Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, April 14, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Israeli troops will remain in the buffer zones they have created in Gaza even after any settlement to end the war, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday, as efforts to revive a ceasefire agreement faltered.

Since resuming military operations last month, Israeli forces have carved out a broad “security zone” extending deep into Gaza and squeezing some 2 million Palestinians into ever smaller areas in the south and along the coastline.

“Unlike in the past, the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] is not evacuating areas that have been cleared and seized,” Katz said in a statement following a meeting with military commanders.

“The IDF will remain in the security zones as a buffer between the enemy and the communities in any temporary or permanent situation in Gaza — as in Lebanon and Syria.”

In a summary of its operations over the past month, the Israeli military said it now controls 30 percent of the Palestinian enclave.

In southern Gaza alone, Israeli forces have seized the border city of Rafah and pushed inland up to the so-called “Morag corridor” that runs from the eastern edge of Gaza to the Mediterranean Sea, between Rafah and the city of Khan Younis.

It already held a wide corridor across the central Netzarim area and has extended a buffer zone all around the frontier hundreds of meters (yards) inland, including the Shejaia area just to the east of Gaza City in the north.

Israel says its forces have killed hundreds of Hamas fighters, including many senior commanders of the Palestinian terrorist group, since March 18 but the operation has alarmed the United Nations and European countries.

More than 400,000 Palestinians have been displaced since hostilities resumed on March 18 after two months of relative calm, according to UN humanitarian agency OCHA.

Katz said Israel, which has blocked the delivery of relief supplies into the territory since early March, was creating infrastructure to allow distribution through civilian companies at a later date, but the blockade on aid would remain in place. Israeli officials have noted that Hamas often seizes humanitarian aid heading into Gaza for its own use and will sell the rest to Gazan civilians at high prices, using the money to fund its terrorism operations.

He said Israel would pursue a plan to allow Gazans who wished to leave the enclave to do so, although it remains unclear which countries would be willing to accept large numbers of Palestinians.

RED LINES

The comments from Katz, repeating Israel‘s demand on Hamas to disarm, underscore how far away the two sides remain from any ceasefire agreement, despite efforts by Egyptian mediators to revive efforts to reach a deal.

Hamas has repeatedly described calls to disarm as a red line it will not cross and has said Israeli troops must withdraw from Gaza under any permanent ceasefire.

“Any truce lacking real guarantees for halting the war, achieving full withdrawal, lifting the blockade, and beginning reconstruction will be a political trap,” Hamas said in a statement on Wednesday.

Two Israeli officials said this week there had been no progress in the talks despite media reports of a possible truce to allow the exchange of some of the 59 hostages still held in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners.

Israeli officials have said the increased military pressure will force Hamas to release the hostages but the government has faced large demonstrations by Israeli protesters demanding a deal to stop the fighting and get them back.

Israel launched its war in Gaza in response to the October 2023 attack by Hamas on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage.

The post Israel Will Keep Gaza Buffer Zone, Minister Says, as Truce Bid Stalls first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei visits the Iranian centrifuges in Tehran, Iran, June 11, 2023. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

Iran‘s right to enrich uranium is not negotiable, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Wednesday ahead of a second round of talks set to take place in Rome this weekend with the United States about Tehran’s disputed nuclear program.

The talks, which began in Oman on Saturday with the Gulf state acting as mediator, are the first between the two adversaries under US President Donald Trump, who has threatened military action if there is no deal.

Araqchi was responding to a comment made on Tuesday by top US negotiator Steve Witkoff, who said the Islamic Republic must “stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment” to reach a deal with Washington.

“We have heard contradictory statements from Witkoff, but real positions will be made clear at the negotiating table,” Araqchi was quoted by Iranian state media as saying in Tehran.

“We are ready to build trust regarding possible concerns over Iran‘s enrichment, but the principle of enrichment is not negotiable.”

Last weekend’s US-Iran talks in Oman were described by both sides as positive and constructive.

Western powers say Iran is refining uranium to a high degree of fissile purity beyond what is justifiable for a civilian energy program and close to the level suitable for atomic bomb fuel. Iran has long denied seeking nuclear weapons.

Iranian media said on Wednesday, without citing sources, that the second round of talks would be held in the Italian capital Rome on Saturday. It was earlier announced that the talks would resume in Oman.

Sources briefed on the matter confirmed the change of venue to Reuters.

Iran‘s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei compared the venue of the Iran-US nuclear talks to a goalpost in a post on X on Wednesday, saying moving it might “jeopardize any beginning” and that changing it was a “professional error.”

A diplomatic source said Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog whose inspectors monitor Iranian nuclear sites, had also been invited to Rome for the occasion of the talks.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani confirmed the talks would be in held in Rome but said Italy would not be involved.

“Italy simply wants to be a bridge for peace; we have no ambitions of any kind. Such a delicate negotiation is up to the parties involved and their willingness to achieve a concrete result,” Tajani said in a statement.

On Thursday Araqchi will deliver a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to Russian President Vladimir Putin during a trip to Russia, state media reported.

“Amidst important global developments, close, continuous and trusting communication between Iranian and Russian authorities will serve regional as well as international peace and stability,” Iranian Ambassador Kazem Jalali wrote on X.

The Kremlin on Tuesday declined to comment when asked if Russia was ready to take control of Iran‘s stocks of enriched uranium as part of a possible future nuclear deal between Iran and the United States.

Britain’s Guardian newspaper reported that Tehran was expected to reject a US proposal to transfer its stockpile of enriched uranium to a third country such as Russia as part of a deal Washington is seeking to curb Iran‘s nuclear activity.

The post Iran Says Its Right to Uranium Enrichment Is Non-Negotiable first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy transfers crude oil from the Iranian-flagged oil tanker Lana (former Pegas), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, Greece, May 26, 2022. REUTERS/Costas Baltas

The United States on Wednesday issued new sanctions targeting Iran’s oil exports, including against a China-based “teapot refinery,” as President Donald Trump’s administration seeks to ramp up pressure on Tehran.

The US Treasury Department said in a statement the action would increase pressure on Chinese importers of Iranian oil as Trump seeks to restore his “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, which includes efforts to drive its oil exports down to zero.

The action comes as the Trump administration has relaunched negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program this month, with talks in Oman last weekend and a second round expected in Rome this weekend.

The Treasury on Wednesday said it imposed sanctions on a China-based independent “teapot” refinery it accused of playing a role in purchasing more than $1 billion worth of Iranian crude oil.

Washington also issued additional sanctions on several companies and vessels it said were responsible for facilitating Iranian oil shipments to China as part of Iran’s “shadow fleet.”

Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York and China’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

China does not recognize US sanctions and is the largest importer of Iranian oil. China and Iran have built a trading system that uses mostly Chinese yuan and a network of middlemen, avoiding the dollar and exposure to US regulators.

“Any refinery, company, or broker that chooses to purchase Iranian oil or facilitate Iran’s oil trade places itself at serious risk,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in the statement.

GUIDANCE FOR SHIPPING

“The United States is committed to disrupting all actors providing support to Iran’s oil supply chain, which the regime uses to support its terrorist proxies and partners.”

The Treasury on Wednesday also updated guidance for shipping and maritime stakeholders on “detecting and mitigating Iranian oil sanctions evasion,” warning, among other things, that Iran depends on a vast shadow fleet to disguise oil shipments.

The Treasury said it was the sixth round of sanctions targeting Iranian oil sales since Trump restored his “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, which includes efforts to drive its oil exports down to zero in order to help prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.

In his first 2017-21 term, Trump withdrew the US from a 2015 deal between Iran and world powers that placed temporary limits on Tehran’s uranium enrichment activities in exchange for sanctions relief. Trump also reimposed sweeping US sanctions.

Since then, Iran has far surpassed that deal’s limits on uranium enrichment.

Western powers accuse Iran of having a clandestine agenda to develop nuclear weapons capability by enriching uranium to a high level of fissile purity, above what they say is justifiable for a civilian atomic energy program. Tehran says its nuclear program is wholly for civilian power purposes.

“All sanctions will be fully enforced under the Trump Administration’s maximum pressure campaign on Iran,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a separate statement on Wednesday.

“As long as Iran attempts to generate oil revenues to fund its destabilizing activities, the United States will hold both Iran and all its partners in sanctions evasion accountable.”

The post US Issues New Sanctions Targeting Chinese Importers of Iranian Oil first appeared on Algemeiner.com.