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⚡️ Syria: Agreement between authorities, Jaramana Druze after clashes
Representatives of the Syrian government and the Druze of Jaramana reached an agreement on Tuesday aimed at ending clashes and bringing to justice those who launched an assault on this Damascus suburb, a participant in the meeting told AFP.
Rabih Mounzer, a Druze representative present at the meeting with the authorities, affirmed that “an agreement has been reached,” after the clashes that left 14 dead in the ranks of security forces and local Druze fighters. The text, consulted by AFP, stipulates that “those responsible for the attack will be prosecuted and brought to justice.”
UN calls for 'courage' to save two-state solution
The U.N. Secretary-General has called on world leaders to show “political courage” to save the two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in security.
The two-state solution, a “central issue” for peace throughout the region, “is close to the point of no return,” Antonio Guterres told the Security Council, referring to Israeli military operations in Gaza, where the situation has gone from “bad, to worse, to unimaginable,” but also in the occupied West Bank. But “the world cannot afford to watch the two-state solution disappear,” he pleaded, calling on states to take “irreversible steps” to implement it “before it's too late.”
“At this time of turmoil and transition for the region, member states must explain in detail how they want the commitment and promise of the two-state solution to become a reality. This is no longer the time for supporting ceremonies, ticking a box and moving on,” he stressed, underlining the importance of the international conference on this issue organized by the U.N. General Assembly in June.
“Faced with the facts on the ground, the prospect of a Palestinian state must be protected,” said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, whose country co-sponsored the conference with Saudi Arabia. “Our objective is clear: to make parallel progress on the recognition of Palestine and the normalization of relations with Israel,” he added.
Commemorating fallen soldiers, Netanyahu vows to work towards 'victory' in Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to work until “victory” in the war in Gaza, at the start of annual commemorations for soldiers who fell in Israel's military.
“In the name of the fallen and their honor, we will continue our mission until victory, including the return of all our hostages” still held in the Palestinian territory since the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, Netanyahu said in a video released by his office.
The world must stop 'catastrophe' in Gaza Strip, demands UN
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has called on the international community to stop a “humanitarian catastrophe” in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is blocking international aid.
“Concerted international efforts must be made to prevent this humanitarian catastrophe from reaching a new all-time high,” urged Türk in a statement. “Israel appears to be inflicting living conditions on Palestinians in Gaza that are increasingly incompatible with their continued existence as a group in Gaza,” he added. “Any use of starvation against the civilian population as a method of warfare constitutes a war crime, as does any form of collective punishment,” Türk added in his statement.
Türk also warned that a plan attributed to Israel to declare the Rafah governorate in the far south of the Palestinian territory a new “humanitarian zone” would force people to go there to receive food and other aid. “Such a plan will almost certainly mean that large areas of Gaza and people who cannot move around easily, including the disabled, the sick or wounded, and women who support entire families, will be forced to go without food,” he warned.
Five members of Kurdish forces killed by IS in eastern Syria, FDS announces
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (FDS) announced on Tuesday the deaths of five of its fighters in two attacks by the jihadist group Islamic State (IS) in eastern Syria.
“Five of our fighters fell as martyrs and others were wounded while repelling two terrorist attacks against a military position of our forces” in two localities, the FDS, the armed wing of the Kurdish autonomous administration, said in a statement quoted by AFP.
The FDS, which reported a series of “terrorist operations carried out by the IS in the Deir Ezzor region” announced that it had stepped up “security measures and patrols in the area, with the resurgence of sleeper cell activity.”
The municipality of Kfar Shima denies the presence of a Hezbollah warehouse in the area
The municipality of Kfar Shima, in Mount Lebanon, denied on Tuesday the presence of a warehouse belonging to Hezbollah in the locality, refuting a report broadcast the previous day by the Lebanese channel Al-Jadeed that the Lebanese Army had carried out a search there.
During a pre-Memorial Day speech in the West Bank, Israeli far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, specified several conditions for Israel to stop fighting.
“We will end this campaign when Syria is dismantled, Hezbollah is severely beaten, Iran is stripped of its nuclear threat, Gaza is cleansed of Hamas and hundreds of thousands of Gazans are on their way out of it to other countries, our hostages are returned ... and Israel is stronger and more prosperous,” he said, according to the Israeli newspaper The Times of Israel.
Israel frees Gaza medic detained since ambulance attack
Israel released from detention on Tuesday a medic held since a deadly Israeli attack on ambulances in southern Gaza on 23 March.
"The occupation forces have just released medic Asaad al-Nsasrah, who was detained on March 23, 2025, while performing his humanitarian duty during the massacre of medical teams in the Tel al-Sultan area of Rafah Governorate", the Palestine Red Crescent Society said in a statement.
Clashes near Damascus: Syria to 'Pursue armed men involved
Syria's Interior Ministry announced it will "pursue" those involved in recent clashes in the majority-Druze area of Jaramana, near Damascus, which erupted amid sectarian tensions. In a statement, the ministry said "armed groups" were behind the violence and reported unspecified numbers of dead and injured. It added that government forces have been deployed "to protect residents."
Over 50 UNRWA staff arrested and mistreated by Israel since 2023
The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said that more than 50 UNRWA staff members have been arrested and "inhumanely treated" by Israel since the war in Gaza began. None of those detained are currently being held, according to UNRWA.
Israel recently passed a law banning the U.N. agency from operating on its territory, after accusing some staff of involvement in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the ongoing conflict.
“Since the war began in October 2023, over 50 UNRWA personnel — including teachers, doctors, and social workers — were arrested and subjected to shocking mistreatment,” Lazzarini wrote on social media platform X. “They reported being beaten, used as human shields, denied sleep, humiliated, threatened with violence against themselves and their families, and attacked by dogs. Many were forced to make false confessions,” he added. “This is simply appalling and outrageous.”
South Africa accuses Israel of acting with 'impunity' at ICJ hearings
Zane Dangor, Director-General of South Africa's Department of International Relations, launched today's proceedings at the International Court of Justice with strong condemnation of Israel's actions.
Key accusations presented: In his opening statement, Dangor made several critical allegations:
"Under the world's watchful eye, Palestinians are being subjected to atrocity, crimes, persecution, apartheid and genocide."
"While we watch, the gaze of Palestinians is directed squarely at the international community."
Claims of Israeli exceptionalism: The South African representative argued:
We wish to emphasize the impunity with which Israel is inflicting these harms. Israel continues to act with impunity as it does enjoy some form of exceptionalism from accountability to international law and norms.
Any country or entity, which seeks to hold Israel accountable for its inhumane and unlawful actions, is subject to countermeasures and sanctions from which the UN and this court has not been spared.
Focus on Unrwa controversy: Dangor connected recent attacks on the UN agency to broader political aims:
"In this context, the UN and Unrwa is one of the latest casualties of Israel."
"UNRWA is being attacked to deny the inalienable old right of the return of Palestinian refugees, the restitution of their land and homes appropriated since 1948, and [to] further [Israel's] apartheid policy."
"The attacks also imperil the existence of Palestinians as a group."
Israeli army destroys nearly half of prefabricated homes in Southern Lebanon
According to a document released by the South Council and obtained by L’Orient Today, the Israeli army has bombed nearly half of the prefabricated homes installed in southern Lebanese villages as temporary housing and logistical support solutions. The Council's data shows that 47 out of 102 prefabricated units have been destroyed since their installation following the start of the truce in Nov. 2024, up to April 29, 2025.
The most affected areas include Yaroun, where all six units were destroyed, Kfar Kila (5 out of 5), Naqoura (7 out of 10), and Chihine (14 out of 16). In Chihine, located in the Sour district, the two remaining units were moved outside the village. In Aita al-Shaab, five units were hit while nine remain standing. Ramieh was spared entirely, with none of its 14 prefabricated homes targeted, according to the Council’s figures.
ICJ hearings on Israel's obligations in Palestine enter second day
Global input on humanitarian crisis: A panel of 15 judges will hear testimony from at least 40 nations and organisations. The proceedings aim to produce an advisory opinion on Israel's humanitarian obligations toward Palestinians, as Gaza enters its 51st day under near-total aid blockade.
U.N. request triggers review: The U.N. General Assembly referred this matter to the ICJ in 2023 after Israel barred UNRWA from operating in territories under its control.
Parallel genocide case continues: These hearings are distinct from South Africa's genocide case against Israel at the ICJ. In January 2024, the court ordered Israel to prevent genocidal acts by ensuring humanitarian access, but the UN reports Israel has permitted no aid into Gaza since March 2, exacerbating famine risks. Israel rejects these allegations.
US warplane falls off carrier
U.S. warplane worth several million dollars fell from the aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman into the Red Sea on Monday, in an accident that injured a sailor, announced the U.S. Navy.
The tow vehicle pulling the fighter jet — a model costing $67 million in 2021 — also slipped from the ship and fell into the sea.
“The F/A-18E was being towed in the hangar when the movement crew lost control of the aircraft. The plane and the tow tractor went overboard,” the Navy said in a statement. “The sailors involved in the towing responded immediately to get out of the way before the aircraft fell into the sea,” the statement continued. “All personnel have been accounted for, with one sailor suffering a minor injury.”
'Significant breakthrough' in Gaza truce talks?
While two Egyptian security sources told Reuters on Monday night that talks in Cairo over a “long-term cease-fire” in Gaza had achieved a “significant breakthrough,” an Israeli political source cited by Israel’s Channel 12 denied the claim, calling it “inaccurate.”
“Israel continues to work tirelessly with the Americans and mediators to advance a deal to release our hostages, but no agreement has been reached so far,” the source stated.
Earlier on Monday, Egyptian state TV al-Qahera News reported that Egypt’s intelligence chief, General Hassan Mahmoud Rashad, was expected to meet an Israeli delegation led by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer in Cairo, as both sides continue participating in ongoing negotiations.
Four killed in clashes between security forces and Druze fighters near Damascus
Four people were killed in overnight clashes between Syrian security forces and Druze fighters in the Damascus suburb of Jaramana, amid rising sectarian tensions, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
The clashes reportedly followed the circulation of a voice message deemed blasphemous toward Islam and attributed to a Druze individual. A local resident told AFP that gunfire was heard throughout the night, with daily life paralyzed in the area by Tuesday morning.
US has lost seven MQ-9 reaper drones over Yemen since March
Since March 15, the U.S. has lost seven MQ-9 Reaper drones—each valued at $30 million—during airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen, according to a U.S. official speaking anonymously.
The latest drone loss occurred on April 22. The official did not specify whether the drones were shot down or crashed. In total, the losses amount to approximately $210 million.
Additionally, on Monday, a U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter jet—worth around $67 million—fell off the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman into the Red Sea in an accident that injured one sailor.
The U.S. has been conducting near-daily strikes on Houthi targets since mid-March to counter the threat they pose to commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
'The world is watching a genocide unfold live' in Gaza, says Amnesty International
In the foreword of Amnesty International’s annual human rights report, Secretary General Agnès Callamard accused Israel of committing a genocide in Gaza, saying, “Since October 7, 2023—when Hamas committed horrific crimes against Israeli civilians and took more than 250 hostages—the world has been watching a genocide unfold live on their screens.”
She continued, “States have looked on, seemingly powerless, as Israel has killed thousands of Palestinians, massacred entire families across generations, and destroyed homes, livelihoods, hospitals, and schools.”
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