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Saudi crown prince meets with Blinken in Riyadh as Gaza ceasefire talks continue

Saudi crown prince meets with Blinken in Riyadh as Gaza ceasefire talks continue
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Blinken is making his first big push for ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon since Israel killed the leader of Hamas last week. (SPA)
Saudi crown prince meets with Blinken in Riyadh as Gaza ceasefire talks continue
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There has been wide concern among Palestinians that Israel intends to force Palestinians from large stretches of the Gaza Strip to enable greater Israeli control of the area. (SPA)
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Updated 23 October 2024

Saudi crown prince meets with Blinken in Riyadh as Gaza ceasefire talks continue

Saudi crown prince meets with Blinken in Riyadh as Gaza ceasefire talks continue
  • US Secretary of State Blinken to meet Arab leaders in Britain this week
  • Blinken urges Israel to use opportunity to end war in Gaza as he heads to Riyadh

RIYADH: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Riyadh on Wednesday, Saudi Press Agency reported.

Blinken arrived in 海角直播 after wrapping up a visit to Israel where he urged leaders to use the opportunity to end the war in Gaza created by the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and the destruction of much of the group鈥檚 capacity during more than a year of conflict.

During the reception, the two officials reviewed Saudi-American relations and areas of joint cooperation.

They also discussed the latest regional and international developments including developments in Gaza and Lebanon, and efforts made to stop military operations and deal with their security and humanitarian repercussions.

Blinken will also travel to London later this week after visiting the Middle East, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday.
The top US diplomat will hold meetings with Arab leaders in the British capital after talks Thursday in Qatar, Miller said.
Blinken said Israel had succeeded in ensuring there could be no repeat of Oct. 7, 2023 and it should be looking to bring home the remaining 101 Israeli and foreign hostages and end the fighting.
鈥淣ow is the time to turn those successes into an enduring strategic success,鈥 he told reporters as he prepared to leave for Riyadh on the next stage of his visit to the Middle East.
鈥淭he focus needs to be on getting the hostages home, ending this war and having a clear plan for what follows,鈥 he said.

Israel鈥檚 assult has devastated Gaza and forced most of the enclave鈥檚 population out of their homes into temporary shelters. Blinken said Israel needed to do more to ensure that adequate humanitarian supplies reached people living in dire conditions.

Blinken is making his first big push for ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon since Israel killed the leader of Hamas last week - and his last before a presidential election that could upend US聽policy in the region.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu鈥檚 government has not formulated any clear vision for Gaza following the war beyond stating that Palestinian militant group Hamas鈥 military and governing capacity needed to be dismantled completely.
There has been wide concern among Palestinians that Israel intends to force Palestinians from large stretches of the Gaza Strip to enable greater Israeli control of the area and potentially allow Jewish settlers to return following their withdrawal in 2005.
Blinken repeated that the United States rejected any Israeli occupation of Gaza and said he had been assured by Netanyahu that Israel had no such plans, despite pressure from many in his own party to allow settlers to return.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been US policy, it will remain US policy, and it鈥檚 also, to the best of my understanding, the policy of the Israeli government, that I heard from the prime minister, who is the authoritative word on these things,鈥 he said

Over the past month Israel has also dramatically ramped up war in Lebanon against Hezbollah, a separate Iran-backed militant group that had rocketed Israel in support of the Palestinians. Israel has launched a ground offensive and killed most of Hezbollah's leadership in air strikes that have displaced 1.2 million people.

In Lebanon, Israel's military said it had killed three Hezbollah commanders and some 70 fighters in the south in the past 48 hours, a day after confirming it had killed Hashem Safieddine, the militant group's heir apparent leader.

With Reuters


Lebanon cabinet to meet again on Hezbollah disarmament

Lebanon cabinet to meet again on Hezbollah disarmament
Updated 3 sec ago

Lebanon cabinet to meet again on Hezbollah disarmament

Lebanon cabinet to meet again on Hezbollah disarmament
BEIRUT: Lebanon鈥檚 cabinet is set to meet again on Thursday to discuss the thorny task of disarming Hezbollah, a day after the Iran-backed group rejected the government鈥檚 decision to take away its weapons.
With Washington pressing Lebanon to take action on the matter, US envoy Tom Barrack has made several visits to Beirut in recent weeks, presenting officials with a proposal that includes a timetable for Hezbollah鈥檚 disarmament.
Amid the US pressure and fears Israel could expand its strikes in Lebanon, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Tuesday that the government had tasked the army with developing a plan to restrict weapons to government forces by the end of 2025.
The decision is unprecedented since the end of Lebanon鈥檚 civil war more than three decades ago, when the country鈥檚 armed factions 鈥 with the exception of Hezbollah 鈥 agreed to surrender their weapons.
The government said the new disarmament push was part of implementing a November ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
That conflict culminated last year in two months of full-blown war that left the group badly weakened, both politically and militarily.
Hezbollah said on Wednesday that it would treat the government鈥檚 decision to disarm it 鈥渁s if it did not exist,鈥 accusing the cabinet of committing a 鈥済rave sin.鈥
It added that the move 鈥渦ndermines Lebanon鈥檚 sovereignty and gives Israel a free hand to tamper with its security, geography, politics and future existence.鈥
The Amal movement, Hezbollah鈥檚 main ally headed by parliament speaker Nabih Berri, also criticized the move and called Thursday鈥檚 cabinet meeting 鈥渁n opportunity for correction.鈥
Iran, Hezbollah鈥檚 military and financial backer, said on Wednesday that any decision on disarmament 鈥渨ill ultimately rest with Hezbollah itself.鈥
鈥淲e support it from afar, but we do not intervene in its decisions,鈥 Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi added, saying the group had 鈥渞ebuilt itself鈥 after the war with Israel.
Two ministers affiliated with Hezbollah and the Amal movement walked out of Tuesday鈥檚 meeting on disarmament in protest.
Hezbollah described the walkout as a rejection of the government鈥檚 鈥渄ecision to subject Lebanon to American tutelage and Israeli occupation.鈥
Citing 鈥減olitical sources鈥 with knowledge of the matter, pro-Hezbollah newspaper Al Akhbar said the group and its Amal allies could choose to withdraw their four ministers from the government or trigger a no-confidence vote in parliament by the Shiite bloc, which comprises 27 of Lebanon鈥檚 128 lawmakers.
Israel 鈥 which routinely carries out air strikes in Lebanon despite the ceasefire, saying it is targeting Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure 鈥 has already signalled it would not hesitate to launch destructive military operations if Beirut failed to disarm the group.
Israeli strikes in south Lebanon killed two people on Wednesday, according to the Lebanese health ministry.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed arrives in Moscow聽

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed arrives in Moscow聽
Updated 13 min 27 sec ago

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed arrives in Moscow聽

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed arrives in Moscow聽
  • Sheikh Mohamed is accompanied by a high-level delegation

DUBAI: UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Moscow on Thursday for an official visit to the Russian Federation.

As the President's plane entered Russian airspace, it was greeted and escorted by Russian military jets.

An official reception was held at Vnukovo Airport, where the national anthems of the UAE and Russia were played. An honor guard was present as Sheikh Mohamed was greeted by senior Russian officials.

Sheikh Mohamed is accompanied by a high-level delegation that includes a number of senior UAE officials.


Sudan鈥檚 PM in Egypt on first foreign visit

Sudan鈥檚 PM in Egypt on first foreign visit
Updated 50 min 11 sec ago

Sudan鈥檚 PM in Egypt on first foreign visit

Sudan鈥檚 PM in Egypt on first foreign visit
  • Sudan鈥檚 Prime Minister Kamil Idris arrived in Cairo on Thursday morning for his first official foreign visit since assuming office in May, as his country鈥檚 army remains gripped by a brutal war

CAIRO: Sudan鈥檚 Prime Minister Kamil Idris arrived in Cairo on Thursday morning for his first official foreign visit since assuming office in May, as his country鈥檚 army remains gripped by a brutal war with paramilitaries.
Idris, a career diplomat and former UN official, is expected to hold talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, according to Sudan鈥檚 state news agency SUNA.
He will also hold expanded talks with his Egyptian counterpart Mostafa Madbouly and 鈥渄iscuss ways of enhancing bilateral cooperation in various fields,鈥 according to a statement from Egypt鈥檚 cabinet.
Egypt has backed Sudan鈥檚 military leadership since war erupted in April 2023, when a fragile alliance between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) collapsed.
The RSF swiftly seized large parts of Khartoum, but after months of urban warfare, the army recaptured the capital in March this year.
Fighting has since shifted to other parts of the country 鈥 most notably the western regions of Darfur and Kordofan.
The conflict in Sudan has killed tens of thousands, displaced over 14 million and created what the United Nations describes as the world鈥檚 largest displacement and hunger crises.
Sudan is now effectively split, with the army in control of the north, east and center, while the RSF dominates nearly all of Darfur and parts of the south.
The RSF has been working to establish a rival administration in western Sudan 鈥 a move the United Nations warned could deepen divisions in the already fractured country.
Critics meanwhile say the new civilian-led government under Idris risks serving as a facade for continued military rule.


Mothers in Gaza stretch meager ingredients where they can, but say hunger persists

Mothers in Gaza stretch meager ingredients where they can, but say hunger persists
Updated 07 August 2025

Mothers in Gaza stretch meager ingredients where they can, but say hunger persists

Mothers in Gaza stretch meager ingredients where they can, but say hunger persists
  • Some survive on stale pita, raw beans or whatever they can get when charity kitchens have food left. Gas is scarce, vegetables are costly and meat has all but disappeared from markets
  • The struggle to survive on limited ingredients is being felt across Gaza as the territory plunges deeper into what international experts have called 鈥渢he worst-case scenario of famine鈥

DEIR AL-BALAH: A single bowl of eggplant stewed in watery tomato juice must sustain Sally Muzhed鈥檚 family of six for the day. She calls it moussaka, but it鈥檚 a pale echo of the fragrant, layered meat-and-vegetable dish that once filled Gaza鈥檚 kitchens with its aroma.
The war has severed families from the means to farm or fish, and the little food that enters the besieged strip is often looted, hoarded and resold at exorbitant prices. So mothers like Muzhed have been forced into constant improvization, reimagining Palestinian staples with the meager ingredients they can grab off trucks, from airdropped parcels or purchase at the market.
Israel implemented a total blockade on trucks entering the besieged strip in early March and began allowing aid back in May, although humanitarian organizations say the amount remains far from adequate.
Some cooks have gotten inventive, but most say they鈥檙e just desperate to break the dull repetition of the same few ingredients, if they can get them at all. Some families say they survive on stale, brittle pita, cans of beans eaten cold for lack of cooking gas, or whatever they can get on the days that they arrive early enough that meals remain available at charity kitchens.
鈥淭he children remain hungry. Tomorrow we won鈥檛 have any food to eat,鈥 Muzhed said from the tent where her family has been displaced in central Gaza鈥檚 Deir Al-Balah.
Once, her bowl would barely have fed one child. Now she ladles it out in spoonfuls, trying to stretch it. Her son asks why he can鈥檛 have more.
The Muzhed family鈥檚 struggle is being repeated across Gaza as the territory plunges deeper into what international experts have called 鈥渢he worst-case scenario of famine.鈥
On some days, mothers like Amani Al-Nabahin manage to get mujaddara from charity kitchens. The dish, once flavored with caramelized onions and spices, is now stripped to its bare essentials of rice and lentils.
鈥淣early nine out of ten households resorted to extremely severe coping mechanisms to feed themselves, such as taking significant safety risks to obtain food, and scavenging from the garbage,鈥 the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification said on July 29.
Gas for cooking is scarce, vegetables are costly and meat has all but vanished from the markets.
Families in Gaza once dipped pieces of bread into dukkah, a condiment made of ground wheat and spices. But today, 78-year-old Alia Hanani is rationing bread by the bite, served once a day at noon, allowing each person to dip it in a wartime dukkah made of flour, lentils and bulgur.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no dinner or breakfast,鈥 the mother of eight said.
Some people don鈥檛 even have enough to improvise. All Rehab Al-Kharoubi has for her and her seven children is a bowl of raw white beans.
鈥淚 had to beg for it,鈥 she said.
For some, it鈥檚 even less. Kifah Qadih, displaced from Khuza鈥檃 east of Khan Younis, couldn鈥檛 get any food 鈥 the bowl in front of her has remained empty all day.
鈥淭oday there is no food. There is nothing.鈥


Kurdish-led SDF not complying with Syria integration deal, Turkish source says

Kurdish-led SDF not complying with Syria integration deal, Turkish source says
Updated 07 August 2025

Kurdish-led SDF not complying with Syria integration deal, Turkish source says

Kurdish-led SDF not complying with Syria integration deal, Turkish source says
  • Turkiye views the US-backed SDF as a terrorist organization and has repeatedly said it expects the group to abide by the deal to disarm and integrate into the Syrian state apparatus

ANKARA: The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is not acting in line with an accord it signed with Syria鈥檚 government this year to join the country鈥檚 state institutions, and the recent clashes between the group and government forces damages Syria鈥檚 unity, a Turkish Defense Ministry source said on Thursday.
Turkiye views the US-backed SDF as a terrorist organization and has repeatedly said it expects the group to abide by the deal to disarm and integrate into the Syrian state apparatus.
鈥淚t has not escaped our attention that the SDF terrorist organization鈥檚 voice has become louder, empowered by the clashes in Syria鈥檚 south,鈥 the source told reporters at a briefing in Ankara, in a reference to the fighting between Druze and Bedouin forces last month.
鈥淭he SDF terrorist organization鈥檚 attacks in the outskirts of Manbij and Aleppo against the Syrian government in recent days damage Syria鈥檚 political unity and territorial integrity,鈥 the person added.