Netanyahu Orders ‘Intensive’ West Bank Operations After Israel Bus Blasts https://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5114507-netanyahu-orders-%E2%80%98intensive%E2%80%99-west-bank-operations-after-israel-bus-blasts%C2%A0
Netanyahu Orders ‘Intensive’ West Bank Operations After Israel Bus Blasts
An Israeli soldier among damaged buildings at Tulkarem refugee camp, in the West Bank city of Tulkarem, 19 February 2025. (EPA)
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Netanyahu Orders ‘Intensive’ West Bank Operations After Israel Bus Blasts
An Israeli soldier among damaged buildings at Tulkarem refugee camp, in the West Bank city of Tulkarem, 19 February 2025. (EPA)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday ordered an "intensive operation against centers of terrorism" in the occupied West Bank, his office said, after three buses exploded in central Israel without causing any reported injuries.
Three devices detonated on buses in the city of Bat Yam on Thursday evening and two others were being defused, according to police, with Israel's defense minister accusing "Palestinian terrorist" groups of being behind the blasts.
Netanyahu's office said on social media early Friday that he had completed a security assessment with top officials, ordering fresh counterterrorism operations as well as stepped up security in Israeli cities.
"The Prime Minister has ordered the IDF (military) to carry out an intensive operation against centers of terrorism in Judea and Samaria," Netanyahu's office said on X, using the biblical term for the West Bank.
"The Prime Minister also ordered the Israel Police and the ISA (internal security agency) to increase preventative activity against additional attacks in Israeli cities," he added.
A large number of police were deployed to search for suspects after the "suspected terror attack", the police force said in a statement.
"Police bomb disposal units are scanning for additional suspicious objects. We urge the public to avoid the areas and remain alert for any suspicious items," it added.
Tzvika Brot, the mayor of Bat Yam, said in a video statement that there were "no injured in these incidents".
Israeli media said that bus drivers countrywide had been asked to stop and inspect their vehicles for additional explosive devices.
- 'Intensify' West Bank raids -
A police commander from central Israel, Haim Sargarof, said in a televised briefing that the devices used to set off the blasts were similar to those found in the West Bank.
Separately, Defense Minister Israel Katz said he ordered the military to "intensify operations to thwart terrorism" in West Bank refugee camps, particularly Tulkarem.
The military has been carrying out near-daily raids in West Bank cities and camps for several weeks now targeting Palestinian fighters.
Multiple Palestinian civilians have also been killed in the raids, while Israeli security forces have destroyed homes and infrastructure.
The military operation has displaced more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to the United Nations.
Violence in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, has escalated since the October 2023 outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip.
At least 897 Palestinians including gunmen have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the West Bank since the Gaza war began, according to an AFP tally based on figures provided by the Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah.
At least 32 Israelis, including some soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or confrontations during Israeli operations in the West Bank over the same period, according to official Israeli figures.
Lebanese President Says Security Deal with Israel Must Come Before Netanyahu Meetinghttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5269535-lebanese-president-says-security-deal-israel-must-come-netanyahu-meeting
Israeli troops maneuver on the Lebanese side of the border, as seen from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, 04 May 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. (EPA)
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Lebanese President Says Security Deal with Israel Must Come Before Netanyahu Meeting
Israeli troops maneuver on the Lebanese side of the border, as seen from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, 04 May 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. (EPA)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Monday said a security deal and an end to Israeli attacks were needed before any meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, sought by Washington.
Aoun's office said in a statement that the president "reiterated his view that the timing is not appropriate now for a meeting" with Netanyahu.
The statement quoted Aoun as saying: "We must first reach a security agreement and stop the Israeli attacks on us before we raise the issue of a meeting between us."
Israeli and Lebanese representatives last month met twice in Washington -- the first such meetings in decades, which came after Iran-backed Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war on March 2, sparking heavy Israeli strikes and a ground invasion.
After the first talks, US President Donald Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire in Lebanon that began on April 17, and a three-week extension after the second round.
The two countries are preparing for direct negotiations.
The statement from Aoun's office said a third round of "preparatory talks" were expected "in the coming days".
At the second meeting later in April, Trump said he expected Aoun and Netanyahu to meet jointly with him at the White House "over the next couple of weeks".
Last week, the US embassy in Beirut urged such a meeting, saying that "Lebanon stands at a crossroads. Its people have a historic opportunity to reclaim their country and shape their future," adding that "the time for hesitation is over".
A direct meeting between Aoun and Netanyahu, "facilitated by President Trump, would give Lebanon the chance to secure concrete guarantees" including on sovereignty, the embassy added, at a time when Israeli troops are still operating in south Lebanon.
The planned negotiations have caused a rift in Lebanon, with Hezbollah rejecting direct negotiations as well as Beirut's previous commitment to disarm it.
Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem earlier Monday criticized direct talks, saying they put Lebanon "under tutelage", and instead called for diplomacy that leads to an end to the war.
"Direct negotiations are a gratuitous concession, without results," Qassem said.
Aoun said "there is no turning back from the path of negotiations, because we have no other option", according to the statement from his office, reiterating that the process sought to achieve an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.
Israeli strikes have killed almost 2,700 people in Lebanon, including dozens since the ceasefire.
On the ground, Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with Israeli soldiers in south Lebanon near the border where its troops are still operating, despite the ceasefire.
Hezbollah in a statement said that after Israeli troops attempted to advance near the town of Deir Seryan -- which is inside the Israeli-declared "yellow line" where Lebanese residents have been told not to return -- its fighters "opened fire on the enemy force and engaged in heavy clashes with them".
The Israeli military confirmed there were clashes with Hezbollah fighters in south Lebanon.
"Earlier today, two soldiers were moderately injured as a result of a close-quarters encounter with Hezbollah terrorists in southern Lebanon," the military said in a statement.
"The soldiers were evacuated to receive medical treatment at a hospital."
Smoke rises from inside Khartoum Airport during previous clashes between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army (file photo – Reuters)
Khartoum Airport came under drone attack on Monday, with Sudanese army air defenses intercepting the aircraft, a military source told AFP
The incident follows attacks by the Rapid Support Forces on the Sudanese capital two days earlier that left five people dead.
Smoke rises from inside Khartoum Airport during previous clashes between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army (file photo – Reuters)
The military source said: “Our air defenses successfully shot down drones targeting the eastern perimeter of Khartoum Airport.”
Witnesses reported hearing explosions and seeing plumes of smoke rising from the Safa neighborhood, located east of the airport.
‘Freshly Dug Graves’ as Hezbollah Pays Steep Price in Battle to Reverse its Fortuneshttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5269392-%E2%80%98freshly-dug-graves%E2%80%99-hezbollah-pays-steep-price-battle-reverse-its-fortunes
FILE PHOTO: Mourners carry coffins during the funeral of four Hezbollah fighters and two civilians, amid a temporary ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, in the village of Maaroub, southern Lebanon, April 26, 2026. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo
‘Freshly Dug Graves’ as Hezbollah Pays Steep Price in Battle to Reverse its Fortunes
FILE PHOTO: Mourners carry coffins during the funeral of four Hezbollah fighters and two civilians, amid a temporary ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, in the village of Maaroub, southern Lebanon, April 26, 2026. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo
Hezbollah has paid a heavy price for going to war with Israel on March 2: Israel has occupied a chunk of southern Lebanon, displaced hundreds of thousands of its Shiite constituents and killed as many as several thousand of its fighters, according to previously unreported casualty estimates from within the group.
The move has brought severe political consequences, too. In Beirut, opposition has hardened to its status as an armed group, which domestic rivals see as exposing Lebanon to repeated wars with Israel.
In April, Lebanon's government held face-to-face talks with Israel for the first time in decades, a decision Hezbollah firmly opposed. However, more than a dozen Hezbollah officials told Reuters they see a chance to reverse deteriorating fortunes by aligning with Tehran in its war with Israel and the United States.
The group, founded by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps in 1982, opened fire two days into the conflict, which began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.
The group's calculations are based on the assessment that its participation would force Lebanon onto the agenda of US-Iranian negotiations, and that Iranian pressure can secure a more robust ceasefire than one that took effect in November 2024 following a conflict sparked by the war in Gaza, the officials said.
Hezbollah was mauled in the last war, which killed its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, along with some 5,000 fighters, and weakened its long-dominant hold over the Lebanese state.
Rearmed with Iranian help, it has used new tactics and drones, surprising many with its capabilities after a fragile 15-month truce during which Hezbollah held fire, even as Israel continued to kill its members.
Hezbollah lawmaker Ibrahim al-Moussawi denied the group was acting on Iran's behalf when it resumed hostilities, as alleged by opponents. He told Reuters Hezbollah saw a window to "break this vicious cycle ... where the Israelis can target, assassinate, bombard, kill, without any revenge."
He acknowledged losses and damage in southern Lebanon but said "you don't go into making calculations of how many are going to be killed" when "pride and sovereignty and independence" are at stake.
Hezbollah’s media office said the figure of several thousand fighters killed in the present war was false.
FILE PHOTO: A family stand next to a fire outside their tent at a temporary encampment for displaced people, amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, in Beirut, Lebanon, March 30, 2026. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo
While a US-mediated ceasefire that took effect on April 16 has led to a significant reduction in hostilities, Israel and Hezbollah have continued to trade blows in the south, where Israel maintains troops in a self-declared "buffer zone".
Yezid Sayigh, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, said Hezbollah had "shown more resilience than many thought possible, but that was not a strategic gain in itself".
"The only thing that will contain Israel is a comprehensive US-Iran deal," he said. "Without a deal, there's going to be a lot of pain for everyone. At best, a hurting stalemate."
More than 2,600 people have been killed since March 2, around a fifth of them women, children and medics, Lebanon's health ministry has reported. Its toll does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
Three sources, two of them Hezbollah officials, said the ministry's figures do not include many of the group's casualties. They said several thousand Hezbollah fighters have been killed, though the group does not have the full picture yet.
In a statement to Reuters, Hezbollah’s media office denied the figures cited by the sources, and that the numbers published by Lebanon’s health ministry included its members killed in Israeli strikes.
One source, a Hezbollah commander, said scores of fighters had gone to the frontline towns of Bint Jbeil and Khiyam intending to fight to the death. Their bodies have yet to be recovered.
In the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut, more than two dozen freshly dug graves were quickly filled with fighters' bodies in the days after the ceasefire took hold. Simple marble tombstones identify some as commanders, others as fighters.
In one southern village alone, Yater, the council recorded the deaths of 34 Hezbollah fighters.
Lebanon's Shiite community has borne the brunt of Israel's attacks, forced to flee into Christian, Druze and other areas, where many blame Hezbollah for starting the war.
Smoke rises from the site of Israeli airstrikes that targeted the southern Lebanese village of Habbouch on May 1, 2026. (Photo by Abbas FAKIH / AFP)
Israel has been entrenching its hold over a security zone stretching as far as 10 km (6 miles) into Lebanon and demolishing villages, saying it aims to shield northern Israel from attacks by Hezbollah militants embedded in civilian areas.
An Israeli government official said Hezbollah had abrogated the November 2024 ceasefire by firing on Israeli citizens on March 2. The threat to northern Israel would be eradicated, the official said, adding thousands of Hezbollah militants had been killed, and Israel was steadily destroying the group's infrastructure.
The Israeli military says Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel since March 2. Israel has announced 17 soldiers killed in southern Lebanon, along with two civilians in northern Israel.
Citing ongoing Israeli strikes, Hezbollah has called the April ceasefire meaningless and continued to attack.
A diplomat who has contact with Hezbollah described its decision to enter the war as a big gamble and a survival strategy, saying it felt it needed to be part of the problem so it could be part of an eventual regional solution.
It has yet to be seen if the gamble will pay off.
Tehran has demanded that Israel's campaign against Hezbollah be included in any deal on the wider war. But US President Donald Trump said last month that any deal Washington reaches with Tehran "is in no way subject to Lebanon".
A spokesperson for Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, Tahir Andrabi, referred Reuters to an April 16 statement in which he said peace in Lebanon was essential to the talks it is mediating between the US and Iran.
A Western official said they saw a possibility the US and Iran might eventually reach a settlement that does not address the war in Lebanon.
Asked about this, the US State Department, Iran's mission to the United Nations in Geneva and Lebanon's government did not immediately comment.
Hezbollah's Moussawi said a ceasefire in Lebanon continues to be a top priority for Iran, adding Tehran shares Lebanon's objectives, including that Israel halt attacks and withdraw from Lebanon. Hezbollah has "full trust in Iran - that the Iranians will not sell their own friends", he said.
The State Department referred Reuters to an April 27 interview Secretary of State Marco Rubio did with Fox News, in which he said Israel had a right to defend itself against Hezbollah's attacks, and that he didn't think Israel wanted to maintain its buffer zone in Lebanon indefinitely.
The United States has urged Israel "to make sure their responses are proportional and targeted," he said.
When the April 16 ceasefire was announced, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hezbollah's disarmament would be a fundamental demand in peace talks with Lebanon.
Hezbollah has ruled out disarmament, saying the matter of its weapons is a topic for a national dialogue. Any move by Lebanon to disarm the group by force would risk igniting conflict in a country shattered by civil war from 1975 to 1990.
Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam have sought Hezbollah's peaceful disarmament since last year. On March 2, the government banned the group's military activities.
Hezbollah has demanded the government cancel that decision and end its direct talks with Israel.
Lebanese officials have told Reuters they believe direct talks with Israel under the auspices of the US are the best way to secure a lasting ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops, as only Washington has enough leverage with Israel to achieve those aims.
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