Iraqi Security Conducts a Successful Operation Against ISIS

Iraqi army soldiers (file photo: Reuters)
Iraqi army soldiers (file photo: Reuters)
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Iraqi Security Conducts a Successful Operation Against ISIS

Iraqi army soldiers (file photo: Reuters)
Iraqi army soldiers (file photo: Reuters)

Iraq's Security Media Cell announced on Sunday that four ISIS terrorists were killed in a precise air strike in Diyala, northeast of Baghdad.

The operation, carried out by the Iraqi Air Force utilizing F-16 aircraft, targeted and destroyed important hideouts in al-Qubba in the Al-Waqf area in Diyala Governorate.

Following the airstrike, a security force arrived to inspect the targeted area and discovered four bodies of ISIS terrorists and a cache of destroyed weapons and equipment.

According to preliminary information, among the dead was Majid Maiouf, a long-sought militant.

A detailed joint operations report revealed the specific details regarding the operation, which is part of a broader campaign against the extremist group.

The report highlighted the Intelligence Service's pivotal role in the operation's logistical preparations. It included close coordination with the targeting cell in the Joint Operations Command and under the supervision of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani.

After the operation, a security team combed the targeted place, during which they found the four dead ISIS terrorists, indicating that the group targeted the people of Diyala and neighboring governorates during the past periods.

Meanwhile, an air attack targeted an arms convoy within Syrian territory coming from Iraqi territory.

A statement carried by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said on Sunday that two members of Iran-affiliated militias of non-Syrian nationality were seriously injured in a US drone attack.

The strike targeted at least one truck loaded with weapons and ammunition en route to the town of al-Ghubrah – al-Hamdan Airport in the al-Bu Kamal countryside, east of Deir ez-Zor after the car crossed Iraqi territory.

The injured persons were transferred to the hospital for treatment amid intense security measures by the militias.

The armed factions announced in a similar statement on Sunday the targeting of two Israeli and US bases in the Syrian Golan and al-Hasakah.

The statement indicated that the armed factions targeted, with a drone, the Qasrak US base in al-Hasakah, northeastern Syria.

It added that the forces also targeted a Zionist bast in the Golan Heights.

- Sudani

Furthermore, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani announced on the anniversary of Iraqi Army Day the start of the countdown to the international coalition in Iraq.

Sudani indicated that the government is beginning the process of removing the US-led international military coalition from the country.

The statement from the PM's office indicated that the government is setting a date for the start of the bilateral committee to make arrangements to permanently end the presence of the international coalition forces in Iraq.

The United States did not respond to the statement or clarify whether it had received a notification or request from Iraq in this regard.

On Sunday, former Iraqi Army Chief of Staff Othman al-Ghanimi accused the US-led international coalition of "sowing corruption" within the Iraqi military establishment.

Ghanimi said in a televised statement that the "International Coalition" introduced corruption into the Iraqi army, explaining that the military did not engage with contractors and companies for provisions and food, as it used to cook dry and wet rations through its storehouses.

He indicated that the occupation forces brought the contractors and concluded agreements with them, pointing out that the coalition forces were the ones who sowed corruption through "commissions," agreements, and deals.



Lebanon Says Two Killed in Israeli Strike on Palestinian Refugee Camp

22 January 2026, Lebanon, Qnarit: People inspect the damage of a building that was destroyed by an Israeli air raid on the southern Lebanese village of Qnarit. (dpa)
22 January 2026, Lebanon, Qnarit: People inspect the damage of a building that was destroyed by an Israeli air raid on the southern Lebanese village of Qnarit. (dpa)
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Lebanon Says Two Killed in Israeli Strike on Palestinian Refugee Camp

22 January 2026, Lebanon, Qnarit: People inspect the damage of a building that was destroyed by an Israeli air raid on the southern Lebanese village of Qnarit. (dpa)
22 January 2026, Lebanon, Qnarit: People inspect the damage of a building that was destroyed by an Israeli air raid on the southern Lebanese village of Qnarit. (dpa)

Lebanon said an Israeli strike on the country's largest Palestinian refugee camp killed two people on Friday, with Israel's army saying it had targeted the Palestinian group Hamas. 

The official National News Agency said "an Israeli drone" targeted a neighborhood of the Ain al-Hilweh camp, which is located on the outskirts of the southern city of Sidon. 

Lebanon's health ministry said two people were killed in the raid. The NNA had earlier reported one dead and an unspecified number of wounded. 

An AFP correspondent saw smoke rising from a building in the densely populated camp as ambulances headed to the scene. 

The Israeli army said in a statement that its forces "struck a Hamas command center from which terrorists operated", calling activity there "a violation of the ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon" and a threat to Israel. 

The Israeli military "is operating against the entrenchment" of the Palestinian group in Lebanon and will "continue to act decisively against Hamas terrorists wherever they operate", it added. 

Israel has kept up regular strikes on Lebanon despite a November 2024 ceasefire that sought to halt more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah. 

Israel has also struck targets belonging to Hezbollah's Palestinian ally Hamas, including in a raid on Ain al-Hilweh last November that killed 13 people. 

The UN rights office had said 11 children were killed in that strike, which Israel said targeted a Hamas training compound, though the group denied it had military installations in Palestinian camps in Lebanon. 

In October 2023, Hezbollah began launching rockets at Israel in support of Hamas at the outset of the Gaza war, triggering hostilities that culminated in two months of all-out war between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese group. 

On Sunday, Lebanon said an Israeli strike near the Syrian border in the country's east killed four people, as Israel said it targeted operatives from Palestinian group Islamic Jihad. 


UN Says It Risks Halting Somalia Aid Due to Funding Cuts 

A Somali trader marks watermelons for sale at an open-air grocery market as Muslims start the fasting month of Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, within Bakara market in Mogadishu, Somalia, February 18, 2026. (Reuters)
A Somali trader marks watermelons for sale at an open-air grocery market as Muslims start the fasting month of Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, within Bakara market in Mogadishu, Somalia, February 18, 2026. (Reuters)
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UN Says It Risks Halting Somalia Aid Due to Funding Cuts 

A Somali trader marks watermelons for sale at an open-air grocery market as Muslims start the fasting month of Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, within Bakara market in Mogadishu, Somalia, February 18, 2026. (Reuters)
A Somali trader marks watermelons for sale at an open-air grocery market as Muslims start the fasting month of Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, within Bakara market in Mogadishu, Somalia, February 18, 2026. (Reuters)

The UN's World Food Program (WFP) warned Friday it would have to stop humanitarian assistance in Somalia by April if it did not receive new funding.

The Rome-based agency said it had already been forced to reduce the number of people receiving emergency food assistance from 2.2 million in early 2025 to just over 600,000 today.

"Without immediate funding, WFP will be forced to halt humanitarian assistance by April," it said in a statement.

In early January, the United States suspended aid to Somalia over reports of theft and government interference, following the destruction of a US-funded WFP warehouse in the capital Mogadishu's port.

The US announced a resumption of WFP food distribution on January 29.

However, all UN agencies have warned of serious funding shortfalls since Washington began slashing aid across the world following President Donald Trump's return to the White House last year.

"The situation is deteriorating at an alarming rate," said Ross Smith, WFP Director of Emergency Preparedness and Response, in Friday's statement.

"Families have lost everything, and many are already being pushed to the brink. Without immediate emergency food support, conditions will worsen quickly.

"We are at the cusp of a decisive moment; without urgent action, we may be unable to reach the most vulnerable in time, most of them women and children."

Some 4.4 million people in Somalia are facing crisis-levels of food insecurity, according to the WFP, the largest humanitarian agency in the country.

The Horn of Africa country has been plagued by conflict and also suffered two consecutive failed rainy seasons.


Hamas Says Path for Gaza Must Begin with End to ‘Aggression’ 

Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
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Hamas Says Path for Gaza Must Begin with End to ‘Aggression’ 

Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)

Discussions on Gaza's future must begin with a total halt to Israeli "aggression", the Palestinian movement Hamas said after US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace met for the first time.

"Any political process or any arrangement under discussion concerning the Gaza Strip and the future of our Palestinian people must start with the total halt of aggression, the lifting of the blockade, and the guarantee of our people's legitimate national rights, first and foremost their right to freedom and self-determination," Hamas said in a statement Thursday.

Trump's board met for its inaugural session in Washington on Thursday, with a number of countries pledging money and personnel to rebuild the Palestinian territory, more than four months into a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted however that Hamas must disarm before any reconstruction begins.

"We agreed with our ally the US that there will be no reconstruction of Gaza before the demilitarization of Gaza," Netanyahu said.

The Israeli leader did not attend the Washington meeting but was represented by his foreign minister Gideon Saar.

Trump said several countries had pledged more than seven billion dollars to rebuild the territory.

Muslim-majority Indonesia will take a deputy commander role in a nascent International Stabilization Force, the unit's American chief Major General Jasper Jeffers said.

Trump, whose plan for Gaza was endorsed by the UN Security Council in November, also said five countries had committed to providing troops, including Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania.