In post-Assad Syria, Kurdish-led SDF impose media blackout on Aleppo neighbourhoods

The Kurdish-led SDF are due to evacuate two Aleppo neighbourhoods under a deal with the Syrian government, but are still stopping media from accessing them

Paul McLoughlin
Syria
13 April, 2025

The SDF are due to evacuate Sheikh Maqsoud soon [Amer Al-Sayid Ali / The New Arab]

Aleppo, Syria - Dirt barriers and guards remained stationed outside two Kurdish-dominated enclaves in the city of Aleppo on Friday, as members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) left the neighbourhoods this week after an agreement with the Syrian government.

Security and administration in Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafiah neighbourhoods have been largely managed by the US-backed Kurdish-led SDF since 2015, which controls around 25% of Syria's territory, including most of the northeast.

Following a pact signed by Syrian interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and SDF military commander Mazloum Abdi on 10 March, it was agreed that all areas would eventually be brought under government control and SDF units integrated into the national army.

Following the withdrawal of Kurdish fighters last week, armed guards from the SDF-linked Asayish security forces remained stationed at the entrance of Sheikh Maqsoud on Friday, inspecting bags and screening people entering the district.

Guards at Sheikh Maqsoud would not allow The New Arab and Al-Araby Al-Jadeed journalists entry to the North Aleppo neighbourhood without approval from the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), something we have sought for over a month.

At the security point in Sheikh Maqsoud, a small lone Syrian national flag now flies alongside six larger blue banners of the Asayish and Kurdish authorities. The entrance to the neighbourhood still shows signs of 14 years of fighting in the city of Aleppo, with damage from shelling and sniper positions visible in a wall of apartment blocks that surround the enclave.

The situation was similar in Achrafieh, where the flags of the Asayish security forces were visible from a long line of traffic waiting to enter the neighbourhood.

Bar sporadic checkpoints, most Syrians - including journalists - have been largely free to move around the country following the fall of Bashar Al-Assad on 8 December, whose regime killed 181 journalists since the start of the conflict in 2011, with no independent media allowed to operate in regime-controlled areas.

The two Kurdish enclaves in Aleppo, like northeastern Syria, have remained largely autonomous throughout the war with their own administrative, security, and ‘visa’ procedures.

This includes stringent protocols for foreign journalists operating in SDF-controlled areas, including requiring permission to enter the territories - approval Al-Araby Al-Jadeed and The New Arab have continuously sought over the past six weeks.

Shahira Salloum, managing editor of Al-Araby Al-Jadeed website, was with The New Arab during our attempts to enter Sheikh Maqsoud, and said her experience at the enclave was in stark contrast to reporting from other parts of Syria.

"We have entered all parts of Syria freely, and the one side that didn’t allow us into areas they control was the SDF," Salloum told The New Arab.

"It was a very strange experience for us given our previous experiences in Syria, where people and security forces opened their doors and spoke freely. It puts a question mark over their policies and their supposed commitment to democracy."

The situation was similar the the SDF-controlled ‘border point’ near Raqqa, where guards prevented The New Arab and Al-Araby Al-Jadeed journalists from accessing northeast Syria.

Media rights groups such as Reporters Without Borders have for years called on Kurdish-dominated authorities in the northeast to lift restrictions on journalists, with foreign and Syrian reporters needing approval from the AANES to access areas under their control.

In addition to this stringent accreditation process for foreign media entering the northeast, journalists also require a local fixer to operate in the area.

Local journalists have also been jailed for writing critically about the AANES, while broadcasters such as Rudaw and Kurdistan 24, which cover Kurdish politics in Syria and Iraq, have also faced restrictions in the territories.

The agreement signed between Abdi and Sharaa in March stipulates that all border points, airports, and oil fields will come under the control of the Damascus government by the end of the year.

Since the agreement was signed, there has been prisoner exchanges between the two sides, while Kurdish rights will be guaranteed, including a lifting on restrictions on the teaching of the Kurdish language implemented during the Baathist regime.

SDF fighters will also withdraw from Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh, with two batches leaving the two Aleppo enclaves over the past week and heading for northeast of Syria - an Arab-majority region but under the control of a Kurdish-dominated political and security apparatus.

Kurds who lost their nationality during Bashar and Hafez Al-Assad’s rule will also be given Syrian citizenship, while internally displaced Kurds will be allowed to return to their homes.

The deal ends years of conflict between the SDF and rebel forces now integrated into the Syrian government, including Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, was once led by Al-Sharaa, which has fought fierce clashes with Kurdish militias in Aleppo.

Syrian forces deploy at key dam under deal with Kurds: media

The Kurdish authorities in northeastern Syria struck a deal with the central government on running a key dam they captured from the Islamic State group.

The New Arab Staff & Agencies
12 April, 2025


Fighters loyal to the new Syrian government in Damascus established after the December overthrow of longtime strongman Bashar al-Assad have begun taking over security and a joint administration will run the Tishrin dam. [Getty]

Security forces from the new government in Damascus deployed Saturday around a strategic dam in northern Syria, under a deal with the autonomous Kurdish administration, state media reported.

Under the agreement, Kurdish-led fighters of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) will pull back from the dam which they captured from the Islamic State group in late 2015.

The Tishrin dam near Manbij in Aleppo province is one of several on the Euphrates and its tributaries in Syria that play a key role in the nation's economy by providing it with water for irrigation and hydro-electric power.

On Thursday, a Kurdish source said the Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria had reached agreement with the central government on running the dam.

A separate Kurdish source told news agency AFP on Saturday that the deal, supervised by the US-led coalition, stipulates that the dam remain under Kurdish civilian administration.

Syria's state news agency SANA reported "the entry of Syrian Arab Army forces and security forces into the Tishrin Dam ... to impose security in the region, under the agreement reached with the SDF".

The accord also calls for a joint military force to protect the dam, and for the withdrawal of Turkey-backed factions "that seek to disrupt this agreement", SANA said.

It is part of a broader agreement reached in mid-March between Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi, aiming to integrate the institutions of the Kurdish autonomous administration into the national government.

The dam was a key battleground in Syria's civil war that broke out in 2011, falling first to rebels and then to IS before being captured by the SDF.

Days after Sharaa's coalition overthrew Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad in December, Turkish drone strikes targeted the dam, killing dozens of civilians, Kurdish officials and a Britain-based war monitor.

Israel cancels 'provocative' tourist tours inside occupied Syria

Israel has cancelled all 'tourist tours' inside illegally occupied Syrian territory days after they were originally announced

The New Arab Staff
12 April, 2025


Israel has expanded its illegal occupation of the Golan Heights [Getty]


The Israeli army announced on Friday the cancellation of all planned "tourist tours" to border areas inside illegally occupied Syrian territory, which had been arranged for Israeli tourists accompanied by guides holding official permits.

In a statement, the Israeli army explained that the decision came following an "operational situation assessment," adding that "entry to the fence-crossing routes will not be permitted at this stage," in reference to areas seized by the Israeli army beginning in December 2024, adjacent to the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

According to the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, the cancellations affected three main routes: the Ruqad River, the Hamma Bridge on the banks of the Yarmouk River, and the Hejaz Railway tunnel in the Yarmouk area.

On the other hand, a fourth route, located on Mount Hermon overlooking the Lebanese border, was excluded from the cancellation decision, with the army confirming that this path will remain temporarily open for now.

Days earlier, the Israeli military had notified potential Israeli tourists of its intention to organise special tours inside Syrian lands beyond the border strip, in an unprecedented move aimed at reinforcing what it calls "security tourism," under the direct protection of the army.

According to Haaretz newspaper, the surprise invitation to the tours came from the Northern Command of the Israeli army and Division 210, in coordination with the Golan Regional Council.

The tours include areas that are normally off-limits - locations recently occupied by Israel and classified as being outside the border fence of the buffer zone.

According to Israeli media outlets, one of the planned tours was expected to include a visit to an observation point on Mount Dov, overlooking southern Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley.

Some of the areas included in the tours were previously controlled by the former Assad regime’s forces prior to its fall, while others were taken over by Israel later.

Despite Israeli military assurances that the initiative is “entirely safe,” this has been widely questioned in Israel due to the sensitive nature of the border regions involved—particularly in light of the repeated security incidents that have occurred there in recent years.

Yedioth Ahronoth described the move as unprecedented since the founding of Israel, noting that many of the sites involved in the tours are considered closed military zones. This gives the activity a provocative character and has stirred concerns about covert expansionist aims masked as tourism.

Almost as soon a Syrian rebel coalition overthrew the regime of Bashar al-Assad in December, Israel exploited the situation by seizing Syrian territory adjacent to the occupied Golan Heights in southwestern Syria.

Since then, it has unleashed unprecedented airstrikes on Syrian targets, killing dozens of civilians and destroying key infrastructure in the country. It has also issued numerous threats against the Syrian government, warning its security forces to stay out of southern Syria.

What does the Trump administration want from Damascus?

An aerial view of the area as protesters march through the streets of Yarmouk Refugee Camp in Damascus, Syria, on March 28, 2025, carrying Palestinian flags and chanting anti-Israel slogans. [Bakr Al Kasem – Anadolu Agency]


Opinion
April 11, 2025 

by Ghazi Dahman

MEMO

Following US President Donald Trump’s administration’s decision to change the status of Syrian diplomats at the UN mission, which involved the US not recognising the new Syrian administration, a question comes to mind: What does the Trump administration want from Damascus? Is it using non-recognition as a bargaining chip to manipulate Damascus, and perhaps its regional and international backers?

The US administration’s decision can be described as largely technical, meaning it is bureaucratic in nature, not political. For example, the decision to change the visa type is based on an internal assessment that classifies the interim transitional government in Syria as an extension of structures unacceptable to the US, specifically in terms of its alleged ties to factions designated as terrorist organisations. Its technical nature is confirmed by the fact that it is issued by institutions of a technical, rather than political, nature, such as the Department of Homeland Security.

However, this does not mean that the decision has no political implications, and it indicates that lifting the sanctions is not on the Trump administration’s agenda. There is a possibility that the Trump administration will reconsider the US Treasury Department’s decision under the Biden administration, which stipulated a six-month relief of the sanctions, which could be extended. This means that the road to Syria’s exit from its economic crisis is still long, given that the US role in this area is crucial, and that these policies may push many countries to change their approach to relations with Damascus out of fear of being affected by US sanctions.

What is interesting about American policy is that, even at the height of its conflict with Iran, Russia and the Assad regime, and while leading an international coalition through the Military Operations Centre (MOC) offices in Turkiye and Jordan, it did not go so far as to withdraw recognition of Bashar Al-Assad’s regime, and neither the status nor privileges of Syrian diplomats at the UN mission in New York were affected. Furthermore, the new government in Damascus enjoys de facto legitimacy, a legitimacy based on which most countries in the South were able to integrate themselves seamlessly into the international system without any problems or complications. Furthermore, the removal of the Assad regime entailed geopolitical changes that served Washington’s interests, as part of its efforts to weaken Iranian influence in the region.

Various assessments and analyses of the American position suggest that Washington is still evaluating the new administration in Damascus to reach an arrangement for dealing with this administration, which is primarily composed of Islamist groups led by Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham, which Washington classifies as a “terrorist organisation.” However, this new Syrian administration is attempting to formulate a moderate governing system an Islamic nature, similar to those in Turkiye and Malaysia, to gain the approval of the outside world. Yet, American political behaviour remains cautious in dealing with this new regime, with responses ranging from placing it under observation to testing it through a list of conditions presented by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Levant and Syria Affairs, Natasha Franceschi, to Syrian Foreign Minister, Asaad Al-Shaibani, on the sidelines of the donors’ conference. Furthermore, the Trump administration is witnessing a difference in views between the State Department and the White House on the nature of dealing with Damascus. It appears that the White House (which is home to many pro-Israel supporters) remains the most effective in determining the form of policies to be adopted toward Damascus.

Despite this, the Trump administration’s policy remains largely unclear and vague. There is no clear negative position toward the policies of the new Syrian administration, which has expressed its willingness to cooperate on issues of concern to Washington, particularly the fight against the Islamic State (Daesh) and the issue of chemical weapons. The US administration does not appear to be particularly concerned with the issue of minorities, especially since President Ahmad Al-Sharaa’s administration is working diligently to accommodate Christians, who are the Trump administration’s primary concern. The rest of the components are a given for Washington. The Trump administration has hinted at its relative satisfaction with the Sharaa administration’s measures regarding the constitutional declaration and government formation or at least has not expressed explicit objection to these measures.

This means that the Trump administration is not interested in the specifics of Syria itself, nor in the nature of policies pursued by the Sharaa administration, reflecting the unimportance of Syria to the Trump administration, especially after Iran’s withdrawal and Russia’s weakening. Consequently, the strategic status (already low in the Trump administration’s opinion) has declined to a minimum, placing Syria outside the Trump administration’s priorities, demoting it to a neglected file. Its affairs may be entrusted to regional and international actors in the coming period given growing indications of a US withdrawal from Syria, which is no longer a possibility but has entered the implementation phase through the successive gradual withdrawals of US forces from eastern Syria.

The Trump administration will likely not have a specific policy on Syria in the coming period, nor will it invest diplomatically in Syria. It is likely to pursue a policy of managing the situation through low-level diplomacy to manage the relationship between Turkiye and Israel. In the best-case scenario, it will turn Syria into a bargaining chip for regional parties seeking to benefit from the Syrian dynamic, especially since they possess the tools capable of paralysing Syria: US sanctions, the continuity of which would hinder any ability to emerge from fragility and danger.

This article first appeared in Arabic in Al-Araby Al-Jadeed on 10 April 2025

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.

Syria extends deadline for probe into killings of Alawites

Red Crescent workers help evacuate wounded members of the Alawite sect on March 10 after they sought refuge near a Russian airbase in coastal Syria after violence and revenge killings. (AP/File)

Updated 11 April 2025
AP

President Ahmed Al-Sharaa grants fact-finding committee three month extension to identify perpetrators

Human rights groups say more than 1,000 civilians — mostly Alawites were killed in violence last month


BEIRUT: Syria’s presidency announced on Friday that it would extend a probe into the killings of Alawite civilians in coastal areas that left hundreds dead after clashes between government forces and armed groups loyal to former President Bashar Assad spiraled into sectarian revenge attacks.

The violence erupted on March 6 after Assad loyalists ambushed patrols of the new government, prompting Islamist-led groups to launch coordinated assaults on Latakia, Baniyas, and other coastal areas.

According to human rights groups, more than 1,000 civilians — mostly Alawites, an Islamic minority to which Assad belongs — were killed in retaliatory attacks, including home raids, executions, and arson, displacing thousands.

The sectarian violence was possibly among the bloodiest 72 hours in Syria’s modern history, including the 14 years of civil war from which the country is now emerging. The violence brought fear of a renewed civil war and threatened to open an endless cycle of vengeance, driving thousands of Alawites to flee their homes, with an estimated 30,000 seeking refuge in northern Lebanon.

On March 9, President Ahmed Al-Sharaa, the former leader of an Islamist insurgent group, formed a fact-finding committee and gave it 30 days to report its findings and identify perpetrators. In a decree published late Thursday, Sharaa said the committee had requested more time and was granted a three-month non-renewable extension.
The committee’s spokesperson, Yasser Farhan, said in a statement on Friday that the committee has recorded 41 sites where killings took place, each forming the basis for a separate case and requiring more time to gather evidence. He said some areas remained inaccessible due to time constraints, but that residents had cooperated, despite threats from pro-Assad remnants.

In a report published on April 3, Amnesty International said its probe into the killings concluded that at least 32 of more than 100 people killed in the town of Baniyas were deliberately targeted on sectarian grounds — a potential war crime.

The rights organization welcomed the committee’s formation but stressed it must be independent, properly resourced, and granted full access to burial sites and witnesses to conduct a credible investigation. It also said the committee should be granted “adequate time to complete the investigation.”

Witnesses to the killings identified the attackers as hard-line Sunni Islamists, including Syria-based jihadi foreign fighters and members of former rebel factions that took part in the offensive that overthrew Assad. However, many were also local Sunnis, seeking revenge for past atrocities blamed on Alawites loyal to Assad.

While some Sunnis hold the Alawite community responsible for Assad’s brutal crackdowns, Alawites themselves say they also suffered under his rule.

We need to talk about Sudan

The lack of debate surrounding the war in Sudan suggests that there is little global interest in the atrocities being committed, writes Yassmin Abdel-Magied.

Opinion
Yassmin Abdel-Magied
11 Apr, 2025

THE NEW ARAB


For nearly two years, Sudan has been ravaged by a war between the regular army and the RSF, a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted over 12 million more and created the world's largest hunger and displacement crises. [GETTY]

I recently attended an interview with the Egyptian-Canadian writer and journalist Omar El Akkad ahead of the publication of his book, One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This.

The book was born from a viral tweet sent shortly after bombardment began in Gaza in October 2023. El Akkad wrote: “One day, when it’s safe, when there’s no personal downside to calling a thing what it is, when it’s too late to hold anyone accountable, everyone will have always been against this.” The post was viewed more than 10 million times.

More than 150 people warmed the room on a cold London night to hear him speak. By the time I reached the front of the signing line, all copies of his book had sold out. Alhamdulillah (praise be to God), I thought, agreeing with his publisher’s comments that this was a vital message, a critical meditation, the needed challenge for Western readers to grapple with their nations’ complicity in what has been termed the “first live-streamed genocide”.

Yet, despite the sharp clarity of El Akkad’s words, the truth of his analysis and the profound power of his critique, I was unable to remain entirely present during the discourse. Alongside my complete and lifelong solidarity with the Palestinian people, the feeling that kept interrupting was one I did not want to engage with, one I had no sense of how to acknowledge.

Related

Amidst war & displacement in Sudan, my aunt won't stop educating

Yassmin Abdel-Magied

Would people ever one day “always have been against” the war in Sudan?

What does the answer to that question tell us? About Sudan, about the value we place on human life, about ourselves?

El Akkad’s writing, and the writing of many Palestinians and their allies, points to a truth about the war in Palestine that is distinct from the war in Sudan: the battle of narrative.

Part of the red hot anger, the betrayal that many in the West feel, arises from the “derangement” of politicians, leaders and news organisations, who continue to disseminate lies, mistruths and propaganda about the war, despite positioning themselves as paragons of moral virtue and truth.

Sudan’s challenge is different. There is no battle of narrative. There is an utter lack of narrative. People are “already against this”, but it doesn’t seem to matter enough. There is an utter dearth of interest in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of us, the genocide being committed as I type these words, the millions facing acute hunger, and the many millions more displaced.

I am reminded of the death of a marriage. When there is an argument there is the hope for progress, because at least the parties are engaged with each other. When there is silence, when all sides have left the table, then you know the battle is lost.

Sometimes, a dark, shameful part of me wishes there was a battle of narrative I could engage in. Maybe it would mean Sudanese lives mattered enough to fight about.

At this point, I feel I must issue a disclaimer. Our causes are not in competition with each other, and freedom is not a zero-sum game. Talking about Sudan does not – must not – come at the expense of talking about Palestine, and we must also be wary of those using the Sudanese cause to diminish the activism and agitation of Palestinians and their allies.

Perhaps this is one battle of narrative Sudan has unwittingly found itself in, used as a pejorative talking point in the same way those defending Muslim women’s right to wear the hijab are faced with accusations that they “don’t care about the women in Iran”. These are bad faith arguments that are unconcerned with the actual people in question.

So why begin a piece about Sudan by talking about Palestine at all? Partly, I suppose, to start to try to make sense of a phenomenon I struggle with daily. To give those around me the benefit of the doubt; to resist the urge to point the finger and issue simplistic accusations forged in the blaze of desperation after years of being made invisible; to connect our struggles.

After all, there are no two flags as similar and as easily confused as Sudan’s and Palestine’s. We are distorted mirror images of one another, peoples so often frozen by the imaginations – or lack of imaginations – of others, refused the dignity of life as full, human beings who desire little more than peace and our freedom.

I had planned to feature more voices on the ground in this piece, yet the reality of the conflict once again interrupted any neat narrative I had hoped to write. My contacts in El-Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur, found themselves squeezed once again between heavy aerial bombardment by the Sudanese Armed Forces and shelling and drone attacks by the Rapid Support Forces, trapped between an exploding rock and a deadly hard place.

“I’m sorry for my late reply,” came a recent message from one contact. “The local authority keeps shutting down the network.” That was the last I heard from them, my questions languishing in the WhatsApp chat unread, “single ticked”.

Another activist tells me she cannot bring herself to ask her contact to do an interview. She was panicking about feeding herself and not getting killed.

I feel ashamed, like a narrative vulture, picking at my people’s bones.

In Khartoum, my aunt does not reply to questions about how she is doing. In the few moments of snatched connectivity, she forwards jokes and Arabic memes to the group chat. “I don’t want to talk about this stinking war,” she said. “Send photos of your cooking, of pretty hairstyles, of nice things.” Joy, she said. That’s what she wanted. Joy.

I am reminded of the bursts of joy I witnessed in the images of Palestinians returning to northern Gaza. Singing, laughter, jubilation… despite the dehumanising brutality, the Palestinians had what Omar El Akkad described as “the asymmetrical power of joy”.

I think of this as another quality the Sudanese share with Palestinians – the asymmetrical power of joy. Unencumbered by our wrangling on moral positions, uninterested in the limitations of our imaginations. They continue to live. Subhanallah. Glory be to God.

Yassmin Abdel-Magied is a Sudanese-Australian author and social justice advocate. She is a regular columnist for The New Arab.

Follow her on Twitter: @yassmin_a

This article was first published by Index on Censorship on 10 April 2025. It appeared in Volume 54, Issue 1 of Index on Censorship's print magazine, titled: The forgotten patients: Lost voices in the global healthcare system. Read more about the issue here.

Opinions expressed in this article remain those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The New Arab, its editorial board or staff.

Death toll from Rapid Support Forces attack on Sudan refugee camp rises to 74


April 12, 2025 

MEMO

A view of destruction in a livestock market area in al-Fasher, the capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state on 1 September, 2023 [AFP via Getty Images]

The Sudanese army confirmed on Saturday that the death toll from the ongoing attack by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the Zamzam refugee camp in El Fasher, the capital of Darfur, rose to 74, up from 25 reported the previous day, Anadolu Agency reports.

The RSF’s assault on the camp entered its second day, with reports of continued fighting and attacks, according to local sources.

The Sudanese army stated that the camp was attacked twice on Friday. The first attack, from the western side of the camp, was repelled by the army and supporting forces. The second attack, however, resulted in the RSF setting fire to several homes and killing civilians within the camp.

The army confirmed that 74 people had been killed and 17 others wounded as a result of the RSF’s assault.

The Sudanese government also issued a statement “condemning the attack which targeted innocent civilians.”

In a separate statement, the General Coordination of Displaced Persons and Refugees in Darfur, a civilian group, expressed grave concern, reporting that another attack had occurred on Saturday morning.

READ: Sudan tells World Court UAE fuels Darfur genocide

The organization described the situation as “extremely critical” for the displaced and innocent civilians in the region.

Local resistance committees in El Fasher also reported on Saturday that the RSF had launched a renewed attack on the camp, which lasted for more than three hours.

The local committees further stated that many students at a traditional Quranic school, known as Khalwa Sheikh Farah, were killed during the attack, along with medical personnel working in the camp’s hospitals and clinics.

There had been no comment from the RSF regarding the ongoing assault.

Since April 15, 2023, the RSF has been battling the Sudanese army for control of the country, resulting in thousands of deaths and one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

More than 20,000 people have been killed and 15 million others displaced, according to the UN and local authorities. Research from US scholars, however, estimates the death toll at around 130,000.

The military reclaimed the capital Khartoum last month, but the civil war still continues.

Khartoum has been retaken, but Sudan's war is far from over

Analysis: The army's recapture of Khartoum marks the end of one chapter in the war, but the next phase could see protracted conflict in the west of Sudan.

Analysis
Elfadil Ibrahim
07 April, 2025
THE NEW ARAB


The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) may have retaken Khartoum, but the cheers echoing through the capital’s ravaged streets mask a grim reality: Sudan's civil war is far from over.

Nearly two years after the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) dramatically seized control of Khartoum and much of Sudan, their fighters have been pushed out of the capital's core. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Sudan's de facto president and army chief, toured the reclaimed presidential palace, declaring Khartoum as "free".

For residents who endured months of terror, looting, and siege under RSF occupation, the shift brings a palpable sense of relief, albeit one tempered by profound loss and uncertainty.
Related


Massacres, rape, plunder: The RSF's spiral of violence in Sudan
Sudan
Alessandra Bajec

"It's... like the air itself has changed," Arwa, a 24-year-old woman from Khartoum's northern suburbs, told The New Arab. "For the first time in what feels like a lifetime, there was a real Eid feeling. Seeing neighbours smile, hearing the prayers without being afraid."

This fragile return to a semblance of normalcy is visible on the ground. "People are actually sweeping the streets, trying to bring back some sense of normalcy," Arwa added. "It's small, but it means everything. We finally feel like we belong here again, not like hostages in our own homes."


But Khartoum is a ghost of its former self. The RSF's occupation was marked not by governance, but by a systematic stripping of the city's assets and terrorising of its inhabitants.

Videos emerging after the SAF's advance reveal the horrifying extent of the destruction: iconic buildings are burned-out shells, once bustling streets are now littered with destroyed cars, and Sudan’s National Museum stands tragically empty, looted of priceless artefacts spanning millennia of history.

However, the RSF, though pushed from the capital's centre, insists this is merely a tactical shift.

"This is a rearrangement of cards," Azzam Abdalla, a widely followed commentator on Sudanese politics, explained to The New Arab. He argues that the RSF remains a potent force, still present in Omdurman (part of Greater Khartoum) and capable of striking back. "The RSF, at any moment, could return."

Indeed, the RSF’s deputy commander, Abdel Rahim Hamdan Daglo, recently issued defiant threats from Darfur, boasting of new recruits and vowing to invade Sudan’s Northern and River Nile states, claiming "now the battle is in the North".

This rhetoric follows the RSF's capture of al-Maliha in North Darfur, near the border with the Northern State, signalling their intent to continue the fight, likely supplied via porous borders with backing from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Mohanad El Balal, a political observer and co-founder of the Khartoum Aid Kitchen, offers a sobering assessment of the military landscape.

For residents who endured months of terror, looting, and siege under RSF occupation, the shift brings a palpable sense of relief, albeit one tempered by profound loss and uncertainty. [Getty]


"The war that has been fought over the past 2 years... was a war for control of the Sudanese State," he told The New Arab. While the RSF is "on the verge of resoundingly losing" that specific war, El Balal believes a total military defeat remains unlikely.

"The army will find it very difficult to cut off the UAE’s arms supply lines," he noted, adding that the dynamics shift dramatically as the conflict moves west. In Khartoum and central Sudan, the SAF benefited from overwhelming local support against an RSF viewed as occupiers.

"In Western Sudan," El Balal explained, "the army does not have overwhelming support... when the war eventually reaches RSF strongholds like East Darfur it will no longer be a war to liberate but a war to pacify; this makes it an uphill struggle for the army."


The question now is whether the SAF, under al-Burhan, will consolidate its gains or push westward into the RSF’s heartland in Darfur - a region where al-Burhan himself was bogged down as a commander during the earlier Darfur conflict in the 2000s. This decision is fraught with risk, not least because the coalition that propelled the SAF's recent victories is eclectic and fragile.

This alliance includes not only traditional military units but also citizen volunteers (known as ‘Mustanfireen’), Darfuri rebel movements who sided with the SAF after their constituents suffered atrocities at the hands of the RSF, and controversial Islamist brigades linked to the ousted regime of Omar al-Bashir.

Reports emerged late last year of Darfuri movements like JEM (led by Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim) and SLM-MM (led by Minni Minawi) demanding significant political concessions and military hardware from al-Burhan in return for their continued support, demands al-Burhan reportedly ignored.

More recently, al-Burhan publicly pushed back against Islamist figures attempting to claim credit for SAF victories, pointedly stating in November, "The army does not belong to any individual... This is Sudan’s army".

Yet, al-Burhan also needs these allies. In February, facing criticism from Islamists, he appeared to backtrack, promising that all who fought alongside the army, including the controversial Popular Resistance militias, "will be a partner in everything" politically moving forward.
Related


Sudan's war has become a battleground for regional ambitions
Sudan
Mohamed Mostafa

Azzam Abdalla views al-Burhan's position as perilous. "Al-Burhan is dancing on the heads of snakes," he told The New Arab, highlighting the deep mistrust between factions. He anticipates potential future conflict within the SAF's camp, particularly between al-Burhan (potentially backed by some movements and international actors wary of Islamists) and the Islamist factions who see the war as an existential battle to regain influence.

"This is an existential battle for the Kaizan [Islamists linked to the ousted regime of Omar al-Bashir]. And the Kaizan have paid blood for it. They won't let it go," Abdalla warned.

The presence of newly armed civilian groups, the Mustanfirin (mobilised popular fighters), adds another layer of danger. While currently allied with the SAF, their future integration or disarmament poses a significant challenge.

"These are people who entered combat, fought, and learned how to carry weapons," Azzam noted. "Any situation with instability, these people will pick up weapons... Carrying weapons itself, after a while, becomes a source of livelihood." Reports of score-settling and extrajudicial killings in SAF-controlled areas highlight this risk.

In an attempt to consolidate power and manage these pressures, al-Burhan recently oversaw amendments to the Transitional Constitutional Declaration, granting himself broader powers, including appointing and dismissing the Prime Minister, and expanding the Sovereign Council. He has signalled intentions to form a technocratic government, potentially sidelining established political forces in order to appease his military allies.


While al-Burhan works to stabilise governance and Khartoum's residents see a flicker of hope, the broader humanitarian situation remains catastrophic. Sudan faces the world's largest displacement crisis, and famine looms large, particularly in Darfur, where the RSF continues its campaign of ethnic violence and siege, notably around El Fasher.

Even in SAF-controlled areas, life is crushingly difficult. A leaked 2025 budget reportedly allocates a staggering 90% of spending to the military, leaving critical health and education services starved of funds. Crushing taxes and customs duties are imposed on basic goods to fund the war effort, while access to cash remains severely restricted.

The question now is whether Sudan's army will consolidate its gains or push westward into the RSF’s heartland in Darfur. [Getty]


For aid organisations like the Khartoum Aid Kitchen, the SAF's return to the capital doesn't mean the strain will be reduced; instead, it brings new challenges.

"We don’t anticipate any immediate reduction in pressure," Mohanad El Balal explained. "In fact... we widened our footprint to reach areas that previously we were unable to operate... So there will be an increase in pressure on our organisation but this is only because for the first time we will be able to reach virtually the entirety of Khartoum State."

Despite the shifting military tide, prospects for a negotiated peace look dimmer than ever. Both sides have doubled down on a military solution. In his recent Eid al-Fitr address, al-Burhan was unequivocal.

"No retreat, no bargaining, and no negotiation with the Rapid Support Forces... we will not forgive, we will not compromise," he said, offering amnesty only to those who lay down their arms. Hemedti, the RSF leader, echoed this sentiment, reportedly stating, "No negotiation or agreement with the army, the war is in its beginning".

For civilians like Arwa, the relief in Khartoum is overshadowed by the national tragedy. "The nightmare is over here in Khartoum. But what does it mean for Sudan?" she asks. "Two years of our youth have just gone. When will we get a chance to rebuild?"

As the SAF consolidates control over the Nile Valley and contemplates its next move, Sudan stands at a critical juncture. The fall of Khartoum is not the end of the war, but perhaps, as Hemedti hinted, just the end of its first chapter.

The next phase threatens protracted conflict in the country’s west, simmering instability within the victors' coalition, and continued suffering for millions of Sudanese caught in the crossfire, their hopes for peace and rebuilding deferred yet again.

Elfadil Ibrahim is a writer and analyst focused on Sudanese politics

US, Iraq's Kurdish Regional Government discuss Iraq-Turkiye oil pipeline

April 12, 2025 

MEMO

A view of construction works of Iraqi Kurdish regional administration (IKBY) – Turkey oil pipeline in Dohuk

[Photo by Emrah Yorulmaz/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images]


The US and Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) on Friday discussed the reopening of the Iraq-Turkiye Pipeline, the State Department said, Anadolu Agency reports.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Prime Minister Masrour Barzani to highlight the “strong partnership” between the US and the KRG in expanding business opportunities, promoting regional stability, and strengthening democracy, spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement.

“The Secretary and Prime Minister agreed that reopening the Iraq-Turkiye Pipeline immediately is crucial to protecting past U.S. investments and attracting future investment,” Bruce added.

READ: Iraq calls for meeting to resume negotiations on Kurdistan regional oil exports

Oil flow from Iraq to Ceyhan Port ceased on March 25, 2023, following the arbitration ruling by the Paris-based International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) concerning oil exports between Turkiye and Iraq.

Additionally, the earthquakes centered in Turkiye’s Kahramanmaras, on Feb. 6, 2023 further disrupted the use of the pipeline.

In April 2024, Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar said that Turkiye was not at fault for the issues surrounding the Iraq-Turkiye Pipeline.

He noted that the pipeline had been ready for operation since Oct. 4, 2023, but ongoing disagreements between the northern Iraqi administration and the central government had hindered its activation.

It has been reported that the halt in oil exports from Iraq to Turkiye resulted in a loss of $23 billion for the region.

Israel’s brutal aggression in Gaza continues with impunity

Funeral prayer held at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, located in the southern Gaza Strip, for 8 health workers from the Palestinian Red Crescent who were killed in an Israeli attack 8 days ago in Rafah and had been pulled from the rubble, on March 31, 2025. 

[Hani Alshaer – Anadolu Agency]

Opinion
April 9, 2025 

by Dr Amira Abo el-Fetouh


Somewhat predictably, Benjamin Netanyahu disregarded the ceasefire that he had agreed to, and refused to move to its second phase. The prime minister of the occupation state then blamed the Palestinians for not accepting his sudden preference to extend the first phase — meaning more hostages freed and no withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza — and duly resumed his savage offensive against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, as many realists expected him to.

With no humanitarian aid of any kind allowed into the enclave since the beginning of March, the people of Gaza are living and dying through an unprecedented catastrophe. Netanyahu has never been a man to be trusted with anything (which Israeli leader has?) and, being the war criminal that he is, he unleashed an even more barbaric assault on Palestinian civilians and civilian infrastructure. He wants to annihilate everyone and everything in Gaza, and has used internationally prohibited thermobaric bombs. These bombs generate a massive blast and temperatures up to 1,500 degrees Celsius within the explosion radius, causing human beings to vaporise completely; their bodies don’t just burn or get dismembered, but vanish entirely, reduced to particles that disperse in the air and soil. No fingernails, no limbs, no strands of hair, no clothing — nothing remains. As if they never existed. Total obliteration. A return to the world of atoms. The bodies of the martyrs literally evaporate into the air, leaving nothing behind.

These bombs are internationally banned because their destructive power is equivalent to that of a small nuclear weapon. Yet the Zionist enemy uses them with impunity, confident that it will face no international accountability, because it enjoys the protection of the United States, the global superpower. However, with power comes awesome responsibility; the US abuses the former, and ignores the latter.

Some reports estimate that at least 7,000 people have been completely vaporised to date, but the number is quite possibly even greater. Watching videos of these explosions, reading about them, or even contemplating them from afar is enough to shake one’s soul deeply, casting a shadow and despair over life. It brings about a sense of futility and absurdity about everything. Imagine, therefore, what it is like for those who live through this horror every minute of every day.

That is why I say that the tragedy of the people of Gaza surpasses any other in history.

It is more horrific than the Holocaust, if only because we have all grown up being told that “never again” means precisely that, but it doesn’t. Zionist Jews and their goyim collaborators have been exploiting the Nazi genocide in order to get the guilt-ridden Western world to allow them to carry out the genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza with impunity.

READ: UN chief calls Trump, Netanyahu plans to relocate Gazans ‘against international law’

Hence, the so-called Israel “Defence” Forces take savage delight in killing children and women deliberately; the self-declared “most moral army in the world” knows nothing about morality of any kind. “The Israeli Army has always struck civilian populations, purposely and consciously… [the army] has never distinguished civilian [from military] targets…” wrote the late military analyst Zeev Schiff.

Killing civilians, especially women and children, appears to be in the DNA of Zionist soldiers: the security of the Zionist entity begins with the extermination of the women who bear the next generation of resistance fighters struggling for freedom and justice, and the children themselves. Tragically, the people of Gaza cannot defend themselves, and no one defends them. Even their brothers in blood, ethnicity and homeland have abandoned them, denying them even a loaf of bread or a cup of water. Some have even colluded with the Zionist enemy in its aggression. Meanwhile, the rest of the “international community” — a euphemism for the permanent members of the UN Security Council who have a veto over law and order in this world — watch their suffering without shedding a single tear or batting an eyelid, as if watching a never-ending tragedy on the stage. This is a community stripped of humanity and lacking any conscience, having sold its soul to the Zionists.

This has meant that the occupation state has been given every kind of support it needs to continue with its genocide. Even the scale of the death and destruction has not deterred such support from the likes of Trump (and before him, Biden), Starmer, Scholz and von der Leyen; not even the horrific images on social media of corpses left to be devoured by starving dogs; babies torn to shreds and other innocents gunned down without mercy simply because they are Palestinian Arabs.

Yet despite all of this, the valiant resilience of the people of Gaza has been miraculous.

They have succeeded in draining the Zionist enemy militarily, economically and psychologically in the longest war that Israel has waged since its illegitimate establishment in the heart of the Arab world. The heroism of the Palestinians — who have no air force or air defence systems; no navy; no tanks or artillery, remember — against a fierce enemy which has all of those things and more, and is supported by all Western powers, led by the US, will be recorded in history in letters of gold.

The Palestinian people exist in their land, where they will remain, despite the Zionist occupation’s genocide, forced displacement and other means of erasure. A war against civilians like this will never bring peace or security to the Zionist entity. On the contrary, the embers beneath the ashes will reignite one day and eventually engulf the entire region.

If there were any wise men left in the world, they would realise that peace and stability can only be achieved by granting the Palestinian people their rights under international law and enabling them to establish their own independent state. Anything less is unacceptable to anyone for whom peace and justice go hand in hand. Only a fool who has learned nothing from history would believe that coercion, bombs and missiles can bring this conflict to a close in their favour.

The Greater Israel Initiative: A Complex Expansion Vision

Israeli forces humiliate Palestinians at checkpoint in the occupied West Bank

Footage shared on social media purports to show Israeli occupation forces rounding up and humiliatingly searching Palestinians at checkpoints in the occupied West Bank. A growing network of Israeli-imposed checkpoints, roadblocks and barriers across the occupied West Bank heavily restrict Palestinian movement and access throughout the territory. These checkpoints often separate Palestinian towns and villages from each other, as well as from essential services such as hospitals, schools and workplaces, severely impacting daily life and freedom of movement for millions of Palestinians living under Israel's military occupation.

April 9, 2025 

MEMO

The Greater Israel Initiative: A Complex Expansion Vision

Israeli strike flattens al-Ahli Baptist hospital, Gaza's last facility in the north

The Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital is out of action after Israeli warplanes destroyed one of its buildings in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The New Arab Staff
13 April, 2025


The UN has accused Israel of “systemically” destroying Gaza’s healthcare system [Getty]


Israeli warplanes bombed the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital (commonly known as the Baptist Hospital) early on Sunday, obliterating the last remaining medical facility in northern Gaza in what Gaza authorities have condemned as a war crime.

The airstrikes destroyed critical infrastructure, including the hospital’s emergency department, oxygen unit, and main entrance, according to eyewitnesses.

The bombing "completely destroyed" the facility and "forced the evacuation of patients and hospital staff," Gaza's health ministry said.

The attack came without warning to most staff and patients. Reuters reported that a hospital worker had received a phone call from someone claiming to be an Israeli official shortly before the strike.

Video footage posted online shows the frantic evacuation of patients, including the wounded and critically ill, just moments before the bombing. One doctor reported that at least three patients - including a child - died during the panicked evacuation.


Hundreds of patients were left without access to medical care as Israel has already damaged or destroyed nearly all other hospitals in northern Gaza.

The World Health Organization and the UN have repeatedly warned that the deliberate targeting of medical facilities may constitute war crimes under international law.

The Israeli military claimed, without providing evidence, that the hospital was being used as a Hamas "command and control centre". This allegation echoes repeated Israeli claims used to justify strikes on civilian infrastructure - including schools, shelters, and hospitals - despite a consistent lack of evidence and subsequent reports showing many of these sites housed only displaced civilians.

The Gaza Media Office described the bombing as "a new horrific crime", saying it targeted hundreds of patients, doctors, and nurses who had nowhere else to go.

"We call on international institutions to protect Gaza’s healthcare system … and take immediate action to stop the continuing violations," the health ministry urged in a statement.

Since October 2023, Israel has systematically destroyed Gaza’s health infrastructure, wiping out 34 hospitals and leaving vast areas of the strip without access to emergency care.

The United Nations has warned of what it calls the "de-development" of Gaza’s healthcare system, a process it says appears deliberate.

The latest attack comes as the death toll from Israel’s 18-month war on Gaza surpasses 50,000, with more than 116,000 people wounded, according to the local health ministry.
Hamas team in Cairo for truce talks

Meanwhile, a Hamas team led by chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya arrived in Cairo on Saturday for crunch ceasefire talks with Egyptian and Qatari officials.

The Palestinian group expects "real progress" to be made at the meeting, during which Egypt’s latest truce proposal will be discussed.


Under the proposal, the two sides would agree to a ceasefire lasting between 40 and 70 days and exchange a number of prisoners, according to a report.

The meeting comes days after US President Donald Trump voiced optimism that a deal to was close.

Israeli media quoted US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff as saying that a “very serious deal” is only days away.

Hamas published a video on Saturday showing the US-Israeli prisoner Edan Alexander alive, raising the stakes ahead of the talks.
Settlers storm Al-Aqsa complex

Hundreds of Israeli settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa compound on Sunday morning in the latest in a series of provocations at the sensitive religious site.

Local news agency WAFA reported that almost 200 settlers entered the area under police protection in the morning, less than two weeks after extremist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir stormed the compound.

This comes two days after Israeli authorities banned Al-Aqsa Mosque preacher Sheikh Muhammad Salim from entering the compound for a week after he criticised Israel’s war on Gaza.

Incursions by settlers into the Al-Aqsa complex have surged under the current far-right Israeli government.

Last year saw more than 53,600 Israelis enter the area, the highest number since police began allowing Jews entrance to the site more than 20 years ago.

Red Cross/Red Crescent head calls for end to Israel attacks on humanitarian workers

April 12, 2025 

MEMO

Red Cross teams in Khan Yunis, Gaza on February 22, 2025. 

[Abdallah F.s. Alattar – Anadolu Agency ]

The CEO of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) on Saturday called for an end to attacks on humanitarian workers worldwide, mentioning in particular the problems in getting aid to the embattled Gaza Strip, Anadolu Agency reports.

“Getting humanitarian assistance to Gaza has been very, very difficult, and for the last more than a month, no aid has been entering the country,” Jagan Chapagain told Anadolu during Türkiye’s Antalya Diplomacy Forum, taking place this weekend. Israel halted the entry of all humanitarian aid to Gaza on March 2.

“We have asked, really, that … killings of the humanitarian workers must stop everywhere in the world,” he said, adding that “fundamental principles and international emergency law must be respected.”

“In the world now, we have multiple crises happening, multiple disasters happening, multiple conflict happening,” Jagan explained.

“One of the tragedies” is the lack of political solutions to crises, he said, meaning that they start, but “never end, and new crises keep on coming.”

“So you have crisis after crisis, crisis after crisis. This is not a sustainable situation,” Jagan said, adding: “The only way we can start turning the tide is through diplomacy, through engagement.”

'Everyone you encounter is an enemy': Israeli commander’s words resurface after 15 medics killed

In the wake of the killing of 15 paramedics and first responders by Israeli occupation forces in Rafah — who were later found buried along with their vehicles in a mass grave — a chilling battlefield directive by the commander of the Israeli army's elite Golani Reconnaissance Battalion has resurfaced. Addressing his soldiers ahead of a ground incursion, Lt. Col. David Cohen said: 'Everyone you encounter is an enemy. If you identify a figure — open fire, annihilate, and move on. Do not be confused in this regard.' Cohen made no distinction between combatants and civilians in his orders, a stance human rights observers say may explain the rising civilian death toll in Gaza — including the targeted killing of medical and emergency workers. Israel maintains its operations are aimed at dismantling Hamas and rescuing hostages. But with mounting casualties and incidents like the Rafah paramedic murders, rights groups highlight the rising evidence that the occupation state is carrying out a policy of genocide in Gaza.

April 8, 2025

MEMO

Erdogan: ‘Israel is a terrorist state’

TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE DEPT.

April 12, 2025

MEMO

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan makes a speech during the opening ceremony of the 4th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2025) in Antalya, Turkiye on April 11, 2025. [Emin Sansar – Anadolu Agency]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan asserted that Israel violates the most basic human rights, tramples international law and is committing genocide in Gaza. He added that Israel is becoming increasingly shameless in the face of the world’s silence and indifference.

In a speech on Friday at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, Erdogan explained that the international system has proven its failure to confront many problems, adding that attempts at occupation and colonial schemes have not been absent from the Middle East.

Erdogan stressed: “No one has the right to call the Palestinians terrorists, and their struggle cannot be insulted by labelling them as terrorists,” noting: “Lasting peace cannot be established in the Middle East without the establishment of a free and sovereign Palestinian state within the 1967 borders.”

The Turkish president pointed out that by attacking Syria and Lebanon, Israel is turning into a menace in the region, emphasising that Turkiye will not allow anyone to destabilise Syria. He also remarked that Syria’s security and stability are linked to Turkiye’s security and stability.

At dawn on 18 March, 2025, the Israeli occupation resumed its aggression. It intensified its blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip following a two-month pause under a ceasefire agreement that went into effect on 19 January. However, the occupation violated the ceasefire terms throughout the two months.

Israel army bans military students from protests demanding return of captives

April 12, 2025 

MEMO

Thousands of demonstrators gather in Tel Aviv, Israel, on April 5, 2025, to call for an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza and to demand a prisoner and hostage swap agreement. The demonstrators carried Israeli flags and also carried banners against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his government. [Mostafa Alkharouf – Anadolu Agency]

The Israeli army informed military school students that they are prohibited from participating in the weekly protests held in Tel Aviv demanding the return of Israeli captives held in the Gaza Strip.

Channel 12 reported on Thursday: “Students at the Israeli army’s officers’ school said they are prohibited from attending the march in Hostages Square, which takes place every Saturday.”

The channel added: “It is not about appearing in uniform, as it is when they return home on the weekend.”

“The justification given by the commanders to the students is that there is an order issued in the army prohibiting soldiers from participating in political demonstrations, and the demonstration regarding the captives is one of them,” it continued.

The Israeli channel reported: “The students tried to explain to their commanders that this was an attempt to support the captives’ families, but the order remained in effect.”

Israeli army’s spokesperson’s Office responded: “There is no order prohibiting access to Hostages Square. The case described here is under investigation,” without giving further details.

The ban comes as petitions continue to be filed by Israeli soldiers, ranging from reservists who can be called up for service to retired soldiers, including former senior commanders.

The families of Israeli captives held in Gaza hold a demonstration every Saturday evening in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv to pressure the government to return them.

The families fear that the military pressure by the Netanyahu government on Gaza, in light of the genocide, will put their children’s lives in danger. This comes at a time when their calls for a deal to release their children are growing.

The families accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prioritising his personal and political interests over saving their loved ones.

Tel Aviv estimates that there are 59 Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip, 24 of whom are still alive. More than 9,500 Palestinians are suffering in its prisons, under torture, starvation and medical neglect. Many have died, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media reports.

Israeli soldiers sign new petition demanding prisoner swap, end of war in Gaza

Netanyahu: ‘Reserve forces petitions funded by foreign parties aiming to bring down government’

We are tearing Gaza apart, implementing displacement plan, Israel’s DM says

In a televised address during his visit to Israeli forces in the so-called Morag Corridor between Rafah and Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, Katz said the operation in Gaza aims to increase pressure for the release of Israeli captives held in the enclave and to defeat Hamas.

April 10, 2025

MEMO

Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, announced yesterday evening that the occupation army is tearing the Gaza Strip apart and implementing a plan to forcibly displace its population.

In a televised address during his visit to Israeli forces in the so-called Morag Corridor between Rafah and Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, Katz said the operation in Gaza aims to increase pressure for the release of Israeli captives held in the enclave and to defeat Hamas.

He claimed that the army is “dismembering the Gaza Strip”, adding that “large areas are being seized and added to Israel’s security zones, leaving Gaza smaller and more isolated.”

He continued: “A new corridor will soon be established — Morag — similar to Netzarim, which separates northern Gaza from the central and southern parts. This will essentially sever the link between Khan Yunis and Rafah, making it more difficult for Hamas to operate.” Katz added: “At the same time, we are promoting the voluntary migration plan for the residents of Gaza, based on the vision of US President Donald Trump, which we are working to implement.”

The Greater Israel Initiative: A Complex Expansion Vision

NAKBA2

Israeli evacuation orders leave Palestinians with less than a third of Gaza to live in: UN


April 11, 2025 

MEMO

Palestinians living in Shujaiyye neighbourhood, east of Gaza City, take some of their belongings with them and left the area Gaza City, Gaza on April 11, 2025 [Ali Jadallah/Anadolu Agency]


The UN on Friday warned that Israel’s latest evacuation orders are leaving Palestinians with shrinking space to live in Gaza, further worsening the humanitarian crisis in the enclave, Anadolu news agency reported.

In a news conference, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that Israel on Friday issued “two new displacement orders covering vast areas in northern and southern Gaza.”

“Several medical facilities and storage sites containing critical supplies are located within newly designated displacement zones,” he added.

Citing the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Dujarric warned of “life-threatening consequences” for those in urgent need of care due to newly designated displacement zones.

“With this latest development, OCHA reports that more than two-thirds of the Gaza Strip is either under active displacement orders or designated as no go zones,” he said, noting that “this leaves Palestinians with less than a third of Gaza’s area to live in, and that remaining space is fragmented.”

Dujarric further reported that it has now been 40 days since Israel imposed a full closure on cargo entry into Gaza.

READ: 400,000 displaced in Gaza since collapse of ceasefire: UN agency

“Today, six out of 10 such attempts were blocked outright,” he said, adding that since the closure by Israel “no one, including our humanitarian partners, have been permitted to bring in supplies, regardless of how critically needed those items may be.”

Warning that “everything is running extremely low,” Dujarric said: “Bakeries have shut down, life-saving medicines have run out, and water production is drastically reduced.”

In the occupied West Bank, Dujarric reported that Israeli forces killed nine Palestinians — including two children — and injured over 130 people in the first week of April.

“OCHA documented demolition of more than 100 structures across the West Bank for lacking Israeli-issued building permits, which are nearly impossible to obtain,” he said, noting that it led to “displacement of more than 120 Palestinians, mostly children, and otherwise affected more than 200 people.”

Tension has been high in the occupied West Bank since the Israeli war on Gaza began, killing nearly 950 Palestinians and injuring over 7,000 others since October 2023, according to Palestinian figures.

In July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s longstanding occupation of Palestinian territories illegal, calling for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The Greater Israel Initiative: A Complex Expansion Vision