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Tunisia Summit: US Move on Golan Discussed in Syria’s Absence

Security forces stand guard outside the conference center where Arab leaders will hold the 30th Arab League Summit which opens Sunday, in Tunis, Tunisia, Wednesday, March 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Security forces stand guard outside the conference center where Arab leaders will hold the 30th Arab League Summit which opens Sunday, in Tunis, Tunisia, Wednesday, March 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
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Tunisia Summit: US Move on Golan Discussed in Syria’s Absence

Security forces stand guard outside the conference center where Arab leaders will hold the 30th Arab League Summit which opens Sunday, in Tunis, Tunisia, Wednesday, March 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Security forces stand guard outside the conference center where Arab leaders will hold the 30th Arab League Summit which opens Sunday, in Tunis, Tunisia, Wednesday, March 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

The 30th Arab League Summit in Tunisia will focus on consolidating unity and avoiding disputing among Arab states, diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday.

The sources asserted that the Palestinian cause, fostering of the Arab Peace Initiative and defending the identity of Jerusalem would top the agenda of the summit that is scheduled to be held in the Tunisian capital on Sunday.

The summit would also highlight the Syrian war, the situation in Libya, Yemen and Sudan, in addition to needed consensus on Turkey’s violation of Iraqi sovereignty and Iranian interference in Arab affairs.

According to the same sources, the summit would also discuss settling 75 percent of Iraq’s debt and another clause on Iraqi refugees and internally displaced people in Arab states.

The recent US decision to recognize Israel’s sovereignty on the Golan Heights was highly present during Friday’s preparatory meetings of Arab foreign ministers.

The US move came as Syria, whose Arab League membership was suspended at the start of its eight-year civil war, remains absent from the summit.

At the meeting of Arab foreign ministers on Friday, the Tunisian and Saudi FMs respectively Khemaies Jhinaoui and Ibrahim al-Assaf condemned the US decision on the Golan.

Assaf said the Kingdom is working to unify the position of the Syrian opposition before sitting at the negotiating table with the regime, to reach a political solution that guarantees security and stability, in the war-torn country.

He also slammed the Iranian threat as the main challenge facing Arabs, calling for action to confront Tehran.

"One of the most dangerous forms of terrorism and extremism is what Iran practises through its blatant interference in Arab affairs, and its militias ... the Revolutionary Guards in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen, which requires cooperation from us to confront it," he said.

For his part, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said that Arab foreign ministers decided to task the General Secretariat with preparing a plan that deals with the US decision.

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Arab World

Lebanon Says Israeli Strikes on Beirut Area Kill 7

Rescue workers inspect the scene of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Rescue workers inspect the scene of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
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Lebanon Says Israeli Strikes on Beirut Area Kill 7

Rescue workers inspect the scene of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Rescue workers inspect the scene of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

The Lebanese health ministry said Wednesday that Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs and a nearby town killed at least seven people, as Israel's military said it had targeted senior Hezbollah members.

The health ministry said an Israeli air raid on south Beirut's Jnah area killed at least five people and wounded 21 others. A Lebanese security source said four parked cars were hit.

Another strike that hit a vehicle in Khaldeh, just south of the capital, killed two people and wounded three, the health ministry said in a separate statement.

Israel's military said it had struck a "senior Hezbollah commander" and another member of the group in two separate strikes "in the Beirut area,” without naming the targets or giving detail on the exact locations.

Hezbollah has claimed dozens of attacks across the border and against Israeli forces inside Lebanon.

The group also said its fighters were engaged in "fierce clashes" with Israeli troops near the border early Wednesday, and claimed rocket fire targeting a group of soldiers in another area.

Israel's military has reported several casualties among its ranks in recent days in south Lebanon, including four soldiers who were killed.

Arab World

US Journalist Kidnapped in Baghdad, Search Underway

American freelancer Shelly Kittleson. (Facebook)
American freelancer Shelly Kittleson. (Facebook)
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US Journalist Kidnapped in Baghdad, Search Underway

American freelancer Shelly Kittleson. (Facebook)
American freelancer Shelly Kittleson. (Facebook)

An American journalist was kidnapped Tuesday in Baghdad and Iraqi security forces are pursuing her captors, Iraqi officials said. The journalist was identified as freelancer Shelly Kittleson by one of the outlets she worked for.

A US official blamed the Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah.

The Iraqi interior ministry confirmed a foreign journalist had been kidnapped but didn't give more details. Two Iraqi security officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the case, said the kidnapped journalist is a woman and a US citizen.

They said that two cars were involved in the kidnapping, one of which crashed while being pursued near the town of Al-Haswa in Babil province southwest of Baghdad. The journalist was then transferred to a second car that fled the scene.

The interior ministry said security forces had launched an operation to track down the kidnappers, and intercepted a vehicle belonging to the kidnappers that overturned as they tried to flee. One suspect was arrested and one of the vehicles used in the kidnapping was seized, but others remain on the loose, the statement said.

The two Iraqi security officials said the journalist was abducted in central Baghdad's Saadoun Street, and that an alert was sent to all checkpoints, leading to the pursuit of the kidnappers as they headed toward Babil province.

Al-Monitor, a regional news site covering the Middle East, said it was "deeply alarmed" and identified the journalist as Kittleson, a freelancer who contributed to the publication.

"We call for her safe and immediate release," the statement said. "We stand by her vital reporting from the region and call for her swift return to continue her important work."

Kittleson has been a longtime freelancer in the region, reporting extensively from Syria and Iraq.

The US Embassy in Baghdad declined to comment. The US State Department issued a statement, saying the Trump administration "has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans" and that it is "tracking these reports."

Dylan Johnson, US assistant secretary of state for public affairs, said on X that the "State Department previously fulfilled our duty to warn this individual of threats against them."

"An individual with ties to the Iranian-aligned militia group Kataib Hezbollah believed to be involved in the kidnapping has been taken into custody by Iraqi authorities," Johnson added.

A second US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to privacy concerns, said the abducted journalist had been warned multiple times, including as late as Monday night, that she was in danger and should leave Iraq immediately.

Iraqi officials have not publicly said anything about the kidnappers' affiliation.

Iran-backed militias in Iraq have launched regular attacks on US facilities in the country since the beginning of the US-Israeli war on Iran. Since the war began on Feb. 28, the US Embassy has warned of kidnapping risks and urged citizens in Iraq to leave.

Iraqi militias have also kidnapped foreigners in the past.

Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Princeton graduate student with Israeli and Russian citizenship, disappeared in Baghdad in 2023. After she was freed and handed over to US authorities in September 2025, she said that she had been held by Kataib Hezbollah.

The group never officially claimed responsibility for kidnapping her.

Arab World

Hamas Sources Acknowledge Differences with Mediators on Disarmament Plan

Gunmen from Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades in Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza, February 2025 (EPA)
Gunmen from Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades in Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza, February 2025 (EPA)
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Hamas Sources Acknowledge Differences with Mediators on Disarmament Plan

Gunmen from Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades in Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza, February 2025 (EPA)
Gunmen from Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades in Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza, February 2025 (EPA)

At a time when Palestinian sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Egypt, Qatar, and Türkiye helped draft a plan submitted by the Board of Peace to disarm factions in Gaza, Hamas sources acknowledged “differences” with mediators over the proposal.

Sources familiar with the Gaza Administration Committee said mediators involved in ceasefire talks had been fully briefed on the Board of Peace plan before it was presented to Hamas and other factions.

A document published by Reuters and other media outlets last week showed that the Board of Peace, formed by US President Donald Trump, had proposed that Hamas dismantle its tunnel network in the Gaza Strip and give up weapons in stages over eight months.

The plan lays out a timeline starting with a national committee taking over security in Gaza and ending with a full Israeli withdrawal once “final verification” that the enclave is free of weapons is achieved.

Sources close to the Gaza Committee said the three mediating countries, working with the United States, helped shape the proposal, introducing amendments and comments during drafting.

After confirming receipt of the proposal last week, Hamas officials voiced anger at the Board of Peace’s High Representative for Gaza, Nickolay Mladenov, after he told the Security Council that reconstruction could not begin until disarmament phases were verified.

Mediator backing

Two Hamas sources in Gaza said they were unaware of any direct involvement by mediators in drafting the plan, but suggested that the mediators likely knew its details before it was presented.

A senior Hamas source outside Gaza said the group had not received clear confirmation of such involvement, but that the proposal’s language and mediator support indicated prior knowledge.

The senior source said the plan had been discussed internally and that some provisions were reviewed with mediators during meetings in Egypt and Türkiye in recent days.

They said a unified Palestinian position would be presented within a clear framework aimed at amending key clauses, rejecting any link between disarmament and progress on other steps.

They stressed “the need to obligate Israel to fulfill its commitments,” saying the current plan allows it to maneuver and pressure what he described as the “resistance” to achieve its core aim of keeping Gaza demilitarized while retaining security control.

“Differences are normal”

Asked about gaps between Hamas and mediators, the three sources agreed there were “differences,” one describing them as “normal.”

The senior source said the proposal does not fully meet Palestinian demands and requires factions to surrender weapons without a meaningful return from Israel.

They pointed to earlier ceasefire talks, when mediators showed responsiveness to faction demands, prompting them and the United States to engage positively with proposals, an approach factions hope will be repeated.

Hamas is likely to struggle to reject the plan outright and may instead seek amendments to secure what it sees as Palestinian gains. Israel has clearly rejected such changes and has signaled a possible return to war.

The plan calls for full disarmament, light and heavy weapons, factional, tribal, and personal, under a framework of “one law and one weapon,” while ensuring Hamas has no role in governing Gaza, either civilly or in security.

An Egyptian source told Asharq Al-Awsat about a week ago that Egypt’s Interior Ministry will receive thousands of candidates for a Palestinian police force tasked with maintaining security in Gaza under a ceasefire deal.

Recruits will undergo six weeks of training, with others set to train in Jordan.

The Gaza Administration Committee has recently opened applications for security roles in the new force, drawing tens of thousands of applicants, although the initial target is about 5,000 officers.

The United States, working with Israel, aims to start reconstruction in southern Gaza, particularly in Rafah, areas under Israeli control, before moving to Hamas-held areas.

Under the plan, reconstruction is tied to disarmament, a condition Hamas has consistently rejected.