings. After every battle, they say they are victorious—but what is this victory? If we don't seriously address the issue of Hamas leaving the political scene, we cannot talk about anything else. If Hamas remains, people will emigrate, whether willingly or unwillingly." Hamas described Trump's plan as a "recipe for creating chaos and tension in the region," and for many Gazans, leaving is unthinkable. Speaking to The Associated Press, Mustafa al-Gazzar, a displaced Gazan, dismissed the idea of leaving. "You think you'll expel me abroad and bring other people in my place? I would rather live in my tent, under rubble. I won't leave. Put that in your brain." Amna Omar, 71, who has been sheltering in central Gaza, was equally defiant. "Gaza is our land, our home. We as Gazans… I don't want to die in Egypt." Another woman in Deir al-Balah told Israeli news agency TPS-IL, "We clung to our destroyed homes and we clung to the soil of Palestine." While voluntary emigration has been quietly discussed for years, Trump's endorsement has turned it into a divisive issue. Arab governments, wary of being seen as complicit in Palestinian displacement, have been quick to condemn it. However, with Gaza in ruins and no reconstruction in sight, the debate over emigration is no longer theoretical. The question is not whether Gazans want to leave, but whether they will have the opportunity to do so. A Gazan man interviewed on-camera by the Center for Peace Communications said "In the end, people will accept reality. They'll emigrate because they want to live. They want to live in a country that protects and supports them. A country where you can hold your head up high. If our country isn't looking out for us, where should we go?" Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this article source: Trump's Gaza relocation proposal sparks heated debate among Palestinians: 'no life left here'
