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Fighting Rages across Gaza as UN Chief Urges 'Immediate Ceasefire'

Internally displaced Palestinians arrive to Khan Younis after leaving Rafah following an evacuation order issued by the Israeli army, southern Gaza Strip, 11 May 2024. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
Internally displaced Palestinians arrive to Khan Younis after leaving Rafah following an evacuation order issued by the Israeli army, southern Gaza Strip, 11 May 2024. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
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Fighting Rages across Gaza as UN Chief Urges 'Immediate Ceasefire'

Internally displaced Palestinians arrive to Khan Younis after leaving Rafah following an evacuation order issued by the Israeli army, southern Gaza Strip, 11 May 2024. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
Internally displaced Palestinians arrive to Khan Younis after leaving Rafah following an evacuation order issued by the Israeli army, southern Gaza Strip, 11 May 2024. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER

Israel struck Gaza on Sunday and troops were battling Hamas in several areas of the Palestinian territory after an Israeli evacuation order sent hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fleeing from Rafah.
More than seven months into the Israel-Hamas war, UN chief Antonio Guterres urged "an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and an immediate surge in humanitarian aid" into the besieged Gaza Strip.
"But a ceasefire will only be the start," Guterres told a donor conference in Kuwait. "It will be a long road back from the devastation and trauma of this war."
As Egyptian, Qatari and US mediation efforts towards a truce appeared to stall, US President Joe Biden said on Saturday a ceasefire could be achieved "tomorrow" if Hamas released the hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 attack that sparked the war.
AFP correspondents, witnesses and medics said Israeli air strikes pounded parts of northern, central and southern Gaza during the night and into Sunday morning.
In Rafah, Gaza's southernmost city which sits on the Egyptian border, the Kuwaiti hospital said on Sunday it had received the bodies of "18 martyrs" killed in Israeli strikes over the past 24 hours.
Gaza's civil defense agency reported at least two fatalities, a father and son, both doctors, in a strike on Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.
Months after Israel said it had dismantled Hamas's command structure in northern Gaza, which was devastated by intense violence in the early stages of the war, fighting has resumed in recent days in Jabalia refugee camp and Gaza City's Zeitun neighborhood.
AFP correspondents reported intense clashes and heavy gunfire from Israeli helicopters in the Zeitun area early on Sunday, with medics and witnesses saying troops were engaged in combat in Zeitun as well as Jabalia.
'Inhumane displacement'
The war began with Hamas's unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
During their attack, militants also seized hostages, of whom scores were freed during a one-week truce in November. Israel estimates 128 captives remain in Gaza including 36 who the military says are dead.
Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,971 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.
Israel defied international opposition this week and sent tanks and troops into eastern Rafah, effectively shutting a key aid crossing.
The military on Saturday expanded an evacuation order for eastern Rafah and said 300,000 Palestinians had left the area.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, gave a similar estimate of "around 300,000 people" who have fled Rafah over the past week, decrying in a post on X the "forced and inhumane displacement of Palestinians" who have "nowhere safe to go" in Gaza.
Palestinians in Rafah, many of them displaced by the fighting elsewhere in the territory, piled water tanks, mattresses and other belongings onto vehicles and prepared to flee again.
"The artillery shelling didn't stop at all" for several days, said Mohammed Hamad, 24, who has left eastern Rafah for the city's west.
"We will not move until we feel that the danger is advancing to the west," he told AFP.
"There is no safe place in Gaza where we can take refuge."
Residents were told to go to the "humanitarian zone" of Al-Mawasi, on the coast northwest of Rafah, though aid groups have warned it was not ready for an influx of people.
EU chief Charles Michel said on social media that Rafah civilians were being ordered to "unsafe zones", denouncing it as "unacceptable".
Hisham Adwan, spokesman for the Gaza crossings authority, told AFP on Sunday that the Rafah crossing has remained closed since Israeli troops seized its Palestinian side on Tuesday, "preventing the entry of humanitarian aid" and the departure of patients in need of medical care.
He said Israeli forces "have advanced from the eastern border" about 2.5 kilometers (1.6 miles) into Rafah.
Protests
Egypt's state-linked Al-Qahera News on Saturday said Cairo had refused to coordinate with Israel on aid deliveries via the Rafah crossing.
Al-Qahera cited a high-ranking source as saying Egypt had "warned Israel of the repercussions of its continued control over the Rafah crossing, and held it fully responsible for the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip".
International outrage mounted at the long-threatened operation in Rafah, with Israel's close ally the United States having paused the delivery of 3,500 bombs as it appeared ready to invade the city.
Guterres on Friday said Gaza risked an "epic humanitarian disaster" if Israel launched a full-scale ground operation in Rafah, where the UN says 1.4 million have been sheltering.
Hagari on Saturday said troops "eliminated numerous terrorists in close-quarters combat" and in air strikes on the city.
Protests against the war spread to the Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden, where thousands rallied outside the Malmo Arena condemning Israel's participation.
Israeli protesters on Saturday again took to Tel Aviv's streets to pressure their government to do more to reach a truce and hostage release deal.
The rally came hours after Hamas's armed wing said one of the hostages, Israeli-British man Nadav Popplewell, had died in captivity. The Israeli military did not offer any comment on the Hamas video statement.

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Arab World

Sudanese Political, Civil Groups Propose Ramadan Truce

The war in Sudan, ongoing since mid-April 2023, has caused extensive destruction across the country (AFP)
The war in Sudan, ongoing since mid-April 2023, has caused extensive destruction across the country (AFP)
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Sudanese Political, Civil Groups Propose Ramadan Truce

The war in Sudan, ongoing since mid-April 2023, has caused extensive destruction across the country (AFP)
The war in Sudan, ongoing since mid-April 2023, has caused extensive destruction across the country (AFP)

A broad coalition of Sudanese political and civil forces has made an urgent appeal to the leadership of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), calling for a “comprehensive humanitarian truce” during the holy month of Ramadan.

The initiative calls for a temporary cessation of hostilities, guarantees for the protection of civilians, and unhindered humanitarian aid delivery, amid increasingly dire humanitarian conditions as Sudanese citizens observe their fourth consecutive Ramadan under gunfire and shelling.

More than ten Sudanese political parties made the appeal, some of which are part of the Civil Democratic Alliance of the Forces of the Revolution (“Sumoud”), led by former Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok.

Prominent signatories include the National Umma Party, the Federal Gathering, and the Sudanese Congress Party.

The document was also endorsed by parties outside the “Sumoud” alliance, most notably the Arab Baath Socialist Party and the Democratic Unionist Party, alongside various civil and trade union groups.

The appeal urges both warring parties — the army and the RSF — to announce a humanitarian truce beginning on the first day of Ramadan. The proposal includes a ceasefire, the safeguarding of civilian facilities, the opening of safe corridors for relief organizations, the immediate release of civilian detainees, and the initiation of prisoner exchange arrangements under international supervision to ensure compliance with humanitarian law.

It also calls for clear monitoring and implementation mechanisms to prevent either side from exploiting the truce for military gains.

The signatories stressed that the initiative comes in response to the worsening humanitarian crisis, particularly among vulnerable groups such as women, children, and the elderly, and to the mounting threats to the lives of millions, which they say require urgent intervention.

This marks the second initiative put forward by political and civil forces to halt the war since its outbreak in 2023. The first resulted in the signing of what became known as the “Addis Ababa Declaration” between the Civil Democratic Forces Alliance (Taqaddum) and the RSF. The declaration was addressed to the army leadership, which neither rejected nor signed it.

Since the fall of the cities of El-Fasher and Babanusa, as well as the town of Heglig in West Kordofan State, clashes between the army and the RSF intensified in South and North Kordofan before subsiding in recent weeks and shifting into more “technical” warfare.

This phase has seen the increased use of combat drones, jamming devices, guided artillery, and aerial munitions, leading to a rise in civilian casualties and injuries.

Arab World

Anger in Iraq Over Use of ‘Greatest Arab Poet’ in Ramadan Ad

The late Iraqi poet Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri serves tea to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, as portrayed in a Ramadan advertisement
The late Iraqi poet Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri serves tea to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, as portrayed in a Ramadan advertisement
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Anger in Iraq Over Use of ‘Greatest Arab Poet’ in Ramadan Ad

The late Iraqi poet Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri serves tea to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, as portrayed in a Ramadan advertisement
The late Iraqi poet Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri serves tea to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, as portrayed in a Ramadan advertisement

Baghdad - A promotional video produced by a local platform and sponsored by several companies has sparked widespread criticism in Iraq over content described as “irresponsible,” according to the Iraqi Writers and Authors Union, for allegedly insulting the “Greatest Arab Poet,” Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri (1899–1997), as well as former royal-era prime minister Nuri al-Said (1888–1958).

Although the production company branded the advertisement “Unified Iraq,” it depicted al-Jawahiri in an AI-generated image serving tea to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani inside his office. In a similar scene, Nuri al-Said was shown serving tea to former parliament speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi, triggering a wave of public outrage.

Alongside the controversy over the AI-generated portrayals of al-Jawahiri and al-Said, another debate erupted after the video showed US Chargé d’Affaires Joshua Harris, British Ambassador Irfan Siddiq, French Ambassador Patrick Durel, and German Ambassador Daniel Krebber at a banquet, appearing to be hosted by Farhad Alaaldin, the Iraqi prime minister’s adviser for foreign affairs.

The advertisement also briefly featured the late Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani, holding an umbrella while walking through the streets of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, raising further questions about its purpose.

While the video included a song about “a unified Iraq as a homeland of peace,” critics said its central narrative — built around a homeless young beggar — was confusing and poorly defined. Sources close to the production team told Asharq Al-Awsat that the creators had “their own artistic methods” of expressing the idea.

Government Distances Itself

Amid the mounting backlash, the prime minister’s office expressed rejection of “the virtual video in which al-Jawahiri appeared in a manner inconsistent with the prime minister’s respect and appreciation for his literary and national stature.”

Al-Sudani instructed the Communications and Media Commission to launch an urgent investigation into the entities that produced, promoted, or published the advertisement, citing its alleged offense to cultural icons and state institutions, as well as what he described as the irresponsible and unprofessional use of artificial intelligence technologies.

He also signaled the possibility of legal action against the party responsible for producing what he called “the offensive video against Iraq and its national symbols.”

In contrast, the production company asserted that the PM’s office had prior knowledge of the project, and that the same applied to al-Halbousi. However, sources denied being aware of the inclusion of al-Jawahiri and Nuri al-Said in the work.

The sources also suggested that a government official may have been involved in facilitating the production in cooperation with Al-Bayan University, whose building and offices appeared in the advertisement.

“Deliberate Insult”

The Iraqi Writers and Authors Union condemned what it called an “insult to the immortal al-Jawahiri” after the video showed him serving tea to the prime minister.

In a statement, the union said the act reflected “a deliberate offense to a poet distinguished by his immense cultural and moral value, and his well-known national and humanitarian positions.”

It urged relevant authorities to take a firm and deterrent stance against “irresponsible acts aimed at distorting facts and undermining Iraq’s national symbols.”

The union added that al-Jawahiri remained a national symbol “we proudly present to the world and refuse to see insulted by any party.”

The union was founded in al-Jawahiri’s home in 1959 and he became Iraq’s first journalists’ syndicate head the same year.

Claims of Prior Approvals

Facing intense criticism, the advertisement’s author and head of the production company said all participating political figures had approved the details of the project and filming inside their offices.

She stated that the scenes featuring al-Sudani and al-Halbousi were real, with only the figures of al-Jawahiri and Nuri al-Said later added using artificial intelligence.

In a statement on Instagram, al-Jumaili said the project took two months to complete and was reviewed by several international parties before being shown in Iraq, adding that “no step was taken without official approvals.” She did not specify the nature of those entities or whether the political figures were aware of the AI portrayals alongside them.

She argued that the backlash was politically driven and overlooked the advertisement’s positive messages, later explaining that the tea-serving scenes symbolized a “national identity” passed from past intellectual and political leaders to a new generation of leaders.

Arab World

Trump to Preside over First Meeting of Board of Peace with Many Gaza Questions Unresolved

US President Donald Trump speaks during a Black History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 18, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a Black History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 18, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
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Trump to Preside over First Meeting of Board of Peace with Many Gaza Questions Unresolved

US President Donald Trump speaks during a Black History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 18, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a Black History Month event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 18, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

US President Donald Trump will preside over the first meeting of his Board of Peace on Thursday with unresolved questions on the future of Gaza hanging over an event expected to include representatives from more than 45 nations.

The disarmament of Hamas militants, the size of the reconstruction fund and the flow of humanitarian aid to the war-battered populace of Gaza are among the major questions likely to test the effectiveness of the board in the weeks and months ahead.

Trump is to address the group at the Donald J. Trump US Institute of Peace - a building in Washington the president recently renamed for himself - and announce that participating nations have raised $5 billion for the reconstruction fund.

The money is expected to be a ‌down payment on ‌a fund that will likely need many more billions.

Trump's Board of Peace has been controversial. It includes Israel but not Palestinian representatives and Trump's suggestion that the Board could eventually address challenges beyond Gaza has stirred anxiety that it could undermine the UN's role as the main platform for global diplomacy and conflict resolution.

Senior US officials said Trump will also announce that several nations are planning to send thousands of troops to participate in an International Stabilization Force that ⁠will help keep the peace in Gaza.

Disarming Hamas militants in order for the ‌peacekeepers to begin their mission remains a major sticking point, ‌and the force is not expected to deploy for weeks or months.

The Palestinian group Hamas, fearful of Israeli ‌reprisals, has been reluctant to hand over weaponry as part of Trump's 20-point Gaza plan that brought ‌about a fragile ceasefire last October in the two-year Gaza war.

"We are under no illusions on the challenges regarding demilitarization, but we have been encouraged by what the mediators have reported back," a senior administration official said.

MOST SECURITY COUNCIL MEMBERS NOT ATTENDING

Delegations from 47 countries plus the European Union are expected to attend the event, US officials ‌said. The list includes Israel and a wide array of countries from Albania to Vietnam.

It does not, however, include permanent United Nations Security Council members ⁠like France, Britain, Russia ⁠and China.

Speakers at the event are expected to include Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is expected to have a senior role in the board, US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz, and High Representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov, among other attendees.

A member of the peace board, who declined to be named, said the Gaza plan faces formidable obstacles. Establishing security in the enclave is a precondition for progress in other areas, but the police force is neither ready nor fully trained, said the official.

The official added that a key unresolved question is who would negotiate with Hamas. The peace board’s representatives could do so with countries that have influence over Hamas - notably Qatar and Türkiye- but Israel is deeply skeptical of both.

Another major issue is the flow of aid, which the official described as “disastrous” and in urgent need of scaling up. Even if aid surges in, it remains unclear who will distribute it, the official said.