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☆ As Azerbaijan claims final victory in Nagorno Karabakh, arms trade with Israel comes under scrutiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Max Saltman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

Israeli ‘realpolitik’Young ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh in the town of Goris during evacuations to Armenia on October 1. Hayk Baghdasaryan/Photolure/AP Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh drive to Goris on September 28. Vahan Stepanyan/PAN Photo/AP Volunteers distribute food to ethnic Armenians arriving in Goris from Nagorno-Karabakh on September 28. Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty Images Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh line up to receive humanitarian aid at a temporary camp in Goris on September 26. Wezeman, the researcher at SIPRI, said Israel could come under pressure from its Western allies to reconsider arms sales to Azerbaijan.

Persons: CNN —, Marut Vanyan, “ I’m, ”, “, Vanyan, Leonid Nersisyan, Rishon Le, Jack Guez, …, Pieter Wezeman, ” Wezeman, Emmanuel Dunand, Efraim Inbar, ” Inbar, Israel ’, Inbar, LORA, ” Hikmet Ajiyev, Ilham Aliyev, realpolitik, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Sergey Astsetryan, Aziz Karimov, Hayk, Vahan Stepanyan, Vasily Krestyaninov, Alain Jocard, Anatoly Matlsev, David Harapetyan, Irakli Gedenidze, Reuters Greta, Anthony Pizzoferrato, Samantha Power, Power, Astrig Agopian, Novlet, David Ghahramanyan, Israel Organizations: CNN, Azerbaijan, Applied Policy Research Institute, Israel Aerospace Industries, IAI, Autonomous Robotics, Getty, Haaretz, Artsakh Defense Army –, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense, Israeli Ministry of Defense, Ovda Airport, Israel, Jerusalem Institute for Strategy, “, APRI, Artsakh Defense Army, Reuters, AP, Erebuni, PAN, AP Volunteers, Karabakh, Technologies, US Agency for International Development, Volunteers, Vehicles, Red Cross, People, Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Stepanakert, Karabakh’s, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Rishon, Tel Aviv, AFP, Israel’s, Artsakh, Israel, Stockholm, Baku, Lachin, Iran, Iranian, Jerusalem, Ottoman, Turkey, Ottoman Empire, APRI Armenia, Syunik, Nakhchivan, Republic of Armenia, Goris, Yerevan, Kornidzor, Russia, United States

☆ Iran's Khamenei says normalising Israel ties is a losing bet - state media
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with commanders and a group of members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Tehran, Iran August 17, 2023. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDUBAI, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that countries seeking to normalise relations with Israel "are betting on a losing horse", state media reported on Tuesday. Khamenei did not identify the countries, but expectations that Israel might normalize ties with Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia, the home of Islam's two holiest shrines, have been ratcheted up this month. "The definite position of the Islamic Republic is that countries that make the gamble of normalisation with Israel will lose. Four Arab states have formalised ties with Israel in pacts known as the Abraham Accords -- the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco.

Persons: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Khamenei, Benjamin Netanyahu, Iran hasn't, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Israel, Netanyahu, Joe Biden, Abraham, Alex Richardson, William Maclean Organizations: Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iranian, West Asia News Agency, REUTERS, Rights, Iran's, Israel's, Abraham Accords, Saudi, MbS, U.S, United Arab, Dubai Newsroom, Thomson Locations: Tehran, Iran, Rights DUBAI, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Islamic Republic, Israeli, Saudi, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco

☆ UK Foreign Minister to Warn of Iran Threat on Visit to Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

On the visit that begins on Monday, Cleverly will hold talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh. He will hold talks with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and attend a demonstration of Israel's "Iron Dome" missile defence system. During a visit to the Palestinian territories, Cleverly will visit the Jalazone refugee camp in the West Bank to see Palestinian refugees. Violence in the West Bank has worsened over the past year with frequent Israeli raids and Palestinian street attacks. The Palestinians have limited self-rule in the West Bank and remain split between a Western-backed administration and armed Hamas Islamists who reject coexistence with Israel.

Persons: James, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohammed Shtayyeh, Eli Cohen, Andrew MacAskill, Edmund Blair Organizations: Israeli, Palestinian, Iran, West Bank, West Locations: Israel, Iran, West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, Israel's

☆ UK foreign minister to warn of Iran threat on visit to Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Persons: James, Peter Nicholls, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohammed Shtayyeh, Eli Cohen, Andrew MacAskill, Edmund Blair Organizations: British, REUTERS, Israeli, Palestinian, Iran, West Bank, West, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, Israel, Iran, West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, Israel's

☆ Netanyahu rues his foreign minister's disclosure of meeting with Libyan counterpart
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

JERUSALEM, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday appeared to shift blame to his top diplomat for the disclosure of a secret meeting with the Libyan foreign minister that has caused a backlash in Tripoli. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen's office on Aug. 26 went public with his having met Najla Mangoush, his Libyan counterpart, in Italy earlier in the month. The statement came on the heels of an Israeli media report about the meeting. The news triggered protests in Libya, which does not recognise Israel and where pro-Palestinian sentiment is strong, and led Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah to fire Mangoush. In the ANT1 interview, Netanyahu called the handling of the Cohen-Magoush meeting "an exception to the rule".

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Eli Cohen's, Najla Mangoush, Abdulhamid, Netanyahu, I've, Cohen, Dan Williams, Michele Kambas, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Libyan, Cypriot TV, Thomson Locations: Tripoli, Israeli, Italy, Libya, Israel, United States

☆ Libyan PM sacks foreign minister as row over Israel meeting grows
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] Libyan Foreign Minister Najla el-Mangoush attends a joint press conference at the conclusion of the Libya Stabilization Conference, in Tripoli, Libya, October 21, 2021. Mangoush had said her meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen in Rome was unplanned and informal, but an Israeli official told Reuters it had lasted two hours and was approved "at the highest levels in Libya". The meeting is contentious because Libya does not formally recognise Israel and there is widespread public support across the Libyan political spectrum for the Palestinian cause of creating an independent state in territory Israel occupies. The Libya prime minister sees Israel as a possible bridge to the West and the U.S. administration," the official said. Libya's parliament based in the east, which rejects the GNU, said on Sunday it would hold hearings into the meeting with the Israeli minister.

Persons: Najla, Mangoush, Hazem Ahmed, Najla Mangoush, Eli Cohen, Abdulhamid, Muammar Gaddafi, Cohen, Antonio Tajani, Dbeibah, Libya's, Abraham, Francesco Galietti, Giorgia Meloni, Dan Williams, Francesca Landini, Gavin Jones, Angus McDowall, James Mackenzie, Peter Graff, Mark Heinrich, Conor Humphries Organizations: Libyan Foreign, Libya Stabilization Conference, REUTERS, Rome Israeli, Israeli, Reuters, Protesters, Libya's Foreign, Palestinian, Libyan, U.S, United Arab, Abraham Accords, of National Unity, GNU, UAE, High State Council, Dbeibah, Italian, Thomson Locations: Libya, Tripoli, Rome, TRIPOLI, JERUSALEM, Israel, Benghazi, Italian, Italy, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, United States, Dbeibah's, Reuters Libya, Jerusalem

☆ Israeli and Libyan ministers discussed cooperation, Israel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

JERUSALEM, Aug 27 (Reuters) - The Israeli and Libyan foreign ministers met in Italy last week despite not having formal relations, Israel said on Sunday, saying they discussed possible cooperation. Since 2020 Israel has moved to normalise ties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan through the so-called 'Abraham accords' brokered by the United States. "I spoke with the foreign minister about the great potential for the two countries from their relations," Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said in a statement. A spokesperson for Libya's Government of National Unity (GNU) in Tripoli did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Cohen's meeting with Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush. The meeting was facilitated by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Israel's foreign ministry said, adding they had discussed possible cooperation and Israeli aid in humanitarian issues, agriculture and water management.

Persons: Israel, Abraham, Eli Cohen, Najla Mangoush, Antonio Tajani, Cohen, Emily Rose, Sharon Singleton, Giles Elgood Organizations: Libyan, United Arab, Libya's Government of National Unity, GNU, Libyan Foreign, Italian, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Italy, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, United States, Tripoli, Libya, Palestinian, Turkey, Reuters Libya

☆ Saudi Arabia appoints first envoy to Palestinians amid talks on Israel normalization
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Abeer Salman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Jerusalem CNN —Saudi Arabia has appointed its first ambassador to the Palestinians, in a move that comes amid talks with the United States over a possible deal to normalize relations between the Gulf kingdom and Israel. Palestinians maintain that the eastern part of the city should serve as the future capital of a Palestinian state. All members of the Arab bloc, including Saudi Arabia, recognize Palestinian statehood and the kingdom maintains a Palestinian embassy in the capital Riyadh. The move comes amid reports of a normalization deal in the works between Saudi Arabia and Israel, with the Unites States involved in the rapprochement. Miller’s comments came after a Wall Street Journal report saying that the US and Saudi Arabia had agreed on the “broad contours” of a normalization deal.

Persons: Jordan, Naif bin Bandar, ”, Mahmoud Abbas’s, Al, Eli Cohen, Israel, Saudi Arabia’s, ” Cohen, ” “, Donald Trump, Matthew Miller Organizations: Jerusalem CNN, of, Palestinian, Palestinian Authority, Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tel, Saudi, United Nations, ”, State Department, CNN Locations: Jerusalem, Saudi Arabia, United States, Israel, Naif bin, Naif bin Bandar Al, of Palestine, Jordanian, Amman, Saudi, Palestinian, Riyadh

☆ Israel rules out Jerusalem base for Saudi envoy to Palestinians
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-13 | by ( Dan Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Flags of Saudi Arabia and Israel stand together in a kitchen staging area at the State Department in Washington, October 14, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/PoolJERUSALEM, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Israel ruled out on Sunday a diplomatic base in Jerusalem for the new Saudi envoy to the Palestinians, whose appointment comes as Washington tries to forge formal Israeli relations with Riyadh. Saudi Ambassador to Jordan Nayef Al-Sudairi on Saturday expanded his credentials to include non-resident envoy to the Palestinians. "We will not allow the opening of any kind of diplomatic mission" in Jerusalem, Cohen added. Israel's hard-right government has played down any prospect of it giving significant ground to the Palestinians as part of a normalisation deal with Saudi Arabia.

Persons: Jonathan Ernst, Pool, Jordan Nayef Al, Sudairi, Donald Trump, Eli Cohen, Cohen, Bassam Al, Agha, Al, Trump, Nidal al, Dan Williams, Bernadette Baum Organizations: State Department, REUTERS, Saudi, Washington, Palestinian Authority, Tel, U.S, Palestine, Israel, Thomson Locations: Saudi Arabia, Israel, Washington, Jerusalem, Riyadh, Saudi, Amman, East Jerusalem, United States, U.S, Tel Aviv, Palestinian

☆ Exclusive: Israeli bid for U.S. visa waiver hangs on Palestinian-American access test
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Dan Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

But progress has been hindered because of restrictions on entry to Israel for Palestinian Americans from the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Although it has not been advertised beforehand, Israeli and U.S. diplomatic sources said the trial would start on Thursday. U.S. officials assessing the trial will also focus on whether Palestinian Americans or other Arab Americans are subjected to selective grilling by Israeli security personnel. A U.S. official estimated that, of that number, between 45,000 and 60,000 were residents of the West Bank. An Israeli official gave lower figures, saying that out of 70,000 to 90,000 Palestinian Americans worldwide, about 15,000 to 20,000 were West Bank residents.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu's, Eli Cohen, Washington's, Biden, Isaac Herzog, Dan Williams, Edmund Blair Organizations: U.S, Visa, West Bank, U.S . State Department and Homeland Security Department, Ben, Reuters, U.S . Embassy, Interior Ministry, National Security Council, Ben Gurion, BDS, Israel, Arab American Institute Foundation, West Bank ., Thomson Locations: Israel, JERUSALEM, U.S, United States, Palestinian, Ben Gurion, Tel Aviv, Ben, Jordan

☆ Ancient Israeli artifacts intended for an exhibition in Washington in 2019 are stuck at Mar-a-Lago, with Israel struggling to get them back
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Israel loaned ancient antiquities to the US in 2019, on the condition they be returned within weeks. But almost four years later, they're "stuck" at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence, per Haaretz. Senior Israeli figures have tried but failed to get the antiquities back, the newspaper reported. But almost four years later, the ancient artifacts are "stuck" at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, with senior Israeli figures scrambling to get them back, per the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Instead of being returned to Israel, however, they remained in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Haaretz.

Persons: Israel, Donald Trump's Mar, Israel Hasson, COVID, Saul Fox, Fox, It's, Trump, Eli Eskozido, Lago Organizations: Senior, Service, White, Haaretz, Trump, Israeli Antiquities Authority, Mar, Insider, Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry, Strategic Affairs Minister, FBI, DOJ Locations: Wall, Silicon, Lago, Florida, Israel, Washington ,

☆ Israel says hoped-for direct Hajj flights to Saudi Arabia won't happen now
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Dan Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

JERUSALEM, June 19 (Reuters) - Israel said on Monday that hoped-for direct flights to Saudi Arabia for the Muslim Hajj pilgrimage would not happen this year, and played down any prospects of an imminent U.S.-mediated normalisation of relations with Riyadh. Regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia gave its quiet assent to Gulf neighbours United Arab Emirates and Bahrain forging ties with Israel in 2020. "Perhaps for the next Hajj we will be in a position to help in this matter, and (direct) flights will depart from here," National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi told Kan radio. "Since we thought a Saudi-U.S. agreement was the precursor for any (Israeli) peace deal with Riyadh, we assessed that ... it would not have a high chance of being realised," Hanegbi told Israel Hayom. Visiting Saudi Arabia on June 8, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the administration would continue working on normalisation "in the days, weeks and months ahead".

Persons: Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, Tzachi Hanegbi, Kan, Biden, normalisation, Hanegbi, Israel Hayom, Antony Blinken, Eli Cohen, Dan Williams, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Riyadh ., Saudi, United, Israel, Transport Ministry, Channel, Thomson Locations: Saudi Arabia, U.S, Riyadh, Riyadh . Regional, Gulf, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Hajj, Saudi, Iran, Washington, Israel, United States

Morocco considers Western Sahara its own, but the Algeria-backed Polisario front demands an independent state there. The NSC's head, National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, met Moroccan foreign minister Nasser Bourita on Wednesday, Morocco's foreign ministry said without offering further details. At that meeting, Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said: "I hope we will meet very soon in a different desert but with the same spirit." Moroccan media reported a possible plan to reconvene in the Western Sahara town of Dakhla. Holding it in coastal Dakhla could pose a challenge for Washington, which has never followed through on Trump's pledge to open a U.S. consulate in Western Sahara.

Persons: Yair Lapid inaugurates, Moroccan Foreign Ministry Mohcine, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Donald Trump, Tzachi Hanegbi, Nasser Bourita, Eli Cohen, Israel's, Abraham, Dan Williams, Ahmed Eljechtimi, Christina Fincher, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: Moroccan Foreign Ministry, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, REUTERS, Wednesday, Western, Reuters, National Security Council, National Security, Israeli, Abraham Accords, Moroccan, Washington, Thomson Locations: Rabat, Morocco, REUTERS JERUSALEM, RABAT, Sahara, Western Sahara, Algeria, Polisario, Israel, statecraft, Moroccan, Spain, NEGEV, Abraham, Dakhla, U.S, Laayoune, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain

☆ Israel says it is discussing possible direct Haj flights to Saudi Arabia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Dan Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Netanyahu's centrist predecessor, Yair Lapid, said on March 10 that, as prime minister last year, he secured Saudi consent for what would be the first direct Haj flights from Israel, some 18% of whose population are Muslim. Asked whether the direct flights would happen for next month's pilgrimage to the holy Saudi city of Mecca, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said a request had been submitted. "But with that, I am optimistic that we can advance peace with Saudi Arabia." The Biden administration last June predicted there would be direct charter flights from Israel to Saudi Arabia for the Haj. Saudi Arabia has been allowing Israeli airlines to overfly it to UAE and Bahrain since 2020, a corridor that it and next-door Oman have since expanded to include other destinations.

☆ Israel cements ties to Turkmenistan on Iran's border
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Although the countries established diplomatic relations 30 years ago, there had only been a temporary Israeli mission in Ashgabat and predominantly Muslim Turkmenistan still has no embassy in Israel. "I came to open an Israeli embassy 17 kilometres from the border with Iran, and to hold a series of meetings with the president and other officials," Cohen tweeted on Thursday. In English remarks to Israeli reporters accompanying Cohen, his Turkmen counterpart, Rashid Meredov, described the embassy inauguration as "a very shining example of our friendship". Cohen, who also met Turkmen President Serdar Berdymukhamedov, called his visit "historic" and said Israel's ties with Central Asia's "energy superpower" were of strategic importance. "We intend to widen economic relations to include agriculture, water, technology and border defence," Cohen said in a video issued by Israel's Foreign Ministry.

☆ Israeli PM: Peace with Saudi Arabia would be 'giant leap' towards ending Arab-Israeli conflict
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JERUSALEM, April 17 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that normalizing relations with Saudi Arabia would be a "giant leap" towards ending the Arab-Israeli conflict. "We want normalization and peace with Saudi Arabia. We view that as perhaps a giant leap towards ending the Arab-Israeli conflict," Netanyahu said, speaking during a meeting in Jerusalem with U.S. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. "This agreement could have monumental consequences, historic consequences both for Israel, for Saudi Arabia, for the region and for the world," Netanyahu said. A huge setback for Netanyahu's efforts came last month when a China-brokered deal saw Israel's major regional foe, Iran, mend its ties with Saudi Arabia.

☆ Israel, UAE sign free trade pact into effect
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

JERUSALEM, March 26 (Reuters) - Israel and the United Arab Emirates on Sunday signed a free trade pact into effect, reducing or removing tariffs on about 96% of goods traded between the nations, Israel's Foreign Ministry said. The countries first reached the agreement last May, promising to boost bilateral trade after they normalized ties in 2020 in a U.S.-brokered deal. The deal will also allow Israeli companies to gain access to government tenders in the UAE, the ministry said. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, who on Sunday gave a final signature for the tariff arrangement within the trade pact, said it would "strengthen the connection" with the UAE and that Israel was working to normalize ties with more Arab countries. Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by David HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Oman opens airspace, joining Saudi in Israeli airline corridor
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Oman's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Thursday said the Gulf Arab state's airspace will be open for all civilian carriers, a move that would enable Israeli airlines to utilise a Saudi-Oman corridor to cut flight times to Asia. Saudi Arabia, which like Oman does not have formal ties with Israel, last summer said it would open its airspace to all air carriers, but Israeli officials had said the corridor could not be implemented until Oman consented. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on Thursday thanked Oman's ruler Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said and described it as a "historic decision that will shorten the route to Asia, lower costs for Israelis and help Israeli airlines be more competitive". Israeli flag carrier El Al (ELAL.TA) said that beyond shortening current flight times, it would now examine opening new routes to Australia and restarting flights to India. Israel's foreign ministry said the corridor would shorten the flight route by more than two hours to some Asian destinations.

☆ Top Israeli diplomat ejected from African Union summit as row escalates
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Dawit Endeshaw | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ADDIS ABABA, Feb 18 (Reuters) - A senior Israeli diplomat was on Saturday removed from the African Union's annual summit in Ethiopia, as a dispute over Israel's accreditation to the bloc escalated. Images posted online showed AU security personnel confronting the diplomat during the opening ceremony of the summit, before she left the auditorium. But Israel blamed the incident on South Africa and Algeria, two key nations in the 55-nation bloc, saying they were holding the AU hostage, and were driven by "hate". South Africa rejected the claim, saying Israel's application for observer status at the AU has not been decided upon by the bloc. "So, it's not about South Africa or Algeria, it's an issue of principle."

Of at least 36 missiles that Russia fired about 16 were shot down, the air force said, a lower rate than normal. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris are among many top officials attending the Munich Security Conference. As Russian troops massed on Ukraine's borders, Western leaders in Munich urged President Vladimir Putin not to invade and warned of dire consequences if he did. Russian leaders will be notable by their absence at the conference, which runs until Sunday, but senior Ukrainian officials are expected to address it. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address his priority was to hold off Russian attacks and get ready for an eventual Ukrainian counter-offensive.

Following a pattern of heavy bombardments after Ukrainian battlefield or diplomatic gains, Russia launched 36 missiles in the early hours, Ukraine's Air Force said. The Russian missiles triggered air-raid sirens and landed across Ukraine, including at the Kremenchuk refinery, where the extent of damage was unclear. Ukraine said the barrage included three KH-31 missiles and one Oniks anti-ship cruise missile, which its air defences cannot shoot down. [1/6] Ukrainian servicemen of the 80th Air Assault Brigade fire M119 Howitzer artillery weapon towards Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near Bahmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine, February 16, 2023. Its capture would give Russia a stepping stone to advance on two bigger Donetsk cities further west, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

☆ Israel and Sudan Agree to Revive Peace Deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Dov Lieber | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen met the president of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum on Thursday. TEL AVIV—Israel and Sudan agreed to sign a peace agreement later this year, after earlier attempts by the African nation to normalize relations with Israel failed, Israel’s foreign minister said Thursday. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen visited the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Thursday, where he met with the president of the Transitional Sovereign Council, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and other senior Sudanese officials, his office said in a statement. With U.S. mediation, the two sides agreed to the terms of a peace deal and planned to hold a signing ceremony in Washington in a few month’s time, after Sudan establishes a civilian government, the Israeli statement said.

☆ Israel, Sudan announce deal to normalise relations
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

KHARTOUM, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Israel and Sudan have finalised a deal to normalise relations, with a signing ceremony expected following a transfer of power from the military to a civilian government in Khartoum, the Israeli foreign ministry said on Thursday. Sudan's foreign ministry earlier said the deal was agreed during a visit by Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen to "move forward towards normalising relations between the two countries". "During the visit, which was made with the consent of the United States, the parties finalised the text of the agreement," an Israeli foreign ministry statement said. As intelligence minister that same year, Cohen made a ground-breaking visit to Sudan, a majority Muslim country. "Yes to negotiations between Israel and Sudan, yes to recognition of Israel and yes to peace between the states and between the peoples."

☆ Israeli foreign minister heads delegation to discuss Sudan normalisation
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KHARTOUM, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen was in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Thursday to discuss the normalisation of ties between the two countries, two Sudanese government sources said. The trip was part of an exchange of visits between Sudan and Israel and involved discussions on reaching and signing a normalisation deal as well as military and security issues, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity. In January 2021, Sudan said that its justice minister at the time, Nasredeen Abdulbari, had signed on to the Abraham Accords during a visit by U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. As intelligence minister in 2021, Cohen made a ground-breaking visit to Sudan. Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz and Dan Williams; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Alex RichardsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Palestinian president and his unfulfilled quest for a state
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

He was an early member of Fatah, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) faction that dominated Palestinian politics for decades. He became leader of both when Arafat died in 2004, and a year later was elected president of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited sovereignty in the West Bank. Behind them were U.S. President Bill Clinton, Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, applauding warmly. When the Palestinian leadership returned from exile to Gaza after the Oslo Accords Abbas was upbeat, promising: "I will live in Palestine." Hamas routed Fatah in a civil war in Gaza, leaving Abbas with control of Palestinian-administered areas in the West Bank but there have been no Palestinian elections since.

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