Hamas in Cairo for Gaza ceasefire talks as Israel attacks West Bank mosques

Dozens of Israeli settlers attacked the Bedouin community of Ras Ein al-Auja, north of Jericho in the occupied West Bank, and stole sheep belonging to Palestinian residents, according to a local official, Wafa reported.

Hassan Malihat, general supervisor of the al-Baydar Organization for the Defense of Bedouin Rights, told the Palestinian news agency that settlers, accompanied by trucks and protected by Israeli forces, raided Ras Ein al-Auja, fired live bullets, searched livestock barns, and seized two flocks of sheep at gunpoint.

Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Friday in his first comment following violence in Syrian coastal areas that Syria will pursue the "remnants" of the ousted Bashar al Assad regime and bring them to trial.

Israel's army said it conducted strikes on "military sites" belonging to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon on Friday, where it said "weapons and rocket launchers" were identified.

"A short while ago, the IDF conducted intelligence-based strikes on military sites in southern Lebanon belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organisation in which weapons and rocket launchers belonging to Hezbollah were identified," the army said in a statement, adding that they "constituted a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon."

56 Israeli captives released from Gaza have written to Netanyahu, urging him to finalize the ceasefire agreement and secure the immediate return of all remaining hostages, Israeli media reports.

“We who have experienced the inferno firsthand know that a return to fighting is a real danger to the lives of those who are still left,” the captives wrote in their letter, according to the Israeli outlet.

The letter was organised by Ilana Gritzewsky, the partner of Matan Zangauker, who remains held in Gaza, Haaretz reported.

The leader of Yemen's Houthis, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, said on Friday the group would resume its naval operations against Israel if Israel did not lift a blockage of aid into Gaza within four days.

The Iran-aligned movement staged more than 100 attacks on shipping from November 2023, saying they were in solidarity with Palestinians over Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza - and the assaults tailed off in January after a ceasefire there.

Over that period, it sank two vessels, seized another and killed at least four seafarers in an offensive that disrupted global shipping, forcing firms to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa.

"We will give a deadline for four days. This deadline is for the (Gaza ceasefire) mediators for their efforts," al-Houthi said.

"If the Israeli enemy after four days continues to prevent the humanitarian aid into Gaza and continues to completely close the crossings, we will resume our naval operations against the Israeli enemy."

The Muslim world will be asked to throw its weight behind an Arab counter-plan to US President Donald Trump's widely condemned proposal to take over war-torn Gaza at an emergency meeting on Friday.

Foreign ministers from the 57-member Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will meet at its headquarters in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, three days after the Arab League endorsed Egypt's alternative plan for Gaza.

At Tuesday's summit in Cairo, Arab leaders backed the proposal to rebuild the Gaza Strip under the future administration of the Palestinian Authority.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said his country, a mediator in the Hamas-Israel ceasefire talks, would seek OIC support to make the counter-proposal "both an Arab plan and an Islamic plan".

"The meeting's main goal is to endorse the Arab plan," a Pakistani diplomat, who did not want to be named, told AFP.

"It's a crucial time and the Islamic world need to appear united as much as we could against the American plan."

The UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, said on Friday he was alarmed by intense clashes and killings in coastal areas between Syrian Caretaker Authority forces and elements loyal to the former regime, "with very troubling reports of civilian casualties". 

Syria's new authorities announced on Friday a security operation in the hometown of deposed president Bashar al-Assad, state media said, after deadly clashes and unrest in the heartland of the Alawite minority.

"Our forces are about to launch targeted and precise operations in coordination with the general security forces against loyalists of the former regime, who have betrayed our forces and compatriots, in the city of Qardaha," said a defence ministry source quoted by official news agency SANA.

The Israeli military confirmed it carried out an air strike on Friday, claiming it targeted "militants planting an explosive device in northern Gaza".

"Earlier today, several terrorists were identified operating near IDF troops and planting an explosive device in the ground in northern Gaza," the military said in a statement, adding an Israeli warplane struck the "terrorists in order to remove the threat".

The UNRWA agency said the Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps have been nearly emptied of their resident following "widespread destruction to civilian infrastructure including homes", with "people now face the prospect of having nowhere to return to".

"This comes less than a week after 11 houses were demolished in the same camp, 14 other houses in the Tulkarem camp, and controlled detonations in Jenin Camp around a month ago that left the camp uninhabitable," their statement read.

"These large-scale demolitions are an alarming new pattern. They have an unprecedented impact on the Palestine Refugees and seek to permanently change the characteristics of the camps in the northern West Bank," UNRWA added.

Israel has been carrying out a large-scale military operation in the West Bank since January, subjecting Palestinians to raids, arrests and home demolitions.

Iran is in no rush to establish ties with Syria's new government after the ouster of its long-time ruler and ally Bashar al-Assad, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told AFP on Friday.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is currently only an observer of Syrian issues; we have no relationship with the current Syrian government, and we are not in a hurry in this regard," he said in an interview.

Two Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza City's Shujaiya's neighbourhood, Palestinian media said on Friday.

The drone strike which targeted a group of people near Al-Mu'tasim Mosque on Mansoura Street, injured a number of others, Wafa said.

The deadly Israeli strike is the latest violation of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The first phase of the truce ended on Sunday, and Israel has refused to proceed with its second phase.

Hamas has published a video of Israeli captive soldier Matan Angrest on the group's Telegram channel, Al Jazeera is reporting.

In the video likely to be shot last week, Angrest says he has been held for 511 days.

"The only way to bring us back is through the exchange deal and moving to the second stage," the soldier said in the video.

He called on the Israeli government, US President Donald Trump and the leaders of the Israeli army for his release.

The Israeli military's chief spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari will step down in the coming weeks, the army announced Friday.

A former commando, Hagari briefed the media and the general public almost daily concerning Israel's war in Gaza - sometimes several times a day.

Throughout his appearances in the media, Hagari was accused of peddling misinformation over the war, specifically claiming that Hamas ws "hiding" in several sites bombed by Israel which killed scores of Palestinians.

An army statement said Hagari served as spokesman "in a professional and devoted manner" during "one of the most complex wars in Israel's history".

It added that Hagari's resignation, days after a new military chief was sworn it, has been approved by the new top commander, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir.

According to the statement, Hagari, 49, will step down "in the coming weeks", though no exact date was given.

A high-level Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo to advance efforts on a fragile ceasefire in Gaza, which has largely paused hostilities with Israel, two senior Hamas officials told AFP Friday.

"The delegation will meet with Egyptian officials on Saturday to discuss the latest developments, assess progress in implementing the ceasefire agreement, and address matters related to launching the second phase of the deal," one official said.

Hamas official Haroun Nasser al-Din has called on Palestinians in the West Bank to "mobilise and rally" in a bid to protect the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron’s old city.

The Palestinian Wafa news agency, quoting the Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, reported Israeli authorities refused to hand over sections of the Ibrahimi Mosque, as is customary on Fridays during Ramadan, calling the move a "dangerous and unprecedented" step.

Al-Din said Israel’s refusal to open the Ibrahimi Mosque and hand it over to the Palestinian authorities during Ramadan is "part of plans to completely control it", adding that it's a "blatant and dangerous violation within the series of ongoing attacks on Islamic sanctities".

The Muslim world will be asked to throw its weight behind an Arab counter-plan to US President Donald Trump's widely condemned proposal to take over war-torn Gaza at an emergency meeting on Friday.

Foreign ministers from the 57-member Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will meet at its headquarters in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, three days after the Arab League endorsed Egypt's alternative plan for Gaza.

At Tuesday's summit in Cairo, Arab leaders backed the proposal to rebuild the Gaza Strip under the future administration of the Palestinian Authority.

However, the plan, which does not outline a role for Hamas, which controls Gaza, was rejected by both the United States and Israel.

The proposal "does not meet the expectations" of Washington, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters on Thursday.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has urged for international intervention after Israel raided a number of mosques in Nablus early on Friday, as well as impose restrictions on Palestinian entry to the Al-Aqsa.

In an official statement on X, the ministry condemned Israel's vandalism of the mosques.

الخارجية تطالب بتدخل دولي حقيقي لتمكين أبناء شعبنا من حرية دخول القدس والصلاة فيها

تدين اقتحام الاحتلال ٨ مساجد في مدينة نابلس والعبث فيها وتخريبها

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls for real international intervention to enable our people to freely enter #Jerusalem and pray… pic.twitter.com/XejLco9RZF

— State of Palestine - MFA 🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@pmofa) March 7, 2025

Hamas on Friday urged US President Donald Trump to meet with Palestinian prisoners freed during the ongoing truce in Gaza, following his meeting with released Israeli hostages the day before.

Just as he spoke of the "unbearable suffering" of Israeli hostages, the US president should "show the same level of respect to freed Palestinian political prisoners and allocate time to meet and listen to their stories", senior Hamas leader Basem Naim wrote in an open letter addressed to Trump.

More than 9,500 Palestinian prisoners were currently being held in Israeli prisons, he said.

On Thursday, Trump met in the Oval Office with eight former Israeli hostages who were released as part of the truce agreement that took effect on January 19.

The first phase of the agreement led to the release of 33 hostages, including eight who were deceased, in exchange for about 1,800 Palestinian detainees.

Israeli forces have raided several mosques in the West Banks Nablus, preventing the dawn prayer from taking place as Palestinian Muslims observe Ramadan, according to the Palestinian Wafa agency.

Israeli forces raided the mosques of Al-Satoon, Ajaj, the Great Salah Al-Din , Al-Tina and many more - which are mostly located in Nablus' Old City.

Israeli detained three Palestinians during their incursion into the city.

Israeli forces have detained at leats13 Palestinians in the Hebron governorate, occupied West Bank on Friday, amid another Israeli-led incursion on Palestinian cities.

The arrests took place in the towns of Dura and Kharas, and the Al-Fawwar camp.

A number of homes were raided and vandalised in the process, while Palestinians were physically assaulted by the Israeli soldiers.

Syria's new authorities launched a sweeping security operation Friday after clashes with fighters loyal to former president Bashar al-Assad killed 71 people, a war monitor reported.

The violence poses the biggest challenge to the country's authorities since Assad was ousted in December 2024, in a lightning offensive by Islamist-led rebels.

Restoring security has been one of the most complex tasks for the new authorities since Assad's fall, which ended 13 years of civil war triggered by his crackdown on pro-democracy protests.

A curfew was enforced in the coastal province of Latakia, the Assad clan's stronghold and home to a sizeable Alawite community, the same religious minority as the former president.

Security forces began what official news agency SANA described as a "large-scale" operation in cities, towns and the mountains of Latakia and neighbouring Tartus, following the arrival of reinforcements.

The operation "targeted remnants of Assad's militias and those who supported them", a security official cited by SANA said, as he called on civilians to "stay in their homes".

The defence ministry said it had sent reinforcements to the cities of Latakia and Tartous.

Israel has limited access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound as Palestinian Muslims observe the first Friday of the holy month of Ramadan.

Access will only be granted to Palestinian males 55 and older, women who are at least 50-years-old and children 12 or younger for those wishing come from the West Bank to pray at the mosque.

Al-Aqsa is the third holiest site in Islam, and Palestinians spend their time around the compound during Ramadan. 

Israeli authorities have long-restricted access to the mosque for Palestinian worshippers, and Israeli extremists regularly storm the compound in a bid to provoke Palestinians.