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Planning Under Way for International Force in Gaza, Say US Advisers

FILED - 08 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Fighters of the Ezz al-Din Al-Qassam brigades, the military wing of Hamas form a corridor as Israeli hostages get delivered to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
FILED - 08 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Fighters of the Ezz al-Din Al-Qassam brigades, the military wing of Hamas form a corridor as Israeli hostages get delivered to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
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Planning Under Way for International Force in Gaza, Say US Advisers

FILED - 08 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Fighters of the Ezz al-Din Al-Qassam brigades, the military wing of Hamas form a corridor as Israeli hostages get delivered to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
FILED - 08 February 2025, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Fighters of the Ezz al-Din Al-Qassam brigades, the military wing of Hamas form a corridor as Israeli hostages get delivered to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa

Planning has begun for an international force to go into Gaza to stabilize security in the Palestinian enclave, two senior US advisers said on Wednesday.

One of the top requirements of President Donald Trump's 20-point Gaza plan was formation of a US-backed stabilization force. The United States has agreed to provide up to 200 troops to support the force without being deployed in Gaza itself.

The two senior advisers, in a briefing for reporters, said tensions remain high between Israeli forces and the Hamas group in the enclave, Reuters reported.

"Right now what we're looking to accomplish is just a basic stabilization of the situation. The international stabilization force is starting to be constructed," one adviser said.

Among the countries the US is speaking to about contributing to the force are Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar and Azerbaijan, said the adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The advisers said there were up to two dozen US troops in the region to help set up the operation, serving in a "coordination, oversight" role.

"The goal is to use all the different local partners who want to help and be involved," the adviser said.

After Hamas killed seven men in Gaza City it accused of collaborating with Israel, the advisers said there were discussions to establish safe zones for civilians to prevent such incidents.

The second adviser said that no Gazans would be forced to leave the battered Palestinian enclave. Officials are looking at rebuilding in areas that are free of Hamas militants.

Trump has said he would like to see the enclave rebuilt and has pledges of investment from various international partners, but that this effort will take time. The advisers also said patience was needed for the recovery of dead Israeli hostages, saying it will take longer than expected because their remains are buried under rubble and unexploded ordnance.

They said there are discussions about offering rewards for information leading to the discovery of remains.

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Arab World

Israel Says Hezbollah Trying to Rebuild, Smuggle in Arms from Syria

Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike on Tayr Debba town in southern Lebanon, 06 November 2025. (EPA)
Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike on Tayr Debba town in southern Lebanon, 06 November 2025. (EPA)
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Israel Says Hezbollah Trying to Rebuild, Smuggle in Arms from Syria

Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike on Tayr Debba town in southern Lebanon, 06 November 2025. (EPA)
Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike on Tayr Debba town in southern Lebanon, 06 November 2025. (EPA)

The Israeli military accused Lebanese armed group Hezbollah on Tuesday of seeking to rebuild its combat abilities in south Lebanon to the point of threatening Israel's security and undoing last year's ceasefire deal.

Military spokesman Nadav Shoshani said Iranian-backed Hezbollah was operating south of the Litani River in violation of the truce accord and that Israeli forces were conducting strikes on Hezbollah targets in that area. Hezbollah says it is committed to the ceasefire deal.

Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam say Israel is violating the truce deal, pointing to the occupation of five hilltop positions in southern Lebanon by Israeli troops as well as Israeli air strikes and deadly ground incursions into Lebanese territory.

TENSION OVER DISARMAMENT PUSH

Shoshani told a news briefing that Hezbollah was also trying to smuggle in weapons from Syria and via other routes to Lebanon. "We are working to prevent that from happening and to block the ground routes from Syria into Lebanon to a high level of success, but they still pose a threat to us," Shoshani said.

"We are committed to the agreement but it must be held. We will not return to the reality of October 7 (2023) with a threat of thousands of terrorists on our border within walking distance of our civilians."

Hezbollah denies it is rebuilding its military capabilities in south Lebanon. It has not fired at Israel since the ceasefire came into force, and Lebanese security officials told Reuters that Hezbollah has not obstructed Lebanese army operations to find and confiscate the group's weapons in the country's south.

In a televised speech on Tuesday, Hezbollah head Sheikh Naim Qassem said Hezbollah remained committed to the 2024 ceasefire and that there was "no alternative" to that deal.

He said if Israel withdrew, stopped its attacks on Lebanon and released Lebanese nationals detained in Israel, then northern Israeli towns would have "no problem" with security.

But he reiterated Hezbollah's rejection of full disarmament and said Israel's destructive and deadly strikes "cannot continue", adding: "There is a limit to everything."

Israel has been pressing Lebanon's army to be more aggressive in disarming Hezbollah by searching private homes in the south for weaponry, according to Lebanese and Israeli officials.

The army is confident it can declare Lebanon's south free of Hezbollah arms by the end of 2025, but has refused to search private dwellings for fear of reigniting civil strife and derailing a disarmament strategy seen by the army as cautious but effective, Lebanese security officials told Reuters.

Hezbollah was severely weakened in a year-long war that saw an Israeli incursion into south Lebanon backed by heavy air strikes, but still wields considerable power among Shiites in Lebanon's fragile sectarian-based system of governance.

Arab World

For Many Syrians, Sharaa's US Visit Marks New Beginning

A Syrian flag is displayed outside the White House following the meeting of US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 10, 2025. (Reuters)
A Syrian flag is displayed outside the White House following the meeting of US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 10, 2025. (Reuters)
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For Many Syrians, Sharaa's US Visit Marks New Beginning

A Syrian flag is displayed outside the White House following the meeting of US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 10, 2025. (Reuters)
A Syrian flag is displayed outside the White House following the meeting of US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, November 10, 2025. (Reuters)

On the streets of Damascus on Tuesday, Syrians viewed their leader's visit to Washington as a shift towards the West that could pave the way to reviving the country's war-battered economy.

On Monday, Donald Trump received Ahmed al-Sharaa, a first for a Syrian head of state since independence in 1946.

"God willing, this visit will be a new beginning for Syria and an opening to the world after years of isolation," law student Boushra Abdel Bari said.

"We hope that this visit... will facilitate the reconstruction of Syria with the United States and the rest of the world."

As Sharaa made his historic visit to Washington, the State Department announced a pause of US sanctions under the Caesar Act, pending their possible permanent lifting by Congress.

The law imposed wide-ranging sanctions on investment in Syria in an effort to ensure accountability over abuses under Assad, banning the country from the global banking system.

Historically, Syria has been in the orbit of first the Soviet Union then Russia, which was autocratic leader Bashar al-Assad's main ally during more than 13 years of civil war.

But since overthrowing Assad in December 2024, the interim Syrian president has made numerous overtures to the West and Gulf, while being careful not to burn his bridges with Moscow.

For Abdel Bari, Assad's ally Russia "has brought us nothing but ruin and destruction."

Omar Nassar, a 36-year-old printer, also welcomed Syria's move towards the Western camp.

"Syria paid the price for aligning itself with the socialist camp in the past... and was isolated from its Arab and international environment," he said.

"We are very optimistic after this visit. We expect positive repercussions in the economic and diplomatic spheres."

Saddam Hajjar, who runs a coffee kiosk in the Syrian capital, also believed that "things are getting better".

"We hope to be part of the new Middle East in the future," he said. "The Syrian people deserve a better life after making so many sacrifices."

Assad's fall ended a civil war that lasted more than 13 years, which broke out after the government cracked down on a peaceful uprising in 2011.

The war killed more than half a million people, displaced or forced millions of Syrians into exile, and brought the economy to its knees.

Layal Kaddour, a 25-year-old NGO worker, thought the visit to Washington was "a bold political move" that broke years of isolation.

"The possible repercussions are an easing of sanctions and the opening up of economic prospects," she said.

But she wondered if her country will now be "subject to international pressure that would influence independent political decision-making," alluding to concerns about US pressure on Syria to make peace with Israel, which has long been an enemy.

Arab World

UN Aid Chief Hails Talks with Sudan Army Leader

A Sudanese refugee speaks on the phone at the Tine transit camp in Chad on November 8, 2025. (AFP)
A Sudanese refugee speaks on the phone at the Tine transit camp in Chad on November 8, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Aid Chief Hails Talks with Sudan Army Leader

A Sudanese refugee speaks on the phone at the Tine transit camp in Chad on November 8, 2025. (AFP)
A Sudanese refugee speaks on the phone at the Tine transit camp in Chad on November 8, 2025. (AFP)

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher held Tuesday what he called "constructive" talks with Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan to ensure life-saving aid reaches all corners of the war-ravaged country.

Since April 2023, the war between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions, creating one of the world's largest humanitarian crises.

"I very much welcome the constructive conversations with President Burhan this afternoon, aimed at ensuring we can continue to operate everywhere across Sudan to deliver in a neutral, independent and impartial way for all those in such dire need," Fletcher said in a video released by Sudan's Transitional Sovereignty Council.

The UN official's comments came after he met with Burhan in Port Sudan, the de facto capital.

During the meeting, Burhan asserted "Sudan's keenness on cooperating with the United Nations and its various agencies," according to the army-backed council.

Fletcher, who arrived in Sudan on Tuesday for a week-long mission, said on X he would work "to stop the atrocities, back peace efforts, uphold the UN charter, and push for our teams to get the access and funding they need to save lives across the battle lines."

The talks come two weeks after the RSF captured el-Fasher, the last army stronghold in western Darfur.

Burhan had previously vowed his forces would "take revenge" and fight "until this land is purified."

On Tuesday, Fletcher also met top Egyptian and Sudanese diplomats in Port Sudan, according to a statement from Cairo's foreign ministry.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty called for "strengthening the international response to the current crisis and ensuring humanitarian aid reaches the most affected groups."

Despite the RSF agreeing to a truce mediated by the US, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt last Thursday, attacks have continued.

On the day paramilitaries agreed to the truce, the Sudanese Doctors' Union said the RSF shelled a hospital in South Kordofan, killing five, while explosions were heard in Khartoum the following day.