Tag: conflict

Hostages on 60th day in Gaza as freed captives meet Israel PM

JERUSALEM, Dec 5, 2023 (AFP) – As Israel marked Tuesday the 60th day that nearly 140 hostages are held by Gaza militants, a group of former captives met the country’s prime minister to urge him to secure the release of those left behind. A one-week truce in fighting between Israel and Palestinian armed group Hamas saw 105 hostages return from the Gaza Strip, including 80 Israelis — mostly women and children — exchanged for 240 […]

Ending US aid for Ukraine would ‘let Putin prevail’: White House

By Danny KEMP WASHINGTON, Dec 5, 2023 (AFP) – The White House issued a dire warning Monday that US aid for Ukraine will run out by the end of the year, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin could win the war if Congress fails to agree fresh funding. President Joe Biden’s budget director, Shalanda Young, said in a blunt letter to Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson that if military assistance dries up it would “kneecap” […]

Israeli troops battle Hamas militants in southern Gaza

By Adel Zaanoun with Sebastien Berger in Jerusalem GAZA STRIP, Palestinian Territories, Dec 5, 2023 (AFP) – Israeli troops battled Hamas militants in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday after expanding their offensive deeper into the besieged territory, with warnings that an “even more hellish scenario” was unfolding for trapped civilians. Israel had initially focused its offensive on the north of the territory, but the army is now also dropping leaflets on parts of the […]

Ukraine accuses Russia of killing surrendering soldiers

KYIV, Ukraine, Dec 2, 2023 (AFP) – Kyiv accused Russia on Saturday of committing a war crime by executing Ukrainian soldiers who had signalled their intention to surrender. A short video posted on Telegram shows two men coming out of a shelter, one with his hands above his head, before lying on the ground in front of another group of soldiers. This is followed by what appears to be gunfire, and smoke appears, before the […]

Walkout, no-shows at COP28 as Israel-Hamas war resumes

By Talek HARRIS and Sahar AL-ATTAR DUBAI, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – Iran’s delegation walked out and Israel’s president cancelled his speech as tensions over the Gaza war spilled over at the UN COP28 climate talks in Dubai on Friday. As deadly air strikes resumed after a week-long truce, several of the world leaders gathered to discuss climate change took the chance to lament the Israel-Hamas war that has left thousands dead. “It is impossible […]

‘Hard blow’ for Israeli hostage families as truce ends

TEL AVIV, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – The families of hostages still being held in Gaza on Friday said the end of a truce that saw 80 kidnapped Israelis freed was a “very hard blow” to bear. Under an agreement between Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel, the hostages were being released at a rate of 10 each day, forcing the families to endure an agonising waiting game. But as the pause in the conflict […]

Myanmar ethnic minority fighters clash with military on major trade route

  YANGON, Myanmar, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – Ethnic minority fighters clashed with Myanmar’s military on a major trade route to Thailand on Friday, blocking traffic and sending people fleeing, residents and local media said. Fighters from the Karen National Union (KNU) fought with the military at dawn in the town of Kawkareik in eastern Karen state, according to local media reports. The town sits on the Asia Highway that links the trade hub of […]

Ukraine accuses Russia of halting prisoner of war exchanges

KYIV, Ukraine, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said Thursday Moscow had stopped swapping prisoners of war with Kyiv. The two warring sides have carried out many rounds of prisoner exchanges during Moscow’s 21-month long invasion, but in the latter half of this year the process stalled. “Exchanges are not taking place because Russia does not want them to,” Lubinets said on Telegram. “All initiatives, wishes and actions of Ukraine […]

Developing story: Deadly fighting resumes in Gaza as truce expires

GAZA STRIP, Palestinian Territories, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – Fighting resumed in Gaza on Friday immediately after the expiry of a week-long truce between Israel and Hamas, with the first fatalities reported minutes later, according to health officials in the Palestinian territory. An AFPTV livecam showed a heavy cloud of grey smoke rolling over northern Gaza, and apparent sounds of automatic weapons fire and explosions within the first 90 minutes after the truce expired at […]

The eight hostages released by Hamas on Thursday

PARIS, Dec 1, 2023 (AFP) – Eight Israeli hostages, including six women aged between 21 and 41, were released by Hamas on Thursday, according to accounts given by their relatives to AFP, information from the Israeli press and the Hostage Families Forum. The truce agreement between Israel and Hamas stipulates that a minimum of 10 Israeli hostages should be released alive each day. The release of two Russian-Israeli women in addition to 10 others a […]

Hamas claims responsibility for Jerusalem shooting that killed 3

JERUSALEM, Nov 30, 2023 (AFP) – Hamas claimed responsibility for a shooting attack in Jerusalem that killed three people on Thursday, shortly after the extension of a truce between Israel and the Islamist group that rules the Gaza Strip. Police said the two gunmen who carried out the attack were from annexed east Jerusalem and were shot dead at the scene, near a bus stop on the western side of the city, where there are […]

Hamas open to truce extension as US urges Gaza ‘safe’ zones

By Adel Zaanoun with Leon Bruneau in Tel Aviv GAZA STRIP, Palestinian Territories, Nov 30, 2023 (AFP) – Hamas is willing to further extend a truce for hostage and prisoner exchanges, a source close to the militant group said Thursday, and the United States urged Israel to set up safe zones for Gaza civilians as a pause in their deadly war neared expiry. International pressure has risen for a lasting halt to the war, sparked […]