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Palestinians Demand Arrest of Israeli Official Visiting Washington

A delegation from Physicians for Human Rights-Israel survey the aftermath of a rampage by settlers in Huwara, near the West Bank city of Nablus on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 (AP)
A delegation from Physicians for Human Rights-Israel survey the aftermath of a rampage by settlers in Huwara, near the West Bank city of Nablus on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 (AP)
    London, Ramallah - Asharq Al-Awsat
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Palestinians Demand Arrest of Israeli Official Visiting Washington

A delegation from Physicians for Human Rights-Israel survey the aftermath of a rampage by settlers in Huwara, near the West Bank city of Nablus on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 (AP)
A delegation from Physicians for Human Rights-Israel survey the aftermath of a rampage by settlers in Huwara, near the West Bank city of Nablus on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 (AP)

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry on Thursday asked Washington to arrest a visiting Israeli official who called for wiping out the Palestinian village of Huwara.

“The Foreign Ministry demands the US administration to arrest the fascist terrorist Davidi Ben Zion, the deputy head of the Shomron Regional Council, who is currently in the United States and who made the original call to burn and wipe out Huwara (in Nablus),” the Ministry said in a statement published by the German news agency.

The ministry said that, “instead of asking Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to apologize for Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s disgusting and terrorist statements, the US administration should have arrested the original author of that call.”

The US State Department on Wednesday condemned Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s statements in which he called for the Palestinian village of Huwara to be “wiped out.” The Department said the remarks were “repugnant, irresponsible and disgusting.”

Speaking at a business conference on Wednesday, Smotrich was asked why he ‘liked’ a tweet on Sunday evening posted by Ben Zion calling for the destruction of the village.

The minister said that he liked the tweet “because I think the village of Huwara needs to be wiped out. I think the State of Israel should do it.”

The call came just days after Israeli settlers attacked the occupied West Bank village.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh described Smotrich's statements as “terrorist and racist,” saying they constitute a dangerous threat against the Palestinian people in the occupied territories.

Shtayyeh added that the Israeli minister's statements “are sufficient to bring him to international justice, considered to be an official incitement to commit new massacres against Palestinians.”

He then called on the UN, the EU and all international organizations to condemn the Israeli minister’s statements and to activate international resolutions that boycott Israel, hold it accountable for its “crimes” and not allow it to escape punishment.

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Arab World

Iraq Preoccupied with Potential Broad Israeli Attack

Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)
Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)
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Iraq Preoccupied with Potential Broad Israeli Attack

Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)
Iraqi PM Mohammed Shi al-Sudani at an emergency national security council meeting. (Iraqi government)

Baghdad has been preoccupied this week with serious possibilities that Israel may expand its war on Gaza and Lebanon by striking several targets in Iraq in retaliation to attacks by Iran-backed armed factions.

Concern has been high that Israel may attack government buildings, oil fields and strategic locations, not just the positions of the armed factions that have previously launched attacks against Israel, said sources close to the pro-Iran ruling Coordination Framework.

Media sources have spoken of government speculation that Iraq could come under “300 Israeli attacks”.

The fears in Iraq have been compounded by an Israeli complaint to the United Nations Security Council against seven armed factions and holding Baghdad responsible for the attacks they have carried out against it.

This prompted the government, through the foreign ministry, to send an official letter to the Security Council, UN Secretary-General, Arab League and Organization of Islamic Cooperation in response to the Israeli threats.

The ministry said on Saturday that Iraq is “the cornerstone of stability in the region and world and it is one of the countries that are most committed to the UN Charter.”

“The Zionist entity’s letter to the Security Council is part of a systematic policy aimed at creating claims and excuses in an attempt to expand the conflict in the region.”

It said Iraq has turned to the Security Council out of Iraq’s keenness on the international body carrying out its duty in maintaining international peace and security and the need to rein in the “Zionist aggression in Gaza and Lebanon.”

Moreover, it stressed that Iraq has been keen on exercising restraint when it comes to the use of its airspace to attack a neighboring country.

Israel has used Iraqi airspace to launch attacks against Iran in October.

Iraq underscored the importance of the international community stepping in to “stop this hostile behavior that is a flagrant violation of international law.”

It called for international efforts to stop the Israeli escalation in the region and ensure that international laws and treaties are respected to consolidate security and stability.

Meanwhile, a source close to the Coordination Framework said the main Shiite parties are taking the Israeli threats “very seriously”, urging Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's government to take “all the necessary measures to avert a potential Israeli strike.”

All leaders of armed factions, as well as Shiite leaders, have taken up alternative locations and are moving under great secrecy, confirming that they have changed the majority of their military positions, said the source.

It also dismissed claims that Israeli jets have overflown Iraq, saying nothing has been confirmed, but not ruling out the possibility, especially since US forces have control over Iraqi skies and Iraq is helpless against stopping these violations.

Iraq had submitted a formal complaint to the UN and Security Council over Israel’s use and violation of its airspace to attack Iran.

Analyst and former diplomat Ghazi Faisal said the pro-Iran armed factions have been gathering their forces in the Sinjar province, which is strategic for Iran’s arms deliveries and logistic support to Syria where attacks can be carried out against American forces and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Sinjar is one of the most important strategic bases for the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, he added.

Furthermore, he noted that the armed factions insist on continuing the war against Israel, rejecting government calls for calm and neutrality.

The government’s statements are aimed at delivering a message that it “is not directly responsible for the strategy of these factions,” which follow Iran’s policies.

Iraq has repeatedly said that it refuses for its territory to be used to attack another country, but some observers believe that it may allow Iran to do so should Israel strike.