Israeli Military Says it Has Intercepted 2 Suspicious Drones 

People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)
People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)
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Israeli Military Says it Has Intercepted 2 Suspicious Drones 

People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)
People wait for a bus near images of those taken hostage or killed during the deadly October 7 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel September 17, 2024. (Reuters)

Israel’s military said they had intercepted two suspicious drones that approached Israel from Lebanon and Iraq on Wednesday morning, the day after pagers used by the group Hezbollah exploded in Lebanon and Syria, killing at least nine people, including an 8-year-old girl, and wounding nearly 3,000. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government blamed Israel for what appeared to be a sophisticated remote attack. 

On Wednesday, the Israeli military said they intercepted a drone launched from Lebanon over the Mediterranean Sea near the coast of northern Israel. Another drone launched from Iraq was intercepted by Israeli air force fighter jets. There were no injuries or damage reported. 

Israel also began moving more troops to the northern border with Lebanon in preparation for a possible retaliation. 

As a precautionary measure, the Israeli military moved its 98th division to the northern border, an official said. The division, which includes infantry, artillery and commando units, has until recently been fighting in Gaza. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. 

Hezbollah began firing rockets over the border into Israel on Oct. 8, the day after a deadly Hamas-led attack in southern Israel triggered a massive Israeli counteroffensive and the ongoing war in Gaza. Since then, Hezbollah and Israeli forces have exchanged strikes near-daily, killing hundreds in Lebanon and dozens in Israel and displacing tens of thousands on each side of the border. 



US Links Ankara-Damascus Normalization to Political Solution in Syria

Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
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US Links Ankara-Damascus Normalization to Political Solution in Syria

Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)

Recent statements by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his willingness to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to normalize relations between the two countries have sparked mixed reactions.
While the Syrian opposition sees the possibility of such a meeting despite the challenges, Damascus views the statements as a political maneuver by the Turks. Meanwhile, the United States has tied the normalization process to achieving a political solution in Syria based on UN Security Council Resolution 2254, issued in 2015.
Turkish media reported on Thursday that a US administration official, who was not named, confirmed that Washington is against normalizing relations with the Syrian regime under Assad. He emphasized that Washington cannot accept normalizing ties with Damascus without progress toward a political solution that ends the conflicts in Syria.
Meanwhile, the head of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, Hadi al-Bahra, stated that a meeting between Assad and Erdogan is possible despite the obstacles. In a statement to Reuters on Thursday, Bahra said the meeting is feasible, even though Ankara is fully aware that the Assad regime cannot currently meet its demands and understands the regime’s limitations.
Bahra pointed out that the UN-led political process remains frozen and that he had briefed US and Western officials on the latest developments in the Syrian file. On Saturday, Bahra participated in a consultative meeting in Ankara with the Syrian Negotiation Commission, along with a high-level delegation from the US State Department, during which they exchanged views on the political solution and the need to establish binding mechanisms for implementing international resolutions related to the Syrian issue.
On the other side, Assad’s special advisor, Bouthaina Shaaban, dismissed Erdogan’s announcement that Ankara is awaiting a response from Damascus regarding his meeting with Assad for normalization as another political maneuver with ulterior motives.
Shaaban, speaking during a lecture at the Omani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which was reported by Turkish media on Thursday, stated that any rapprochement between the two countries is contingent on its withdrawal of forces from Syrian territory.