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Israel Calls Gaza City Evacuation ‘Inevitable’ as US Hosts Talks on Post-War Gaza

The sun sets behind buildings destroyed during Israeli ground and air operations in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025. (AP)
The sun sets behind buildings destroyed during Israeli ground and air operations in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025. (AP)
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Israel Calls Gaza City Evacuation ‘Inevitable’ as US Hosts Talks on Post-War Gaza

The sun sets behind buildings destroyed during Israeli ground and air operations in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025. (AP)
The sun sets behind buildings destroyed during Israeli ground and air operations in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025. (AP)

Israeli and US officials will meet in Washington on Wednesday to discuss post-war Gaza, even as Israel's military calls the evacuation of Gaza City “inevitable” ahead of a military offensive and with no sign of a ceasefire in sight. 

The meeting comes as outrage mounts over this week's deadly Israeli strikes on a southern Gaza hospital that killed 20, including journalists and emergency responders. Israel's military has said it will investigate the attack. It has offered no immediate explanation for striking twice and no evidence for an assertion that six of the dead were gunmen. 

As a growing chorus of international leaders urge Israel to reconsider its offensive and commit to talks, Pope Leo XIV called for Israel to halt the “collective punishment” and forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza. 

Israel prepares Gaza City for an evacuation  

Aid groups warn an expanded Israeli military offensive could worsen the humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory, where most of its over 2 million residents are displaced, neighborhoods lie in ruins and a famine has been declared in Gaza City. 

Israel's military on Wednesday told residents of Gaza City to prepare to leave. 

“The evacuation of Gaza City is inevitable,” spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote in Arabic on X. He said Israeli forces have surveyed vast empty areas south of the city “to assist the evacuating residents as much as possible.”  

He said the displaced would receive space for tents, and infrastructure would be set up to distribute aid and water. 

More than 80% of Gaza is designated as an Israeli military zone or subject to displacement orders, the UN humanitarian agency said in June. 

Israel has pressed ahead with plans to mobilize tens of thousands of reservists. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the military will launch its offensive while simultaneously pursuing a ceasefire. 

Hamas said last week it accepted a ceasefire plan from Arab mediators. 

Qatar, which has rarely assigned blame through more than a year of mediation, said Tuesday that Israel has yet to officially respond and “does not want to reach an agreement.” 

Last week, an official from Qatar said the proposal under discussion was “almost identical” to an earlier draft that US Envoy Steve Witkoff put forth and Israel accepted. 

The deal said to be under discussion would include a 60-day truce, the release of some of the 50 remaining hostages held by Hamas in return for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza and a road map toward talks on a lasting ceasefire. 

Many in Netanyahu’s coalition oppose such a phased deal.  

Meanwhile, protests have swelled in Israel as hostages' families and their supporters urging a ceasefire. The government argues that a widened offensive is the best way to bring them home and cripple Hamas’ capacity to launch future attacks. 

Witkoff says Trump will chair a separate meeting 

In Washington, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to meet with Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Wednesday. 

Witkoff told Fox News on Tuesday that President Donald Trump will chair a separate meeting, which would feature “a very comprehensive plan we’re putting together on the next day.” 

He did not offer details about that meeting, which did not appear on Trump’s public schedule on Wednesday. 

Witkoff also said the US‘s official position was that hostages — Hamas’ main source of leverage — should no longer be part of negotiations. He told Fox News the talks should instead focus on issues including Gaza’s future and how to define Hamas in that context. 

Hospitals report strikes near aid sites  

Local hospitals on Wednesday reported at least 10 deaths, including near an aid distribution site in central Gaza and at a displacement camp in the south. 

An Israeli strike killed three people, including a child and a woman, and injured 21 others when it hit tents in Khan Younis overnight, the Kuwait Specialized Field Hospital said. Three Israeli strikes killed at least six others in Khan Younis, Nasser Hospital said. 

Israel's military did not immediately respond to questions about the strikes. Its offensive has killed 62,895 Palestinians during the war, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were fighters or civilians but says around half were women and children. 

The ministry said Wednesday that 10 more people have died of malnutrition-related causes over the past 24 hours, bringing the total of victims of malnutrition-related causes to 313 people during the war, including 119 children. 

The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The UN and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own. 

Hamas-led fighters abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefires or other deals. Of the 50 remaining in Gaza, Israel believes around 20 are alive. 

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Arab World

Yemen: Coalition Steps Up Engagement with Aden’s Civil Society

Coalition to Restore Legitimacy oversees the normalization of life and improvement of services in Aden (Government Media) 
Coalition to Restore Legitimacy oversees the normalization of life and improvement of services in Aden (Government Media) 
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Yemen: Coalition Steps Up Engagement with Aden’s Civil Society

Coalition to Restore Legitimacy oversees the normalization of life and improvement of services in Aden (Government Media) 
Coalition to Restore Legitimacy oversees the normalization of life and improvement of services in Aden (Government Media) 

Amid rapidly evolving developments on the ground led by the leadership of the Coalition Forces to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, efforts are continuing to normalize life in Aden, the country’s temporary capital, within a comprehensive vision aimed at restoring the city’s civil character and strengthening the role of the state and its service and security institutions.

Major General Falah Al-Shahrani, adviser to the Coalition Forces to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, has intensified meetings with representatives of civil sectors, activists, and media professionals, seeking to build broad partnerships with Aden’s community and expand participation in shaping and implementing a plan to restore the city’s civil identity after years of conflict.

Alongside the daily follow-up of plans to remove military camps from Aden and restructure and integrate security units, the adviser to the joint forces is giving particular priority to basic services—especially electricity and water—viewed as a practical gateway to restoring public trust and improving living standards.

Al-Shahrani has also been holding regular meetings with journalists, activists, and community figures, listening to their views on the challenges facing the city and the aspirations of its residents in this new phase. Many hope this stage will restore Aden’s economic, cultural, and social standing as one of the oldest cities that embodied values of coexistence and openness.

Participants in these meetings stressed the importance of granting Aden’s residents a greater and more meaningful role in decision-making, noting that they had suffered marginalization in previous periods and that any successful plan to restore the city’s civil character must begin with their inclusion as direct stakeholders.

They also emphasized the need to give top priority to the education sector, describing it as the cornerstone of reconstruction and sustainable development and the primary foundation for rebuilding civic awareness and entrenching a culture of the rule of law.

Participants further called for directing support toward sustainable projects, foremost among them the rehabilitation of buildings damaged by the Houthi invasion of the city in 2015, given the direct impact of such projects on residents’ lives in terms of housing, services, and economic activity.

They noted that discussions with Al-Shahrani were marked by seriousness and transparency, reflecting the Coalition leadership’s determination to listen directly to public concerns beyond rigid official frameworks.

They affirmed that they sensed a genuine commitment and a clear vision to rebuild what the war had destroyed in Aden and other liberated provinces, in parallel with efforts to consolidate security and stability.

 

 

 

 

Arab World

US Transfers ISIS Detainees from Syria to Iraq

 US soldiers at a military base north of Baghdad (Reuters – archive photo) 
 US soldiers at a military base north of Baghdad (Reuters – archive photo) 
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US Transfers ISIS Detainees from Syria to Iraq

 US soldiers at a military base north of Baghdad (Reuters – archive photo) 
 US soldiers at a military base north of Baghdad (Reuters – archive photo) 

US Central Command has launched a new operation to transfer ISIS detainees from northeastern Syria to Iraq, aiming to ensure that they remain in secure detention facilities and to reduce the risk of instability.

The operation began with the transfer of 150 ISIS militants from a detention facility in Hasakah, Syria, to a secure site in Iraq. US officials say the number of detainees moved from Syria to Iraqi-controlled prisons could eventually reach about 7,000.

Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, said: “We are closely coordinating with regional partners, including the Iraqi government, and we sincerely appreciate their role in ensuring the enduring defeat of ISIS.

“Facilitating the orderly and secure transfer of ISIS detainees is critical to preventing a breakout that would pose a direct threat to the United States and regional security.”

According to Reuters, the move follows the rapid collapse of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in northeastern Syria, which raised doubts about the security of roughly a dozen prisons and detention camps previously guarded by the group.

US officials also discussed the situation with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, focusing on ongoing tensions in Syria, the need for government forces to respect ceasefire arrangements with the Syrian Democratic Forces, and support for the coordinated transfer of ISIS detainees to Iraq.

The US side outlined plans to relocate thousands of detainees in a controlled manner and urged all parties to avoid actions that could disrupt the process.

An Iraqi official told Asharq Al-Awsat that the transfer would help ease growing concerns about possible escapes. He added that holding the detainees in prisons supervised by the Iraqi government, in direct coordination with the United States, would significantly reduce the chances of ISIS rebuilding its capabilities.

Syrian media reported that security forces recently arrested 90 group members who had escaped from al-Shaddadi prison south of Hasakah. The Syrian army later announced it had taken control of the city, imposed a curfew, and launched operations to secure the area and capture fugitives.

Recent government advances, combined with what appears to be a reduction in US support for the SDF, mark the most significant shift in territorial control since the fall of Bashar al-Assad 13 months ago.

The United States said this week that the main objectives of its partnership with the SDF have largely been achieved after years of fighting ISIS.

 

 

 

Arab World

Tunisia Flood Death Toll Rises to Five

 A man removes water from his flooded home in La Goulette, near the Tunisian capital Tunis. AFP 
 A man removes water from his flooded home in La Goulette, near the Tunisian capital Tunis. AFP 
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Tunisia Flood Death Toll Rises to Five

 A man removes water from his flooded home in La Goulette, near the Tunisian capital Tunis. AFP 
 A man removes water from his flooded home in La Goulette, near the Tunisian capital Tunis. AFP 

Authorities in Tunisia said flooding caused by three days of exceptional rainfall has killed five people, causing property damage in several provinces and leaving schools and businesses shut and transportation disrupted after parts of the country experienced their heaviest rainfall in years.

The death toll rose to five, Khalil Mechri, a civil defense spokesman told AFP. “Two people swept away by floodwaters, while a woman drowned in her home,” he said.

Mechri said since the flooding started, the emergency services pumped water from 466 inundated homes and have rescued 350 people trapped by floodwaters.

Tunisian media said four fishermen were missing on Wednesday. A fifth was rescued in Teboulba, south of Monastir, while authorities are searching for the remaining crew.

Mechri said while the bad weather was now less intense, “the level of alert remains high.”

President Kais Saied visited several affected areas on Tuesday, including Moknine and Teboulba, local media said.

Footage and videos widely circulated on social media showed significant flooding to homes and roads, with cars stranded in water, particularly in the capital, Tunis.

Authorities suspended classes on Wednesday in public and private schools and universities in 15 of the country's 24 governorates because of the weather. Transportation was also disrupted in several areas.

Abderazak Rahal, head of forecasting at the National Institute of Meteorology (INM), told AFP some Tunisian regions had not seen so much rain since 1950.

“We have recorded exceptional amounts of rainfall for the month of January,” Rahal said, with the regions of Monastir, Nabeul and greater Tunis the hardest hit.

The latest rainfall has proved record-breaking, but Tunisian streets often flood after heavy downpours, largely because of the state of the country's infrastructure.

Drainage and stormwater networks are often old and poorly maintained, particularly in rapidly expanding urban areas, with waste sometimes clogging the system.

Rapid urbanization of some areas has also led to less rainwater being absorbed into the ground, increasing runoff.

The dramatic deluge comes as Tunisia grapples with a seven-year drought, worsened by climate change and marked by a sharp decline in water reserves in dams nationwide.

In neighboring Algeria, several regions have also been hit by massive downpours and floods.

Algerian civil defense authorities said they had recovered the body of a man in his sixties who died in flooding in the northwestern province of Relizane.