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Arab World

Israel, Islamic Jihad Declare Truce in Gaza After Three Days of Bloody Clashes

Palestinians celebrate on a street after a ceasefire was announced in Gaza City on August 8, 2022 (Reuters)
Palestinians celebrate on a street after a ceasefire was announced in Gaza City on August 8, 2022 (Reuters)
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Israel, Islamic Jihad Declare Truce in Gaza After Three Days of Bloody Clashes

Palestinians celebrate on a street after a ceasefire was announced in Gaza City on August 8, 2022 (Reuters)
Palestinians celebrate on a street after a ceasefire was announced in Gaza City on August 8, 2022 (Reuters)

Islamic Jihad Movement and Israel agreed on the terms of the Egyptian-brokered truce Sunday, after three days of heavy fighting that left 41 Palestinians dead.

Senior Islamic Jihad member Mohammad al-Hindi said in a statement that the "wording" of the Egyptian truce agreement was reached, including Egypt's commitment to work to release the two prisoners Bassem al-Saadi and Khalil Awawda.

Since Friday, Israel has carried out air strikes and heavy artillery, mainly bombardment in Gaza targeting the movement's positions. Islamic Jihad responded with hundreds of rockets.

According to the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian death toll rose to 41 people, including 15 children, with 311 injured.

Sources said that the Egyptian intelligence, which mediated along with Qatar and the UN peace envoy, suggested three dates for the truce: Sunday at 10 PM, Monday at 2 AM, and Monday at 6 AM.

Another source in Tel Aviv said that if the Jihad continues to refuse, Israel will offer a unilateral ceasefire without an agreement, warning that it will respond forcefully and harshly to any violation.

The Israeli cabinet, the mini-ministerial council for politics and security affairs, concluded a meeting on the situation on the southern front, saying it accepted the Egyptian plan for a ceasefire after saying it had achieved most of its military objectives during the three-day campaign.

However, a senior Israeli official confirmed that the security services had prepared for a long process that would take an entire week. He claimed that the forces were able to continue for any time required.

An army representative explained that Islamic Jihad received a very severe blow, militarily and morally, as its rockets did not hit any significant Israeli targets, and most of them either fell in open areas or were shot down before reaching their destination.

Israel said a stray rocket fired by Islamic Jihad had killed several children in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Saturday. It claimed to have "irrefutable" evidence that a stray missile fired by the movement was responsible for the deaths of several children in Jabalia on Saturday.

An Islamic Jihad official confirmed that the movement does not intend to stop and still has enough weapons. He announced that the movement owns a "surprise" weapon that could tip the scales in their favor, but the movement has not decided to use it.

Meanwhile, Hamas was widely criticized in Palestine for not participating in the fight against Israel.

Spokesman Hazem Qassem asserted that the resistance is present and ready and has many options to deal with the situation and the escalation of Israeli crimes.

Qassem indicated the groups were constantly talking about the truce, especially with Egypt, to stop the aggression against the Palestinian people.

He asserted that the issue was never in mediators or communications but rather in the occupation that does not respect the efforts and escalates its aggression against the Palestinian people.

The occupation assassinates leaders, kills civilians, including women, children, and the elderly, and deliberately hits homes in this barbaric way, said Qassem, adding that "these crimes amount to real, full-fledged war crimes."

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid toured the headquarters of his army's Southern Military Command, accompanied by Defense Minister Benny Gantz, and assessed the situation.

The meeting was attended by the Chief of Staff, Aviv Kochavi, Lapid's Military Secretary, Major General Avi Gil, and the commander of the Southern Command, Major General Eliezer Toledano.

They toured the command-and-control centers, closely following the offensive operations launched from these centers. They spoke with soldiers serving there and with the commander and control center.

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Arab World

Damascus Moves to Reconnect Aleppo Countryside, End a Decade of Territorial Division

Preparations for the launch of the second phase of the “Echo of Resilience 2” project in Manbij (Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management)
Preparations for the launch of the second phase of the “Echo of Resilience 2” project in Manbij (Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management)
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Damascus Moves to Reconnect Aleppo Countryside, End a Decade of Territorial Division

Preparations for the launch of the second phase of the “Echo of Resilience 2” project in Manbij (Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management)
Preparations for the launch of the second phase of the “Echo of Resilience 2” project in Manbij (Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management)

A convoy of Syrian army heavy machinery headed to Manbij in northern Syria on Saturday to help tear down wartime earthen barriers and fill trenches stretching 841 kilometers across 255 cities and villages, in a drive to erase former frontlines and reunite areas divided by years of conflict.

The operation, in eastern Aleppo province, aims to consolidate state authority and reintegrate the affected areas administratively and economically.

Syria's Ministry of Emergency and Disaster Management, which oversees the "Echo of Resilience" project in cooperation with Aleppo governorate, said the campaign would dismantle military fortifications, clear their remnants, rehabilitate damaged areas and reopen roads between towns and villages.

The ministry said the work would improve public services and help restore normal life and stability in the affected areas.

The project's second phase began on Thursday in Manbij and its surrounding countryside and is expected to last seven months. It aims to make the area safer by clearing landmines and other remnants of war, allowing displaced residents to return home and farmers to reclaim access to their fields and resume cultivation.

The new phase follows an initial operation launched in early July around Azaz in northern Aleppo province, seven kilometers from the Turkish border.

That phase concluded on Nov. 12 after crews cleared 202 kilometers of earthen barriers and trenches, reconnecting about 33 towns and villages and easing civilian movement.

Manbij's Divided Past

The work in Manbij carries particular political and geographical weight. Before the fall of the former government, the city and its surroundings were a volatile meeting point for three rival military forces.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Manbij Military Council controlled the city and surrounding areas, while Turkish-backed Syrian National Army factions held positions to the north and west. Forces of the former government, backed by Russia and Iran, were stationed to the south.

The rival deployments left hundreds of kilometers of trenches, double-layered earthen barriers and minefields along four main fronts.

The fortifications stretched from the Sajur River toward Jarablus in the north, through the area around Arima toward al-Bab in the west, and from Abu Kahf toward Deir Hafir in the south to the vicinity of Tishrin Dam and Qara Qozak Bridge on the Euphrates River's western bank in the east.

Removing those defenses is intended to reopen vital transport and trade routes linking eastern and northern Aleppo and restore access to farmland that had been isolated or off-limits for years.

From Military Frontlines to State Control

The two phases of the "Echo of Resilience" project coincide with efforts to implement a Jan. 29, 2026, agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF.

The agreement seeks to end territorial divisions, integrate the affected areas administratively and economically, extend state control across Syria and ensure the return of forcibly displaced people and other residents once suitable conditions are in place.

Around Azaz, once a flashpoint along the frontlines facing Tal Rifaat and Afrin, the removal of earthen barriers marked a practical step toward dismantling former lines of confrontation and reconnecting Syrian territory, officials overseeing the project told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

Observers of Syrian affairs say the dismantling of military fortifications by Syrian army units in a strategic area such as Manbij sends a clear political message: the state is consolidating control on the ground while reducing the military presence in residential and agricultural areas.

They say the shift could also strengthen border security and revive regional trade.

Arab World

How Will the Showdown Between al-Zaidi and Kataib Hezbollah End?

Members of Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah carry the group's flag in central Baghdad (AFP)
Members of Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah carry the group's flag in central Baghdad (AFP)
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How Will the Showdown Between al-Zaidi and Kataib Hezbollah End?

Members of Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah carry the group's flag in central Baghdad (AFP)
Members of Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah carry the group's flag in central Baghdad (AFP)

A two-week standoff between Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and Kataib Hezbollah has erupted into a public war of accusations, complicating government efforts to bring the weapons of Iran-backed armed groups under state control.

Tensions flared after leaked intelligence reports accused Kataib Hezbollah of smuggling thousands of barrels of oil extracted from Jurf al-Sakhar, south of Baghdad. The group has controlled the area for nearly a decade, barring successive governments from entering.

On Friday, the government sent a committee headed by the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) to investigate the smuggling allegations.

Lieutenant General Saad Maan, head of Iraq's Security Media Cell, said neither political parties nor armed factions were represented on the committee investigating the smuggling of petroleum products in Jurf al-Sakhar.

A senior official in the ruling Shiite Coordination Framework told Asharq Al-Awsat that the investigation into Kataib Hezbollah's alleged oil sales marked the first government move on the ground inside the restricted area controlled by the group.

Iran's patronage

Kataib Hezbollah was founded after the 2003 US invasion of Iraq by Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who was killed in a US strike near Baghdad International Airport in early 2020 alongside Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The Coordination Framework official said the group's strength and influence could not be understood without examining its ties to its Iranian patron.

Successive governments had largely failed to confront Kataib Hezbollah or enter Jurf al-Sakhar because of the power it drew from its close ties with Tehran, the official said, describing it as the spearhead of factions loyal to Iran's doctrine of guardianship of the Islamic jurist.

Despite a lack of reliable figures on its fighters and weapons, the official warned against underestimating the group's military strength.

Kataib Hezbollah has a sizable arsenal of rockets and drones, the official said, without specifying their types or numbers.

But Iran's financial backing was largely limited to the group's early years, the source said. Over the past few years, Kataib Hezbollah has developed a network of financial interests of its own, potentially including oil investment or theft.

The group also receives substantial funding from the PMF through three brigades under its command.

The official warned that the standoff with al-Zaidi's government had reached a dangerous point, raising serious alarm within the Coordination Framework.

Senior Shiite leaders were working intensively to avert a possible confrontation between the government and Kataib Hezbollah, the official said.

Taking on armed factions

Will al-Zaidi see the confrontation through?

Political analyst Akeel Abbas believes the prime minister has already gone further than any of his predecessors in confronting armed factions over their weapons.

Al-Zaidi has not only openly challenged one of Iraq's most powerful armed groups but also exposed corruption cases in Jurf al-Sakhar, an area of exceptional geographical and political sensitivity, Abbas told Asharq Al-Awsat.

"The decision to confront the group has already been made," Abbas said, although the nature of that confrontation could change as events unfold.

The Coordination Framework's influence over the dispute appears to be waning, he said, with its traditional role as mediator between the prime minister and armed factions no longer as effective as before.

Abbas called the latest standoff a significant development that challenged a long-standing assumption in Iraqi politics: any prime minister who confronted armed factions would be ousted.

US backing and the judiciary

Two factors have strengthened al-Zaidi's hand, according to Abbas: US backing at a time when Iran is grappling with acute weakness and turmoil, and support from Iraq's judiciary.

Together, he said, they have made the difference in the confrontation.

Still, Abbas did not rule out a retreat by the prime minister.

Under current circumstances, al-Zaidi appears to hold the stronger position against Kataib Hezbollah, a striking reversal in Iraqi politics, he said.

But backing down would be difficult for the prime minister, making a political deal between the two sides the more likely outcome as both seek to avoid defeat.

No clear strategy

Ayad al-Anbar, a political science professor at the University of Baghdad, is less convinced by the government's campaign to bring armed groups' weapons under state control.

He questioned whether the government has a coherent strategy for disarming the factions or confronting Kataib Hezbollah.

"The government's strategy for bringing weapons under state control remains unclear," Anbar told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Instead, he said, authorities rely on short-term tactics that shift with events and the reactions they provoke.

There is little sign of a clearly defined plan, with successive steps or contingency options, he said. Government measures trigger responses from armed factions, only for tensions to ease and the escalation to be contained.

Anbar said the same pattern applied to the government's latest pressure tactic: economic pressure.

The confrontation with Kataib Hezbollah and the wider disarmament issue have become exercises in political sparring and shows of force rather than a serious debate over a fundamental problem, he said.

The Iraqi state's fragility inevitably weakens its security system and allows competing centers of power and control to emerge, Anbar argued.

"In a country of political fiefdoms, why wouldn't those with weapons seek to become security fiefdoms themselves?" he asked.

That, he said, explains a fundamental part of the problem.

Arab World

Senior Hamas Commander Killed in Israeli Strike

File photo of Samir Abu Younis
File photo of Samir Abu Younis
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Senior Hamas Commander Killed in Israeli Strike

File photo of Samir Abu Younis
File photo of Samir Abu Younis

Hamas' armed wing said on Sunday that a senior commander who helped plan and oversee the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel had been killed in an Israeli airstrike.

The Al-Qassam Brigades identified the commander as Samir Abu Younis, 53, the commander of its Rafah brigade, and said he was killed on Saturday.

The Israeli military said ⁠on Sunday it ⁠had struck a senior commander in Hamas' armed wing but did not identify him.

Medics said Abu Younis was killed and others were wounded in an airstrike that targeted him in a street in ⁠the Mawasi area of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.

Hamas said Abu Younis joined Hamas' armed wing in 1991 and had held several senior operational roles in Rafah before becoming commander of the brigade.

Hamas said his funeral would be held on Sunday afternoon in Khan Younis.

An October 2025 ceasefire halted major fighting but has not stopped Israeli attacks ⁠or ⁠secured Hamas' disarmament.

Gaza health authorities say at least 1,600 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire went into effect. Five Israeli soldiers have been killed during the same period.

Palestinian authorities say more than 74,000 people have been killed in Israel's military campaign against Gaza, launched after Hamas-led fighters killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel in October 2023.