Archbishop of Canterbury Appeals to Free Layan Nassir

This is an appeal from the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby to the Israeli authorities to free Palestinian Christian Layan Nasser from Israeli administrative detention. She has been detained since 6 April.

I lament yesterday’s decision by an Israeli military court to renew Layan Nasir’s administrative detention for a further four months. This young Palestinian Christian from Birzeit in the West Bank has been held in detention since 6 April on classified evidence that leaves her facing unknown allegations with no way to disapprove them – not knowing when she will be released, all the time without being charged, tried or convicted…”

He continues to say: “This is an egregious state of affairs, as is the fact that her transfer outside the West Bank to Damon Prison is in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. I ask the Israeli Government to look again at her case and that she be released.  The widespread and routine manner in which Israel uses administrative detention of Palestinians as an instrument of Occupation is deeply discriminatory. It cannot be legally or morally justified. May God watch over Layan during her detention and comfort her family at this testing time.” #FreeLayan

Continue reading
Hezbollah Promises to Hit Back For Israeli Attack on Beirut    

Israel may have finally carried out its threat with its deadly military strike, Tuesday, on the southern suburb of Beirut.

The strike as reported by the media is devastating with pictures of large explosions trending on the social media.

Different scenarios are being draw up. Reports range from the strike being near the Hezbollah Shura headquarters, a nearby hospital and an apartment in a building belonging Fouad Shukr, a senior director of the Hezbollah’s missile accuracy project and a senior advisor to Hassan Nasrallah.

Reports also say the target through an Israeli drone with missiles was aimed at the Rabie building in Haret Hreik, a Hezbollah stronghold. The building subsequently collapsed with at least  two people reported killed.

Lebanese sources four say floors were leveled to the ground with rescue and ambulance crews continuing to remove the rubble and transport the injured with the number of injuries initially rising to 10.

However, the injuries continued to rise with a four killed and 80 injured including six children that arrived at the Bahman hospital.

While Israeli sources point to the success of the operation Hezbollah denies that Shukr was targeted and killed. The Israeli army said it targeted the commander responsible for the military operation on a school in Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights in which 12 children were killed, Saturday.

An Israeli military source said: “This is our response to the shooting of Majdal Shams…we have no intention of starting an all-out war. If Hezbollah does not respond, the event will end.”

But people in the southern suburb of Beirut are up-in-arms. They are calling for retaliation with chats of support for Hezbollah and its chief Hassan Nasrallah who is promising to hit back at Israel. He has already warned that if Beirut and the southern suburbs are hit, Tel Aviv will also be hit.

And this suggests that this is the beginning of escalation between Hezbollah and Israel that could lead to an all-out war.

Continue reading
Lebanese Flock to Beaches Despite Expected Israel Attacks

Amid sweltering temperatures, Lebanese people are flocking to the beaches and shores of the country to cool off. This is despite a mounting threat of an Israeli attack on Lebanon that could happen any day now.

For the past 10 months, there have been reciprocal attacks between the Israeli army and the Lebanese Hezbollah group along the 120-kilometer (75-mile) border between Israel and Lebanon.

Tensions have escalated further following a missile attack on a football field in the town of Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights.

The missile strike on Saturday killed 12 people. Israel blames Hezbollah for the attack. But Hezbollah denies playing any part in the attack.

Despite Israel’s threat of all-out war, Lebanese people, especially residents of Tyre, a city about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) from the conflict zone, continue to head to the beach.

An Anadolu reporter interviewed people in Tyre who were swimming in the sea as they cooled off with their families and friends at a public beach.

Rayan Fayad, a Lebanese expat from Abidjan, Ivory Coast who was visiting his hometown with his family, said he loves the beach in Tyre.

“Everyone is happy and no one is afraid. People are carrying on with their lives as usual,” he said.

Another resident, Abdullah Yahya, subtly referring to Hezbollah said there is a force in Lebanon to prevent Israel from targeting civilians, which is why civilians continue to live normal lives.

“Our home is very close to Israel. Yet we still go out, come to Tyre, and continue our lives as we did before,” Yahya said.

Fears of a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah have grown amid an exchange of cross-border attacks between the two side according to the Turkish news agency.

The escalation comes against the backdrop of a deadly Israeli onslaught on Gaza which has killed more than 39,300 people since last October following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.

Continue reading
Military Expert: Israel to Retreat From Tal Al Hawa in 72 Hrs

Military and strategic expert Major-General Fayez Al-Duwairi expects the Israeli army to be forced to retreat from Tel Al-Hawa in Gaza City, in the next 72 hours. The intensity and effectiveness of the resistance operations in the area will make sure of that, he added.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced it carried out several operations targeting Israeli soldiers and vehicles in Tel Al-Hawa. Al-Jazeera correspondent monitored the intense fighting in the neighborhood and the direct targeting of the occupation forces.

In an analysis of the military scene, Al-Duwairi pointed out there are four Israeli divisions fighting from Tel Al-Hawa to Rafah in the south. These are the 98, 99, 252 and 162 divisions, noting the fighting is fierce in most of theses areas, except in the northern region and parts of Gaza City.

Al-Duwairi explained the framework of operations in the areas surrounding Gaza city is difficult for the Israeli army, indicating it failed to achieve its goals in Jabalia, Shuja’iyya and Zeitoun, entering these areas repeatedly without achieving its goals.

The military expert pointed out that this is the sixth time the Israeli army enters this neighborhood, and this time as it will be forced to leave soon. He also pointed out the occupation army entered the camps area in the south twice with its  98th Division and failed, then sent the 36th Division and failed there as well.

Complete destruction

The real reasons for these Israeli incursions lie in the goal of completing the destruction of Gaza, displace more people and end the basic necessities of life, as each incursion is preceded by an Israel military order to the residents to evacuate the area.

In this context, he pointed out, the occupation destroyed the main water tank in Tel al-Sultan neighborhood in Rafah. He emphasized this reflects the army’s approach that is based on “gang ideology.”

Al-Duwairi, a military analyst in Al Jazeera Satellite Channel, pointed out the occupation doesn’t want the people who have been displaced to return, under the pretext of the infiltration of militants, which indicates a forced displacement process that may turn into permanent one.

As evidence of this, the military expert pointed out the Israeli army has completely destroyed homes and residential complexes in the south and east of Gaza City, and destroyed agricultural areas in the eastern region, saying such action is aimed at preventing people from returning.

Sniper bullet

Commenting on the sniper operation of an Israeli soldier in Khan Yunis broadcast by the Qassam Brigades, Al-Duwairi believes these Hamas fighters are using “leftover” war ammunition which reflect their ability to efficiently exploit available resources.

He explained the bullet that was used was 14.5 mm in caliber. He noted the use of these bullets reflects the resistance’s ingenuity in benefiting from weapons neglected and abandoned by the occupation soldiers.

Al-Duwairi pointed out the operation included accurate monitoring of occupation soldiers, which reflects a high level of planning and implementation, and best locations identified to carry out the sniper operation, which demonstrates professionalism on the part of the Palestinian fighters.

The military expert pointed out the morale of the Qassam fighters plays a decisive role in the success of the operations, stressing the sniper who carried out the operation enjoyed high confidence stemming from his belief in his cause.

He explained that the resistance does not only rely on recycling war remnants, but also uses strategies for direct reuse, as happened with the sniper bullets that appeared in this clip.

He pointed out the Al-Qassam Brigades use three main strategies: Reusing ready-made waste, recycling explosives, and reusing missiles dropped by occupation aircraft according to the Jo24.net website.

Continue reading
10 Israeli Soldiers Gang-rape Palestinian Prisoner

A Palestinian detainee was gang-raped by Israeli soldiers at the Sde Teiman Prison in the Negev desert in southern Israel, according to Israeli media on Monday as reported by Anadolu.

Israeli public broadcaster KAN, citing a security source, said the detainee taken to a hospital with severe injuries to an intimate body part, which left him without the ability to walk.

KAN said Israeli Police investigators arrived at the detention facility to detain the soldiers involved in the rape.

According to Israel’s Army Radio, 10 soldiers were detained for questioning as part of an investigation into the gruesome abuse.

Several reports emerged of severe abuses against Palestinian detainees at the notorious facility since the start of Israel’s ongoing offensive on the Gaza Strip.

The issue of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli has become a developing story with many angles as reported by the Turkish news agency.

It reported as well, that Israeli protesters, including rightwing politicians and extremist ministers from the Itamar Bin Gvir party stormed a military base in central Israel on Monday to protest the arrest of the 10 soldiers that included an Israeli captain who supervised the rape according to Al Jazeera.

Protesters closed the Military Police base in Beit Lid town where the soldiers are held for questioning, Army Radio reported.

Masked soldiers in military uniform took part in the protest, Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said.

As a response to the violent protesters filmed on TV, the leader of Israel’s Labor Party called, Monday, for jailing Knesset members who stormed the military base in the Negev desert to protest the arrest of soldiers accused of gang-raping a Palestinian detainee at the Sde Teiman Prison.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “bears direct responsibility for the establishment of armed militias whose entire purpose is to undermine the foundations of the rule of law,” Yair Golan said on X.

He condemned the raid by Israeli Knesset members as an attempt “to turn the Israeli army into armed militias.”

“Those elected officials who stormed Sde Teiman must go to prison,” Golan said.

The extremist Israeli officials who took part in the protest include Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu and Knesset member Tzvi Succot.

For his part, opposition leader Yair Lapid said Netanyahu has lost control over his government.

“This is not a riot, this is an attempted coup by an armed militia against a weak prime minister who is unable to control his government,” Lapid said.

Israeli media earlier reported that a detainee from the Gaza Strip was gang-raped by Israeli soldiers at the Sde Teiman Prison in southern Israel stressed the Turkish news agency.

Currently, Israel’s Supreme Court is considering a petition filed by Israeli human rights organizations to close the Sde Teiman prison, where Palestinian detainees from Gaza face torture and medical neglect.

The Israeli army is believed to have detained thousands of Palestinians, including women, children, and medics since Oct. 7, 2023.

Continue reading