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The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has expressed concern about the risk of ethnic cleansing being perpetrated by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.A UN Human Rights Officeآ reportآ released today raised concerns over ethnic cleansing by Israeli authorities in both Gaza and the West Bank, amid increased attacks and forcible transfers that appear aimed at a permanent displacement of Palestinians throughout the occupied territories.During the reporting period, from 1 November 2024 to 31 October 2025 “intensified attacks, the methodical destruction of entire neighbourhoods and the denial of humanitarian assistance appeared to aim at a permanent demographic shift in Gaza”, says the report. “This, together with forcible transfers, which appear to aim at a permanent displacement, raise concerns over ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank.”آ In the Gaza strip, the report details the continued killing and maiming of unprecedented numbers of civilians over the course of the reporting period by Israeli forces, the spread of famine, and the destruction of the remaining civilian infrastructure – imposing on Palestinians conditions of life increasingly incompatible with their continued existence in Gaza as a group.The report also says the patterns of deadly attacks witnessed in Gaza raised grave concerns that Israeli forces intentionally targeted civilians and civilian objects, and launched attacks knowing civilian harm would be excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage. Such acts would constitute war crimes, the report underlined.It details the deaths of at least 463 Palestinians, including 157 children, from starvation in the Gaza strip. The situation of famine and malnutrition, the report notes, was a direct result of actions taken by the Israeli Government, such as the blocking of entry and distribution of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Any use of starvation of the civilian population as a method of war constitutes a war crime, it states, adding that such conduct may also constitute crimes against humanity if committed as part of a systematic or widespread attack against a civilian population, and, if carried out with intent to destroy a national, ethnical, racial or religious group in whole or in part, may also constitute genocide.In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the report details the systematic unlawful use of force by Israeli security forces, the widespread arbitrary detention and torture and other ill-treatment of Palestinians in detention, and the extensive unlawful demolition of Palestinian homes. This is “used to systematically discriminate, oppress, control and dominate the Palestinian people”, the report says. The report also points to concerning incidents of unnecessary or disproportionate use of force by the Palestinian Authority. Source link
The United States is building a major force of naval and air assets in the Middle East, potentially setting the stage for a sustained military campaign against Iran. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened Tehran with military action if ongoing talks do not reach a replacement for the nuclear deal the US president tore up in 2018, during his first term in office. In addition to the ships and warplanes being deployed in the Middle East, the United States has tens of thousands of troops deployed on bases throughout the region, some of which could be vulnerable to Iranian counter-attacks. Washington currently has 13 warships in the Middle East: one aircraft carrier — the USS Abraham Lincoln — nine destroyers and three littoral combat ships, with more on the way, according to a US official. The USS Gerald R Ford — the world’s largest aircraft carrier — is currently in the Atlantic Ocean en route from the Caribbean to the Middle East, after being ordered there by Trump earlier this month. It is accompanied by three destroyers. It is rare for there to be two US aircraft carriers — which carry dozens of warplanes and are crewed by thousands of sailors — in the Middle East. The United States had two of the massive warships in the region in June last year when it targeted three Iranian nuclear sites during Israel’s 12-day campaign of strikes on Iran. The United States has also sent a large fleet of aircraft to the Middle East, according to open-source intelligence accounts on X and flight-tracking website Flightradar24. These include F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets, F-15 and F-16 warplanes, and the KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft that are needed to sustain their operations. Yesterday, Flightradar24 showed multiple KC-135s flying near or in the Middle East, as well as E3 Sentry airborne warning and control aircraft and cargo planes operating in the region. Trump ordered the Lincoln to the Middle East as Iran cracked down on protests that were initially driven by economic grievances, but which turned into a mass movement against the leadership. The leadership that took power after the 1979 revolution responded to the demonstrations with deadly force and has held onto power, with many opponents of the system looking to outside intervention as the most likely driver of change. Trump had repeatedly warned Iran that if it killed protesters, the United States would intervene militarily, and also encouraged Iranians to take over state institutions, saying “help is on the way.” US and Iranian officials held talks in Geneva on Tuesday aimed at averting US military intervention. Iran said following the talks that they had agreed on “guiding principles” for a deal to avoid conflict, but US Vice President JD Vance said Tehran had not yet acknowledged all of Washington’s red lines. Source link
Little Ramadan lanterns and string lights appeared on streets lined with collapsed buildings and piles of rubble in Gaza City, bringing joy and respite as Islam’s holiest month began — the first since October’s ceasefire.In the Omari mosque, dozens of worshippers performed the first Ramadan morning prayer, fajr, bare feet on the carpet but donning heavy jackets to stave off the winter cold. Palestinians gather for a mass fast-breaking iftar meal organized by the Turkish IHH Foundation, amid the rubble of destroyed buildings in Gaza City on February…
Indonesian Muslim women offer evening mass prayers Tarawih on the first night of holy fasting month of Ramadan, at Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh, Aceh, Indonesia, yesterday. Source link
Iran and Russia will conduct naval manoeuvres in the Sea of Oman today, following the latest round of talks between Tehran and Washington in Geneva, Iranian media reported. On Monday, the Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of Iran’s military, also launched exercises in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a challenge to US naval forces deployed in the region. “The joint naval exercise of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia will take place tomorrow (Thursday) in the Sea of Oman and in the northern Indian Ocean,” the ISNA agency reported, citing drill spokesman, RearAdmiral Hassan Maghsoudloo. “The aim is to strengthen maritime security and to deepen relations between the navies of the two countries,” he said, without specifying the duration of the drill.The war games come as Iran struck an upbeat tone following the second round of Oman-mediated negotiations in Geneva on Tuesday. Previous talks between the two foes collapsed following the unprecedented Israeli strike on Iran in June 2025, which sparked a 12-day war that the United States briefly joined. US President Donald Trump has deployed a significant naval force in the region, which he has described as an “armada.” Iranian officials have repeatedly threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, particularly during periods of tension with the United States, but it has never been closed. A key passageway for global shipments of oil and liquefied natural gas, the Strait of Hormuz has been the scene of several incidents in the past and has returned to the spotlight as pressure has ratcheted amid the US-Iran talks. Iran announced on Tuesday that it would partially close it for a few hours for “security” reasons during its own drills in the strait. Source link
Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine Rustem Umerov and other members of the Ukrainian delegation pose for a photo after a meeting…
Jerusalem Islamic Waqf reported that almost 60,000 worshipers flocked to Al-Aqsa Mosque and its compounds to perform Isha and Taraweeh prayers on the first day of the Holy month of Ramadan, amid tightened Israeli restrictions imposed on the gates and the mosque’s perimeter. It added that they came from various neighborhoods across occupied Jerusalem, as well as the 1948 lands, alongside a limited number of West Bank residents who had successfully crossed the military barricades surrounding the Holy City. According to local sources, occupation soldiers maximized restrictions on entry, preventing young people from approaching Al-Aqsa through the Gate of the Chain prior to Isha and Taraweeh prayers. Source link
Rescue workers recover a victim’s body amid the debris of a collapsed building following an explosion, in Karachi on February 19, 2026. (Photo by Rizwan TABASSUM…
Bangladesh’s newly sworn Prime Minister Tarique Rahman looks on during an oath taking ceremony at the South Plaza of the parliament building, following BNP’s landslide victory…
The UN human rights chief expressed alarm yesterday following reports of more than 50 civilians being killed in drone strikes in Sudan in two days in the last week. At least 57 civilians were killed between Sunday and Monday, including at least 15 children, in separate drone attacks in four states across Sudan, according to the UN. UN human rights chief Volker Turk said the killings were a reminder of the devastating consequences of drone warfare in Sudan, with civilians and civilian infrastructure targeted. Some 28 civilians were killed on Sunday in an alleged Sudanese Armed Forces drone strike on Al Safiya market in Sudari locality, North Kordofan, the UN said. The next day 26 civilians were killed in West Kordofan in an alleged SAF drone strike at a displacement shelter in Al Sunut. Source link