Turkish Forces, HTS Launch Joint Patrols in Afrin

Turkish Forces participating in Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria (Anadolu Agency)
Turkish Forces participating in Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria (Anadolu Agency)
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Turkish Forces, HTS Launch Joint Patrols in Afrin

Turkish Forces participating in Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria (Anadolu Agency)
Turkish Forces participating in Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria (Anadolu Agency)

The Turkish forces redeployed in Jindires in Afrin and al-Bab city in the northern countryside of Aleppo, within the areas of operations Olive Branch and Euphrates Shield.

The areas are under Turkish control along with the factions of the so-called Syrian National Army loyal to Ankara.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that Turkish forces are trying to control matters after their withdrawal from the outskirts of Afrin city.

The forces left the area following clashes between the factions in their control areas and the subsequent entry of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) into the region.

The HTS military convoy, which was supposed to enter the Euphrates Shield areas, had not yet entered due to the rejection of some members of National Army factions and residents of allowing HTS to enter the site.

Under the agreement, HTS withdrew part of its military forces from Afrin to Idlib.

The movements of the Turkish forces came after one of its bases near the village of Kafr Jannah in the Sharan district of Afrin countryside was subjected to artillery shelling of unknown origin, injuring several soldiers.

The Observatory reported that Turkish forces and armored vehicles roamed Afrin under HTS control and the extensive deployment of its troops there, pointing to the deployment of Turkish special forces at joint checkpoints with HTS at the entrances of Afrin.

A cautious calm prevailed in the Afrin region and areas held by Turkish-backed factions in Aleppo's eastern and northern countryside.

Clashes erupted between the Third Corps and HTS on the frontlines of the Sharan district of Mashaalah in rural Afrin, northwest Aleppo, burning the "Kortak 1" camp near Mashalah village in Afrin countryside.

The clashes occurred after Jaiysh al-Islam, and Third Corps rejected the agreement concluded between "al-Golani" and Abu Yassin, commander of the Third Corps.

HTS agreed with the Third Corps for a ceasefire and a complete resolution.

The agreement came after thwarting several HTS attempts to advance on the axis of Kafr Jannah and to target the Turkish military point with unknown shells.

At the same time, the Turkish forces stationed at the Merimin base in the Sharan district in Afrin shelled Tanab and Abyan villages in the Sherawa district, within the areas of deployment of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the regime forces in the northern Aleppo countryside.



Palestinian Authority Condemns East Jerusalem Evictions

A Palestinian man (R) watch a settler family walks past a group of Israeli police officers as 11 Palestinian families in the Batan al-Hawa area of Silwan are evicted to make room for Israeli settlers, in the predominantly Arab neighbourhood of Silwan, in East Jerusalem on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
A Palestinian man (R) watch a settler family walks past a group of Israeli police officers as 11 Palestinian families in the Batan al-Hawa area of Silwan are evicted to make room for Israeli settlers, in the predominantly Arab neighbourhood of Silwan, in East Jerusalem on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
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Palestinian Authority Condemns East Jerusalem Evictions

A Palestinian man (R) watch a settler family walks past a group of Israeli police officers as 11 Palestinian families in the Batan al-Hawa area of Silwan are evicted to make room for Israeli settlers, in the predominantly Arab neighbourhood of Silwan, in East Jerusalem on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
A Palestinian man (R) watch a settler family walks past a group of Israeli police officers as 11 Palestinian families in the Batan al-Hawa area of Silwan are evicted to make room for Israeli settlers, in the predominantly Arab neighbourhood of Silwan, in East Jerusalem on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)

The Palestinian Authority has condemned the recent eviction of multiple families from their homes in east Jerusalem and urged the international community to take "firm measures" to halt the displacements.

Several families were removed from their homes in the neighborhood of Silwan in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on Wednesday, AFP journalists saw.

Silwan has for decades been the target of a policy allowing Jews who lost property before the establishment of Israel in 1948 to reclaim it.

Israeli rights group B'Tselem said the evictions were the start of "a large wave of displacement affecting around 2,200 people" and were part of a policy aimed at "Judaizing the neighborhood".

In a statement released late on Friday by official news agency WAFA, the PA's foreign ministry "condemned the escalation by Israeli occupation authorities of forced eviction measures".

It said 15 families had been evicted from the hilltop neighborhood south of Jerusalem's Old City.

It also called on the international community to take "firm and more decisive steps to prevent the continuation of forced displacement against the Palestinian people".

Israeli authorities have evicted many Palestinian families from the area in recent years, while further families await the enforcement of eviction orders.

Hundreds of settlers, whose presence is illegal under international law, live among around 50,000 Palestinians in Silwan.

Their presence in the neighborhood dates back to the 1980s.

Israel captured east Jerusalem in 1967, later annexing it and declaring it part of its undivided capital, a move not recognized by the UN or most of the international community.

Palestinians aspire to make it the capital of a future Palestinian state.


Palestinian Brothers Killed in Israeli Strike on Gaza

Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians killed in an Israeli strike, according to medics, in Gaza City, March 28, 2026. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians killed in an Israeli strike, according to medics, in Gaza City, March 28, 2026. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
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Palestinian Brothers Killed in Israeli Strike on Gaza

Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians killed in an Israeli strike, according to medics, in Gaza City, March 28, 2026. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Mourners react during the funeral of Palestinians killed in an Israeli strike, according to medics, in Gaza City, March 28, 2026. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas

An Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinian brothers Saturday morning in the Gaza Strip, hospital authorities said.

The strike hit the men close to the Showa roundabout in Gaza City’s Shijaiyah neighborhood, according to the Al-Ahly hospital.

The area is close to the so-called Yellow Line which separates Israeli-controlled areas across the Gaza Strip from the rest of the enclave.

Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.


Israel, Hezbollah Brace for Prolonged Fighting in South Lebanon

An Israeli soldier directs a tank near the Lebanese border (Reuters)
An Israeli soldier directs a tank near the Lebanese border (Reuters)
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Israel, Hezbollah Brace for Prolonged Fighting in South Lebanon

An Israeli soldier directs a tank near the Lebanese border (Reuters)
An Israeli soldier directs a tank near the Lebanese border (Reuters)

Hezbollah is preparing for a prolonged fight in south Lebanon and is insisting on an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory before any ceasefire takes effect, to avoid a repeat of the last war’s outcome, Lebanese sources following the group’s talks with officials said.

Continued Israeli troop build-ups suggest the Israeli army is also bracing for a long battle.

Information in Lebanon on fighters targeted in airstrikes, reinforced by Israeli footage of operations in combat zones, points to a shift in Hezbollah’s military approach.

The group has reduced combat units to two or three fighters to limit attrition and granted field units authority to act independently, based on battlefield conditions.

Sources said Hezbollah is preparing for a long war and will not accept any political deal that does not guarantee an Israeli withdrawal before a ceasefire begins, to prevent Israel from using any pause to destroy more homes or entrench military positions inside Lebanon.

The group is telling officials its fighters will continue to resist Israeli incursions until a full withdrawal, however long that takes. Any political agreement, the sources said, would also ensure the return of prisoners, whose numbers have risen since the war began, and allow displaced residents to return to their homes.

Talks suspended

The leaks indicate Hezbollah has raised its conditions ahead of any potential agreement, although there are currently no negotiations or exchanged messages with Israel through any international mediator, the sources said.

Israel has also raised its demands, seeking political negotiations with the Lebanese state while fighting continues and while it holds Lebanese territory.

These demands are coupled with steps by the Lebanese government to disarm Hezbollah, secure northern Israel fully and eliminate any threat, diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The stance mirrors Israeli statements. The Israeli military said, “If the Lebanese government does not disarm Hezbollah, we will do it.”

A UN official warned of “increasingly alarming rhetoric” from Israeli authorities and the military regarding southern Lebanon, adding that what is needed is full respect for Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Advance of 10 kilometers

Israeli forces have made what is seen as a strategic advance along Lebanon’s coast, pushing nearly 10 kilometers from the border southwest of Naqoura toward Bayyada, about 12 kilometers from the coastal city of Tyre.

Local sources said progress on this axis has been relatively smooth, as Hezbollah’s defenses are positioned farther east, along the route the Israeli army would take to reach Shama and Tayr Harfa and seize the surrounding high ground.

That would allow it to overlook the valleys of Zibqin and Majdal Zoun, an area it failed to enter in the last war despite controlling Shama.

Elsewhere, Israeli forces have advanced further in Qantara, nearing the edges of Wadi al-Hujair, a strategic valley that marked Israel’s last point of control before its withdrawal from south Lebanon in 2000. Reaching it would cut Hezbollah's supply lines from the valley and the Litani River toward the interior.

In response, Hezbollah said it carried out a series of attacks targeting Israeli tanks and troop concentrations, and released images showing armored vehicles hit in Deir Siryan and Taybeh with guided missiles and drones. The group said its fighters were engaging Israeli forces at point-blank range in some areas of incursion and inside village neighborhoods.

The number of operations on Thursday reached nearly 90, announced in separate statements, the highest since the war began on Oct. 8, 2024, signaling a sharp escalation.

Israel now fully controls 11 villages across the first, second and third lines along the border.

At the same time, Israeli airstrikes hit the Zahrani area, causing casualties in Sarafand and Saksakiyeh.

Strikes also targeted Bazaliyah in the Bekaa in eastern Lebanon, as well as dozens of villages in the districts of Tyre, Nabatieh, Bint Jbeil, Marjayoun and Jezzine, in addition to attacks on Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Warnings over the humanitarian situation

On the humanitarian front, Karolina Lindholm Billing, UNHCR Representative in Lebanon, said about 150,000 people have been cut off after bridges over the Litani River were destroyed.

The situation remains deeply alarming, and there is a real risk of a humanitarian catastrophe, she said.

Marcoluigi Corsi, UNICEF Representative in Lebanon, said at a Friday press conference that displaced people in Lebanon are unable to find safe shelter even in the capital, Beirut, amid the Israeli offensive against Hezbollah.