Jordan’s King Rejects Any Israeli Plan to Occupy Parts of Gaza

 A tank maneuvers, as seen from Southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, November 13, 2023. (Reuters)
A tank maneuvers, as seen from Southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, November 13, 2023. (Reuters)
TT

Jordan’s King Rejects Any Israeli Plan to Occupy Parts of Gaza

 A tank maneuvers, as seen from Southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, November 13, 2023. (Reuters)
A tank maneuvers, as seen from Southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, November 13, 2023. (Reuters)

Jordan's King Abdullah rejected any plans by Israel to occupy parts of Gaza or to create security zones within the enclave, saying the root cause of the crisis was Israel's denial of Palestinians' "legitimate rights", state media said on Monday.

In comments he made at the royal palace, the king was quoted as telling senior politicians that there could be "no military or security solution" to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

He said the war-ravaged enclave of Gaza should not be severed by Israel from the other Palestinian Territories.

The monarch told the politicians that the "root of the crisis was Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and its denial of Palestinians legitimate rights".

"The solution starts from there and any other path is doomed to failure and more of a cycle of violence and destruction," he said.

King Abdullah said he had long warned about Israeli violations in the West Bank, with which Jordan shares a border, and Jewish settler attacks on Palestinian civilians could "expand the conflict and push the region "to the abyss".

Jordan is home to a large population of Palestinian refugees and their descendants who fear that Israel could expel Palestinians en masse from the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where Israeli settler attacks on Palestinian inhabitants have surged since Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.

King Abdullah said this month the only path to permanent peace was revived negotiations on an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.

US-brokered negotiations towards a "two-state solution" of Palestinian independence in Israeli-occupied territories have been frozen for almost a decade.



4 UN Peacekeepers Wounded in Southern Lebanon

 An UN soldier stands on the top of a tower at a base of the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at the Israeli-Lebanese border as seen from northern Israel, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP)
An UN soldier stands on the top of a tower at a base of the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at the Israeli-Lebanese border as seen from northern Israel, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP)
TT

4 UN Peacekeepers Wounded in Southern Lebanon

 An UN soldier stands on the top of a tower at a base of the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at the Israeli-Lebanese border as seen from northern Israel, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP)
An UN soldier stands on the top of a tower at a base of the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at the Israeli-Lebanese border as seen from northern Israel, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP)

Four United Nations peacekeepers were wounded in southern Lebanon on Tuesday when a rocket struck a base, while another peacekeeping base was damaged by rocket fire and a patrol was shot at.

In a statement, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said “a rocket, likely fired by non-state actors within Lebanon,” struck the base of the Ghana's mission in the east of Ramyah village, injuring four peacekeepers, three of whom required hospitalization.

In the southern village of Chamaa, where heavy fighting between Hezbollah and the Israeli army has been taking place, five rockets damaged UNIFIL’s Sector West Headquarters. The UN force said this was the second attack on the base in a week, adding that no injuries were reported.

In another attack, an armed person “directly fired” at a UNIFIL patrol near Khirbat Silim, but there were no injuries, the statement said.

UNIFIL added that it launched investigations into each of the violent episodes and informed the Lebanese army about them.

“UNIFIL once again reminds all actors involved in the ongoing hostilities to respect the inviolability of United Nations peacekeepers and premises,” the statement said.

Italy said eight rockets struck the headquarters of its UN peacekeeping contingent in southern Lebanon. No one was injured.

According to the Italian defense ministry, the eight 107-millimenter rockets hit outdoor areas and a warehouse at the base in Chamaa, where no soldiers were present. Five soldiers were being kept under observation, the statement said.

Italy said it was investigating from where the rockets originated, and who was responsible.

It was the second time in a week that Italy has complained about rockets or shells hitting its peacekeepers' base.

Last week, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani spoke with his Israeli counterpart to demand an investigation after an artillery shell hit the gym on the base. No one was injured in that episode and the shell did not detonate.

Also on Tuesday, the Israeli military said another UN peacekeeper's position was hit by a Hezbollah rocket, causing damage and “several injuries.”

The army said it had received a report from UNIFIL that a post in the area of Ramyeh in southern Lebanon was hit.

The military said it conducted a review and determined the location was hit by a Hezbollah rocket fired in a barrage aimed at Israel. There was no immediate comment from UNIFIL on the episode.