Extremist Haredi protesters shut down main highway in central Israel
Extremist Haredi protesters angry at discussions over efforts to draft ultra-Orthodox youth into the IDF have shut down a central highway in the country. The crowd has succeeded in closing off the Route 4 highway near the Coca Cola junction next to Bnei Brak in both directions. Police are working to reopen the main thoroughfare, with concerns about major backups during rush hour.
Abbas to visit Turkey for talks with Ergdogan on Israel-Hamas war, Palestinian reconciliation
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will visit Turkey on Tuesday for talks about Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, and reconciliation efforts between Palestinian factions, the Turkish foreign minister says.
The visit comes as intensive diplomacy is underway to pause the fighting and secure a deal to release hostages.
Egypt, Qatar and the United States have mediated in weeks of talks to secure a temporary truce by the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in a week.
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says: “There is a serious desire and effort to reach a ceasefire before Ramadan,” in closing remarks to an annual diplomacy forum in the Mediterranean holiday resort of Antalya.
Fidan confirms that Abbas will visit the Turkish capital Ankara at the invitation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a vocal advocate of the Palestinian cause.
The leaders will discuss “the developments in Palestine, the current course of the war as well as the intra-Palestinian” dialogue, Fidan says.
Israel has publicly opposed a possible PA return to Gaza after it was booted from the Strip by the Hamas terror group in a bloody coup in 2007.
Israel received an answer from Hamas about the framework for a hostage deal hammered out in Paris last weekend, but the Gaza-based terror organization refused to address Jerusalem’s demand to receive a list of living hostages and how many Palestinian prisoners Israel must release for every hostage freed, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.
In the wake of the unsatisfactory response, Israel is not sending a delegation to Cairo today, says the official.
Houthis vow to keep targeting UK ships for ‘sponsoring crimes against civilians in Gaza’
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis vow to continue targeting British ships in the Gulf of Aden following the sinking of UK-owned vessel Rubymar.
The US military confirmed on Saturday that the UK-owned vessel Rubymar had sunk after being struck by an anti-ship ballistic missile fired by Yemeni Houthi militants on Feb. 18.
“Yemen will continue to sink more British ships, and any repercussions or other damages will be added to Britain’s bill,” Hussein al-Ezzi, deputy foreign minister in the Houthi-led government, says in a post on X.
“It is a rogue state that attacks Yemen and partners with America in sponsoring ongoing crimes against civilians in Gaza,” he claims.
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