Israel Destroyed 90 Percent of Iranian Capacities in Syrian Territories

Smoke rises from a fire in a container storage area, after Syrian state media reported an Israeli airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia, Syria, in this handout picture released by SANA on December 7, 2021. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)
Smoke rises from a fire in a container storage area, after Syrian state media reported an Israeli airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia, Syria, in this handout picture released by SANA on December 7, 2021. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)
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Israel Destroyed 90 Percent of Iranian Capacities in Syrian Territories

Smoke rises from a fire in a container storage area, after Syrian state media reported an Israeli airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia, Syria, in this handout picture released by SANA on December 7, 2021. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)
Smoke rises from a fire in a container storage area, after Syrian state media reported an Israeli airstrike on the Syrian port of Latakia, Syria, in this handout picture released by SANA on December 7, 2021. (SANA/Handout via Reuters)

The Israeli military has destroyed about 90 percent of Iran's military infrastructure and attempts to entrench itself with Hezbollah and other pro-Iranian militias in Syria, three officials in the Israeli army said.

According to the officials, Israel has in recent years succeeded in almost completely curbing Iran's ability to transfer weapons to Syria, to manufacture weapons on the country's soil and to establish a base in it with pro-Iranian forces.

There have been talks on Wednesday about Israel halting raids in Syria in the past months out of fear of a Russian response.

However, last Friday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said an Israeli airstrike near Damascus destroyed an Iranian-backed drone manufacturing and weapons storage site.

According to the sources, the plan of the former commander of the Iranian Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, who was killed by the Americans in 2020, has failed due to the Israeli army’s continued air campaign against the forces in Syria.

The security officials emphasized that the army severely damaged Iran's smuggling routes from the sea, air and even from the land from Iran to Syria.

As a result of the attacks, the ability of the Syrian army to produce weapons and ammunition has also been damaged since the Iranians and Hezbollah used the same factories for the production of their weapons.

The focus of the attacks in recent years has also been to stop the smuggling of components for CERS – the Centre D’Etudes et de Recherches Scientifiques (CERS) in Masyaf that is used by Iran to produce advanced missiles and weapons for its proxies.

According to sources in Israel, Syrian President Bashar Assad has realized that in the coming years he will not be able to regain territories occupied by the Kurds, including the Turks, and instead is focused on reducing the activity of Iran and Hezbollah in his country, with an emphasis on the Syrian Golan Heights.



UN Experts Slam Swiss Penalties Over Anti-Israel Student Protests

 Palestinians walk along tents at a makeshift camp for displaced people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP)
Palestinians walk along tents at a makeshift camp for displaced people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP)
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UN Experts Slam Swiss Penalties Over Anti-Israel Student Protests

 Palestinians walk along tents at a makeshift camp for displaced people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP)
Palestinians walk along tents at a makeshift camp for displaced people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP)

United Nations experts on Tuesday harshly criticized a top Swiss university's decision to pursue the criminal prosecution of students who peacefully protested against its partnerships with Israeli institutions.

"Peaceful student activism, on and off campus, is part of students' rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, and must not be criminalized," 10 independent UN experts said in a statement.

The experts pointed to criminal penalties sought by the publicly funded Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETHZ) as mass student protests over Israel's war in Gaza rocked universities in many countries in May 2024.

Around 70 students had staged sit-ins at ETHZ, demanding transparency and disengagement from research linked to the Israeli military.

The experts, including the special rapporteurs on the right to education, to free expression, and on the rights situation in the Palestinian territories, pointed out that police were reportedly called within minutes.

"A large security presence (was) deployed, and the sit-ins forcibly dispersed, despite no teaching being interrupted and no violence occurring," the statement said.

After the protests, 38 ETHZ students received "penal orders" -- mainly fines of up to 2,700 Swiss francs ($3,500) -- including 17 who opted to appeal, it said.

"Recent court decisions have upheld trespass convictions against five students, while acquitting two others on procedural grounds," the statement said.

However, all students involved, including those acquitted, were required to bear court and administrative costs, amounting to at least 2,400 Swiss francs per person, a spokeswoman for the experts told AFP.

Decisions for the remaining 10 students are still pending.

The experts, who are mandated by the UN Human Rights Council, but who do not speak on behalf of the United Nations, called on the Swiss authorities and judicial system to "take full account of Switzerland's human rights obligations".

"Universities and states must ensure that expressing solidarity with human rights causes and demanding accountability from state institutions, especially in relation to well-documented instances of international crimes, do not lead to intimidation, prosecution, or long-term harm to students' futures," they said.


Rule of Law 'Routinely Challenged', Says ICC Head

The International Criminal Court building is seen in The Hague, Netherlands, January 16, 2019. (Reuters)
The International Criminal Court building is seen in The Hague, Netherlands, January 16, 2019. (Reuters)
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Rule of Law 'Routinely Challenged', Says ICC Head

The International Criminal Court building is seen in The Hague, Netherlands, January 16, 2019. (Reuters)
The International Criminal Court building is seen in The Hague, Netherlands, January 16, 2019. (Reuters)

The global rule of law is frequently coming under threat, the president of the International Criminal Court warned on Tuesday, vowing to stand up for justice and victims of atrocities.

At a ceremony marking the opening of the ICC's judicial year, Tomoko Akane said international justice was facing an "extraordinary moment."

"The ICC, as well as other judicial institutions around the globe, have been facing significant pressures, coercive measures and attempts to undermine their function," she said.

"Values and premises that we have accepted as a given, as well as the very notion of the rule of law, are being routinely questioned and challenged," added Akane.

The ICC is facing the most difficult period in its history.

Furious at arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the United States has slapped sanctions on top ICC officials, including judges.

This has hindered the court's ability to function and affected the lives of those sanctioned.

In addition, Russia has sentenced ICC officials to jail terms, in retaliation for arrest warrants against President Vladimir Putin over the Ukraine war.

"Now, more than ever, we must return to the fundamental ideas upon which we stand, the values of justice and humanity that transcend borders," said Akane.

She revealed the court had issued "numerous" further arrest warrants, although these have not yet been made public.

The ICC, based in The Hague, tries individuals suspected of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

On Monday, it announced a major step in one of its most high-profile cases.

Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte will face a so-called "confirmation of charges" hearing on February 23, after judges passed him fit.


France’s President to Meet Denmark, Greenland Leaders

France's President Emmanuel Macron waits before the arrival of Indonesia's president at the Elysee palace in Paris, on January 23, 2026. (AFP)
France's President Emmanuel Macron waits before the arrival of Indonesia's president at the Elysee palace in Paris, on January 23, 2026. (AFP)
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France’s President to Meet Denmark, Greenland Leaders

France's President Emmanuel Macron waits before the arrival of Indonesia's president at the Elysee palace in Paris, on January 23, 2026. (AFP)
France's President Emmanuel Macron waits before the arrival of Indonesia's president at the Elysee palace in Paris, on January 23, 2026. (AFP)

France's president will meet the leaders of Denmark and Greenland in Paris on Wednesday for "a working lunch", his office said Tuesday.

Emmanuel Macron will "reaffirm European solidarity and France's support for Denmark, Greenland, their sovereignty and their territorial integrity", the presidency said.

The meeting comes days after US President Donald Trump backed down from threats to seize Greenland, a mineral-rich Arctic island that is an autonomous Danish territory.

The three leaders will discuss "security issues in the Arctic and the economic and social development of Greenland, which France and the European Union are ready to support", Macron's office said.

Faced with Russian threats and US ambitions for Greenland, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland leader Jens-Frederik Nielsen have been making rounds with European allies this week including talks in Hamburg and Berlin ahead of visiting Paris Wednesday.

Trump earlier this month had threatened to seize Greenland and impose tariffs on any European countries, including France, Germany and Britain, that opposed him.

Trump later backed down on the threat to take the territory after meeting NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte last week.

Trump and Rutte had agreed on what the US leader called a "framework", the details of which have not been disclosed.

France has positioned itself at the forefront of European solidarity with Denmark, and is planning to open a consulate in the Greenland capital of Nuuk next month.