CAIRO: Arab foreign ministers on Wednesday denounced Israel’s siege of Gaza following the shock attack by Palestinian militants on Israel, demanding that aid be “immediately” allowed to enter the blockaded enclave.
Israel has imposed a “complete siege” on the Gaza Strip, cutting off the water supply, food, electricity and other essential supplies, after Saturday’s massive assault by Hamas militants that has killed hundreds on both sides.
On Wednesday, as Israel kept up its bombardment of targets in the crowded and impoverished coastal enclave for a fifth day, the only power plant in Gaza shut down.
The Palestinian enclave’s electricity authority made the announcement saying the plant had run out of fuel.
Meeting at Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Arab foreign ministers discussed the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas and demanded Israel lift its siege of Gaza.
They also called for the “immediate” dispatch of food, fuel and humanitarian aid to the impoverished and densely populated coastal enclave.
The Arab foreign ministers also urged Israel to reconsider its “unjust decision to cut electricity supply and water to Gaza.”
Five days of relentless bombardment of Gaza by Israel in retaliation for the brutal assault on Israeli communities across the border have left the tiny territory in tatters.
Air strikes have struck residential buildings, mosques, factories and shops, said Salama Marouf of the Gaza government’s media office.
Medical supplies, including oxygen, were running low at Gaza’s overwhelmed Al-Shifa hospital, said emergency room physician Mohammed Ghonim.
Israel has reported a “staggering” 1,200 deaths since Saturday’s onslaught by the militants while Gaza officials speak of more than 1,000 people killed in Israel air and artillery strikes.
Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on the planet, with 2.3 million people living on a 362-square-kilometer strip of land.
It has been under Israeli blockade since 2007 when Hamas took control of the territory from the secular Fatah movement of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
The only entrance to Gaza not controlled by Israel is Rafah on the Egyptian border.
Rafah has been bombarded by Israel three times this week.
Arab League slams Israel siege of Gaza, demands aid for Gazans
https://arab.news/vhdtw
Arab League slams Israel siege of Gaza, demands aid for Gazans
- The Arab foreign ministers urged Israel to reconsider its “unjust decision to cut electricity supply and water to Gaza”
Trump claims Iran working on missiles that could hit US
- Trump says his preference is diplomacy, but would never allow Tehran to have a nuclear weapon
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed Iran is seeking to develop missiles that can strike the United States and accused Tehran of working to rebuild a nuclear program that was targeted by American strikes last year.
The United States and Iran are engaged in high-stakes negotiations over Iran’s atomic program and other issues including missiles, with Trump saying he prefers diplomacy but is willing to use force if talks fail.
“They’ve already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they’re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America,” Trump said during his State of the Union address.
In 2025, the US Defense Intelligence Agency said Iran could potentially develop a militarily viable intercontinental ballistic missile by 2035 “should Tehran decide to pursue the capability,” but did not say if it had made such a decision.
Tehran currently possesses short- and medium-range ballistic missiles with ranges that top out at about 1,850 miles (3,000 kilometers), according to the US Congressional Research Service.
The continental United States is more than 6,000 miles from Iran’s western tip.
Washington and Tehran have concluded two rounds of talks aimed at reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear program to replace the agreement that Trump tore up during his first term in office.
‘Preference’ is diplomacy
The United States has repeatedly called for zero uranium enrichment by Iran but has also sought to address its ballistic missile program and support for armed groups in the region — demands Iran has rejected.
Iran has also repeatedly rejected that it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Trump ordered strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites last year, claiming afterward that Tehran’s atomic program was obliterated.
On Tuesday, he said Iran wants “to start all over again,” and that it is “at this moment again pursuing their sinister nuclear ambitions.”
Trump has sent a massive US military force to the Middle East, deploying two aircraft carriers as well as more than a dozen other ships, a large number of warplanes and other assets to the region.
He has repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if negotiations fail to reach a new agreement. Talks with Tehran are currently set to continue on Thursday.
“My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy but one thing is certain: I will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
The US president’s speech primarily focused on domestic issues, making no mention at all of China — Washington’s primary military and economic rival — and only briefly referring to Russia.
Trump said he was working to end the bloody conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and repeated his inaccurate claim that he had brought eight other wars to an end since returning to office in January 2025.
He also hailed NATO’s decision to spend five percent of gross domestic product on defense — a move made under heavy pressure from Trump and his administration.
