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Arab World

Italy’s Navy to Quit Gaza Flotilla as Risk of Israeli Attack Looms

Greta Thunberg and a crew member flash victory signs from their ship, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla aiming to reach Gaza and break Israel's naval blockade, as they sail off Crete island, Greece, September 25, 2025. (Reuters)
Greta Thunberg and a crew member flash victory signs from their ship, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla aiming to reach Gaza and break Israel's naval blockade, as they sail off Crete island, Greece, September 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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Italy’s Navy to Quit Gaza Flotilla as Risk of Israeli Attack Looms

Greta Thunberg and a crew member flash victory signs from their ship, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla aiming to reach Gaza and break Israel's naval blockade, as they sail off Crete island, Greece, September 25, 2025. (Reuters)
Greta Thunberg and a crew member flash victory signs from their ship, part of the Global Sumud Flotilla aiming to reach Gaza and break Israel's naval blockade, as they sail off Crete island, Greece, September 25, 2025. (Reuters)

Italy's navy will stop following the international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza once it gets within 150 nautical miles (278 km) of the shore, the Italian defense ministry said on Tuesday.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, consisting of more than 40 civilian boats carrying parliamentarians, lawyers and activists including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, aims to break Israel's blockade of the Palestinian enclave.

Once the convoy reaches the 150 nautical miles limit, the Italian frigate accompanying it will stop, "as communicated several times in recent days," the ministry said in a statement.

The ship will issue two warnings to activists, with the second and final one foreseen at around 00:00 GMT, when the flotilla is expected to get within the stated distance, the statement added.

Earlier on Tuesday, an Italian spokeswoman for the flotilla, Maria Elena Delia, said that activists had been informed about the government's plans to have the navy ship stop and turn back to avoid "a diplomatic incident" with Israel.

She said the flotilla had no intention of heeding Italy's warnings not to get closer to the shore. Italy and Spain deployed navy vessels last week to assist the flotilla, after it was hit by drones armed with stun grenades and irritants in international waters off Greece, but without any intention to engage militarily.

Delia said activists were bracing for another strike in the coming hours. "Israel will probably attack us tonight, because all the signals point to this happening," she said in a video on Instagram.

Israel did not respond to flotilla accusations that it was behind last week's attacks, but it has vowed to use any means to prevent the boats from reaching Gaza, arguing that its blockade is legal as part of its war against Hamas militants.

Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto has said he expects flotilla boats to be intercepted in the open sea and activists to face arrest.

On Tuesday, Crosetto made a "last appeal" to flotilla members to accept a compromise proposal to drop aid in Cyprus and avoid a confrontation with Israeli forces. Flotilla representatives have repeatedly refused the offer.

Israel began its Gaza offensive after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken as hostages, according to Israeli tallies. The offensive has since killed over 66,000 Palestinians, Gaza health authorities say.

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Arab World

France to Host International Meet on Palestinian-Israeli Conflict in June

15 April 2026, Berlin: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, gives a statement at the International Sudan Conference at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. (dpa)
15 April 2026, Berlin: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, gives a statement at the International Sudan Conference at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. (dpa)
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France to Host International Meet on Palestinian-Israeli Conflict in June

15 April 2026, Berlin: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, gives a statement at the International Sudan Conference at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. (dpa)
15 April 2026, Berlin: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, gives a statement at the International Sudan Conference at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. (dpa)

France will host an international meeting in June dedicated to the long-touted two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the French foreign minister announced on Thursday.

"On September 22 last year, France took the momentous decision to recognize the State of Palestine and will host an international conference in Paris on June 12 so that Israeli and Palestinian civil societies can make their voices heard," Jean-Noel Barrot said in a video message played to a gathering of peace activists in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv.

The "People's Peace Summit" in Tel Aviv was organized by the "It's Time" coalition, a grouping of more than 80 peacebuilding organizations working to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through a political agreement guaranteeing both peoples' right to self-determination and secure lives.

Several hundred people attended the meeting in Tel Aviv, AFP journalists reported.

"While the Middle East remains deeply scarred by the terrorist attacks of October 7 (2023) in Israel, by more than two and a half years of devastating war in Gaza and by a humanitarian crisis that, sadly, shows no sign of abating, your presence here is an act of resistance against fatalism and resignation," Barrot said.

Palestinian movement Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel sparked the war in Gaza, where a ceasefire in effect since October has largely halted fighting.

Barrot's remarks come as the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, one of the most right-wing in Israel's history, vehemently opposes the emergence of a sovereign and fully independent Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, and is working on the ground to undermine the possibility of a two-state solution.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority led by President Mahmoud Abbas appears extremely weakened and deeply unpopular.

Arab World

‘Positive’ Mood in Cairo Talks on New Proposal by Mediators

A Palestinian man carries jerrycans filled with water through a tent camp in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, April 30, 2026. (AP)
A Palestinian man carries jerrycans filled with water through a tent camp in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, April 30, 2026. (AP)
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‘Positive’ Mood in Cairo Talks on New Proposal by Mediators

A Palestinian man carries jerrycans filled with water through a tent camp in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, April 30, 2026. (AP)
A Palestinian man carries jerrycans filled with water through a tent camp in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, April 30, 2026. (AP)

Hamas described as “positive” an initial meeting held by its delegation on Wednesday evening with mediators in Egypt to discuss a new Gaza ceasefire proposal.

Asharq Al-Awsat reviewed a message sent by Hamas to Palestinian factions describing the talks as “a preliminary, frank, clear and brief meeting, held in a positive atmosphere.”

The message said Hamas told the UN’s senior representative for Gaza on the Board of Peace, Nickolay Mladenov, and his team that “there must be clear implementation of the first phase before moving to the second,” noting this stance had already been adopted by the movement and other Palestinian factions.

It added that mediators are awaiting Israel’s response to determine next steps.

A senior Hamas source confirmed the message, saying the atmosphere in Wednesday’s meetings with mediators was positive. Another meeting was held later the same evening with Mladenov and other figures, the source said.

Mladenov, who arrived in Cairo from Israel on Tuesday, carried Israel’s position on the recently updated proposal covering the first and second phases, the source added. Further meetings are expected on Thursday.

The source said Israel is still trying to obstruct the agreement by pushing conditions linking progress to disarmament, including seeking signed approval from Hamas and other factions, a demand all factions in the Cairo talks reject.

Mediators, including Mladenov, are attempting to find workable approaches, the source said, with talks set to continue through Friday.

Leftist factions raise concerns

Despite Hamas describing the talks as positive and calling for a clear implementation timeline and firm guarantees, some factions, particularly leftist groups within the Palestine Liberation Organization, raised concerns over the latest mediators’ proposal.

A senior source from leftist factions said their observations focused on the absence of a binding timeline for Israeli withdrawal and the lack of a clear monitoring mechanism.

The source also cited the need for a defined schedule for the second phase and warned of a reduced Palestinian national role in favor of an international administration.

Other concerns included ambiguity in implementing the first phase, linking reconstruction to disarmament, and the exclusion of areas beyond the “Yellow Line” from reconstruction plans.

The factions proposed affirming the right to self-determination and a Palestinian state in line with international legitimacy, and that Gaza’s administrative committee begin work from the first phase.

They also suggested weapons be neutralized through a national agreement within security arrangements overseen by guarantor states, particularly Egypt, and held in custody there.

They further proposed that weapons neutralization coincide with a full Israeli withdrawal, the disarmament of armed groups linked to Israel, and the deployment of international forces starting from the “Yellow Line,” to be completed after withdrawal.

They called for international guarantees for both withdrawal and reconstruction, ensuring reconstruction begins in all areas vacated by Israeli forces, including those beyond the “Yellow Line,” alongside the launch of an early recovery plan at the start of the remaining first phase.

The proposal stressed the need to ensure freedom of political and civil activity under national laws. It said any arrangements in Gaza must not contradict Palestinian Authority laws and called for strengthening national consensus.

It also called for addressing armed groups through a separate track, with the possibility of integrating them into official institutions.

The proposal urged a comprehensive solution to the detainees’ issue, particularly those from Gaza, and said any arrangements for weapons neutralization should be linked to resolving this issue.

The Hamas source said the factions’ observations were conveyed to the mediators and Mladenov.

Arab World

Israel Army Says Soldier Killed ‘in Combat’ in South Lebanon

Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)
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Israel Army Says Soldier Killed ‘in Combat’ in South Lebanon

Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)
Israeli military vehicles drive in Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, April 30, 2026. (Reuters)

The Israeli army said Thursday that a soldier was killed in southern Lebanon, the fourth such death since a fragile ceasefire took effect there earlier this month.

Sergeant Liem Ben Hemo, 19, "died in combat in the south of Lebanon", the army said in a statement, adding that another soldier was wounded in the incident.

The latest death brings to 17 the number of soldiers killed since the war began with Iran-backed Hezbollah on March 2, according to an AFP tally based on military figures.

One Israeli civilian working for the army has also been killed.