Abbas and Hamas Chief Hold Rare Meeting

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters
TT

Abbas and Hamas Chief Hold Rare Meeting

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Reuters

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh met publicly for the first time in over five years, on the sidelines of Algerian independence anniversary celebrations.

Algeria's state broadcaster reported late Tuesday that representatives of the Palestinian Authority and Hamas movement also attended this meeting, which it called "historic".

The pair, who officially last met face-to-face in Doha in October 2016, were brought together in a meeting with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, whose country marked the 60th anniversary of independence from France.

Abbas' secular Fatah party, which dominates the Palestinian Authority that rules the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has been at loggerheads with Hamas since elections in 2007, when the Islamists took control of Gaza.

Tebboune and Abbas also signed a document to name a street "Algeria" in the West Bank city of Ramallah, AFP reported.

As well as Abbas and Haniyeh, Tebboune on Tuesday hosted several foreign dignitaries, who watched a huge military parade to mark independence in 1962 when Algeria broke free from 132 years of French occupation.



Israeli Strike Kills 3 Lebanese Soldiers, Army Says

A view of destroyed houses in the southern Lebanese village of Maroun Al-Ras, as seen from Avivim on the Israeli side of the border on 19 November 2024. (EPA)
A view of destroyed houses in the southern Lebanese village of Maroun Al-Ras, as seen from Avivim on the Israeli side of the border on 19 November 2024. (EPA)
TT

Israeli Strike Kills 3 Lebanese Soldiers, Army Says

A view of destroyed houses in the southern Lebanese village of Maroun Al-Ras, as seen from Avivim on the Israeli side of the border on 19 November 2024. (EPA)
A view of destroyed houses in the southern Lebanese village of Maroun Al-Ras, as seen from Avivim on the Israeli side of the border on 19 November 2024. (EPA)

The Lebanese army said an Israeli airstrike targeted one of its military bases late Tuesday in the southern town of Sarafand, killing three Lebanese soldiers. The Health Ministry said at least 17 people were also wounded, including civilians who lived near the facility.

In total, 41 Lebanese soldiers have been killed amid the war between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah.

Lebanon's army has largely stood on the sidelines during the 13-month conflict, and if a ceasefire is reached, the army could play a key role in securing a UN buffer zone in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the attack — the latest in a series of Israeli strikes targeting the Lebanese military. On Sunday, Israel bombed a Lebanese army post in Mari, in Hasbaya province, killing two soldiers and critically injured three others.

In response, the Lebanese government announced on Monday plans to file a formal complaint with the UN Security Council on the “repeated attacks” on the Lebanese army, citing repeated violations of international law.

Before Tuesday's airstrike, Lebanese army spokesperson Col. Fadi Eid told The Associated Press that 38 soldiers have been killed since the current war began last year.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry also said that 28 people were killed Monday, raising the nationwide toll over to at least 3,544 killed and 15,036 wounded.