U.S., Ukraine discuss ambitious March peace goal despite major obstacles
U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators have discussed an ambitious goal of reaching a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine by March, though the timeline...
South Sudan and Israel have held talks on a plan to resettle Palestinians from war-torn Gaza in the African nation, three sources told Reuters, though Palestinian leaders have called the idea unacceptable.
The sources, who requested anonymity, said no agreement had been reached but discussions were ongoing.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office and foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment. The U.S. State Department declined to speak about what it called “private diplomatic conversations.”
Netanyahu has said he intends to extend military control in Gaza and has suggested that Palestinians leave voluntarily. Arab and world leaders have rejected any relocation, with Palestinians warning it would be another “Nakba” – a reference to the mass displacement of 1948.
The three sources said the relocation idea was raised during meetings between Israeli officials and South Sudanese Foreign Minister Monday Semaya Kumba during his visit last month. That contradicts South Sudan’s foreign ministry, which has called earlier reports “baseless.” The ministry did not respond to requests for comment on Friday.
Wasel Abu Youssef of the Palestine Liberation Organization said Palestinians “reject any plan or idea to displace any of our people to South Sudan or to any other place.” President Mahmoud Abbas’ office issued a similar statement on Thursday. Hamas has not commented.
Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel, visiting Juba this week, told reporters relocation was not discussed, saying talks covered foreign policy, multilateral organisations, South Sudan’s humanitarian crisis, and the war.
Netanyahu has said Israel is in contact with several countries to find destinations for Palestinians who want to leave Gaza, without providing details.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has deployed one of its largest ballistic missiles at a newly unveiled underground base on Wednesday (3 February), just two days ahead of mediated nuclear talks with the United States in Muscat, Oman.
Winter weather has brought air travel in the German capital to a complete halt, stranding thousands of passengers as severe icing conditions make runways and aircraft unsafe for operation and force authorities to shut down one of Europe’s key transport hubs.
Storm Leonardo has swept across the Iberian Peninsula, causing widespread flooding, landslides and transport disruption in Portugal and Spain, leaving at least one person dead and forcing thousands to evacuate as authorities issued urgent warnings.
Israeli tank shelling and airstrikes killed 24 Palestinians including seven children in Gaza on Wednesday (4 February), health officials said, the latest violence to undermine the nearly four-month-old ceasefire.
An attacker opened fire at the gates of a Shi'ite Muslim mosque in Islamabad on Friday before detonating a suicide bomb that killed at least 31 people in the deadliest assault of its kind in the capital in more than ten years.
Azerbaijan has summoned Russia’s ambassador in Baku and issued a formal protest note over remarks by Russian lawmaker Konstantin Zatulin, escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
France’s “absolute priority” remains the fight against the Islamic State (IS) group, Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said on Thursday (5 February) during talks with his Syrian counterpart in Damascus, as Paris reassesses its counter-terrorism strategy.
Georgia and the United States have held a rare high-level meeting in Washington, reopening cautious discussion about relations after years of political stagnation.
Using art as a quiet alarm, a new exhibition in Baku is drawing attention to endangered wildlife and the need for environmental responsibility.
The United States and Iran are set to hold nuclear talks in Oman on Friday after Tehran requested a change of venue and a strictly bilateral, nuclear-focused format, a move that is fuelling questions about Iran’s negotiating strategy.
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