4 h. ago Family mourns grandfather’s death as Israel brings Gaza tactics to West Bank

Major military operation causes largest displacement of Palestinians in West Bank since Israel seized it in 1967Waleed Lahlouh was 73, with a shock of white hair that marked his age, when Israeli soldiers shot him dead on a sunny February morning outside his home in Jenin refugee camp. Relatives said he was killed while trying to collect some winter clothes for his family.He had fled with his children and grandchildren a week earlier when Israeli troops moved into the camp and ordered residents out within an hour. They scrambled to gather documents, valuables and phones, and had little time to pack clothes. Continue reading...

Politics

6 h. ago The playbook for bombing hospitals in war: deny, deflect, justify. The law must close these loopholes | Maarten van der Heijden

Cynical actors exploit the legal ambiguities around targeting healthcare facilities, as seen in Gaza. Unequivocal protections are neededHospitals in Gaza have “turned into battlegrounds”, the World Health Organization’s representative for the West Bank and Gaza stated at the UN security council in January. He warned that the healthcare system was being “systematically dismantled and driven to the brink of collapse”.Israel’s attacks on medical centres in Gaza have prompted widespread condemnation from civil society, academics and news agencies, many labelling these strikes as breaches of international law or war crimes. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus posted that: “Any attack of healthcare facilities is a violation of international humanitarian law.” Continue reading...

Events

9 h. ago Sha'Vi Lewis dead at 39 as family of Project Runway star and fashion designer pay tribute

Sha'Vi Lewis, who was a contestant on series 18 of the fashion design show, passed away, with his family saying they are in a 'state of disbelief' as they mourn his loss

Events

50 h. ago In the shadow of Gaza, Israel’s new offensive in the West Bank threatens to break out into all

Overshadowed by Gaza, the latest West Bank offensive - which Israel launched on January 21, two days after the current ceasefire in Gaza took hold - threatens to open a new, bloody chapter

Politics

52 h. ago Gaza ceasefire shaky as Israel's battle tanks enter West Bank with 40,000 made homeless

Threat of war again as Isareli tanks enter the West Bank for the first time in decades - and the fragile Gaza ceasefire teeters towards failure and a new outbreak of violence and bloodshed

Events

53 h. ago Netanyahu ‘preparing atmosphere’ to return to war with Gaza, says Hamas official – Middle East crisis live

Hamas official Basem Naim says Benjamin Netanyahu ‘intentionally sabotaging’ peace deal According to a report from Hebrew media outlet Ynet, Israel has told international mediators that it will release more than 600 Palestinian prisoners who were initially scheduled for release on Saturday if Hamas returns four bodies today without any ceremony. The Guardian has not confirmed this report.Israel suspended the handover of 620 Palestinians it was due to free from its prisons on Saturday, putting the ceasefire agreement in jeopardy after Benjamin Netanyahu criticised what he called “disgraceful ceremonies that dishonour our hostages and the cynical use of hostages for propaganda”.We have fulfilled all our obligations according to the deal.Unfortunately, all the time Netanyahu and his government have been trying to undermine and sabotage the deal.They have committed a lot of violations – killed more than 100 Palestinians, prevented most of the basic needs of the Palestinians to enter the...

Events

57 h. ago Israel sends tanks into occupied West Bank for first time in 20 years

Israeli forces destroy public infrastructure as defence minister says tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians will not be allowed to return

Events

57 h. ago UN ‘gravely concerned by rising violence’ in West Bank; Gaza ceasefire in doubt as first phase nears end – Middle East crisis live

Israeli tanks in West Bank for first time in more than two decades amid tensions over ceasefire agreement with HamasThe UN secretary general, Antonio Guterres, has been speaking at the UN human rights council in Geneva.“I am gravely concerned by the rising violence in the occupied West Bank by Israeli settlers and other violations, as well as calls for annexation,” Guterres said, as he urged for the ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel to remain intact.The ministry of foreign affairs and expatriates warns of the Israeli occupation army’s deployment of heavy tanks around Jenin, viewing it as a prelude to expanding its crimes against the Palestinian people – particularly in the northern West Bank and its refugee camps. This escalation comes as Israeli ‘defence’ minister Israel Katz boasts that the Israeli occupation army will prevent displaced Palestinians from returning to their homes and has ordered an extended military presence in the area. Israeli occupation forces have al...

Events

3 d. ago Israel says West Bank operation will last for a year as it sends tanks to Jenin

Continued operation in Palestinian territory will leave 40,000 displaced people unable to return homeIsrael has sent tanks to the West Bank city of Jenin, in the first deployment of its kind in the area in more than two decades, as troops intensify operations in the territory that officials said will last at least a year.The Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, said on Sunday that the latest operation across the West Bank was expanding, and that troops would remain in the area’s urban hotspots “for the coming year”, meaning approximately 40,000 people displaced by the fighting will not be able to return to their homes. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago West Bank residents cannot return to cleared camps, says Israeli defence minister

IDF troops will remain in territory’s north all year as military operation expands and PM delays release of Palestinian prisoners

Politics

3 d. ago Israel's defense minister says troops to remain in West Bank refugee camps for 'coming year'

Israel's defense minister says he has instructed the military to prepare to remain in some of the occupied West Bank’s urban refugee camps “for the coming year.”

Politics

4 d. ago House builder supports West Lothian School Bank with bumper donation

Miller Homes’ donation to The School Bank West Lothian will go towards providing schools with “camp clothing packs” to ensure that every child has a chance to fully participate in school camp trips.

Politics

5 d. ago Shiri Bibas not among returned hostages, Israeli military says, accusing Hamas of ‘serious violation’

Statement from IDF comes hours after prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders further crackdown on occupied West Bank over bus explosionsOne of the four bodies returned by Hamas to Israel on Thursday is not that of Shiri Bibas, Israel’s military has said, calling it a “violation of utmost severity” of a ceasefire deal that was already precarious.The Israeli military confirmed that two of the bodies belonged to Bibas’ children, Ariel and Kfir, in the early hours of Friday. However, it added “During the identification process, it was determined that the additional body received is not that of Shiri Bibas, and no match was found for any other hostage. This is an anonymous, unidentified body.” Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago Israel's West Bank crackdown triggers a wave of displacement unseen in decades

Tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled home following recent Israeli military operations across the northern West Bank

Politics

9 d. ago Watchdog says Israel is to expand West Bank settlement as the region marks 500 days of war

An anti-settlement watchdog says Israel has issued tenders for the construction of nearly 1,000 additional settler homes in the occupied West Bank

Politics