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Netanyahu Says Israel 'Striking Enemies' as Attack Expected

Israel's incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (EPA)
Israel's incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (EPA)
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Netanyahu Says Israel 'Striking Enemies' as Attack Expected

Israel's incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (EPA)
Israel's incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (EPA)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was hitting its enemies and "continuing forward to victory" on Wednesday as the country braced for an expected attack by Iran and its proxies.

Israel was "determined to defend" itself following threats of retaliation after its killing of a top Hezbollah commander and following the death of Hamas's former chief Ismail Haniyeh.

"We are continuing forward to victory," the premier told new recruits at the Tel Hashomer military induction in Tel Aviv, AFP reported.

"I know that the citizens of Israel are concerned, and I ask one thing of you: be patient and level-headed.

"We are prepared both defensively and offensively. We are striking our enemies and are determined to defend ourselves."

Israel claimed the killing of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut last week. It has not commented on the death of Haniyeh in Tehran.

However, both Iran and Hamas blamed Israel for Haniyeh's assassination and, along with Iran-linked Lebanese group Hezbollah, threatened reprisals.

Separately, Israeli government spokesman David Mencer told reporters, "This country is able to defend itself, and of course, both in ways which our enemies have seen, but also in ways they have not seen."

He added: "We know how to deal with this Iranian menace... together with our allies, we are able to stand up to them."

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Syrian Govt Visits Notorious Al-Hol Camp for First Time Since Kurds Deal

A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)
A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)
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Syrian Govt Visits Notorious Al-Hol Camp for First Time Since Kurds Deal

A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)
A view of the Al-Hol camp. (AFP file)

A Syrian government delegation visited a notorious camp in the Kurdish-administered northeast that hosts families of suspected ISIS group members, the new authorities' first visit, both sides said Saturday.

Kurdish-run camps and prisons in the northeast hold tens of thousands of people, many with alleged or perceived links to ISIS, more than five years after the group’s territorial defeat in Syria.

Kurdish administration official Sheikhmous Ahmed said "a tripartite meeting was held on Saturday in the Al-Hol camp" that included a government delegation, another from the US-led international coalition fighting ISIS, and Kurdish administration members.

Al-Hol is northeast Syria's largest camp, housing some 37,000 people from dozens of countries, including 14,500 Iraqis, in dire conditions.

Discussions involved "establishing a mechanism for removing Syrian families from Al-Hol camp", Ahmed said.

The visit comes more than two months after interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Mazloum Abdi, head of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, agreed to integrate the Kurds' civil and military institutions into the national government.

The deal also involved guaranteeing the return of all Syrians to their hometowns and villages.

No progress has yet been reported on the administration's integration into the new government.

In Damascus, interior ministry spokesperson Noureddine al-Baba told reporters Al-Hol is "part of the agreement" signed by Sharaa and Abdi.

He said the issue requires "a comprehensive societal solution for the families who are victims" of ISIS.

In February, the Kurdish administration said that in coordination with the United Nations, it aimed to empty camps in the northeast of thousands of displaced Syrians and Iraqi refugees, including suspected relatives of extremists, by the end of the year.

Al-Hol includes a high-security section for families of foreign ISIS fighters.

Ahmed said the fate of those families "is linked to the countries that have nationals (in the camp), and to the international coalition", which supported Kurdish-led forces who fought ISIS, detaining its fighters and their relatives.

The Kurds have repeatedly called on countries to repatriate their citizens, but foreign governments have allowed home only a trickle, fearing security threats and a domestic political backlash.

It is unclear who will administer prisons holding thousands of ISIS fighters in the northeast, with Abdi saying in February the new authorities wanted them under Damascus's control.