Palestinians Say One Dead in Israeli West Bank Raid

 Palestinians remove shattered glass from their apartment that was damaged by the demolition of the apartment upstairs by the Israeli army, that belongs to Palestinian Khaled al-Kharouf, during an overnight army raid in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP)
Palestinians remove shattered glass from their apartment that was damaged by the demolition of the apartment upstairs by the Israeli army, that belongs to Palestinian Khaled al-Kharouf, during an overnight army raid in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP)
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Palestinians Say One Dead in Israeli West Bank Raid

 Palestinians remove shattered glass from their apartment that was damaged by the demolition of the apartment upstairs by the Israeli army, that belongs to Palestinian Khaled al-Kharouf, during an overnight army raid in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP)
Palestinians remove shattered glass from their apartment that was damaged by the demolition of the apartment upstairs by the Israeli army, that belongs to Palestinian Khaled al-Kharouf, during an overnight army raid in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP)

Palestinian official media said Israeli troops shot a man dead in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday during a raid to demolish the apartments of two detained Palestinian suspects, while the military reported it had opened fire to quell a riot.

"The occupation soldiers fired bullets and tear gas, killing a young man who was hit in the chest," the Palestinian official news agency, Wafa, reported.

The military said in a statement to AFP: "During the demolition, a violent riot was instigated in the area, during which terrorists hurled rocks at the (Israeli) forces who responded with live fire.

"A hit was identified."

The Israeli troops had stormed Ramallah, seat of the Palestinian Authority, to demolish the apartments of two Palestinians who are in custody on suspicion of carrying out an attack in the city earlier this year.

"Suddenly, they arrived and surrounded the neighborhood and then entered the house," Ahmed al-Barghouthi, brother of one of the detainees, told AFP.

"They told us that the house was going to be destroyed with explosives and ordered us to leave even though I'm ill and we have two elderly people in our family."

The Israeli military identified the two detained suspects whose apartments were targeted for demolition as Khaled al-Kharouf and Aysar Barghouthi.

It said the two men had killed Lara Tannous and Amer Mansour in a "terror attack adjacent to the town of Silwad" on January 7.

Israel routinely demolishes the homes of Palestinians accused of carrying out attacks, arguing that such measures act as a deterrent, while critics say they amount to collective punishment.

Violence has surged in the West Bank since war broke out between Israel and Hamas in Gaza on October 7. At least 619 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops or settlers, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian official figures.

During the same period at least 18 Israelis, including soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks in the territory, according to Israeli official figures.



Germany Moves Troops Out of Iraq, Citing Mideast 'Tensions'

FILE PHOTO: German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen visits the Transport Helicopter Regiment 30 (Transporthubschrauberregiment 30) at the Hermann-Koehl-Kaserne in Niederstetten, Germany, August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski
FILE PHOTO: German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen visits the Transport Helicopter Regiment 30 (Transporthubschrauberregiment 30) at the Hermann-Koehl-Kaserne in Niederstetten, Germany, August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski
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Germany Moves Troops Out of Iraq, Citing Mideast 'Tensions'

FILE PHOTO: German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen visits the Transport Helicopter Regiment 30 (Transporthubschrauberregiment 30) at the Hermann-Koehl-Kaserne in Niederstetten, Germany, August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski
FILE PHOTO: German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen visits the Transport Helicopter Regiment 30 (Transporthubschrauberregiment 30) at the Hermann-Koehl-Kaserne in Niederstetten, Germany, August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski

Germany's military has "temporarily" moved some troops out of Erbil in northern Iraq because of "escalating tensions in the Middle East," a German defense ministry spokesman told AFP on Thursday.

Dozens of German soldiers had been relocated away from the base in Erbil, capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region.

"Only the personnel necessary to maintain the operational capability of the camp in Erbil remain on site," the spokesman said.

The spokesman did not specify the source of the tensions, but US President Donald Trump has ordered a major build-up of US warships, aircraft and other weaponry in the region and threatened action against Iran.

German troops are deployed to Erbil as part of an international mission to train local Iraqi forces.

The spokesman said the German redeployment away from Erbil was "closely coordinated with our multinational partners".


UN: At Least 15 Children Killed in Sudan Drone Strike

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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UN: At Least 15 Children Killed in Sudan Drone Strike

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 drone strike on a displacement camp in Sudan killed at least 15 children earlier this week, the United Nations reported late on Wednesday.

"On Monday 16 February, at least 15 children were reportedly killed and 10 wounded after a drone strike on a displacement camp in Al Sunut, West Kordofan," the UN children's agency said in a statement.

Across the Kordofan region, currently the Sudan war's fiercest battlefield, "we are seeing the same disturbing patterns from Darfur -- children killed, injured, displaced and cut off from the services they need to survive," UNICEF's Executive Director Catherine Russell said.


MSF Will Keep Operating in Gaza 'as Long as We Can'

(FILES) A Palestinian man walks on his crutches to the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City on new year's Eve, December 31, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
(FILES) A Palestinian man walks on his crutches to the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City on new year's Eve, December 31, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
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MSF Will Keep Operating in Gaza 'as Long as We Can'

(FILES) A Palestinian man walks on his crutches to the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City on new year's Eve, December 31, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
(FILES) A Palestinian man walks on his crutches to the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City on new year's Eve, December 31, 2025. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

The head of Doctors Without Borders in the Palestinian territories told AFP the charity would continue working in Gaza for as long as possible, following an Israeli decision to end its activities there.

In early February, Israel announced it was terminating all the activities in Gaza by the medical charity, known by its French acronym MSF, after it failed to provide a list of its Palestinian staff.

MSF has slammed the move, which takes effect on March 1, as a "pretext" to obstruct aid.

"For the time being, we are still working in Gaza, and we plan to keep running our operations as long as we can," Filipe Ribeiro told AFP in Amman, but said operations were already facing challenges.

"Since the beginning of January, we are not anymore in the capacity to get international staff inside Gaza. The Israeli authorities actually denied any entry to Gaza, but also to the West Bank," he said.

Ribeiro added that MSF's ability to bring medical supplies into Gaza had also been impacted.

"They're not allowed for now, but we have some stocks in our pharmacies that will allow us to keep running operations for the time being," he said.

"We do have teams in Gaza that are still working, both national and international, and we have stocks."

In December, Israel announced it would prevent 37 aid organizations, including MSF, from working in Gaza from March 1 for failing to submit detailed information about their Palestinian employees, drawing widespread condemnation from NGOs and the United Nations.

It had alleged that two MSF employees had links with Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which the medical charity has repeatedly and vehemently denied.

MSF says it did not provide the names of its Palestinian staff because Israeli authorities offered no assurances regarding their safety.

Ribeiro warned of the massive impact the termination of MSF's operations would have for healthcare in war-shattered Gaza.

"MSF is one of the biggest actors when it comes to the health provision in Gaza and the West Bank, and if we are obliged to leave, then we will create a huge void in Gaza," he said.

The charity says it currently provides at least 20 percent of hospital beds in the territory and operates around 20 health centers.

In 2025 alone, it carried out more than 800,000 medical consultations, treated more than 100,000 trauma cases and assisted more than 10,000 infant deliveries.