The deadline for Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon under a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah expired at dawn on Tuesday, hours after the Israeli army confirmed its intention to keep its forces at five strategic points on the border.

Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said this morning that "according to the decision of the political level, the Israeli army will remain, starting today, in a buffer zone in Lebanon through five positions that control the entire length of the border, in order to ensure the defense of all Israeli towns and deterrence against threats from Lebanon."

Katz added, "In addition, many positions have been established along the border line on the Israeli side and IDF forces have been reinforced. In parallel, IDF operations will continue in order to enforce strict and uncompromising measures against any breach by Hezbollah."

He continued, "Hezbollah is obligated to withdraw completely behind the Litani Line, and the Lebanese army is obligated to enforce and disarm Hezbollah under the supervision of the mechanism established under the presidency of the United States. We are determined to establish full security for all the towns of the north according to the principle that was decided after October 7, because only the Israeli army will guarantee security in all areas against any potential threat."

Before the deadline expired, a Lebanese security official confirmed that Israeli forces began withdrawing from border villages on Monday night, with the Lebanese army advancing to deploy there.

The Lebanese official said, "Israeli forces have begun to withdraw from border villages, including Mays al-Jabal and Blida, as the Lebanese army advances."

Hours before the deadline expired, the Israeli army announced that it would keep "limited forces temporarily deployed at five strategic points along the border with Lebanon," justifying this by continuing to "defend our residents and ensure that there is no immediate threat" from Hezbollah.

The Israeli announcement came despite Lebanon's affirmation of its absolute rejection of the continued presence of Israeli forces, and its call on the sponsors of the agreement to intervene to pressure Israel.

The ceasefire agreement stipulated a halt to the exchange of shelling across the Lebanese border between Hezbollah and the Israeli army, after a war that lasted for about a year and included an Israeli ground incursion into Lebanese border areas.

The official text of the agreement has not been published, but statements by Lebanese politicians and American and French envoys have spoken of its broad outlines, including strengthening the Lebanese army’s presence in southern Lebanon, supervising Hezbollah’s withdrawal from the area south of the Litani River, and dismantling its military infrastructure. The agreement also stipulates Israel’s withdrawal from all areas it occupied in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli decision puts the Lebanese authorities in a predicament in confronting Hezbollah, which had held them responsible for working to achieve the withdrawal of Israeli forces by the end of the deadline.

Israel's decision came after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that "Hezbollah must be disarmed," adding, "Israel prefers that the Lebanese army carry out this mission."

Amid the controversy over Hezbollah's weapons, the Lebanese government affirmed in its ministerial statement its commitment to "liberating all Lebanese territories, the state's duty to monopolize the carrying of weapons, and extending the state's sovereignty over all its territories exclusively with its own forces."

Since the ceasefire came into effect, Israel has been carrying out airstrikes and bombings of homes in border villages, killing more than sixty people, about 24 of them on January 26, the first date scheduled for the ceasefire, while they were trying to return to their border towns.

At dawn on Tuesday, settlers destroyed agricultural property in the village of Beitillu, northwest of Ramallah.

Local sources reported that settlers infiltrated the land of citizen Mahmoud Radwan and his sons in the Ein al-Zarqa Reserve in the village after cutting the check, and burned four pumps that distribute water to about 200 cultivated dunams, and vandalized a greenhouse, and wrote hostile slogans.

She explained that citizens' losses due to the sabotage amounted to more than 100 thousand shekels.

The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission documented 2,161 attacks carried out by the occupation forces and terrorist settlers during the month of January 2025.

In its monthly report on "occupation violations and colonial expansion measures," it explained that the occupation forces carried out 1,786 attacks, while the settlers carried out 375 attacks, ranging from armed attacks on Palestinian towns and villages to imposing facts on the ground, field executions, vandalism, land leveling, uprooting trees, seizing property, closures, and military checkpoints that sever the ties of Palestinian geography.

The clock has struck, and the time has come for the negotiations of the second stage of the exchange deal between Israel and Hamas to begin in earnest, even though the real negotiations were supposed to begin on the sixteenth day of the first stage. However, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich received an ominous promise from Netanyahu stating that the decision to begin negotiations for the second stage will be subject to discussion by the political and security cabinet that met yesterday. Therefore, the decision is likely to be in the context of courting the Americans only, with greater procrastination, as a number of officials in the circle of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu indicate that there is almost no one in Israel who believes that it is possible to reach the second stage of the deal, because the gaps are very large, and Israel will not be able to give up any of its demands.

Israel is thus striving with all its might to extend the first phase and include more hostages on the humanitarian list. It seems that some of the items on this list have been agreed upon, as a number of Israeli bodies are scheduled to be released the day after tomorrow, Thursday. Expectations also indicate the possibility of releasing six living detainees in a batch next Saturday. The question that now arises is: Will this change be acceptable to Hamas, and what valuable compensation will it receive, especially since Netanyahu is still hesitant about the issue of bringing in mobile homes and equipment for the relief protocol.

It is worth noting that Israeli estimates that the chances of advancing towards the second phase of the agreement are not great, due to Hamas’s refusal to give up the Gaza Strip on the one hand, and in light of the threat to the stability of the Israeli government on the other hand, according to what was reported by the Haaretz website, the priority of the political level in Israel to push towards extending the first phase is considered a pressure card, but Hamas may reject it unless Israel commits to implementing the relief protocol.

Netanyahu continues to play on all strings, and he is eager to receive the decision of his Defense Minister, Yisrael Katz, to establish a special department in the Defense Ministry to evacuate the residents of Gaza “voluntarily.” Netanyahu seeks to strengthen this approach by presenting an initial plan on the subject from the Israeli army, which contains many temptations, including extensive aid, allowing any resident of Gaza who wishes to immigrate voluntarily to a third country to obtain a package that includes special exit arrangements by sea, air, and land.

If the Gazans insist on their steadfastness and remaining on their land, Netanyahu threatens to use Trump’s threat card, and thus resume the aggression based on the data of the current discussions, in addition to his ominous promise to Smotrich, otherwise his government may collapse at any moment.

Between the hammer of Trump’s threat of displacement, the hammer of his threat of hell, and the repercussions and consequences of that on the Arab arena and Arab national security, the features of Washington’s targeting, led by Trump and his Zionist team and his priestly alliances, to implement the Netanyahu government’s plans to eradicate everything related to resistance to the racist Zionist project to liquidate the Palestinian cause have become clear.

This comes after the failure of the occupation army to achieve any of its military goals in the war of extermination against the Strip, except for the shame it achieved by killing and wounding what may reach two hundred thousand people, or about 10% of the Strip’s population, most of whom are civilians, especially children and women, in addition to the deliberate destruction of the infrastructure of all sources of people’s livelihood and their homes, and making the Strip an environment that repels life and lacks any of its components, in preparation for displacing them in a pre-prepared plan, and they brazenly claim that it is a voluntary exit.

The features of the end of the war according to the ceasefire agreement are not yet clear, as Netanyahu is still defying the entire world, not just the mediators, in an attempt to buy time to protect his coalition, which is hanging on Smotrich’s tail, while the real reason is to use Trump’s positions to reap what he failed to achieve militarily by imposing a “solution” that matches the vision of the Zionist Kahanists by blackmailing the Palestinian people, and not just the resistance forces, by seeking a blatant trade-off between displacement and reconstruction, which oscillates between Trump’s Rivera and Smotrich-Ben Gvir’s settlement.

The importance of the Arab position rejecting displacement cannot be denied, not only in support of the right of our Palestinian people to remain on their homeland and determine their fate, but also based on the national and pan-Arab interests of the Arab countries themselves and the region as a whole. The threat of exchanging the possibility of reconstruction for the evacuation of the resistance forces is not only an unfair equation, but it is also a malicious attempt first to show the resistance as if it is the one obstructing the possibility of reconstruction, and more dangerously is the return to the tune of holding the resistance responsible for the destruction of the Gaza Strip and the crimes of genocide against its people, and acquitting the criminal killers, without abandoning the displacement plans by obstructing shelter, reconstruction and restoring life to the Strip.

What reveals the truth about the Tel Aviv government's adherence to these plans is the gradual and systematic uprooting of the West Bank camps and their north, which is expected to extend to various areas of the West Bank for the same strategic goal, which is to eradicate any thought... even a thought of rejecting the plans to liquidate the Palestinian cause, and resisting them by legitimate and available means. This comes at a time when the racist fascist government is banning the work of UNRWA, which exposes this plan aimed at liquidating the essence of the Palestinian cause, which is the refugee issue. This is at a time when plans to decide the fate of the land continue, in addition to criminalizing the national struggle, by eliminating the status of prisoners, the wounded, and the families of martyrs as a third main component of the Palestinian cause alongside the refugees and the land.

Does the Authority realize the extent of the strategic danger it has placed itself and our people in by issuing a decree abolishing the Prisoners and Martyrs’ Families Law, or when it tried to demonize and impose a siege on Jenin Camp? Isn’t this serving the occupation’s pre-prepared plans to uproot the camps in the context of its attempts to liquidate the refugee issue and overthrow the legitimacy of resisting these plans that target the mere right to survive, let alone the right to self-determination?

This is the essence of the Zionist project, while the powerful leadership is still betting on a political settlement that Netanyahu and his gang are working to destroy any possibility of reviving. Netanyahu’s peace revolves only around Smotrich’s trilogy of determinants: submission, departure, or death. And it, the powerful leadership, continues the policy of appeasing the enemy under the pretext of containing its brutality, which was not limited to the Gaza Strip under the pretext of October 7, but rather continues brutally in various parts of the West Bank that the Authority believes it controls.

In this climate, the emergency Cairo summit will be held, preceded by a mini-five-nation summit without Palestine’s participation, and without a clear Palestinian vision for the future. A vision based on the enormous energies of our people in rejecting and resisting the occupation’s plans. Instead, we will continue to turn our backs on any national agreements, and continue to exert internal pressures to impose acceptance of the policies of exclusivity and the fait accompli that have brought us to the existential dangers we are facing. The call for national reconciliation is no longer just an intellectual luxury in elite salons and meetings, but has become an existential need and not just a political necessity. As for any party’s reluctance to take this path, it is nothing but a recipe for falling into the dangerous traps that are being woven against our people, which do not exclude the Palestinian Authority, not just the factions, forces and culture of resistance. What we demand is compliance with the popular will embodied in the Beijing Declaration regarding a government of consensus necessity to save our future in this country led by the Palestine Liberation Organization that includes everyone, a government based on international legitimacy resolutions and international law, a government of steadfastness and construction capable of rebuilding the Gaza Strip and strengthening the steadfastness of the West Bank, with Jerusalem and the camps at its heart. A government that thwarts liquidation plans in preparation for holding criminals accountable and achieving self-determination, a government that restores the legitimacy of institutions through comprehensive elections, and the legitimacy of the right to national struggle to defeat the occupation. Is this too much and are these impossible demands or are they truly an existential need?

In politics, madness may not just be a psychological state, but a tactical tool used to confuse opponents into making concessions. This idea, known as the “madman theory,” is attributed to former U.S. President Richard Nixon, who tried to convince the North Vietnamese that he would do anything to end the war, even if it meant using nuclear weapons. The strategy didn’t work, however, as the Vietnam War dragged on for years afterward, proving that feigning madness isn’t always the key to success.

Today, the world finds itself faced with another controversial leader with his unexpected style: Donald Trump, the 47th President of the United States of America, who recently announced his desire to turn the Gaza Strip into a “Middle Eastern Riviera,” suggesting that hotels and golf courses could be built under his name. This statement, as impossible or absurd as it may seem, reflects Trump’s view of the world as a real estate and money game, where politics is nothing more than an extension of the “Monopoly” mentality. But the question remains: Is Trump really crazy, or is he just playing the role of a madman for political gain?

This strategy is not new. It has been used by other leaders, such as Muammar Gaddafi, who used his eccentric behavior to intimidate his opponents, only to end up isolated and killed by his own people. Adolf Hitler adopted a similar approach, appearing to push the boundaries of conventional politics, achieving quick gains, but ultimately leading to global disaster. And Mao Zedong, who pursued seemingly crazy policies under the guise of reform, but which only led to economic ruin and widespread suffering.

In this context, the name of Vladimir Putin is raised, whose recent actions have raised questions about his mental stability. From his long white table to his belligerent speeches, he seems to be following the approach of a madman. But according to sources close to him, Putin is not so much a madman as a skilled player who knows how to use threats and outbidding to maintain his power. The problem with this strategy, however, is that it can turn from mere acting to reality. Those who pretend to be mad for too long may actually become mad.

But the dangerous thing about this game is that those who dance on the edge of madness may slip into it without realizing it. When deception becomes a habit, the line between acting and reality fades, and political maneuvering turns into real chaos. In the end, madness is not a weapon that can be controlled, but a fire that burns whoever ignites it first.

Politics is not just a gamble, but it requires a deep understanding of the limits that can be crossed without losing control. Pretending to be crazy may work in the short term, but it often ends in disaster, because the world is not naive, and everyone soon realizes that whoever threatens chaos is either not serious, or he really does not have the ability to back down.

After all the previous displacement and settlement plans and projects that were thwarted by the Palestinian people who were holding on to the embers of survival and return, the dealmaker and real estate merchant, US President Donald Trump, came to propose a plan to displace the residents of the Gaza Strip outside their land, in an unexpected service even for the most extreme Zionist right, after failing to achieve this goal through a war of extermination and destruction, and turning the Gaza Strip into an uninhabitable place. The goal of this proposal is also to plunder the wealth of the Gaza Strip, and liquidate the refugee issue, as it is one of the most prominent elements of the conflict with the occupation since the Nakba in 1948.

This proposal also targets the presence of camps that represent the solid nucleus of resistance in the face of the occupation, and this is what Operation Iron Wall focuses on, which targets the camps in the northern West Bank to force the displacement of their residents through a comprehensive war of destruction, against the backdrop of their role in confronting annexation, displacement and settlement projects.

While talking about confronting Trump’s plan for forced displacement, we must be careful of the concepts of voluntary migration promoted by the occupation, especially after the shock that struck the Israeli political and military level as a result of the majestic and inspiring scene of the return of the people from the south and center of the Gaza Strip to the north, that is, from Palestine to Palestine, crowned with stubbornness, joy, crying and songs.

Since the refugee issue is the most obvious title for the suffering and the Palestinian cause, Trump’s thesis to displace the residents of the Gaza Strip came as a prelude to liquidating the issue of six million Palestinian refugees through their displacement and settlement in their places of residence. Displacement includes the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the 1948 territories, while settlement includes the countries hosting the Palestinian refugees, namely Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt. This plan cannot be confronted with statements and declarations. Rather, the coming danger requires more than ever the existence of a unified strategy with new and serious no’s to confront the Palestinian stubbornness that bitterly asks what came before, what is the Egyptian, Jordanian, and Arab vision and plan to support the Gaza Strip, and are the Arab countries together serious in confronting Trump’s proposal of decisive and unambiguous no’s, without retreat or compromise.

With appreciation that these noes require rearranging relations and alliances, especially with Islamic countries, foremost among them the Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey, and arriving together at a common vision that overcomes areas of agreement over areas of disagreement, and serves the interest of supporting the Palestinian people and their resistance, and confronting all the challenges that the American administration is working to impose on the region, by strengthening and reinforcing Palestinian stubbornness, patience and steadfastness in resisting displacement and settlement projects, and liquidating the Palestinian cause in its entirety, as the Israelis and the American administration imagine.

It is no secret to anyone the catastrophic conditions experienced by our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, where most of them live their day searching for water, food, medicine or clothing, with no one to protect them or help them except what Israel allows after bitter examination and scrutiny. Our Palestinian people who sacrificed more than two hundred thousand martyrs, missing persons and wounded, in addition to 80-90% of their buildings and infrastructure being destroyed and the air and soil being poisoned with gases as a result of the intensive raids with weapons being tested for the first time. Life in Gaza is almost impossible with this destruction and this absence of international and regional bodies, and this increasing silence regarding the ongoing killing of stones, trees and people alike, as it is clear that everyone is waiting for the end of this war that is described as a war of extermination and displacement. This waiting position has made many countries, parties and even international bodies refrain from taking decisive decisions or decisions capable of curbing the deadly military machine that operates in the Strip and the West Bank without stopping. What "made matters worse" is the similarity of the two positions:

The American and Israeli, especially after the election of Donald Trump, who is clearly under the influence of extremist pressure lobbies from America and Israel, it is not a coincidence that Trump adopts the most extreme positions of the extreme right, and it is not a coincidence that this president insists on opposing the Palestinian people in this provocative and continuous manner. It can be said that Trump, with these extreme positions, is completing the first deal of the century with another deal that ends not only with a two-state solution, but also the disintegration of the Palestinian people through displacement in the Gaza Strip and annexation in the occupied West Bank, and forcing the Arab world to accept Israel and normalize relations with it without making any concessions or political or other prices.

The American and Israeli position now has gone beyond all the proposed projects and dangers, and has begun with the most dangerous scenarios possible, namely displacement and annexation. The danger is imminent, meaning that there is talk about abandoning the two-state solution, and about not recognizing the Palestinian people as a people with rights that have been recognized by many international bodies. The American and Israeli position goes beyond international resolutions and the United Nations’ recognition of the Palestinian state, and goes beyond the decisions issued by international bodies such as the Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice.

This Israeli and American extremism and fanaticism has led them to become so arrogant and haughty that they have asked Arab countries, especially Egypt and Jordan, to participate in bearing the burdens of the occupation by receiving Palestinian "displaced persons", by eliminating the Palestinian state, and by actually contributing to the dismantling of the Palestinian people, in exchange for continuing to pump American money into both sister countries Egypt and Jordan. Thus, for the first time, Arab brothers are being asked to participate not in resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, but in deepening this conflict and inflaming it to the furthest extent.

For the first time, the sister Arab countries are being asked to adopt the vision of the occupation, reward it, and rid it of its burdens. For this very reason, our Arab brothers have categorically rejected this, through both His Majesty King Abdullah II and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. This clarity in the position was very necessary, because the idea of displacement and annexation affects the national and security interests of every Arab country individually and all of them together. The displacement of the Palestinians now is a real recipe for a new, large and broad wave of instability in the region. This American threat has opened the doors of very dangerous possibilities for our Arab brothers. Therefore, it was not surprising to call for a meeting in Riyadh that includes the Arab parties: Jordan, Egypt, the Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar on 20-2; to develop a plan for confrontation to thwart the idea of displacement of our people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and the clash. This is before the Arab summit scheduled to be held in Cairo on the 27th of this month, which will be entirely devoted to the Palestinian issue and the new challenges. The Riyadh meeting is perhaps the most important meeting, because the decisions of this summit will not go beyond rejecting displacement or fragmentation, and that the Palestinian Authority is the one with jurisdiction in the Gaza Strip, and is authorized to manage it, and that the solution is Arab with international assistance that guarantees care, reconstruction, and political coverage, and that Hamas must be wise, mature, and politically realistic in a way that allows the Arab umbrella to move easily and smoothly. This means that the Riyadh meeting scheduled for the twentieth of this month will present a realistic and clear vision to the United States, Israel, and the entire world to get out of the bottleneck that everyone has entered, by saying that Saudi Arabia, with its great qualitative weight, is authorized to seize the historical role assigned to it to lead the Arab effort to extract the Palestinian cause from the stagnation and stagnation it is suffering from, with a realistic political vision that spares the Palestinian people displacement, annexation, dismantling, and suffering. Through a political settlement in the Gaza Strip first and the occupied West Bank second, a vision based on stopping the war, rebuilding Gaza, returning the Palestinian Authority, and containing Hamas so that it does not dominate the scene and preserving it as part of the Palestinian people.

In this regard, and for the sake of truth and objectivity, Hamas knows that it is politically and militarily besieged, and knows that it cannot help our people in the Strip, and for this reason it has actually and practically proposed that it is prepared to give up the administration of Gaza within a Palestinian-Palestinian agreement, and this is a good proposal that can be built upon. Moreover, Hamas, through the sixth batch of the release of Israeli prisoners, put up a large picture showing the flags of the Arab countries that reject the displacement, including the flag of our sister country, Saudi Arabia, in a real and public indication from the Hamas movement to say that it is sheltered by this Arab effort and that Arab diplomacy, and its approval of the Egyptian-Arab plan to rebuild Gaza.

These are signs that can be used to tell Hamas with great sincerity and love that you should not be a hole in the wall of the Arab position that shows strength and unity in the face of American bullying and extremism. You, brothers in Hamas, must provide everything you can in order to make the Arab vision a success by cooperating with the details of that vision. It must be recognized that it is not possible to rebuild the Strip without our brothers in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the Emirates and other countries, and that this will not happen without implicit or explicit approvals from America, Israel and the European Union. Therefore, political realism and a wise vision for the stage are necessary. No one is talking here about defeat, but we must talk about actual changes in our region and the world. No one is talking about the abuse or marginalization of Hamas, but rather about repositioning it in Palestinian political life. You are asking about Hamas’s weapons, which constitute the most problematic issue. Well, this matter can be settled with real and certain guarantees from the Palestinian Authority and the Arab side, under the generous sponsorship of President Sisi, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed and King Abdullah II. No one is talking about or proposing an Arab occupation, or replacing displacement with an internal Palestinian-Arab or Palestinian-Palestinian war. This is impossible. Nothing can happen in the Strip without Palestinian-Palestinian approvals. President Mahmoud Abbas was and still is a strong wall to protect the Palestinian decision and Palestinian representation. He was and still is insisting on Palestinian-Palestinian consensus. There is no coercion, no usurpation, and no kidnapping, but rather a real Palestinian consensus that allows for entering a new phase with minimal losses. However, because time is running fast, and the suffering of the Palestinian people in the Strip is deepening at every moment, our brothers in Hamas must take the initiative to present a vision that will ensure their integration into Palestinian political life, and for the Palestinian Authority, under the leadership and care of President Abu Mazen, to take over the matter in the Strip, with Arab support, guarantees, and care, leading to an independent Palestinian state, relying once again on this blessed coordinated Arab effort.

The internationally recognized PLO has legal, political and administrative jurisdiction over the territories of the State of Palestine: the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and Jerusalem. This is my message to Hamas.

A host of pro-Israel lobby groups and political action committees, including right-wing fundamentalists, neoconservative hawks, and soft-core liberals, have not only enabled Israel’s campaign against the Palestinians, but have done more than that. They have silenced congressional debate about decades of illegal Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.

Pro-Israel groups and political action committees protest loudly whenever their role is pointed out. But the tens of millions they have spent punishing critics and creating a climate of fear—along with their boasts about their successes—are well documented and cannot be ignored. As a result, many members of Congress have been silenced or pushed to pass overly bizarre legislation that gives Israel special treatment in budgetary matters or to obtain political benefits.

The same coalition of groups on both the right and left of American politics has pressured successive American administrations not only to turn a blind eye to Israeli actions that violate American laws, but also to take a hostile stance toward other countries that criticize Israel. These actions have helped dismantle the architecture of international diplomacy, laws, and conventions that emerged in the wake of the two world wars, and have done serious damage to the United States’ standing in the international community.

US presidents from Ford to Obama have been pressured by congressional letters from pro-Israel groups calling on them to reverse their positions critical of Israeli policies. Successive administrations have been forced to remain silent in the face of Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied territories and other documented Israeli violations of international law and human rights. This pressure has led to US condemnations of UN reports on Israeli violations, US withdrawal of funds from various UN agencies over actions that have criticized Israel’s behavior, and repeated US vetoes of Security Council resolutions—even when those resolutions merely affirmed stated US policies.

More recently, this practice has been seen in the imposition of sanctions by Congress and the administration on the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, as well as on individuals and countries that have participated in resolutions critical of Israel. These actions have contributed to the dismantling of the checks and balances designed to promote world peace, enforce international law, and protect vulnerable groups from abuse, further isolating the United States. The same set of groups and the pressures they create to distort U.S. policies have also done incalculable harm to Palestinians, Israelis, and prospects for peace in the Middle East. The U.S. State Department annually reports on the performance of human rights policies in other countries. Congressional legislation would examine these reports so that U.S. assistance is not given to countries that violate human rights.

Yet the State Department’s human rights report on Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories is ignored, even when it is accurate. As a result, tens of thousands of Palestinians have been tortured or detained for long periods without charge, and violations of international laws prohibiting the confiscation of Palestinian land, evictions from homes, and the mass transfer of Israelis to settlements on confiscated Palestinian land have continued unabated. With no restrictions on their actions, the Israeli military and civilian settlers operate with a sense of impunity.

While Gaza was destroyed in a 16-month war of annihilation, the West Bank and East Jerusalem were subjected to mass demolitions of Palestinian neighborhoods and the terrorizing of Palestinian villages and farmland. The number of Israelis living on Palestinian land has more than quadrupled in this century, and settlements, Israeli-protected “state land,” “military zones,” and protected settlement infrastructure are now fragmenting the Palestinian territory into smaller and smaller areas, making it difficult to discuss a two-state solution. The United States has enabled all of this by doing nothing to stop it. Another byproduct of this American capitulation to Israeli behavior has been the decline of the Israeli peace movement. Once a vibrant movement, it was able to demonstrate that settlement expansion or rights abuses would damage Israel’s relationship with the United States. After decades of evidence that such consequences would not damage those relations, the movement has faded into irrelevance. In its absence, the hard-right has become the dominant force in Israel, leaving the only serious divisions in Israeli politics over whether the next coalition government will be formed with or without the ultra-Orthodox or Netanyahu at the helm. The Palestinians or issues of peace and justice are off the agenda. Since October 7, pro-Israel forces, led by right-wing ideologues and pro-Israel groups in the United States, have intensified their efforts on the domestic front, using congressional pressure and presidential executive orders to dismantle free speech and academic freedom on college campuses.

An expanded definition of anti-Semitism is now being imposed to include legitimate criticism of Israel, threatening to cut federal funding to universities that do not punish students and faculty for what are now considered anti-Semitic activities. The Justice Department has launched a task force to identify groups and individuals who have engaged in anti-Israel activities. Right-wing groups have vowed to identify international students and faculty who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests or against whom Jewish students have filed complaints for anti-Israel statements. They are reporting them to authorities for deportation, in accordance with another executive order by President Trump. What is deeply troubling within the United States is that the equating of “anti-Israel” and “pro-Palestinian” with “anti-Semitism” has created a climate of fear on American campuses, stifling free speech, academic freedom, and public discourse. As Palestinians pay with their lives for this pressure to silence criticism of Israeli policies, the damage caused by this pressure is only getting worse. It has discredited the structures of the international system, embarrassed and isolated the United States in the eyes of the world, and is now eating away at a great deal of our cherished freedoms.

US President Trump's message via the White House website to the Jordanian people is a public apology to His Majesty the King, to the Jordanians, and to the Jordanian state, as a friendly country linked to the United States by agreements, interests, and understandings.

The US President apologized for what he did before the summit meeting and meeting with His Majesty the King on 2/11/2025, when he violated the prepared protocol and the agreed-upon program by forcing journalists to enter the presidential office at the White House headquarters without informing the Jordanian delegation and without coordinating with it.

President Trump knows in advance that his guest has declared positions on the issues related to the Palestinian issue, and the results of the crimes committed by the Israeli colony against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. He also knows in advance that Jordan disagreed with him in opinion and position regarding the Arab Palestinian city of Jerusalem, and that Amman refused during his first presidential term, between 2017 and 2020, to recognize on January 6, 2017, that Jerusalem is the unified capital of the Israeli colony, as well as Jordan’s rejection of his plan, which he called the “Deal of the Century,” which he announced on January 28, 2020. He knows these positions of Jordan in advance.

His Majesty the King also knows in advance the positions and statements of the American President, and the truth is that both parties to the summit and the meeting know each other’s positions.

But his press statement, which he delivered to journalists before the bilateral summit session, and announced his provocative, unacceptable positions, rejected by Jordan, regarding: 1- Displacing Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, 2- Annexing the West Bank to the map of the Israeli colony, was an attempt at inappropriate embarrassment and blackmail.

His Majesty the King acted with prudence, broad-mindedness and courage, declaring his position that what was proposed must respond to all parties, especially the position of the Jordanian people and their national interests, and that what will be done to address the tragic conditions of the people, residents, institutions and facilities of the Gaza Strip will be done through an Arab plan being prepared by Egypt.

In negotiations, each party presents its positions to the other without any agreement on the offer, as each party knows the other party's positions in advance.

President Trump's statements were clear and announced before the summit, and Jordan's positions, supported by the people and officially expressed, were announced and consistent with the Palestinian national interests, and supportive of them, as well as consistent with the positions of the Arab countries whose foreign ministers met in Cairo on Saturday 1-2-2025, in the presence of the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, the Emirates, Jordan with Palestine, and the Secretary-General of the Arab League, as well as the European position announced by Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Spain, all of which reject the US President's proposals and his orientations against Palestine.

President Trump's apology was made under pressure from the deep state institutions that make the decisions, along with the congressional committees, reflecting Jordan's status and respect from various American institutions that imposed this public apology on the presidency from the American president.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said Monday that the United States has “little or no desire” to control the Gaza Strip “in any way, shape, or form.”

"There is very little appetite in the Senate for US control of the Gaza Strip," added the conservative senator, who is known for his strong loyalty to Israel and the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC.

"One thing I want to say is that I have not seen any desire in the United States Senate for America to control Gaza in any way," Graham said at a news conference in Israel, standing among fellow senators from both parties.

Graham's comments come as US President Donald Trump has pushed forward his controversial plan for the United States to take control of war-torn Gaza and force the area's nearly two million Palestinians to resettle elsewhere.

“The United States will take control of Gaza, and we will do our job — whether we own it or not, and we will be responsible for dismantling all the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, leveling the site, getting rid of the destroyed buildings, leveling it,” Trump said at a joint White House news conference on February 4 with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Creating economic development that will provide unlimited jobs and housing for the people of the area, doing real work, doing something different,” Trump said at the time, and he repeated in more than one statement that the Palestinians must leave the Gaza Strip and never return to it.

Graham, a close Trump ally who has worked extensively with leaders in the region, said at the news conference that he had spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other government officials about Trump's Gaza plan.

"If they (the Palestinians) want to, I support that, but it is not about leaving by force. I will work with Israel to find countries (to which to displace the Palestinians)," the Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth quoted Graham as saying.

"Their view is that the Palestinians should be given the opportunity to leave if they wish, and I support that," Graham said of his talks with Israeli officials.

Graham explained that it is up to the Palestinians to decide whether to leave.

"I will work with Israel to find countries that will host Palestinians if they choose to leave, but we are not talking about forced displacement by Israel or anyone else," Graham said.

A bipartisan U.S. Senate delegation, led by Graham and Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), also met with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar.

The delegation also included Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-CA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CA), Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ), and Deputy Special Presidential Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus.

During the meeting, Sa'ar spoke about the situation in Gaza, saying that "the Palestinian state will become a Hamas state, which will put Israel at risk."

He also spoke about concerns about the Iranian threat, explaining that "Israel is committed to preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. There are worrying developments in the Iranian nuclear project, stemming from Iran's desire to "compensate" for its weak regional power in the war by obtaining nuclear weapons."

Sa'ar claimed that there is "an intensive Iranian effort to smuggle money into Lebanon to restore Hezbollah's strength and status. This effort is being carried out, among other channels, through Turkey and in cooperation with it."

He stressed that "rehabilitating Hezbollah would harm Lebanon's chances for a different and better future, as well as the ability of the Lebanese army to be the dominant military force in the country. Therefore, it must be stopped."

Today, Tuesday, the Israeli occupation forces demolished an inhabited house in the town of Kafr al-Dik, west of Salfit.

Local sources reported that the occupation forces stormed the town and demolished a two-storey house with an area of 150 square metres, and a barracks belonging to citizen Hammam Tawfiq Ali Ahmed.

It is worth noting that this is the fourth house demolished by the occupation forces in the town of Kafr ad-Dik since the beginning of 2025.

According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, the occupation authorities carried out 76 demolition operations in the West Bank, including Jerusalem, last month, affecting 126 facilities, including 74 inhabited homes, 4 uninhabited ones, and 29 agricultural and other facilities.

The Israeli occupation forces continue their aggression on Tulkarm and Jenin, amid widespread destruction of infrastructure.

**Tulkarm**

The Israeli occupation forces continued their aggression on the city of Tulkarm and its camp for the 23rd consecutive day, and on the Nour Shams camp for the tenth day, amidst an escalation of their aggression and additional destruction of streets and infrastructure, and the demolition, burning and bombing of homes.

Local sources said that after midnight, the occupation forces deliberately set off huge explosions accompanied by live ammunition inside Nour Shams camp, the sound of which was heard throughout the city and its suburbs, causing fires to break out around Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Mosque in the camp square.

In the same context, the occupation forces continued their stifling siege of Nour Shams camp, which included additional destruction of the infrastructure completely, extensive raids on homes and the destruction of their contents, the demolition and bulldozing of other homes in the neighborhoods of Al-Manshiya, Al-Jami’, Al-Joura, Al-Shuhada, and Al-Madaris, and the closing of the entrances to homes and shops with barriers and rubble.

In Tulkarm camp, the occupation forces fired flares into the sky of the camp, while heavy gunfire was heard, amidst the dispatch of additional military reinforcements to it, at a time when it is witnessing widespread destruction of the infrastructure and property and a complete interruption of electricity, water and communications networks.

According to eyewitnesses, the situation in Tulkarm camp is becoming increasingly difficult, amid a state of fear and panic that has afflicted the residents who remained in their homes on the outskirts, especially in the airport neighborhood, due to the heavy gunfire, in addition to the severe shortage of basic and necessary supplies such as food, water, medicine and milk.

They reported that the occupation forces pursue anyone who leaves his home or tries to return to the camp, shoot at him, and direct drones towards him to film him.

In the same context, the occupation forces deployed their vehicles and infantry soldiers late last night in the streets and neighborhoods of Tulkarm city, while imposing a siege and curfew on the residents of the eastern neighborhood, specifically in the area of Al-Muqata'a Street up to the Abu Safiya intersection and the municipal slaughterhouse.

Local sources reported that the occupation forces were stationed at the Shahid junction on Al-Muqata'a Street, stopped vehicles, searched them, and checked the identities of their passengers. They also detained a number of young men in the vicinity of Al-Younis roundabout in the northern neighborhood, checked their identities, subjected them to field investigation, and abused them without any arrests being reported.

The occupation bulldozers razed the streets in the eastern neighborhood, causing great damage to the infrastructure, trees and vehicles, and closed some entrances with earthen barriers.

The occupation forces also raided homes in the Dhnaba suburb east of Tulkarm, searched them, vandalized their contents, and interrogated their residents.

The occupation forces continue to seize two houses on Nablus Street, which connects Tulkarm and Nour Shams camps, and turn them into military barracks, amid the deployment of foot patrols in their vicinity.

At the same time, the occupation forces continue to close the gate of the Jabara checkpoint at the southern entrance to the city of Tulkarm for the 11th consecutive day, isolating the city from the villages and towns of Al-Kafriyat and the rest of the West Bank governorates.

**fetal**

The Israeli occupation continues its aggression on the city of Jenin and its camp, for the twenty-ninth consecutive day, leaving 26 martyrs, dozens of injuries, and widespread destruction of infrastructure and property.

Local sources reported that the occupation burned a house in the Samran neighborhood in Jenin camp, and closed the Al-Sikka-Al-Qassar road and the road leading to the new camp cemetery with bulldozers, placing earthen barriers in it, and fired flares towards the Al-Assir Mosque in the camp.

The occupation also installed an iron gate near the "Homesh" settlement on the road between Nablus and Jenin, and arrested a citizen after raiding his home in the Saada Forest in Jenin.

As the occupation's aggression against Jenin camp continues, the massive destruction is revealed day after day in the homes, properties and shops of citizens in the camp's neighborhoods and streets, while the occupation continues to send military reinforcements accompanied by bulldozers and fuel tankers to the entrances and surroundings of the camp, while the occupation bulldozers continue the destruction and demolition works and open streets in several neighborhoods of Jenin camp, in the merger neighborhoods, and drones continue to fly at low altitudes in the skies of the camp.

UNRWA announced the opening of a clinic in the Korean Center next to the Jenin Health Directorate building to follow up on patients with chronic diseases starting today, Tuesday.

Yesterday, Monday, the child Diaa al-Din Saba’neh, 15 years old, was martyred as a result of his injuries two weeks ago when an occupation drone bombed a vehicle in the town of Qabatiya, south of Jenin.

Yesterday, Red Crescent crews transferred an elderly woman from inside a demolished house in Jenin camp, while occupation soldiers assaulted an ambulance crew while trying to transport another patient.

Two citizens were injured this morning, Tuesday, during the Israeli occupation forces' storming of the town of Meithalun, south of Jenin.

According to local sources, a child was injured by a gas bomb thrown by the occupation soldiers, while another was injured after the occupation forces attacked him.

The month of February, which has no connection, is crowded with appointments, urgent and deferred, to mend the widening rupture in the Arab garment, which is being devoured by wolves and chased by hyenas, in one of the darkest, narrowest and most dangerous passages that the nation passes through, threatening it in the present and future, in which its enemies lick their lips to cut off parts of its body with axes and knives, while it is in a moment of confusion, lying on the “bed of misery”, which has afflicted it from its poor performance, the dispersion of its word, the multiplicity of its agendas, its lack of resourcefulness, and its insignificance among the people, more than what has afflicted it from the brutality of its enemies.

Between the five-party summit that the Saudi capital will host on the twentieth of this month, and the Arab summit that may be postponed to a later date for logistical reasons, as stated by the Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab League, Hossam Zaki, the fireball is rolling down a mountain, threatening hell at times, and displacement at other times, in a way that narrows options, narrows distances, and reduces the level of horizontal vision, amidst columns of smoke that block the horizons.

Between the two summits, the nation has no choice but to reach an agreement, turn the page on differences, bridge the gaps, and close ranks in the face of an enemy that has reached the peak of madness, and has stripped itself of all systems and laws, adopting the shock, terror, and targeting approach, to test the walls of defense and the extent of readiness to respond, and the ability to scatter balls from the violated Arab goal by scoring own goals more than those scored by opponents and enemies, which has awakened in the nation the sources of existential fear, in light of what is happening in terms of the liquefaction of maps and the expansion of borders, in a world led by foolishness and improvisation, and the desires for revenge stamped with executive orders.

Dr. Ahmed Rafiq Awad: Rubio expresses a vision that supports the aggression of the occupation and defends the policies of the extreme Israeli right

Dr. Raed Abu Badawiyya: The coming days will witness an American position supporting the annexation, which reflects the continuation of the extremist policies of Israel and Trump

Nabhan Khreisha: "Netanyahu's New Middle East" Can Only Be Achieved by Striking the "Iranian Nuclear", Which Requires American Participation

Dr. Mahmoud Al-Froukh: Rubio’s statements reveal the true face of successive US administrations that compete in supporting and protecting Israel

Dr. Amjad Bashkar: Deep strategic dimensions of Rubio’s statements, as the Arab and Islamic world is wanted to change under the leadership of America and Israel

Samer Anabtawi: Israel seeks to impose its hegemony over the region by promoting normalization with the Arabs and imposing displacement and annexation

Statements by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio highlight the escalation of Israeli-US plans to reshape the Middle East according to extremist visions.

In separate interviews with “I,” writers, political analysts, specialists, and university professors believe that the meeting between Netanyahu and Rubio comes within the framework of unlimited American support for Israel, as it revealed strategic agreements aimed at strengthening Israeli aggression through plans that include displacing Palestinians, annexing parts of the West Bank, and attempts to impose new policies on neighboring Arab countries.

Writers, analysts, specialists and university professors point out that these developments come in light of the current US administration’s efforts to restore Israeli hegemony, which was severely shaken after the events of October 2023. US support for Israel goes beyond political and military dimensions, to include providing advanced weapons and supporting the policies of the Israeli far right, which enhances the climate of escalation in the region. In contrast, this strategy is used to enhance the position of the US President’s administration internally by gaining the support of extremist religious movements that support Israel.

They stress that the meeting reveals dangerous dimensions related to the fate of the Palestinian cause, as plans emerge to force Arab countries to bear the consequences of the Israeli occupation by displacing Palestinians and burdening them with the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. They expect continued American pressure to weaken the axis of resistance and thwart any efforts to reach a just political solution, which places the region in an explosive scene dominated by power calculations and the interests of international alliances, especially the United States and Israel.

Unprecedented US support for Israel politically and militarily

Writer and political analyst Dr. Ahmed Rafiq Awad believes that the current US administration, headed by President Donald Trump, is working to strengthen Israeli aggression in an unprecedented manner, through massive political, military and security support.

Awad points out that this administration adopts Trump's vision, which revolves around displacing the residents of Gaza and annexing the occupied West Bank, in addition to forcible control over the region without Israel paying any price for that.

Awad explains that the US administration is working to rebuild Israel's reputation and deterrent power, which suffered major blows after the events of October 7, 2023.

According to Awad, Israel has lost its prestige and functional role in the region, and the US administration is now working to compensate for all of this by providing the necessary political and military support.

Awad notes that the Trump administration has provided Israel with advanced weapons, including the “mother of all bombs” bunker-busting bomb, which would greatly enhance its military capabilities.

Awad points out that the US administration is working to destroy the two-state solution and force Egypt and Jordan to bear the burdens of the Israeli occupation, stressing that this unprecedented US support makes Israel more aggressive and more dangerous to the region.

Awad touched on the role of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whom he described as an extremist who holds a clear and explicit Christian Zionist vision.

Awad points out that Rubio, before assuming his current position, was known for his terrifying statements that reflected his complete bias towards Israel.

Awad asserts that Rubio, as Secretary of State, now expresses an extremist view that supports Israeli aggression and defends the policies of the extreme right in Israel.

Awad explains that Rubio carries a message of tremendous and endless support for Israel, which comes within the framework of the influence of the extremist Christian lobby in the United States.

Awad believes that the current US administration is defending the vision of the Israeli far right, which makes it adopt aggressive policies towards the region.

Awad cites Rubio’s statements claiming that the world would be better off if Israel were the main actor in the region, and believes that these statements reflect a clear blindness and bias towards Israel’s aggressive reality.

Awad asserts that Israel is not a democratic state as it is promoted, but rather an aggressive state that has not gone a single year without waging war on surrounding countries.

He points out that Israel is not technologically or politically advanced as claimed, but rather a country facing internal and external problems that exceed those faced by other countries in the region, and that Israel is not a welfare state, but rather a country suffering from major economic, social and political problems.

Awad points out that Israeli leaders are being pursued in international courts, and that the Security Council, the United Nations, and the Human Rights Council have issued dozens of resolutions against Israel because of its human rights violations and massacres against the Palestinian people. Israel has also struck all the countries surrounding it, making it an aggressive state par excellence.

Awad believes that the US administration is not only targeting Iran, but is also seeking to control Syria and make decisions there, in addition to controlling the Red Sea and Palestine.

Netanyahu's statements are in harmony with the "Trumpian" discourse

Dr. Raed Abu Badawiyeh, Professor of International Law and International Relations at the Arab American University, believes that the recent statements made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the clear harmony he showed with US President Donald Trump, came within the framework of appeasing Trump, after he appeared as a more extremist and Zionist figure than Netanyahu himself, which prompted the latter to issue statements that are in harmony with the hardline "Trumpian" discourse on the issue of Israeli prisoners and detainees and the issue of displacement.

Abu Badawiya points out that the press conference held by Netanyahu with the US Secretary of State came as part of this strategy, as Netanyahu sought to show his harmony with Trump to the right-wing Israeli street, and to make them believe that there were joint plans between the two countries.

These statements, according to Abu Badawiya, were an attempt to bolster Israeli popular mobilization, and to confirm that Netanyahu is no less extreme than Trump in supporting Israeli interests.

Abu Badawiya believes that Trump's recent statements regarding the Middle East and his interest in regional issues were, in essence, political maneuvers aimed at achieving the maximum American and Israeli interests. Through extremist statements, Trump sought to mobilize international and regional support to achieve Israel's goals, especially with regard to the issue of displacing Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan.

These maneuvers, according to Abu Badawiya, were also aimed at making Arab countries bear the costs of rebuilding the Gaza Strip, and thus shifting responsibility away from Israel, which was the main cause of the Strip’s destruction.

Abu Badawiya points out that the other goal of these maneuvers is to involve the Arab countries in the management and governance of the Gaza Strip after the war of extermination, which would ease the burden on Israel and push the Arabs to bear great political and financial responsibilities.

Abu Badawiya points out that Arab countries have already begun to respond to these pressures, as Arab initiatives have emerged to support reconstruction and management of the sector, but these initiatives may not necessarily be in line with Trump and Netanyahu’s vision, but are also a Palestinian demand.

Abu Badawiya stresses that any change in the Middle East according to the American and Israeli vision cannot take place without ignoring the Palestinian issue, not only in the Gaza Strip, but also in the West Bank.

Abu Badawiya expects that the coming days will witness an American position supporting the annexation of parts of the West Bank, whether partially or completely, which reflects the continuation of the extremist policies of Israel and Trump.

Abu Badawiya points out that ending the Palestinian division has become an urgent necessity to prevent Trump and Netanyahu from achieving their goals.

He stresses that Arab pressure on the Palestinians to end the division must be carried out according to a Palestinian vision, not according to an Israeli or American vision.

Abu Badawiya believes that the new Middle East arrangement stems from the interests of Israel and America, which seek to weaken the axis opposing the Zionist project in the region.

Abu Badawiya expects that the coming period will witness American and Israeli attempts to weaken Iran and its influence in the region, without resorting to military force, but rather through diplomatic pressures and political understandings.

He believes that the Russian-American summit between Putin and Trump may have an impact on changing the regional equations in favor of Israel and America.

Abu Badawiya wonders about the extent of the success of the American and Israeli vision in changing the Middle East, especially in light of the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the failure to end the Palestinian division.

Abu Badawiya points out that Arab normalization with Israel may not continue in light of the situation in the West Bank and the war of extermination in Gaza, which complicates the achievement of American and Israeli goals in the region.

Netanyahu's Ambitions and the Trump Administration's Adoption of His Aggressive Policies

Journalist Nabhan Khreisha explains that the hopes expressed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to achieve accomplishments that will change the face of the entire Middle East, stressing that Israel is on the verge of “victories we have never dreamed of before,” reflect Netanyahu’s broad ambitions that depend largely on the adoption by the administration of US President Donald Trump of Israel’s aggressive policies toward the Palestinians and the region in general.

In Palestine, Khreisha believes that Netanyahu is working with Trump to implement a plan aimed at displacing Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and establishing what is called the “Gaza Riviera.” Netanyahu described this plan during his press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio as “the only plan that can succeed.” To achieve this goal, Netanyahu is urging Trump to force Egypt and Jordan to settle the displaced from Gaza, as well as to displace the residents of the West Bank later.

Khraisheh points out that Israel has old plans related to Gaza, including the “Ben Gurion Canal” project dating back to 1963. This canal, which aimed to connect Eilat on the Red Sea to Gaza on the Mediterranean Sea, was considered an alternative to the Suez Canal after it was closed to Israeli navigation during the era of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser. However, the project faced geographical difficulties due to the Gaza Strip remaining outside Israeli control. However, if Trump’s plan to seize the Strip is implemented, 100 kilometers will be shortened from the planned canal’s length, in addition to benefiting from the oil and gas fields in Gaza’s land and sea.

Khreisha asserts that changing the face of the Middle East for Netanyahu also means thwarting the Palestinians’ dream of establishing an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, by separating the West Bank from the Gaza Strip after displacing its residents, and imposing full or partial Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank with unlimited American support, according to the plans of the Israeli right-wing government headed by Netanyahu.

On the regional level, Khreisheh believes that Netanyahu seeks to weaken Hezbollah’s military and political power, through a series of assassinations of its leaders, and to limit its role as a major player in Lebanese politics. Netanyahu called in his press conference with Rubio for the dismantling of Hezbollah, considering that the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria and Iran’s loss of two key pillars on Israel’s borders pave the way for a new Middle East free of Iranian influence.

Khreisha points out that “Netanyahu’s New Middle East” can only be achieved by striking Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities, which requires American participation in any potential military attack. Netanyahu is also counting on normalizing relations with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries, which would ensure Israeli economic dominance over the region, its natural resources, and its markets.

As for the statements of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said that the presence of countries like Israel in the region would make the world a better place, they reflect, according to Khreisheh, the state of harmony and agreement between the Trump administration and Israel. This contradicts some expectations that Trump’s policies in his second term will differ from his previous term, as it seems that US support for Israel will continue strongly in achieving its regional goals.

Clear agreements between Trump and Netanyahu on sensitive issues

Journalist Dr. Mahmoud Al-Froukh believes that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is well aware of the nature of the statements he makes about changing the face of the Middle East, based on the results of his many meetings in Washington, especially those that brought him together with US President Donald Trump and his extremist Republican administration.

These meetings, according to Al-Faroukh, resulted in clear agreements between the two parties on sensitive regional issues, including the position on the Palestinian issue and the rights of the Palestinian people.

Al-Froukh points out that during his visit to Washington, Netanyahu received American support to achieve several strategic goals, including reshaping Lebanon as a state free of Hezbollah weapons, which are considered a threat to Israeli security from the north. There was also agreement to redraw the map of Syria in a way that would reduce the influence of the axis of resistance in the region, while maintaining the Israeli presence in some Syrian areas, especially the occupied Golan Heights.

He points out that the Israeli-American agreements also included advancing normalization with new Arab countries, within the framework of what is known as the “Abraham Accords,” with a special focus on normalization with Saudi Arabia. It is also believed that there is an understanding about the possibility of Israel striking Iranian nuclear facilities, a goal that Tel Aviv has been seeking for decades.

Al-Froukh believes that the large bombs that recently arrived in Israel may be part of the preparations for this strike, which aims to weaken Iranian influence in the region and reshape the Middle East according to an Israeli-American vision.

Al-Froukh asserts that Netanyahu’s recent statements, especially during his meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, reveal clear and ongoing coordination between the Trump administration and Netanyahu’s government on various regional issues, including the Gaza Strip file, as the statements indicated the need to eliminate Hamas and ensure that it does not rule the Strip in the future, while emphasizing the importance of the return of Israeli prisoners. In this way, Israel seeks to achieve its vision of a Gaza without weapons, without Hamas, and without resistance, as part of its project to reshape the Middle East.

Regarding the issue of displacing Palestinians from Gaza, Al-Faroukh believes that there is an American-Israeli agreement on the necessity of implementing this plan, whether through forced or voluntary migration. However, the positions of Jordan and Egypt, supported by major Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia, may constitute an obstacle to this plan, which may push Israel to focus on achieving another goal, which is Gaza without Hamas.

Al-Froukh says: “The statements of Marco Rubio, the Zionist Republican representative who is affiliated with the evangelical movement that supports Israel, reveal the true face of successive American administrations, which compete in supporting and protecting Israel. These statements also confirm the control of the Zionist lobby over US foreign policy, which reflects the continuation of the strategic alliance between Washington and Tel Aviv in achieving their common goals in the region.”

Extremist visions aim to undermine previous efforts related to the Palestinian situation

Professor of Political and International Sciences, Dr. Amjad Bashkar, believes that the recent visit of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Israel, and the statements issued during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are an important event that comes at a very sensitive time.

Bashkar points out that these statements, which spoke about changing the face of the Middle East, carry deep strategic dimensions, as the Arab and Islamic world is intended to be the party that is being changed, while the United States and Israel lead this process of change.

Bashkar points out that Rubio's statements reflect the extremist views of the Israelis, especially the biblical trend that aims to undermine all previous efforts related to the Palestinian situation, and even cancel the regional agreements that Israel signed with some Arab countries, including the United States' allies in the region.

These statements, according to Bashkar, show that the current US administration is adopting an extremist discourse that ignores even moderate views within Israel itself.

Bashkar asserts that Netanyahu and Rubio’s statements come within the framework of reviving the “New Middle East” project, which is a project that is in line with the American and Israeli visions aimed at strengthening normalization agreements, especially the “Abraham Accords,” as the goal of this project is to bring about geopolitical changes in the region, with a special targeting of Egypt and Jordan, as the United States and Israel seek to reshape the political map of the Middle East.

Bashkar explains that Netanyahu is betting on exploiting the presence of the Trump administration to achieve Israel's strategic goals, which have not been achieved since 1948. Israel and the United States are working in parallel to change the Middle East, not only through geopolitical changes, but also by trying to bring about changes in the ruling regimes in Arab countries, including Lebanon, Syria, Egypt and Jordan.

Bashkar points out that Rubio's statements, in which he praised Israel's superiority in the region, reflect the unlimited American support for Israel, which is considered the "51st state" of the United States.

These statements, according to Bashkar, aim to promote normalization with Israel and impose it as a model to be emulated in the Middle East, regardless of the crimes it commits against the Palestinians and its repeated violations of international law.

Bashkar asserts that Rubio's statements constitute an implicit condemnation of every country that does not adopt the Israeli approach, which reflects the continued American quest to change the Middle East in Israel's favor.

These statements, according to Bashkar, show that Israel is in a state of euphoria with the presence of the Trump administration, as it seeks to achieve its expansionist goals and dominate the region, while directing strategic strikes at Iran.

Bashkar asserts that Rubio and Netanyahu’s statements reflect the continuation of American and Israeli efforts to change the Middle East, by pressuring allies and opponents to strengthen Israel’s position. However, these efforts face major challenges in light of the Arab and Islamic popular rejection of Israeli hegemony, and its repeated violations of human rights and international law.

Bashkar believes that the current American administration, with its formation closest to the Israeli right, sees any defeat for Israel as a strategic defeat for the United States of America in the Middle East, and therefore it places all its weight in favor of Israel in all fields.

The claim that Israel's existence makes the world a better place contradicts the facts.

Writer and political analyst Samer Anabtawi points out that American and Israeli plans to change the face of the Middle East are not new, but rather are ongoing, despite the difficulties and obstacles. However, Donald Trump’s rise to power in the United States gave a strong boost to these plans, as Netanyahu found in Trump a strategic ally who would help him achieve Israel’s greater goals in the region.

Anbatawi confirms that the agreement between Netanyahu and Trump began before the US elections, when Netanyahu visited the US Congress and announced his support for Trump, which strengthened the relationship between the two parties. The main goal of this alliance was to change the map of the Middle East and redistribute the geographical and political roles in the region. This plan includes neutralizing the Iranian role, weakening the role of the resistance, and tampering with the Palestinian interior through displacement policies, which Netanyahu insists on greatly.

Anbatawi points out that Netanyahu's meeting with the US Secretary of State came within the framework of these goals, as Israel seeks to impose its hegemony over the region through two main projects: the first is the "Abrahamic Project" which aims to promote normalization between Israel and the Arab countries, and the second is the displacement policy which aims to empty the West Bank of its population and annex it, all of which is taking place under the umbrella of the US-Israeli consensus to create a new Middle East that serves the interests of both parties.

Anbatawi explains that Trump seeks to reshape the Middle East according to his vision, as he wants Israel to be the dominant power in the region.

Anbatawi points out that the US Secretary of State's statements about the existence of "more countries like Israel" in the region are dangerous statements, as the existence of one country like Israel was the cause of bloodshed and instability in the Middle East. If there were more countries like it, the region would have been drowning in a sea of blood.

Anbatawi asserts that Israel is an artificial state, created to serve the goals of the United States and the West, whether on the ideological level or common interests, and it exists to expand at the expense of the peoples of the region, starting with the Palestinian people and extending to the rest of the Arab peoples.

Anbatawi stresses that the claim that the existence of Israel makes the world better is a claim that contradicts the facts, as Israel is the main reason for violations of international law and the commission of massacres in the region, believing that the world would be better without Israel and its expansionist policies, and without the American hegemony that supports it.

Anbatawi points out that the global consensus on criticizing Israel for its repeated violations confirms that its existence is not a solution, but rather a source of problems and conflicts in the Middle East.

An Israeli court in Jerusalem on Monday approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request to cancel his testimony in his corruption trial scheduled for Tuesday "for security reasons," according to Hebrew media.

The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said that "the Central Court in Jerusalem approved, on Monday evening, Netanyahu's request to cancel his testimony scheduled for tomorrow for security reasons," without further details.

She explained that Netanyahu also asked the judges to reduce the number of days he gives testimony each week from three to two days "for reasons related to performing his duties against the backdrop of the complex security and political reality, in various aspects and in various arenas."

The newspaper did not clarify whether the court agreed to reduce the number of days Netanyahu appears before them to two days per week.

On Monday, Netanyahu appeared in court for the tenth time since December 10, 2024.

The trial is being held under tight security restrictions in a fortified underground hall in Tel Aviv, under the recommendations of the Shin Bet security service.

Netanyahu appears in court for hours three days a week to answer corruption charges against him.

Netanyahu faces charges of corruption, bribery and breach of trust in three corruption cases known as Cases 1000, 2000 and 4000, and former Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit filed the indictment related to them in late November 2019.

"Case 1000" relates to Netanyahu and members of his family receiving valuable gifts from wealthy businessmen, in exchange for providing facilities and assistance to those figures in various fields.

He is also accused in "Case 2000" of negotiating with Arnon Moses, publisher of the private Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, to obtain positive media coverage.

The charges in Case 4000 relate to providing facilities to the former owner of the Israeli Walla news website, Shaul Elovitch, who was also an official at the Bezeq telecommunications company, in exchange for positive media coverage.

Netanyahu's trial in these cases began in 2020 and is still ongoing, and he denies it, claiming that it is a "political campaign aimed at overthrowing him."

This evening, Monday, the Israeli occupation forces assaulted an ambulance crew from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in Jenin camp.

The Red Crescent Society said that the occupation forces assaulted an ambulance crew while trying to transport a patient from Jenin camp, despite coordination with the Red Cross to enter the camp and transport the patient.

The occupation forces are constantly attacking ambulance crews while they are trying to transport injuries or sick cases to and from the hospitals in the city of Jenin, obstructing their work and checking the identities of their members. They have also detained ambulances more than once during the ongoing aggression on the city and its camp for the twenty-eighth consecutive day.

Israel decided on Monday to withhold $90 million in Palestinian tax funds (clearance) and transfer them to Israeli families whose members were allegedly killed in attacks carried out by Palestinians, according to Hebrew media.

Channel 7, a private Hebrew channel, said that Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich "signed today (Monday) the seizure of an additional amount of 320 million shekels (about 90 million dollars) from the Palestinian Authority's clearing funds, for the benefit of the families of victims of terrorism."

She added: "We are talking about another signature on withholding funds from the Palestinian Authority, which prevents it from continuing to reward terrorists and murderers (paying allowances to the families of Palestinian martyrs and prisoners), and transfers the Authority's funds to the victims of terrorism and their families" in Israel.

Clearance funds are the set of taxes and customs imposed on goods imported into the Palestinian side, whether from Israel or through Israeli border crossings (land, sea and air).

Since the signing of the Oslo Accords between the PLO and Israel in the 1990s, the Israeli Ministry of Finance has been collecting clearance funds and transferring them to the Palestinian side on a monthly basis, with a 3 percent deduction for the fees of the ministry’s staff.

The Israeli decision came despite Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issuing a presidential decree last week "cancelling laws and regulations related to paying allowances to the families of martyrs and prisoners in Israeli prisons" and referring them to a government institution.

The Palestinian government uses clearance funds primarily to pay the salaries of public employees, and they constitute 65 percent of the Palestinian Authority’s total financial revenues.

But starting in 2019, Israel decided to deduct 600 million shekels ($165 million) annually from the clearance funds, in exchange for the monthly allocations provided by the Palestinian Authority to prisoners and freed prisoners.

The annual figure for this deduction related to the allocations of prisoners and freed prisoners increased to an average of 700 million shekels annually ($195 million).

Since November 2021, the Palestinian Authority has been unable to pay the salaries of public sector employees at full rates, with the rate ranging between 50 percent and 90 percent of monthly salaries.

For his part, Smotrich claimed in a post on his account on the "X" platform that "there is no signature more moral and just than the signature that prevents the Palestinian Authority from financing terrorism, and transfers its funds to the families of terrorism victims."

He continued his allegations, saying, "This is a necessary step in our national war against terrorism and against the Palestinian Authority, which encourages it."

He continued: "This seizure is in addition to the process of deducting Gaza funds, freezing payments to terrorists, and a series of additional steps that I have taken in accordance with the strict policy that I have called for since I assumed my position."

Smotrich concluded by saying that he is working to "dry up the sources of funding for encouraging terrorism and not allowing the Palestinian Authority to exploit its funds to continue incitement and bloodshed."

On May 23, the World Bank warned that “the Palestinian Authority’s public finances have deteriorated sharply in the past three months, significantly increasing the risk of a public finance collapse.”

A number of citizens suffered from suffocation, Monday evening, during the Israeli occupation forces' storming of the town of Qusra, south of Nablus.

According to local sources, the occupation forces stormed Qusra, amidst heavy gunfire and tear gas bombs, which led to a number of citizens suffocating, including members of a family inside their home, who were subsequently transferred to a medical center.

Amid talk of a “possible postponement” of the emergency Arab summit in Cairo, Egypt continues its consultations in coordination with the Arab League to ensure the attendance of the largest number of Arab leaders at the summit, which will discuss developments in the Palestinian issue and the emergence of a “unified and strong” Arab position in the face of the “displacement” plan.

Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ambassador Hossam Zaki, said in televised statements on Sunday evening that the emergency Arab summit scheduled to be held in Cairo on February 27 "may be postponed for a few days due to considerations related to the schedules of the leaders of the participating countries."

Zaki stressed that "Egypt's keenness to have the largest number of leaders attend to ensure the success of the summit is the main motive for any possible postponement," stressing that "the reasons will be purely logistical."

In turn, an Arab diplomatic source confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that “Egypt is holding consultations in coordination with the Arab League to ensure a large and broad attendance by Arab leaders at the emergency summit, with the aim of coming up with a unified Arab position against (displacement),” noting that “it is possible that the summit will be postponed to the first week of next March.”

"well prepared"

Former Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister, Ambassador Rakha Ahmed Hassan, believes that “postponing the emergency summit for several days from the announced date aims to prepare well for the summit and for it to come out with a unified and strong Arab position rejecting displacement.”

He added to Asharq Al-Awsat that "Egypt announced the summit after consultations with the concerned Arab countries, and it is continuing these consultations to ensure that it achieves the goal of holding it."

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry announced, in an official statement last week, that Cairo will host an emergency Arab summit on February 27, which aims to discuss the “new and dangerous” developments in the Palestinian issue, noting that “coordination has been made regarding it with the Kingdom of Bahrain (the current president of the Arab Summit) and the General Secretariat of the Arab League.”

The Arab summit comes amid widespread regional and international condemnation of US President Donald Trump’s proposal to “take control of the Gaza Strip” and establish what he described as a “Middle East Riviera” in the Strip, following his proposal that Egypt and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan receive refugees from Gaza.

The Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab League explained in his statements on Sunday evening that “the (emergency summit) aims to formulate a unified and strong Arab position on the Palestinian issue, in light of the rejection of the displacement plan that was proposed by the Israeli side and adopted by the American administration.”

Zaki pointed out that “the Egyptian proposal will be the focus of discussions during the emergency summit, which includes proposals regarding the reconstruction of Gaza by the Palestinian people themselves, which guarantees the provision of job opportunities without the need to displace the residents of the Strip,” stressing that “the main goal of the summit is to support the Palestinian people and strengthen their steadfastness, with the issuance of an official document that reflects this position.”

Zaki said that Hamas's recent statements about its readiness to give up control of Gaza "may open the door to a more stable phase and help pass Arab proposals, ensuring that American ideas are not the only option on the table."

Cairo had announced its intention to present a “comprehensive vision” for the reconstruction of the Strip that would guarantee the Palestinians’ continued presence on their land, a vision that is “being coordinated” with Arab countries.

Construction and guarantees

Former Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister, Ambassador Hussein Haridi, believes that the plan that Egypt is preparing regarding Gaza “will include several points regarding reconstruction, including identifying the supervisor of implementation, the person responsible for insurance, in addition to the financing and the time period required for reconstruction.”

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that “any party that contributes to financing the reconstruction, whether Arab or international, will require guarantees that Israel will not launch military operations during the reconstruction period and that Israel will not destroy the Strip again,” noting that “these guarantees will be part of the reconstruction plan.”

According to the Egyptian academic specializing in Israeli and Palestinian affairs, Dr. Tarek Fahmy, “The Egyptian plan depends on the presence of a Palestinian partner on the ground, reopening the crossings, bringing in aid and starting reconstruction, with a mechanism for dealing with the Israeli side.”

Fahmy told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the plan will be divided into several chapters, part of which relates to funding and donor institutions,” noting that “Cairo will present a paper as governing frameworks and direct determinants of the Egyptian role in the coming period, part of which is related to direct support for the Gaza Strip at this time,” noting that “this paper may be put forward for discussion at the five-party summit scheduled to be held in Riyadh, and the expanded emergency Arab summit.”

Fahmy added that “Cairo will present the most comprehensive vision, which is what the King of Jordan indicated during his recent meeting with the US President,” noting that “Egypt is working on two tracks; the first is an international conference with the participation of donor countries to finance reconstruction, and the second is convincing the US administration that there is an Arab-Egyptian proposal that can be built upon,” stressing “the importance of the emergency Arab summit coming out with a unified Arab position in this regard.”

The official Israeli Broadcasting Authority said on Monday that Israel is preparing to receive the bodies of 5 of its prisoners in the Gaza Strip next Thursday, "after the intervention of mediators."

The Authority added in a report on Monday evening that the Israeli army has already begun preparations to receive the bodies.

Hamas is scheduled to publish on Thursday morning the names of the dead prisoners whose bodies will be released on the same day, according to the same source.

His Majesty King Abdullah II affirmed, on Monday, Jordan's firm position on the Palestinian cause, rejecting displacement, settlement and an alternative homeland.

His Majesty stressed that his position has not and will not change, and that the saying for 25 years has been: "No to displacement, no to settlement, no to an alternative homeland," denouncing some people's doubts about these fixed positions.

This came during His Majesty's speech when he met a group of retired comrades-in-arms at the Royal Hashemite Court, on the occasion of the Loyalty Day for Retired Military Personnel and Veterans, in the presence of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah II.

His Majesty the King expressed his optimism despite all the challenges, stressing that he draws strength and courage from his dear people, the brave men of the Jordanian Armed Forces - the Chosen Arab Army, the security services, and retired military comrades-in-arms.

His Majesty added that he knows the readiness of military retirees to wear the military uniform (the footik) and stand to His Majesty's right and left in the face of all challenges.

Speaking about his recent visit to Washington, His Majesty stressed that preserving Jordan's interests and stability and protecting Jordan and Jordanians are above all considerations, stressing the importance of working to rebuild Gaza without displacing our Palestinian brothers in Gaza and the West Bank.

His Majesty reiterated the importance of working to reduce escalation in the West Bank, and that achieving a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution is the only way to achieve stability in the region.

His Majesty the King expressed his pride in his comrades in arms from the ranks of the armed forces and security services, and in their sacrifices in order to protect the homeland and preserve its capabilities, pointing to the importance of the role of military retirees and their expertise in enhancing the achievements of Jordan and its institutions.

During the meeting, His Majesty thanked the Jordanian men and women for their warm welcome upon his return from the United States.

In a speech to the military retirees, retired Major General Dr. Ismail Al-Shoubaki spoke about His Majesty the King’s continued support for his comrades-in-arms and veterans, who trust His Majesty’s leadership and wisdom in dealing with various challenges.

Al-Shoubaki praised His Majesty's keenness to achieve Jordanian interests, stand by the Arab brothers, especially the Palestinian brothers, and emphasize the supportive positions to them in establishing them on their land.

Al-Shoubaki pointed out the importance of the Hashemite guardianship of the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem in caring for these holy sites.

The meeting was attended by the Chief of the Royal Hashemite Court Yousef Hassan Al-Issawi, the Director of the General Intelligence Department, Major General Ahmed Hosni, the Director of Public Security, Major General Dr. Obaidallah Maaytah, the Acting Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Assistant for Operations and Training, Brigadier General Naji Al-Manaseer, and the Director General of the Economic and Social Institution for Retired Military Personnel and Veterans, Major General Adnan Al-Raqqad.

Today, Monday, the Israeli occupation forces escalated their aggression on the city of Tulkarm and its camp, which has continued for the 22nd consecutive day, and the ninth day on the Nour Shams camp, amid additional destruction of streets and infrastructure and the demolition and burning of homes.

According to local sources, the occupation forces sent military reinforcements of heavy machinery and bulldozers to the city and its two camps, and began extensively bulldozing the streets and vandalizing property.

In the eastern neighborhood of Tulkarm city, especially in the area of Al-Muqata'a Street up to the Abu Safiya intersection and the municipal slaughterhouse, the occupation forces bulldozed the streets in those areas, causing great damage to the infrastructure, trees and vehicles, and closed some entrances with earthen barriers.

In a later development, the occupation forces tightened their siege on the eastern neighborhood this evening, preventing its residents from leaving their homes, forcing shop owners to close their stores, pursuing citizens, arresting a number of them, checking their identities, interrogating them in the field, and abusing them.

In Tulkarm camp, the occupation forces continued to bulldoze streets and homes, causing extensive damage, in addition to burning homes in the Al-Samran neighborhood, including the home of the martyr Wassim Anbar, while sounds of gunfire and explosions were heard.

The situation in Tulkarm camp is becoming more difficult, amid a state of fear and panic that has afflicted the residents who remained in their homes on the outskirts, especially in the airport neighborhood, in addition to a severe shortage of basic and necessary supplies such as food, water, medicine and milk.

Eyewitnesses added that the occupation forces pursue anyone who leaves his home or tries to return to the camp, shoot at him, and direct drones towards him to film him.

They stressed that nothing inside the camp remained the same, as the occupation forces deliberately destroyed the contents of the houses and threw everything inside them outside, including electrical appliances, furniture and clothes, with systematic sabotage and destruction of all aspects of life in the camp.

In the same context, the occupation forces continued their stifling siege of Nour Shams camp, which included additional destruction of the infrastructure completely, extensive raids on homes and the destruction of their contents, the demolition and bulldozing of other homes in the neighborhoods of Al-Manshiya, Al-Jami’, Al-Joura, Al-Shuhada, and Al-Madaris, and the closing of the entrances to homes and shops with barriers and rubble.

These attacks coincided with the occupation forces firing live ammunition, occasional bombings, and low-altitude reconnaissance flights.

The occupation forces set up a checkpoint on the Nablus road connecting the Tulkarm and Nour Shams camps, stopped vehicles, checked the identities of their passengers, interrogated them, and detained a number of them. They also raided and searched homes in the area, and seized two homes and turned them into military barracks.

Today, relief efforts continued from the relevant authorities in Tulkarm, who worked to deliver food, medicine and water to a number of families besieged inside Nour Shams camp, in light of the difficult circumstances they are experiencing due to the occupation’s aggression.

The Red Crescent crews also evacuated a number of elderly and sick people from the camp and took them to shelters in the governorate.

On Monday, Jordan's King Abdullah II reiterated his position rejecting the displacement of Palestinians, denouncing "some people's questioning of these firm positions."

This came during his meeting with a group of retired military personnel, according to a statement by the Royal Court, a copy of which was received by Anadolu Agency.

The statement said that King Abdullah stressed "Jordan's firm position on the Palestinian issue, rejecting displacement, settlement and an alternative homeland."

He stressed that "his position has not and will not change, and that the saying for 25 years has been no to displacement, no to settlement, no to an alternative homeland."

The Jordanian monarch also denounced "some people's questioning of these firm positions," without referring to any specific party.

King Abdullah stressed that he draws "strength and courage from the dear people, the Jordanian Armed Forces, the security services, and retired military comrades-in-arms."

He added that he "knows the readiness of military retirees to wear the military uniform and stand to his right and left in the face of all challenges," according to the same statement.

He considered that "preserving Jordan's interests, stability and protection are above all considerations."

The King of Jordan stressed the importance of working to rebuild Gaza, "without displacing our Palestinian brothers in the Strip and the occupied West Bank."

He reiterated the "importance of working to reduce escalation in the West Bank," and that achieving a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution is "the only way to achieve stability in the region."

On Sunday, the Jordanian monarch stressed, during his meeting in Amman with a delegation from the US Congress headed by Senator Richard Blumenthal, his rejection of the displacement of Palestinians, emphasizing the importance of ensuring the sustainability of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, according to a statement by the Royal Court, a copy of which was received by Anadolu Agency.

This came days after the King of Jordan confirmed to US President Donald Trump, following talks between the two parties at the White House on Tuesday, his rejection of the displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.

On February 4, US President Donald Trump revealed during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House that his country intends to seize Gaza after displacing the Palestinians from it to other countries, including Egypt and Jordan.

Trump's plan for Gaza was widely rejected by Palestinians, Arabs and the international community, while it was met with great praise at the political level in Israel, including various trends.

A child was injured, Monday evening, by Israeli occupation forces' bullets during their raid on the village of Tal, southwest of Nablus.

According to local and medical sources, a 17-year-old child was shot by the occupation forces who stormed the village and fired live bullets and tear gas canisters. A number of citizens also suffered from suffocation.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has decided to confiscate 320 million shekels of tax money collected for the Palestinian Authority and transfer it to the families of Israeli dead.

According to the Israeli Army Radio, Smotrich indicated that this step is part of a series of measures aimed at stopping the Palestinian Authority’s funding of Palestinian operations and the families of the perpetrators.

Smotrich considered that the decision aims to achieve the security of the Israelis by preventing support for Palestinian operations, according to his expression.

The measures also included freezing the transfer of funds to the Gaza Strip and stopping payments to Palestinian prisoners.

Smotrich announced the formation of a team to review the financial expenditures of the Palestinian Authority annually, with the aim of ensuring that no money is spent on the families of martyrs or prisoners.

Smotrich pointed out that there is a plan to review the financial expenditures of the Palestinian Authority annually, to ensure that the salaries of prisoners or families of martyrs are not funded.

A report is scheduled to be submitted in early 2026 to assess whether the Palestinian Authority has complied with these conditions, and it will then be decided whether tax transfers will continue or not.

Smotrich added that he intends to take measures to stop what he calls “funding incitement” in mosques, schools and the media, by stopping the financial support provided by the authority to these sectors, which he said receive funding from the clearance funds and contribute to incitement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that there would be no Hamas or Palestinian Authority presence in Gaza the day after the war.

Netanyahu claimed, in statements on Monday, that he is committed to the US president's plan to create a "different Gaza."

In a related context, Netanyahu's office denied that Tel Aviv was subjected to any American pressure to send a delegation to Cairo to discuss the second phase of the prisoner exchange deal, stressing that any future negotiations will be led by the political level.

This statement came in response to a report by Channel 12, which revealed that Washington is working behind the scenes to achieve a broader settlement, considering that the current deal constitutes a pivotal first stage, which prompted it to insist on its continuation.

According to the channel, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed during his meetings with Netanyahu and senior Israeli officials that refusing to negotiate is not an option, which forced Netanyahu to back down and agree to send a delegation to Cairo, with limited powers limited to discussing the continuation of the first phase without addressing the second phase.

The sources indicated that the leaders of the occupation's security services pressured to send a delegation to discuss the second stage, but Netanyahu initially refused before backing down under pressure.

In this context, estimates suggest that a high-level meeting will be held in Qatar in the coming days to discuss the details of the next phase of the agreement.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned last week of a spike in violence against children in recent months in the occupied West Bank, where Israel has been waging a large-scale military offensive, and called for an end to the hostilities. UNICEF Regional Director Edouard Beigbeder said in a statement that 13 Palestinian children have been killed in the West Bank since the beginning of the year alone, including seven killed in the wake of Israel’s launch of a large-scale operation in the north of the territory on January 19, including a two-and-a-half-year-old boy whose pregnant mother was also shot.

“UNICEF condemns all acts of violence against children and calls for an immediate cessation of armed activity throughout the occupied West Bank,” Beigbeder said in a statement.

"All civilians must be protected, including every child without exception," he continued.

He added that the increased use of “explosive weapons, airstrikes and demolitions in the Jenin, Tulkarm and Tubas governorates – including in refugee camps and other densely populated areas – has caused extensive damage to essential infrastructure, disrupting water and electricity supplies.”

In total, 195 Palestinian children and three Israeli children have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since 7 October 2023, representing a 200 per cent increase in the number of Palestinian children killed in the area over the past 16 months, compared to the same previous period.

According to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, 224 children (218 boys and six girls) were killed between January 2023 and January 2025 in the West Bank by Israeli forces or settlers, representing nearly half of the total of 468 children killed in the area since 2005, when OCHA began documenting such victims.

According to the agency, more than 2,500 Palestinian children were injured in the West Bank between January 2023 and December 2024.

Since January 21, the Israeli army has been waging the major operation, saying it is targeting "terrorist infrastructure" in the northern West Bank areas of Jenin, Tubas and Tulkarm, where half a million Palestinians live.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas denounced the Israeli operation, describing it as "ethnic cleansing" earlier in February.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said 70 people have been killed by Israel in the area this year.

According to the United Nations, the operation resulted in the killing of 39 Palestinians and the displacement of 40,000.

In turn, the coordinator of the national and Islamic forces in Jenin, Ragheb Abu Diak, said on Monday that the occupation forcibly displaced more than 90% of the residents of Jenin camp, as more than 20 thousand citizens were displaced and distributed throughout the governorate, its villages and towns, amidst a state of national and social solidarity.

Abu Diak pointed out in a statement to Voice of Palestine Radio that the local authorities are doing their duty to the fullest extent, as support committees have been formed within the civil and official committees, and legal persons, and efforts are being made to collect donations through committees, merchants and local authorities to confront the occupation’s policy against our people.

He added that the occupation completely and partially destroyed and damaged 470 homes.

Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa directed to provide shelter and necessary relief to our people who were forced by the occupation to flee their homes in the northern West Bank governorates, especially in the Jenin, Tulkarm and Nur Shams camps.

Mustafa stressed the need for the governors and emergency committees in the governorates, in cooperation with the Department of Refugee Affairs and the popular committees in the camps, to provide shelter centers for families who do not have temporary shelter, until the occupation forces withdraw from the areas exposed to aggression, while simultaneously preparing the necessary plans and resources to rebuild what the occupation destroyed and strengthen the steadfastness of our people.

This came during the Prime Minister's meeting, today, Monday, with the Minister of Local Government Sami Hijjawi, the Minister of Social Development and Relief Samah Hamad, and the Prime Minister's Advisor for Arab Funds Nasser Qatami, to discuss emergency government interventions in the cities, towns, villages and camps of the northern West Bank, especially in the areas of relief and shelter.

The Prime Minister and the attendees stressed the importance of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) assuming its role and responsibilities towards our people in the camps, calling on the international community to pressure the occupation to enable UNRWA to fulfil its obligations towards the Palestinian refugees.

The Ministerial Committee for Emergency Actions and the technical committee emanating from it discussed today providing the needs of our people in light of the ongoing occupation aggression, especially on the camps in the northern West Bank, including the dispatch of 16 trucks during the past two weeks to provide relief to displaced families with food, health supplies, children’s supplies, mattresses and blankets, and preparing to send other shipments, in addition to the committee allocating financial amounts to secure shelters under the supervision of the governors and partner agencies.

It is noteworthy that the Ministerial Committee for Emergency Actions has implemented, and is still implementing, a number of interventions in the areas targeted by the occupation, including repairing the infrastructure, providing temporary shelter, and other interventions at a cost of more than 28 million shekels from the general budget in less than 3 months, in addition to financial allocations provided by Arab and Islamic funds, and other contributions from community, relief, and international institutions.

Türkiye has warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will backtrack on the Gaza ceasefire agreement after all hostages are handed over.

Türkiye has warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will backtrack on the Gaza ceasefire agreement after all hostages are handed over.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that developments in the region show that Netanyahu does not intend to continue the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, adding: “Once he takes all the hostages, his intention is unfortunately to resume the war, because there is no pressure or any other force other than America that can stop him.”

In a television interview on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, which aired on Monday, Fidan added that US President Donald Trump and his administration must bear responsibility for preventing another genocide in Gaza, otherwise Trump's campaign messages about stopping wars will be in vain.

Fidan expressed his hope that the negotiators from both sides (Israel and Hamas) would be able to resolve the details necessary to move to the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, noting that the next two weeks are of great importance in determining the transition to the second phase of the ceasefire that was reached through the efforts of Egypt and Qatar and with American support.

Protests against Trump plan

At the same time, Istanbul witnessed two days of intense demonstrations protesting Trump's project regarding Gaza and the displacement of its residents. The demonstrators demanded that he lift his hand from Gaza, and they also demanded that Turkey withdraw from NATO and sever all relations with Israel.

The Freedom Platform for Palestine organized a march in Taksim Square to protest Trump’s statements on Gaza, during which banners were raised that read “Zionist Trump… Take your hands off Gaza.” Protesters chanted slogans such as “Murderer America, murderer Israel,” “Trump, take your hands off Palestine,” “Zionism will be defeated, and the Palestinian people will win,” and “Gaza for the Gazans.”

The platform said in a statement, read by one of its members during the march, that “Trump’s threats regarding Gaza are part of an imperialist plan, and that the Palestinian people have been living under occupation for years, and that Trump’s plan to impose American control over the Gaza Strip and turn the region into the (Riviera of the Middle East) is nothing but a genocidal program aimed at expelling the Palestinian people from their land.”

The statement stressed that the real owner of the Palestinian land is the Palestinian people, and that the one who must leave the land of Palestine is the occupation, noting that Trump and the Israeli government tried to diminish the resistance of the Palestinian people, but the occupation that has been ongoing for months in Gaza was repelled thanks to the steadfastness of the Palestinian people, and the ceasefire agreement was a historic success for the Palestinian people, and confirmation that the people of Gaza will continue to repel the occupiers from their land despite all the attacks.

The statement called on Turkey and the Turkish people to strengthen solidarity with the Palestinian people, sever all diplomatic and trade relations with Israel, impose a comprehensive embargo on it, and for Turkey to withdraw from NATO and not support US military plans in the region.

The Communist Party and the Communist Movement in Turkey organized a demonstration in front of the Trump Tower in Istanbul, in protest against Trump’s plan for Gaza, which aims to expel Palestinians from their lands and turn Gaza into a new “ghetto” with hotels and residences to serve the wealthy.

A spokesman for the Communist Movement said that Trump's statement, "When you look at it over the years, you will always see death in Gaza," is a great hypocrisy, and that the United States is trying to evade the massacre committed by Israel with its support in Gaza, which amounts to the crime of genocide, as if it did not support the Israeli occupation and the massacre it committed for years, and did not stand by the Zionist State of Israel.

He added that the "Trump Tower" that we stand in front of today is one of the symbols of the cooperation of the capitalist class in our country with America and the imperialist powers, and we warn the "Justice and Development Party" government, which is friendly to Trump, and we confirm that its cooperative policies have, so far, led to the disintegration of the countries of the region.

“We are here to say that the name ‘Trump Tower’ does not suit our country, and we say to Trump, who believes that he can design the world as he pleases and says that he will change the names of places, that the peoples of the world will not submit to your imperialist aggression. We will erase the name of Trump and imperialism from our country, and we declare once again that we will intensify our struggle to establish an independent, enlightened, workers’ state... Long live free Palestine, and down with Zionism and imperialism.”