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Israeli Strike in Gaza Kills Family of Four

Smoke and flames rise from a house during an Israeli strike, carried out after the Israeli military warned residents to evacuate the area, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
Smoke and flames rise from a house during an Israeli strike, carried out after the Israeli military warned residents to evacuate the area, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
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Israeli Strike in Gaza Kills Family of Four

Smoke and flames rise from a house during an Israeli strike, carried out after the Israeli military warned residents to evacuate the area, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
Smoke and flames rise from a house during an Israeli strike, carried out after the Israeli military warned residents to evacuate the area, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed

An Israeli strike in Gaza on Thursday killed a family of four including two children, Palestinian hospital and security sources said.

"The bodies of four members of the Ahmad family were recovered in pieces after an Israeli strike hit a house in the Beit Lahia Project area in the northern Gaza Strip," an official at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City said, identifying the children as aged 12 and eight.

The Israeli military, contacted by AFP, said it was checking.

A Palestinian security source in Gaza, which is under the control of Hamas, said that Israeli warplanes struck after midnight in Beit Lahia and separately in the heart of the Jabalia refugee camp, with Israeli forces also firing on tents of displaced people and ambulances.

"Israel continues its violations in the Gaza Strip," the security source said.

Israel in October last year agreed to a ceasefire brokered by the United States but since then has advanced further into Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed no let-up in strikes targeting Hamas, which led the unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack against Israel, and no pullout from Gaza until Hamas gives up all of its weapons.

Israel often identifies its targets afterwards. The Israeli military said that on Sunday it killed Sabhi Hadr Al-Atham al-Batrihi, claiming he was planting explosive devices against Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli strikes have killed more than 1,300 people since the ceasefire was announced, according to the Gaza health ministry, which operates under Hamas and whose figures are considered generally reliable by the United Nations.

The Israeli army has identified five deaths in its ranks over the same period, as well as the death of one civilian contractor.

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Arab World

Hezbollah Denies Any Link to Cell Dismantled in Syria

A man waves Hezbollah flag at the Tahrir Square in Baghdad on September 26, 2026, to mark the second anniversary of killing of Hezbollah's former chief Hassan Nasrallah, in a major strike by Israel on Beirut's southern suburbs in Lebanon. (AFP)
A man waves Hezbollah flag at the Tahrir Square in Baghdad on September 26, 2026, to mark the second anniversary of killing of Hezbollah's former chief Hassan Nasrallah, in a major strike by Israel on Beirut's southern suburbs in Lebanon. (AFP)
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Hezbollah Denies Any Link to Cell Dismantled in Syria

A man waves Hezbollah flag at the Tahrir Square in Baghdad on September 26, 2026, to mark the second anniversary of killing of Hezbollah's former chief Hassan Nasrallah, in a major strike by Israel on Beirut's southern suburbs in Lebanon. (AFP)
A man waves Hezbollah flag at the Tahrir Square in Baghdad on September 26, 2026, to mark the second anniversary of killing of Hezbollah's former chief Hassan Nasrallah, in a major strike by Israel on Beirut's southern suburbs in Lebanon. (AFP)

Hezbollah denied on Wednesday any connection to a cell that Syrian authorities said they had dismantled in the country's south and which they accused of being affiliated with the Lebanese group.

A statement from the Iran-backed movement's media office said it "categorically denies any relationship or connection between Hezbollah and the alleged cell" and emphasized that "it has no presence whatsoever on Syrian territory and has no involvement in any security or military activity there".

On Tuesday, Syria said intelligence services and security forces "thwarted a sabotage plot in the Yarmuk basin in Daraa (province) and arrested a Hezbollah-affiliated cell composed of three individuals".

Authorities said the cell attempted "to prepare rocket launch platforms with the aim of carrying out attacks to destabilize security and stability", without specifying the target.

The Yarmuk basin area, where state media has previously reported Israeli incursions and shelling, borders the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights, as well as Jordan.

Earlier on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said there were "indications" that Israel's enemies could try to attack ahead of elections scheduled for late October.

Syria's new authorities, who ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in 2024, are hostile to Hezbollah, which is a sworn enemy of Israel and fought on Assad's side during the Syrian civil war.

Authorities have previously said they dismantled several Hezbollah-linked cells preparing attacks in Syria, accusations the group has denied.

In Wednesday's statement, Hezbollah accused Israel of seeking to disrupt ties between Lebanon and Syria.

It called on Syrian authorities "to identify the real beneficiary of escalating tensions between the two countries, namely the Israeli enemy".

Last month, Hezbollah's chief Naim Qassem said he had no objection to meeting openly with Syria's leadership.

In June, responding to a question about whether he would sit at the table with Hezbollah, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa said that "if this serves Lebanon's interests and safeguards Syria's interests, why not".

Arab World

US Removes Syria from Arms Export Ban

A large Syrian flag flutters above Tishreen Park in Damascus on June 4, 2025. (AFP)
A large Syrian flag flutters above Tishreen Park in Damascus on June 4, 2025. (AFP)
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US Removes Syria from Arms Export Ban

A large Syrian flag flutters above Tishreen Park in Damascus on June 4, 2025. (AFP)
A large Syrian flag flutters above Tishreen Park in Damascus on June 4, 2025. (AFP)

The Trump administration is removing Syria from a list of countries that are not allowed to purchase or import US weaponry, a step that is part of a monthslong process of easing sanctions on the new government in Damascus and its leaders.

In a notice published Wednesday in the Federal Register, the State Department said it was amending its International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR, so that Syria no longer was among the nations subject to a policy of denial for licenses and other approvals needed for the sale of US weapons and munitions.

The change effective Thursday means that arms sales requests from Syria will now be considered on a case-by-case basis.

President Donald Trump acted last year to ease economic sanctions on Syria that had been in place for decades during now-ousted President Bashar al-Assad’s rule. In August, Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded Syria’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, helping paving the way for the latest step in drawing closer to the current government.

The State Department has also announced plans to reopen the US Embassy in Damascus. It has been closed for 14 years.

With Syria’s removal from the ITAR blacklist, only seven countries remain subject to the policy of denial for licenses for US arms exports: Belarus, China, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea and Venezuela.

Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa overthrew the Assad government nearly two years ago and has embarked on a policy of change that has impressed the Trump administration. His moves have led to hopes of eventual stability in a country that was wracked by civil war and the ISIS insurgency that engulfed northeast and western Iraq for years.

Wednesday’s withdrawal of US forces from Iraq may mean that the Syrian government plays a greater role in preventing an ISIS resurgence.

Arab World

Blast at Syrian Gas Pipeline, Power Stations Hit

The explosion put three power stations out of service, the Syrian Electricity Company said in a statement. (SANA)
The explosion put three power stations out of service, the Syrian Electricity Company said in a statement. (SANA)
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Blast at Syrian Gas Pipeline, Power Stations Hit

The explosion put three power stations out of service, the Syrian Electricity Company said in a statement. (SANA)
The explosion put three power stations out of service, the Syrian Electricity Company said in a statement. (SANA)

A blast at a gas pipeline near the Syrian capital Damascus late Wednesday sparked a massive fire and put three power stations out of service.

It came two days after an explosion caused by sabotage at a gas pipeline in the country's east.

The official SANA news agency first reported Wednesday's explosion saying a "detonation was heard in Eastern Ghouta, near Damascus".

A government source told AFP it was an "explosion in a gas pipeline near the Tishrin power plant" that sparked a "huge fire".

Tishrin is a 630-megawatt hydropower project located on the Euphrates River.

The explosion put three power stations out of service, the Syrian Electricity Company said in a statement.

"The shutdown of these plants will lead to a decrease in the amount of electricity produced and a temporary increase in rationing hours," it said.

The explosions come at a time of rising protests over rising fuel prices, which authorities blame on the regional war with Iran.

Syria's oil, gas and electricity production have been heavily affected by the civil war that ravaged the country between 2011 and 2024.

Syria used to produce 30 million cubic meters of gas per day for electricity generation, compared to only 8.5 million now.

The domestic gas needs are estimated at between 22 and 25 million cubic meters per day, according to Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir.