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Hamas Chief Haniyeh’s Sister Arrested in Southern Israel
Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh speaks during a press conference in Tehran, Iran, March 26, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
The sister of Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh, one of the Palestinian terror group’s most visible leaders, was arrested in southern Israel on Monday.
The 57-year-old woman lives with her family in Tel Sheva, a Bedouin city near Beersheba in Israel. She was detained in a joint raid by Israel Police and the Shin Bet security agency.
While the woman was not initially named — only referred to as “a relative of a senior member of Hamas” — Israel media reported that police later identified the suspect as Sabah Avad al-Salam Haniyeh, one of Haniyeh’s sisters.
According to police, officials found documents, electronic devices, and other evidence linking Haniyeh’s sister to “serious security offenses.” She was arrested at the scene on suspicion of having contact with Hamas operatives and supporting acts of terrorism.
Police also said they found hundreds of thousands of shekels in cash in the house.
The Hamas chief’s sister is set to appear in the Beersheba Magistrate’s Court on Monday to be arraigned on charges of “inciting and supporting acts of terrorism in Israel.”
“The Southern District will not hesitate by any means in the war against terrorism and will use all the means and tools at its disposal, everywhere, in order to create deterrence at the same time as thwarting terrorist attacks, with the aim of ensuring the safety and security of the citizens of Israel,” Maj. Gen. Amir Cohen, the commander of the Israel Police’s Southern District, said of the arrest.
The arrest came just under six months after Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel from Gaza, murdering 1,200 people and kidnapping 253 others as hostages. More than half the hostages are still being held in the Palestinian enclave. The Oct. 7 onslaught was the largest single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
Haniyeh said at a conference of the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) in Doha, Qatar, in January that “we should hold on to the victory that took place on Oct. 7 and build upon it, adding, “Time is on our side.”
The Hamas chief reportedly has an estimated net worth of $4 billion and lives a life of luxury abroad in exile in Qatar.
The fact that Haniyeh’s sister lived in Israel caused ire among Israelis in the early days of the war, as her brother was arguably the most wanted man in the country.
Haniyeh’s three total sisters all have Israeli citizenship, live in Tel Sheva, and were married to Arab Israelis. Two are now widowed.
The arrest came a day after an Arab from a neighboring Bedouin town, Rahat, carried out a terror attack at Beersheba’s main bus station. A terrorist stabbed an Israeli soldier, lightly wounding him, before another soldier killed the terrorist.
The post Hamas Chief Haniyeh’s Sister Arrested in Southern Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Lebanon Must Disarm Hezbollah to Have a Shot at Better Days, Says US Envoy
Thomas Barrack at the Brooklyn Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn, New York, U.S., November 4, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
i24 News – Lebanon’s daunting social, economic and political issues would not get resolved unless the state persists in the efforts to disarm Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy behind so much of the unrest and destruction, special US envoy Tom Barrack told The National.
“You have Israel on one side, you have Iran on the other, and now you have Syria manifesting itself so quickly that if Lebanon doesn’t move, it’s going to be Bilad Al Sham again,” he said, using the historical Arabic name for the region sometimes known as “larger Syria.”
The official stressed the need to follow through on promises to disarm the Iranian proxy, which suffered severe blows from Israel in the past year, including the elimination of its entire leadership, and is considered a weakened though still dangerous jihadist outfit.
“There are issues that we have to arm wrestle with each other over to come to a final conclusion. Remember, we have an agreement, it was a great agreement. The problem is, nobody followed it,” he told The National.
Barrack spoke on the heels of a trip to Beirut, where he proposed a diplomatic plan for the region involving the full disarmament of Hezbollah by the Lebanese state.
The post Lebanon Must Disarm Hezbollah to Have a Shot at Better Days, Says US Envoy first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Report: Putin Urges Iran to Accept ‘Zero Enrichment’ Nuclear Deal With US
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of a cultural forum dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the birth of the Turkmen poet and philosopher Magtymguly Fragi, in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Oct. 11, 2024. Photo: Sputnik/Alexander Scherbak/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Iranian leadership that he supports the idea of a nuclear deal in which Iran is unable to enrich uranium, the Axios website reported on Saturday. The Russian strongman also relayed the message to his American counterpart, President Donald Trump, the report said.
Iranian news agency Tasnim issued a denial, citing an “informed source” as saying Putin had not sent any message to Iran in this regard.
Also on Saturday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that “Any negotiated solution must respect Iran’s right to enrichment. No agreement without recognizing our right to enrichment. If negotiations occur, the only topic will be the nuclear program. No other issues, especially defense or military matters, will be on the agenda.”
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Syria’s Al-Sharaa Attending At Least One Meeting With Israeli Officials in Azerbaijan
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/Pool
i24 News – Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is attending at least one meeting with Israeli officials in Azerbaijan today, despite sources in Damascus claiming he wasn’t attending, a Syrian source close to President Al-Sharaa tells i24NEWS.
The Syrian source stated that this is a series of two or three meetings between the sides, with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani also in attendance, along with Ahmed Al-Dalati, the Syrian government’s liaison for security meetings with Israel.
The high-level Israeli delegation includes a special envoy of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, as well as security and military figures.
The purpose of the meetings is to discuss further details of the security agreement to be signed between Israel and Syria, the Iranian threat in Syria and Lebanon, Hezbollah’s weapons, the weapons of Palestinian militias, the Palestinians camps in Lebanon, and the future of Palestinian refugees from Gaza in the region.
The possibility of opening an Israeli coordination office in Damascus, without diplomatic status, might also be discussed.
The source stated that the decision to hold the meetings in Azerbaijan, made by Israel and the US, is intended to send a message to Iran.
The post Syria’s Al-Sharaa Attending At Least One Meeting With Israeli Officials in Azerbaijan first appeared on Algemeiner.com.