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US Disagrees that Israel Carrying out 'Apartheid'

Israel’s separation wall is pictured on February 11, 2020. (AFP)
Israel’s separation wall is pictured on February 11, 2020. (AFP)
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US Disagrees that Israel Carrying out 'Apartheid'

Israel’s separation wall is pictured on February 11, 2020. (AFP)
Israel’s separation wall is pictured on February 11, 2020. (AFP)

The United States on Wednesday voiced disagreement with Human Rights Watch's allegation that Israel is committing "apartheid" against the Palestinians but said it was committed to condemning abuses.

"It is not the view of this administration that Israel's actions constitute apartheid," a State Department spokesperson said.

President Joe Biden's State Department, however, said it would not "offer public evaluations of reports by outside groups" -- a shift from Donald Trump's administration which loudly berated advocacy groups that criticized ally Israel.

The spokesperson renewed a call on both Israel and the Palestinians to "refrain from unilateral actions that exacerbate tensions" including settlement activity and incitement to violence.

Human Rights Watch in a report Tuesday said that Israel is "committing the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution," saying Israel had an "overarching" policy to "maintain the domination of Jewish Israelis over Palestinians."

Israel, which is facing an investigation at the International Criminal Court opposed by the United States, denounced the report and accused the New York-based group of having an anti-Israel agenda.

Israel's ambassador to the United States said the report was full of "lies and fabrication" that were "bordering on anti-Semitic."

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Arab World

Trump Says He Thinks Israel Will Withdraw Troops from Southern Lebanon

An Israeli flag hangs from a building in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)
An Israeli flag hangs from a building in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)
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Trump Says He Thinks Israel Will Withdraw Troops from Southern Lebanon

An Israeli flag hangs from a building in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)
An Israeli flag hangs from a building in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he thought Israel would withdraw troops from southern Lebanon because it wanted to take that step, despite comments from Israel's leader indicating otherwise.

Trump told reporters at the ‌NATO Summit in ‌Ankara that he ‌had discussed ⁠a withdrawal with ⁠Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"Yeah, I think they're going to. I think they want to," Trump said. "So we have a deal with Israel ⁠and Lebanon. Yeah, they'll leave. ‌And ‌I think it's going to work ‌out very well."

Netanyahu visited ‌Lebanese territory occupied by the Israeli military last week, telling soldiers that Israel would not withdraw from ‌the country's south as long as Iran-backed Hezbollah continued ⁠to ⁠pose a threat.

The Israeli and Lebanese governments on June 26 reached a security agreement mediated by the United States under which Israel will hand over two areas to Lebanon's army.

Arab World

Lebanon Approves Release of Fadl Shaker

Lebanese singer Fadel Shaker (Instagram)
Lebanese singer Fadel Shaker (Instagram)
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Lebanon Approves Release of Fadl Shaker

Lebanese singer Fadel Shaker (Instagram)
Lebanese singer Fadel Shaker (Instagram)

The Lebanese judiciary on Wednesday approved the released of Fadl Shaker months after he surrendered himself to authorities, a judicial official told AFP.

The entertainer, born to a Lebanese father and a Palestinian mother, turned himself over to authorities in October after more than a decade in hiding in a Palestinian refugee camp.

Shaker was accused of taking part in 2013 clashes in the south Lebanon city of Sidon between the military and supporters of a the Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir militant group, which left more than a dozen soldiers dead.

While Shaker was a supporter of Assir, he denied involvement in the violence.

The judicial official, requesting anonymity, said the judiciary "approved the release of artist Fadl Shaker in the four security cases filed against him, most notably the Abra case", referring to the Sidon clashes.

"The court released Fadl Shaker in three cases on bail of 100 million Lebanese pounds ($1,117) for each case, and 200 million Lebanese pounds for the Abra case," the official added.

According to the official, Shaker is expected to leave prison on Wednesday after his legal team posted the bail.

In 2020, Lebanon's military tribunal sentenced Shaker to 22 years in prison for providing financial and logistical support to the "terrorist" Assir-led group.

During his years on the run, courts convicted him in absentia and imposed sentences ranging from five to 15 years of hard labor.

Shaker was also accused, alongside Assir and four others, of the attempted murder of Hilal Hammoud, a local official with the Hezbollah-allied Lebanese Resistance Brigades.

They were all acquitted in this case in May due to "insufficient evidence".

In the months leading up to his surrender in October, Shaker released new songs, recorded in the refugee camp, that topped charts in the Arab world.

Arab World

Gaza: Israeli Fire Kills Five People, including a Child

Palestinian casualties are transported by paramedics after arriving from Gaza at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing (File/AFP).
Palestinian casualties are transported by paramedics after arriving from Gaza at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing (File/AFP).
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Gaza: Israeli Fire Kills Five People, including a Child

Palestinian casualties are transported by paramedics after arriving from Gaza at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing (File/AFP).
Palestinian casualties are transported by paramedics after arriving from Gaza at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing (File/AFP).

Israeli airstrikes killed at least five Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, health officials there said.

Medics said an Israeli missile hit a tent for displaced people in the Mawasi area in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave, killing at least four people including a 10-year-old child, while another attack killed one person near a school in Gaza City. Twelve people were wounded in the two incidents.

The Israeli military didn't immediately comment on either incident, Reuters reported.

Israel has repeatedly carried out strikes in Gaza since a US-mediated ceasefire with Hamas was reached last October, saying it is targeting militants who threaten its forces or who took part in the October 2023 attack on Israel.

Hamas has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire. Nickolay Mladenov, US President Donald Trump's appointed Board of Peace envoy to Gaza, has said both sides have violated the agreement.

Since the ceasefire took effect nine months ago, more than 1,070 Palestinians, many of them civilians, and four Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza, according to figures released by the two sides. Hamas does not disclose the number of its fighters killed.