When Will ‘Technical Committe’ be Allowed to Enter Gaza?

The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) said on Saturday that statements by the Gaza administration regarding readiness to hand over all public institutions pave the way for enabling the body to fully assume its responsibilities in managing the transitional phase.

In a statement, the committee, which was formed after the October ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, said it “views the recent expression of readiness for an orderly transition as a pivotal step in fulfilling its mandate as the transitional administration of Gaza.”

Gaza’s media office on Thursday renewed its call for the national committee to begin carrying out its duties. Hamas has also repeatedly announced readiness to facilitate the committee’s work.

“We emphasize that full administrative, civilian, and police control by the NCAG is not merely procedural; it NCAG cannot be expected to carry responsibility without the full administrative, civilian, and police powers necessary to implement its mandate effectively,” said the statement according to Anadolu.

The readout, however, did not specify when the committee would begin operating from Gaza. The NCAG earlier announced it started its work from Cairo in mid-January.

The entry of committee members into Gaza requires field and security coordination through crossings controlled by Israel. No official position has yet been issued by the body, explaining the delay in its entry, and Israel has not commented on the matter.

The committee said that enabling it to operate efficiently and independently in Gaza would “unlock international support for recovery, reconstruction, secure a complete Israeli withdrawal, and restore normal daily life.”

The committee also called on mediators and all parties concerned to “to intensify efforts to resolve outstanding issues without delay,” stressing that the Palestinian people “cannot afford more time lost; we must move now to ensure a smooth and credible transition.”

The Oct. 10 ceasefire agreement ended Israel’s two-year war that began on Oct. 8, 2023. Palestinian authorities say the conflict killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, wounded over 171,000 others and caused widespread destruction affecting 90% of civilian infrastructure. The UN estimates reconstruction costs at approximately $70 billion.

At least 591 Palestinians also have been killed and over 1,578 others injured in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

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Over 50,000 Foreigners Serve in The Israeli Army

Israeli military data identifies over 50,000 foreign nationals, including Western and Arab citizens, serving during the Gaza genocide.

Key Developments

  • Israeli figures show over 50,000 soldiers hold foreign citizenship alongside Israeli nationality.
  • Largest contingents come from the United States, France and Russia, alongside multiple European states.
  • Rights groups urge investigations under universal jurisdiction laws over Gaza war conduct.
  • Legal complaints already filed in Canada, Belgium and Britain targeting suspected war crimes.

Detailed Nationality Breakdown

Newly disclosed Israeli military data has revealed the extensive multinational composition of its armed forces, with 50,632 soldiers holding at least one foreign nationality in addition to Israeli citizenship.

According to figures published by Yedioth Ahronoth and detailed in regional reporting, the largest contingent consists of 12,135 United States nationals.

They are followed by 6,127 French nationals and 5,067 Russian nationals.

The data further records 3,901 German nationals, 3,210 Ukrainian nationals, 1,686 British nationals, and 1,675 Romanian nationals serving in the army.

Additional figures list 1,207 multi-national US citizens, 337 multi-national French citizens, 102 multi-national Russian citizens, 292 multi-national German citizens, and 56 multi-national Ukrainian citizens.

The list also includes recruits from Poland, Canada, and several Latin American countries, alongside smaller numbers holding Arab nationalities, including Yemen, Tunisia, Lebanon, Syria and Algeria.

Beyond dual nationality status, the data shows 4,440 soldiers hold two additional foreign citizenships, while 162 soldiers possess three or more foreign nationalities.

The publication marks one of the most detailed official disclosures illustrating the global reach of recruitment into the Israeli military across North America, Europe and other regions.

Role During the Gaza War

The presence of foreign nationals has gained particular relevance following the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, during which tens of thousands of dual- and multi-national soldiers participated in military operations.

The multinational composition indicates the conflict extends beyond diplomatic and military support into direct participation by citizens of numerous countries in combat activities.

This has intensified scrutiny over whether individuals may bear personal criminal liability for actions carried out during the war.

Growing Legal Scrutiny

Legal experts say the participation of foreign nationals opens the door to prosecutions under the principle of universal jurisdiction, allowing courts to pursue suspected war crimes regardless of nationality or location.

International organizations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have called for independent investigations and urged governments to examine the conduct of their citizens who served in the conflict.

Several countries have already seen legal action. Canadian federal police opened investigations into suspected war crimes believed to involve dual-national reservists. In Belgium and the United Kingdom, rights organizations filed complaints before national authorities and the International Criminal Court targeting hundreds of individuals, including European citizens.

Political Implications

The disclosures place Western governments under increasing pressure, as many provide political and military support to Israel while also facing potential legal obligations toward their nationals serving abroad.

The issue complicates diplomatic positions, particularly in countries whose domestic law restricts participation in foreign armed forces or mandates prosecution of grave international crimes.

According to Palestinian authorities, more than 72,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023 and over 171,000 wounded, while roughly 90% of civilian infrastructure has been destroyed.

Human rights organizations say ongoing documentation efforts and legal cases are likely to expand as evidence from the conflict continues to emerge. – Palestine Chronicle

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Gaza Beach Painting Relieves War Traumas

In a gesture of resilience and hope that rises above the aftermath of Israel’s two-year war on Gaza and the continued violations of the ceasefire agreement, Palestinian girls organized a seaside painting workshop in Gaza City.

The workshop, titled Breathe and Paint, was held on Thursday and underscored how the sea has become a place of refuge not only for artists, but for Palestinians seeking relief after enduring the genocidal war that began in October 2023.

Set against sunlight and gentle sea breezes, the initiative offered moments of calm and reflection, symbolizing life’s persistence despite attempts to extinguish it.

Anadolu attended the workshop, which took place at the fishing port west of Gaza City, away from areas devastated by Israeli attacks.

The event gave young Palestinian girls, many bearing deep psychological scars from the war, space to express emotions through art.

Using vivid colors, the participants momentarily set aside the trauma of war. Some painted Palestinian women in traditional dress, while others depicted the sea, the sun, and open horizons, reflecting hopes of renewal despite devastation.

Drawings of the map of Palestine and the national flag also featured prominently, painted by young girls as expressions of belonging and attachment to their homeland.

Israel targets art

During the genocidal war, Israeli forces destroyed major cultural and artistic landmarks across Gaza — actions Palestinians say were aimed at erasing their cultural identity.

Among the destroyed sites was the Rashad Al-Shawa Cultural Center in Gaza City’s Rimal neighborhood, established in 1985.

Israeli attacks also killed dozens of Palestinian artists, including visual artist Heba Zaqout during the war’s first month, theater artist Durgham Qreiqa in March 2025, and standup comedian Mahmoud Shurrab, who was killed when his tent was struck in Khan Younis in June 2025.

Palestinian and international organizations, including UNESCO, repeatedly condemned the targeting of artists, but Tel Aviv has ignored these denunciations and continued its assaults.

A space to breathe

Participant Farah Ajjour said the sea offered rare emotional relief after two years of confinement under war.

“This workshop gave us a chance to release what we were holding inside,” she told Anadolu.

Amid gentle sea breezes brushing her weary face, she said life had been on pause and that she now longs to resume it.

She added: “After the cultural center in Gaza City was destroyed (by the Israeli army), we no longer had a place to practice art.”

Insisting on continuing with life, she said: “I want my voice to be heard through my art. There is no place where I can do that except the seashore; that’s why we are here today.”

Art as resistance

Workshop organizer Noura Al-Qassasiya said the initiative aimed to restore color to the lives of girls deprived of normalcy for more than two years.

“Art helps us communicate the harsh reality of the Israeli genocide,” she said, noting that reaching the location itself was difficult due to widespread destruction and displacement.

She explained that the sea was chosen because it remained untouched by bombardment.

“The people of Gaza love art,” she said. “We want to do that not only through bloody and heartbreaking images, as was the case over the past two years, but also through art.”

Participant Amal Darwish said painting finally allowed her to speak after years of silence.

“Through art, I found space to tell our story and express resistance,” she said, adding that her greatest wish was for life to return “in bright colors.”

Throughout the workshop, fear, loss, and grief were transformed into paintings, alongside visions of a life participants still hope to reclaim.

The Oct. 10, 2025 ceasefire agreement ended Israel’s two-year war that began on Oct. 8, 2023. Palestinian authorities say the conflict killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, wounded over 171,000 others, and caused widespread destruction affecting 90% of civilian infrastructure. The UN estimates reconstruction costs at approximately $70 billion.

At least 591 Palestinians have been killed and over 1,578 others injured in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

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The Epstein Triangle: A View From Amman

By Saleem Ayoub Quna


Jeffrey Epstein, an Amercan citizen of the 21st century, Persian scholar Abu-Bakr Al-Karaji of the 10th century, Chinese mathematician Jia Xian of the 11th , Yang Hui of the 13th century and lastly, the French philosopher Blaise Pascal of the 17th century, all had something in common! They were all involved, for living, in the business of studying and drawing triangles, with one thematic exception in the case of Epstein! His contribution, in this field, was virtual, simply because the three sides, of his own triangle, were made of politics, money and sex, not lines drawn on paper!


Although, most probably, many entrepreneurs and adventurers preceded Epstein in this “creative” and venturous type of business, no one could have come even close to his status. A status for which he
could have easily won the title: “The epitome architect of the most treacherous triangle in history”!
As for the rest of us humans, and since we found ourselves dwelling on the only inhabitable planet called earth, we have been interacting and often exploiting, one another, on the basis of, precisely, those three sides of the triangle: Politics, money and sex!


But first let’s be elementary about it! Sex is the natural biological mechanism that safeguarded the reproduction of human species and other creatures on earth! Without it, our beautiful planet will be missing its ultimate key component!

Money is the most efficient tool, created by humans, to guarantee a descent life, devoid of hunger, disease and ignorance! Without it, all 8 billion people living on planet earth, would be equally poor and
suffering! While politics is the overall intellectual umbrella that is supposed to take care of the implementation of law and order between people and nations! Without it, we humans would be living like animals in a jungle!


But in Epstein’s smaller world, these three sides of the triangle were mysteriously and intricately intertwined. They may have looked rigid and static in theory, but in reality they were not. They switched roles and rotated position, depending on circumstances. Sometimes, acrobatically, they overlapped each other! That’s why, until this moment, it is impossible to definitely determine which of the three sides come first in life, or which of them is more or less important?


But here is another clue: If life can go on without money or politics as it has been the case for thousands of past-centuries, it could not have continued without sex! But this naturally-born physical urge known as “sex”, has two significant characteristics: Variation in intensity and in style. As for the first characteristic, for both genders, it goes into a peak period in life, then slowly fades away with age. As for style, humans kept being creative!


As time passed, sex again was classified into two categories: Legal and illegal. Both categories have flaws and faults. But the outside of the wedlock relationships are more complicated and controversial, because they come by, either as a “price” to be paid, or as a “prize” to be bestowed by one party to the other. In other words, sex can easily play the double role of a goal or an objective on its own, or that of a means or a vehicle, intermittingly!

Things can get really complicated if and when one of the two parties to the out of wedlock constitution relationships belonged to an underage feminist group! Epstein’s greatest talent was his ability to choose the right time and location when and how to use sex as a “prize” or as a “price” with his selected elite clients, depending on their different tastes, needs and status.


But the intriguing question is this: Was Epstein just another successful and smart businessman who managed to avail special sexual services, to a wealthy willing influential clientele, regardless of their faith, language or nationality, just to make his own fortune, or was he up to something bigger? In other words: Was Epstein an independent free-lancer working for himself to be become richer, or was he commissioned, to do so, by a third party, whose goals and objectives would entail blackmailing and
extortion, for ulterior sinister motivations?


What the millions of released pages have already told us, is more than shocking and have already caused damage and chaos where it broke. What if, what we have seen, so far, is just the tip of a monster iceberg
that is still sleeping in the dark bottom of the ocean?

This opinion was especially written for by Saleem Ayoub Quna who is a Jordanian author writing on local, regional and international affairs and has two books published. He has a BA in English Literature from Jordan University, a diploma from Paris and an MA from Johns Hopkins University in Washington.

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