Jordan Foreign Minister Safadi to Visit Damascus on Monday

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, attending a press conference after a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024.  EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, attending a press conference after a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024. EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE
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Jordan Foreign Minister Safadi to Visit Damascus on Monday

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, attending a press conference after a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024.  EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, attending a press conference after a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024. EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi will visit Damascus on Monday and meet with Syria's de facto new ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa, the Jordanian foreign ministry said in a post on X.
Al-Sharaa began outlining his first government after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime, appointing a close ally and founding member of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, as Foreign Minister in the interim government.
He also appointed Aisha al-Dabbas, the first woman in his government, and assigned her a newly created office focused on women's affairs.
He also appointed Marhaf Abu Qasra as Minister of Defense, and Azam Gharib, as Governor of Aleppo.
Foreign governments began reaching out to the new regime in Damascus, shortly after the United States announced the cancellation of a $10 million reward for the arrest of al-Sharaa over alleged involvement in terrorism.



Palestinians in Jenin Observe a General Strike

A Palestinian police officer attempts to disperse demonstrators during a protest against clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in the northern occupied West Bank city of Jenin on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
A Palestinian police officer attempts to disperse demonstrators during a protest against clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in the northern occupied West Bank city of Jenin on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
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Palestinians in Jenin Observe a General Strike

A Palestinian police officer attempts to disperse demonstrators during a protest against clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in the northern occupied West Bank city of Jenin on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
A Palestinian police officer attempts to disperse demonstrators during a protest against clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in the northern occupied West Bank city of Jenin on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)

Palestinians in the volatile northern West Bank town of Jenin are observing a general strike called by militant groups to protest a rare crackdown by Palestinian security forces.
An Associated Press reporter in Jenin heard gunfire and explosions, apparently from clashes between militants and Palestinian security forces. It was not immediately clear if anyone was killed or wounded. There was no sign of Israeli troops in the area.
Shops were closed in the city on Monday, the day after militants killed a member of the Palestinian security forces and wounded two others.
Militant groups called for a general strike across the territory, accusing the security forces of trying to disarm them in support of Israel’s half-century occupation of the territory.
The Western-backed Palestinian Authority is internationally recognized but deeply unpopular among Palestinians, in part because it cooperates with Israel on security matters. Israel accuses the authority of incitement and of failing to act against armed groups.
The Palestinian Authority blamed Sunday’s attack on “outlaws.” It says it is committed to maintaining law and order but will not police the occupation.
The Palestinian Authority exercises limited authority in population centers in the West Bank. Israel captured the territory in the 1967 Mideast War, and the Palestinians want it to form the main part of their future state.
Israel’s current government is opposed to Palestinian statehood and says it will maintain open-ended security control over the territory. Violence has soared in the West Bank following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza, which ignited the war there.