NAKBA 2.0

'Looks like Gaza': As Israel violently attacks Jenin, thousands displaced and hospitals besieged

"It looks like Gaza," Asri Fayyad, a resident of Jenin camp, described to The New Arab while talking about his forced displacement.

Fayha Shalash
West Bank
24 January, 2025
NEW ARAB


"Women and children are the most affected during this, as soldiers deliberately intimidate them and shoot over their heads during their displacement." [Getty]

Hours after Israeli officials threatened to tighten a security grip and expand the illegal annexation of the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military assault, particularly in Jenin, has been devastating.

Dozens of military vehicles participated in the raid, which was concentrated in the Jenin neighbourhoods close to the refugee camp. Unlike previous raids, most of the camp residents are now displaced, forced to shelter in towns adjacent to the city.

The main hospitals in Jenin are still besieged, while the Israeli army placed dirt barriers at all entrances to Jenin Governmental Hospital to prevent entry or exit permanently.

At the same time, the Palestinian Authority arrested Palestinian resistance fighters after they were able to leave the Jenin camp. PA's security forces surrounded Al-Razi Hospital and arrested two wounded people from within the premises, accusing them of being members of the Jenin Battalion.

Expanding genocide

What is clear about this massive assault, which Israeli officials dubbed the "Iron Wall," is the large number of displaced people from Jenin camp, whose lives have become difficult due to the lack of living conditions.


"It looks like Gaza," Asri Fayyad, a resident of Jenin camp, described to The New Arab while talking about his forced displacement.

"We stayed in the camp for two days. There was no electricity, no water, no bread, even no milk for the children. The first day witnessed a violent incursion aimed at intimidation. The entire targeting was only against civilians, and more than fifty were injured and thrown in the streets," Fayyad said.

The Palestinian residents began to flee from the camp towards the Awda roundabout. They were reportedly subjected to searches during that time, and the Israeli army divided them into groups of five, photographed them and examined their fingerprints and eyes.

Whoever the soldier wanted to arrest him was put aside, stripped of his clothes, tied up, and blindfolded, according to eyewitnesses.

The displaced people were prohibited from using vehicles, so they were forced to walk more than a kilometre on foot, carrying only basic items with them.

"The land was completely bulldozed and muddy and difficult to walk on. Even the streets have disappeared due to Israel's use of giant D10 bulldozers. The Israeli army demolished three houses in the camp and burned others. There are fears that residential squares will be blown up, as happened in Gaza," he added.

Israeli soldiers occupied a number of high-rise houses and deployed snipers. The bombing was repeated from time to time against specific targets.

"The displaced are still living in harsh conditions and a lack of services in light of the tight Israeli siege on the city and the prevention of aid from entering them," Fayyad noted.

Shock and fear

About 17 thousand Palestinians live in Jenin camp, but most have been displaced since the start of the Palestinian Authority's security campaign a month and a half ago due to deteriorating living conditions and the denial of services.

Farha Abu Al-Haija, a member of the Popular Committee for Camp Services, told TNA that Jenin's entrances are sealed and no one is allowed to enter, while the Israeli army forced the residents to leave it forcibly after threatening to blow up their homes.

Every day, from nine in the morning until five in the afternoon, dozens of Palestinians begin their exodus from the camp under strict security measures imposed by the Israeli army.

"Women and children are the most affected during this, as soldiers deliberately intimidate them and shoot over their heads during their displacement. There are sick cases, citizens with special needs, and the elderly. All of them were subjected to humiliation and abuse," she added.

In light of the freezing weather, the displaced lack means of heating and blankets, and the Israeli army prevents the entry of aid to them. There are those who were displaced to the homes of their relatives, and there are those who were forced to spend the night in public centres and mosques.

"The situation is painful, sad, and disturbing in this cold climate, and citizens are living in a state of shock and fear of what might happen to their homes, which were almost destroyed from previous [Israeli] incursions," she added.

The camp's resident have survived one siege to another, and the size of the Israeli incursion includes many military vehicles and aircraft flying in the sky all the time.

The number of detainees from the camp is not yet known due to the continued siege on Jenin and the prevention of any movement. It is slowly turning into a major humanitarian catastrophe, pushed by an Israeli army seeking to achieve any image of victory.

Israeli aggression on Jenin continues for 4th day, leaving 12 martyrs and over 40 injured

QNA/Occupied Jerusalem

 January 24, 2025 | 

Israeli occupation forces continued their assault on the city and refugee camp of Jenin in occupied West Bank for the fourth consecutive day, resulting in the deaths of 12 Palestinians, numerous injuries and arrests, and widespread destruction of infrastructure and property.

Jenin Deputy Governor Mansour al Saadi, told reporters that occupation forces have blocked all four entrances to the city and camp with dirt barriers, preventing movement in and out. He warned of difficulties faced by patients and medical staff at Jenin Government Hospital due to power cuts and fuel shortages caused by the ongoing Israeli attack.

Al Saadi confirmed that airstrikes and raids are ongoing, and that hundreds of residents have been forced to flee the camp.

In another report, local sources told Palestinian News Agency (WAFA) that the Israeli forces set fire to homes in Jenin camp and blocked civil defense teams from reaching the area to put out the flames.

Occupation forces also imposed a curfew on Palestinians inside the camp, forcing hundreds of families to abandon their homes at gunpoint. Only one route was left open, forcing them to pass through eye and facial recognition cameras.

Five Palestinians were wounded last night by gunfire from Israeli forces as raids continued.

Electricity has been cut off to Jenin camp and surrounding areas, causing power outages at Jenin Government Hospital and Ibn Sina Hospital, while crews from the local electricity company were blocked from repairing network.

On Tuesday, Israel launched a large-scale assault on the city and camp of Jenin, which has so far claimed the lives of 12 Palestinians, left 40 others injured, displaced nearly 2,000 people to nearby villages, and caused extensive damage to city's infrastructure, according to official Palestinian sources.

Israeli forces ‘block entrances to Jenin’ as deadly raid enters fourth day

In addition to Jenin governorate, Israeli forces have been stepping up their operation across the occupied West Bank since January 21.



Situation across West Bank, not only Jenin, ‘really catastrophic’: Palestinian activist
Published On 24 Jan 202524 Jan 2025

Israeli forces have blocked four main entrances to Jenin city and its refugee camp on Friday as the deadly raid into the city entered a fourth day, officials said.

Mansour Saadi, deputy governor of Jenin, was quoted as saying by the Wafa news agency that the Israeli army “blocked all four main entrances to the city and its refugee camp with earth mounds, preventing entry and exit”.

Palestinian sources said Israeli forces launched drones with loudspeakers in the refugee camp and imposed a curfew from Thursday evening until Friday morning.

Wafa news agency also reported that Israeli forces set fire to homes in the camp and blocked civil defence teams from reaching the area to put out the flames.

This comes after they issued forced evacuation threats to Jenin refugee camp residents on Thursday, as thousands of Palestinians fled amid the deadly assault by Israeli forces.

In addition to Jenin governorate, Israeli forces have been stepping up their operation across the occupied West Bank since January 21, just days after the ceasefire in Gaza came into effect on January 19.

Palestinian women sit across from the rubble of a house after an Israeli raid in Burqin village near Jenin in the occupied West Bank [AFP]

As of Thursday, the death toll in Israeli raids had reached 12. Dozens have also been wounded and detained.

The situation at Jenin government hospital on Friday was “dire”, Saadi said, with medical staff struggling to provide care to patients amid power cuts and fuel shortages caused by the ongoing Israeli operation.

Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut said many Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including in Jenin, fear Israel will do “just as it did in Gaza”.

“In their thousands, Palestinians have been forced to leave their homes in the Jenin refugee camp,” said Salhut, who is reporting from Jordan because Al Jazeera has been banned by the Palestinian Authority (PA) from reporting in the occupied West Bank.

“People there say Israeli forces want to raze these Palestinian towns to the ground just as they did in Gaza.”

Sources told Al Jazeera that Palestinian fighters have also been fighting back against Israeli forces, targeting them with an explosive device while they were travelling along Jenin’s Nazareth Street. There were no immediate reports of casualties.


Bulldozer or Butcher: Netanyahu follows in Sharon footsteps from Jenin to Jabalia: 

In some of the ongoing raids, PA security forces were involved in going after Palestinian fighters, including in Tulkarem, Ramallah, Hebron and Qalqilya on Friday.

Armed clashes have also broken out between Palestinian fighters and PA forces in the town of Yabad, west of Jenin.

PA security forces have reportedly severely beaten up a number of Palestinian fighters after arresting them.

Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara said the Israeli government is shifting its focus from Gaza to the occupied West Bank.

He said the operations in Jenin and other parts of the occupied West Bank serve as a “deflection” from the Israeli government’s failures of October 7. Bishara added that the operation also creates an opportunity for Israel to advance annexation policies.

Since the war on Gaza began in October 2023, Israeli forces have increased the size and frequency of their raids in the occupied West Bank, killing nearly 900 Palestinians and wounding thousands.

Israel says eliminating armed Palestinian fighters in the occupied West Bank is part of its overarching goals for the war on Gaza. United Nations Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese warns that Israel’s genocide would not be confined to Gaza if the military offensive in the West Bank does not end.

Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Checkpoint gridlock: Israel's expanding restrictions paralyse life in the occupied West Bank

According to WSRC figures, more than 173 barriers and metal gates have been erected in the occupied West Bank since Israel launched its war on Gaza in Oct 2023.

Aseel Mafarjeh
West Bank
24 January, 2025
NEW ARAB


"There are currently 898 barriers across the West Bank, including iron gates, earth mounds, and permanent checkpoints. That's an increase of 18 barriers in a span of three days." [Getty]

In tandem with US President Donald Trump's inauguration, and his lifting of sanctions imposed by the previous administration on illegal Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank over increased violence, the number of Israeli military checkpoints and gates have spiked in the region. These barriers, locals say, are disrupting daily movements of Palestinians, significantly impacting their economy, and restricting access to essential medical services.

While Israeli authorities justify the measures as necessary for security, human rights groups condemn them as collective punishment that exacerbates an already volatile situation. In Jenin and elsewhere in the occupied West Bank, Israeli army and settlers have ramped up violence over the past three days, with military raids killing more than 10 people.

The roadblocks are making matters worse for residents.

On 22 January, the official Palestinian news agency reported that a 45-year-old mother of six suffering from a stroke passed away because Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint in Hebron denied her the urgent care she needed by blocking the ambulance vehicle carrying her to the hospital.

"Between every two barriers, is another barrier," Amir Dawood, head of public relations at the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission (WSRC), told The New Arab. "There are currently 898 barriers across the West Bank, including iron gates, earth mounds, and permanent checkpoints. That's an increase of 18 barriers in a span of three days."


Dawood added that, although these barriers existed before, "their numbers and sophistication have grown significantly," increasing the restrictions on Palestinian movements.

He noted that Hebron, the largest governorate, has the highest concentration of checkpoints, followed by Ramallah.

Meanwhile, Jenin, despite its ongoing military crackdown, has fewer checkpoints, which Dawood attributes to its unique geography. Still, the limited entry points have turned Jenin into a humanitarian crisis zone, with medical services unable to reach those in need.
A long wait on the road to nowhere

Basil Fakousa, a Palestinian resident of the occupied West Bank, said he was upheld for 13 hours at the notorious Container Checkpoint while en route from Hebron to Ramallah.

"I watched an entire season of Bab Al-Hara on my phone while waiting from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m.," he said sarcastically, referring to a famous Syrian soap opera known for its lengthy episodes. His day began with a work trip to Ramallah, but ended in frustration.

Upon reaching the checkpoint, Fakousa and others were informed it was closed indefinitely. Stranded with no way to return to Hebron, he spent the day drinking coffee and buying roasted chestnuts from roadside vendors, lamenting the waste of time and opportunities.

"Eventually, around 10 p.m., they opened the checkpoint. Perhaps the soldiers switched shifts, and one of them took pity on us," he said with bitter humour.

His frustration is shared by many Palestinians. "I won't go back to Ramallah or leave Hebron again until this nightmare ends. The situation is unbearable," Fakousa added.

According to WSRC figures, more than 173 barriers and metal gates have been erected in the occupied West Bank since Israel launched its war on Gaza on 7 October 2023. Residents fear that, with Washington giving Israel the greenlight to up its violence, more of these barriers will emerge.
Restrictions for political gains

Journalist Ameed Shehadeh sees the surge in checkpoints as a political manoeuvre rather than a security necessity. "The Israeli military has gone overboard with checkpoints, especially after the recent political deal between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister Bezalel Smotrich," he said.

Netanyahu faced criticism and fishers in his cabinet for going ahead with the Gaza ceasefire, which many in Israel, including far-right Smotrich, deemed as conceding to Hamas’ terms. Israeli press reported that Smotrich agreed to remain in the cabinet following several commitments from Netanyahu.

According to Shehadeh, the additional gates are measures that often seem arbitrary, with checkpoint policies "dependent on the whims of soldiers".

Shehadeh also criticised the checkpoints as a tactic to create chaos and pressure Palestinian civilians, ruling out that they have any actual security benefits to Israel. "Resistance fighters don't cross these checkpoints, so their presence isn’t about security. It's about control and collective punishment," he said.
A stranglehold on movement

The checkpoints have made life particularly difficult for residents of cities like Jenin and Nablus, which frequently face closures. Jenin, a hotspot of resistance, has become virtually inaccessible. Even Red Crescent medical teams are regularly denied entry.


"Ambulances are delayed or turned away altogether, worsening the humanitarian crisis," Shehadeh said.

Sari Arabi, a political analyst, argues that the primary purpose of these checkpoints is to serve the expansion of Israeli settlements. He believes the recent escalation is part of a broader strategy to compensate for perceived failures in Gaza.

"Israel's military campaign in the West Bank is aimed at demonstrating its power. Smotrich even referred to it as a 'steel wall' to crush resistance," Arabi told TNA. He added that the checkpoints also aim to "suffocate Palestinian economic life and morale".

Stating that long delays prevent workers from reaching jobs, while businesses in major commercial hubs face dwindling customers, Arabi said the toll on the occupied West Bank and its residents are crushing.

"The West Bank's economy is already struggling, and the checkpoints are making it far worse," Arabi said.

This piece was published in collaboration with Egab.

‘Living in a Cage’: West Bank Checkpoints Proliferate After Gaza Truce

Commuters wait in their vehicles at the Israeli Atara checkpoint on route 465 near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on January 22, 2025. (AFP)

24 January 2025 

AD ـ 25 Rajab 1446 AH

Father Bashar Basiel moved freely in and out of his parish in the occupied West Bank until Israeli troops installed gates at the entrance of his village Taybeh overnight, just hours after a ceasefire began in Gaza.

"We woke up and we were surprised to see that we have the iron gates in our entrance of Taybeh, on the roads that are going to Jericho, to Jerusalem, to Nablus," said Basiel, a Catholic priest in the Christian village north of Ramallah.

All over the West Bank, commuters have been finding that their journey to work takes much longer since the Gaza ceasefire started.

"We have not lived such a difficult situation (in terms of movement) since the Second Intifada," Basiel told AFP in reference to a Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s.

He said he was used to the checkpoints, which are dotted along the separation barrier that cuts through much of the West Bank and at the entrances to Palestinian towns and cities.

But while waiting times got longer in the aftermath of the October 2023 Hamas attack that sparked the Gaza war, now it has become almost impossible to move between cities and villages in the West Bank.

Commuters wait in their vehicles at the Israeli Atara checkpoint on route 465 near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on January 22, 2025. (AFP)

- Concrete blocks, metal gates -

Left-leaning Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Israeli authorities ordered the military to operate dozens of checkpoints around the West Bank during the first 42 days of the ceasefire.

According to the Palestinian Wall Resistance Commission, 146 iron gates were erected around the West Bank after the Gaza war began, 17 of them in January alone, bringing the total number of roadblocks in the Palestinian territory to 898.

"Checkpoints are still checkpoints, but the difference now is that they've enclosed us with gates. That's the big change," said Anas Ahmad, who found himself stuck in traffic for hours on his way home after a usually open road near the university town of Birzeit was closed.

Hundreds of drivers were left idling on the road out of the city as they waited for the Israeli soldiers to allow them through.

The orange metal gates Ahmad was referring to are a lighter version of full checkpoints, which usually feature a gate and concrete shelters for soldiers checking drivers' IDs or searching their vehicles.

"The moment the truce was signed, everything changed 180 degrees. The Israeli government is making the Palestinian people pay the price," said Ahmad, a policeman who works in Ramallah.

Israeli military spokesman Nadav Shoshani did not comment on whether there had been an increase in the number of checkpoints but said the military used them to arrest wanted Palestinian gunmen.

"We make sure that the terrorists do not get away but the civilians have a chance to get out or go wherever they want and have their freedom of movement," he said in a media briefing on Wednesday.

Members of the Israeli security forces check vehicles at the Israeli Atara checkpoint on route 465 near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on January 22, 2025. (AFP)

- 'Like rabbits in a cage' -

Basiel said that now, when the gates are closed, "I have to wait, or I have to take another way" into Taybeh.

He said that on Monday people waited in their cars from 4:00 pm to 2:00 am while each vehicle entering the village was meticulously checked.

Another Ramallah area resident, who preferred not to be named for security reasons, compared his new environment to that of a caged animal.

"It's like rabbits living in a cage. In the morning they can go out, do things, then in the evening they have to go home to the cage," he said.

Shadi Zahod, a government employee who commutes daily between Salfit and Ramallah, felt similarly constrained.

"It's as if they're sending us a message: stay trapped in your town, don't go anywhere", he told AFP.

"Since the truce, we've been paying the price in every Palestinian city," he said, as his wait at a checkpoint in Birzeit dragged into a third hour.

- Impossible to make plans -

Before approving the Gaza ceasefire, Israel's security cabinet reportedly added to its war goals the "strengthening of security" in the West Bank.

Israeli human rights group B'Tselem said in a statement on Tuesday that Israel "is merely shifting its focus from Gaza to other areas it controls in the West Bank".

A 2019 academic paper by Jerusalem's Applied Research Institute estimated that at the time Palestinians lost 60 million work hours per year to restrictions.

But for Basiel, the worst impact is an inability to plan even a day ahead.

"The worst thing that we are facing now, is that we don't have any vision for the near future, even tomorrow."

How the Gaza Truce Exposed Israeli Intelligence Failures

Fighters from the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, control the crowd as Red Cross vehicles come to collect Israeli hostages under a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, Jan. 19, 2025.

 (AP Photo/Abed Hajjar, File)

Gaza: Asharq Al Awsat
-24 January 2025

 AD ـ 25 Rajab 1446 AH

The public appearance of Hussein Fayyad, a senior commander in Hamas' military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, following the Gaza truce, has stunned Israel’s security establishment.

Eight months earlier, Israel had declared him assassinated.

Fayyad, known by his nom de guerre “Abu Hamza,” was seen addressing residents in the streets of Beit Hanoun, a town in northern Gaza. He spoke about “victory and combat,” a development Israeli officials have described as a “security failure.”

In May, the Israeli army announced his killing and even released a photo purportedly confirming his death.

Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the recent video of Fayyad was recorded during the funeral of several fighters from the Beit Hanoun Battalion, who were killed in clashes with the Israeli army.

Among them was a fighter from the Abu Amsha family, who reportedly led an operation that killed Israeli soldiers shortly before the ceasefire came into effect.

Fayyad’s recent appearance sparked controversy in Israel.

His video, which circulated widely on social media, prompted the Israeli army to issue a statement on Wednesday. The military had previously declared Fayyad’s death, claiming he was responsible for multiple attacks, including launching anti-tank missiles and mortars.

However, after further checks, the Israeli army admitted that the intelligence used to confirm his death was not accurate.

As of Thursday afternoon, the statement was only available in Hebrew, with no translation for foreign media or Arabic speakers.

Fayyad gained prominence after the 2014 war, where he led Hamas fighters and inflicted heavy losses on Israeli forces. He became the commander of the Beit Hanoun Battalion, reorganizing it after the conflict.

During the 2021 Gaza conflict, Fayyad directed mortar attacks on Israeli forces near the Erez Crossing and fired anti-tank missiles at targets along the Gaza border.

Fayyad survived several assassination attempts, including one in the latest conflict.

Fayyad’s case is not the first instance where Israeli military reports have been inaccurate.

According to Hamas sources, the Israeli military issued inaccurate or false reports regarding the assassination of Hamas and Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades leaders during the conflict.

Some of the individuals targeted were either injured and later recovered, or were not present at the locations claimed to have been hit.

The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades operate a military structure comprising five divisions: the Northern Division, Gaza Division, Central Division, Khan Younis Division, and Rafah Division.

Each division includes several brigades, which are made up of units, factions, and military formations, collectively comprising thousands of fighters.

Hamas Commander reappears in Gaza despite Israel assassination claims

Jakarta refutes reports of Trump’s plan to relocate Palestinians in Gaza to Indonesia


Sheany Yasuko Lai
21 January 2025

Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Roy Soemirat speaks at a UN session in New York in this undated file photo. (Indonesia’s Permanent Mission to the UN)

NBC news report claims that relocating residents of Gaza is part of rebuilding efforts

Any attempts to move Palestinians in Gaza is ‘entirely unacceptable,’ Jakarta says


JAKARTA: Jakarta was never involved in any discussion to relocate Palestinians from Gaza to Indonesia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday following reports that new US President Donald Trump’s team was considering the controversial move.

Before his inauguration on Monday, Trump and his transitional team had been discussing Israel’s war on Gaza and the recent ceasefire agreement, according to a report by NBC News.

Citing an anonymous source from Trump’s transition team, Indonesia was named as one of the locations considered for Palestinians to relocate to when rebuilding efforts began for the enclave.

However, the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has refuted the report.

“The government of Indonesia has never received any information from anyone, nor any plans regarding the relocation of some of Gaza’s 2 million inhabitants to Indonesia as part of post-conflict reconstruction efforts,” Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Roy Soemirat said.

“Indonesia’s stance remains unequivocal: Any attempts to displace or remove Gaza’s residents is entirely unacceptable. Such efforts to depopulate Gaza would only serve to perpetuate the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory and align with broader strategies aimed at expelling Palestinians from Gaza.”

Indonesia is among the staunchest supporters of Palestine, with its government repeatedly calling for an end to Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and for a two-state solution based on pre-1967 borders.

Since the beginning of Israel’s deadly invasion of Gaza in October 2023, Jakarta has also been vocal on the international stage, demanding an end to military support and weapons sales to Tel Aviv.

As the first phase of a long-awaited ceasefire began on Sunday, Indonesia’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Arrmanatha Nasir said the UN Security Council “must safeguard the agreement” to ensure that every part of the three-phase agreement is upheld.

“The ceasefire is a vital first step towards attaining peace in the Middle East,” Nasir said during a UN Security Council open debate in New York on Monday.

After the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, Nasir said the international community must address the immediate humanitarian needs and work toward a “just and comprehensive political plan” with a two-state solution at its core.

“Any other alternative will only lead to apartheid and subjugation. That is why the international community must unite to foster genuine dialogue and negotiation that addresses the root cause of colonialism and historical injustices in Palestine including the right of return of the Palestinian refugees.”

After 15 months, the war on Gaza has killed more than 47,000 Palestinians and led the International Court of Justice to consider genocide claims against Israel.

However, a study published this month by medical journal The Lancet shows that the real death toll in Gaza during the first nine months — when the number stood at around 37,000 – of Israel’s deadly invasion was about 40 percent higher than recorded by the enclave’s Health Ministry.

ZIONIST OCCUPATION

Despite Truce, Lebanese from Devastated Naqoura Cannot Go Home

Cars drive past damaged buildings, as residents return to Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, January 23, 2025. (Reuters)

24 January 2025 

AD ـ 25 Rajab 1446 AH

All signs of life have disappeared from the bombed-out houses and empty streets of the Lebanese border town of Naqoura, but despite a fragile Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire that has held since November, no one can return.

The Israeli military is still deployed in parts of Lebanon's south, days ahead of a January 26 deadline to fully implement the terms of the truce.

The deal gave the parties 60 days to withdraw -- Israel back across the border, and Hezbollah farther north -- as the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers redeployed to the south.

The Lebanese military has asked residents of Naqoura not to go back home for their own safety after Israel's army issued similar orders, but in spite of the danger, Mayor Abbas Awada returned to inspect the destruction.

"Naqoura has become a disaster zone of a town... the bare necessities of life are absent here," he said in front of the damaged town hall, adding he was worried a lack of funds after years of economic crisis would hamper reconstruction.

"We need at least three years to rebuild," he continued, as a small bulldozer worked to remove rubble near the municipal offices.

Lebanese soldiers deployed in coastal Naqoura after Israeli troops pulled out of the country's southwest on January 6, though they remain in the southeast.

The Israelis' withdrawal from Naqoura left behind a sea of wreckage.

Opposite the town hall, an old tree has been uprooted. Empty, damaged houses line streets filled with rubble.

Most of the widespread destruction occurred after the truce took hold, Awada said.

"The Israeli army entered the town after the ceasefire" and "destroyed the houses", he said.

"Before the ceasefire, 35 percent of the town was destroyed, but after the truce, 90 percent of it" was demolished, he added, mostly with controlled explosions and bulldozers.

A resident previously displaced because of the hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, stands in his damaged home as he returns to Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, January 23, 2025. (Reuters)

- Smell of death -

Under the November 27 ceasefire deal, which ended more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese army has 60 days to deploy alongside UNIFIL peacekeepers in south Lebanon as Israel withdraws.

At the same time, Hezbollah is required to pull its forces north of the Litani River, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure it has in the south.

Both sides have accused each other of violations since the truce began.

Around the nearby UNIFIL headquarters, houses are still intact, but almost everywhere else in Naqoura lies destruction.

Facades are shorn from bombed-out houses, while others are reduced to crumpled heaps, abandoned by residents who had fled for their lives, leaving behind furniture, clothes and books.

AFP saw a completely destroyed school, banana plantations that had withered away and unharvested oranges on trees, their blossoming flowers barely covering the smell of rotting bodies.

On Tuesday, the civil defense agency said it had recovered two bodies from the rubble in Naqoura.

Lebanese soldiers who patrolled the town found an unexploded rocket between two buildings, AFP saw.

In October 2023, Hezbollah began firing across the border into Israel in support of its ally Hamas, a day after the Palestinian group launched its attack on southern Israel that triggered the Gaza war.

An Israeli army spokesperson told AFP that its forces were committed to the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon.

They said the army was working "to remove threats to the State of Israel and its citizens, in full accordance with international law".

UN vehicles drive past debris of damaged buildings in Naqoura, near the border with Israel, southern Lebanon, January 23, 2025. (Reuters)



- 'We want the wars to end' -

On the coastal road to Naqoura UNIFIL and the Lebanese army have set up checkpoints.

Hezbollah's yellow flags fluttered in the wind, but no fighters could be seen.

Twenty kilometers to the north, in Tyre, Fatima Yazbeck waits impatiently in a reception center for the displaced for her chance to return home.

She fled Naqoura 15 months ago, and since then, "I haven't been back", she said, recounting her sadness at learning her house had been destroyed.

Ali Mehdi, a volunteer at the reception center, said his home was destroyed as well.

"My house was only damaged at first," he said. "But after the truce, the Israelis entered Naqoura and destroyed the houses, the orchards and the roads."

In the next room, Mustafa Al-Sayed has been waiting with his large family for more than a year to return to his southern village of Beit Lif.

He had been forced to leave once before, during the previous war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006.

"Do we have to take our families and flee every 20 years?" he asked. "We want a definitive solution, we want the wars to end."

Israel seeks 30-day extension for Lebanon withdrawal amid ceasefire concerns, reports claim

EURONEWS

24 January 2025 

Israel has reportedly asked the US for more time to withdraw from southern Lebanon - only days before the deadline to do so is up. Hezbollah says this is unacceptable, and support for Lebanon from major international players is on display.

Israel asked the US for a further 30 days to withdraw from southern Lebanon, according to local media, only days ahead of the 60-day deadline stipulated in the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah.

The news comes as Israel claims the terms of the ceasefire with Hezbollah were not being implemented quickly enough and that more progress was needed. Meanwhile, the Iran-backed militant group called for increased pressure to ensure Israeli forces withdraw by Monday - as outlined in the agreement.

The deal, brokered by the US and France, requires Israeli troops to withdraw from southern Lebanon, for Hezbollah to remove fighters and weapons from the area and that Lebanese troops deploy in the region.

It ended more than a year of hostilities between both factions, which peaked with an Israeli ground invasion of Lebanon that displaced more than 1.2 million people and killed more than 3,500 people, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

A man pauses as he checks destroyed buildings in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Nov. 29, 2024.Bilal Hussein/Copyright 2024 The AP. All rights reserved

However, Israel claims that the Lebanese army has deployed too slowly and that they reportedly continue to find Hezbollah weapons caches.

Hezbollah said in a statement that Israel postponing its withdrawal would be unacceptable and “an infringement on Lebanese sovereignty.”
Support for Lebanon

Commitment to supporting Lebanon has been reaffirmed by major international players, including the United Nation’s High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi.


“Lebanon is entering a new phase of hope and optimism,” he said while visiting the country on Thursday, discussing support for displaced Lebanese refugees following the conflict with top state officials.

Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat also made his first official trip to Lebanon in a decade after years of strained ties – sparking optimism of future collaboration between the oil-rich kingdom and the war-ravaged country.

Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s visit came after Lebanon this month elected its first president in over two years and appointed a new prime minister.

The ascension of both army chief General Joseph Aoun as president, as well as diplomat and former head of the International Criminal Court Nawaf Salam as prime minister-designate are both seen as major blows to Hezbollah.


Lebanese President Joseph Aoun meets with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, Lebanon

Hassan Ammar/Copyright 2025 The AP. All rights reserve

“We have great confidence in His Excellency the president, and the prime minister-designate's ability to work on the necessary reforms to build safety, stability and a united Lebanon,” the prince said after meeting with Aoun.

The Saudi minister also reiterated his country’s support for the ceasefire, calling for the “complete withdrawal of the Israeli occupation forces from Lebanese territory.”
New era of collaboration?

In the past, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries had been concerned about Iran-backed Hezbollah and its allies’ rising influence in government.

With Hezbollah and its leadership massively affected following the war with Israel, bin Farhan’s visit could herald a new era of collaboration between the two countries as Saudi Arabia reports new areas of economic growth.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Saudi Economy and Planning Minister Faisal al-Ibrahim said non-oil activities “today represent 52% of our total real GDP for the first time.”

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan said he saw Saudi-US relations as a "win-win" and likely to remain on a strong footing under US President Donald Trump.

“We need each other. And as long as there is a win-win-deal, we will continue. And I think that is going to continue now and in the foreseeable future,” he explained.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said Thursday the kingdom wants to invest $600 billion in the United States over the next four years.

On the possibility of a broader deal to diplomatically recognize Israel, al-Jadaan said Saudi Arabia was in "no rush."

"We need to make sure that we have an irrevocable path towards a two-state solution," he stressed.

Iranian Filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof’s Film Nominated for Oscar

January 24, 2025


The director reached Europe last yaer after being sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging, and property confiscation by the Islamic Republic

The film, submitted by Germany, follows an investigative judge in Tehran's Revolutionary Court amid the 2022 protests

The director reached Europe last yaer after being sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging, and property confiscation by the Islamic Republic

The film, submitted by Germany, follows an investigative judge in Tehran's Revolutionary Court amid the 2022 protests

The director reached Europe last yaer after being sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging, and property confiscation by the Islamic Republic

Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof’s film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" has been nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards.

The film, submitted by Germany, follows an investigative judge in Tehran's Revolutionary Court amid the 2022 protests.

Filmed secretly and including real demonstration footage, the movie explores themes of distrust and political tension.

Rasoulof previously won the Special Jury Prize at the 77th Cannes Film Festival.

The director reached Europe last yaer after being sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging, and property confiscation by the Islamic Republic.

Rasoulof’s lawyer, Babak Paknia, explained that the charges stemmed from the director's films and his involvement in a letter urging authorities to stop violence during protests over a deadly building collapse in 2022.

"I arrived in Europe a few days ago after a long and complicated journey," Rasoulof said after leaving Iran.

Another Iranian project, the animated short "In the Shadow of the Cypress" by Shirin Sohani and Hossein Molayemi, is nominated for Best Animated Short Film.

The 97th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on March 2 in Hollywood.

 Stay or Go? The Dilemma of Türkiye's Syrian Refugees

For many Syrian refugees living in Türkiye, the idea of going home raises many worrying questions. (AFP)

24 January 2025

AD ـ 25 Rajab 1446 AH


More than 50,000 Syrian refugees have left Türkiye to return home since Bashar al-Assad's ouster. But for many others living in the country, the thought raises a host of worrying questions.

In Altindag, a northeastern suburb of Ankara home to many Syrians, Radigue Muhrabi, who has a newborn and two other children, said she could not quite envisage going back to Syria "where everything is so uncertain".

"My husband used to work with my father at his shoe shop in Aleppo but it was totally destroyed. We don't know anything about work opportunities nor schools for the kids," she said.

After the civil war began in 2011, Syria's second city was badly scarred by fighting between the opposition and Russian-backed regime forces.

Even so, daily life in Türkiye has not been easy for the Syrian refugees who have faced discrimination, political threats of expulsion and even physical attacks.

In August 2021, an angry mob smashed up shops and cars thought to belong to Syrians in Altindag as anti-migrant sentiment boiled over at a time of deepening economic insecurity in Türkiye.

Basil Ahmed, a 37-year-old motorcycle mechanic, recalled the terror his two young children experienced when the mob smashed the windows of their home.

Even so, he said he was not thinking of going straight back.

- 'Not the same Syria' -

"We have nothing in Aleppo. Here, despite the difficulties, we have a life," he said.

"My children were born here, they don't know Syria."

As the Assad regime brutally cracked down on the population, millions fled in fear, explained Murat Erdogan, a university professor who specializes in migration.

"Now he's gone, many are willing to return but the Syria they left is not the same place," he told AFP.

"Nobody can predict what the new Syrian government will be like, how they will enforce their authority, what Israel will do nor how the clashes (with Kurdish fighters) near the Turkish border will develop," he said.

"The lack of security is a major drawback."

On top of that is the massive infrastructure damage caused by more than 13 years of civil war, with very limited electricity supplies, a ruined public health service and problems with finding housing.

At the SGDD-ASAM, a local association offering workshops and advice to migrants, 16-year-old Rahseh Mahruz was preparing to go back to Aleppo with her parents.

But she knew she would not find the music lessons there that she has enjoyed in Ankara.

- 'No emotional ties to Syria' -

"All my memories, the things I normally do are here. There's nothing there, not even electricity or internet. I don't want to go but my family has decided we will," she said.

Of the 2.9 million Syrians in Türkiye, 1.7 million are under 18 and have few emotional links to their homeland, said the association's director Ibrahim Vurgun Kavlak.

"Most of these youngsters don't have strong emotional, psychological or social ties with Syria. Their idea of Syria is based on what their families have told them," he explained.

And there may even be problems with the language barrier, said professor Erdogan.

"Around 816,000 Syrian children are currently studying in Turkish schools. They have been taught in Turkish for years and some of them don't even know Arabic," he said.

During a visit to Türkiye earlier this week, EU crisis commissioner Hadja Lahbib told AFP she shared "the sense of uncertainty felt by the refugees".

"The situation is unstable, it's changing and nobody knows which direction it will go in," she said.

"I've come with 235 million euros ($245 million) worth of aid for refugees in Syria and in the surrounding countries like Türkiye and Jordan, to meet them and see what worries them and how to respond to that," she said.

If there ends up being a huge wave of Syrians heading home, it will likely have an unsettling impact on certain sectors of Türkiye's workforce.

Although they are often paid low wages, commonly under the table, their absence would leave a gaping hole, notably in the textile and construction industries.

For Erdogan, the economic shock of such a shift could ultimately be beneficial for Türkiye, forcing it to move away from the exploitation of cheap labor.

"We cannot continue a development model based on exploitation," he said.

Turkish media: PKK leader Öcalan may urge disarmament in February

2025-01-24 

Shafaq News/ Turkish media reported that Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), labeled as a terrorist organization by Turkiye, US, and EU, is expected to call on his party and its supporters to disarm by mid-February.

According to the Turkish newspaper Zaman, discussions during recent meetings with Öcalan in İmralı Prison touched on details of talks between the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), and the Republican People's Party (CHP), as well as reservations expressed by other political factions.

The Kurdish People's Democracy and Equality Party (DEM) issued a statement on Thursday regarding two meetings its delegation held with Öcalan. The statement, widely circulated in Turkish media, confirmed that Öcalan had been briefed on the delegation's discussions with Turkish political parties following their first meeting.

The DEM statement noted, “The meeting provided Öcalan with critical information. After completing preparations for this process, necessary announcements will be made to the public. The party delegation will continue its efforts and communication, updating the public as developments arise. This process aims to promote coexistence in freedom, and we anticipate meaningful contributions from all sectors of society to achieve this goal.”

The second meeting between Öcalan and the DEM delegation reportedly lasted four hours. Their first meeting, held on December 28, 2024, lasted three hours, after which the delegation briefed political leaders on Öcalan's stance.

Turkish media has speculated that Öcalan could issue an official call for disarmament in mid-February. The online platform Medyascope reported that the Kurdish delegation plans to meet with government and party representatives after returning from İmralı Prison. If no obstacles arise, a third meeting with Öcalan will be held, during which he is anticipated to formally call for an end to the PKK's armed activities in Turkiye.

The proposed date of February 15 for this announcement aligns with the anniversary of Öcalan’s extradition to Turkiye in 1999.

Two Iraqi border guards killed in PKK attack near Zakho

2025-01-24 04:45

Shafaq News/ Two Iraqi border guards were killed, and another sustained injuries on Friday in an armed attack targeting a border checkpoint near Zakho, according to a security source.

The source reported that "the assault was carried out by militants affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a group known for periodically targeting military positions of the Peshmerga forces and Iraqi border guards in areas along the Turkish border."

This incident comes amid heightened tensions in the region, where cross-border operations and skirmishes have intensified. Last week, the Turkish Ministry of Defense announced the seizure of weapons and ammunition linked to the PKK during its ongoing "Operation Claw-Lock (Pençe-Kılıt)" in the Kurdistan Region.

The Turkish military initiated Operation Claw-Lock on April 17, 2022, targeting PKK strongholds in the Matina, Zap, and Avashin-Basyan regions of Iraqi Kurdistan. The operation aims to eliminate PKK threats along Turkiye's southern borders.

Following his remarks in Davos, who called for Zarif`s arrest in Tehran?

2025-01-23 

Shafaq News/ The Secretary of the Supreme Council for the Promotion of Virtue in Tehran, Rouhollah Momen Nasab, called on Thursday, for the arrest of Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif, following his recent statements at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Zarif had stated during his participation in the forum that Iran was not aware of the attack launched by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023.

After more than 15 months of war, a ceasefire deal agreed between Israel and Hamas came into effect on January 19. The Palestinian Ministry of Health says more than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks.

Zarif emphasized that Iran had no knowledge of the 7th of October Hamas attack on Israel, noting that Tehran was planning to hold a meeting with the Americans on October 9, 2023, regarding the nuclear deal, but the attack derailed those talks.

He further explained that Iran's regional allies, including Hamas, have always acted in their own interests, even at Iran's expense, as he put it.

DAVOS

Pope Francis: AI is ‘accelerating crisis of truth’

Peter Caddle
BRUSSELS SIGNAL

24 January 2025

Pope Francis has warned the World Economic Forum (WEF) that artificial intelligence (AI) was accelerating a so-called “crisis of truth” currently plaguing the modern world.

In a message to the WEF gathering in Davos read by Cardinal Peter Turkson on January 23, the head of the Catholic Church emphasised that while the religious body considered itself a “protagonist” when it came to technological advancement, elements of AI progress had left him uneasy.

“Unlike many other human inventions, AI is trained on the results of human creativity, which enables it to generate new artefacts with a skill level and speed that often rival or surpasses human capabilities, raising critical concerns about its impact on humanity’s role in the world,” the Pontiff said.

“Furthermore, the results that AI can produce are almost indistinguishable from those of human beings, raising questions about its effect on the growing crisis of truth in the public forum.

“Moreover, this technology is designed to learn and make certain choices autonomously, adapting to new situations and providing answers not foreseen by its programmers, thus raising fundamental questions about ethical responsibility, human safety, and the broader implications of these developments for society.”

Pope Francis warned that, in Catholic teaching, social cohesion was considered more valuable than technological advancement.

He said the current trajectory of AI risked it becoming a tool “used to advance the ‘technocratic paradigm’, which perceives all the world’s problems as solvable through technological means alone”.

“Within this paradigm, human dignity and fraternity are frequently subordinated in the pursuit of efficiency, as though reality, goodness, and truth inherently emanate from technological and economic power.

“Yet human dignity must never be violated for the sake of efficiency,” he claimed.

“Technological developments that do not improve life for everyone, but instead create or worsen inequalities and conflicts, cannot be called true progress.

“For this reason, AI should be placed at the service of a healthier, more human, more social and more integral development.

“To navigate the complexities of AI, governments and businesses must exercise due diligence and vigilance,” the Pontiff continued.

“They must critically evaluate the individual applications of AI in particular contexts in order to determine whether its use promotes human dignity, the vocation of the human person, and the common good,” he added.

The U.S. is trying to unravel a hacking plot that targeted climate activists

January 24, 2025
Heard on Morning Edition
By Michael Copley
NPR

The U.S. has accused an Israeli private investigator of orchestrating a hacking campaign that targeted American climate activists. Extradition hearings for the private investigator, Amit Forlit, were held at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London.Alberto Pezzali/AP

A yearslong U.S. Justice Department investigation of a global hacking campaign that targeted prominent American climate activists took a turn in a London court this week amid an allegation that the hacking was ordered by a lobbying firm working for ExxonMobil. Both the lobbying firm and ExxonMobil have denied any awareness of or involvement with alleged hacking.

The hacking was allegedly commissioned by a Washington, D.C., lobbying firm, according to a lawyer representing the U.S. government. The firm, in turn, was allegedly working on behalf of one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, based in Texas, that wanted to discredit groups and individuals involved in climate litigation, according to the lawyer for the U.S. government. In court documents, the Justice Department does not name either company.
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As part of its probe, the U.S. is trying to extradite an Israeli private investigator named Amit Forlit from the United Kingdom for allegedly orchestrating the hacking campaign. A lawyer for Forlit claimed in a court filing that the hacking operation her client is accused of leading "is alleged to have been commissioned by DCI Group, a lobbying firm representing ExxonMobil, one of the world's largest fossil fuel companies."

Forlit has previously denied ordering or paying for hacking.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to a source familiar with the U.S. probe who was not authorized to speak publicly, the U.S. has investigated DCI's possible role in the hacking. Reuters and The Wall Street Journal previously reported that the U.S. government has investigated DCI.

DCI lobbied for ExxonMobil for about a decade, according to federal lobbying records. NPR has not been able to confirm what, if any, links the Justice Department may have thought DCI had with the hacking campaign. NPR has not found any indications that the Justice Department has investigated ExxonMobil in relation to this case.

DCI and ExxonMobil declined to comment on the allegations made in the London hearing. Both companies referred NPR back to statements they had provided earlier in our investigation.
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Craig Stevens, a partner at DCI, said in an email that no one at the firm has been questioned by the U.S. government as part of the hacking investigation. "Allegations of DCI's involvement with hacking supposedly occurring nearly a decade ago are false and unsubstantiated. We direct all our employees and consultants to comply with the law," Stevens said. "Meanwhile, radical anti-oil activists and their donors are peddling conspiracy theories to distract from their own anti-U.S. energy activities."

ExxonMobil spokesperson Elise Otten said in an emailed statement that the company "has not been involved in, nor are we aware of, any hacking activities. If there was any hacking involved, we condemn it in the strongest possible terms."

In a court document arguing for Forlit's extradition, the lawyer for the U.S. government described a sophisticated hacking operation that spanned continents. Forlit ran security companies that gathered information using various methods, including hiring "co-conspirators to hack into email accounts and devices," according to the court filing.

A lawyer representing the U.S. government revealed in the court filing that Forlit has been indicted in the U.S. on charges of conspiracy to commit computer hacking, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and wire fraud, according to the court filing in London.

Climate activists who were targeted by hackers say the plot that U.S. officials have been trying to unravel was aimed at disrupting their efforts to fight climate change by pushing governments and society to slash the use of fossil fuels like oil and coal.

"It was undoubtedly designed to intimidate and scare advocates from continuing their work to hold these major oil companies accountable for the decades of deception that they're responsible for," says Lee Wasserman, director of the Rockefeller Family Fund and one of the hacking victims.

The fossil fuel industry faces dozens of lawsuits filed by states and localities accusing companies of misleading the public about the risks of climate change. The industry says that those lawsuits are meritless and politicized and that climate change is an issue that should be dealt with by Congress, not the courts.

The potential impact on civil society of hacking-for-hire operations is grave, according to cybersecurity and legal experts.

"Nothing is more powerful at chilling speech and encouraging self-censorship than the feeling that your entire digital world, which probably touches your whole world, could be invaded by people who mean you harm simply because of what you're doing at work," says John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at the Citizen Lab, a cyber watchdog at the University of Toronto that analyzed the attacks. "Simply because you're concerned about rising sea levels."

The U.S. has said previously that ExxonMobil took advantage of leaked information

Private detective who led a hacking attack against climate activists gets prison time

The U.S. hacking investigation became public in 2019 with the arrest in New York of a business associate of Forlit's named Aviram Azari. A former Israeli police officer and private investigator, Azari eventually pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit computer hacking, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

The hackers Azari hired didn't target just American climate activists, according to federal prosecutors. They also attacked government officials in Africa, members of a Mexican political party and critics of a German company called Wirecard.

U.S. District Judge John Koeltl sentenced Azari in November 2023 to more than six years in prison and ordered him to forfeit more than $4.8 million that prosecutors allege he was paid for managing the hacking campaigns.

At Azari's sentencing, federal prosecutors did not say who they believed had hired Azari to target the climate activists. The Justice Department stated in a sentencing memo that ExxonMobil was the beneficiary of the information that the attacks revealed.

California's lawsuit says oil giants downplayed climate change. Here's what to know

Federal prosecutors asserted in the Azari sentencing memo that information stolen from climate activists was leaked to the media, resulting in news stories that "appeared designed to undermine" state climate investigations of ExxonMobil. The company's lawyers used the news stories in court as part of their defense against the state investigations, prosecutors said.

ExxonMobil said in a statement at the time that it had done nothing wrong. "ExxonMobil has no knowledge of Azari nor have we been involved in any hacking activities," the company said.

The sentencing memo in Azari's case noted a private email among climate activists that surfaced in the media in 2016. The email described plans for a closed-door meeting in New York among leading climate activists, including writer and organizer Bill McKibben and Peter Frumhoff, then the chief climate scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists, a watchdog and research group. The meeting's goal, according to the email, was to sharpen attacks on ExxonMobil and convince the public that the company is a "corrupt institution" that pushed the world toward "climate chaos and grave harm." It also raised the prospect of legal action through state attorneys general and the Justice Department.

ExxonMobil and some Republican lawmakers cited the document as they tried to fight off state climate investigations, saying activists and prosecutors colluded to advance a political agenda.

Climate activists protest on the first day of an ExxonMobil trial outside the New York state Supreme Court building in 2019 in New York City.

Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
Lawyer for U.S. government described a sophisticated hacking campaign

Azari was sent to a federal prison in New Jersey in 2023. Five months later, Forlit was arrested in London. The Justice Department has been working through British lawyers to have Forlit extradited to the U.S. to face criminal prosecution "arising from a 'hacking-for-hire' scheme," court documents show.

One of Forlit's clients from 2013 to 2018 was an unnamed "D.C. Lobbying Firm," the court filing says. That firm "acted on behalf of one of the world's largest oil and gas corporations, centred in Irving, Texas," the document says. The company, in particular, wanted to discredit people and organizations engaged in climate change litigation against it, a lawyer for the U.S. wrote. Until mid-2023, ExxonMobil was headquartered in Irving, Texas.

A lawyer representing the U.S. alleged that the lobbying firm gave Forlit targets to hack. The lawyer said there's a "strong circumstantial case" that Forlit gave the list of at least 128 targets to Azari, who then hired hackers in India.

Forlit and Azari both referred to the operation as "Fox Hunt," the lawyer for the U.S. said in the London court filing. The hacking obtained "non-public documents which were provided to the oil and gas company and published as part of a media campaign to undermine the integrity of civil investigations," according to the filing.

D.C.-based firm lobbied for ExxonMobil for about a decade

DCI, the public affairs firm that Forlit's lawyer said her client allegedly worked for, has a long history working for the fossil fuel industry.

The firm worked for a nonprofit that supports the U.S. coal industry. And one of DCI's executives was identified as a spokesman for a group that backed the controversial Dakota Access oil pipeline.

In the early 2000s, ExxonMobil provided funding for a website DCI published called Tech Central Station, which the Union of Concerned Scientists called a "hybrid of quasi-journalism and lobbying." And from 2005 until early 2016, ExxonMobil paid DCI around $3 million to lobby the federal government, according to lobbying disclosures.

The lawyer for the U.S. government said in an extradition statement that the hacking operation started in late 2015. At that time, the oil and gas industry was facing a mounting backlash. Stories by investigative journalists in 2015 revealed that ExxonMobil's own scientists warned top executives about dire risks from climate change as early as the 1970s. Despite those warnings, the oil company went on to lead a decades-long campaign to sow public confusion about global warming. Activists seized on the reports, popularizing the hashtag #ExxonKnew to argue that ExxonMobil knew about human-caused climate change despite denying it publicly.

In Washington, D.C., Democrats urged the Justice Department to investigate whether ExxonMobil misled the public about climate change. And a group of state attorneys general banded together to find "creative ways to enforce laws being flouted by the fossil fuel industry and their allies," New York's attorney general said in early 2016.

Since then, dozens of lawsuits have been filed in the U.S. against ExxonMobil and other fossil fuel corporations, largely by Democratic-led states and towns. They allege the industry misled the public for decades about the dangers of burning fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change. The lawsuits seek damages to help communities cope with climate risks and damages.

Victims say finding out who ordered the hacking is crucial

Forlit's lawyer, Rachel Scott, focused on the litigation against ExxonMobil in her opening arguments in London. She said the U.S. is trying to prosecute Forlit in part "to advance the politically-motivated cause of pursuing ExxonMobil."

The U.S. government is not part of the climate lawsuits filed by states and localities.

It has been years since the climate activists were targeted by hackers, but finding out who directed and paid for the operation is still vital, says Matt Pawa, an environmental lawyer and hacking victim.

It's important "for the purposes of deterrence," Pawa says, "so that this is not done again."