Arab Parliament Condemns Israel’s Al-Mawasi Massacre in Gaza

Smoke rises after Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, December 10, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
Smoke rises after Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, December 10, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
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Arab Parliament Condemns Israel’s Al-Mawasi Massacre in Gaza

Smoke rises after Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, December 10, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
Smoke rises after Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, December 10, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

The Arab Parliament strongly condemned the massacre committed by Israeli forces in Al-Mawasi in southern Gaza.
The massacre, which resulted in the deaths and injuries of dozens, is a continuation of the policy of genocide and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian people, and a clear violation of international laws and charters, particularly international humanitarian law, the Arab Parliament said.
In a statement, it stated that impunity and lack of deterrence further encourage the Israeli occupation forces to commit more crimes and massacres against innocent civilians.

It also said that the international community, the Security Council, and the US administration are fully responsible for these massacres, which are carried out on a daily basis amid shameful international silence.
The Arab Parliament urged the international community, the Security Council, and the international community to assume their responsibilities and exert pressure on the occupation forces to halt the genocide and the brutal massacres committed against Palestinian civilians.
The parliament also asked that the Palestinian civilians be granted protection and that humanitarian and medical assistance be immediately allowed into the Gaza Strip to alleviate the famine and tragic conditions there, as well as an immediate stop to the attacks on innocent civilians in Gaza and the West Bank.



Syria’s New Rulers Name Abu Qasra as Defense Minister

Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
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Syria’s New Rulers Name Abu Qasra as Defense Minister

Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)
Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa sits next to Murhaf Abu Qasra, who according to an official source has been appointed as Defense Minister in Syria's interim government, in Damascus, Syria in this handout image released on December 21, 2024. (Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via Reuters)

Syria's new rulers have appointed Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the opposition which toppled Bashar al-Assad, as defense minister in the interim government, an official source said on Saturday.

Abu Qasra, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Hassan 600, is a senior figure in the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the campaign that ousted Assad this month. He led numerous military operations during Syria's revolution, the source said according to Reuters.

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa discussed "the form of the military institution in the new Syria" during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.

Abu Qasra during the meeting sat next to Sharaa, also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, photos published by SANA showed.

Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said this week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former opposition factions and officers who defected from Assad's army.

Bashir, who formerly led an HTS-affiliated administration in the northwestern province of Idlib, has said he will lead a three-month transitional government. The new administration has not declared plans for what will happen after that.

Earlier on Saturday, the ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step "comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability".

Shibani, a 37-year-old graduate of Damascus University, previously led the political department of the opposition’s Idlib government, the General Command said.

Sharaa's group was part of al-Qaeda until he broke ties in 2016. It had been confined to Idlib for years until going on the offensive in late November, sweeping through the cities of western Syria and into Damascus as the army melted away.

Sharaa has met with a number of international envoys this week. He has said his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development and that he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.

Syrian opposition fighters seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family's decades-long rule.

Washington designated Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying al-Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad's rule in Syria. US officials said on Friday that Washington would remove a $10 million bounty on his head.

The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.