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Israel Shows Images of Tanks in Gaza as War on Hamas Deepens

Palestinians check the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on houses, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 29, 2023. (Reuters)
Palestinians check the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on houses, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 29, 2023. (Reuters)
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Israel Shows Images of Tanks in Gaza as War on Hamas Deepens

Palestinians check the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on houses, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 29, 2023. (Reuters)
Palestinians check the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on houses, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 29, 2023. (Reuters)

Israel signaled intent to encircle Gaza's main city on Sunday, publishing pictures of battle tanks on the Palestinian enclave's western coast 48 hours after ordering expanded ground incursions across its eastern border.

Israel's self-declared "second phase" of a three-week war against Hamas militants had initially been kept from public view, with forces moving under darkness and a telecommunications blackout cutting off Palestinians.

The phone and internet cuts appeared to be easing on Sunday, according to Gaza residents. But they have severely hampered rescue operations for casualties of Israeli barrages wreaking destruction, especially on northern Gaza City, site of Hamas's government and command centers.

As well as the Israeli military's pictures of tanks, some pictures online appeared to show Israeli soldiers waving an Israeli flag deep inside Gaza.

Reuters could not verify those images.

Hamas said it was firing mortars against Israeli forces in north Gaza and had hit Israeli tanks with missiles, belittling reports of deep advances by its enemy.

"Israel cut us off from the world in order to wipe us out, but we are hearing the sounds of explosions and we are proud the resistance fighters have stopped them at meters distance," said Shaban Ahmed, a public servant who stayed in Gaza City despite an Israeli warning to evacuate south.

Ahmed said he only found out on Sunday that his cousin had died in an air strike two days previously due to the blackout.

Israeli Defense Force (IDF) fighter jets struck over 450 Hamas targets, including operational command centers, look-out posts, and anti-tank missile launch posts, in the last 24 hours, the military said on Sunday.

It said several gunmen emerged from a tunnel near Israel's border and were killed or wounded in a clash with troops.

"We are gradually expanding the ground activity and the scope of our forces in the Gaza Strip," said IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.

Israel has tightened its blockade and bombarded Gaza since Hamas gunmen stormed across the border into Israel on Oct. 7, killing at least 1,400 people and taking more than 200 hostages.

Medical authorities in the Gaza Strip, which has a population of 2.3 million people, said on Sunday 8,005 people - including 3,324 minors - had been killed.

Regional overspill?

Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas, a task that it described as necessitating protracted ground assaults in, around and under Gaza City, where the militants have an extensive subterranean bunker network.

Western countries have generally backed what they say is Israel's right to self-defense. But there has been mounting international outcry over the toll from the bombing and calls for a "humanitarian pause" to allow aid to reach Gaza civilians.

There are fears too of regional overspill to the Gaza war, including in Lebanon where the Israeli army and Iranian-backed Hezbollah group have been exchanging fire.

On Sunday, the United Nations' Lebanon peacekeeping force UNIFIL said one of its members was injured after shells hit the mission's base near Houla on the Lebanese-Israeli border the day before.

Israel said there were several rocket or mortar launches from Lebanon at its territory, and that it was returning fire.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN that Israel must use every means possible to distinguish between Palestinian civilians and Hamas in Gaza. He also urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "rein in" violence against innocent people in the occupied West Bank.

Pope Francis on Sunday called for a ceasefire and renewed his call for the release of all hostages.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron expressed concern about getting aid into Gaza during a phone call on Sunday, Sunak's office said.

With supplies of food, water and medicines running low and much of Gaza reduced to rubble, thousands of residents broke into warehouses and distribution centers of the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), grabbing flour and other basics, the organization said on Sunday.

Israel will allow a dramatic increase in aid to Gaza in coming days and Palestinian civilians should head to a "humanitarian zone" in the south of the tiny territory, said Colonel Elad Goren of Cogat, the Israeli Defense Ministry agency that coordinates with the Palestinians.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said on Sunday 10 Egyptian trucks carrying food and medicine had arrived in Gaza via the Rafah crossing, bringing the total number so far to 94, a small fraction of what is needed.

'God have mercy'

Displaced Palestinians staying in tents in Gaza’s Khan Younis described dire living conditions, with little access to food and water and having to queue hours for the toilet.

"I wish God will have mercy on us and the war stops," said Rami Al-Erqan, a father cradling his daughter, one of his six children. "We reached a state where we wish to have died under the rubble just to find some rest. Our life is torture."

Central Israel also came under heavy rocket fire on Sunday, with sirens sounding in several major cities.

Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said on its Telegram account that it was "bombing Tel Aviv in response to the Zionist massacres against civilians".

They later said their fighters had clashed with Israeli forces northwest of Gaza and had also set fire to two Israeli tanks. There was no immediate word from Israel on the claims.

The conflict has prompted large demonstrations worldwide in support of the Palestinians. On Sunday several thousand people rallied in Beirut to show solidarity with Gaza.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said it had received warnings from Israeli authorities to immediately evacuate al-Quds hospital in the Gaza Strip, adding that raids conducted on Sunday had taken place just 50 meters from the facility.

The Red Crescent says some 14,000 people have sought shelter at the hospital from Israeli air strikes.

Israel has accused Hamas of locating command centers and other military infrastructure in Gaza hospitals, something the group denies.

Palestinian officials said around 50,000 people had also taken shelter in the Gaza Shifa Hospital and said they were concerned about ongoing Israeli threats to the facility.

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Arab World

Sudanese Army, RSF Clash in Fierce Battles in Kordofan

A man walks on his home debris following a strike in Imtidad Nasser, a neighborhood east of Khartoum's airport, Sudan, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali)
A man walks on his home debris following a strike in Imtidad Nasser, a neighborhood east of Khartoum's airport, Sudan, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali)
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Sudanese Army, RSF Clash in Fierce Battles in Kordofan

A man walks on his home debris following a strike in Imtidad Nasser, a neighborhood east of Khartoum's airport, Sudan, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali)
A man walks on his home debris following a strike in Imtidad Nasser, a neighborhood east of Khartoum's airport, Sudan, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali)

Fierce fighting in western Sudan raged for a second straight day after the army launched simultaneous attacks on Rapid Support Forces (RSF) positions in North and West Kordofan on Thursday, with both sides making conflicting claims of battlefield gains.

The Sudanese army has released no official details of the fighting, but Major Mutawakkil Ali Wakil, spokesman for the army-allied Joint Force, said the two forces had launched sweeping operations across Kordofan, recapturing Umm Sumayma, Kazgeil, Al-Hammadi and Abu Quoud.

The operations inflicted heavy losses in fighters and equipment on the RSF, he said.

"Our forces destroyed 40 combat vehicles and seized another 43 with all their equipment," Wakil said in a statement, adding that troops were pursuing RSF fighters who had fled the battlefield.

He said the Joint Force would continue fighting alongside the army and allied forces until all RSF-held territory was recaptured.

Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin (not pictured) during their talk on the sidelines of the third Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow, Russia, 30 October 2026. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV / POOL

The Joint Force's claims of territorial gains could not be independently verified.

The Joint Force of Armed Struggle Movements, which previously joined the Sudanese army in its war against the RSF, includes the Justice and Equality Movement, led by Jibril Ibrahim, and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army, headed by Darfur Governor Minni Arko Minnawi.

Pro-RSF media platforms, however, painted a sharply different picture, claiming RSF fighters had ambushed the advancing troops, killed large numbers of them and seized fully equipped combat vehicles before retaking the contested areas.

The platforms suggested the army had retreated to El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, after suffering setbacks on several fronts.

Neither side typically acknowledges losing territory until its opponent declares full control.

The latest clashes follow months of advances by the army and allied forces, which have recaptured key areas of North Kordofan while pushing to gain control of neighboring West Kordofan, a state rich in oil.

Reports have circulated for days that the army was preparing sweeping counteroffensives to reclaim RSF-held territory in West Kordofan.

The towns of Kazgeil and Al-Hammadi have already changed hands several times between the warring sides.

The army has not officially disclosed its latest troop movements, but commanders have previously signaled plans for offensives on multiple fronts to reclaim RSF-held areas.

They said the goal was to retake towns across West Kordofan and open a route into the Darfur region in western Sudan.

Arab World

Jordan Steps up Security with Overnight Raids as Terrorism Threat Resurfaces

Jordanian police stand guard in front of the Sri Lankan Embassy, background, after an assailant killed a security officer at a guard booth outside the compound in Amman, Jordan, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh)
Jordanian police stand guard in front of the Sri Lankan Embassy, background, after an assailant killed a security officer at a guard booth outside the compound in Amman, Jordan, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh)
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Jordan Steps up Security with Overnight Raids as Terrorism Threat Resurfaces

Jordanian police stand guard in front of the Sri Lankan Embassy, background, after an assailant killed a security officer at a guard booth outside the compound in Amman, Jordan, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh)
Jordanian police stand guard in front of the Sri Lankan Embassy, background, after an assailant killed a security officer at a guard booth outside the compound in Amman, Jordan, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh)

Just days after the deadly attack on Saint George Church in Hamoud village in southern Jordan and retaliatory airstrikes against ISIS in southern Syria, another attack struck the capital, Amman, on Thursday, killing one security officer and wounding another.

The assailant, described as a “terrorist,” had recently been released from prison after serving a sentence in a 2020 terrorism case involving plans to carry out attacks.

Attacks on security personnel guarding ministries, embassies and government institutions are not new. But Thursday’s assault has revived concerns about the threat posed by lone-wolf attackers and their possible links to ISIS.

Observers say the attack may have appeared isolated, but that does not rule out instructions being delivered through online accounts linked to the militant group.

ISIS makes no secret of its hostility toward Jordan. Communications between the group and the cell behind the Hamoud Church attack revealed a list of potential targets.

Civilians and members of the security forces stand outside the Sri Lankan embassy after a stabbing attack that killed one Jordanian security officer and wounded another, in Amman, Jordan, November 5, 2026. REUTERS/Jehad Shelbak

Retired security experts warn that bladed weapons are easy to conceal and use, particularly when attackers strike without warning. The threat is compounded by the nature of police work, which requires Public Security Directorate personnel to maintain close, direct contact with civilians.

Jordanian security under attack on multiple fronts

Jordan's efforts to combat terrorism and extremism have made it a target for militant groups.

A string of attacks in recent years has claimed the lives of civilians and security personnel and struck sovereign state institutions, raising questions about the methods used to monitor and pursue militants at home and abroad.

ISIS's targets extend well beyond security forces.

Civilians and members of the security forces stand outside the Sri Lankan embassy after a stabbing attack that killed one Jordanian security officer and wounded another, in Amman, Jordan, November 5, 2026. REUTERS/Jehad Shelbak

The Hamoud Church attack in Karak killed nine people and wounded 40. More troubling, however, was what appeared to be an attempt to sow sectarian discord between Muslims and Christians in a governorate widely regarded by Jordanians as a symbol of religious coexistence.

The challenge for security agencies lies partly in the unpredictable nature of lone-wolf attacks.

Even suspects under surveillance may develop plans suddenly, driven by revenge or extremist religious edicts urging the killing of security personnel.

Experts argue that surveillance alone cannot contain the threat. They say rehabilitation must become a priority, particularly through open dialogue between terrorism convicts and moderate religious leaders.

One figure involved in such efforts is Bassam al-Amoush, a former Muslim Brotherhood leader and former member of the Islamic Action Front who is now affiliated with the Umma Party.

Al-Amoush won parliamentary seats on the Islamic Action Front ticket in several elections before leaving the party over internal disagreements. He has since engaged imprisoned ISIS members in discussions aimed at exposing the religious violations committed by terrorist and takfiri groups.

The concern is not theoretical.

Several perpetrators of terrorist attacks in Jordan had previously been convicted of terrorism offenses, served their sentences and returned to civilian life.

Image taken from a video of militants during their attack on the church in the Jordanian village of Hamoud

Human rights reports indicate that terrorism convicts are held in shared prison wards, while years behind bars have failed to dislodge the extremist beliefs that underpin their ideology.

Those beliefs remain deeply rooted among militants, whether they operate in organized cells or as lone wolves living within their communities.

The latest attack has brought those concerns into sharper focus.

The assailant who targeted a security guard outside the Sri Lankan Embassy on a major road in western Amman had previously pledged allegiance to the ISIS leader in 2019.

He was arrested in 2020 and sentenced to nine years in prison in 2022, raising questions about the gap between his sentence and the time he actually served.

A similar pattern emerged among those involved in the Hamoud Church attack in Karak, with former terrorism convicts featuring prominently among perpetrators of attacks in Jordan.

The threat has also been fueled by years of cross-border recruitment.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian conflict, terrorist organizations in Syria and Iraq have used social media to recruit young Jordanians, while militant cells spread along Jordan's northern border.

Some of those areas remain outside the control of Syria's new government, providing potential bases for threats to Jordanian national security.

Sleeper cells and fears of coordinated attacks

Security experts say the pattern points to possible links between militants inside Jordan and organizations abroad, as well as the presence of sleeper cells within the kingdom.

After years of relative dormancy, ISIS has reassessed its operations, plans and the distribution of its cells among communities in southern Syria, exploiting weak security and vast areas beyond effective state control.

Security assessments suggest the group has adapted its deployment and methods to changing conditions, taking advantage of Jordanian security forces' focus on countering Iranian attacks against Jordan and Gulf states since late February.

A bloodstain at Saint George’s Greek Orthodox Church, where gunmen opened fire during a funeral the previous day, in the village of Hamoud, Karak, Jordan, October 24, 2026. REUTERS/Alaa Al Sukhni

The threats come from more than one direction.

ISIS remains active to Jordan's north, while Tehran-backed Shiite militias operate along its eastern border with Iraq.

Despite their differences, the groups share an interest in targeting Jordanian security.

Such threats also have roots in areas once supported by Syria's former government, including territory that housed drug-manufacturing facilities and cross-border smuggling networks used to threaten Jordan through various means.

Informed sources say Jordanian security officials are increasingly concerned about renewed, intensive communications between sleeper cells inside the kingdom and terrorist organizations abroad.

The concern has fueled calls to widen surveillance using databases of Jordanians affiliated with terrorist groups, including those still in prison and those who have been released.

The priority, according to the sources, is to close potential security gaps before militant groups can exploit them.

One question remains particularly pressing.

Some perpetrators of the Hamoud Church attack had been released from prison only shortly before the assault. The attacker behind Thursday's operation had also recently completed his sentence.

Could they have received instructions from convicted militants with whom they had shared prison cells?

Fears that security gaps could complicate intelligence gathering and investigations prompted Jordanian security agencies to launch a sweeping series of raids across the kingdom as the case unfolded.

The operations began Thursday night and continued into early Friday, reaching northern, central and southern Jordan.

Security forces raided areas including Southern Mazar in Karak governorate and Irbid in the north, as well as Marka, Al-Rajm al-Shami and Jubeiha in and around northern Amman.

The raids also extended to Russeifa in Zarqa governorate.

Arab World

Talks Underway to Avert Split into Rival Administrations in Iraqi Kurdistan

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani announced his party’s withdrawal from the regional government in protest against a parliamentary session held without its lawmakers (AFP)
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani announced his party’s withdrawal from the regional government in protest against a parliamentary session held without its lawmakers (AFP)
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Talks Underway to Avert Split into Rival Administrations in Iraqi Kurdistan

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani announced his party’s withdrawal from the regional government in protest against a parliamentary session held without its lawmakers (AFP)
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Bafel Talabani announced his party’s withdrawal from the regional government in protest against a parliamentary session held without its lawmakers (AFP)

Iraqi Kurdistan's deepening political crisis has revived the prospect of rival administrations, with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) announcing its withdrawal from the regional government even as its longtime rival, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), says talks are underway to resolve the standoff.

A senior KDP official said the party, led by Masoud Barzani, was in contact with the PUK, headed by Bafel Talabani, and representatives of other political groups in a bid to break the deadlock.

The threat of a return to separate administrations has grown since the Kurdistan Regional Parliament convened last Wednesday for the first time since elections nearly two years ago, electing its leadership without the PUK, which denounced the move as unilateral and rejected it.

The KDP won 39 seats in the October 2024 elections, ahead of the PUK's 23. The PUK later joined forces with the New Generation Movement, which secured 15 seats, to strengthen its hand in negotiations to form a government with its historic rival.

On Thursday evening, Talabani declared that the PUK would not recognize the parliamentary session and would withdraw from the government.

The KDP, however, defended the session as "neither a victory for one side nor a defeat for another, but a victory for the people of Kurdistan as a whole."

The PUK, New Generation Movement, Kurdistan Islamic Union, National Stance Movement and Kurdistan Justice Group had all previously announced they would boycott the session.

In a televised address, Talabani raised the prospect of a separate administration in Sulaymaniyah, warning that his party would match any move by its rivals to form a government.

"If they appoint a prime minister, we will appoint a prime minister here. If they choose a minister, we will choose a minister here," he said.

"They started this ... and I will be the one to end it."

KDP leader Masoud Barzani, meanwhile, urged the parties that boycotted the session to return to parliament, attend future meetings and work together to serve the people of Kurdistan, support the political process and advance its next steps.

Vala Fareed, the newly elected speaker of the Kurdistan parliament, told local media that reviving the legislature was essential to protecting the region's constitutional status and was not directed against any political party.

The new Kurdish parliament speaker Vala Fareed (L) addresses a press conference after the session of Kurdistan's regional parliament, in Erbil on November 4, 2026. (Photo by Safin HAMID / AFP)

PUK moves to quit government offices

The PUK is pressing ahead with its withdrawal.

Senior party official Mahmoud Khoshnaw told Asharq Al-Awsat that PUK representatives would begin vacating their government offices on Sunday, the first working day of the week.

He warned that the parliamentary session could have "negative repercussions," saying its outcome could give outside powers grounds to intervene.

Khoshnaw said the PUK could go further, potentially seeking administrative independence for Sulaymaniyah from Erbil.

The KDP rejected suggestions that the parliamentary session was unlawful.

Senior party official Dijwar Faiq said the legislature had convened nearly two years after the elections with 52 lawmakers from different blocs, parties and communities present, meeting the required legal quorum.

Faiq told Asharq Al-Awsat that the KDP, as the largest party in parliament, had wanted the PUK and other groups to take part and had spent nearly two years trying to bring them on board.

Despite repeated meetings and negotiations, he said, the PUK and other parties refused to participate.

He said parliament would meet again on Monday to elect its legal committee and open nominations for the Kurdistan region's presidency.

Rival parties clash over parliamentary quorum

At the heart of the dispute is a question that has quietly divided the two parties for nearly two years: who could secure the parliamentary quorum first?

Khoshnaw said the PUK could have rallied its allies to convene parliament but chose not to, preferring a negotiated settlement that included all parties.

"The Kurdistan region cannot be governed solely by the arithmetic of parliamentary seats," he said, arguing that governance must also rest on principles that ensure all influential forces representing the Kurdish people have a role.

Faiq challenged that account, saying the PUK had spent two years trying, unsuccessfully, to secure a quorum with New Generation to convene parliament and form a government.

"If they had been able to secure a quorum, they would not have hesitated to convene parliament and form a government that excluded the KDP," he said.

Together, the PUK and New Generation hold 38 of the Kurdistan parliament's 100 seats. Their alliance demanded half the positions in the regional government, a proposal the KDP rejected.

The KDP argues that support from other parties would tip the balance in its favor, though it says it remains willing to share power with its historic rival on fair and balanced terms.

Faiq urged parties seeking a place in government to participate according to their parliamentary strength and legal and electoral entitlements, and to help draft the government's program.

Those unwilling to govern could choose the opposition, he said, but they must still attend parliamentary sessions.

"Otherwise, what was the point of their participation in the elections in the first place?" he asked.