Yemen's Houthis claim missile attack targeting Israeli airport
Yemen's Houthis said they targeted Israel's main airport Tuesday for the second time since Israel struck a rebel-held port a day earlier, with the Israeli army reporting it had intercepted the missile.
The Houthis targeted Ben Gurion International Airport "using a 'Palestine 2' hypersonic ballistic missile", according to military spokesman Yarya Saree, who had hours earlier claimed a similar attack.
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L'Orient-Le Jour
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Facing the 'targeting' of its community, Hezbollah advocates internal unity
In these tense times in the region, many observers have recalled that in a recent speech, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem warned of an 'existential threat against the resistance, its popular environment, its supporters, as well as against Lebanon and all its components.' At the time, the statement was widely seen as an attempt by Qassem to amplify the perceived threat to Hezbollah and its support base, as a means of justifying the group's continued possession of weapons. But in light of recent events in Sweida, those remarks have taken on new meaning. According to several Shiite figures, the United States is now backing the region's main community — the Sunnis — at the expense of minorities. One such figure said Israeli conduct during last year's war with Hezbollah indicates the entire Shiite community, not just Hezbollah supporters, is being targeted. He cited the harassment and targeting of Shiites not only in southern villages and Beirut, but also in Kesrouan, Jbeil, and even Zgharta, arguing that Israel appears intent on pushing the entire Shiite community out of southern Lebanon — not just Hezbollah operatives. These fears have deepened since regime change in Syria brought to power a president from the Sunni community, particularly its Islamist wing. Among the Shiite community in Lebanon — and Hezbollah in particular — there is now a growing sense of persecution when it comes to Syria, especially following sectarian violence against Alawites along Syria's coast, attacks on Christian holy sites and recent fighting targeting the Druze in Sweida. While the various developments in Syria may not be directly linked, Shiite figures say they are watching closely the shifts happening in Lebanon's Sunni community. In the months after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack and Hezbollah's decision to open a support front in southern Lebanon, many Sunnis were reportedly supportive of Hezbollah's stance. But since Ahmad al-Sharaa came to power in Damascus, this mood has shifted, and many Sunnis have reverted to a more traditionally hostile stance toward Hezbollah, the source said. In this context, Saudi Arabia has begun taking a more active role in Lebanon — particularly in support of the Sunni community, which has felt politically abandoned since the de facto political exit of its former leader, Future Movement chief Saad Hariri. For nearly eight months — since just before the Jan. 9, 2025, presidential election — Saudi Arabia has sent multiple delegations to Lebanon, including a special envoy, Prince Yazid bin Farhan. Riyadh also encouraged Grand Mufti Abdellatif Derian to visit Syria at the head of a large delegation and facilitated a meeting between the Lebanese and Syrian defense ministers in Jeddah to address bilateral tensions. According to the same Shiite figures, these moves are part of a broader American strategy. The U.S., they say, is now placing its bets on the Sunni communities in Lebanon, Syria, and possibly even Iraq to shift the regional balance and reduce hostility toward Israel. They believe Washington has already tried to court the region's minorities — from Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War, to the Alawite regime in Syria (with Secretary of State Colin Powell making overtures to Bashar al-Assad in 2003), to Lebanon's Christians — without success. Now, the U.S. is once again betting on the Sunnis and is using all tools at its disposal to encourage normalization with Israel. All of these developments have led some in the Shiite community to fear that they are being collectively targeted. Hezbollah, for its part, remains convinced that the ultimate U.S.-Israeli goal is to bring down the Iranian regime, thereby depriving Shiites of the only state capable of supporting them. Still, sources close to Hezbollah deny that the party harbors any offensive intentions. On the contrary, they say, Hezbollah is working to reinforce internal peace, primarily to protect its own community, which, in their view, has no choice but to draw closer to other communities in Lebanese society.
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Why is France recognizing Palestinian statehood and who else has?
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced he will recognise Palestinian statehood, drawing angry rebukes from Israel and the United States and opening the door for other major nations to potentially like Britain and Canada to perhaps follow suit. Below are some details about Macron's announcement, driven by a rising global outcry over starvation and devastation in Gaza amid Israel's war against Hamas militants, as well as other nations' push to have Palestinian statehood recognised. What did Macron say? Macron published a letter sent to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas confirming France's intention to press ahead with recognition and work to convince other partners to do the same. He said he would make a formal announcement at the United Nations General Assembly next month. France is now the first major Western country to shift its diplomatic stance on a Palestinian state, after Spain, Ireland and Norway officially recognised one last year. Why is this significant? The decision to recognize Palestinian statehood is mostly symbolic, with Israel occupying the territories where the Palestinians have long aimed to establish that state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital. But it makes Israel appear more isolated on the international stage over the war in Gaza, which is suffering from a wave of hunger that the World Health Organization's chief said this week amounts to man-made mass starvation. Israel says it is committed to allowing aid into Gaza but must control it to prevent it being diverted by militants. It says it has let enough food into Gaza during the war and blames Hamas for the suffering of Gaza's 2.2 million people. Why did Macron do this? Macron had been leaning towards the move for months as part of a bid to keep the idea of a two-state solution alive, despite the pressure not to do so. He decided to do it ahead of a U.N. conference co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia on the matter next week to try to sway other countries considering that step, or those that are wavering. What impact could it have on French ties with Israel? Ahead of Macron's announcement, Israeli officials had spent months lobbying to prevent what some had called "a nuclear bomb" for bilateral relations. Sources familiar with the matter say Israel's warnings to France had ranged from scaling back intelligence-sharing to complicating Paris' regional initiatives - even hinting at possible annexation of parts of the West Bank. Who could be next? The decision by France, which is home to Europe's largest Jewish and Muslim communities alike, could fuel a movement so far dominated by smaller nations generally more critical of Israel. It will put pressure on major countries like Britain, Germany, Australia, Canada and Japan to follow suit. In the immediate term, Malta and Belgium could be the next countries within the European Union to do so. A British cabinet minister said on Friday that Britain supports eventual recognition of a Palestinian state, but the immediate priority should be alleviating the suffering in Gaza and securing a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. Who else has recognized Palestinian statehood? Last year, Ireland, Norway and Spain recognised a Palestinian state with its borders to be demarcated as they were prior to the 1967 Middle East war, when Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem. However, they also recognised that those borders may change in any eventual talks to reach a final settlement, and that their decisions did not diminish their belief in Israel's fundamental right to exist in peace and security. About 144 of the 193 member states of the United Nations recognise Palestine as a state, including most of the global south as well as Russia, China and India. But only a handful of the 27 European Union members do so, mostly former Communist countries as well as Sweden and Cyprus. The U.N. General Assembly approved the de facto recognition of the sovereign state of Palestine in November 2012 by upgrading its observer status at the world body to "non-member state" from "entity." How did the US, Israel and Palestinians react? Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the decision by France, one of Israel's closest allies and a G7 member, saying such a move "rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy". Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz described it as "a disgrace and a surrender to terrorism". He added that Israel would not allow the establishment of a "Palestinian entity that would harm our security, endanger our existence". U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States "strongly rejects [Macron's] plan to recognize a Palestinian state at the U.N. General Assembly." "This reckless decision only serves Hamas propaganda and sets back peace," Rubio posted on X. "It is a slap in the face to the victims of Oct. 7th" — a reference to Hamas' 2023 cross-border attack on Israel that set off the Gaza war. Thanking France, the Palestinian Authority's Vice President Hussein Al Sheikh said Macron's decision reflected "France's commitment to international law and its support for the Palestinian people's rights to self-determination and the establishment of our independent state".
