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The Hajj season for the year 1447 AH is thoroughly devoid of any epidemic outbreaks or threats that affect public health, the Saudi Ministry of Health confirmed in a statement on Saturday.The statement added that the general health conditions of pilgrims have been stable and assured throughout the whole season, despite the consecutive epidemics that engulfed the world, along with global health developments that precipitated leveraging the highest levels of surveillance and alertness.This year’s pilgrimage season marked global epidemic developments, including Ebola in several nations, as well as the monitoring of cases linked to hantavirus at the global level, the statement reads.It further noted that this move has reinforced the importance of early readiness, persistent epidemiological surveillance, coordination with national and international health authorities, and strengthening preparedness to respond to any potential public health risks.The Ministry reemphasized that no suspected or confirmed epidemics have been reported, including both Ebola and hantavirus among pilgrims during this season.The health system has been operating 24/7 through leveraging preventive treatment, first aid, and awareness services, alongside epidemiological investigations, rapid response measures, and an ongoing whole-of-government approach employed during Hajj operations, enabling pilgrims to perform rites in a serene environment, the statement underlined.Saudi Minister of Health Fahad Abdulrahman AlJalajel said the Hajj season was free of epidemics and health threats in the wake of consecutive global health challenges.He added that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia senses its responsibility in protecting human health, not only inside Saudi borders but beyond them, to ensure global public health safety.This endeavor stems from Saudi Arabia’s standing in hosting this significant human congregation, with Muslims coming from a variety of countries of the world and then returning home after finishing their rites while they are safe and fit, AlJalajel clarified.On Friday, Saudi Arabia announced the success of this year’s pilgrimage season on multiple levels. Source link
Pilgrims continued Saturday the stoning rituals on the third day of Tashreeq and the final day of Hajj.According to Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the pilgrims flocked to throw the three pebbles, beginning with the small, then the middle and the large pebbles, pursuing the approach of the Prophet Muhammad [Peace be upon him] in a spiritual atmosphere of serene feelings.The agency pointed out that these rituals featured a high flow of pilgrims since the early dawn, undergirded by meticulous crowd-management plans, as well as integrated field organization.With the stoning rituals completed on the last day of Tashreeq, pilgrims who came late wrap up their rites in Mina ahead of heading to the Holy Mosque to perform the farewell circumambulation. Source link
* Hamas says Netanyahu’s plan equates to ethnic cleansing* Ceasefire deal left contentious issues unresolved* Analysts warn move risks increase in violence* ‘Where do we go? To the sea?’ asks Gaza residents Hamas said on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration that his country would expand its area of control in Gaza was a dangerous escalation, as European states and residents of the Palestinian territory also voiced alarm at the plan. Under a ceasefire deal in October Israel’s military was to remain in control of 53% of Gaza, but Netanyahu said on Friday that it would expand that area to an initial 70%, without laying out details or a timeline.The Palestinian militant group, which triggered two years of devastating warfare in Gaza with its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, described his comments as a plan for ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of Palestinians.MAJOR DISPUTES POSTPONED”Any attempt to impose a new reality of occupation in Gaza is null and illegitimate,” said Ismail al-Thawabta, head of the Hamas-run Gaza government media office, adding that Netanyahu’s statement “represents a dangerous escalation”.More than eight months into the ceasefire, and with global attention fixed on the war in Iran, Gaza’s underlying conflict remains stubbornly unresolved with continued Israeli attacks, little aid reaching civilians and the risk of major new violence. Israel has already expanded its area of control in Gaza from the 53% lying behind a “yellow line” mapped into the ceasefire deal up to around 64%, with an area it has designated as restricted in maps shared with aid groups.Any further reduction in space available to the more than 2 million Gaza residents who are mostly crammed into tents in the tiny Palestinian territory risks worsening already dire conditions there.”Where do we go? To the sea? There is no space,” said Mohammed al-Shagra, 72, in Khan Younis. Last year’s deal brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump established a Board of Peace to oversee a phased ceasefire, and was ratified by the United Nations Security Council.However, many of the toughest areas of dispute including the disarmament of Hamas, a full Israeli withdrawal and the make-up of a Gaza government were postponed to later in the process. The Board of Peace negotiators have been talking to both sides on the disarmament issue.Israel and Hamas have repeatedly accused each other of violating the truce. Israeli strikes in Gaza have killed more than 900 Palestinians since the start of the truce while Palestinian militant attacks have killed four Israeli soldiers.Israel’s military and the prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for additional information and comment on Netanyahu’s statement.A spokesperson for the Board of Peace said it would not have a comment on Netanyahu’s statement.A British foreign ministry spokesperson said any further expansion of Israeli control in Gaza would be unacceptable and risk exacerbating an already dire humanitarian situation.Fellow permanent U.N. Security Council member France did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A German foreign ministry spokesperson said Germany was concerned about Israeli plans to take more of Gaza and opposed a permanent division of the Palestinian territory.RISK OF FURTHER VIOLENCE Facing elections this year and under pressure for Israel’s failure to secure its strategic goals in wars in Iran and Lebanon, Netanyahu may be seeking to bolster his standing with voters.”He’s determined to look tough in front of the electorate and he’s blamed by his opponents for having fought this seven-front war, but having won none of the wars,” said Max Rodenbeck, Israel-Palestine Project Director at International Crisis Group.”Unless there’s some sort of pushback from the Trump administration it really does risk a return to something very bloody,” he added, pointing to other ways in which Israel has been ramping up pressure on Hamas including continued aid restrictions on Gaza and strikes targeting Hamas figures.For people inside Gaza, where nearly all the population had to flee their homes during the war and with most still living in temporary tents or shelters, the prospect of increased Israeli military pressure is alarming.”We see no ceasefire or anything and they keep advancing beyond the yellow line. For how long will the world stay silent?” said Mohammed al-Jundi, a displaced man in Gaza City.In Israel, a return to tougher military pressure is seen by security hawks as the only way to force Hamas to disarm and achieve a longer-term agreement.”It looks as if we are taking a step towards another collision. But I believe this time it will be much shorter and maybe would open the path towards a new future,” said Kobi Michael, a researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and a former official in the country’s strategic affairs ministry. Source link
Climate change is gradually shrinking the times of year when the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage can take place in safe weather conditions, according to a new study published on Friday.The hajj in western Saudi Arabia, one of the most arid areas on the planet, is one of the world’s largest religious gatherings, when hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are exposed to extreme heat.This year’s gathering was again held in temperatures exceeding 40C.According to the study by the Britain-based group World Weather Attribution, temperatures recorded in May in Mecca “are now typical of summer in the 1980s as climate change shrinks the safe window” for the hajj.The hajj’s timing is governed by the Islamic lunar calendar, and it moves back by about 11 days each year in the Gregorian calendar.After taking place for several years during the hot season, this year’s was at the end of May, and in 2027 it is expected to take place in mid-May.The timing will move gradually closer to winter, offering a temporary respite, but this will not be enough to offset the rise in temperatures, the researchers said.Climate change “is extending the duration of extreme heat in Mecca into historically cooler months,” the study said.”Average temperatures above 32 degrees C (90F) — typical of summer between 1970 and 1990 — are now expected almost every year in May. Climate change has increased these averages by about 3.5 degrees C” since pre-industrial times, it said.The mainly open-air Islamic ritual, one of the five pillars of Islam, is held over several days in and around the holy city of Mecca.After more than 1,300 people died during the 2024 pilgrimage in searing temperatures of above 50C, the Saudi authorities strengthened anti-heat measures, mainly through the massive use of air conditioning.A study published in 2019 in the US journal Geophysical Research Letters said heat stress during the hajj could once again exceed the “extreme danger threshold” between 2047 and 2052, and then between 2079 and 2086. Source link
Israeli air strikes on several areas in southern Lebanon have killed at least 18 people and injured several others, according to Lebanese state media. Lebanon’s National News Agency said civil defense teams recovered four bodies, including children, after a strike targeted a house in the town of Adloun. Another strike on the outskirts of the same town reportedly killed eight Syrians. Additional strikes hit a building in the town of Abbassiyeh, killing four people, while two others were killed in Deir Qanoun Al-Nahr. Separately, an Israeli drone strike targeting a motorcycle on the Abbassiyeh–Tyre road caused several injuries. Lebanese authorities say the overall death toll from Israeli attacks since the escalation of hostilities has risen to 3,355, with more than 10,000 people injured. The strikes come despite an ongoing truce agreement that took effect on April 16 and was extended for a second time on May 15 for an additional 45 days, amid growing international concern over worsening humanitarian and security conditions in the region Source link
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said on Thursday that the death toll from Israeli attacks since March 2 had risen to 3,324, with 10,027 others injured. In a statement, the ministry’s Emergency Operations Center said the figures reflected the cumulative impact of ongoing hostilities across the country.Israeli forces have continued operations in southern Lebanon despite a ceasefire agreement that came into effect on April 16 and was extended for a second time on May 15 for an additional 45 days. The continued violence has prompted warnings over worsening security and humanitarian conditions in the region. Source link
Ben-Gurion International Airport, Israel’s main air gateway near Tel Aviv, is operating at about one-third of capacity due to the presence of US refuelling aircraft, threatening heavy flight cancellations this summer, the head of the Israel Airports Authority said yesterday.Sharon Kedmi, director-general of the authority, told Kan’s Reshet Bet radio station that 70% of activity at the airport is limited because of the space and resources being taken up by American military activity.”We are only utilising one-third of the airport’s operational capacity,” he said. “We are at the limit of our capabilities. There will be flights that we will announce in the coming days that are being cancelled.”Foreign carriers will not be able to return soon, and as many as 3mn passengers will see their flights cancelled, he added.Dozens of US tanker planes are currently based at Ben-Gurion.The US embassy in Jerusalem referred Reuters to the State Department for comment, which did not immediately respond.Kedmi told the station that in the last two months the authority has lost 700mn shekels ($248mn) and if the situation continues, its loss could turn into billions.He noted that 18mn passengers were projected to pass through the airport, but “right now it looks like we won’t exceed 15mn”.”We have no information when the US military’s activities at the airport will end. We are in a constant state of flux,” Kedmi said.Earlier this month, Israeli media cited Civil Aviation Authority head Shmuel Zakay as saying that US military aircraft at Ben-Gurion were crippling civilian flights, delaying foreign airlines’ return and pushing up airfares.Media reported that at the start of the Iran war, Israeli carriers moved aircraft abroad and they have not all returned. Source link
A girl walks through the site of an overnight Israeli military strike on structures and tents housing displaced families, killing ten Palestinians, in Gaza City. –…
Rescue workers and local residents inspect the damage to a building following an Israeli air strike in the Choueifat area, south of Beirut on the outskirts…
Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi condemned in the strongest possible terms the continued Iranian attacks on Kuwait.In a statement, Albudaiwi pointed out that the persistence of these attacks constitutes a flagrant violation of the principles of international law, the United Nations Charter, and the principles of good-neighbourliness.The GCC Secretary General underscored the full support of the GCC member states for the State of Kuwait in all measures it undertakes to maintain its security and stability, as well as the safety of its citizens and residents. Source link