Search focused on the Middle East

50+ min ago (333+ words) ALBAWABA - Shujoun Al Hajri mourns her father Matar Al-Hajri after long illness. Shujoun Al Hajri, an actress, said that her father, Matar Al-Hajri, had died after a protracted fight with illness. She said that the funeral would be on Saturday after the Asr prayer and that people might send their condolences for the next three days. Celebrities and regular people had a lot to say about this news. Shujoun also prayed for her father with all her heart, saying, "O God, forgive Matar Al-Hajri, have mercy on him, pardon him, honor his resting place, expand his grave, wash him with water, snow, and hail, and cleanse him of sins as a white garment is cleansed of dirt." Give him a better home and family than the ones he has now. "May God give him Heaven." Both regular people and celebrities…...

1+ hour, 9+ min ago (763+ words) ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 792 Simcha Goldin said the Hamas onslaught of October 7, 2023, was the result of successive governments" refusal to heed his family"s calls to pressure the terror group to return his son Hadar, whose remains were finally returned by Hamas last month, 11 years after he was killed fighting in Gaza. Very few government members, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have visited the family since Hadar"s return, said Goldin: "Probably their conscience doesn"t allow it." "Netanyahu " he just doesn"t know what to do with Hamas" We saw that he is very wary of conflict," said Goldin. "It was the same story for nine-and-a-half years, including in Bennett"s year." Goldin also blamed the failure to return his son on the four IDF chiefs who served from when his son was kidnapped to the October 7 attack. These…...

1+ hour, 19+ min ago (191+ words) Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told Reuters on Saturday that Hamas is willing to relinquish control of Gaza, but only if a credible Palestinian administration and a trained, non-Hama... Gaza administration should come before Hamas disarmament, T'rkiye says Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told Reuters on Saturday that Hamas is willing to relinquish control of Gaza, but only if a credible Palestinian administration and a trained, non-Hamas police force are established first, conditions he said must precede any expectation that the group disarm. In an interview on the sidelines of the Doha Forum, Fidan said that without those initial steps, expecting Hamas to disarm in the first phase of the ceasefire deal is neither "realistic nor doable." He said the proposed police force would exclude Hamas members and would be backed by an international stabilization force. He added that Washington was pressing…...

1+ hour, 38+ min ago (1481+ words) ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 792 Rossella Tercatin is The Times of Israel's archaeology and religions reporter. When the Yom Kippur War broke out in Israel on October 6, 1973, American citizen Thomas Levy was in Athens studying Greek after working at a dig in a small prehistoric site in the north of the country. Twenty years old at the time, he made his way to Israel to help out and spent two months milking cows at Kibbutz Eilot in the Arava Valley before flying back to Arizona, where he was attending college. Today a prominent archaeologist, Levy tells the story in his newly released autobiography, "The Boomer Archaeologist " A Graphic Memoir of Tribes, Identity and the Holy Land," illustrated by Levy's niece Lily Almeida and published by British academic publisher Equinox. "This book is my story, a personal kind of coming-of-age story, but…...

1+ hour, 51+ min ago (925+ words) ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 792 Deni Avdija made Israeli basketball history on Friday, becoming the country's all-time leading NBA scorer as he has turned into a true star player for the Portland Trailblazers in his fifth season in the league. While Avdija has been a solid player since entering the league in 2020, he has emerged this season as the star player on his team, and has a real chance at becoming Israel's first-ever NBA All-Star if he keeps up his current pace. The 24-year-old forward entered Friday's game against the Detroit Pistons needing 30 points to surpass former Sacramento Kings forward Omri Casspi's career tally of 4,642. Despite the loss to Detroit, Avdija scored 35 points on incredible efficiency, pushing his total to 4,648 points and cementing a new national milestone. The achievement added to a breakout season already filled with personal highs for Avdija,…...

2+ hour, 2+ min ago (71+ words) [Members of the Lebanese police look through a door at a Byblos Bank branch where an armed depositor took hostages according to the Depositors]The alleged killer's sons told police their father would beat and torture the wife in front of them. Lebanese man accused of murdering Syrian wife, torturing her with scalding oil The alleged killer's sons told police their father would beat and torture the wife in front of them....

2+ hour, 35+ min ago (75+ words) [Ghassan Al-Duhaini greets troops in Gaza. (photo credit: screenshot, SECTION 27A COPYRIGHT ACT)]In an interview with N12 News, Al-Duhaini said that he fights Hamas "in the name of the people and the free individuals." Abu Shabab's deputy speaks out after appointment: 'Why would I be afraid of Hamas?' In an interview with N12 News, Al-Duhaini said that he fights Hamas "in the name of the people and the free individuals."...

2+ hour, 35+ min ago (128+ words) Zahle is getting ready for one of the biggest Christmas events in Lebanon, and it is the first time the entire Bekaa sees a festival on this scale. From December 12 to 31, the Municipality of Zahle, Moallaka, and Taanayel is bringing Zahle Magical Christmas to life, turning the Berdawni parking area into a full winter village packed with lights, music, food, and snow. The opening ceremony takes place on December 12 at 5:30 PM, kicking off nearly three weeks of holiday celebrations. Here is what you will find: The festival will wrap up with a big New Year's Eve countdown and fireworks show, welcoming 2026 in true Zahle style. If you are planning Christmas outings this year, this one should be high on the list....

2+ hour, 44+ min ago (1008+ words) ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 792 With the remains of just one hostage still in Gaza, the weekly Saturday night rallies that have been a hallmark of the struggle to free the captives shifted to a Tel Aviv ceremony to welcome Shabbat on Friday evening, with family members of Ran Gvili insisting that Israel refuse to move ahead with the Gaza peace deal until he is returned. As the hostage rallies ended, anti-government protests were set to take center stage Saturday night. As part of the October 9 Gaza ceasefire deal, Hamas on Wednesday returned the body of Sudthisak Rinthalak, a Thai farmer killed in Kibbutz Alumim on October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel to kill some 1,200 people and take 251 hostages. Police Master Sgt." Gvili, killed fending off terrorists in Kibbutz Alumim, is now the last remaining hostage taken during…...

3+ hour, 27+ min ago (57+ words) [Qatar]Mediators are working together to force the next phase of ceasefire forward, he said during a panel at the Doha Forum conference in Qatar. Gaza talks at 'critical' moment, Qatari prime minister says Mediators are working together to force the next phase of ceasefire forward, he said during a panel at the Doha Forum conference in Qatar....