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Libyan Parliament Criticizes Algeria for Refusing to Recognize Bashagha's Govt

Libya's Fathi Bashagha, who was appointed prime minister by the eastern-based parliament this month, looks on during an interview with Reuters in Tunis, Tunisia March 30, 2022. Picture taken March 30, 2022. (Reuters)
Libya's Fathi Bashagha, who was appointed prime minister by the eastern-based parliament this month, looks on during an interview with Reuters in Tunis, Tunisia March 30, 2022. Picture taken March 30, 2022. (Reuters)
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Libyan Parliament Criticizes Algeria for Refusing to Recognize Bashagha's Govt

Libya's Fathi Bashagha, who was appointed prime minister by the eastern-based parliament this month, looks on during an interview with Reuters in Tunis, Tunisia March 30, 2022. Picture taken March 30, 2022. (Reuters)
Libya's Fathi Bashagha, who was appointed prime minister by the eastern-based parliament this month, looks on during an interview with Reuters in Tunis, Tunisia March 30, 2022. Picture taken March 30, 2022. (Reuters)

The east-based Libyan parliament slammed the Algerian government for failing to recognize the government of stability headed by Fathi Bashagha.

Algiers has instead opted to continue to support the Government of National Unity, headed by Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah.

This is the first time the parliament openly criticizes Algeria in defending Bashagha's government, which it backed by a vote of confidence in March.

Head of the parliamentary foreign affairs committee, Youssef al-Aqoury deemed Algeria's ongoing refusal to recognize Bashagha's government and keep supporting the GNU as meddling in Libya's internal affairs and a violation of the country's sovereignty.

He noted the Algerian position "has never supported the stability of the Libyan people," while the two neighbors enjoy historic and social relations.

Moreover, he highlighted how Libya had stood by the Algerian people in their struggle against colonization.

"We therefore, question the position of the Algerian government, which has completely dismissed all fraternal relations and Libya's sovereignty," he added.

Dbeibah had visited Algeria on April 18 where he held talks with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

Tebboune said at the time that his country supports the Libyan government that is backed by the international community, meaning the GNU.

There can be no solution in Libya without returning to the people, he added.

He urged the need for Libya to hold parliamentary elections so that legitimacy can be restored to the people.

Only the parliament decides the shape of the new government, he added.

Aqoury dismissed the statements, saying the GNU lost its legitimacy when confidence was withdrawn from it and its replacement voted in.

Some countries have exploited the chaos in Libya by looting its oil and mineral wealth, he went on to say, without naming a country in particular.

Those parties hope to see crisis persist in Libya so that they could achieve their narrow interests, he added.

History will attest to those who helped restore stability and peace in Libya, he stressed.

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Arab World

Israeli Soldiers Kill 55-Year-Old Palestinian and Teenager in West Bank

28 November 2025, Palestinian Territories, Hebron: Israeli forces block Palestinian farmers trying to access to their agricultural fields in the town of Tarqumiyah. (dpa)
28 November 2025, Palestinian Territories, Hebron: Israeli forces block Palestinian farmers trying to access to their agricultural fields in the town of Tarqumiyah. (dpa)
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Israeli Soldiers Kill 55-Year-Old Palestinian and Teenager in West Bank

28 November 2025, Palestinian Territories, Hebron: Israeli forces block Palestinian farmers trying to access to their agricultural fields in the town of Tarqumiyah. (dpa)
28 November 2025, Palestinian Territories, Hebron: Israeli forces block Palestinian farmers trying to access to their agricultural fields in the town of Tarqumiyah. (dpa)

Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian teenager who was driving a car towards them as well as a Palestinian bystander in the West Bank on Saturday, according to an Israeli security official.

The military said that an "uninvolved person" was hit in addition to the driver of the car who had "accelerated" towards soldiers at a checkpoint in West Bank city of Hebron.

In an earlier statement, the military said two "terrorists" were killed, before later clarifying that only one person was involved.

An Israeli security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a 17-year-old was driving the car and a 55-year-old was the bystander.

Palestinian state news agency WAFA reported that 55-year-old Ziad Naim Abu Dawood, a municipal street cleaner, was killed while working. It said another Palestinian was killed but did not report the circumstances that led the soldiers to open fire.

The Palestinian health ministry identified the second Palestinian as 17-year-old Ahmed Khalil Al-Rajabi.

The military did not report any injuries to the soldiers.

The motive for the 17-year-old's actions was not immediately clear, and no armed group claimed responsibility.

Since January, 51 Palestinian minors, aged under 18, have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

Violence has surged this year in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians have risen sharply, while the military has tightened movement restrictions and carried out sweeping raids in several cities.

Palestinians have also carried out attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians, some of them deadly.

Arab World

Reconstruction Delays in South Lebanon Fuel Anger against the State, Hezbollah

Lebanese soldiers stand in front of a building targeted by an Israeli airstrike in the village of Deir Kifa in south Lebanon last month. (AFP file)
Lebanese soldiers stand in front of a building targeted by an Israeli airstrike in the village of Deir Kifa in south Lebanon last month. (AFP file)
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Reconstruction Delays in South Lebanon Fuel Anger against the State, Hezbollah

Lebanese soldiers stand in front of a building targeted by an Israeli airstrike in the village of Deir Kifa in south Lebanon last month. (AFP file)
Lebanese soldiers stand in front of a building targeted by an Israeli airstrike in the village of Deir Kifa in south Lebanon last month. (AFP file)

Mounting protests across frontline villages in south Lebanon are exposing deep frustration over stalled reconstruction efforts and long-delayed compensation for war damage, delays that have pushed many families to abandon their homes and rebuild their lives elsewhere.

In Taybeh, a resident recently blocked the road outside his damaged house, which had been struck by an Israeli raid. Earlier, villagers in Deir Siryan blocked a main road and burned tires to protest the lack of compensation for destroyed vehicles. In Houla, a local man appeared in a video claiming losses exceeding six million dollars and demanding equal treatment for border communities compared with other regions that previously received compensation.

These demonstrations come more than two years after border residents were first displaced by recurring Israeli strikes during its conflict with Hezbollah that turned into a full blown war in October 2024. Many residents continue to live away from their homes, with no clear timetable for reconstruction support.

The almost daily Israeli bombardments since a November 2024 ceasefire have increased the scale of destruction, intensifying the sense of abandonment.

For many villagers, the central question is not which authority - Hezbollah or the Lebanese state - should assume responsibility. Instead, they want whichever side can deliver funds that would allow them to rebuild shattered neighborhoods. Their protests increasingly target both the government and Hezbollah, which has a strong presence in the South.

Tarek Mazraani, coordinator of the Coalition of Southern Border Villages, said these “relatively modest” protests will continue as residents seek to make their voices heard.

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that demands are directed at the state and political parties alike: “People don’t care who pays. What matters is that compensation arrives.”

While the state remains largely absent from reconstruction efforts, Mazraani noted slight improvements in services such as electricity and water.

He added that protesters are also calling for urgent support for displaced families. Many have lost businesses, savings, and all sources of income, leaving them unable to cover rent, medical expenses, or basic living costs in their temporary housing.

Although residents recognize that reconstruction funding may be difficult to secure under current conditions, Mazraani said they still expect the government and influential parties to help ease their burden.

Since the coalition’s founding six months ago, he said, its advocacy has had an impact, “but we have yet to see any concrete decisions on the ground.”

Last month, the Development and Liberation Bloc of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, hosted a coordination meeting in Msayleh village to outline a reconstruction strategy with government and civil society representatives.

Yet southerners still await parliamentary approval of a $250 million World Bank loan to rebuild damaged infrastructure. The relevant legislation stalled because several political blocs are boycotting parliamentary sessions over electoral law disputes.

Political analyst Ali Al-Amin said the growing protests are an unsurprising reaction from communities that feel “virtually abandoned.”

He argued that residents blame Hezbollah for policies they believe have closed off political options for a national solution, noting that reconstruction cannot proceed without addressing the issue of weapons outside state control.

Israel’s continued strikes, alongside talk of imposing a buffer zone in the South under direct or indirect Israeli oversight, further obstruct recovery.

Under such conditions, “reconstruction is simply not possible now,” added Al-Amin.

Arab World

Hamas Says Will Give Up Arms to a Palestinian Authority ‘If Occupation Ends’

A Palestinian gunman stands guard as Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters transport a white body bag believed to carry the remains of an Israeli hostage in the town of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip on December 3, 2025. (AFP)
A Palestinian gunman stands guard as Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters transport a white body bag believed to carry the remains of an Israeli hostage in the town of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip on December 3, 2025. (AFP)
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Hamas Says Will Give Up Arms to a Palestinian Authority ‘If Occupation Ends’

A Palestinian gunman stands guard as Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters transport a white body bag believed to carry the remains of an Israeli hostage in the town of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip on December 3, 2025. (AFP)
A Palestinian gunman stands guard as Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters transport a white body bag believed to carry the remains of an Israeli hostage in the town of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip on December 3, 2025. (AFP)

Hamas said Saturday it was ready to hand over its weapons in the Gaza Strip to a Palestinian authority governing the territory on the condition that the Israeli army’s occupation ends.

“Our weapons are linked to the existence of the occupation and the aggression,” Hamas chief negotiator and its Gaza chief Khalil al-Hayya said in a statement, adding: “If the occupation ends, these weapons will be placed under the authority of the state.”

Asked by AFP, al-Hayya’s bureau said he was referring to a sovereign and independent Palestinian state.

“We accept the deployment of UN forces as a separation force, tasked with monitoring the borders and ensuring compliance with the ceasefire in Gaza,” al-Hayya added, signaling his group’s rejection of the deployment of an international force in the Strip whose mission would be to disarm it.