Category: Politics

WASHINGTON, The United States expressed concern over rising tensions in the Middle East after an Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Washington did not detail its position on the incident. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told journalists on Monday, that the US administration was aware of reports about the attack, stating, “Our team is looking into it… I won’t go further than that.” US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller affirmed on a press release, “We have seen the strike, however, again, I want to let the consultations that we have ongoing with partners in the region take place before I comment any further” He added, “I will not comment specifically on this strike because, again, we just need to know more about it before we comment on it, and that includes drawing any conclusion, as a general principle, of course, we are concerned about escalation in the region.” Syria reported on Monday that several individuals were killed and injured in the Israeli occupation’s miss
ile strike on the Iranian consulate building in the (Mazza) neighborhood of Damascus.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

TEHRAN, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Tuesday warned the occupation Israeli entity that Tehran would retaliate for its attack on the Iranian consulate building in Damascus.

“This crime will not pass without punishment,” Rasisi said in a statement published by the Iranian presidency on its electronic website. “Let the Israeli usurping entity know that it will never attain its evil goals by inhuman practices and resorting to blind assassinations,” he said.

The Israeli occupation has once again committed a terrorist crime by resorting to assassinations and breaching international norms after suffering recurring defeats at the hands of the resistance front, he said.

Syria declared on Monday that a number of people including senior officers of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard died in an Israeli missile attack on the Iranian consulate building in Mazze district in Damascus.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

WASHINGTON, The United States has affirmed its commitment to support its regional ally, the occupation Israeli entity, and provide it with its needs for military hardware and arms.

State Department spokesperson, Mathew Miller, speaking at a briefing late on Monday, said the US has a decades-long commitment to Israel’s security. “Israel is surrounded by entities that are sworn to its destruction .. We believe Israel has every right to defend itself against those opponents.” “And we, to that end, have a longstanding security relationship with them where we provide them more than USD three billion annually in security assistance. Now, the way that it works is we provide them with USD 3.3 billion a year in security assistance.” Miller indicated that the administration evaded standard procedures, notifying the relevant legislative and congressional committees, to rapidly dispatch military aid to Israel after the October 7 attack.

“Israel is in an armed conflict and is expending a great deal of defense material a
nd some of that needs to be replenished for Israel’s long-term security.” The Biden administration is close to approving the sale of as many as 50 American-made F-15 fighter jets to Israel, in a deal expected to be worth more than USD 18 billion, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Since Hamas’ attack on Israel in October, which killed over 1,200 Israelis, the US has made more than 100 foreign military sales to Israel.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

Riyadh: Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jassim Mohammed Albudaiwi condemned and denounced the targeting of the Iranian consulate building in the Syrian capital Damascus, which resulted in a number of deaths and injuries.

GCC Secretary General stressed the importance of abiding by the international laws, treaties, including the protection and safety of diplomatic missions.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Jeddah: The General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned the attack on the Iranian consulate building in Syria’s capital, Damascus.

In a statement issued today, the General Secretariat stressed that this attack violates the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the international law protecting the sanctity of diplomatic missions.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Riyadh: Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Eng. Waleed bin AbdulKarim El-Khereiji met today here with Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Alireza Enayati.

The two officials reviewed relations and discussed issues of common concern.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

_: Cairo, The Arab League Secretariat General has called on the international community to take action to end the Israeli occupation and its aggression on Gaza, as well as to stop attacks on holy sites, carried out with the aim of Judaizing Jerusalem.

In a statement issued in Cairo on the occasion of Land Day, the league expressed its support for the Palestinian people’s noble goal of establishing its independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.

It also commended the Palestinians’ steadfastness and sacrifices of the martyrs, the injured and the prisoners, for their homeland and toward establishing their own state, and denounced the policies of the Israeli occupation authorities against Palestinians.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

The Rafah border crossing received Thursday28/12/2023 around 12 wounded Palestinians and 10 of their companions coming from hospitals in Gaza to receive medical treatment in Egypt, a reliable medical source in North Sinai said.

Palestinian patients were transported by Egyptian ambulances to receive treatment in various medical facilities, including hospitals in North Sinai, Port Said, and the French field hospital ship at the port of Arish.

According to a source, the injuries sustained by the Palestinians were diverse, ranging from eye and head injuries to wounds, fractures, burns, and limb amputations. The hospitals currently providing care for these patients are conducting all necessary surgeries.

The source also pointed out that the Rafah crossing received 300 holders of dual nationalities and foreign passports.
Source: State Information Service Egypt

Chairman of State Information Service (SIS) Diaa Rashwan said Thursday 28/12/2023 the proposal for forming a Palestinian government in Gaza and the West Bank, as outlined in the Egyptian three-phase ceasefire initiative, is exclusively a Palestinian matter.

In its first official statement on the move, Rashwan said the formation of the Palestinian government has already been discussed among all Palestinian parties.

He added that the proposal entails three successive and linked stages ending with a permanent ceasefire, stressing that the proposal was drafted after considering the perspective of all concerned parties.

The initiative aims to reach an understanding among these parties in a bid to prevent Palestinian bloodshed, stop the aggression against Gaza, and restore peace and stability to the region, added Rashwan.

He noted that a detailed draft of the proposal will be formulated and declared once Egypt receives the responses from the concerned parties.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh welc
omed the Egyptian proposal during a weekly cabinet meeting in Ramallah, stressing Egypt’s keenness on Palestinian unity.

He noted, however, that any regional or international arrangement should pass only through Palestinian legitimacy, represented by the Palestine Liberation Organization.

Egyptian officials have recently held separate talks in Cairo with delegations from Hamas and the Islamic Jihad on ceasefire and prisoner-captive swap efforts.

Ismail Haniyeh headed the Hamas delegation, whereas the Jihad delegation was headed by its Secretary-General Ziad Nakhaleh.

Last week, Nakhaleh said any swap deal must be carried out only after the ceasefire and based on the principle of “all for all,” which means releasing all captives held in Gaza in return for all Palestinians jailed in Israel.

Egypt and Qatar helped mediate a week-long ceasefire in November, in which Hamas freed over 100 captives in exchange for 240 Palestinian children and women detainees.

The UN Security Council has failed more than once t
o call for an immediate ceasefire in the war-torn strip.

Since the beginning of its bloody war on Gaza, Israel has killed over 20,000 Palestinians, including women and children, and wounded thousands more.
Source: State Information Service Egypt

Al-Azhar announced the fourth aid convoy of its Egyptian Zakat and Charity House set off to the Rafah border crossing.

The convoy consisted of 50 giant trucks carrying approximately 1,000 tons of medical supplies, food, clean water, living necessities, and large quantities of blankets, quilts, and mattresses.

This brings the total number of trucks launched by Al-Azhar that have entered the Gaza Strip to 125, carrying nearly 2,000 tons of relief aid.

In a statement, Al-Azhar’s Bait Zakat and Sadakat (Zakat and Charity House) said the fourth relief convoy sent by Beit to the Gaza Strip comes within the framework of the call of the Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed Al-Tayyeb to all the people of the world to participate in the global campaign to relieve Gaza.

“This is needed due to the continued suffering of the Palestinian people and the worsening conditions, with the continuation of the Israeli aggression and the bombing of every place in Gaza, for more than 80 days amid a humanitarian and health disaster that is i
ncreasing day by day,” added the statement.

“The Israeli war has resulted in the martyrdom of more than 20,000, most of them children, women, and the elderly, and the injury of more than 60,000 others.”

The statement confirmed that donations flowed from all over the world after opening the door for cash, in-kind donations, and medical supplies to support our people in Gaza.

People from 70 countries donated to the campaign, including Germany, the United Arab Emirates, the Sultanate of Oman, Australia, Italy, Spain, Britain, India, Iraq, Morocco, Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, Pakistan, Qatar, France, Canada, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Malaysia, Tanzania, Indonesia, Argentina, and Tunisia.
Source: State Information Service Egypt