This is Beirut

Israel Army Says 700,000 Palestinians Fled South from Gaza City

This is Beirut, 25/09 16:15 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Palestine United Nations Gaza Hamas

The Israeli military said Thursday that 700,000 Palestinians have fled Gaza City to the south since late August, as it presses an air and ground assault on the urban center. When asked by AFP, the military said that "700,000 Palestinians have evacuated" from Gaza City to the south of the Gaza Strip. The UN's humanitarian agency, OCHA, on ...

Trump Envoy Witkoff Expects Mideast 'Breakthrough' in Coming Days

This is Beirut, 24/09 22:15 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Steve Witkoff Gaza United States

US envoy Steve Witkoff said Wednesday he expected a breakthrough related to Gaza in the coming days, saying President Donald Trump had presented a plan to regional countries. Witkoff, a real estate friend of Trump who has become his roving ambassador, said the US president shared ideas when meeting with a group of Arab and Islamic countries ...

Macron Says Trump Can Only Win Nobel If Gaza Conflict Stopped

This is Beirut, 23/09 22:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Donald Trump United States Emmanuel Macron France Gaza

US President Donald Trump could only win the Nobel Peace Prize if he stopped the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians over Gaza, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday. Macron told BFMTV in an interview from the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York that "there is only one person who could do something in the ...

Who Recognizes the State of Palestine, who Doesn't, and Why Does it Matter?

This is Beirut, 23/09 09:35 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Benjamin Netanyahu Europe G7 Gaza UN Palestinian state

A majority of European countries now recognisze the State of Palestine, following official declarations in New York on Monday by France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta and others, after nearly two years of war in Gaza. Here is an overview of diplomatic recognition of the state, which was unilaterally proclaimed by the Palestinian leadership in exile ...

Hamas Releases Video of Israeli-German Hostage Seen Alive

This is Beirut, 22/09 19:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Israel Hamas Gaza

Hamas' armed wing released a video on Monday showing an Israeli-German hostage alive, the second such footage of him shared by the militants this month. The Israeli campaign group Hostages and Missing Families Forum and the captive's family identified him as Alon Ohel, who was abducted by Palestinian militants during their October 7, 2023 attack ...

Israel Army Says Intercepts Projectile from Gaza City

This is Beirut, 22/09 17:33 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Israel Palestine Benjamin Netanyahu United Nations Hamas Gaza

The Israeli military said it intercepted a projectile fired on Monday from Gaza City, where troops are currently pressing a major ground offensive to capture the territory's largest urban center. It had earlier said the projectile was launched toward the area of Nahal Oz, a community near the Gaza border. "A projectile that crossed from ...

UK and Portugal to Recognize Palestinian State ahead of UN Debate

This is Beirut, 21/09 12:20 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Portugal United Kingdom Palestinian Statehood UN Gaza UN General Assembly

Britain was set Sunday to recognize a Palestinian state, UK media said, ahead of key UN talks where several nations are poised to follow suit to pressure Israel over Gaza. Prime Minister Keir Starmer "will set out the position later on today," his deputy David Lammy told the BBC, stopping short of confirming that there would be a full recognition ...

Israel Army says will Use 'Unprecedented force' in Gaza City

This is Beirut, 19/09 13:45 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Israel Palestine Benjamin Netanyahu United Nations Gaza

The Israeli military warned on Friday it will operate with "unprecedented force" in Gaza City, urging residents to flee southwards while announcing the closure of a temporary evacuation route opened 48 hours earlier. Israel's bid to capture Gaza City has sparked international outrage, with the territory already devastated by nearly two years of ...

Gaza, Palestinian Future to Dominate UN Gathering

This is Beirut, 19/09 11:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Palestine Donald Trump Benjamin Netanyahu UN General Assembly Gaza Ukraine

More than 140 world leaders will descend on New York next week for the annual United Nations General Assembly summit, which will be dominated this year by the future of the Palestinians and Gaza. One world leader who will miss the gathering is Mahmud Abbas, the Palestinian president who Washington denied US visas to attend, along with his ...

Ground Offensive in Gaza: Four Israeli Soldiers Killed Amid Heavy Strikes

This is Beirut, 18/09 23:57 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Benjamin Netanyahu United Nations Hamas Gaza

Israeli tanks and jets pounded Gaza City, the target of a major ground offensive, on Thursday, prompting Palestinians to flee south, where the Israeli military announced the deaths of four soldiers. AFP journalists and witnesses saw a steady stream of Gazans heading south on foot, in vehicles, and on donkey carts – their meager belongings ...

US Veto Blocks UN Security Council Resolution on Gaza Ceasefire

This is Beirut, 18/09 22:50 - Reading : less than a minute

UN Security Council Gaza United States United Nations

The United States on Thursday again wielded its veto and thwarted a UN Security Council call for a ceasefire in Gaza, shielding its ally Israel from meaningful diplomatic pressure. "The United States rejects this unacceptable resolution. It is beyond time that Hamas release every single hostage now and surrender immediately. The United States ...

Palestinians Flee Gaza City Amid Israeli Offensive

This is Beirut, 17/09 19:55 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Gaza Israel Hamas

On foot, by bike, or in vehicles, Palestinians are fleeing Gaza City in large numbers, targeted by a major Israeli military offensive whose bombings killed dozens across the territory on Wednesday. With U.S. support, Israel announced Tuesday the start of a ground and air campaign in Gaza City aimed at destroying the Palestinian Islamist group ...

Gaza