Israel bombs Syria, continues renewed siege of Gaza into day 60

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has thanked Hungary for its decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), following the court's issuance of an arrest warrant against him and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes committed during Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed at least 51,700 people since October 2023.

During Netanyahu’s visit to Hungary in early April, the Budapest government — a signatory to the ICC and previously obligated to enforce its warrants — announced its withdrawal, claiming the court had become “politicised.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has praised the release of Palestinian student Mohsen Mahdawi, calling it "an important victory in the struggle for not only his freedom, but also in the broader struggle to protect the First Amendment".

"Every person in America, including immigrants, has a constitutional right to free speech," CAIR said in a statement. "The Trump administration must stop abducting and disappearing college students because they dared to criticize US support for the Israeli government’s war crimes in Gaza."

A US judge ordered Mahdawi’s release earlier today. The Columbia University student, who led pro-Gaza demonstrations on campus last year, was detained earlier this month during a citizenship interview.

Hamas says Netanyahu’s comments on a “decisive victory” and dismantling Rafah were a “desperate attempt to cover up his army’s failure in Gaza and convince his audience of an illusion”.

“We affirm that our people’s resistance will continue until the occupation is defeated, and that Rafah will remain a symbol of steadfastness and a nightmare that haunts the invaders,” Hamas said.

Israel's military said three injured Syrian Druze were evacuated from Syria on Wednesday to receive medical treatment in Israel.

"A short while ago, three Syrian Druze citizens were evacuated from Syria to receive medical treatment in Israel," a military statement said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Israel carried out a strike on what it called an "extremist group" preparing to attack members of the Druze community near Damascus.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strike on the town of Sahnaya sent a "stern message" to Syria's new Islamist-led government.

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Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered troops to deploy on Wednesday to support firefighters battling rapidly spreading wildfires near Jerusalem, calling the situation a "national emergency".

The country's Magen David Adom rescue agency reported that hundreds of civilians were currently at risk from the fires.

Sixteen people were being treated for minor injuries from smoke inhalation, the MDA said, adding the alert level had been raised to the highest level.

Police closed the main Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway and evacuated residents along the route as brushfires broke out again in an area ravaged by blazes a week ago.

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This April marked Arab American Heritage Month in the United States, however, it passed not with fanfare, but instead with fear.

Across the country, Arab Americans have found it difficult to celebrate, weighed down by the ongoing genocide in Gaza and a growing sense of insecurity at home. 

For many, the fear runs deeper than cancelled events or muted celebrations; it is a growing sense of losing the feeling of “home” itself, and they are now left questioning their place in a country they have long called their own.

Read the full story here.

The Eurovision Song Contest has lifted its ban on waving Palestinian flags in the audience after facing backlash for prohibiting them in 2024, however, restrictions are still in place regarding what can be shown on stage, according to Danish media reports.

The Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR) obtained this year's official policy on national and political emblems, which states that audience members are allowed to wave any flag permitted under Swiss law during the grand final on 17 May.

Items that feature discriminatory and racist content, symbols that incite hatred or violence, flags that can be considered offensive or defamatory, or promote known terrorist organisations will be banned.

Read the full story here.

UNICEF communications associate Rawan Eleyan described the situation in Gaza as one of "continuous fear", with daily life dominated by insecurity, severe shortages, and the constant sound of airstrikes.

"There's a lack of supplies, continuous fear, and the horrifying sounds of bombardments," Eleyan said in a video shared on social media.

She called for a lasting ceasefire, stressing that humanitarian workers need safe conditions to reach every child in Gaza and deliver essential aid.

"Now everything is back to the same state of insecurity, lack of supplies, continuous fear, and the horrifying sound of bombardments. I can't believe that I'm going through this all over again."

Our colleague Rawan describes the worsening situation in #Gaza following the… pic.twitter.com/nIRBUM3xYL

— UNICEF MENA - يونيسف الشرق الأوسط وشمال إفريقيا (@UNICEFmena) April 30, 2025

Israel’s forced closure of the Jerusalem Fund and Endowment nonprofit, which provides local Palestinians with social and humanitarian services, has been slammed by the organisation’s chairman due to the impact it will have.

Munib Rashid al-Masry, the chairman of the nonprofit, told The New Arab’s Arabic language sister site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that the closure of the office will "negatively impact hundreds of beneficiaries, including university students receiving scholarships, citizens receiving funding to finance small projects as well as the renovation of schools and homes".

Al-Masry further reiterated that all of the organisation’s services will be disrupted at this stage, which will have a "profound impact and harm a large portion of Jerusalemites".

He decried Israel’s far-right and extremist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s decision to shutter the office as a violation of law and regulations, adding it lacks any justification.

He further said the charity solely focuses on development, relief work, education, and humanitarian efforts and does not play any political role or have political affiliations.

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Three firefighting aircraft from Italy and Croatia are being deployed to assist Israel in battling rapidly spreading wildfires near Jerusalem, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced.

Following a situational assessment, Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the “Canadair” planes would arrive as soon as possible to support local efforts.

At least 30 people have been injured in the fires so far, with 12 hospitalised.

Authorities have declared a national emergency, and all major Independence Day celebrations have been cancelled in response to the escalating crisis.

Israel cannot be forced to allow the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA to operate in Gaza, the United States said on Wednesday at a World Court hearing in The Hague.

Israel last year passed a law that banned UNRWA from operating in the country, as it said the organisation had employed members of Hamas who took part in the attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023.

In mid-May, US President Donald J. Trump will visit the Gulf. His destinations will be Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Saudi Arabia was supposed to be his first foreign trip since returning to the Oval Office this year, as it was in May 2017 during his first term, but the death of Pope Francis brought Trump to Italy and the Vatican several days ago.

The president’s high-stakes visit to these three Gulf states highlights Riyadh, Doha, and Abu Dhabi’s importance to US foreign policy as interlocutors, mediators, and regional powerhouses with deep pockets which invest a lot in the US economy.

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Country representatives delivered sharp statements on the ongoing war in Gaza during a special session of the UN Security Council held at the organisation’s headquarters in New York.

• Ireland condemned the situation in Gaza and the occupied West Bank as evidence of "a complete disregard for international law, the UN Security Council, and the integrity of the United Nations". The Irish representative added: "More fundamentally, it is an affront to our humanity and it must end."
• Iran called on the Security Council to break its silence, saying: "The main threat to peace and stability in the region comes from the terrorist and destabilising actions of the Israeli regime and its main sponsor, the United States."
• South Africa demanded accountability for what it described as ongoing atrocities against Palestinians. "There must be accountability for all of the atrocities, the ongoing genocide, violation of human rights and war crimes committed against the Palestinian people," its representative said.
• The United States, meanwhile, focused on Hamas. "Since Hamas’s egregious terrorist attack on October 7, 2023, this Council has been subjected to constant lies and slanders targeting Israel," the US representative said, defending its ally against what it characterised as "unfair criticism".
   

The meeting comes amid growing global pressure on Israel over the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and increasing scrutiny of Western powers' role in the conflict.

A new Swiss law banning Hamas and related organisations will come into force on 15 May, the government said today.

The law, which was approved by parliament last December and came in the wake of the attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, gives Swiss authorities "the necessary tools to take action against Hamas activities or support for the organisation in Switzerland", the government said.

The Swiss law enables preventive police measures such as entry bans or expulsions, and also makes it more difficult for Hamas to use Switzerland as a financial hub for its activities.

Read the full story here.

Syria rejects all forms of "foreign intervention" in its affairs, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday, after an Israeli strike that Israel described as targeting "extremists" who attacked members of Syria's Druze community.

The Syrian ministry's statement did not explicitly mention Israel, but referred to what it said were calls by outlawed groups that engaged in violence in the country.

The Lebanese army has dismantled the vast majority of Hezbollah's infrastructure near the border with Israel since a November ceasefire, a security official said Wednesday.

The army has dismantled "over 90 percent" of Hezbollah's military infrastructure in the area south of the Litani River and will carry out "the necessary measures" should any further sites be found, the official told AFP, requesting anonymity as the matter is sensitive.

The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on entities it accused of being involved in the illicit trade of Iranian petroleum and petrochemicals ahead of a new round of US-Iran negotiations on Saturday, as Washington seeks to ramp up pressure on Tehran.

The US State Department said in a statement it was imposing sanctions on seven entities based in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Iran that it accused of trading Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products. Two vessels were also targeted.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a separate statement that the action targeted four sellers and one buyer of Iranian petrochemicals worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Wednesday's action is the latest move targeting Tehran since Trump restored his "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran, which includes efforts to drive its oil exports to zero and help prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.

"The President is committed to driving Iran's illicit oil and petrochemical exports - including exports to China - to zero under his maximum pressure campaign," Rubio said.

(Reuters)

The UN Special Envoy to Syria is "deeply concerned" by violence in the country, especially in suburbs of the capital Damascus and in Homs," the world body said on Wednesday.

"(Envoy Geir Pedersen) is alarmed at reports of civilian casualties and also casualties among security personnel and the potential for further escalation of an extremely fragile situation," the United Nations said in a statement.

Syrian security forces deployed near Damascus to "restore security" on Wednesday, state media reported, following deadly sectarian clashes between government forces and local Druze fighters.

Security official Hussam al-Tahan told state news agency SANA that forces completed a "security operation" in the Sahnaya area and that General Security personnel deployed there to "restore security and stability".

United States immigration authorities on Wednesday released detained Palestinian Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi following a judge's order, CBS News reported.

Mahdawi, born and raised in a refugee camp in the West Bank, was arrested earlier this month upon arriving for an interview for his US citizenship petition. A judge swiftly ordered President Donald Trump's administration not to deport him from the United States or take him out of the state of Vermont.

Mahdawi plans to return for a master's degree in the fall of 2025, according to his lawyers.

His circumstances are similar to those of Palestinian student activist Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia student who was detained in the New York area on 8 March and taken to a Louisiana detention facility for deportation. Khalil is still detained. 

(Reuters)

Israeli strikes targeted the outskirts of Syria's Damascus, the Syrian state news agency said on Wednesday, after Israel said it had struck an "extremist group" preparing to attack members of the Arab Druze minority in Sahnaya, to the southwest of the capital.

A Syrian interior ministry source said security forces were looking to put an end to clashes in the area between armed groups operating outside state control.

Syria's top Muslim cleric warned on Wednesday against "strife" after deadly sectarian clashes erupted between security forces and local Druze fighters near Damascus this week.

"If strife ignites in our country... all of us - all races, all religions, all sects - all of us will lose," Grand Mufti Osama al-Rifai said in a televised speech.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan dismissed demands by Syrian Kurdish groups for Syria to adopt a decentralised system of government, saying these were "nothing more than a dream" and had no place in the neighbouring country.

Rival Syrian Kurdish parties, including the dominant Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the northeast, agreed at a meeting on Saturday on a common political vision for the country's Kurdish minority. The call for a decentralised structure was rejected by Syria's Islamist leaders.

"The issue of a federal structure is nothing more than a raw dream. It has no place in the reality of Syria. I advise (Kurds) not to dream of a federal structure or make decisions that will threaten the region, but rather take steps that will serve the stability of the region," Erdogan told reporters on a return flight from Rome.

"We will not allow any forced structure right beyond our borders other than a unified Syria," he said in reference to the 911 km border Turkey and Syria share, according to a text of his comments published by his office on Wednesday.

Israel's army chief on Wednesday ordered the military to prepare to strike targets belonging to the Syrian government if the Druze community faced more violence, the military said.

Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir "instructed the IDF (military) to prepare to strike targets belonging to the Syrian regime should violence against Druze communities continue", the military said, hours after it struck an "extremist group" in the area of Damascus that it said was preparing to attack the Druze.

Stop the War Coalition has condemned UK airstrikes on Yemen, accusing UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer of "seeking to drag us into yet another war without justification or parliamentary consent."

Lindsey German, the convenor for Stop the War Coalition, said: "Now we have the disgrace of a 'Labour' government that is simultaneously supporting a genocide in Palestine, bombing Yemen, imprisoning climate protestors, cracking down on the right to protest and imposing still more austerity on its own citizens to pay for yet more endless wars, all without absolutely any mandate from the British people."

An Israeli strike on the outskirts of the Syrian capital on Wednesday killed one member of Syria's new security forces, a source from the Syrian interior ministry told Reuters.

Israel said it had struck an "extremist group" preparing to attack members of the Arab Druze minority in Sahnaya, on the edges of Damascus.

But the Syrian interior ministry source disputed that claim and said Syrian security forces were looking to put an end to clashes in Sahnaya between armed groups operating outside state control.

(Reuters)

Israeli aircraft are reportedly flying low over the Syrian capital Damascus, according to The New Arab's Arabic language sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

The Israel Broadcasting Corporation announced on Wednesday that an Israeli army drone carried out a warning strike in the Damascus countryside, targeting a building inside which gunmen were inside, saying they were preparing to carry out an attack against the Druze in the area.

The commission explained that the attack was carried out by a drone that fired a rocket towards the building, without causing injuries, noting that the operation was aimed from the beginning to send a warning message.

The Commission confirmed that the Israeli army, along with the Military Intelligence Division and the Northern Command are closely following developments in Syria.

(Mohammed Karkas - Damascus)

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered troops to deploy on Wednesday to support firefighters battling rapidly spreading wildfires near Jerusalem, calling the situation a "national emergency".

The country's Magen David Adom rescue agency reported hundreds of civilians were currently at risk from the fires.

Sixteen people were being treated for minor injuries from smoke inhalation, the MDA said, adding the alert level had been raised to the highest level.

Police closed the main Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway and evacuated residents along the route as brushfires broke out again in an area ravaged by blazes a week ago.

"We are facing a national emergency, and all available forces must be mobilised to save lives and bring the fires under control," Katz said in a statement from his ministry.

Israel cannot be forced to allow the UN Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, to operate in Gaza, the United States said on Wednesday at a World Court hearing in The Hague.

On the third day of hearings on the matter, the US said Israel had the right to determine which organisations could provide basic needs to the population of the occupied Palestinian territories.

"An occupational power retains a margin of appreciation concerning which relief schemes to permit," US State Department legal adviser Joshua Simmons said.

"Even if an organisation offering relief is an impartial humanitarian organisation, and even if it is a major actor, occupation law does not compel an occupational power to allow and facilitate that specific actor's relief operations."

Simmons also stressed the "serious concerns" Israel has about UNRWA's impartiality.

(Reuters)

A correspondent from The New Arab's Arabic language sister publication Al-Araby Al-Jadeed quoted a security source from the Ministry of Interior, on Wednesday, stating that at least 16 members of the General Security have been killed as a result of attacks in Ashrafieh Sahnaya.

 The source added that "repeated attempts to impose a ceasefire have failed due to the intransigence of armed groups."

The source confirmed that the public security forces began a combing operation inside the town, supported by armed vehicles, with the aim of controlling the neighbourhoods where these groups are holed up, noting that clashes are still ongoing.

(Reporting by Mohammad Karkas - Damascus)

Gaza's Ministry of Health has said that Israeli attacks on the enclave have killed 35 people and wounded 109, with the death toll from Israel's war on Gaza being raised to 52,400 killed and a further 118,014 wounded.

Iran's top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, said a fourth round of nuclear talks with the United States, mediated by Oman, would be held in on Saturday in Rome.

"The next round of negotiations will take place in Rome," the foreign minister said after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

Araghchi said Iranian officials would also meet on Friday with representatives from Britain, France and Germany - all parties to the 2015 nuclear deal.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel carried out a strike in Syria on Wednesday on an "extremist group" preparing to attack members of the Druze community in the Damascus region.

"The IDF (military) carried out a warning action and struck the organisation of an extremist group preparing to attack the Druze population in the town of Sahnaya, in the Damascus region of Syria," said a statement from the Israeli leader's office.

"A stern message was conveyed to the Syrian regime -- Israel expects them to act to prevent harm to the Druze community," it added.

French, British and German political directors will meet with Iran on Friday in Rome, two diplomatic sources told Reuters, confirming an earlier Reuters exclusive.

Iran is looking to build on the momentum of nuclear negotiations with the United States that resumed in Oman on Saturday and after talks with Russia and China last week.

The moves by Iran to reach out to Britain, France and Germany - known as the E3 - suggest Tehran is keeping its options open, but also wants to assess where the Europeans stand on the possible re-imposition of UN sanctions before October, when a resolution ratifying the 2015 accord expires.

Iran on Wednesday executed a man convicted of espionage for Israel's Mossad spy agency and involvement in the 2022 assassination of a Revolutionary Guards colonel, the judiciary said.

Mohsen Langarneshin, described as "a high-ranking spy" who supported Mossad operations inside Iran, was hanged in the morning, said the judiciary's Mizan Online news website.

The report did not specify when Langarneshin had been arrested or sentenced.

It said he was implicated in the killing of Guards colonel Sayyad Khodaei, who was gunned down by two motorcyclists on his way home in Tehran in May 2022.

According to The New York Times, Israel told the United States that it was responsible for the killing.

The judiciary accused Langarneshin of having "bought a motorcycle to monitor" Khodaei's movements.

A US official on Wednesday told the International Court of Justice there were "serious concerns" about the impartiality of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.

ICJ judges are holding a week of hearings to help them formulate an advisory opinion on Israel's obligations towards UN agencies delivering aid to Palestinians in Gaza.

"There are serious concerns about UNRWA's impartiality, including information that Hamas has used UNRWA facilities and that UNRWA staff participated in the October 7th terrorist attack against Israel," said Josh Simmons from the US State Department legal team.

Israeli airstrikes have killed 19 people in Gaza, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa, which is reporting that 12 of those killed were from the Nuseirat refugee camp.

The agency reported that three others, including two children, were killed in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military is preparing to issue new draft orders to tens of thousands of reservists in preparation to expand its ground operations in Gaza, according to Haaretz.

Alongside a expanded Gaza operations, soldiers are also expected to be deployed to Lebanon and Syria, as well as the occupied West Bank. 

Iran has slammed "threats" by France to reimpose sanctions lifted after a landmark 2015 deal on Tehran's nuclear programme, local media said Wednesday, citing a letter sent by the country's UN mission.

"Resorting to threats and economic blackmail is entirely unacceptable," said the letter published by Iran's ISNA news agency.

It came after French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Monday that his government along with Germany and Britain "will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions" lifted a decade ago if European security is threatened by Iran's nuclear activities.