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There is uncertainty over when talks for the second phase of Gaza's ceasefire are set to begin amid reports that Netanyahu has delayed sending a negotiation team to Qatar until he meets US President Donald Trump.
The reports of the delay from the Israeli side from Israeli publication Walla comes amid comments from Qatari PM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani that there was no clear plans for the start of the next round of negotiations, although he added that Qatar hoped for movement from in coming days.
Amid the reports of hurdles to the talks, Israel is expanding its military assault, dubbed 'Operation Iron Wall', on the occupied West Bank to the town of Tammun north of Nablus. The expansion to Tammun has seen Israeli forces close the main road in the town, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Ahead of Netanyahu's meeting with Trump his far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for Israel to achieve victory in Gaza and the destruction of Hamas, as well as to "strengthen our hold and sovereignty over the homeland regions in [the occupied West Bank]".
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The Palestinian foreign ministry on Sunday condemned the Israeli military's destruction of buildings in Jenin in the occupied West Bank after it said it had destroyed "terrorist infrastructure" in the area.
The ministry "condemns, in the strongest terms, the bombings committed by the Israeli occupation forces... including their action today, Sunday, to blow up large neighbourhoods of the Jenin camp," it said in a statement, describing it as a "brutal scene".
The Israeli military blew up buildings in simultaneous explosions that the Palestinian state news agency said leveled around 20 buildings in the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank pic.twitter.com/V8IcICZgO0
— Reuters (@Reuters) February 2, 2025
Syrias Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said Saudi Arabia had a "genuine desire" to support his war-torn country, after meeting on Sunday with the oil-rich Gulf state's crown prince.
Accompanied by his foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, Al-Sharaa was greeted by Saudi officials on arrival in Riyadh, images from state television outlet Al-Ekhbariya showed.
Al-Sharaa was later received by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the official Saudi news agency reported.
"We held a long meeting during which we felt and heard a genuine desire to support Syria in building its future," Al-Sharaa was quoted as saying in a statement on Telegram.
The Syrian authorities are counting on wealthy Gulf countries to finance the reconstruction of their war-ravaged nation and revive its economy.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum has called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to complete the ceasefire deal in order to see the return of all Israeli captives held in Gaza, according to Haaretz.
On Sunday the family published a letter to Netanyahu where the call was made. The publication of the letter comes amid reports that Netanyahu has yet to decide whether to push onto negotiations for phase two of the Gaza ceasefire deal.
The funeral for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, killed last September in an Israeli strike, will be held on 23 February, the Iran-backed group's current chief Naim Qassem said on Sunday.
Qassem also confirmed for the first time that leading official Hashem Safieddine had been chosen to succeed Nasrallah before he too was killed in an Israeli raid in October.
The group will hold Safieddine's funeral on the same day.
"After security conditions prevented holding a funeral" during two months of all-out war between the group and Israel that ended on 27 November, Hezbollah has decided to hold "on February 23 a grand... public funeral" for Nasrallah, Qassem said in a televised speech.
Safieddine will be buried "as Secretary-General" or leader of Hezbollah, because "we had... elected His Eminence Sayyed Hashem as Secretary-General... but he was martyred on October 3, a day or two before the announcement", Qassem said.
Nasrallah will be buried on the outskirts of Beirut "in a plot of land we chose between the old and new airport roads", while Safieddine will be buried in his hometown of Deir Qanun in southern Lebanon, he said.
The Israeli military said on Sunday it had killed 50 militants during operations in the north of the occupied West Bank since mid-January.
"So far, the forces have eliminated over 35 terrorists and apprehended more than 100 wanted individuals," the army said in a statement, referring to an operation which began on 21 January. "In an advance operation, over 15 terrorists were eliminated in aerial strikes."
An army spokesman told AFP the total included operations since 14 January.
The deputy head of Palestinian militant group Hamas' political arm will lead a delegation to visit Moscow on Monday, the RIA state news agency reported on Sunday, citing a source.
Hamas politburo member, Mousa Abu Marzouk, and his delegation will hold negotiations at the Russian Foreign Ministry, the source in the delegation told RIA.
Russia has ties to all key players in the Middle East, including Israel, Iran, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas.
(Reuters)
Jordan's King Abdullah will meet with US President Donald Trump on 11 February at the White House, the Jordanian state news agency reported on Sunday, following Trump's call for the transfer of Palestinians to Jordan and Egypt.
Last week, Trump said that Egypt and Jordan should take in Palestinians from Gaza, which he called a "demolition site" following 15 months of Israeli bombardments that have rendered most of its 2.3 million people homeless. Critics have called his suggestion tantamount to ethnic cleansing.
Jordan appeared to reject Trump's suggestion, with its Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi telling reporters on 26 January that the country's stance against any displacement of Palestinians from Gaza remains "firm and unwavering".
Jordan is already home to several million Palestinians, while tens of thousands live in Egypt. Both countries and other Arab nations reject the idea of Palestinians in Gaza being moved to their countries. Gaza is land that Palestinians would want as part of a future Palestinian state.
(Reuters)
The future of Gaza's ceasefire deal and captive exchange is set to be decided in the White House during meetings between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump, according to reports from Axios citing three Israeli officials.
According to the officials, Netanyahu is waiting to see where Trump stands on the second phase before deciding to proceed. One official warned that if Netanyahu does not move forward with phase two there could be another year of war in the enclave.
The Palestinian health ministry said one person was killed by Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, a day after a deadly series of air strikes in the occupied territory.
The Palestinian health ministry said Sunday that a 73-year-old man had been killed by Israeli gunfire in the city's adjacent refugee camp.
Witnesses reported a "large" deployment of Israeli forces in the morning around the towns of Tubas and Tamun, southeast of Jenin.
The Israeli military said it had destroyed "several buildings" on Sunday in Jenin in the occupied West Bank, with an AFP journalist reporting clouds of smoke billowing over the surrounding area.
"As part of the operation to thwart terrorism... the IDF (military) recently destroyed several buildings in Jenin," the army said in a statement, adding that the structures "were used as terrorist infrastructure".
A criminal investigation has been launched into Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the office of Israel's state attorney said Sunday.
"A criminal investigation was opened" into suspected criminal offences, the office said in a letter to an Israeli opposition lawmaker who had accused Sara Netanyahu of tampering in her husband's corruption trial after the broadcast in December of a television news investigation.
Turkish aid trucks have begun entering Gaza through the Rafah border crossing, according to the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority, which said the trucks were loaded with tents and blankets.
At least four Palestinians were wounded in an Israeli strike on Sunday on a vehicle on the coastal road west of the Nuseirat camp in the central part of the Gaza Strip, medics told Reuters.
Medics first announced that a young boy had been killed in the strike, but later said they had managed to resuscitate him.
The Israeli military confirmed it had conducted the strike against what it said was a suspicious vehicle moving towards northern Gaza outside the inspection route laid down by the ceasefire agreement.
In a statement the military said it "is prepared for any scenario and will continue to take any necessary actions to thwart any immediate threat to [Israeli military] soldiers", giving no details on the impact of the strike or on any casualties.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has delayed sending a negotiation team to Qatar for the start of talks on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire, according to a report by Israeli outlet Walla.
Negotiations were set to begin on Monday, although Qatar's PM said it was unclear when such negotiations would begin at a press conference on Sunday.
Turkey could take in some Palestinian prisoners freed by Israel under the terms of its ceasefire deal with Hamas, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said during a visit to Qatar on Sunday.
"Our president has declared that we are ready to take in some freed Palestinians... in order to support the agreement. Turkey, along with other countries, will do its part in this regard so the ceasefire agreement can remain in force," he said at a press conference in Doha.
There is no clear plan for when negotiations between Israel and Hamas for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire would begin, Qatar's prime minister and foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Sunday.
In a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan in Doha, Al Thani said Qatar was engaging with Israel and Hamas to prepare for the talks. He added that his country was hoping to see some movement in the "next few days".
According to the ceasefire agreement, negotiations on implementing the second phase of the deal should begin before the 16th day of phase one of the ceasefire, which is Monday. This stage is expected to include the release of all remaining hostages, a permanent ceasefire and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
(Reuters)
The Palestinian foreign ministry has condemned recent Israeli settler attacks and military escalation, urging the international community to intervene and halt the violence.
In a statement, the ministry denounced assaults by armed settlers targeting Palestinian civilians, property, and religious sites, citing the recent burning of a mosque in the village of Arab al-Mleihat and violent attacks on residents in Masafer Yatta.
The incidents come amid an intensified Israeli military campaign, particularly in the northern West Bank, where large-scale destruction has forced Palestinian families from their homes.
The ministry expressed deep concern over ongoing Israeli settlement expansion, warning that such actions fuel continued aggression and undermine efforts to de-escalate tensions and enforce a ceasefire.
It held the Israeli government fully responsible for the deteriorating situation, calling on the international community to take a firm stance against the violence and push for a political resolution to the conflict through peaceful means.
Israeli forces have damaged the infrastructure in the al-Fara'a camp in the occupied West Bank, with bulldozers destroying parts of the main road leading into the camp from the south, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Iran revealed a new ballistic missile on Sunday that it said was capable of travelling 1,700 kilometres, unveiling it in a Tehran ceremony attended by President Masoud Pezeshkian.
State television broadcast images of the missile, dubbed Etemad, or "trust" in Persian, saying it had a maximum range of 1,700 kilometres (1,056 miles) and was "the most recent ballistic missile" built by the Iranian defence ministry.
Western countries have grown concerned over advances in Iran's ballistic missile programme, accusing it of destabilising the Middle East.
Iran's missiles, including this newest design, are capable of reaching its arch-foe Israel, which it targeted twice last year as the Gaza war spilled over.
"The development of defence capabilities and space technologies... aims to ensure that no country dares to attack Iranian territory," Pezeshkian said in a televised address.
An elderly man was killed by Israeli forces in Jenin, according to a statement from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society carried by Palestinian news agency Wafa.
The report added that the death toll of 13 days of Israeli operations in and around Jenin has risen to 25.
The Israeli army said Sunday that it had killed "a number of terrorists" in three air strikes the previous day in the occupied West Bank, where witnesses said a large operation was getting underway at dawn.
In addition to two strikes in Jenin, the air force "struck and eliminated a terrorist cell on its way to carry out an imminent terrorist attack" in Qabatiya, the military said.
It added that one of those killed had been released from Israeli detention in 2023 as part of the first truce in the Gaza war. A witness, meanwhile, described to AFP a "large" deployment of Israeli forces around Tubas on Sunday morning.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to leave Israel on Sunday for a meeting with US President Donald Trump, looking to strengthen ties with Washington after tensions with the previous White House administration over the war in Gaza.
Netanyahu, the first foreign leader to visit Trump since his inauguration last month, leaves with the ceasefire in Gaza still holding and negotiations aimed at a second phase expected to begin this week.
"The decisions we made in the war have already changed the face of the Middle East," he said at the airport before his departure.
"Our decisions and the courage of our soldiers have redrawn the map. But I believe that working closely with President Trump, we can redraw it even further and for the better."
Netanyahu, who faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court over allegations of war crimes in Gaza, had strained relations with Trump's predecessor Joe Biden and has not visited the White House since returning to office at the end of 2022.
(Reuters)