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Nahar Net
28-07-2025
- Politics
- Nahar Net
3 killed in Iraq clashes between armed group, security forces
by Naharnet Newsdesk 28 July 2025, 12:35 Three people, including a policeman, were killed Sunday during clashes in Baghdad between security forces and pro-Iran gunmen, according to authorities and a member of a local armed group. The violence erupted when armed men stormed a local office of the agriculture ministry in the city's south, the interior ministry said. Police forces responding to the scene "came under fire", resulting in several injuries among security personnel, the ministry added. Iraq's Joint Operations Command, which coordinates between security forces and the military, said 14 suspects were detained who belonged to the Hashed al-Shaabi, a network of former paramilitary units that have been integrated into the regular security forces. Several other security sources, however, told AFP that the armed men were affiliated with the powerful pro-Iran group Kataeb Hezbollah, a faction within the Hashed al-Shaabi that sometimes acts on its own. Kataeb Hezbollah had opposed a recent appointment at the agriculture office, which is located in an area where the group holds influence, the sources said on condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to speak to the media. "One policeman was killed" and others were wounded, said one official. Another security source said one policeman and one civilian were killed. A member of Kataeb Hezbollah said that a fighter from the group was also killed and six others wounded. He added that the group "does not want to escalate", and would allow the judiciary to take its course. After decades of war and turmoil, gun battles -- sometimes sparked by minor feuds -- are not uncommon in Iraq, where many armed groups operate. Iraq is led by an Iran-aligned coalition called the Coordination Framework, which brings together Shiite Islamist parties and factions of the Hashed al-Shaabi. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has ordered a probe into the incident at the agriculture office. The interior ministry said "it would not tolerate any party attempting to impose its will by force and threaten state institutions."
New York Times
13-06-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Live Updates: Iranian Missiles Hit Tel Aviv in Retaliation for Strikes on Nuclear Sites
News Analysis For years Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, oversaw a clandestine conflict with Iran, one in which every move was calibrated to avoid an all-out war between two of the region's most powerful militaries. Even last year, when both sides openly attacked each other for the first time, Israel avoided strikes that risked igniting a drawn-out battle. Now, Mr. Netanyahu has thrown caution to the wind with an astonishingly brazen and broad attack on Iran that will likely unleash weeks or more of turmoil across the region. On Mr. Netanyahu's orders, Israel has targeted not only Iran's nuclear sites but its air defenses, its military bases and its most senior military leadership. In doing so, analysts said, Mr. Netanyahu had short-term motivations: to derail diplomatic negotiations between the United States and Iran, and to prevent the immediate expansion of Iran's nuclear program. He also has far grander aspirations. For decades, Mr. Netanyahu has presented the Shiite Islamist regime in Iran as the greatest threat to Israel's security, both because of its homegrown efforts to build a nuclear bomb, and because of Iran's support for Palestinian militias and other Arab groups opposed to Israel. After years of advocating for the overwhelming use of force to quell that danger, Mr. Netanyahu finally seems ready to turn his threats into action — perhaps, analysts said, with an eye on his place in Israeli history Mr. Netanyahu now risks embroiling the region, and potentially, the United States, in conflict as he faces domestic turmoil at home and greater international censure over his conduct of the war against Hamas in Gaza. Image Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem on Wednesday. Credit... Menahem Kahana/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images 'For him, this is personal — for 25 years, he has been talking about this,' said Nadav Shtrauchler, a former adviser to Mr. Netanyahu, and an Israeli political analyst. 'This is the big picture that he has been aiming for. This is his legacy.' Mr. Netanyahu had planned a large-scale attack on Iran more than a decade ago, during a previous term as prime minister. But he ultimately called it off under pressure from the Obama administration and amid concerns in his cabinet about Israel's military capabilities. In 2015, he risked a rupture with President Obama by making a speech to Congress in which he criticized Mr. Obama's efforts to curb Iran's nuclear program through diplomacy. Recent events have made it easier for the military to strike, likely emboldening Mr. Netanyahu. Over the last year and a half, Israel decimated Iran's regional alliances and reduced Iran's own defensive capabilities. Hezbollah, Iran's ally in Lebanon, is now severely weakened, while the Syrian government, another Iranian ally, was overthrown in December. Finally, the election of President Trump widened the window of opportunity. Though Mr. Trump pursued a diplomatic arrangement with Iran over its nuclear ambitions and even asked Mr. Netanyahu to delay the strike, the president at times seemed more willing than President Biden to entertain the idea of an attack. 'Diplomatically, Trump's election gave Netanyahu a president willing to rhetorically back a credible military threat,' said Michael Koplow, an analyst at Israel Policy Forum, a New York-based research group. 'Netanyahu's preference to deal with Iran's nuclear program through military action has been crystal clear for years, and he finally had his perfect storm of opportunity,' Mr. Koplow added. Domestically, Mr. Netanyahu also stands to benefit from a strike on Iran. His reputation as the guardian of Israel's security was tarnished by Hamas's attack on Israel in October 2023, the deadliest security failure in Israel's history. If the attack on Friday, which also killed two Iranian nuclear scientists, severely diminishes Iran's nuclear program, analysts said, Mr. Netanyahu could bolster his national standing ahead of a general election next year. 'Netanyahu wants to start his election year with a visible advantage,' said Mazal Mualem, a biographer of Mr. Netanyahu and a political commentator. 'Instead of bearing the responsibility for Oct. 7, he wants to be able to etch his role in the history of Israel as the statesman who defeated the Iranian nuclear program,' Ms. Mualem said. 'But all this of course depends on how things will develop.' Eventually, it could also present Mr. Netanyahu with an opportunity to end the war in Gaza, Mr. Shtrauchler said. For more than a year, Mr. Netanyahu has refused to consider a permanent truce in Gaza without Hamas's complete defeat there, amid strong resistance to such an outcome from his right-wing allies. By inflicting meaningful wounds on Hamas's biggest benefactor, Iran, it may be easier for Mr. Netanyahu to compromise in Gaza, Mr. Shtrauchler said. Now, Mr. Shtrauchler said, 'He can wrap it up and say we changed the equation for the good. I don't think it will happen tomorrow, but it's a huge step toward that.'
New York Times
13-06-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Striking the Heart of the Iranian Regime, Netanyahu Looks to His Legacy
For years Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, oversaw a clandestine conflict with Iran, one in which every move was calibrated to avoid an all-out war between two of the region's most powerful militaries. Even last year, when both sides openly attacked each other for the first time, Israel avoided strikes that risked igniting a drawn-out battle. Now, Mr. Netanyahu has thrown caution to the wind with an astonishingly brazen and broad attack on Iran that will likely unleash weeks or more of turmoil across the region. On Mr. Netanyahu's orders, Israel has targeted not only Iran's nuclear sites but its air defenses, its military bases and its most senior military leadership. In doing so, analysts said, Mr. Netanyahu had short-term motivations: to derail diplomatic negotiations between the United States and Iran, and to prevent the immediate expansion of Iran's nuclear program. He also has far grander aspirations. For decades, Mr. Netanyahu has presented the Shiite Islamist regime in Iran as the greatest threat to Israel's security, both because of its homegrown efforts to build a nuclear bomb, and because of Iran's support for Palestinian militias and other Arab groups opposed to Israel. After years of advocating for the overwhelming use of force to quell that danger, Mr. Netanyahu finally seems ready to turn his threats into action — perhaps, analysts said, with an eye on his place in Israeli history Mr. Netanyahu now risks embroiling the region, and potentially, the United States, in conflict as he faces domestic turmoil at home and greater international censure over his conduct of the war against Hamas in Gaza. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Jordan Times
20-02-2025
- Politics
- Jordan Times
Hizbollah readies massive funeral for slain leader Nasrallah
Banners depicting slain leader of the Lebanese Shiite Islamist movement Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah (C) and his deputy Hashem Safieddine (C-L) and other slain Hezbollah commanders are displayed on Beirut Airport Road, in Beirut yesterday (AFP photo) BEIRUT — Lebanon's Hizbollah is preparing for a massive turnout for the funeral on Sunday of its slain leader Hassan Nasrallah, an opportunity for a show of strength by the Iran-backed group after a bruising war with Israel. Nasrallah's death nearly five months ago in a huge Israeli strike on Beirut's southern suburbs left Hizbollah supporters in disbelief and sent shockwaves across Lebanon and the region. The country will stop for Sunday's funeral, to be held at 1:00 pm at the Camille Chamoun sports stadium on the capital's outskirts. Hizbollah has announced strict security measures and urged security forces to help manage crowds that are expected to number in the tens of thousands, with people pouring in from Hizbollah strongholds across the country, as well as from abroad. Hassan Wehbe, 60, an electrician in Beirut's southern suburbs, said the funeral would be "a historic day". "There will be huge participation. Israel will see that we are not afraid," he said. Hizbollah has invited senior Lebanese officials including the president. Its key foreign backer Iran has said it will participate "at a high level", without specifying who will attend. Nicholas Blanford, a Beirut-based Hizbollah expert and senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, said it was important for Hizbollah "to be able to demonstrate that they haven't been cowed , that they are still a popular force" within the Shiite community. The funeral "is going to be exactly the event for that", he told AFP.
Jordan Times
18-02-2025
- Politics
- Jordan Times
Beirut airport to close Sunday during funeral of slain Hizbollah leader
A protester holds a framed portrait of Hassan Nasrallah, the slain leader of the Lebanese Shiite Islamist movement Hizbollah, before Lebanese army soldiers in Beirut on Saturday (AFP photo) BEIRUT, Lebanon — Beirut airport will close for four hours on Sunday during the funeral of slain Hizbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Lebanon's civil aviation authority has announced. "The airport will be closed, and takeoffs and landings... will halt on February 23, 2025, from 12:00 pm (1000 GMT) until 4:00 pm," the authority said in a statement carried by official media on Tuesday. Nasrallah was killed in a huge Israeli air strike on Beirut's southern suburbs on September 27, as Israel scaled up its campaign against the Iran-backed group following almost a year of cross-border hostilities. Sunday's funeral will also be for Hashem Safieddine, a senior Hizbollah figure who had been chosen to succeed Nasrallah, before he too was killed in an Israeli raid in October. The funeral is to begin at 1:00 pm at a sports stadium in Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hizbollah stronghold. It will include a speech by current Hizbollah chief Naim Qassem, and is to be followed by a procession to Nasrallah's burial site. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Monday that Iran "will participate in this ceremony at a high level", without specifying who would attend. Qassem at the weekend called for broad participation as a demonstration of the group's strength. "We want to transform this funeral into a show of support and an affirmation of [Hizbollah's] plan and approach, and hold our heads high," Qassem said. After decades at the helm of the group once seen as invincible, the killing of the charismatic Nasrallah sent shock waves across Lebanon and the wider region. Hizbollah has said 79 countries would be involved in the commemoration, whether at an official or "popular" level. Earlier this month in a security alert about the funeral, the US embassy urged its nationals to avoid the area "which includes the airport". Qassem has said Nasrallah would be buried on the outskirts of Beirut "in a plot of land we chose between the old and new airport roads". Safieddine will be buried in his hometown of Deir Qanun in southern Lebanon, he added. Nasrallah had been temporarily buried elsewhere because of security concerns, Qassem said, and the group had also put off the public funeral for security reasons. A November 27 ceasefire deal put a halt to two months of all-out war between Israel and Hizbollah that saw the group weakened and numerous senior commanders killed.
