Airstrike Hits Busy Market in Opposition-held Northwestern Syria and Kills at Least 9 People

US soldiers patrol the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan) in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province on June 7, 2023. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)
US soldiers patrol the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan) in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province on June 7, 2023. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)
TT
20

Airstrike Hits Busy Market in Opposition-held Northwestern Syria and Kills at Least 9 People

US soldiers patrol the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan) in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province on June 7, 2023. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)
US soldiers patrol the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan) in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province on June 7, 2023. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)

An airstrike early Sunday over a busy vegetable market in northwestern Syria killed at least nine people, activists and local first responders said.

Activists and Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that Russia, a top ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, launched the strike over the strategic opposition-held town of Jisr al-Shughur near the Turkish border.

The strike comes a day after Moscow’s top mercenary group briefly revolted against Russian President Vladimir Putin, said The Associated Press.

Opposition-held northwestern Syria's civil defense organization known as the White Helmets said over 30 people were wounded, and expected the death toll to increase.

“We're hearing that the critically wounded have been dying after reaching the hospital,” Ahmad Yaziji of the White Helmets told The Associated Press. “It was a targeted attack in the main vegetable market where farmers from around northern Syria gather.”

Farmers rushed the wounded to the hospital in bloodied vegetable trucks, while activists shared urgent calls for blood donations.

Neither Syria nor Russia commented on the airstrike, though Damascus says strikes in the northwest province target armed insurgent groups.

Northwestern Syria is mostly held by the militant group Hayat Tahrir al Sham, as well as Turkish-backed forces.



Israel Continues Deductions from PA Funds Despite Abbas’ Decree

Israeli forces during a military operation in Nablus, West Bank, on Tuesday. (AP)
Israeli forces during a military operation in Nablus, West Bank, on Tuesday. (AP)
TT
20

Israel Continues Deductions from PA Funds Despite Abbas’ Decree

Israeli forces during a military operation in Nablus, West Bank, on Tuesday. (AP)
Israeli forces during a military operation in Nablus, West Bank, on Tuesday. (AP)

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz took another step against the Palestinian Authority (PA), ordering the seizure of funds it pays to Palestinian prisoners held in Israel or those holding Israeli citizenship.

Israel’s Defense Ministry said the sanctions, imposed by Katz, are part of an economic crackdown by the security establishment against what it called “terrorist organizations.”

“The terror funds ordered to be seized by the defense minister were paid by the PA to terrorists serving prison sentences in Israel and to released prisoners,” according to a statement by the ministry.

Israel’s Maariv daily reported that the funds seized by Katz were paid by the PA to prisoners serving sentences in Israeli jails, released detainees, and their families.

The decision applies to “all residents of Jerusalem and Israeli citizens (Arab Israelis),” according to the Israeli Defense Ministry.

Katz’s move comes despite a decree last month by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas canceling legal provisions related to financial stipends for prisoners, martyrs, and the wounded.

The decree also transferred the digital database and financial allocations for the payments from the PA to a non-governmental organization.

Abbas issued the order after years of resisting US and Israeli pressure to halt PA payments to militants and detainees.

Israel began deducting funds from the PA’s tax revenues in 2018 to offset these payments, which Israeli officials call “pay-for-slay,” referring to stipends given to the families of prisoners and those killed in conflict.

The issue remains a source of ongoing tension.

In a bid to ease tensions, the PA years ago integrated released prisoners into government ministries, agencies, and security forces, placing many on early retirement. However, the move failed to satisfy Israel.

When US President Donald Trump took office in 2017, Abbas sought to resolve the crisis his own way, issuing a decree that sparked widespread controversy and domestic backlash.

The PA provides monthly stipends starting at 2,000 Israeli shekels ($550) for released prisoners, with payments increasing based on the length of their incarceration.

Current detainees receive at least 4,000 shekels ($1,100), with payments reaching 8,000 or 12,000 shekels for those who have served more than 20 or 30 years—though such cases are rare.

Last week, Israel seized $90 million from the PA’s tax revenues, known as “clearance funds,” redirecting the money to Israeli families of individuals killed in Palestinian attacks.

The latest Israeli measures follow Abbas’ decree and are part of Israel’s ongoing policy of deducting PA funds over the prisoner payment issue.