49+ min ago (493+ words) Request submitted weeks after Donald Trump called on Isaac Herzog to pardon Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked Israel's president for a pardon for bribery and fraud charges and an end to a five-year corruption trial, arguing that it would be in the "public interest. Isaac Herzog's office acknowledged receipt of the 111-page submission from the prime minister's lawyer, and said it had been passed on to the pardons department in the ministry of justice. The president's legal adviser would also formulate an opinion before Herzog made a decision, it added. "The office of the president is aware that this is an extraordinary request which carries with it significant implications, a statement from his office said. "After receiving all of the relevant opinions, the president will responsibly and sincerely consider the request. The submission on Sunday comes weeks after…...

23+ hour, 35+ min ago (564+ words) Committee highlights allegations including dog attacks and sexual violence, raising concern about impunity for war crimes Israel has "a de facto state policy of organised and widespread torture, according to a new UN report covering the past two years, which also raised concerns about the impunity of Israeli security forces for war crimes. The UN committee on torture expressed "deep concern over allegations of repeated severe beatings, dog attacks, electrocution, waterboarding, use of prolonged stress positions [and] sexual violence. The report, published on Friday as part of the committee's regular monitoring of countries which have signed the UN convention against torture, also said Palestinian detainees were humiliated by "being made to act like animals or being urinated on, were systematically denied medical care and subject to excessive use of restraints, "in some cases resulting in amputation. The new UN report,…...

1+ day, 11+ hour ago (633+ words) Locked away in prison for decades, Marwan Barghouti is a longstanding advocate for a two-state solution A global campaign is being launched to secure the release of Marwan Barghouti, the Palestinian prisoner seen by many as the best hope of leading a future Palestinian state, as negotiations continue in the context of the current Gaza ceasefire. The campaign, being led by Barghouti's West Bank-based family with UK civil society support, is seeking to put the 66-year-old's fate at the centre of the next stage of the ceasefire. Successive opinion polls show he is the most popular Palestinian politician in Gaza and the West Bank. Murals with the words Free Marwan, coordinated by Calum Hall, the founder of Creative Debuts, a creative consultancy and art platform, have started to appear in London, and a huge public art installation appeared in the…...

1+ day, 23+ hour ago (165+ words) Video of an Israeli military raid in the West Bank shows soldiers summarily executing two Palestinians they had detained seconds earlier.The shooting on Thursday evening, which was also witnessed by journalists close to the scene, is under review by the justice ministry, but has already been defended by Israel's far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who said 'terrorists must die'. Julian Borger, the Guardian's senior international correspondent based in Jerusalem, analyses footage of the event Continue reading... Moment Israeli forces shoot dead surrendered Palestinians " video report Video of an Israeli military raid in the West Bank shows soldiers summarily executing two Palestinians they had detained seconds earlier. The shooting on Thursday evening, which was also witnessed by journalists close to the scene, is under review by the justice ministry, but has already been defended by Israel's far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who…...

2+ day, 6+ hour ago (588+ words) Far-right minister defends killing of two men in Jenin, saying "terrorists must die" Video of an Israeli military raid in Jenin shows soldiers summarily executing two Palestinians they had detained seconds earlier. The shooting on Thursday evening, which was also witnessed by journalists close to the scene, is under justice ministry review, but has already been defended by Israel"s far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who declared: "terrorists must die. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement admitting two men were shot during a joint IDF operation with the Israeli border police around Jenin. It said the shooting "is under review by the commanders on the ground and will be transferred to the relevant professional bodies. The footage, which has circulated widely within Israeli and Arab media, shows Israeli soldiers surrounding what appears to be a storage facility in an…...

2+ day, 23+ hour ago (463+ words) Amnesty International has said that Israel is "still committing genocide" against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, despite the ceasefire agreed last month. The fragile, US-brokered truce between Israel and Hamas came into effect on October 10, after two years of war. "The ceasefire risks creating a dangerous illusion that life in Gaza is returning to normal," said Amnesty's chief, Agn's Callamard. "But while Israeli authorities and forces have reduced the scale of their attacks and allowed limited amounts of humanitarian aid into Gaza, the world must not be fooled. Israel's genocide is not over." Contacted by AFP, the Israeli foreign ministry did not immediately respond to the allegations. When faced with such allegations previously, the ministry has vehemently rejected them as "entirely false", "fabricated" and "based on lies". In December 2024, Amnesty concluded that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza by three…...

3+ day, 2+ hour ago (547+ words) Rahmeh Aladwan barred from practising for 15 months pending inquiry amid claims she "celebrated terrorist acts" An NHS doctor accused of antisemitism has been suspended for 15 months pending an investigation, the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) in the UK has ruled. The General Medical Council (GMC) is investigating Dr Rahmeh Aladwan over posts and comments made across various social media platforms after several complaints, including from the Jewish Medical Association UK and the Campaign Against Antisemitism. The GMC counsel Emma Gilsenan told the MPTS hearing that Aladwan"s posts included content that allegedly "justifies terrorism, denies sexual violence, includes antisemitic conspiracy theories, misuses Holocaust and Nazi imagery and expresses support for proscribed groups and terrorist acts. She added that Aladwan, a British Palestinian trainee in trauma and orthopaedics, had allegedly referred to the Royal Free hospital in London as a "Jewish…...

3+ day, 22+ hour ago (165+ words) Displaced Palestinians in Gaza are struggling with extensive flooding after heavy rain hit the strip this week. Forced to scoop out water from their tents, many worry about disease. The Palestinian civil defence authority reported that thousands of tents sheltering displaced families were flooded or damaged. The UN said on Monday that Israel was still limiting the number of trucks bringing aid into the strip, even as winter approaches Shelter and food in desperately short supply as Gaza braces for harsh winter Continue reading... 'We are getting sick': heavy rainstorms flood tent camps in Gaza " video Displaced Palestinians in Gaza are struggling with extensive flooding after heavy rain hit the strip this week. Forced to scoop out water from their tents, many worry about disease. The Palestinian civil defence authority reported that thousands of tents sheltering displaced families were flooded…...

4+ day, 6+ hour ago (510+ words) Israeli military and security service say "broad counter-terrorism operation" in Tubas to continue for several days Israeli armoured vehicles and hundreds of soldiers have conducted raids in the Palestinian town of Tubas near Nablus in the biggest such military deployment by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank since the ceasefire came into effect in Gaza last month. Palestinian media reported that a curfew was imposed on Tuesday night on Tubas and some neighbouring communities, roads were closed by earthen barriers and families forced from their homes to allow Israeli forces to use the buildings. Israeli"s military and internal security service said in a joint statement that they had launched "a broad counter-terrorism operation" that was expected to continue for several days. Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper, reported that leaflets distributed by Israeli military in Tubas had informed people that…...

5+ day ago (460+ words) A year since deal agreed, UN calls for investigation into possible violations of international law by all parties At least 127 civilians have been killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since a ceasefire was declared nearly a year ago, the UN has said as it called for an impartial investigation into the strikes. "We continue to witness increasing attacks by the Israeli military, resulting in the killing of civilians and destruction of civilian objects in Lebanon, coupled with alarming threats of a wider, intensified offensive," said Thameen Al-Kheetan, spokesperson for the UN human rights office, at a Geneva press briefing. Lebanon has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement " which sought to bring to an end more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah " by continuing its strikes and maintaining forces inside its territory. Israel has said Hezbollah is working to…...