Oman condemns Israeli Knesset's bill to impose sovereignty on West Bank
In a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry, Oman warned that such actions undermine international legitimacy, threaten the prospects for lasting peace in the Middle East, and violate the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and the two-state solution.
The statement also reiterated Oman's strong denunciation of Israel's continued imposition of a blockade and starvation policy in the occupied Palestinian territories, especially in Gaza, including the obstruction of humanitarian aid such as food and medicine.
Oman held Israel fully responsible for the legal, humanitarian, and political consequences of these practices, which constitute a clear breach of international humanitarian law.
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Observer
2 hours ago
- Observer
Israel declares Gaza fighting pause amid hunger crisis
Israel declared a "tactical pause" in fighting in parts of Gaza on Sunday and said it would allow the UN and aid agencies to open secure land routes to tackle a deepening hunger crisis. The military also said it had begun air-dropping food into the territory and rejected allegations it was using starvation as a weapon against Palestinian civilians. In a statement, the army said it coordinated its decisions with the UN and international organisations to "increase the scale of humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip". There was no immediate official response from the UN or non-governmental aid agencies operating in Gaza, and privately sceptical humanitarian sources said they were waiting to see the results on the ground of the Israeli announcement. The pause in fighting would be limited to areas where the military says Israeli troops are not currently operating -- Al-Mawasi, Deir el-Balah, and Gaza City -- and last from 10:00 am (0700 GMT) until 8:00 pm every day. But the Israeli statement added that "designated secure routes" had been opened across all of Gaza to enable the safe passage of UN and humanitarian aid organisation convoys delivering and distributing food and medicine. Before Israel announced the airborne delivery of seven pallets of food, the United Arab Emirates had said it would restart aid drops, and Britain said it would work with partners, including Jordan, to assist them. On Saturday alone, the Palestinian civil defence agency said over 50 more Palestinians had been killed in Israeli strikes and shootings, some as they waited near aid distribution centres. 'Starving civilians' - Several Western and Arab governments carried out air drops in Gaza in 2024, when aid deliveries by land also faced Israeli restrictions, but many in the humanitarian community consider them ineffective. "Air drops will not reverse the deepening starvation," said Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. "They are expensive, inefficient, and can even kill starving civilians." Israel's military insists it does not limit the number of trucks going into Gaza, and alleges that UN agencies and relief groups are not collecting aid once it is inside the territory. But humanitarian organisations accuse the army of imposing excessive restrictions while tightly controlling road access within Gaza. A separate aid operation is underway through the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. But it has faced fierce international criticism after Israeli fire killed hundreds of Palestinians near distribution points.
Observer
a day ago
- Observer
Thai-Cambodia clashes spread along frontier
Thailand and Cambodia pounded each other with heavy artillery fire for a third day on Saturday, as a border conflict that killed at least 33 people and displaced more than 150,000 from their homes spread across the frontier. Clashes broke out for the first time in the countries' coastal regions where they meet on the Gulf of Thailand, around 250 kilometres southwest of the main frontlines thumping with blasts on Saturday afternoon. 'It feels like I'm escaping a war zone,' 76-year-old Samlee Sornchai said at a temple shelter for evacuees in the Thai town of Kanthararom, after abandoning his farm near the embattled frontier. Both sides say they are open to a truce in the combat being fought with jets, tanks and ground troops, but have accused the other of undermining armistice efforts. Tensions initially flared over long-contested ancient temple sites before fighting spread along the countries' rural border region, marked by a ridge of hills surrounded by wild jungle and agricultural land where locals farm rubber and rice. Cambodia's defence ministry said 13 people have been confirmed killed in the fighting since Thursday, including eight civilians and five soldiers, with 71 people wounded. Thai authorities say 13 civilians and seven soldiers have been killed on their side, taking the toll across both nations higher than it was in the last major round of fighting between 2008 and 2011. Both sides reported a coastline clash around 5:00 am on Saturday, with Cambodia accusing Thai forces of firing 'five heavy artillery shells' into Pursat province, bordering Thailand's Trat province. The conflict has also forced more than 138,000 people to be evacuated from Thailand's border regions, and more than 35,000 driven from their homes in Cambodia. After an urgent UN Security Council meeting in New York on Friday, Cambodia's UN ambassador Chhea Keo said his country wanted a ceasefire. 'Cambodia asked for an immediate ceasefire — unconditionally — and we also call for the peaceful solution of the dispute,' he told reporters. Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said on Saturday that for any ceasefire or talks to proceed, Cambodia needed to show 'genuine sincerity in ending the conflict'. 'I urge Cambodia to stop violating Thai sovereignty and to return to resolving the issue through bilateral dialogue,' Maris told reporters. Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura said on Friday, before the UN meeting was held, that Bangkok was open to talks, possibly aided by Malaysia. Malaysia currently holds the chair of the ASEAN regional bloc, of which Thailand and Cambodia are both members. Both sides have blamed the other for firing first. Additionally, Cambodia has accused Thai forces of using cluster munitions, while Thailand accused Cambodia of targeting civilian infrastructure, including a hospital hit by shells and a petrol station struck by at least one rocket. Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra — still an influential figure in the kingdom — visited shelters on Saturday to meet evacuees. — AFP
Observer
a day ago
- Observer
Hamas rejects Trump take on Gaza talks breakdown
Hamas officials expressed surprise on Saturday at US President Donald Trump's accusation that the group 'didn't really want' a ceasefire and hostage release deal for Gaza. Trump made the allegation of Friday a day after Israel and the United States quit indirect negotiations with Hamas in Qatar that had lasted nearly three weeks. 'Trump's remarks are particularly surprising, especially as they come at a time when progress had been made on some of the negotiation files', Hamas official Taher al Nunu. 'So far, we have not been informed of any issues regarding the files under discussion in the indirect ceasefire negotiations', he added. Al Nunu, who is close to Hamas's most senior political officials, said he was 'surprised' that Israel and the United States had left the talks. Announcing the recall of US mediators on Thursday, Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff accused Hamas of not 'acting in good faith'. Though not part of the Hamas negotiating team, Hamas politburo member Izzat al Rishq insisted the group had shown 'flexibility' in the talks. 'The American statements deliberately ignore the real obstructionist to all agreements, Netanyahu's government, which continues to put obstacles, deceive and evade commitments', he said. Both Hamas officials called on the United States to be more even-handed in its role as mediator in the quest for a ceasefire after more than 21 months of fighting. 'We call for an end to the US bias in favour of Netanyahu, who is obstructing any agreement', Al Nunu said. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Saturday spoke to his French and German counterparts and outlined UK plans to get aid to people in Gaza and evacuate sick and injured children, his office said. 'The prime minister set out how the UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance', a statement said. In a phone conversation, Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza 'which they agreed is appalling'. 'They all agreed it would be vital to ensure robust plans are in place to turn an urgently needed ceasefire into lasting peace', according to a readout released by Downing Street. 'They discussed their intention to work closely together on a plan... which would pave the way to a long-term solution and security in the region. They agreed that once this plan was worked up, they would seek to bring in other key partners, including in the region, to advance it', it added. The discussion comes a day after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slammed the international community for turning a blind eye to widespread starvation in the Gaza Strip, calling it a 'moral crisis that challenges the global conscience'. Aid groups have warned of surging cases of starvation, particularly among children, in war-ravaged Gaza, which Israel placed under an aid blockade in March amidst its ongoing war with Hamas. That blockade was partially eased two months later. The trickle of aid since then has been controlled by the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. In Gaza, civil defence agency said Israeli operations killed 11 people on Saturday in the Palestinian territory devastated by over 21 months of war. Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said that the toll included four Palestinians killed in an air strike on the Al Rimal neighbourhood of Gaza City in the territory's north. One other person was killed 'after Israeli forces opened fire on people waiting for humanitarian aid' northwest of Gaza City, the agency said. Eyewitnesses said that several thousand people had gathered in the area to wait for aid. One of them, Abu Samir Hamoudeh, 42, said the Israeli military opened fire 'while the people were waiting to approach the distribution point', located near an Israeli military post in the Zikim area, northwest of Sudaniyah. Another man was killed by a drone strike near the southern city of Khan Yunis, while one was killed by artillery fire in the Al Bureij camp in central Gaza, the civil defence said. Bassal also said that civil defence teams on Saturday recovered the bodies of 12 people in the area of the Morag Corridor north of Rafah following Israeli bombardment the previous night. — AFP
