عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Israeli Military Renews Orders for Palestinians to Leave Northern Gaza

Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee areas in the northern Gaza Strip, following an Israeli evacuation order, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Gaza City October 12, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee areas in the northern Gaza Strip, following an Israeli evacuation order, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Gaza City October 12, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
TT
TT

Israeli Military Renews Orders for Palestinians to Leave Northern Gaza

Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee areas in the northern Gaza Strip, following an Israeli evacuation order, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Gaza City October 12, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Displaced Palestinians make their way as they flee areas in the northern Gaza Strip, following an Israeli evacuation order, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Gaza City October 12, 2024. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas

The Israeli military on Saturday renewed its orders for Palestinian in the northern Gaza Strip to leave their homes and shelters as troops press on a weeklong offensive against militants.

Military spokesman Avichay Adraee told people to leave parts of Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood and other areas in and around Jabaliya, the urban refugee camp where Israeli forces carried out several major operations over the course of the war and then returned as militants regroup.

In a post on X, Adraee asked people to head south to Muwasi, a packed area in southern Gaza designed by the military as a humanitarian zone.

Most of the fighting in the past week was centered in and around Jabaliya that was pounded by Israeli war jets and artillery. Residents said they have been trapped inside their homes and shelters. The military also ordered the three main hospitals in northern Gaza to evacuate patients and medical staff.

At least 42,175 Palestinians have been killed and 98,336 others injured in Israel's military offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, Gaza's health ministry said on Saturday.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Hezbollah’s Wafiq Safa is in Critical Condition

Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa (L) talks with Hezbollah parliament member Ali Ammar (R) as Druze Democratic Party chief Talal Arslan (2nd R) looks on after offering their condolences to Bassam Qantar (2nd L), the brother of Lebanese Hezbollah militant leader Samir Qantar who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus early on Sunday, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon December 20, 2015. REUTERS/Hasan Shaaban/File Photo
Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa (L) talks with Hezbollah parliament member Ali Ammar (R) as Druze Democratic Party chief Talal Arslan (2nd R) looks on after offering their condolences to Bassam Qantar (2nd L), the brother of Lebanese Hezbollah militant leader Samir Qantar who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus early on Sunday, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon December 20, 2015. REUTERS/Hasan Shaaban/File Photo
TT
TT

Sources to Asharq Al-Awsat: Hezbollah’s Wafiq Safa is in Critical Condition

Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa (L) talks with Hezbollah parliament member Ali Ammar (R) as Druze Democratic Party chief Talal Arslan (2nd R) looks on after offering their condolences to Bassam Qantar (2nd L), the brother of Lebanese Hezbollah militant leader Samir Qantar who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus early on Sunday, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon December 20, 2015. REUTERS/Hasan Shaaban/File Photo
Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa (L) talks with Hezbollah parliament member Ali Ammar (R) as Druze Democratic Party chief Talal Arslan (2nd R) looks on after offering their condolences to Bassam Qantar (2nd L), the brother of Lebanese Hezbollah militant leader Samir Qantar who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus early on Sunday, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon December 20, 2015. REUTERS/Hasan Shaaban/File Photo

A senior Lebanese security source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Wafiq Safa, Hezbollah’s Coordination and Liaison Officer, is in critical condition following a severe injury from an Israeli airstrike targeting his location in a densely populated residential area of Beirut.

The strike killed and injured dozens, but Lebanese security agencies have not confirmed whether Safa has died or remains alive.

Safa had long been the key link between Lebanese security and political forces and Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated by Israel last month.

According to the US State Department, Safa, sanctioned by the US Treasury in 2019, acted as a communication channel between Hezbollah and Lebanese security forces and headed Hezbollah’s security apparatus, reporting directly to Nasrallah.

Washington accuses Safa of exploiting Lebanese ports and border crossings for smuggling and undermining Lebanon’s security and economy.

Born in 1960 in Zebdine, southern Lebanon, Safa joined Hezbollah in 1984 and became head of the security committee in 1987. He played a pivotal role in the 2000 negotiations after three Israeli soldiers were captured, and in the 2008 prisoner exchange between Hezbollah and Israel. His prominence increased after Syrian forces withdrew from Lebanon in 2005, as he helped reorganize Hezbollah’s security.

In September 2021, Safa made headlines after threatening Judge Tarek Bitar, the lead investigator of the Beirut port explosion, with removal from the case.

Hezbollah opposition activist Ali Al-Amin described Safa as having significant connections to security agencies and political forces but noted that he is not one of Hezbollah’s top security officials, whose identities often remain undisclosed.