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Israeli Intelligence Arrests Hamas Cell in Jerusalem

Religious Jews in a Jerusalem suburb during Purim celebrations (EPA)
Religious Jews in a Jerusalem suburb during Purim celebrations (EPA)
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Israeli Intelligence Arrests Hamas Cell in Jerusalem

Religious Jews in a Jerusalem suburb during Purim celebrations (EPA)
Religious Jews in a Jerusalem suburb during Purim celebrations (EPA)

The Israeli intelligence (Shin Bet) arrested a Palestinian cell in Jerusalem that transferred $250,000 from Turkey to finance alleged terrorist activities and pay families of martyrs and prisoners.

The Israeli Public Prosecution has submitted an indictment to a court in Jerusalem against four citizens from Sur Baher and Beit Hanina, on the outskirts of Jerusalem.

They were accused of running a terrorist group, encouraging terrorist activities, financing terrorism, tax offenses, and money laundering.

The Shin Bet claimed the detainees were assigned to carry out military operations that led to clashes during the holy month of Ramadan.

The Shin Bet and the Israeli police arrested the four suspects last month, but a media blackout was imposed, which was removed Friday during the trial.

The indictment named the detainees as freed prisoner Khaled Sabah, a senior Hamas official in Jerusalem, his two sons Munib and Musab and Firas Tawtah, claiming some were trained outside the country.

Tawtah is accused of using the Zakat Committee that he leads for funneling money to Hamas and collecting and distributing $8.6 million between 2007 and 2021.

The police claimed that Sabah had recently met with Khaled Atoun and Musa Ekry, Hamas top officials, who currently live and work in Turkey, and that they appointed Sabah in charge of "Hamas" funds in Jerusalem.

A sum of $250,000 was recently handed over to him for financing Hamas' activities during Ramadan, but he was unable to bring such a large sum across the border, and he started entering the money in small amounts.

The operators urged Sabah to find a way to enter the money, so he deposited it in a Turkish bank account and spent the amount from his Palestinian bank account.

Israeli authorities confiscated $246,000 in cash that was found in his home.

The indictment added that Sabah's two sons aided him as members of Hamas, and the money was transferred to Hamas activists and their families and persons convicted of offenses of terrorism and breach of public order.

The Shin Bet claimed Sabah met in Turkey with Hamas leaders, including Zakaria Najib, who was convicted of kidnapping the soldier Nahshon Waxman in 1994.

The indictment added that during his last month's visit to Turkey, Sabah's ​​responsibilities were expanded, and he was appointed as the head of Hamas in Jerusalem to advance its military activity in the city.

Sabah was asked to form and move military and organizational infrastructure in Jerusalem and prepare for Ramadan month.

It claimed that Mosab helped his father and formed a link with Hamas's leadership in Turkey, and Munib helped relay messages between the officials in Turkey and collected money on his father's behalf.

In 2012-2022, Tawtah collected nearly $150,000 for the charity to be transferred to the families and orphans affiliated with Hamas.

The charity had a total income of $8.6 million between 2007 and 2020, the indictment read, which were transferred to the martyrs' families.

The association also transferred a large part of the money to orphans not affiliated with Hamas.

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RSF Declares Rival Government as Sudan War Hits Two-Year Mark 

People who fled the Zamzam camp for the internally displaced after it fell under RSF control, rest in a makeshift encampment in an open field near the town of Tawila in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region on April 13, 2025. (AFP)
People who fled the Zamzam camp for the internally displaced after it fell under RSF control, rest in a makeshift encampment in an open field near the town of Tawila in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region on April 13, 2025. (AFP)
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RSF Declares Rival Government as Sudan War Hits Two-Year Mark 

People who fled the Zamzam camp for the internally displaced after it fell under RSF control, rest in a makeshift encampment in an open field near the town of Tawila in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region on April 13, 2025. (AFP)
People who fled the Zamzam camp for the internally displaced after it fell under RSF control, rest in a makeshift encampment in an open field near the town of Tawila in war-torn Sudan's western Darfur region on April 13, 2025. (AFP)

Two years into a war that has left tens of thousands dead, Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Tuesday announced its own government to rival the army-backed administration it is battling.

The United Nations says the conflict that erupted on April 15, 2023 is the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with 13 million people displaced -- including more than 3.5 million to other countries -- and no sign of peace on the horizon.

The RSF, headed by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, the former deputy to the regular army leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, announced the rival government amid growing international fears that Sudan could become split between the two sides, who have both been accused of abuses.

"On this anniversary, we proudly declare the establishment of the Government of Peace and Unity, a broad coalition that reflects the true face of Sudan," Daglo said in a Telegram statement.

The RSF and its allies signed a charter in Kenya in February declaring a "government of peace and unity" in areas they control.

Daglo's latest statement said the paramilitaries, with "civil and political forces", had signed a transitional constitution, that was a "roadmap for a new Sudan".

That constitution provides for a 15-member presidential council "representing all regions, symbolizing our voluntary unity".

Analysts have warned that Africa's third-biggest nation could permanently splinter.

With the RSF emboldened in Darfur, "the territorial division that's occurring could mean a de facto separation," said Sharath Srinivasan, a professor at Cambridge University who studies Sudan.

Mass displacement

"In these two years, the lives of millions have been shattered. Families have been torn apart. Livelihoods have been lost. And for many, the future remains uncertain," said Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the UN's humanitarian coordinator in Sudan.

The eruption of the war in 2023 left countless dead and sent hundreds of thousands fleeing Khartoum.

Those left behind struggled to survive under the control of the RSF, which has been accused of looting and sexual violence.

"I've lost half my bodyweight," said 52-year-old Abdel Rafi Hussein, who stayed in the capital, which was under RSF control until the army retook it last month.

"We're safe (now), but still, we suffer from a lack of water and electricity and most hospitals aren't working."

Now the RSF is seeking to cement its grip on Darfur, where it has laid siege to El-Fasher -- the last major city in the western region outside its control.

More than 400 people have been killed in recent days, the UN said, with the paramilitaries having claimed control of the nearby Zamzam displacement camp on Sunday.

An estimated 400,000 civilians fled the famine-hit camp as the RSF advanced, according to the UN's International Organization for Migration.

"Zamzam camp is inaccessible, and a communication blackout continues to hinder independent verification," the UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said, adding: "Satellite images reveal widespread fire damage across the camp."

The army on Tuesday said it had carried out "successful air strikes" against RSF positions northeast of El-Fasher.

An international conference in London demanded a halt to fighting while the United States condemned the death toll in Darfur.

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the RSF was carrying out an "escalation of attacks" on El-Fasher and nearby camps.

"We are deeply alarmed by reports the RSF has deliberately targeted civilians and humanitarian actors in Zamzam and Abu Shouk," Bruce said.

'End the suffering'

In London, ministers from several countries discussed ways to end the conflict but both warring parties were absent.

European nations led calls for "an immediate and permanent ceasefire" to end the devastating war. Nations also pledged more than 800 million euros ($900 million) in fresh humanitarian aid.

Countries, and organizations including the African Union, also "stressed the necessity of preventing any partition of Sudan".

Group of Seven foreign ministers, meeting in Canada, also called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.

In a statement the G7 powers urged both sides to "engage meaningfully in serious, constructive negotiations."

Precise death tolls are not available, but former US envoy Tom Perriello cited estimates last year of up to 150,000 dead.

On Tuesday, the UN said 2.1 million people are expected to return to Khartoum over the next six months following the army's recapture of the capital.

In central Sudan -- where the UN said nearly 400,000 people had returned to areas retaken by the army -- many have come back to find their homes in ruins.

Zainab Abdel Rahim, 38, returned to Khartoum North this month with her six children, to find their house looted beyond recognition.

"We're trying to pull together the essentials, but there's no water, no electricity, no medicine," she said.

Aid agencies say hunger is now a widespread menace.

The Zamzam camp, which had been sheltering up to one million people, was the first place in Sudan where famine was declared.

Other nearby camps have followed and famine is expected to take hold in El-Fasher by next month.