Hezbollah said on Saturday that it strongly condemned Bahrain's move of normalisation of ties with Israel. On Friday, Bahrain and Isreal said in a joint statement that they were establishing full diplomatic relations with each other.&nbsp;

Both countries issued a joint statement to this effect along with the US. By taking the step, Bahrain joined UAE in establishing diplomatic contact with Israeal.Media reports say that UAE and Bahrain went ahead to normalise ties with Israel out of shared fears of Iran but this could also leave the Palestinians further isolated.

Hezbollah has often spoken of "Israeli expansionist trends" in Palestine. Hezbollah had criticised Israel-UAE deal as well.

Bahrain was widely expected to be among the next Arab countries that would be eager to normalise relations with Israel. After the Arab Spring, Bahrain's monarchy was seen to be swinging away from pan-Islamic and pan-Arabism. Bahrain relies on its good relations with the USA.What's more? Bahrain also hosts US Navy's 5th fleet in the Persian Gulf.

Also Read | <a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/palestinians-rally-against-bahrain-israel-normalisation-327084">Palestinians rally against Bahrain-Israel normalisation</a> 
&nbsp;

Bahrain had never been directly at war with Israel. It already used Israeli technology and had recognised Israel's "right to exist" two years ago.

Who's next to be friends with Israel?

Oman and Morocco are widely believed to follow UAE and Bahrain to improve relations with Israel although there is no official confirmation as of now.

Morocco is a strong US ally and already has trade and tourism relations with Israel. It does not recognise Israel as a state currently but that picture may change.

Oman is a US ally and depends on it for its external security. Though Oman supports formation of a Palestinian State, it has not had overt or covert conflict with Israel. Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu had even visited Oman in the year 2018.

Hezbollah said on Saturday that it strongly condemned Bahrain's move of normalisation of ties with Israel. On Friday, Bahrain and Isreal said in a joint statement that they were establishing full diplomatic relations with each other.

Hezbollah said on Saturday that it strongly condemned Bahrain's move of normalisation of ties with Israel. On Friday, Bahrain and Isreal said in a joint statement that they were establishing full diplomatic relations with each other. Both countries issued a joint statement to this effect along with the US. By taking the step, Bahrain joined UAE in establishing diplomatic contact with Israeal.Media reports say that UAE and Bahrain went ahead to normalise ties with Israel out of shared fears of Iran but this could also leave the Palestinians further isolated. Hezbollah has often spoken of "Israeli expansionist trends" in Palestine. Hezbollah had criticised Israel-UAE deal as well. Bahrain was widely expected to be among the next Arab countries that would be eager to normalise relations with Israel. After the Arab Spring, Bahrain's monarchy was seen to be swinging away from pan-Islamic and pan-Arabism. Bahrain relies on its good relations with the USA.What's more? Bahrain also hosts US Navy's 5th fleet in the Persian Gulf. Also Read | Palestinians rally against Bahrain-Israel normalisation Bahrain had never been directly at war with Israel. It already used Israeli technology and had recognised Israel's "right to exist" two years ago. Who's next to be friends with Israel? Oman and Morocco are widely believed to follow UAE and Bahrain to improve relations with Israel although there is no official confirmation as of now. Morocco is a strong US ally and already has trade and tourism relations with Israel. It does not recognise Israel as a state currently but that picture may change. Oman is a US ally and depends on it for its external security. Though Oman supports formation of a Palestinian State, it has not had overt or covert conflict with Israel. Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu had even visited Oman in the year 2018.

Hezbollah condemns Bahrain. But will more Arab countries befriend Israel in near future?

Thousands of&nbsp;Israelis took to streets outside the resident of&nbsp;the Prime Minister&nbsp;Benjamin Netanyahu, asking him to resign.&nbsp;

The locals are campaigning against the Prime Minister after corruption charges surrounded&nbsp;Netanyahu, and for his 'poor' handling of the novel coronavirus.

The country, which once reopened its economy completely, is now heading towards a lockdown during the upcoming Jewish New Year, as the number of coronavirus-related cases are on a record high.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/arab-artists-boycotting-uae-backed-awards-and-events-after-israel-deal-324873">Also read:&nbsp;Arab artists boycotting UAE-backed awards and events after Israel deal</a>

The protestors marched outside Nethanyahu's residence, a site which has seen several protests in the last few years, and chanted slogans that closely translated to a request for his resignation.

These protests came a day after Israel announced an agreement to establish diplomatic relations with Bahrain, the second Arab country to normalize ties with Israel in under a month and just the fourth overall. However, this announcement has had little to no impact on the Nethanyahu-critics who want him to resign and pay his price for the corruption cases associated with him.

People have accused him of poorly handling the pandemic crisis and poorer treatment of the medical services. Israel was, at one point, applauded for its quick action against the novel coronavirus. However, in order to save the economy from a downfall, Netanyahu re-opened the shops, malls, schools and offices, which led to a surge in cases and fresh lockdowns.

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While this is a new controversy, he has been facing the wrath of protestors for more than a year now as&nbsp;Netanyahu has been charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes for his role in a series of scandals involving gifts and alleged favors exchanged with wealthy associates. All of these allegations have been decline by the Prime Minister, who has also faced impeachment threats.

Thousands of Israelis took to streets outside the resident of the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, asking him to resign. The locals are campaigning against the Prime Minister after corruption charges surrounded Netanyahu, and for his 'poor' handling of the novel coronavirus.

Thousands of Israelis took to streets outside the resident of the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, asking him to resign. The locals are campaigning against the Prime Minister after corruption charges surrounded Netanyahu, and for his 'poor' handling of the novel coronavirus. The country, which once reopened its economy completely, is now heading towards a lockdown during the upcoming Jewish New Year, as the number of coronavirus-related cases are on a record high. Also read: Arab artists boycotting UAE-backed awards and events after Israel deal The protestors marched outside Nethanyahu's residence, a site which has seen several protests in the last few years, and chanted slogans that closely translated to a request for his resignation. These protests came a day after Israel announced an agreement to establish diplomatic relations with Bahrain, the second Arab country to normalize ties with Israel in under a month and just the fourth overall. However, this announcement has had little to no impact on the Nethanyahu-critics who want him to resign and pay his price for the corruption cases associated with him. People have accused him of poorly handling the pandemic crisis and poorer treatment of the medical services. Israel was, at one point, applauded for its quick action against the novel coronavirus. However, in order to save the economy from a downfall, Netanyahu re-opened the shops, malls, schools and offices, which led to a surge in cases and fresh lockdowns. × While this is a new controversy, he has been facing the wrath of protestors for more than a year now as Netanyahu has been charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes for his role in a series of scandals involving gifts and alleged favors exchanged with wealthy associates. All of these allegations have been decline by the Prime Minister, who has also faced impeachment threats.

Fresh protests break out in Israel against Nethanyahu's poor handling of coronavirus

Israel has hoped India &amp; China will resolve things in a "peaceful" way even as tensions rise between the two&nbsp;Asian neighbours. 
&nbsp; 
Deputy Director-General of the Asia-Pacific Division of Israeli Foreign Ministry Gilad Cohen in response to a WION question said, "We have very good relations with India, we have good relations with China"

Adding, "We hope all things will be sorted out in peaceful ways and tension will reduce, this is what we desire".

Israel is in advance stage of negotiations with Free Trade Agreement with China and already has pact for specific goods with India.

Ties between India &amp; Israel have grown in the last few years. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi visited Israel in July of 2017, the first-ever visit of Indian PM to the West Asian country which was followed by the visit of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu the next year.&nbsp;

Asked, if more countries could establish ties with Israel, Cohen said, “We hope UAE breakthrough will be echoed" and "will open other relations who don't have ties with Israel".

In a major development last month, UAE became the first Gulf country to establish ties with Israel. This was followed by the first direct commercial flight between the 2 countries. UAE is the 3rd Arab country to recognize Israel after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.

Israel has hoped India & China will resolve things in a "peaceful" way even as tensions rise between the two Asian neighbours. Deputy Director-General of the Asia-Pacific Division of Israeli Foreign Ministry Gilad Cohen in response to a WION question said, "We have very good relations with India, we have good relations with China" Adding, "We hope all things will be sorted out in peaceful ways and tension will reduce, this is what we desire".

Israel has hoped India & China will resolve things in a "peaceful" way even as tensions rise between the two Asian neighbours. Deputy Director-General of the Asia-Pacific Division of Israeli Foreign Ministry Gilad Cohen in response to a WION question said, "We have very good relations with India, we have good relations with China" Adding, "We hope all things will be sorted out in peaceful ways and tension will reduce, this is what we desire". Israel is in advance stage of negotiations with Free Trade Agreement with China and already has pact for specific goods with India. Ties between India & Israel have grown in the last few years. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi visited Israel in July of 2017, the first-ever visit of Indian PM to the West Asian country which was followed by the visit of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu the next year. Asked, if more countries could establish ties with Israel, Cohen said, “We hope UAE breakthrough will be echoed" and "will open other relations who don't have ties with Israel". In a major development last month, UAE became the first Gulf country to establish ties with Israel. This was followed by the first direct commercial flight between the 2 countries. UAE is the 3rd Arab country to recognize Israel after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.

Israel hopes India, China will ‘sort things peacefully’

India, Israel and the United States have begun collaboration in developmental area, and in next generation of emerging technologies, including a transparent, open, reliable and secure 5G communication network, a top official has said.

The branching out of this trilateral initiative in development and technological arena is a result of the people-to-people collaboration, in particular those by Indian diaspora in the US and Israel, that was initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his historic visit to Israel three years ago in July 2017, community leaders said.

A collaboration in 5G is a just tip of the iceberg and a first step, according to US Agency for International Development (USAID) Deputy Administrator Bonnie Glick.

"Because we'll collaborate in science and research and development in coming up with the next generations of technologies, things that the likes of you and the rest of us on the phone can't even imagine what they might be. But by partnering by officially, affirming the importance of this relationship, we'll advance it," Glick told PTI in an interview after the US-India-Israel forum featuring discussions on strategic, tech and development/water cooperation held last week.

"We are thrilled to work with these partners to solve the world's development challenges," she said in her keynote address to the virtual US-India-Israel summit that focused on trilateral partnerships in the strategic, technology and development arenas.

The summit was also addressed by Israeli Ambassador to India Ron Malka and his counterpart Sanjeev Singla. 
"One area we've been cooperating on is digital leadership and innovation, particularly in next generation 5G technology," Glick said.

"In July, I chaired a roundtable discussion with several like-minded donors on 5G and digital development. To me, it was extremely important that India and Israel be part of that conversation. And the discussion was richer because of their contributions," she said.

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Silicon Valley, Bangaluru and Tel Aviv have all earned reputations as leading, innovative technology hubs, and rightfully so, according to Glick.

"So it's only right that our three nations play a key role in delivering the promise of 5G in a way that is open, interoperable, reliable, and secure," she stressed. "We cannot allow any nation to dominate this technology or use it to dominate other nations."

When Israel, the US and India collaborate in defence, much of that collaboration and discussion is done in closed rooms, because the topics are highly sensitive, the official said.

"When we're talking about development cooperation, we're talking about transparent and open activities that can make all three countries extremely proud about the way that they impact the lives of people all over the world," Glick said.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/tim-ceo-says-not-a-problem-to-develop-5g-without-huawei-325467">Also read:&nbsp;TIM CEO says not a problem to develop 5G without Huawei</a>

Javier Piedra, deputy assistant administrator of the Bureau for Asia at USAID, said that in the case of India and Israel, they had a "peer-to-peer relationship", always looking to see how they might advance their respective activities cooperatively so that they might leverage common goals, resources, and comparative advantages in pursuit of self-reliance globally.

"Moreover, we continue to set the stage to further international development trilaterally, wherever possible," he said. 
"Our partnerships with Israel and India, given our peer-to-peer relationship, exemplifies the importance of working together on issues related to water, water management and security," Piedra said.

M R Rangaswami from Indiaspora, who presented the tech-triangle (Silicon Valley-Tel Aviv and Bangalore) concept to Modi in Israel in 2017, said the beauty of this model was because technology was a commonality in the three things, all kinds of "incredible things" had come out of it.

Dr Bharat Barai, an Indian-American from Chicago, said the people-to-people relationship, business, science and technology among the three countries would not only strengthen the ties, but also help in developmental activities in the third-world countries.

Nissim Reuben, assistant director, Asia Pacific Institute (API) at the American Jewish Committee, said a strong, prosperous, vibrant and resilient Indian economy was a top priority for many countries, especially the US and Israel. 
To achieve that goal, India needs to continuously update its agro, water &amp; wastewater management techniques, an area where Mashav Development Agency of Israel could play a key role with support of the USAID.

AJC, Indiaspora, GIJRI &amp; the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) will jointly advocate for this expansion of this US-Israel-India developmental partnership, he said.

"We hope to be able to advocate the setting up of US-Israeli joint centres of excellence in health in India similar to the 29 centres of agro-tech excellence set up by Mashav in India.

"Skill development, innovation and entrepreneurship, water and renewable energy cooperation will be other areas of trilateral cooperation advocacy by our four organisations in the US," Reuben said.

India, Israel and the United States have begun collaboration in developmental area, and in next generation of emerging technologies, including a transparent, open, reliable and secure 5G communication network, a top official has said.

India, Israel and the United States have begun collaboration in developmental area, and in next generation of emerging technologies, including a transparent, open, reliable and secure 5G communication network, a top official has said. The branching out of this trilateral initiative in development and technological arena is a result of the people-to-people collaboration, in particular those by Indian diaspora in the US and Israel, that was initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his historic visit to Israel three years ago in July 2017, community leaders said. A collaboration in 5G is a just tip of the iceberg and a first step, according to US Agency for International Development (USAID) Deputy Administrator Bonnie Glick. "Because we'll collaborate in science and research and development in coming up with the next generations of technologies, things that the likes of you and the rest of us on the phone can't even imagine what they might be. But by partnering by officially, affirming the importance of this relationship, we'll advance it," Glick told PTI in an interview after the US-India-Israel forum featuring discussions on strategic, tech and development/water cooperation held last week. "We are thrilled to work with these partners to solve the world's development challenges," she said in her keynote address to the virtual US-India-Israel summit that focused on trilateral partnerships in the strategic, technology and development arenas. The summit was also addressed by Israeli Ambassador to India Ron Malka and his counterpart Sanjeev Singla. "One area we've been cooperating on is digital leadership and innovation, particularly in next generation 5G technology," Glick said. "In July, I chaired a roundtable discussion with several like-minded donors on 5G and digital development. To me, it was extremely important that India and Israel be part of that conversation. And the discussion was richer because of their contributions," she said. × Silicon Valley, Bangaluru and Tel Aviv have all earned reputations as leading, innovative technology hubs, and rightfully so, according to Glick. "So it's only right that our three nations play a key role in delivering the promise of 5G in a way that is open, interoperable, reliable, and secure," she stressed. "We cannot allow any nation to dominate this technology or use it to dominate other nations." When Israel, the US and India collaborate in defence, much of that collaboration and discussion is done in closed rooms, because the topics are highly sensitive, the official said. "When we're talking about development cooperation, we're talking about transparent and open activities that can make all three countries extremely proud about the way that they impact the lives of people all over the world," Glick said. Also read: TIM CEO says not a problem to develop 5G without Huawei Javier Piedra, deputy assistant administrator of the Bureau for Asia at USAID, said that in the case of India and Israel, they had a "peer-to-peer relationship", always looking to see how they might advance their respective activities cooperatively so that they might leverage common goals, resources, and comparative advantages in pursuit of self-reliance globally. "Moreover, we continue to set the stage to further international development trilaterally, wherever possible," he said. "Our partnerships with Israel and India, given our peer-to-peer relationship, exemplifies the importance of working together on issues related to water, water management and security," Piedra said. M R Rangaswami from Indiaspora, who presented the tech-triangle (Silicon Valley-Tel Aviv and Bangalore) concept to Modi in Israel in 2017, said the beauty of this model was because technology was a commonality in the three things, all kinds of "incredible things" had come out of it. Dr Bharat Barai, an Indian-American from Chicago, said the people-to-people relationship, business, science and technology among the three countries would not only strengthen the ties, but also help in developmental activities in the third-world countries. Nissim Reuben, assistant director, Asia Pacific Institute (API) at the American Jewish Committee, said a strong, prosperous, vibrant and resilient Indian economy was a top priority for many countries, especially the US and Israel. To achieve that goal, India needs to continuously update its agro, water & wastewater management techniques, an area where Mashav Development Agency of Israel could play a key role with support of the USAID. AJC, Indiaspora, GIJRI & the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) will jointly advocate for this expansion of this US-Israel-India developmental partnership, he said. "We hope to be able to advocate the setting up of US-Israeli joint centres of excellence in health in India similar to the 29 centres of agro-tech excellence set up by Mashav in India. "Skill development, innovation and entrepreneurship, water and renewable energy cooperation will be other areas of trilateral cooperation advocacy by our four organisations in the US," Reuben said.

India, US, Israel collaborating in 5G tech: Official

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Monday's historic first commercial flight of an Israeli aircraft direct to the United Arab Emirates across Saudi Arabia will not be the last.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/spurned-by-allies-saudi-arabia-rethinks-chequebook-diplomacy-324698" hreflang="en">Spurned by allies, Saudi Arabia rethinks chequebook diplomacy</a>

"Now there is another tremendous breakthrough," he wrote in a statement shortly after Saudi Arabia said it would allow UAE flights to "all countries" to overfly the kingdom.

"Israeli planes and those from all countries will be able to fly directly from Israel to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and back," Netanyahu said, without giving any timeline.&nbsp;

"Flights will be cheaper and shorter, and it will lead to robust tourism and develop our economy," he said.

Monday's groundbreaking flight on an aircraft of Israeli national carrier El Al carried a US-Israeli delegation headed by White House adviser Jared Kushner.

The visit was aimed at charting the relationship between the Emirates and the Jewish state after their landmark deal to normalise relations.

Two weeks earlier, Netanyahu said that he was "working with maximum energy, and we have already begun to work on opening an air route over Saudi Arabia, which will simply shorten flights between Israel and the UAE."

In March 2018, Air India launched the first scheduled service to Israel allowed to cross Saudi airspace.

It was seen at the time as a sign of a behind-the-scenes improvement in ties between the Arab kingdom and the Jewish state.

During a May 2017 Middle East tour, US President Donald Trump flew from Riyadh to Tel Aviv on Air Force One, in a first known direct flight from Saudi Arabia to Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Monday's historic first commercial flight of an Israeli aircraft direct to the United Arab Emirates across Saudi Arabia will not be the last.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Monday's historic first commercial flight of an Israeli aircraft direct to the United Arab Emirates across Saudi Arabia will not be the last. Also read: Spurned by allies, Saudi Arabia rethinks chequebook diplomacy "Now there is another tremendous breakthrough," he wrote in a statement shortly after Saudi Arabia said it would allow UAE flights to "all countries" to overfly the kingdom. "Israeli planes and those from all countries will be able to fly directly from Israel to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and back," Netanyahu said, without giving any timeline. "Flights will be cheaper and shorter, and it will lead to robust tourism and develop our economy," he said. Monday's groundbreaking flight on an aircraft of Israeli national carrier El Al carried a US-Israeli delegation headed by White House adviser Jared Kushner. The visit was aimed at charting the relationship between the Emirates and the Jewish state after their landmark deal to normalise relations. Two weeks earlier, Netanyahu said that he was "working with maximum energy, and we have already begun to work on opening an air route over Saudi Arabia, which will simply shorten flights between Israel and the UAE." In March 2018, Air India launched the first scheduled service to Israel allowed to cross Saudi airspace. It was seen at the time as a sign of a behind-the-scenes improvement in ties between the Arab kingdom and the Jewish state. During a May 2017 Middle East tour, US President Donald Trump flew from Riyadh to Tel Aviv on Air Force One, in a first known direct flight from Saudi Arabia to Israel.

Direct flights between Israel and UAE will continue, says Prime Minister Netanyahu

Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas said Monday they had reached a Qatari-mediated deal with Israel to end more than three weeks of cross-border attacks.

In the latest escalation, Israel has bombed Gaza almost daily since August 6 in response to airborne incendiary devices and, less frequently, rockets launched across the border.

The fire bombs -- crude devices fitted to balloons, inflated condoms or plastic bags -- have triggered more than 400 blazes and damaged swathes of farmland in southern Israel, according to the fire brigade.

An Egyptian delegation had been shuttling between the two sides to try to broker the renewal of an informal truce under which Israel committed to ease its 13-year-old blockade of Gaza in return for calm on the border.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israel-uae-flight-may-start-historic-mideast-journey-kushner-324240">Also read|&nbsp;Israel-UAE flight may start 'historic' Mideast journey: Kushner</a> &nbsp;&nbsp;

The delegation was joined by Emadi, who also held talks with Israeli officials in Tel Aviv.

In a statement, he praised the Hamas leadership for reaching a deal in light of the "difficult conditions of Gaza's inhabitants, especially in view of the spread of the coronavirus".

A Hamas source told AFP there had been "a total halt" to balloon and other attacks against Israel, in agreement with other factions in the coastal strip, home to some two million people.

"Fuel supplies will return and the power station will be restarted from Tuesday," the source said.

A punitive Israeli-imposed ban on fuel deliveries cut electricity to just four hours a day, supplied from the Israeli grid.

Crossing to reopen

COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry unit that oversees civilian affairs in the occupied Palestinian territories, said in a statement that after "efforts to calm the situation", it would "resume the routine activity of the Kerem Shalom Crossing, including the entry of fuel products", starting Tuesday.

"In addition, the fishing zone of the Gaza Strip will be expanded to 15 nautical miles," it said.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uae-scraps-israel-economic-boycott-after-us-brokered-deal-323997">Also read|&nbsp;UAE scraps Israel economic boycott after US-brokered deal</a>

But, COGAT warned: "If Hamas, which is accountable for all actions that are taken in the Gaza Strip, fails to stand (by) its obligations, Israel will act accordingly."

The Hamas source added that work would be allowed to start on the construction of a new power line, while a $30 million Qatari aid tranche for Gaza would be expanded to $35 million, with the difference used to cover public servants' salaries.

Financial aid from gas-rich Qatar has been a major component of a truce first agreed more than a year ago and renewed several times since.

The fire balloons launched in recent weeks were widely seen as an attempt by Hamas to improve the terms of the informal deal.

Sources close to Hamas had said it also wanted other measures to ease living conditions in the territory, including the extension of an industrial zone in the east and an increase in the number of Israeli work permits issued to Gazans once anti-coronavirus restrictions have been lifted.

But disagreements over implementation have fuelled repeated flare-ups with the Islamist group, which has controlled Gaza since 2007.

Such flare-ups escalated into full-blown conflicts in 2008, 2012 and 2014, and mediators have been working to prevent a new war.

Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas said Monday they had reached a Qatari-mediated deal with Israel to end more than three weeks of cross-border attacks. In the latest escalation, Israel has bombed Gaza almost daily since August 6 in response to airborne incendiary devices and, less frequently, rockets launched across the border.

Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas said Monday they had reached a Qatari-mediated deal with Israel to end more than three weeks of cross-border attacks. In the latest escalation, Israel has bombed Gaza almost daily since August 6 in response to airborne incendiary devices and, less frequently, rockets launched across the border. The fire bombs -- crude devices fitted to balloons, inflated condoms or plastic bags -- have triggered more than 400 blazes and damaged swathes of farmland in southern Israel, according to the fire brigade. An Egyptian delegation had been shuttling between the two sides to try to broker the renewal of an informal truce under which Israel committed to ease its 13-year-old blockade of Gaza in return for calm on the border. Also read| Israel-UAE flight may start 'historic' Mideast journey: Kushner The delegation was joined by Emadi, who also held talks with Israeli officials in Tel Aviv. In a statement, he praised the Hamas leadership for reaching a deal in light of the "difficult conditions of Gaza's inhabitants, especially in view of the spread of the coronavirus". A Hamas source told AFP there had been "a total halt" to balloon and other attacks against Israel, in agreement with other factions in the coastal strip, home to some two million people. "Fuel supplies will return and the power station will be restarted from Tuesday," the source said. A punitive Israeli-imposed ban on fuel deliveries cut electricity to just four hours a day, supplied from the Israeli grid. Crossing to reopen COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry unit that oversees civilian affairs in the occupied Palestinian territories, said in a statement that after "efforts to calm the situation", it would "resume the routine activity of the Kerem Shalom Crossing, including the entry of fuel products", starting Tuesday. "In addition, the fishing zone of the Gaza Strip will be expanded to 15 nautical miles," it said. Also read| UAE scraps Israel economic boycott after US-brokered deal But, COGAT warned: "If Hamas, which is accountable for all actions that are taken in the Gaza Strip, fails to stand (by) its obligations, Israel will act accordingly." The Hamas source added that work would be allowed to start on the construction of a new power line, while a $30 million Qatari aid tranche for Gaza would be expanded to $35 million, with the difference used to cover public servants' salaries. Financial aid from gas-rich Qatar has been a major component of a truce first agreed more than a year ago and renewed several times since. The fire balloons launched in recent weeks were widely seen as an attempt by Hamas to improve the terms of the informal deal. Sources close to Hamas had said it also wanted other measures to ease living conditions in the territory, including the extension of an industrial zone in the east and an increase in the number of Israeli work permits issued to Gazans once anti-coronavirus restrictions have been lifted. But disagreements over implementation have fuelled repeated flare-ups with the Islamist group, which has controlled Gaza since 2007. Such flare-ups escalated into full-blown conflicts in 2008, 2012 and 2014, and mediators have been working to prevent a new war.

Hamas and Israel strike deal to end Gaza escalation

The recently concluded UAE-Israel deal dominated the briefings of US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, on his current visit to Israel and other countries in the region. It was &nbsp;also the central theme in his headlining address, recorded in Jerusalem, for the Republican National Convention where Donald Trump was officially endorsed as the Republican Presidential candidate.

Extolling the Abraham Accords that seek to normalize relations between UAE and Israel, Pompeo hinted at other Arab states following suit and a plan for the Middle East that normalizes trade and business relations, removal of travel restrictions and greater security cooperation to tackle threats, including Iran, ‘rogue’ regimes and non-state actors.

The symbolic significance of this deal cannot be overstated – the UAE becomes the third Middle eastern country to normalize relations with Israel after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. It is however the first Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state to take this action.&nbsp;

Though UAE and other Gulf nations have been steadily improving relations with Israel for almost a decade, the formal recognition was held back due to the imperatives of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative. The initiative demanded a full Israeli withdrawal from all territories occupied since 1967 in exchange for a &nbsp;diplomatic recognition of the state of Israel. In this case the UAE agreed to recognize Israel in exchange for less – a promise by Israeli PM Netanyahu to temporarily halt annexation of almost a third of West Bank territories, an idea proposed as part of President’s Trump’s middle eastern plan.&nbsp;

The short term political compulsions driving the deal are evident – it provides breathing space to Netanyahu who has been beleaguered by corruption charges and regular protests demanding his resignation. He has portrayed this deal as a vindication of his foreign policy stand that peace with Arab countries does not need a solution of the Palestinian issue. For President Trump, this will be a talking point of his deal making capability in US Presidential Elections in November at a time when opinion polls put him behind his rival Democrat candidate Joe Biden. For the UAE, this has been a ‘diplomatic win’ - &nbsp;garnering them the US favour, benefit of Israel’s ‘hard power’ in its proxy wars and a vindication of its independent foreign policy.&nbsp;

The long term imperatives, however, are more complex and multi-layered and will determine the future of the security in the region.&nbsp;

1.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;At the local level the Arab Spring &amp; following civil unrest has spooked several Gulf monarchies that realize that they need to focus on continuing effective governance to maintain their political legitimacy. Conflict with Israel has been diluted in order to avoid diversion of resources and re-orient the foreign policy aims. In addition, Israel is capable of fulfilling the Gulf states’ need for sophisticated security and surveillance platforms to police their own populations.&nbsp;

2.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;At the regional stage, the UAE and Israel’s foreign policy aims have converged at three main levels.&nbsp;

a.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;A significant common factor has been to counter the Iranian ‘arc of influence’ that extends from Yemen where Iran backed Houthi rebels are engaged in a conflict with Saudi and UAE-led coalition forces supporting President Hadi, Lebanon (via Hezbollah), Iraq &amp; also in Syria with Iran’s support to President Assad. In the last few years, Yemen based Houthi rebels are purported to have acquired sophisticated ‘drone technology’ used to target Saudi airports and military installations and suspected to have disrupted operations at the Dubai airport in 2018. In 2019, attacks on oil tankers, including a UAE vessel just outside the Strait of Hormuz, were also blamed on Iranian proxies. This is a common cause with Israel that has been engaged in a conflict with Hezbollah, has targeted Iranian backed groups in Syria and tackled Hamas in Gaza, with whom Iran has ‘contentious cooperation’.&nbsp;

b.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;The second imperative has been countering ‘political Islam’ in all its forms – whether Shia variety allied to Iran or the Sunni groups including the Muslim brotherhood &amp; its offshoots such as Hamas and terror groups like Islamic state and the remnants of Al-Qaeda. Many Arab states realize that Israel’s ‘hard power’ including defence technology, cyber surveillance can be instrumental in helping them protect their own interests.&nbsp;

3.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;At the international level, both UAE and Israel hope that the deal will keep the US sufficiently engaged in the Middle East on their side. For UAE Crown Prince, MBZ (Mohammed Bin Zayed) this is an opportunity to regain the US backing after it garnered backlash from the US Congress for its role in the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and its backing of General Haftar in Libya who is fighting the GNA (Government of National Accord backed by the UN) nominally supported by the US. This deal is also likely to ensure that Israel and UAE can obtain advanced US weaponry and its support in international fora for its strategic objectives. This becomes relevant especially in the context of an increasing China-Iran rapprochement and increased Russian-Iranian cooperation in nations like Syria.&nbsp;

So while these imperatives have pushed the two parties towards the deal, what are the future prospects? There has been commentary on the prospect that if other Arab Gulf states were to follow the UAE, then that can constitute a chance to re-write the security landscape of the region. There has also been a proposal that UAE with its exalted standing in the Middle East can play mediator in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict by bringing on board Palestinian stakeholders to develop concrete counter proposals to Trump’s Middle East plan. 
However at least in the short to mid term the above view seems little optimistic. Though Netanyahu has agreed to temporarily to halt West Bank annexation, his hardline &amp; opportunistic politics means that he is unlikely to give concessions that will be required if a lasting Israel-Palestine peace settlement has to be achieved. On the Palestinian side, it is a divided house with too many stakeholders along with radical Islamist groups like Hamas whose use of terror tactics will be a stumbling bloc.

Moreover this deal does not address the fundamental drivers of conflict in the region. The geo-political faultlines have been shifting for almost a decade from the Arab-Israel conflict to the emergence of Iran and its ‘political Islamist’ allies as the ‘bigger fish to fry’. What this deal might end up doing is formalizing the contours of the two opposing blocs that are engaged in proxy conflicts across the Middle East, squeezing out the space that was available to countries like UAE for backchannel negotiations with Iran. While the loosely defined ‘anti-Iran bloc’ has more economic and military power, Iran’s proxies have made sizeable gains across the region - in Yemen (where Houthis control strategic choke points), in Syria (where President Assad has gained control of almost the entire country). In Lebanon, Hezbollah is kept in check mainly by Israeli military action.&nbsp;

In the short to the mid term, Israel’s addition to this ‘club’ of Gulf monarchies and US’s continued attempts to destabilize the Iranian regime can actually exacerbate tensions as Iran will seek to retaliate against the ‘perceived’ grouping. In addition, the self-interests of regional powers are likely to lead them to take individual sides in conflicts blurring the dynamics of the blocs &amp; adding to uncertainty. The UAE’s role in Yemen as both a part of the KSA-led coalition supporting President Hadi &amp; a backer of Southern Transitional Council demanding secession from Yemen is a case in point.&nbsp;

A genuine change in the security architecture of the region will require détente between Middle East’s two rival blocs, addressing the self-interested claims of region’s nations that is complicating proxy conflicts and emergence of one of the international powers as a neutral and unbiased mediator.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

The recently concluded UAE-Israel deal dominated the briefings of US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, on his current visit to Israel and other countries in the region.

The recently concluded UAE-Israel deal dominated the briefings of US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, on his current visit to Israel and other countries in the region. It was also the central theme in his headlining address, recorded in Jerusalem, for the Republican National Convention where Donald Trump was officially endorsed as the Republican Presidential candidate. Extolling the Abraham Accords that seek to normalize relations between UAE and Israel, Pompeo hinted at other Arab states following suit and a plan for the Middle East that normalizes trade and business relations, removal of travel restrictions and greater security cooperation to tackle threats, including Iran, ‘rogue’ regimes and non-state actors. The symbolic significance of this deal cannot be overstated – the UAE becomes the third Middle eastern country to normalize relations with Israel after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. It is however the first Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) state to take this action. Though UAE and other Gulf nations have been steadily improving relations with Israel for almost a decade, the formal recognition was held back due to the imperatives of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative. The initiative demanded a full Israeli withdrawal from all territories occupied since 1967 in exchange for a diplomatic recognition of the state of Israel. In this case the UAE agreed to recognize Israel in exchange for less – a promise by Israeli PM Netanyahu to temporarily halt annexation of almost a third of West Bank territories, an idea proposed as part of President’s Trump’s middle eastern plan. The short term political compulsions driving the deal are evident – it provides breathing space to Netanyahu who has been beleaguered by corruption charges and regular protests demanding his resignation. He has portrayed this deal as a vindication of his foreign policy stand that peace with Arab countries does not need a solution of the Palestinian issue. For President Trump, this will be a talking point of his deal making capability in US Presidential Elections in November at a time when opinion polls put him behind his rival Democrat candidate Joe Biden. For the UAE, this has been a ‘diplomatic win’ - garnering them the US favour, benefit of Israel’s ‘hard power’ in its proxy wars and a vindication of its independent foreign policy. The long term imperatives, however, are more complex and multi-layered and will determine the future of the security in the region. 1. At the local level the Arab Spring & following civil unrest has spooked several Gulf monarchies that realize that they need to focus on continuing effective governance to maintain their political legitimacy. Conflict with Israel has been diluted in order to avoid diversion of resources and re-orient the foreign policy aims. In addition, Israel is capable of fulfilling the Gulf states’ need for sophisticated security and surveillance platforms to police their own populations. 2. At the regional stage, the UAE and Israel’s foreign policy aims have converged at three main levels. a. A significant common factor has been to counter the Iranian ‘arc of influence’ that extends from Yemen where Iran backed Houthi rebels are engaged in a conflict with Saudi and UAE-led coalition forces supporting President Hadi, Lebanon (via Hezbollah), Iraq & also in Syria with Iran’s support to President Assad. In the last few years, Yemen based Houthi rebels are purported to have acquired sophisticated ‘drone technology’ used to target Saudi airports and military installations and suspected to have disrupted operations at the Dubai airport in 2018. In 2019, attacks on oil tankers, including a UAE vessel just outside the Strait of Hormuz, were also blamed on Iranian proxies. This is a common cause with Israel that has been engaged in a conflict with Hezbollah, has targeted Iranian backed groups in Syria and tackled Hamas in Gaza, with whom Iran has ‘contentious cooperation’. b. The second imperative has been countering ‘political Islam’ in all its forms – whether Shia variety allied to Iran or the Sunni groups including the Muslim brotherhood & its offshoots such as Hamas and terror groups like Islamic state and the remnants of Al-Qaeda. Many Arab states realize that Israel’s ‘hard power’ including defence technology, cyber surveillance can be instrumental in helping them protect their own interests. 3. At the international level, both UAE and Israel hope that the deal will keep the US sufficiently engaged in the Middle East on their side. For UAE Crown Prince, MBZ (Mohammed Bin Zayed) this is an opportunity to regain the US backing after it garnered backlash from the US Congress for its role in the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and its backing of General Haftar in Libya who is fighting the GNA (Government of National Accord backed by the UN) nominally supported by the US. This deal is also likely to ensure that Israel and UAE can obtain advanced US weaponry and its support in international fora for its strategic objectives. This becomes relevant especially in the context of an increasing China-Iran rapprochement and increased Russian-Iranian cooperation in nations like Syria. So while these imperatives have pushed the two parties towards the deal, what are the future prospects? There has been commentary on the prospect that if other Arab Gulf states were to follow the UAE, then that can constitute a chance to re-write the security landscape of the region. There has also been a proposal that UAE with its exalted standing in the Middle East can play mediator in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict by bringing on board Palestinian stakeholders to develop concrete counter proposals to Trump’s Middle East plan. However at least in the short to mid term the above view seems little optimistic. Though Netanyahu has agreed to temporarily to halt West Bank annexation, his hardline & opportunistic politics means that he is unlikely to give concessions that will be required if a lasting Israel-Palestine peace settlement has to be achieved. On the Palestinian side, it is a divided house with too many stakeholders along with radical Islamist groups like Hamas whose use of terror tactics will be a stumbling bloc. Moreover this deal does not address the fundamental drivers of conflict in the region. The geo-political faultlines have been shifting for almost a decade from the Arab-Israel conflict to the emergence of Iran and its ‘political Islamist’ allies as the ‘bigger fish to fry’. What this deal might end up doing is formalizing the contours of the two opposing blocs that are engaged in proxy conflicts across the Middle East, squeezing out the space that was available to countries like UAE for backchannel negotiations with Iran. While the loosely defined ‘anti-Iran bloc’ has more economic and military power, Iran’s proxies have made sizeable gains across the region - in Yemen (where Houthis control strategic choke points), in Syria (where President Assad has gained control of almost the entire country). In Lebanon, Hezbollah is kept in check mainly by Israeli military action. In the short to the mid term, Israel’s addition to this ‘club’ of Gulf monarchies and US’s continued attempts to destabilize the Iranian regime can actually exacerbate tensions as Iran will seek to retaliate against the ‘perceived’ grouping. In addition, the self-interests of regional powers are likely to lead them to take individual sides in conflicts blurring the dynamics of the blocs & adding to uncertainty. The UAE’s role in Yemen as both a part of the KSA-led coalition supporting President Hadi & a backer of Southern Transitional Council demanding secession from Yemen is a case in point. A genuine change in the security architecture of the region will require détente between Middle East’s two rival blocs, addressing the self-interested claims of region’s nations that is complicating proxy conflicts and emergence of one of the international powers as a neutral and unbiased mediator.

Israel-UAE deal: A symbolic peace unlikely to address the conflict triggers in Middle East

By:&nbsp;Ghadi Francis for WION 
 
Equations in West Asia are changing. Israel struck a peace deal with UAE recently. The agreement was brokered by the USA. Hezbollah, the organisation in Lebanon often finds itself part of various equations in the region. WION spoke with Ibrahim Al Moussawi, Lebanese&nbsp;MP and Hezbollah spokesperson on situation in West Asia and the organisation's role in it. 
 
WION: First viewers in the world, West Asia see Hezbollah as the villain or terrorist group. Where would you like to start in defining what Hezbollah is regarding in the area in the region?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: Well thank you for giving the opportunity to give a kind of review of Hezbollah. It's not the viewer who views Hezbollah as the terrorist or the villain of West Asia, I would say we're a, simply we are a resistance movement against occupation, when you resist them, you resist an action, that is a reaction to an action, we resist the Israeli occupation, the Israeli invasion, the Israeli expansionist trend in the area. We all know that Israel is one manifestation of the new liberal, capitalist,....... colonial West.

We have to remember that the number one supporter of Israel in the whole world is the USA, and America itself ,the United States of America is responsible for most of the problems all over the world, you know it spreads the military bases all over and it interferes in internal affairs of many countries, it supports operations.

I will simply put Hezbollah as a group of people, organised people, who stood against the occupation against the operation. they are rightful people. We are rightful people. We support the right, the independence, the liberty, we have never attacked anyone, we have never come to anybody's land, we are talking about our land, we are talking about West Asia, we are talking about Palestine, occupied Palestine, not Israel, the manifestation or the cancerous &nbsp;glands (reference to Israel) that has been put by the West into this part of the area, our sense, the existence of Israel.

We are suffering not only in the Lebanon, in the Arab world, in Syria, we have .... heights that are occupied in Egypt during the ....., we have .... it has no full independence, also we are talking about Jordan, we are talking about west bank and Gaza, we are talking about Palestine.

So here you are talking about a ... high regime in the 21st century that is oppressing people, killing people, that are not allowing them to go to schools, there are a lot of massacres, ....... of massacres that they have done. It is evident for everybody, yet the United States continues to support it, with high tech weaponry, with the Veto power, in the United Nations, in the Security Council, and we are in a position to defend, to liberate and to fight operations.

WION: Okay, since you spoke profoundly about the ideology problem with Israel, where do you stand today when the UAE and Saudi Arabia are going to start flights after their peace deal? How does Hezbollah react to that?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: Well we have, actually this is not the first time that an Arab country has done&nbsp;what the UAE did. Egypt has done this. It is of&nbsp;1980s.

Also, Jordan, we know about it, yet the Jordanians are not immune to the Israeli aggression, now they are talking about annexing&nbsp;parts of Jordan or if they are talking about a kind of exodus of the Palestinians to go to Jordan. Up till now there is a B plan in the Israeli agenda, in case they want the Palestinians to evacuate from Palestine from the remaining part of Palestine they want to send them to Jordan, as a second country or alternative country for them.

So here you talk about an Israeli occupation, an Israeli entity that we never recognized.&nbsp;We will never recognise [Israel] at any time because this is Palestine first. After this it can be about&nbsp;UAE or&nbsp;Saudi Arabia or Bahrain, Oman or any other country. You're talking about things that came to the public but it has always been there. We have never been surprised at all with the new ties between UAE...

[WION: Do you think how were they publicized is it really just the way..you..]

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: I would say it's a combination of so many different things, we know now that ....&nbsp;Netanyahu now is in a political dilemma and so is&nbsp;Trump. They want to have more points in their record to go to the race.&nbsp;For Trump, it is about the&nbsp;presidential race next November and for the Israeli entity, it is the problem of the political stalemate. So its there in the internal politics there but it has always been a fixed part of their agenda when it comes to the Palestinians and the Arabs.

WION: Having spoken about that, about the presidential race, about how this would affect or give them like I have delivered something to give to their voters. I want to ask you we have witnessed.. change in Europe, after the Syrian uprising and the Syrian war, the Europeans were affected, and they changed many.. many actions from the voters...

Today, as Hezbollah do you see that you really have effect (read influence) from West Asia to the world in the Presidential race. Because Syria did have effect in the Presidential races in Europe. Do you see Hezbollah's activities in the Syria, Iraq, Yemen and the GCC even countries as a strategic force in &nbsp;the West Asia. How does Hezbollah affect the elections in the United States?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: We do not work or function on all of the places that you mentioned specially you said GCC or other places but if you mean the clout, the influence, the sympathy of the people, here in the Arab world we have to make a complete dichotomy between the regimes, the governments and the people, &nbsp;because if you go to the peoples opinion and you have rightful public opinion, pollsters will have complete leader-front results. The people hearts, the people minds are with Palestine, are against the normalisation of relations with Israel. They support the rightful case or cause of the Palestinians, of the resistance and this is very important if there were any kind of poll that would tell you and reflect the genuine, the real opinion of the people with a completely different regimes and governments, in this sense they are imposed from above, they are being supported by the Western colonialist powers in order to continue to perpetuate the interest of the West in out areas and you can see this.

The great arms deals that take place&nbsp;funnel&nbsp;billions of dollars to the West perpetuating&nbsp;their economy. And&nbsp;they are happy about the wars in our area. Now when you talk about West Asia, this is very important question from your side that I appreciate, when you talk about west Asia, those people all together and the resistance movement and the elites, those people who are sober enough, are aware enough, are conscious enough of the western American agenda in our area, they have to collaborate their efforts and co-ordinate and be whistle-blower, if we have something in Beirut, all of the people, all of the masses, all over the Arab world or the Islamic world or the West Asia they should be able to reflect their support to the cause of the oppressed people.

After all, if you want to make a differentiation, what's happening, you are talking here about right and wrong, you are talking about just and peace &amp; oppression and war, we are to the side of peace and the resistance and liberty and the independence away from the intervention of the expansionist, colonialist powers like United States or parts of Europe.

WION: But my question was..in the sense to make it as simple as possible. Does Hezbollah &amp; the prevailing of Hezbollah, the survival of Hezbollah in Lebanon &amp; Syria and the survival of Iran against the sanctions. Does this power in the West Asia affect the Presidential race in the United States?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: To a certain extent, you know there&nbsp;are many, so many files in the department, we represent one or two .. in it. When the United States wants to prevail in Iraq and then the resistance in Iraq fails it and make it a complete failure, this is going to put a bad record, a bad remark for Trump

WION: Is this what's happening?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: This is what's happening, absolutely. Withdrawn their troops from there, this has reshuffled the papers in the area and I would say that, the kind of rising resistance in the region is going to put an end to this colonialist expansionist American trend in the area, if this was not the case, I would say many of the powers in the West Asia would crumble and would collapse, even if you talk about governments.

Absolutely, I mean, even if you take this aside. &nbsp;Take India for example. It&nbsp;is a&nbsp;rising and important power.

India is not like&nbsp;United States or America. India is the country of Mahatma Gandhi. It's has history of revolution of peaceful people against British colonial power for centuries.

Had it not been for the will and determination of Indian people and leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, India would still be under the mandate of a Western power.

That's why people's movement is important in putting an end to colonial power and in raising hope for real independence.

That's why we want to collaborate as people. We are an organisation, we are a party, but we do represent millions of people all over the region &amp; we have to convince them.. the problem is that, here in this part of the world they used to say that the Israeli army is the invincible army, you can do nothing about it. It is supported by the United States, that it is going to guarantee their supremacy..supremacy of the Israeli forces, so you can do nothing about it.

Because we are the people who have determination, resolve, will, faith in our culture, our civilization. This is the same that is there in India &amp; in West Asia, for different cultures &amp; people, they have this patience, they have this perseverance, they have this faith in their culture.. then we will win &amp; we will prevail &amp; they will definitely fail.

If we are going to surrender, and say we are going to nothing about it, they are going to perpetuate &amp; make their colonial power survive.

Now this is not what we want to see.

WION: What kind of.. What kind of industrial or.. What kind of aspirations do you all have ----

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: There are many levels, we can coordinate our efforts together what they lack, we can give they have.. &nbsp;for example when you talk about India you think about a high-tech&nbsp;country. Even those who are making America prosper are Indians and not&nbsp;Americans.&nbsp;When you talk about talk about talent in in&nbsp;Silicon Valley,&nbsp;when you talk about those who are earning or those who have a high PhD per capita in America, you consider Indian-Americans. They are basically Indians or they come from Asia, not only from Pakistan..other countries.

And they were able to create the system that could serve as a magnetic absorb all of the capabilities &amp; creative power of people of all over the world.

We have to have this determination, we have to have this decision that we want to get with this brain drain. There is a brain drain happening in these areas &amp; they go to America &amp; they make more &amp; more perpetuation for the American glory per say.

That's why I believe we have huge opportunity in building..in high-tech, in technology.. in different areas weather industry or economy or agriculture, different areas of co-operation can work here

 
WION: And one more question because I didn't have .. this, one more which is the typical we are gonna ask.... being said its the 3rd biggest explosion&nbsp;in the world [Ibrahim Al Moussawi: True, 3rd or 4th we are not sure] Maybe, Beirut explosion, what happened afterwards..a lot of media is trying to deliver the message that &nbsp;Hezbollah has to do with the cargoes &amp; everything.

What do you have to say or to comment about the tremendous explosion that happened in Beirut, where does Hezbollah stand regarding that?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: First of all, there is an organized campaign from the West, from America, from different mouthpieces in Europe like Der Spiegel, Le Figaro and other media outlets. They want to portray that&nbsp;Hezbollah was behind Beirut blast.

We have UNIFIL.. their ships..monitoring ships, monitoring &nbsp;systems in the Mediterranean. And they can watch every single thing that happened.

Hezbollah&nbsp;has&nbsp;categorically refused &amp; denied any responsibility or&nbsp; any connection with this explosion. We have never used the port of Beirut for any kind of military or security action.

It's under the supervision of the Lebanese state, Lebanese Army, the Lebanese security forces.

All of what you hear here of there by the Western media is the kind of agenda that they want to put Hezbollah name there, so it can do other actions and they can..if you want &nbsp;..mislead people about our identity, of our true figure.

We were in a complete shock after what&nbsp;happened. This is one of the result&nbsp;of huge corruption in the Lebanese state.&nbsp;[WION: They think the...] and we support investigation. &nbsp;Look when you talk about the investigation we have never done anything to jump to conclusions.

The investigation is underway.&nbsp;We have to wait&nbsp;till the investigation is concluded and then we will all see what happens.

WION: Okay, because anyone who is watching can see the port of Haifa is the.. most...

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: If you are alluding.. If you are alluding that the Israelis have interest, that they have keen interest, and they do serve many&nbsp;of their great interests in having an alternative place rather than the port of Beirut, this is one option.

But if we want to hold others responsible, we have to have a full evidence about it.

WION: There is one more question; Everyone in Lebanon will hear the lobby..intelligentia you are speaking about resolution that would happen ..or the talks that would happen with Iran, between United States &amp; Iran, once they are resumed many things would change, maybe after the Presidential race &amp; even say Nasrallah and President Bashar al-Assad have said many&nbsp;times that this kind of President is better than others, that Trump would serve better because he is bluntly stupid actually this what has been said. But regardless, what do you have to say about the Iranian-American talks and how would they affect. Do you really like look forward to that.. it would set peace..

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: I would say, look you are talking about very fluctuating issue that has to do with the Republicans &amp; the Democrats in America. Now with Trump would going to the Presidential race in next November, everybody is waiting. And he has said that he is going to finalize a deal with Iran within one week or whatever. But here you are talking about ab locate. &nbsp;Part of our.. we here in Lebanon are suffering from a very complicated manifold crisis that has to do with economy, monetary issues, financial issues, economic issues, social issues and there is a blockade against Lebanon by United States America, by part of its Arab countries that support United States America. We would rather depend on ourselves, we should not be waiting for anything. 
I would say if a deal has been concluded between Iran &amp; America, I believe this is going to help all over the region. But we do not pin hopes on what our enemies will do or wouldn't do. We have to depend on ourselves &amp; continue.

Patience, Perseverance &amp; Determination will help.

WION: This is something, I do not know if you are free to it answer or not, because you are speaking like that. We know that Hezbollah is a part of the Parliament, part of society in Lebanon and its not like [Ibrahim Al MOussawi: part of the govt, yes]. But still, you have a big percentage of Lebanese society that would say all the crisis, all the sanctions, all these issues are Hezbollah's fault and they are Lebanese &amp; they are perpetuating their points of views in Western media. So what do you have to say about Lebanon, are these...

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: They are not big percentage to tell you the truth ... We have a political division in the country, simply. Actually, sometimes people are being misled, certain are being misled.

I would say up till now, I would say ..and you have the right to go and see, as a party, as a political party we enjoy wider public support in the country.

Here you are talking about the wider public support in the country.

Though there is a political campaign against us from the Western media, there is a blockade &amp; they are pin-pointing against us. We know very well that Feltman said we have spent 500 million dollars in order to tarnish the image of Hezbollah in order to distort the image of Hezbollah.

Now they are doing the same, they are subduing, they are subjugating the Lebanese into kind of blockade &amp; say we are doing this because of Hezbollah. So they are trying to plant a wedge between Hezbollah &amp; Public. This is not going to happen.

the people are smart and keen enough to understand, others who are like serving .... as mouthpeice to the West and saying they are doing it because of the Hazebollah, you are talking keen about collaborative with, or represting the western view of the politics, while if you talk about the Lebanese, real Lebanese all over the factions they wouldn't agree with this description.

WION: Would you like to tell us about how strong is Hezbollah?

Ibrahim Al Moussawi: Look.. look we're strong and we are determined, we have resolve, we have determination, we have the voted people, dedicated people because we have this faith. It is not a matter of how many people do you have, it's not matter of how many arms and what kind of arms do you have. Look, those who have been supported by the Western part, we know very well that the west has the hi-tech, they have the best arms all over the world, they have the best intelligence all over, they have people who are fighting with them.

I believe this is something to do with the soul or the spirit of the West Asia or the Asians, here you talk about, we in this part of the world have spirit, have a different spirit, not a materialistic spirit. In India, you have this kind of homage and devotion for certain spiritual forces, that they define it. Here we believe in Allah, we believe in God, even the region here, it's the place of the heavenly religions you know,

Christianity, Judaism, Islam came to this part. The prophets, the messengers came here, we have this link with God, we have this link with heaven, we have this link with the divine and I believe when you talk about divinity, no matter how much you talk about materialistic things, it falls down.

By: Ghadi Francis for WION Equations in West Asia are changing. Israel struck a peace deal with UAE recently. The agreement was brokered by the USA. Hezbollah, the organisation in Lebanon often finds itself part of various equations in the region.

By: Ghadi Francis for WION Equations in West Asia are changing. Israel struck a peace deal with UAE recently. The agreement was brokered by the USA. Hezbollah, the organisation in Lebanon often finds itself part of various equations in the region. WION spoke with Ibrahim Al Moussawi, Lebanese MP and Hezbollah spokesperson on situation in West Asia and the organisation's role in it. WION: First viewers in the world, West Asia see Hezbollah as the villain or terrorist group. Where would you like to start in defining what Hezbollah is regarding in the area in the region? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: Well thank you for giving the opportunity to give a kind of review of Hezbollah. It's not the viewer who views Hezbollah as the terrorist or the villain of West Asia, I would say we're a, simply we are a resistance movement against occupation, when you resist them, you resist an action, that is a reaction to an action, we resist the Israeli occupation, the Israeli invasion, the Israeli expansionist trend in the area. We all know that Israel is one manifestation of the new liberal, capitalist,....... colonial West. We have to remember that the number one supporter of Israel in the whole world is the USA, and America itself ,the United States of America is responsible for most of the problems all over the world, you know it spreads the military bases all over and it interferes in internal affairs of many countries, it supports operations. I will simply put Hezbollah as a group of people, organised people, who stood against the occupation against the operation. they are rightful people. We are rightful people. We support the right, the independence, the liberty, we have never attacked anyone, we have never come to anybody's land, we are talking about our land, we are talking about West Asia, we are talking about Palestine, occupied Palestine, not Israel, the manifestation or the cancerous glands (reference to Israel) that has been put by the West into this part of the area, our sense, the existence of Israel. We are suffering not only in the Lebanon, in the Arab world, in Syria, we have .... heights that are occupied in Egypt during the ....., we have .... it has no full independence, also we are talking about Jordan, we are talking about west bank and Gaza, we are talking about Palestine. So here you are talking about a ... high regime in the 21st century that is oppressing people, killing people, that are not allowing them to go to schools, there are a lot of massacres, ....... of massacres that they have done. It is evident for everybody, yet the United States continues to support it, with high tech weaponry, with the Veto power, in the United Nations, in the Security Council, and we are in a position to defend, to liberate and to fight operations. WION: Okay, since you spoke profoundly about the ideology problem with Israel, where do you stand today when the UAE and Saudi Arabia are going to start flights after their peace deal? How does Hezbollah react to that? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: Well we have, actually this is not the first time that an Arab country has done what the UAE did. Egypt has done this. It is of 1980s. Also, Jordan, we know about it, yet the Jordanians are not immune to the Israeli aggression, now they are talking about annexing parts of Jordan or if they are talking about a kind of exodus of the Palestinians to go to Jordan. Up till now there is a B plan in the Israeli agenda, in case they want the Palestinians to evacuate from Palestine from the remaining part of Palestine they want to send them to Jordan, as a second country or alternative country for them. So here you talk about an Israeli occupation, an Israeli entity that we never recognized. We will never recognise [Israel] at any time because this is Palestine first. After this it can be about UAE or Saudi Arabia or Bahrain, Oman or any other country. You're talking about things that came to the public but it has always been there. We have never been surprised at all with the new ties between UAE... [WION: Do you think how were they publicized is it really just the way..you..] Ibrahim Al Moussawi: I would say it's a combination of so many different things, we know now that .... Netanyahu now is in a political dilemma and so is Trump. They want to have more points in their record to go to the race. For Trump, it is about the presidential race next November and for the Israeli entity, it is the problem of the political stalemate. So its there in the internal politics there but it has always been a fixed part of their agenda when it comes to the Palestinians and the Arabs. WION: Having spoken about that, about the presidential race, about how this would affect or give them like I have delivered something to give to their voters. I want to ask you we have witnessed.. change in Europe, after the Syrian uprising and the Syrian war, the Europeans were affected, and they changed many.. many actions from the voters... Today, as Hezbollah do you see that you really have effect (read influence) from West Asia to the world in the Presidential race. Because Syria did have effect in the Presidential races in Europe. Do you see Hezbollah's activities in the Syria, Iraq, Yemen and the GCC even countries as a strategic force in the West Asia. How does Hezbollah affect the elections in the United States? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: We do not work or function on all of the places that you mentioned specially you said GCC or other places but if you mean the clout, the influence, the sympathy of the people, here in the Arab world we have to make a complete dichotomy between the regimes, the governments and the people, because if you go to the peoples opinion and you have rightful public opinion, pollsters will have complete leader-front results. The people hearts, the people minds are with Palestine, are against the normalisation of relations with Israel. They support the rightful case or cause of the Palestinians, of the resistance and this is very important if there were any kind of poll that would tell you and reflect the genuine, the real opinion of the people with a completely different regimes and governments, in this sense they are imposed from above, they are being supported by the Western colonialist powers in order to continue to perpetuate the interest of the West in out areas and you can see this. The great arms deals that take place funnel billions of dollars to the West perpetuating their economy. And they are happy about the wars in our area. Now when you talk about West Asia, this is very important question from your side that I appreciate, when you talk about west Asia, those people all together and the resistance movement and the elites, those people who are sober enough, are aware enough, are conscious enough of the western American agenda in our area, they have to collaborate their efforts and co-ordinate and be whistle-blower, if we have something in Beirut, all of the people, all of the masses, all over the Arab world or the Islamic world or the West Asia they should be able to reflect their support to the cause of the oppressed people. After all, if you want to make a differentiation, what's happening, you are talking here about right and wrong, you are talking about just and peace & oppression and war, we are to the side of peace and the resistance and liberty and the independence away from the intervention of the expansionist, colonialist powers like United States or parts of Europe. WION: But my question was..in the sense to make it as simple as possible. Does Hezbollah & the prevailing of Hezbollah, the survival of Hezbollah in Lebanon & Syria and the survival of Iran against the sanctions. Does this power in the West Asia affect the Presidential race in the United States? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: To a certain extent, you know there are many, so many files in the department, we represent one or two .. in it. When the United States wants to prevail in Iraq and then the resistance in Iraq fails it and make it a complete failure, this is going to put a bad record, a bad remark for Trump WION: Is this what's happening? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: This is what's happening, absolutely. Withdrawn their troops from there, this has reshuffled the papers in the area and I would say that, the kind of rising resistance in the region is going to put an end to this colonialist expansionist American trend in the area, if this was not the case, I would say many of the powers in the West Asia would crumble and would collapse, even if you talk about governments. Absolutely, I mean, even if you take this aside. Take India for example. It is a rising and important power. India is not like United States or America. India is the country of Mahatma Gandhi. It's has history of revolution of peaceful people against British colonial power for centuries. Had it not been for the will and determination of Indian people and leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, India would still be under the mandate of a Western power. That's why people's movement is important in putting an end to colonial power and in raising hope for real independence. That's why we want to collaborate as people. We are an organisation, we are a party, but we do represent millions of people all over the region & we have to convince them.. the problem is that, here in this part of the world they used to say that the Israeli army is the invincible army, you can do nothing about it. It is supported by the United States, that it is going to guarantee their supremacy..supremacy of the Israeli forces, so you can do nothing about it. Because we are the people who have determination, resolve, will, faith in our culture, our civilization. This is the same that is there in India & in West Asia, for different cultures & people, they have this patience, they have this perseverance, they have this faith in their culture.. then we will win & we will prevail & they will definitely fail. If we are going to surrender, and say we are going to nothing about it, they are going to perpetuate & make their colonial power survive. Now this is not what we want to see. WION: What kind of.. What kind of industrial or.. What kind of aspirations do you all have ---- Ibrahim Al Moussawi: There are many levels, we can coordinate our efforts together what they lack, we can give they have.. for example when you talk about India you think about a high-tech country. Even those who are making America prosper are Indians and not Americans. When you talk about talk about talent in in Silicon Valley, when you talk about those who are earning or those who have a high PhD per capita in America, you consider Indian-Americans. They are basically Indians or they come from Asia, not only from Pakistan..other countries. And they were able to create the system that could serve as a magnetic absorb all of the capabilities & creative power of people of all over the world. We have to have this determination, we have to have this decision that we want to get with this brain drain. There is a brain drain happening in these areas & they go to America & they make more & more perpetuation for the American glory per say. That's why I believe we have huge opportunity in building..in high-tech, in technology.. in different areas weather industry or economy or agriculture, different areas of co-operation can work here WION: And one more question because I didn't have .. this, one more which is the typical we are gonna ask.... being said its the 3rd biggest explosion in the world [Ibrahim Al Moussawi: True, 3rd or 4th we are not sure] Maybe, Beirut explosion, what happened afterwards..a lot of media is trying to deliver the message that Hezbollah has to do with the cargoes & everything. What do you have to say or to comment about the tremendous explosion that happened in Beirut, where does Hezbollah stand regarding that? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: First of all, there is an organized campaign from the West, from America, from different mouthpieces in Europe like Der Spiegel, Le Figaro and other media outlets. They want to portray that Hezbollah was behind Beirut blast. We have UNIFIL.. their ships..monitoring ships, monitoring systems in the Mediterranean. And they can watch every single thing that happened. Hezbollah has categorically refused & denied any responsibility or any connection with this explosion. We have never used the port of Beirut for any kind of military or security action. It's under the supervision of the Lebanese state, Lebanese Army, the Lebanese security forces. All of what you hear here of there by the Western media is the kind of agenda that they want to put Hezbollah name there, so it can do other actions and they can..if you want ..mislead people about our identity, of our true figure. We were in a complete shock after what happened. This is one of the result of huge corruption in the Lebanese state. [WION: They think the...] and we support investigation. Look when you talk about the investigation we have never done anything to jump to conclusions. The investigation is underway. We have to wait till the investigation is concluded and then we will all see what happens. WION: Okay, because anyone who is watching can see the port of Haifa is the.. most... Ibrahim Al Moussawi: If you are alluding.. If you are alluding that the Israelis have interest, that they have keen interest, and they do serve many of their great interests in having an alternative place rather than the port of Beirut, this is one option. But if we want to hold others responsible, we have to have a full evidence about it. WION: There is one more question; Everyone in Lebanon will hear the lobby..intelligentia you are speaking about resolution that would happen ..or the talks that would happen with Iran, between United States & Iran, once they are resumed many things would change, maybe after the Presidential race & even say Nasrallah and President Bashar al-Assad have said many times that this kind of President is better than others, that Trump would serve better because he is bluntly stupid actually this what has been said. But regardless, what do you have to say about the Iranian-American talks and how would they affect. Do you really like look forward to that.. it would set peace.. Ibrahim Al Moussawi: I would say, look you are talking about very fluctuating issue that has to do with the Republicans & the Democrats in America. Now with Trump would going to the Presidential race in next November, everybody is waiting. And he has said that he is going to finalize a deal with Iran within one week or whatever. But here you are talking about ab locate. Part of our.. we here in Lebanon are suffering from a very complicated manifold crisis that has to do with economy, monetary issues, financial issues, economic issues, social issues and there is a blockade against Lebanon by United States America, by part of its Arab countries that support United States America. We would rather depend on ourselves, we should not be waiting for anything. I would say if a deal has been concluded between Iran & America, I believe this is going to help all over the region. But we do not pin hopes on what our enemies will do or wouldn't do. We have to depend on ourselves & continue. Patience, Perseverance & Determination will help. WION: This is something, I do not know if you are free to it answer or not, because you are speaking like that. We know that Hezbollah is a part of the Parliament, part of society in Lebanon and its not like [Ibrahim Al MOussawi: part of the govt, yes]. But still, you have a big percentage of Lebanese society that would say all the crisis, all the sanctions, all these issues are Hezbollah's fault and they are Lebanese & they are perpetuating their points of views in Western media. So what do you have to say about Lebanon, are these... Ibrahim Al Moussawi: They are not big percentage to tell you the truth ... We have a political division in the country, simply. Actually, sometimes people are being misled, certain are being misled. I would say up till now, I would say ..and you have the right to go and see, as a party, as a political party we enjoy wider public support in the country. Here you are talking about the wider public support in the country. Though there is a political campaign against us from the Western media, there is a blockade & they are pin-pointing against us. We know very well that Feltman said we have spent 500 million dollars in order to tarnish the image of Hezbollah in order to distort the image of Hezbollah. Now they are doing the same, they are subduing, they are subjugating the Lebanese into kind of blockade & say we are doing this because of Hezbollah. So they are trying to plant a wedge between Hezbollah & Public. This is not going to happen. the people are smart and keen enough to understand, others who are like serving .... as mouthpeice to the West and saying they are doing it because of the Hazebollah, you are talking keen about collaborative with, or represting the western view of the politics, while if you talk about the Lebanese, real Lebanese all over the factions they wouldn't agree with this description. WION: Would you like to tell us about how strong is Hezbollah? Ibrahim Al Moussawi: Look.. look we're strong and we are determined, we have resolve, we have determination, we have the voted people, dedicated people because we have this faith. It is not a matter of how many people do you have, it's not matter of how many arms and what kind of arms do you have. Look, those who have been supported by the Western part, we know very well that the west has the hi-tech, they have the best arms all over the world, they have the best intelligence all over, they have people who are fighting with them. I believe this is something to do with the soul or the spirit of the West Asia or the Asians, here you talk about, we in this part of the world have spirit, have a different spirit, not a materialistic spirit. In India, you have this kind of homage and devotion for certain spiritual forces, that they define it. Here we believe in Allah, we believe in God, even the region here, it's the place of the heavenly religions you know, Christianity, Judaism, Islam came to this part. The prophets, the messengers came here, we have this link with God, we have this link with heaven, we have this link with the divine and I believe when you talk about divinity, no matter how much you talk about materialistic things, it falls down.

Exclusive: Hezbollah not behind Beirut explosion, we are people standing against 'occupation', says Spokesperson

The Israeli military struck what it said were posts belonging to Lebanon`s Shi`ite Hezbollah movement early on Wednesday after shots were fired from the other side of the border towards its troops.

After a meeting, Lebanon`s Supreme Defence Council denounced the incident which it called "an Israeli assault" and said a complaint would be filed to the United Nations. The Lebanese army said on its Twitter account that Israeli helicopters had fired missiles at centres of a local environmental group.

Tension has been running high on the border. Last month, Israel said Iran-backed Hezbollah had carried out an infiltration attempt, which the group denied.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/netanyahu-vows-forceful-response-if-more-attacks-from-lebanon-323172">Also read:&nbsp;Netanyahu vows 'forceful' response if more attacks from Lebanon</a>

The Israeli military said no troops were wounded in the firing on Wednesday. Soldiers deployed illumination flares, smoke shells and live fire after the shots from the Lebanese side of the frontier, it said.

"In response, overnight, IDF attack helicopters and aircraft struck observation posts belonging to the Hezbollah terror organization in the border area," the military said in a statement, referring to the Israel Defense Forces.

There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah. The two sides last fought a deadly month-long war in 2006. Witnesses in south Lebanon said Israel had fired scores of flare munitions at border villages.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/pompeo-addresses-rnc-for-trump-from-jerusalem-sparks-criticism-323199">Also read:&nbsp;Pompeo addresses RNC for Trump from Jerusalem, sparks criticism</a>

The statement from Lebanon`s defence council, which includes the president and top security officials, made no mention of any shots fired from the south towards Israel.

It said Lebanon`s army commander had briefed the council on "the denounced Israeli assault which took place last night at the southern border."

The Israeli military said it lifted a curfew it had imposed overnight.

"Israel views with great gravity Hezbollah`s firing at our forces," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement on Wednesday morning. "We will respond mightily to any attack on us."

The Israeli military struck what it said were posts belonging to Lebanon`s Shi`ite Hezbollah movement early on Wednesday after shots were fired from the other side of the border towards its troops.

The Israeli military struck what it said were posts belonging to Lebanon`s Shi`ite Hezbollah movement early on Wednesday after shots were fired from the other side of the border towards its troops. After a meeting, Lebanon`s Supreme Defence Council denounced the incident which it called "an Israeli assault" and said a complaint would be filed to the United Nations. The Lebanese army said on its Twitter account that Israeli helicopters had fired missiles at centres of a local environmental group. Tension has been running high on the border. Last month, Israel said Iran-backed Hezbollah had carried out an infiltration attempt, which the group denied. Also read: Netanyahu vows 'forceful' response if more attacks from Lebanon The Israeli military said no troops were wounded in the firing on Wednesday. Soldiers deployed illumination flares, smoke shells and live fire after the shots from the Lebanese side of the frontier, it said. "In response, overnight, IDF attack helicopters and aircraft struck observation posts belonging to the Hezbollah terror organization in the border area," the military said in a statement, referring to the Israel Defense Forces. There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah. The two sides last fought a deadly month-long war in 2006. Witnesses in south Lebanon said Israel had fired scores of flare munitions at border villages. Also read: Pompeo addresses RNC for Trump from Jerusalem, sparks criticism The statement from Lebanon`s defence council, which includes the president and top security officials, made no mention of any shots fired from the south towards Israel. It said Lebanon`s army commander had briefed the council on "the denounced Israeli assault which took place last night at the southern border." The Israeli military said it lifted a curfew it had imposed overnight. "Israel views with great gravity Hezbollah`s firing at our forces," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement on Wednesday morning. "We will respond mightily to any attack on us."

Israel strikes Hezbollah posts in Lebanon after firing at troops, military says

Few volunteers in Israel have discovered a treasure thta may be thousands year old, said the Irael Antiquities Authority late on Monday.

The treasure consists of a stash of hundreds of gold coins that were buried deep in the ground by someone thousands of years ago. It was found by few teenager volunteers who were working at an excavation in Central Israel.

The excavation was a part of the pre-building process of a new neighbourhood that is being planned in the area.

The authorities revealed that according to initial investigation, the coins were buried around 1,100 years ago and the owner had even secured the utensil holding the coins to make sure it does not move, which points towards the fact that the owner hoped to come back for the vessel.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-treasure-chest-worth-1-million-found-in-rocky-mountains-304421">Also read|&nbsp;US: Treasure chest worth $1 million found in Rocky Mountains</a>

“The person who buried this treasure 1,100 years ago must have expected to retrieve it and even secured the vessel with a nail so that it would not move. We can only guess what prevented him from returning to collect this treasure,” said excavation director Liat Nadav-Ziv.

The area earlier housed workshops when the coins were placed in that area, as per old records. While the experts are studying the coins and hoping to reach some conclusion, the identity of the owner or the reason why the owner buried or never retrieved the treasure will probably remain a mystery forever.

However, the experience was "amazing" for the young volunteers.&nbsp;“I dug in the ground and when I excavated the soil, saw what looked like very thin leaves. When I looked again I saw these were gold coins. It was really exciting to find such a special and ancient treasure,”&nbsp;said Oz Cohen, one of the volunteers who found the treasure.

Few volunteers in Israel have discovered a treasure thta may be thousands year old, said the Irael Antiquities Authority late on Monday. The treasure consists of a stash of hundreds of gold coins that were buried deep in the ground by someone thousands of years ago.

Few volunteers in Israel have discovered a treasure thta may be thousands year old, said the Irael Antiquities Authority late on Monday. The treasure consists of a stash of hundreds of gold coins that were buried deep in the ground by someone thousands of years ago. It was found by few teenager volunteers who were working at an excavation in Central Israel. The excavation was a part of the pre-building process of a new neighbourhood that is being planned in the area. The authorities revealed that according to initial investigation, the coins were buried around 1,100 years ago and the owner had even secured the utensil holding the coins to make sure it does not move, which points towards the fact that the owner hoped to come back for the vessel. Also read| US: Treasure chest worth $1 million found in Rocky Mountains “The person who buried this treasure 1,100 years ago must have expected to retrieve it and even secured the vessel with a nail so that it would not move. We can only guess what prevented him from returning to collect this treasure,” said excavation director Liat Nadav-Ziv. The area earlier housed workshops when the coins were placed in that area, as per old records. While the experts are studying the coins and hoping to reach some conclusion, the identity of the owner or the reason why the owner buried or never retrieved the treasure will probably remain a mystery forever. However, the experience was "amazing" for the young volunteers. “I dug in the ground and when I excavated the soil, saw what looked like very thin leaves. When I looked again I saw these were gold coins. It was really exciting to find such a special and ancient treasure,” said Oz Cohen, one of the volunteers who found the treasure.

Young volunteers unearth 1,000 years old gold coins in Israel

The United Arab Emirates and Israel have opened telephone lines between the two on Sunday. Israeli communications minister called this move important for normalising ties between the countries.

The United Arab Emirates and Israel have opened telephone lines between the two on Sunday. Israeli communications minister called this move important for normalising ties between the countries. Also read: Turkey 'will not back down' in east Mediterranean standoff, says Erdogan On Thursday, Israel and the UAE announced an agreement that will lead to full normalisation of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The telephone calls between the two countries were not possible earlier. Israel and the UAE inaugurated the opening of the phone lines after the foreign ministers of both countries held a telephone call with each other. The UAE's Telecoms Regulatory Authority did not immediately respond to a request to comment. Israeli Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel took to Twitter and said: "I congratulate the United Arab Emirates on the unblocking." "Many economic opportunities will now open up, and these trust-building steps are important for advancing the countries' interests." The UAE's two main telecoms operators Du and Etisalat did not immediately respond to requests for comment. (Inputs from Reuters)

UAE-Israel accord: Phone lines open between both countries to normalise relations

From cries of “betrayal” to fears about “falling dominoes”, the deal making the United Arab Emirates the third Arab state to forge ties with Israel stirred anger and dismay around the Middle East, but a cautious welcome from the UAE’s Gulf allies.

The mixed response highlighted new fault lines in a region where fear and distrust of Iran - shared by Israel and some Arab states - has challenged a decades-old allegiance to the Palestinian issue as a major driver of Arab policy.

Palestinians, who want to establish a state on West Bank territory captured by Israel in 1967, denounced the agreement as a betrayal of the long-held Arab stance that peace should be conditional on Israeli withdrawal from occupied territory.

The agreement, which is set to make the UAE only the third Arab state after Egypt and Jordan to make peace with Israel, calls for a temporary suspension of Israel’s planned annexation of occupied West Bank territory, but not withdrawal.

The deal, which U.S. President Donald Trump helped to broker with support from senior adviser Jared Kushner, forms a new axis with the UAE aligning itself with Israel in confronting Shi’ite Muslim Iran and Sunni Islamist radicals in the region.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-israel-uae-deal-can-trump-ensure-peace-in-west-asia-320609">Also watch|&nbsp;Gravitas: Israel-UAE deal: Can Trump ensure peace in West Asia?</a>

This is likely to heighten tensions in the Gulf, which has in the past two years seen attacks on tankers and energy assets that the United States and Saudi Arabia have blamed on Iran, a charge Tehran denies.

Iran’s foreign minister said the deal aimed to hand Trump a win ahead of U.S. elections in November, a view echoed by the leader of Lebanon’s Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement.

“It’s shameful what Abu Dhabi did ... They don’t see the Zionist regime as an enemy, but an ally and what’s happening now is to help Trump in the elections,” Iran’s Mohammad Javad Zarif told Al Mayadeen TV.

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, in a televised speech, described the UAE move as an “election favour” for both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and said more Arab states would follow suit to “satisfy” Washington.

“It is good, though painful, that the masks have fallen,” he said, describing the deal as a betrayal of Islam and Arabs.

'Fall like dominoes'

Some worshippers at Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, where Palestinians want to establish the capital of a future state, carried pictures of UAE Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed with the word “traitor” underneath his image.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/israel-uae-peace-deal-netanyahu-hails-new-era-for-israel-320345">Also watch|&nbsp;Israel -UAE peace deal: Netanyahu hails new era for Israel</a>

“Just like Egypt, Jordan and now Abu Dhabi, the whole Arab world will start to fall like dominoes,” said Mohammad al-Sharif, 45, a member of Israel’s Arab minority. “That Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed and his dirty dogs look out for themselves and their interests and the rest of us can go to hell.”

Palestine Liberation Organization Secretary General Saeb Erekat spelled out the potential consequences for his people if a united Arab front splintered.

“The whole thing that we based our strategy on as Arabs is that the (2002) Arab peace initiative specified that once Israel withdraws, there will be peace between Arabs and Israelis.

“Netanyahu came determined, with Kushner, Trump... to change the formula, that they want Arab recognition of Israel while they continue with the occupation, and the United Arab Emirates yesterday stamped the green light for this,” Erekat said.

Turkey may shut embassy

Turkey, a powerful regional rival of the UAE, said history would not forgive the Gulf country for making a deal which undercut the 2002 Arab peace plan, which had proposed peace in return for Israeli withdrawal from all occupied territory.

“We may also take a step in the direction of suspending diplomatic ties with the Abu Dhabi leadership or pulling back our ambassador,” President Tayyip Erdogan said after Friday prayers, adding that he could close Turkey’s embassy.

But, in a region beset with other challenges including civil wars, poverty and economic crisis, some people appeared to have other concerns.

At Istanbul’s landmark Hagia Sophia, converted by Erdogan to a mosque last month in a move which he portrayed as a step towards restoring “freedom” to Al Aqsa in Jerusalem, worshippers who spoke to Reuters were unaware of the announcement.

Incentive for peace

Egypt and Jordan, which signed peace deals with Israel in 1979 and 1994 respectively and enjoy close ties with the UAE, both welcomed the agreement. Jordan said the pact could make a beneficial impact if it spurred Israel to accept a Palestinian state on land it took in the 1967 Middle East war.

“If Israel deals with it as an incentive to end occupation..., it will move the region towards a just peace,” Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said.

Oman and Bahrain praised the accord but Saudi Arabia, which has in the past led Arab policy towards Israel and hosts Islam’s two holiest sites, has remained silent, as have Kuwait and Qatar.

Jordan’s former foreign minister, Marwan al-Muasher, said it was possible other Gulf states could follow Abu Dhabi’s lead. But none of those could address the root problem.

“In the end it’s not the Gulf states who are living under occupation, it’s the Palestinians. And until you reach a solution with the Palestinians, it does not matter how many peace deals you make with Arab states,” he told Reuters.

From cries of “betrayal” to fears about “falling dominoes”, the deal making the United Arab Emirates the third Arab state to forge ties with Israel stirred anger and dismay around the Middle East, but a cautious welcome from the UAE’s Gulf allies.

From cries of “betrayal” to fears about “falling dominoes”, the deal making the United Arab Emirates the third Arab state to forge ties with Israel stirred anger and dismay around the Middle East, but a cautious welcome from the UAE’s Gulf allies. The mixed response highlighted new fault lines in a region where fear and distrust of Iran - shared by Israel and some Arab states - has challenged a decades-old allegiance to the Palestinian issue as a major driver of Arab policy. Palestinians, who want to establish a state on West Bank territory captured by Israel in 1967, denounced the agreement as a betrayal of the long-held Arab stance that peace should be conditional on Israeli withdrawal from occupied territory. The agreement, which is set to make the UAE only the third Arab state after Egypt and Jordan to make peace with Israel, calls for a temporary suspension of Israel’s planned annexation of occupied West Bank territory, but not withdrawal. The deal, which U.S. President Donald Trump helped to broker with support from senior adviser Jared Kushner, forms a new axis with the UAE aligning itself with Israel in confronting Shi’ite Muslim Iran and Sunni Islamist radicals in the region. Also watch| Gravitas: Israel-UAE deal: Can Trump ensure peace in West Asia? This is likely to heighten tensions in the Gulf, which has in the past two years seen attacks on tankers and energy assets that the United States and Saudi Arabia have blamed on Iran, a charge Tehran denies. Iran’s foreign minister said the deal aimed to hand Trump a win ahead of U.S. elections in November, a view echoed by the leader of Lebanon’s Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement. “It’s shameful what Abu Dhabi did ... They don’t see the Zionist regime as an enemy, but an ally and what’s happening now is to help Trump in the elections,” Iran’s Mohammad Javad Zarif told Al Mayadeen TV. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, in a televised speech, described the UAE move as an “election favour” for both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and said more Arab states would follow suit to “satisfy” Washington. “It is good, though painful, that the masks have fallen,” he said, describing the deal as a betrayal of Islam and Arabs. 'Fall like dominoes' Some worshippers at Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, where Palestinians want to establish the capital of a future state, carried pictures of UAE Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed with the word “traitor” underneath his image. Also watch| Israel -UAE peace deal: Netanyahu hails new era for Israel “Just like Egypt, Jordan and now Abu Dhabi, the whole Arab world will start to fall like dominoes,” said Mohammad al-Sharif, 45, a member of Israel’s Arab minority. “That Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed and his dirty dogs look out for themselves and their interests and the rest of us can go to hell.” Palestine Liberation Organization Secretary General Saeb Erekat spelled out the potential consequences for his people if a united Arab front splintered. “The whole thing that we based our strategy on as Arabs is that the (2002) Arab peace initiative specified that once Israel withdraws, there will be peace between Arabs and Israelis. “Netanyahu came determined, with Kushner, Trump... to change the formula, that they want Arab recognition of Israel while they continue with the occupation, and the United Arab Emirates yesterday stamped the green light for this,” Erekat said. Turkey may shut embassy Turkey, a powerful regional rival of the UAE, said history would not forgive the Gulf country for making a deal which undercut the 2002 Arab peace plan, which had proposed peace in return for Israeli withdrawal from all occupied territory. “We may also take a step in the direction of suspending diplomatic ties with the Abu Dhabi leadership or pulling back our ambassador,” President Tayyip Erdogan said after Friday prayers, adding that he could close Turkey’s embassy. But, in a region beset with other challenges including civil wars, poverty and economic crisis, some people appeared to have other concerns. At Istanbul’s landmark Hagia Sophia, converted by Erdogan to a mosque last month in a move which he portrayed as a step towards restoring “freedom” to Al Aqsa in Jerusalem, worshippers who spoke to Reuters were unaware of the announcement. Incentive for peace Egypt and Jordan, which signed peace deals with Israel in 1979 and 1994 respectively and enjoy close ties with the UAE, both welcomed the agreement. Jordan said the pact could make a beneficial impact if it spurred Israel to accept a Palestinian state on land it took in the 1967 Middle East war. “If Israel deals with it as an incentive to end occupation..., it will move the region towards a just peace,” Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said. Oman and Bahrain praised the accord but Saudi Arabia, which has in the past led Arab policy towards Israel and hosts Islam’s two holiest sites, has remained silent, as have Kuwait and Qatar. Jordan’s former foreign minister, Marwan al-Muasher, said it was possible other Gulf states could follow Abu Dhabi’s lead. But none of those could address the root problem. “In the end it’s not the Gulf states who are living under occupation, it’s the Palestinians. And until you reach a solution with the Palestinians, it does not matter how many peace deals you make with Arab states,” he told Reuters.

UAE's Israel deal met with Arab dismay but quiet welcome in Gulf

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's historic deal with the UAE won praise abroad - but generated discontent from right-wing supporters and settlers over the suspension of land annexation plans.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's historic deal with the UAE won praise abroad - but generated discontent from right-wing supporters and settlers over the suspension of land annexation plans. "This agreement could signal a possible crisis in the relationship of Netanyahu and many of the settlers and their supporters in the Israeli right wing," said Yohanan Plesner, director of the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem think-tank. Figures on Israel's nationalist right have called for a replacement to Netanyahu. Netanyahu may have "gained a few points among centre-left voters, who like deals with the Arabs, but he lost several points with his right-wing base" whose "dream" of annexation of land has gone, said political commentator Ben Caspit, writing in Maariv newspaper. The deal announced on Thursday sees Israel pledge to suspend its planned annexation of Palestinian lands, a concession welcomed by European and some pro-Western Arab governments as a boost for hopes of peace. But Netanyahu, neck-and-neck with political rivals during the three last election campaigns, had used the issue of annexation to woo voters from the radical right and the settlers. They are fierce opponents of any return of Palestinian territories, seized by Israel in the Six-Day War of 1967. 'Bitter pill' Netanyahu's unity government had announced a strategy to annex parts of the West Bank and Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territory, including the Jordan Valley, a strategic strip along the Jordanian border. That plan was given the green light in January by US President Donald Trump. But the surprise deal with the United Arab Emirates appears to put annexation on ice; Israeli, Emirati and US leaders said they had agreed "Israel will suspend declaring sovereignty" over West Bank areas. The normalisation agreement is only Israel's third with an Arab country, after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994. For commentator Ben Caspit, the deal was driven by opposition to annexation by members of the ruling coalition -- such as Benny Gantz and Gabi Ashkenazi. That "forced Netanyahu to recalculate", and made him look for a way to get his supporters to swallow a "bitter pill". But since Netanyahu has said annexation of parts of the West Bank is only "postponed" and that Israel had "not given up", some see it as only a matter of time before it resumes. - 'Myth has disappeared' - In Efrata, an Israeli settlement near the Palestinian city of Bethlehem, the head of the local council Oded Revivi tempered his disappointment. "All these years people thought that peace with Arab countries could not be made, as long as there was a Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria," he said, using the Jewish name for the West Bank. "We see that this myth has disappeared." Revivi, looking back over the decades since the 1967 war, believes annexation has only been paused. "It was put on hold, but nobody knows for how long," Revivi added. "We've been waiting for this for 53 years -- maybe more than 2,000 years. I'm sure it will come back to the table and much faster than you think." The nationalist right have reacted bitterly. They are angry that the deal "pauses" annexation - and thus keeps the idea alive of a viable separate Palestinian state alongside Israel. "It is tragic that Netanyahu did not seize the moment, nor have the courage to apply sovereignty even over a centimetre of the Land of Israel, but sovereignty over the territories of our homeland will come," said Naftali Bennet, leader of the radical right-wing nationalist Yamina alliance. "We cannot ignore the great dangers posed by relaunching the talks for a Palestinian state," said Bezalel Smotrich, another Yamina member, which sits in the opposition and draws much of its support from settlers. "To face the danger, the right has to present here and now an alternative" to Netanyahu's leadership, he said.

Israel's shift on annexation sparks right-wing anger

All of the countries involved with Israel-UAE deal are India's strategic partners.&nbsp;New Delhi has grown closer to Israel, UAE and the United States in the last few years. A peace deal between the three countries is good news for India. 
&nbsp; 
India may have had an indirect role to play.&nbsp;In 2014, while most of the world expressed their support for Palestine in the open and had under-the-table deals with Israel, India chose to walk a different path. It adopted a de-hyphenation policy between Israel and Palestine.

The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose to balance its ties with Israel and Palestine and keep it independent of one another.

In 2017, PM Modi became the first Indian prime minister to visit Israel. Just months before that he hosted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

India's message to the world was: you need not choose between Israel and Palestine,&nbsp;diplomatic ties can be maintained with Israel while supporting the Palestinian cause.

It was India pitching itself as a responsible global leader interested in peace. New Delhi never shied from making its point loud and clear. In 2017, India voted against recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

At the same time&nbsp;it pulled up Palestine when its ambassador to Pakistan was photographed sharing the&nbsp;stage with Hafiz Saeed.

India has also balanced ties between Israel and the other Gulf nations.&nbsp;New Delhi has steered clear of taking sides in sectarian politics. India's policy of de-hyphenation, and its diplomacy in West Asia as a whole has been balanced and independent. It has allowed global validation of India's diplomacy and the peace deal benefits Indian diaspora in the region.

At least 7 million Indians work in West Asia,&nbsp;they will benefit from regional stability. Flight services between Israel and UAE is a boon. As the two countries work out bilateral trade, it may also open new avenues for India&nbsp;as both UAE and Israel are India's strategic partners.

Also, better diplomatic environment in the Arab world is always good news for New Delhi&nbsp;given that India is home to the world's second-largest Muslim population.

All of the countries involved with Israel-UAE deal are India's strategic partners. New Delhi has grown closer to Israel, UAE and the United States in the last few years.

All of the countries involved with Israel-UAE deal are India's strategic partners. New Delhi has grown closer to Israel, UAE and the United States in the last few years. A peace deal between the three countries is good news for India. India may have had an indirect role to play. In 2014, while most of the world expressed their support for Palestine in the open and had under-the-table deals with Israel, India chose to walk a different path. It adopted a de-hyphenation policy between Israel and Palestine. The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose to balance its ties with Israel and Palestine and keep it independent of one another. In 2017, PM Modi became the first Indian prime minister to visit Israel. Just months before that he hosted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. India's message to the world was: you need not choose between Israel and Palestine, diplomatic ties can be maintained with Israel while supporting the Palestinian cause. It was India pitching itself as a responsible global leader interested in peace. New Delhi never shied from making its point loud and clear. In 2017, India voted against recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital. At the same time it pulled up Palestine when its ambassador to Pakistan was photographed sharing the stage with Hafiz Saeed. India has also balanced ties between Israel and the other Gulf nations. New Delhi has steered clear of taking sides in sectarian politics. India's policy of de-hyphenation, and its diplomacy in West Asia as a whole has been balanced and independent. It has allowed global validation of India's diplomacy and the peace deal benefits Indian diaspora in the region. At least 7 million Indians work in West Asia, they will benefit from regional stability. Flight services between Israel and UAE is a boon. As the two countries work out bilateral trade, it may also open new avenues for India as both UAE and Israel are India's strategic partners. Also, better diplomatic environment in the Arab world is always good news for New Delhi given that India is home to the world's second-largest Muslim population.

How India benefits from Israel-UAE peace deal

US President Donald Trump today announced a "historic peace agreement" between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

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HUGE breakthrough today! Historic Peace Agreement between our two GREAT friends, Israel and the United Arab Emirates!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1293922936609546240?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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After making the surprise announcement, Trump told reporters that diplomatic breakthroughs between Israel and its Muslim neighbors in the region were also expected.

The White House said President Trump, PM Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of UAE spoke today and agreed to the "full normalization of relations between Israel and UAE."

The "historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region," it said, adding,"it is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the UAE and Israel to chart a new path."

The UAE's ambassador to Washington Yousef al-Otaiba said the peace deal with Israel was a "win for diplomacy" and a "significant advance in Arab-Israeli relations".

"Today's announcement is a win for diplomacy and for the region. It is a significant advance in Arab-Israeli relations that lowers tensions and creates new energy for positive change," Yousef al-Otaiba said.

US President Donald Trump today announced a "historic peace agreement" between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. HUGE breakthrough today! Historic Peace Agreement between our two GREAT friends, Israel and the United Arab Emirates!

US President Donald Trump today announced a "historic peace agreement" between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. HUGE breakthrough today! Historic Peace Agreement between our two GREAT friends, Israel and the United Arab Emirates! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 13, 2020 × After making the surprise announcement, Trump told reporters that diplomatic breakthroughs between Israel and its Muslim neighbors in the region were also expected. The White House said President Trump, PM Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of UAE spoke today and agreed to the "full normalization of relations between Israel and UAE." The "historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region," it said, adding,"it is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the UAE and Israel to chart a new path." The UAE's ambassador to Washington Yousef al-Otaiba said the peace deal with Israel was a "win for diplomacy" and a "significant advance in Arab-Israeli relations". "Today's announcement is a win for diplomacy and for the region. It is a significant advance in Arab-Israeli relations that lowers tensions and creates new energy for positive change," Yousef al-Otaiba said.

Trump announces 'peace agreement' between Israel, UAE

Israeli aircraft attacked targets in Syria on Monday, the military said, describing the strikes as retaliation for an attempted bombing of the border fence by an enemy squad.

In Damascus, the state-run news agency Sana said Israeli helicopters rocketed Syrian army positions near Quneitra in the south but caused only material damage. It also said air defences had gone into action near the Syrian capital.

Tensions have risen along&nbsp;Israel's northern front since a fighter with the Iranian-backed Lebanese movement Hezbollah was killed in an apparent&nbsp;Israeli air strike in Syria two weeks ago.

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Monday's strikes hit Syrian observation posts, intelligence collection systems, anti-aircraft batteries and command-and-control bases, an&nbsp;Israeli military statement said.

Syrian state media said&nbsp;Israeli helicopters fired at Syrian checkpoints in al-Qunaitra, on the Golan Heights, causing material losses. There was no immediate word of any casualties.

The&nbsp;Israeli military said it was responding to an attempt by a group of four people to plant explosives on a patrolled fence along the Golan armistice line between&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;and Syria.

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In that incident, reported by&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;early on Monday, the military fired on the squad. Surveillance video showed the group engulfed in an explosion. An&nbsp;Israeli military spokesman referred to them as "former terrorists," suggesting they had been killed.

The military spokesman, Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus, said it was too soon to say if the squad belonged to any organization, but that&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;held "the Syrian regime accountable".

There was no comment from Syria on the fence incident.

The overnight encounter occurred at the same spot where until two years ago,&nbsp;Israel&nbsp;had operated a field hospital to treat Syrians who had been wounded in the Syrian civil war, Conricus told reporters.

Israel&nbsp;had noticed "irregular activity" in that area for about a week and had a commando team waiting there in ambush, Conricus said.

Last month, Israeli army helicopters struck military targets in southern Syria in retaliation for earlier "munitions" fire towards Israel.

Israel did not directly blame Syrian forces for the munitions fire, but said it held the Damascus government responsible.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Israeli aircraft attacked targets in Syria on Monday, the military said, describing the strikes as retaliation for an attempted bombing of the border fence by an enemy squad.

Israeli aircraft attacked targets in Syria on Monday, the military said, describing the strikes as retaliation for an attempted bombing of the border fence by an enemy squad. In Damascus, the state-run news agency Sana said Israeli helicopters rocketed Syrian army positions near Quneitra in the south but caused only material damage. It also said air defences had gone into action near the Syrian capital. Tensions have risen along Israel's northern front since a fighter with the Iranian-backed Lebanese movement Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli air strike in Syria two weeks ago. Monday's strikes hit Syrian observation posts, intelligence collection systems, anti-aircraft batteries and command-and-control bases, an Israeli military statement said. Syrian state media said Israeli helicopters fired at Syrian checkpoints in al-Qunaitra, on the Golan Heights, causing material losses. There was no immediate word of any casualties. The Israeli military said it was responding to an attempt by a group of four people to plant explosives on a patrolled fence along the Golan armistice line between Israel and Syria. In that incident, reported by Israel early on Monday, the military fired on the squad. Surveillance video showed the group engulfed in an explosion. An Israeli military spokesman referred to them as "former terrorists," suggesting they had been killed. The military spokesman, Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus, said it was too soon to say if the squad belonged to any organization, but that Israel held "the Syrian regime accountable". There was no comment from Syria on the fence incident. The overnight encounter occurred at the same spot where until two years ago, Israel had operated a field hospital to treat Syrians who had been wounded in the Syrian civil war, Conricus told reporters. Israel had noticed "irregular activity" in that area for about a week and had a commando team waiting there in ambush, Conricus said. Last month, Israeli army helicopters struck military targets in southern Syria in retaliation for earlier "munitions" fire towards Israel. Israel did not directly blame Syrian forces for the munitions fire, but said it held the Damascus government responsible.

Israel launches air strikes on Syria after thwarted border attack

The Israeli army on Monday said it targeted a group of four people who had planted explosives along the border fence with Syria on the Golan Heights.

Soldiers spotted the group near a frontier outpost overnight and, backed by air support, "fired simultaneously towards the squad of four terrorists, a hit was identified", the military said.

No Israelis were wounded. An army spokesman said it was too soon to say if the squad belonged to any organization, but that Israel held "the Syrian regime accountable".

There was no immediate comment from Syria.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israel-pm-netanyahu-slams-media-over-protests-against-him-317743">Also read:&nbsp;Israel PM Netanyahu slams media over protests against him</a>

Tensions have risen in recent weeks along the Israel-Syria frontier after a fighter of the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli strike on the edge of Damascus.

Israel has since boosted its forces on its northern front, where it borders Lebanon and Syria.

The overnight encounter occurred at the same spot where until two years ago, Israel had operated a field hospital to treat Syrians who had been wounded in the Syrian civil war, Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, an army spokesman, told reporters.

The army had noticed "irregular activity" in that area for about a week and had a commando team waiting there in ambush, Conricus said.

A search of the area was being carried out.

The Israeli army on Monday said it targeted a group of four people who had planted explosives along the border fence with Syria on the Golan Heights. Soldiers spotted the group near a frontier outpost overnight and, backed by air support, "fired simultaneously towards the squad of four terrorists, a hit was identified", the military said.

The Israeli army on Monday said it targeted a group of four people who had planted explosives along the border fence with Syria on the Golan Heights. Soldiers spotted the group near a frontier outpost overnight and, backed by air support, "fired simultaneously towards the squad of four terrorists, a hit was identified", the military said. No Israelis were wounded. An army spokesman said it was too soon to say if the squad belonged to any organization, but that Israel held "the Syrian regime accountable". There was no immediate comment from Syria. Also read: Israel PM Netanyahu slams media over protests against him Tensions have risen in recent weeks along the Israel-Syria frontier after a fighter of the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah was killed in an apparent Israeli strike on the edge of Damascus. Israel has since boosted its forces on its northern front, where it borders Lebanon and Syria. The overnight encounter occurred at the same spot where until two years ago, Israel had operated a field hospital to treat Syrians who had been wounded in the Syrian civil war, Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus, an army spokesman, told reporters. The army had noticed "irregular activity" in that area for about a week and had a commando team waiting there in ambush, Conricus said. A search of the area was being carried out.

Israel hits squad that placed explosives along Syria frontier, army says

A court ordered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's son on Sunday to refrain from harassing several individuals helping lead protests against his father, after he tweeted their personal addresses.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/benjamin-netanyahu-irked-by-last-supper-sculpture-calls-it-equivalent-to-death-threat-316961">Also read:&nbsp;Benjamin Netanyahu irked by Last Supper sculpture; calls it 'equivalent to death threat'</a>

Yair Netanyahu, who has caused controversy for past social media posts, was also ordered to delete the tweet and to "refrain from harassing" the individuals concerned for six months, according to a ruling from Jerusalem Magistrates' Court judge Dorit Feinstein.

Reacting to the ruling, Yair Netanyahu, 29, said Feinstein had "totally ignored" evidence presented by his defence, including of threats against him by protest leaders.&nbsp;

A bombastic defender of his father, Yair Netanyahu caused controversy in 2018 when he was recorded seemingly drunk outside a strip club talking about a natural gas deal reached by the Israeli government.

He has also previously posted on Facebook about alleged conspiracies against his family. &nbsp;&nbsp;

The ruling came a day after what Israeli media described as the largest protest in a decade against Netanyahu's tenure, estimating the crowd at roughly 10,000 strong.&nbsp;

Thousands of demonstrators, mainly in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, have in recent weeks rallied against the premier's handling of the coronavirus crisis. Some have called for his resignation.&nbsp;

Speaking before a weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, the right-wing prime minister lashed out the media, accusing it of "fuelling" rather than covering "violent demonstrations."

He said&nbsp;Israel's media was behaving in "North Korean terms" with a lack of balance and unwavering support for "left-wing demonstrators."

Some of the protesters have voiced frustration over the government's pandemic response, while others have expressed broader objections to Netanyahu's stewardship, in particular noting corruption charges against the premier, which he denies.&nbsp;

Israel&nbsp;won praise for its initial response to the COVID-19 outbreak, but the government has come under criticism amid a resurgence in cases after restrictions were lifted starting in late April.&nbsp;

Netanyahu has acknowledged that the economy was re-opened too quickly.&nbsp;&nbsp;

A court ordered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's son on Sunday to refrain from harassing several individuals helping lead protests against his father, after he tweeted their personal addresses.

A court ordered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's son on Sunday to refrain from harassing several individuals helping lead protests against his father, after he tweeted their personal addresses. Also read: Benjamin Netanyahu irked by Last Supper sculpture; calls it 'equivalent to death threat' Yair Netanyahu, who has caused controversy for past social media posts, was also ordered to delete the tweet and to "refrain from harassing" the individuals concerned for six months, according to a ruling from Jerusalem Magistrates' Court judge Dorit Feinstein. Reacting to the ruling, Yair Netanyahu, 29, said Feinstein had "totally ignored" evidence presented by his defence, including of threats against him by protest leaders. A bombastic defender of his father, Yair Netanyahu caused controversy in 2018 when he was recorded seemingly drunk outside a strip club talking about a natural gas deal reached by the Israeli government. He has also previously posted on Facebook about alleged conspiracies against his family. The ruling came a day after what Israeli media described as the largest protest in a decade against Netanyahu's tenure, estimating the crowd at roughly 10,000 strong. Thousands of demonstrators, mainly in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, have in recent weeks rallied against the premier's handling of the coronavirus crisis. Some have called for his resignation. Speaking before a weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, the right-wing prime minister lashed out the media, accusing it of "fuelling" rather than covering "violent demonstrations." He said Israel's media was behaving in "North Korean terms" with a lack of balance and unwavering support for "left-wing demonstrators." Some of the protesters have voiced frustration over the government's pandemic response, while others have expressed broader objections to Netanyahu's stewardship, in particular noting corruption charges against the premier, which he denies. Israel won praise for its initial response to the COVID-19 outbreak, but the government has come under criticism amid a resurgence in cases after restrictions were lifted starting in late April. Netanyahu has acknowledged that the economy was re-opened too quickly.

Court orders Netanyahu's son to stop 'harassing' protest leaders

Yair Netanyahu, 29-year-old social media-savvy son of Israel Prime Minister is making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

He wrote to WION this evening: 'I love India, Jai Hind'. The story goes back to the weekend. On Sunday, Yair Netanyahu tweeted a satirical photo. 
&nbsp; 
It was a superimposed image of Hindu deity Goddess Durga. Her many arms were raised -- showing the middle finger.

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The caption read- know your place, you despicable people. This tweet was offensive to many, especially Indians and they criticised Yair Netanyahu for insulting Hinduism.

Some Twitter users did give him the benefit of doubt. They said Yair Netanyahu may be ignorant about the Hindu faith. But overall, the response was not in his favour.

Yair was forced to take the photo down and de followed it with an apology...

'I’ve tweeted a meme from a satirical page, criticising political figures in Israel. I didn’t realize the meme also portrayed an image connected to the majestic Hindu faith. I apologize'

The political figures he referring to was Liar Ben Ari. His face was superimposed on the diety's face. Ari is the prosecutor in Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption cases. In the photo beside him was Israel's attorney general Avichai Mandelbit. His face was superimposed on that of the tiger.

&nbsp;Both Mandelbit and Ben Ari are important figures in Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption cases. The prime minister is currently under trial and faces a total of 3 cases. If convicted, the 70-year-old prime minister could be behind bars for more than a decade. This is just one of the many problems facing Netanyahu right now...

Meanwhile, problems are rising along Israel's northern border with Lebanon and Syria. Israeli forces have clashed with the Hezbollah. It is a Lebanese armed group- funded by Iran. Heavy shelling was reported after Israel claimed that it has thwarted an infiltration attempt by the Hezbollah. The latter denied it. But Netanyahu says his country will do everything necessary to defend itself, saying "My impression is that the Israeli army is well prepared for any possible scenario. We continue to take action to prevent Iranian military entrenchment in our region''.

There have been no casualties so far but the conflict can escalate any moment given the bitter enmity between the two sides. Israel and the Hezbollah had fought a month-long war back in 2006. The conflict that followed killed around 1200 people in Lebanon. Israel has lost over 121 soldiers and 44 civilians.

Israel's northern frontier happens to be among the most combustible fronts in the region.

The recent flare-up comes days after a Hezbollah member was killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike. 
&nbsp;

Yair Netanyahu, 29-year-old social media-savvy son of Israel Prime Minister is making headlines for all the wrong reasons. He wrote to WION this evening: 'I love India, Jai Hind'.

Yair Netanyahu, 29-year-old social media-savvy son of Israel Prime Minister is making headlines for all the wrong reasons. He wrote to WION this evening: 'I love India, Jai Hind'. The story goes back to the weekend. On Sunday, Yair Netanyahu tweeted a satirical photo. It was a superimposed image of Hindu deity Goddess Durga. Her many arms were raised -- showing the middle finger. × The caption read- know your place, you despicable people. This tweet was offensive to many, especially Indians and they criticised Yair Netanyahu for insulting Hinduism. Some Twitter users did give him the benefit of doubt. They said Yair Netanyahu may be ignorant about the Hindu faith. But overall, the response was not in his favour. Yair was forced to take the photo down and de followed it with an apology... 'I’ve tweeted a meme from a satirical page, criticising political figures in Israel. I didn’t realize the meme also portrayed an image connected to the majestic Hindu faith. I apologize' The political figures he referring to was Liar Ben Ari. His face was superimposed on the diety's face. Ari is the prosecutor in Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption cases. In the photo beside him was Israel's attorney general Avichai Mandelbit. His face was superimposed on that of the tiger. Both Mandelbit and Ben Ari are important figures in Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption cases. The prime minister is currently under trial and faces a total of 3 cases. If convicted, the 70-year-old prime minister could be behind bars for more than a decade. This is just one of the many problems facing Netanyahu right now... Meanwhile, problems are rising along Israel's northern border with Lebanon and Syria. Israeli forces have clashed with the Hezbollah. It is a Lebanese armed group- funded by Iran. Heavy shelling was reported after Israel claimed that it has thwarted an infiltration attempt by the Hezbollah. The latter denied it. But Netanyahu says his country will do everything necessary to defend itself, saying "My impression is that the Israeli army is well prepared for any possible scenario. We continue to take action to prevent Iranian military entrenchment in our region''. There have been no casualties so far but the conflict can escalate any moment given the bitter enmity between the two sides. Israel and the Hezbollah had fought a month-long war back in 2006. The conflict that followed killed around 1200 people in Lebanon. Israel has lost over 121 soldiers and 44 civilians. Israel's northern frontier happens to be among the most combustible fronts in the region. The recent flare-up comes days after a Hezbollah member was killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike.

Benjamin Netanyahu's son courts trouble with tweet, apologises

Hours after apologising to Hindus after he faced flak from some Indians who found one of his tweets to be "quite offensive", Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's eldest son Yair has responded to WION's story.

In his reponse to WION's story on its Twitter handle, junior Netanyahu wrote&nbsp;'I love India! Jai Hind!'.&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/netanyahus-son-apologises-after-his-tweet-offends-indians-316471">Netanyahu's son apologises after his tweet offends Indians</a>

On Sunday, the 29-year-old Yair, who is very active on social media and often defends his father's policies, posted a picture of the Hindu goddess Durga, with the face of Liat Ben Ari, the prosecutor in his father's corruption cases, superimposed over the goddess' face.

Her many arms were also raised giving the middle finger.

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<a href="https://t.co/hempNhuW0u">https://t.co/hempNhuW0u</a>
— Yair Netanyahu 🇮🇱 (@YairNetanyahu) <a href="https://twitter.com/YairNetanyahu/status/1288081667366817792?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 28, 2020</a></blockquote>
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''I’ve tweeted a meme from a satirical page, critizing political figures in Israel. I didn’t realize the meme also portrayed an image conected to the majestic Hindu faith,'' he said on Twitter.

&nbsp;''As soon as I realised it from comments of our Indian friends, I have removed the tweet. I apologize,'' he added.

The Twitter users were split in their reaction over the post with some Indians harshly criticising him for the offensive tweet while others giving him the benefit of doubt and attributing it to general ignorance about the Hindu faith in the West.

Hours after apologising to Hindus after he faced flak from some Indians who found one of his tweets to be "quite offensive", Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's eldest son Yair has responded to WION's story.

Hours after apologising to Hindus after he faced flak from some Indians who found one of his tweets to be "quite offensive", Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's eldest son Yair has responded to WION's story. In his reponse to WION's story on its Twitter handle, junior Netanyahu wrote 'I love India! Jai Hind!'. Also read: Netanyahu's son apologises after his tweet offends Indians On Sunday, the 29-year-old Yair, who is very active on social media and often defends his father's policies, posted a picture of the Hindu goddess Durga, with the face of Liat Ben Ari, the prosecutor in his father's corruption cases, superimposed over the goddess' face. Her many arms were also raised giving the middle finger. https://t.co/hempNhuW0u — Yair Netanyahu 🇮🇱 (@YairNetanyahu) July 28, 2020 × ''I’ve tweeted a meme from a satirical page, critizing political figures in Israel. I didn’t realize the meme also portrayed an image conected to the majestic Hindu faith,'' he said on Twitter. ''As soon as I realised it from comments of our Indian friends, I have removed the tweet. I apologize,'' he added. The Twitter users were split in their reaction over the post with some Indians harshly criticising him for the offensive tweet while others giving him the benefit of doubt and attributing it to general ignorance about the Hindu faith in the West.

'I love India! Jai Hind!' says Yair Netanyahu in response to WION's report on 'offensive' tweet

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's eldest son Yair has apologised to Hindus after he faced flak from some Indians who found one of his tweets to be "quite offensive".

On Sunday, the 29-year-old Yair, who is very active on social media and often defends his father's policies, posted a picture of the Hindu goddess Durga, with the face of Liat Ben Ari, the prosecutor in his father's corruption cases, superimposed over the goddess' face. Her many arms were also raised giving the middle finger.

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הצייצן הבטלן עשה עכשיו שריפה גם עם ההודים, ומתנצל. <a href="https://t.co/tUeuMv5sCc">pic.twitter.com/tUeuMv5sCc</a>
— Ben Caspit בן כספית (@BenCaspit) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenCaspit/status/1287764290699755522?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2020</a></blockquote>
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"I've tweeted a meme from a satirical page, criticising political figures in Israel. I didn't realise the meme also portrayed an image connected to the majestic Hindu faith. As soon as I realised it from comments of our Indian friends, I have removed the tweet. I apologise," Yair said in a tweet.

Attorney General Avichai Mandelbit's face was superimposed over that of a tiger accompanying the goddess under a caption that said, "know your place you despicable people".

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-israel-to-jointly-develop-rapid-covid-19-testing-kits-315481">India, Israel to jointly develop rapid COVID-19 testing kits</a>

The Twitter users were split in their reaction over the post with some Indians harshly criticising him for the offensive tweet while others giving him the benefit of doubt and attributing it to general ignorance about the Hindu faith in the West.

Yair, who has been at the centre of several controversies, was appreciated by some Israelis for "showing courage in apologising for his mistake", but was also condemned in equal measure by others for "being irresponsible".

Earlier this month, Yair issued an apology to journalist Dana Weiss for appearing to suggest the top news anchor had attained her position through sexual favours, according to a local media report.

Prime Minister Netanyahu's trial on charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes opened in May in a Jerusalem court. 
He has said that the allegations are baseless and that he is a victim of a wide-ranging conspiracy.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's eldest son Yair has apologised to Hindus after he faced flak from some Indians who found one of his tweets to be "quite offensive".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's eldest son Yair has apologised to Hindus after he faced flak from some Indians who found one of his tweets to be "quite offensive". On Sunday, the 29-year-old Yair, who is very active on social media and often defends his father's policies, posted a picture of the Hindu goddess Durga, with the face of Liat Ben Ari, the prosecutor in his father's corruption cases, superimposed over the goddess' face. Her many arms were also raised giving the middle finger. הצייצן הבטלן עשה עכשיו שריפה גם עם ההודים, ומתנצל. pic.twitter.com/tUeuMv5sCc — Ben Caspit בן כספית (@BenCaspit) July 27, 2020 × "I've tweeted a meme from a satirical page, criticising political figures in Israel. I didn't realise the meme also portrayed an image connected to the majestic Hindu faith. As soon as I realised it from comments of our Indian friends, I have removed the tweet. I apologise," Yair said in a tweet. Attorney General Avichai Mandelbit's face was superimposed over that of a tiger accompanying the goddess under a caption that said, "know your place you despicable people". Also read: India, Israel to jointly develop rapid COVID-19 testing kits The Twitter users were split in their reaction over the post with some Indians harshly criticising him for the offensive tweet while others giving him the benefit of doubt and attributing it to general ignorance about the Hindu faith in the West. Yair, who has been at the centre of several controversies, was appreciated by some Israelis for "showing courage in apologising for his mistake", but was also condemned in equal measure by others for "being irresponsible". Earlier this month, Yair issued an apology to journalist Dana Weiss for appearing to suggest the top news anchor had attained her position through sexual favours, according to a local media report. Prime Minister Netanyahu's trial on charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes opened in May in a Jerusalem court. He has said that the allegations are baseless and that he is a victim of a wide-ranging conspiracy.

Netanyahu's son apologises after his tweet offends Indians

Demonstrations continue to rage in Israel after thousands more gather to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Saturday. These demonstrators gathered outside Israeli PM's residence.&nbsp;

In pics:<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/israel-protests-soar-over-governments-inadequate-coronavirus-response-and-corruption-315104#crime-minister-315097">&nbsp;</a><a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/israel-protests-soar-over-governments-inadequate-coronavirus-response-and-corruption-315104#crime-minister-315097">Israel: Protests soar over government's inadequate coronavirus response and corruption</a>

These protests have been on for a few weeks now and target Netanyahu's government for its failure to handle the coronavirus crisis. Corruption charges against Netanyahu have added more fuel to these protests.&nbsp;

Many demonstrators held placards to criticise the Prime Minister. “Bibi, go home,” read one sign held by a protester. Another placard read “Everyone can see that the emperor has lost his clothes.”

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Wearing protective masks, the demonstrators marched from Netanyahu's official residence to Israel's parliament, holding up signs that read "Crime Minister" and calling on the five-term premier to step down.

Last week, Israel police used water cannons to disperse the crowd in Jerusalem. Israel is reporting an average of 2,000 coronavirus cases daily.&nbsp;

The pandemic has battered the country's economy after the unemployment rate shot to nearly 20 per cent.&nbsp;

In an apparent bid to quell public anger, Netanyahu this week announced plans to send cash to all Israelis -- a measure criticised by some experts who said the economy needed targeted assistance, not a nationwide payout. &nbsp;

Demonstrations continue to rage in Israel after thousands more gather to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Saturday. These demonstrators gathered outside Israeli PM's residence.

Demonstrations continue to rage in Israel after thousands more gather to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Saturday. These demonstrators gathered outside Israeli PM's residence. In pics: Israel: Protests soar over government's inadequate coronavirus response and corruption These protests have been on for a few weeks now and target Netanyahu's government for its failure to handle the coronavirus crisis. Corruption charges against Netanyahu have added more fuel to these protests. Many demonstrators held placards to criticise the Prime Minister. “Bibi, go home,” read one sign held by a protester. Another placard read “Everyone can see that the emperor has lost his clothes.” × Wearing protective masks, the demonstrators marched from Netanyahu's official residence to Israel's parliament, holding up signs that read "Crime Minister" and calling on the five-term premier to step down. Last week, Israel police used water cannons to disperse the crowd in Jerusalem. Israel is reporting an average of 2,000 coronavirus cases daily. The pandemic has battered the country's economy after the unemployment rate shot to nearly 20 per cent. In an apparent bid to quell public anger, Netanyahu this week announced plans to send cash to all Israelis -- a measure criticised by some experts who said the economy needed targeted assistance, not a nationwide payout.

Israelis continue to protest against government's response to coronavirus crisis

An Israeil firm that claims it has find a cure for diabetes has said it will send a request for initiation of human clinical trials next month in the UK.&nbsp;

Betalin Therapeutics says it has created micro pancreas that will free diabetics from the need of insulin injections and blood sugar monitoring. The company says the "bio-artificial" pancreas can be used by type-1 diabetis patients and people with type-2 disease who require insulin injections.&nbsp;

Betalin Therapeutics aims to begin human testing early in 2021 and expects to launch it in the market in 2024, reports Guardian.&nbsp;

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/1-in-10-hospitalised-covid-19-patients-with-diabetes-dies-study-301734">1 in 10 hospitalised Covid-19 patients with diabetes dies: Study</a>

The innovation is based on a biological scaffold, adapted from pig lung tissue. These hold beta cells which release insulin according to a patient's blood sugar levels.&nbsp;

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/why-new-orleans-coronavirus-death-rate-is-leaping-diabetes-obesity-a-reason-290201">Why New Orleans coronavirus death rate is leaping? Diabetes, obesity a reason</a>

These artificial pancreas are very small and is implanted from the thigh using local anaesthesia.

"Our unique technology allows the body to heal itself,"&nbsp;said Nikolai Kunicher, the chief executive of the Israeli company said, adding that right now there focus is diabtetes but they intend to use this technology for other diseases too.&nbsp;

According to the International Diabetes Federation, over 460 million people around the world suffer from diabetes, however not all of them have been diagnosed.&nbsp;

A World Health Organization (WHO) study in 2016 said diabetes was the seventh most common cause of death, ahead of road injuries. 
&nbsp;

An Israeil firm that claims it has find a cure for diabetes has said it will send a request for initiation of human clinical trials next month in the UK. Betalin Therapeutics says it has created micro pancreas that will free diabetics from the need of insulin injections and blood sugar monitoring.

An Israeil firm that claims it has find a cure for diabetes has said it will send a request for initiation of human clinical trials next month in the UK. Betalin Therapeutics says it has created micro pancreas that will free diabetics from the need of insulin injections and blood sugar monitoring. The company says the "bio-artificial" pancreas can be used by type-1 diabetis patients and people with type-2 disease who require insulin injections. Betalin Therapeutics aims to begin human testing early in 2021 and expects to launch it in the market in 2024, reports Guardian. Also read | 1 in 10 hospitalised Covid-19 patients with diabetes dies: Study The innovation is based on a biological scaffold, adapted from pig lung tissue. These hold beta cells which release insulin according to a patient's blood sugar levels. Also read | Why New Orleans coronavirus death rate is leaping? Diabetes, obesity a reason These artificial pancreas are very small and is implanted from the thigh using local anaesthesia. "Our unique technology allows the body to heal itself," said Nikolai Kunicher, the chief executive of the Israeli company said, adding that right now there focus is diabtetes but they intend to use this technology for other diseases too. According to the International Diabetes Federation, over 460 million people around the world suffer from diabetes, however not all of them have been diagnosed. A World Health Organization (WHO) study in 2016 said diabetes was the seventh most common cause of death, ahead of road injuries.

Israeli firm says pancreas to cure diabetes ready for trials in UK

Israel: Protests soar over government's inadequate coronavirus response and corruption

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