Netanyahu Says Israel Will Remain on Mt Hermon 'Until Another Arrangement is Found'https://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5092838-netanyahu-says-israel-will-remain-mt-hermon-until-another-arrangement-found
Netanyahu Says Israel Will Remain on Mt Hermon 'Until Another Arrangement is Found'
17 December 2024, Israel, Mount Hermon: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (2nd R) visits an observation point on the summit of Mount Hermon. Photo: Ma'yan Toaf/GPO/dpa
Netanyahu Says Israel Will Remain on Mt Hermon 'Until Another Arrangement is Found'
17 December 2024, Israel, Mount Hermon: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (2nd R) visits an observation point on the summit of Mount Hermon. Photo: Ma'yan Toaf/GPO/dpa
Israel will remain on the strategic Mount Hermon site on the Syrian border until another arrangement is found, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
Israeli troops occupied Mount Hermon when they moved into a demilitarized zone between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights following the collapse of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government this month.
Officials have described the move as a limited and temporary measure to ensure the security of Israel's borders but have given no indication of when the troops might be withdrawn and Defense Minister Israel Katz last week ordered troops to prepare to remain on Mount Hermon over the winter.
On Tuesday, Netanyahu went to the site for an operational briefing with military commanders and security officials.
"We are holding this assessment in order to decide on the deployment of the IDF in this important place until another arrangement is found that ensures Israel's security," he said in a statement issued by his office late on Tuesday, referring to the Israeli army.
Israel's move into the buffer zone created following the 1973 Arab-Israeli war has been criticized as a violation of international agreements by a number of countries and the United Nations, which have called for the troops to be withdrawn.
Hamas Angered by Continued Violations, Prepares Amendments to New Mediator Planhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5267841-hamas-angered-continued-violations-prepares-amendments-new-mediator-plan
Hamas Angered by Continued Violations, Prepares Amendments to New Mediator Plan
Mourners weep beside the body of a child at a hospital in Gaza City (AFP)
Three Hamas sources said the movement has expressed anger to mediators over the continued Israeli violations in the Gaza Strip, most recently the assassination of Iyad al-Shanbari, a senior commander in the Qassam Brigades, the movement’s armed wing.
The three sources, speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, said Hamas considers these violations, particularly the assassination of security leaders, a blow to mediation efforts aimed at establishing a clear agreement that obliges Israel to carry out its commitments.
It called on mediators to intervene in a “serious and firm” manner to halt these operations, which have led to the killing of about 1,000 Palestinians since the ceasefire entered into force on October 10, 2025. The sources said mediators confirmed they are continuing their efforts to put an end to the Israeli violations.
A Palestinian source in contact with the Gaza Administration Committee told Asharq Al-Awsat that Nickolay Mladenov, the highest representative for Gaza in the Peace Council, “requested on Monday that Israel halt airstrikes in the Gaza Strip for 48 hours to give the Cairo negotiations a chance to succeed, but received no response.” Hamas sources said they had no knowledge of this request.
A day after a new proposal was presented by mediators and the Peace Council regarding Gaza and advancing the implementation of the ceasefire agreement, Hamas sources said the movement is preparing a response containing remarks and requested amendments to be submitted by its negotiating delegation to Mladenov and the mediators.
Members of the Palestinian Civil Defense and local residents inspect a damaged vehicle following an Israeli airstrike in the west of Gaza City, Gaza Strip, 28 April 2026. EPA/MOHAMMED SABER
Asharq Al-Awsat had obtained details of the proposal drafted by representatives of the Peace Council and mediators from Egypt, Qatar and Türkiye, along with the United States, concerning the Gaza Strip, particularly its disarmament.
The document, titled “Roadmap” to complete implementation of US President Donald Trump’s comprehensive Gaza peace plan, outlines 15 provisions addressing the implementation of the second phase of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
The response will focus, according to the sources, on demands for a clear timetable for Israeli withdrawal, the establishment of clear international mechanisms and guarantees to oblige Israel, rejecting any linkage between reconstruction and the confinement and disarmament issue, and affirming the right of factions to fully exercise their political role without restrictions.
The new paper indicates the formation of a body named the “Implementation Verification Committee,” to be established by the highest representative for Gaza, comprising guarantor states, an international stabilization force and the Peace Council, to ensure that the parties fulfill their obligations, supported by an enhanced monitoring mechanism.
In its first provisions, the document stresses the importance of full commitment by all parties to implement UN Security Council Resolution 2803 and Trump’s comprehensive plan, as an agreed international framework that will guide the implementation of this process, in a way that ensures achieving the primary objective of restoring civilian life, enabling Palestinian governance, reconstruction, security and economic recovery, and creating the conditions for a credible path toward self-determination and a Palestinian state in line with the Security Council resolution.
Lebanon President Says Israel Must 'Fully Implement Ceasefire' before Talkshttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5267832-lebanon-president-says-israel-must-fully-implement-ceasefire-talks
Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in a southern Lebanese village, as seen from the Upper Galilee 29 April 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Lebanon President Says Israel Must 'Fully Implement Ceasefire' before Talks
Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in a southern Lebanese village, as seen from the Upper Galilee 29 April 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Wednesday that Israel must "fully implement" the ceasefire between the two countries before beginning direct negotiations, adding that Beirut was waiting for Washington to set a date for the talks, AFP reported.
Israel "must first fully implement the ceasefire in order to move on to negotiations... Israeli attacks cannot continue as they are," Aoun said in a statement shared by the presidency.
"We are now waiting for the United States to set a date to begin direct negotiations" with Israel.
Despite the ceasefire, Israel and Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah have both engaged in fighting, trading blame over violations of the fragile truce.
Over 1.2 mn People in Lebanon to Face Acute Hunger due to Warhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5267801-over-12-mn-people-lebanon-face-acute-hunger-due-war
Over 1.2 mn People in Lebanon to Face Acute Hunger due to War
UN forces operate in southern Lebanon, as seen from northern Israel, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
A UN-backed report said Wednesday that more than 1.2 million people in Lebanon were expected to face acute hunger due to the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah.
The figure was announced in a joint statement by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Food Program and Lebanon's agriculture ministry.
Some "1.24 million people -- nearly one in four of the population analysed -- are expected to face food insecurity" at crisis levels or worse between April and August 2026, they said.
They were referring to analysis from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a UN-backed group that monitors hunger and malnutrition.
This marks a "significant deterioration" from before the war erupted in March, "when an estimated 874,000 people, roughly 17 percent of the population, were experiencing acute food insecurity", the statement said.
"The deterioration is due to conflict, displacement and economic pressures," it added.
A ceasefire since April 17 has paused six weeks of war between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah that has killed more than 2,500 people in Lebanon and displaced more than one million, according to the authorities.
Israeli forces are operating in south Lebanon near the border where residents have been warned not to return, and both sides have been trading fire despite the truce.
"Acute food insecurity is likely to deepen without sustained and timely humanitarian and livelihood support," the statement added.
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