Saudi Arabia's current priority is a permanent Gaza ceasefire, foreign minister says
He was speaking during a visit to Moscow.
In 2024, the Saudi foreign minister said that there can be no normalisation of ties with Israel without resolving the Palestinian issue.
613 killed at Gaza aid distribution sites, near humanitarian covoys, says UN
'What we are seeing is the Israelis are crushing Gaza, the civilian population of Gaza,' he said. 'This is completely unnecessary, completely unacceptable and has to stop.'
The local health ministry in Gaza says more than 57,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's assault on the region since an October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas.
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Express Tribune
5 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Iran struck five Israeli military bases during 12-day war: report
The radar-based findings suggest that six Iranian missiles reached targets in Israel's north, south, and centre, contradicting public claims of minimal damage to military infrastructure. PHOTO: REUTERS Iranian missiles appear to have directly hit five Israeli military facilities during the recent 12-day war, according to radar data seen by The Telegraph. The strikes have not been made public by the Israeli authorities and cannot be reported from within the country because of strict military censorship laws. They will further complicate the battle of words between the enemies, with both sides attempting to claim absolute victory. The new data were shared with The Telegraph by US academics at Oregon State University, who specialise in using satellite radar data to detect bomb damage in war zones. It suggests five previously unreported military facilities were hit by six Iranian missiles in the north, south and centre of Israel, including a major air base, an intelligence gathering centre and a logistics base. Approached by The Telegraph on Friday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it would not comment on missile interception rates or damage to its bases. "What we can say is that all relevant units maintained functional continuity throughout the operation," said a spokesman. The strikes on the military facilities are in addition to 36 others known to have pierced Israeli air-defence systems, causing significant damage to residential and industrial infrastructure. Despite the considerable damage to residential property across the country, only 28 Israelis died – a testament to the country's sophisticated alert system and the disciplined use of bomb shelters and safe rooms by the population. Analysis by The Telegraph suggests that while the vast majority of Iranian missiles were intercepted, the proportion that got through grew steadily in the first eight days of the 12-day war. The reasons for this, say experts, are not clear but may include the rationing of a limited stock of interceptor missiles on the Israeli side and improved firing tactics and the possible use of more sophisticated missiles by Iran. Although the Iron Dome is Israel's best-known air-defence system, it is actually designed to protect against short-range projectiles such as mortars and is only one part of the "layered" air-defence system the country uses. In the middle tier stands the David's Sling air-defence system, which is optimised for intercepting drones and missiles with ranges up to 300km. At the top is the Arrow system, which engages long-range ballistic missiles before they re-enter the atmosphere. Importantly, the Israeli systems were backed up throughout the 12-day war by two US ground-based THAAD missile-defence systems and ship-based interceptors launched from US assets in the Red Sea. The US is estimated to have launched at least 36 THAAD interceptors during the war at a cost of some $12 million a time. In Israel, a densely packed small country of just 9.7 million people, the piercing of the country's famed missile-defence systems has come as a shock, with the authorities having to issue notices warning that they were "not hermetic". The 15,000 made homeless are especially conspicuous as they have been distributed to hotel accommodation throughout the country and the restriction of residential sites has been reported freely. But there has also been growing suspicion within the country that military targets were hit. Raviv Drucker of Channel 13, one of the country's best-known journalists, said last week: "There were a lot of [Iranian] missile hits in IDF bases, in strategic sites that we still don't report about to this day... It created a situation where people don't realise how precise the Iranians were and how much damage they caused in many places". Corey Scher, a researcher at Oregon State University, said his unit was working on a fuller assessment of missile damage in both Israel and Iran, and would publish its findings in around two weeks. He said the radar system data that they used to assess damage measured changes in the built environment to detect blasts and that absolute confirmation of hits would necessitate either on-the-ground reporting at the military sites concerned or satellite pictures. The Telegraph's data analysis shows the combined US and Israeli defence systems performed well overall, but were letting through around 16 per cent of missiles by day seven of the war. This broadly accords with an earlier IDF estimate for the defence system that put the success rate at "87 per cent". In Iran, Islamic Republic officials and state media are using footage of missiles penetrating Israeli air defences in an attempt to convince domestic audiences they won the war. There are cartoons mocking the Iron Dome in Iranian media with revolutionary songs playing over videos of missiles hitting Israeli cities. Iranian officials say that the main way Israel's air defences were pierced was by using missiles and drones at the same time to confuse defence systems. Fast missiles mixed with slower drones confused the defences and made them split their attention, officials claim. "The main goal of firing [suicide drones] at Israel is always to keep their systems busy," one Iranian official told The Telegraph. "Many don't even get through – they're intercepted – but they still cause confusion." Maj Gen Ali Fazli, the IRGC's deputy commander-in-chief, appeared on state TV on Thursday night, claiming implausibly that Iran was "in the best defensive position in the 47-year history of the Islamic Revolution – never before have we been at such a level in terms of military readiness, operational cohesion, and fighter morale". This despite Israel's proven ability to strike at will over the entire country and the substantial damage caused to the country's military leadership and nuclear programme. Nevertheless, it is likely that a large part of Iran's ballistic missile arsenal remains untouched. Even by Israeli estimates, only half of its launchers were destroyed in the 12-day conflict and substantial stocks of missiles remain. "Iran had about 400 launchers, and we destroyed more than 200 of them, which caused a bottleneck in their missile operations," an Israeli military official said on Thursday They added: "We assessed that Iran had approximately 2,000 to 2,500 ballistic missiles at the beginning of this conflict. However, they were rapidly moving toward a mass-production strategy, which could see their missile stockpile grow to 8,000 or even 20,000 missiles in the next few years." Maj Gen Fazli claimed that underground "cities" of missiles remained untouched in Iran. "We have not yet opened the doors of even one of our missile cities," he claimed on Thursday. "We assess that so far only about 25 to 30 per cent of existing missile capability has been used and, at the same time, the production cycle is powerfully supporting this operational capacity."
Express Tribune
6 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Hamas seeks early Gaza ceasefire
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands with US President Donald Trump after signing the Abraham Accord in Washington, US, September 15, 2020. PHOTO: REUTERS Israel was considering its response on Saturday after Hamas said it was ready to start talks "immediately" on a US-sponsored proposal for a Gaza ceasefire. The security cabinet was expected to meet after the end of the Jewish sabbath at sundown to discuss Israel's next steps, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to head to Washington for talks on Monday with US President Donald Trump. Trump has been making a renewed push to end nearly 21 months of war in Gaza, where the civil defence agency said 35 people were killed in Israeli military operations on Saturday. "No decision has been made yet on that issue," an Israeli government official told AFP when asked about Hamas's positive response to the latest ceasefire proposal. Hamas made its announcement late Friday after holding consultations with other Palestinian factions. "The movement is ready to engage immediately and seriously in a cycle of negotiations on the mechanism to put in place" the US-backed truce proposal, the militant group said in a statement. Two Palestinian sources close to the discussions told AFP that the proposal included a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and several bodies in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel. However, they said, the group was also demanding certain conditions for Israel's withdrawal, guarantees against a resumption of fighting during negotiations and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system. Hamas ally Islamic Jihad said it supported ceasefire talks, but demanded guarantees that Israel "will not resume its aggression" once hostages held in Gaza are freed. Trump, when asked about Hamas's response aboard Air Force One, said: "That's good. They haven't briefed me on it. We have to get it over with. We have to do something about Gaza." The war in Gaza began with Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked a massive Israeli offensive in the territory that aimed to destroy Hamas and bring home all the hostages seized by Palestinian militants.
Business Recorder
10 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Combating climate chaos: call to action
EDITORIAL: Speaking at the opening of an aid conference in Seville city of Spain on Monday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres noted that a two-thirds of the UN's sustainable development goals set for 2030 are off track, and over US$ 4 trillion in annual investment is needed to combat climate chaos and support the world's most vulnerable populations. His message basically highlights the fact that climate change is no longer a distant threat; it is already upon us and accelerating. From record-breaking heatwaves in Europe and North America to cycles of deadly floods and droughts in South Asia and Africa, climate-related disasters are exacting a rising toll on human lives, economies, and ecological systems. A key issue on the agenda in Seville was the urgent need to reform the international financial system to help poorer nations free themselves from mounting debt burdens that inhibit their respective capacity to achieve progress in healthcare, education and climate resilience. As per UN data, the total external debt of the least developed countries has more than tripled over the past 15 years. Many nations in the Global South, like Pakistan, have too small a carbon footprint, yet are most vulnerable to climate disasters brought on by global warming. Already facing the brunt of floods and droughts, they are forced to divert scarce resources away from economic development to debt servicing. The result is perpetuation of underdevelopment, vulnerability, and inequality. No surprise, then, that there is growing criticism from the Global South of the US-dominated global financial system, created in the aftermath of World War II, which they argue no longer reflects realities of today's interconnected world. Greater representation and equity are urgently needed. The UN chief has also highlighted a glaring imbalance: while some nations continue to subsidise fossil fuels, others are left struggling to fund clean energy transitions or recover from climate catastrophes. This is not only unfair; this is dangerously short-sighted. Since we are all in this together the response must reflect that reality. The industrialised wealthiest nations, responsible for the vast majority of historical greenhouse gas emissions, owe a climate debt to developing nations. The Seville conference offers a vital opportunity to reset the climate and development agenda. For far too long, the international financial architecture has served the interests of the rich and powerful nations. What is needed now is major reform of the international finance system, with a focus on increasing access to concessional finance, restructuring unsustainable debt, and introduction of innovative instruments such as climate-resilient debt clauses and green bonds. No less important, institutions like the IMF and the World Bank need to evolve from crisis lenders to proactive enables of sustainable development. The time for decisive, collective action is now. The longer the transition is delayed, the more costly and painful it will become. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
