UN Organizations Commend KSrelief's Support for Relief Efforts in Gaza

The KSrelief received appreciation from the WHO, the UNRWA, and the WFP for its support to UN relief efforts in Gaza.
The KSrelief received appreciation from the WHO, the UNRWA, and the WFP for its support to UN relief efforts in Gaza.
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UN Organizations Commend KSrelief's Support for Relief Efforts in Gaza

The KSrelief received appreciation from the WHO, the UNRWA, and the WFP for its support to UN relief efforts in Gaza.
The KSrelief received appreciation from the WHO, the UNRWA, and the WFP for its support to UN relief efforts in Gaza.

The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) has received appreciation from the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and the World Food Program (WFP) for its support to UN relief efforts in Gaza, SPA said on Thursday. WHO's Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, Dr. Ahmed Al-Mandhari, expressed gratitude for the collaboration between WHO and KSrelief in supporting humanitarian and health initiatives in the Gaza Strip.
Several agreements were signed by KSrelief with various organizations and agencies in the humanitarian field at the Saudi Arabia Embassy in Cairo on Thursday, in the presence of the Saudi Ambassador to Egypt, Osama bin Ahmed Nugali, to ease the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
Al-Mandhari emphasized the severe crises the Eastern Mediterranean region faces due to conflicts, wars, and political instability and how these challenges impact the region's infrastructure, particularly the healthcare system.
He described the ongoing Israeli aggression in Gaza, which has been going on for 47 days, as a real test of humanitarian values worldwide and the commitment of UN organizations to serving humanity.
The Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, expressed his gratitude towards KSrelief for their support in fulfilling the agency's duties in the critical situation of Gaza.
Lazzarini described the situation in Gaza as alarming, where 35,000 people have sought shelter in a UNRWA center after being displaced from their homes and losing all means of safety and protection. He welcomed the humanitarian truce in Gaza and stressed the importance of adhering to it to alleviate the humanitarian suffering and enhance relief efforts.
The WFP Regional Director for Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe, Corinne Fleischer, also applauded KSrelief's support to several UN organizations in fulfilling their roles in addressing the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
She also welcomed the announced truce in Gaza, affirming the need for its implementation amid deteriorating food situation as bakeries have ceased operations due to fuel and flour shortages.
The Head of Delegation for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Egypt, Alfonso Verdú Pérez, stressed the importance of collaborating with international partners to end the war in Gaza.
He highlighted that regional and international organizations are tirelessly working to address the humanitarian crisis in the Strip.
Pérez further added that 70% of the health and humanitarian institutions and facilities have been destroyed by the conflict, highlighting the significance of funding UN organizations to assist the Palestinian people in Gaza.



Israel Military Says Soldier Killed in Gaza 

A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)
A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)
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Israel Military Says Soldier Killed in Gaza 

A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)
A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)

The Israeli military announced that one of its soldiers had been killed in combat in southern Gaza on Wednesday, but a security source said the death appeared to have been caused by "friendly fire".

"Staff Sergeant Ofri Yafe, aged 21, from HaYogev, a soldier in the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Unit, fell during combat in the southern Gaza Strip," the military said in a statement.

A security source, however, told AFP that the soldier appeared to have been "killed by friendly fire", without providing further details.

"The incident is still under investigation," the source added.

The death brings to five the number of Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza since a ceasefire took effect on October 10.


Syria: SDF’s Mazloum Abdi Says Implementation of Integration Deal May Take Time

People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
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Syria: SDF’s Mazloum Abdi Says Implementation of Integration Deal May Take Time

People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman

Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces, said the process of merging the SDF with Syrian government forces “may take some time,” despite expressing confidence in the eventual success of the agreement.

His remarks came after earlier comments in which he acknowledged differences with Damascus over the concept of “decentralization.”

Speaking at a tribal conference in the northeastern city of Hasakah on Tuesday, Abdi said the issue of integration would not be resolved quickly, but stressed that the agreement remains on track.

He said the deal reached last month stipulates that three Syrian army brigades will be created out of the SDF.

Abdi added that all SDF military units have withdrawn to their barracks in an effort to preserve stability and continue implementing the announced integration agreement with the Syrian state.

He also emphasized the need for armed forces to withdraw from the vicinity of the city of Ayn al-Arab (Kobani), to be replaced by security forces tasked with maintaining order.


Israeli Far-Right Minister to Push for ‘Migration’ of West Bank, Gaza Palestinians 

A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)
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Israeli Far-Right Minister to Push for ‘Migration’ of West Bank, Gaza Palestinians 

A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he would pursue a policy of "encouraging the migration" of Palestinians from the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israeli media reported Wednesday.

"We will eliminate the idea of an Arab terror state," said Smotrich, speaking at an event organized by his Religious Zionism Party late on Tuesday.

"We will finally, formally, and in practical terms nullify the cursed Oslo Accords and embark on a path toward sovereignty, while encouraging emigration from both Gaza and Judea and Samaria.

"There is no other long-term solution," added Smotrich, who himself lives in a settlement in the West Bank.

Since last week, Israel has approved a series of measures backed by far-right ministers to tighten control over the West Bank, including in areas administered by the Palestinian Authority under the Oslo Accords, in place since the 1990s.

The measures include a process to register land in the West Bank as "state property" and facilitate direct purchases of land by Jewish Israelis.

The measures have triggered widespread international outrage.

On Tuesday, the UN missions of 85 countries condemned the measures, which critics say amount to de facto annexation of the Palestinian territory.

"We strongly condemn unilateral Israeli decisions and measures aimed at expanding Israel's unlawful presence in the West Bank," they said in a statement.

"Such decisions are contrary to Israel's obligations under international law and must be immediately reversed.

"We underline in this regard our strong opposition to any form of annexation."

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday called on Israel to reverse its land registration policy, calling it "destabilizing" and "unlawful".

The West Bank would form the largest part of any future Palestinian state. Many on Israel's religious right view it as Israeli land.

Israeli NGOs have also raised the alarm over a settlement plan signed by the government which they say would mark the first expansion of Jerusalem's borders into the occupied West Bank since 1967.

The planned development, announced by Israel's Ministry of Construction and Housing, is formally a westward expansion of the Geva Binyamin, or Adam, settlement situated northeast of Jerusalem in the West Bank.

The current Israeli government has fast-tracked settlement expansion, approving a record 52 settlements in 2025.

Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law.