COPENHAGEN: Denmark said on Monday it will send its military personnel back to the Iraqi Al-Asad base on March 1 to restart training of Iraqi security forces in the fight against Daesh.
The Nordic NATO-member last month removed most of the 130 military personnel it had stationed at the Al-Asad base due to security concerns in the wake of an Iranian missile attack on the air base on Jan 8.
Denmark’s forces at the base are part of the international coalition fighting Daesh in Iraq and Syria.
The Danish defense ministry said on Monday the security situation was now no different than before the attack, which was why it had assessed it would be safe for the Danish soldiers to return to the base.
“In the fight against terror, it is important that Iraq does not again become a hotbed of terrorists’ recruitment and training,” said Defense Minister Trine Bramsen in a statement.
“Therefore, it is important that we resume the training of Iraqi security personnel so they, in the long run, can take care of the security in Iraq themselves,”
Danish troops to return to Al-Asad air base in Iraq on March 1
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Danish troops to return to Al-Asad air base in Iraq on March 1
- Denmark’s forces are part of the international coalition fighting Daesh in Iraq and Syria
Israeli fire kills three in Gaza, as US seeks to advance Gaza deal
- Talks were held on Saturday
CAIRO: Israeli fire killed three Palestinians in two separate incidents in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, while an Israeli drone wounded four others in Gaza City, local health authorities said on Sunday.
Medics said Israeli fire killed at least two people east of Tuffah neighborhood in the northern Gaza Strip, while a 41-year-old man was killed by Israeli forces in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave.
Earlier medical workers said an Israeli drone exploded on the rooftop of a multi-floor building in Gaza City, wounding four civilians in the street nearby.
There was no comment by the Israeli military on any of the incidents.
US ENVOYS MEET WITH ISRAEL PM NETANYAHU
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met in Israel on Saturday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, mainly to discuss Gaza, Witkoff said on Sunday.
“The discussion was constructive and positive, with both sides aligned on next steps and the importance of continued cooperation on all matters critical to the region,” Witkoff said in a post on X.
Gaza has been reduced to rubble in the war that was triggered by an attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on southern Israel on October 7, 2023 in which 1,200 people were killed, according to Israeli tallies.
The Gaza health ministry says more than 71,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed by Israeli fire since then. It also says that at least 480 people have been killed by Israeli fire since a ceasefire agreement came into effect last October.
BOTH SIDES TRADE BLAME FOR VIOLATIONS
Israel has said four soldiers had been killed by militants in Gaza since the ceasefire began. Both sides have traded blame for violations of the truce.
Earlier this month, Washington said the plan had moved into a second phase, in which Israel is expected to withdraw troops further from Gaza, and Hamas is due to yield control of the territory’s administration.
Meanwhile, in Khan Younis, more than 100 people attended the funeral of a person killed by Israeli drone fire on Saturday, after holding special prayers in front of his white-shrouded body at the morgue in Nasser Hospital.
“They are liars, there is no ceasefire,” said Fares Erheimat, a relative of the dead man, during the funeral.
