Hamas ‘willing to cooperate’ with Trump if US puts pressure on Israel to end war
Senior Hamas figure Basem Naim says his group has told Washington directly it is willing to give up governance of Gaza
The organization released an American Israeli hostage this week during Trump’s visit to the region
Updated 16 May 2025
Arab News
LONDON: President Donald Trump can help bring peace to Gaza, a senior Hamas official said as he confirmed that the Palestinian group has told the US it is willing to hand over governance of the territory.
In an interview with Sky News on Thursday, Basem Naim said his organization has shared a ceasefire plan directly with officials in Washington and offered to hand over administration of Gaza “immediately if we reach an end of this war.”
The proposal called for “a prisoner exchange, total withdrawal of Israeli forces, allowing all the aid to get into Gaza, and rebuilding of the Gaza Strip without forceful immigration,” he added.
Naim said he believes Trump “has the capability and the will to reach this peaceful situation.”
He continued: “President Trump can do it if he exercises enough pressure on the Israelis to end this war immediately. We are ready to cooperate with him to achieve this goal of a more peaceful region.”
Hamas released American Israeli hostage Edan Alexander on Monday as Trump was beginning a tour of the Middle East, which included visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE. The group said the same day that it was in direct negotiations with Washington.
Hamas spokesperson Basem Naim tells Sky's @SkyYaldaHakim that they believe Donald Trump has the capability and the will' to reach a peaceful situation for Gaza
“We urge the Trump administration to continue its efforts to end this brutal war waged by the war criminal (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu against children, women and defenseless civilians in the Gaza Strip,” the group said.
Alexander was serving as an Israeli soldier when he was captured during the Hamas-led October 2023 attacks, in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were taken hostage.
Israeli authorities responded with a brutal military offensive that has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians and reduced Gaza to rubble. A blockade on humanitarian aid since early March has prompted warnings that the territory could soon be gripped by famine.
Naim’s comments suggest Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist group by the US, believes Trump can play a key role in helping to secure an end to Israel’s ongoing offensive, which claimed the lives of scores more people on Thursday.
He said Hamas has accepted an Egyptian peace proposal under which a politically independent body would be formed to run Gaza.
“Before that, as long as we are still occupied people, we have all the right to continue defending our people and resisting the occupation,” Naim said.
Earlier reports that the US and Hamas were engaged in direct talks reportedly angered Israeli authorities. And despite the comments from Hamas officials this week, US officials maintain that the group is still not doing enough to end the war.
“Hamas has not demonstrated they are serious about peace,” a White House National Security Council spokesperson told Sky News, adding that Trump has demanded that the group lays down its weapons.
“Hamas continues to wrongfully hold hostages, including American bodies, in the dungeons of Gaza who could easily be freed, and have shown no changes in behavior to indicate they will cease to attack civilians,” he added.
The ranks of Hamas has been heavily depleted during the war against Israel, with thousands of its members killed, including a number of senior leaders. However, it continues to maintain a strong presence in Gaza and remains key to any ceasefire agreement.
Israel has ramped up its military operations in recent weeks as it moves to gain control of large sections of Gaza and take over aid distribution throughout the territory.
Israel targeting Tehran’s Evin prison, ‘agencies of repression’: minister
Updated 3 min 5 sec ago
Jerusalem: Israel targeted Tehran’s notorious Evin prison as well as the command centers of security agencies in Iran responsible for “maintaining the regime’s stability,” a minister and the military said Monday. The Israeli military “is carrying out strikes of unprecedented force against regime targets and agencies of government repression in the heart of Tehran,” Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote on X as the Iran-Israel war raged for an 11th day. These included Evin prison — “which holds political prisoners and regime opponents” — as well as the command centers of the domestic Basij militia and the powerful Revolutionary Guards, he added. In a separate statement, the military said that it was hitting command centers of security forces including the Revolutionary Guards, a wing of the Iranian military. “These forces... are responsible on behalf of the Iranian regime’s military for defending the homeland security, suppressing threats, and maintaining the regime’s stability,” it said in a statement. Israel began its military campaign against Iran on June 13 with strikes on the country’s nuclear and missile facilities, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described as an “existential” threat for his country. But the list of targets has widened since then, encompassing state television and the Iranian domestic security forces, raising speculation that Israel is seeking to topple Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. President Donald Trump hinted Sunday at interest in changing Iran’s system of government, despite several of his administration officials earlier stressing that US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites overnight on Saturday-Sunday did not have that goal. “It’s not politically correct to use the term, ‘Regime Change,’ but if the current Iranian Regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn’t there be a Regime change??? MIGA!!!” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. AFP journalists heard explosions in northern Tehran on Monday and Iran’s Red Crescent reported a strike near its building in the area. Evin prison is often used to hold foreign nationals and Iranians that are seen by rights groups as political prisoners. Iran is believed to hold around 20 European nationals, many of whose cases have never been published, in what some Western governments describe as a strategy of hostage-taking aimed at extracting concessions. The prison is a large, heavily fortified complex located in a northern district of the Iranian capital, and is notorious among activists for alleged rights abuses. At least three waves of incoming Iranian missiles were reported by the Israeli military on Monday. Katz, a hard-liner in Netanyahu’s government, added that “for every rocket fired at Israel’s home front, the Iranian dictator will be severely punished, and the attacks will continue with full force.”
Erdogan says won’t let terror ‘drag Syria back to instability’
Updated 23 June 2025
AFP
ISTANBUL: Turkiye will not allow extremists to drag Syria back into chaos and instability, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday after a suicide attack killed 22 at a Damascus church.
“We will never allow our neighbor and brother Syria... be dragged into a new environment of instability through proxy terrorist organizations,” he said, vowing to support the new government’s fight against such groups.
Air raid sirens sound as Israel warns of incoming Iran missiles as conflict enters 11th day
Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 950 people and wounded 3,450 others
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Canberra supports US strike on Iran
Updated 23 June 2025
Agencies
Tehran: Tehran threatened on Monday to inflict “serious” damage in retaliation for US strikes on the Islamic republic’s nuclear facilities, as the Iran-Israel war entered its 11th day despite calls for de-escalation.
Aerial assaults meanwhile raged on, with air raid sirens sounding across Israel and AFP journalists reporting several blasts were heard over Jerusalem.
The Israeli military said it had struck missile sites in western Iran as well as “six Iranian regime airports” across the country, destroying fighter jets and helicopters.
President Donald Trump said US warplanes used “bunker buster” bombs to target sites in Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz, boasting the strikes had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
Other officials said it was too soon to assess the true impact on Iran’s nuclear program, which Israel and some Western states consider an existential threat.
Iranian armed forces spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari said on state television that the US “hostile act,” following more than a week of Israeli bombardments, would “pave the way for the extension of war in the region.”
“The fighters of Islam will inflict serious, unpredictable consequences on you with powerful and targeted (military) operations,” he warned.
Iran has not been offering regular death tolls during the conflict and has minimized casualties in the past. (AFP)
Israeli strikes on Iran kill at least 950, wound 3,450 others, says human rights group
Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 950 people and wounded 3,450 others, a human rights group said Monday.
The Washington-based group Human Rights Activists offered the figures, which covers the entirety of Iran. It said of those dead, it identified 380 civilians and 253 security force personnel being killed.
Human Rights Activists, which also provided detailed casualty figures during the 2022 protests over the death of Mahsa Amini, crosschecks local reports in the Islamic Republic against a network of sources it has developed in the country.
Iran has not been offering regular death tolls during the conflict and has minimized casualties in the past. On Saturday, Iran’s Health Ministry said some 400 Iranians had been killed and another 3,056 wounded in the Israeli strikes.
Iran foreign minister to meet key ally Putin
Iran foreign minister Abbas Araghchi described Sunday’s attacks “lawless and criminal” behavior. (AFP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was due to hold “important” talks with key ally Vladimir Putin on Monday, 48 hours after a major US attack on Iran’s key nuclear facilities.
Moscow is a crucial backer of Tehran, but has not swung forcefully behind its partner since Israel launched a wave of attacks on June 13, strikes that triggered Iran to respond with missiles and drones.
While Russia condemned the Israeli and US strikes, it has not offered military help and has downplayed its obligations under a sweeping strategic partnership agreement signed with Tehran just months ago.
“In this new dangerous situation ... our consultations with Russia can certainly be of great importance,” Russian state media reported Araghchi as saying after landing in Moscow.
Australia says it supports US strike, calls for return to diplomacy
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday that Canberra supported the United States strike on Iran and called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy.
“The world has long agreed that Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon and we support action to prevent that,” Albanese told reporters in Canberra on Monday.
Albanese said “the information has been clear” that Iran had enriched uranium to 60 percent and “there is no other explanation for it to reach 60, other than engaging in a program that wasn’t about civilian nuclear power.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog that inspects Iran’s nuclear facilities, reported on May 31 that Iran had enough uranium enriched to up to 60 percent, if enriched further, for nine nuclear weapons.
“Had Iran complied with the very reasonable requests that were made, including by the IAEA, then circumstances would have been different,” said Albanese, referring to limitations on enrichment.
What do we know about US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities?
Tehran says damage limited, no radiation leaks after Trump declares Iran’s uranium-enrichment capabilities destroyed
Assault involved 14 bunker-buster bombs, more than two dozen Tomahawk missiles and over 125 military aircraft
Updated 23 June 2025
Asharq News
DUBAI: Amid mounting speculation, the US launched air strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities on Saturday.
The operation aimed to support Israel in its war against Iran — ongoing since June 13 — by crippling Tehran’s uranium enrichment capacity, according to Asharq News.
US President Donald Trump later announced that Iran’s uranium-enrichment abilities had been eliminated, warning Tehran against any “retaliatory response.” Tehran, however, described the damage as “limited” and dismissed any indications of radiation leaks.
US President Donald Trump addresses the nation from the White House in Washington on June 21, 2025, following the announcement that the US bombed nuclear sites in Iran. (POOL / AFP)
The US strikes included 14 bunker-buster bombs, more than two dozen Tomahawk missiles and over 125 military aircraft, in an operation the top US general, General Dan Caine, said was named “Operation Midnight.”
Asharq News reported that the strikes targeted three critical nuclear facilities instrumental in Iran’s nuclear fuel cycle: Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear complex.
These sites span the entire fuel-enrichment chain — from raw uranium conversion, through enrichment, to the production of fuel and technical components for research reactors.
FASTFACTS:
• The first B-2 bomber was publicly displayed on Nov. 22, 1988, but its first flight was on July 17, 1989.
• The combat effectiveness of the B-2 was proved in the Balkans, where it was responsible for destroying 33 percent of all Serbian targets in the first eight weeks.
• In support of Operation Enduring Freedom, the B-2 flew one of its longest missions to date from Whiteman to Afghanistan and back.
• The B-2 completed its first-ever combat deployment in Iraq, flying 22 sorties and releasing more than 1.5 million pounds of munitions.
This handout satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on December 11, 2020 shows an overview of Iran's Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP), northeast of the Iranian city of Qom. (AFP)
Fordo facility
Location and structure: Fordo is 30 kilometers northeast of Qom, embedded within a mountain at an altitude of approximately 1,750 m, with over 80 meters of rock and volcanic shielding — making it one of Iran’s most fortified sites.
Technical role: It houses two underground halls that can hold about 3,000 IR-1 centrifuges, enriching uranium up to 60 percent — a level nearing weapons -grade.
Strategic importance: It is a primary target in any military effort to prevent Iran from achieving nuclear military capability, due to its high capacity and protection.
This handout satellite image courtesy of Maxar Technologies shows Iran's shows Natanz nuclear research center in the central Iranian province of Isfahan. (AFP)
Natanz reactor
Location and structure: Situated near Kashan in central Iran, partially buried under about 8 meters of earth with a 220meter-thick concrete roof, naturally shielded by surrounding mountainous terrain.
Technical role: Contains primary and experimental plants with over 14,000 centrifuges (IR-1, IR-2m, IR-4, IR-6), making it Iran’s main industrial enrichment hub.
Strategic importance: Responsible for producing most of Iran’s low-enriched uranium and plays a key role in centrifuge development.
This handout satellite picture provided by Maxar Technologies and taken on June 22, 2025, shows damage after US strikes on the Isfahan nuclear enrichment facility in central Iran. (AFP)
Isfahan nuclear complex
Location and structure: Located south of Isfahan on an arid plateau away from populated areas, it is neither buried nor heavily fortified.
Technical role: Includes a Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF); a research reactor fuel production plant; and a metallic fuel pelletizing plant, and three research reactors.
Strategic importance: Serves as the backbone of Iran’s nuclear research and production infrastructure, supplying both Natanz and Fordo.
The Pentagon used some of the world’s most advanced aircraft for Saturday’s strikes. The B-2 Spirit is a multi-role bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions.
The bomber represents a major milestone in the US bomber modernization program. The B-2 brings massive firepower to bear anywhere on the globe through seemingly impenetrable defenses.
A B-2 bomber has a range over 11,000 km without refueling, capable of global reach from distant American bases. (Getty Images via AFP)
According to US officials, the bombers that carried out the Iran strikes flew for nearly 37 hours non-stop from its Missouri base, refueling in mid-air multiple times before striking in the early hours of Sunday.
A B-2 bomber offers several key advantages, primarily due to its stealth capabilities and global reach.
• A range over 11,000 km without refueling, capable of global reach from distant American bases.
• Stealth abilities such as flying-wing design and radar-absorbing materials that allow it to evade air defenses.
• It can carry both nuclear and conventional weapons, including the GBU‑57 bunker-buster bomb.
Initial reports quoted by Asharq News indicated that Fordo was hit with the GBU‑57, the most powerful US conventional bunker buster, designed for deeply buried targets like Fordo, which lies 90 meters underground. Fox News reported six bunker-busting bombs were dropped on Fordo, alongside approximately 30 Tomahawk cruise missiles fired at Natanz and Isfahan.
The GBU‑57 ‘Massive Ordnance Penetrator’ was designed by American military engineers to devastate deeply buried bunkers without radioactive fallout. It was the only nonnuclear weapon that could reach Iran’s hardest target.
• Weight: ~13,600 kg
• Length: 6.2 meters.
• Diameter: 0.8 meters.
• Explosive payload: 2,400 kg of high explosives.
• Guidance: GPS + inertial navigation.
* Penetration: Up to 60 meters of reinforced concrete or dense rock.
A Tomahawk cruise missile is a precision weapon that launches from ships, submarines and ground launchers and can strike targets precisely from a great distance, even in heavily defended airspace.
• Range: 1,250–2,500 km depending on variant.
• Speed: Subsonic (~880 km/h).
• Guidance: Inertial navigation, GPS, with some variants using terminal guidance (TERCOM, DSMAC).
• Warhead: ~450 kg conventional explosives.
• Launch platforms: Ships and submarines.
There has been a torrent of responses to the US move against Iran, Asharq News reported. President Trump declared the mission’s success, stating that the Fordo facility was “gone,” and Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment sites “completely and utterly destroyed.” Later on Sunday, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strikes were an incredible and overwhelming success that have “obliterated Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.”
For its part, Iran’s Tasnim News Agency quoted an official saying the nuclear sites had been evacuated in advance, and the damage was “not irreparable.” The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran stated there was “no risk of any radiation leak.” Iran emphasized its nuclear industry would not be halted.
Israel rejects critical EU report ahead of ministers’ meeting
European nations have been increasingly critical of the massive civilian toll of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military campaign against Palestinian militant group Hamas since its October 7, 2023 attack on Israeli communities
Updated 22 June 2025
Reuters
BRUSSELS: Israel has rejected a European Union report saying it may be breaching human rights obligations in Gaza and the West Bank as a “moral and methodological failure,” according to a document seen by Reuters on Sunday.
The note, sent to EU officials ahead of a foreign ministers’ meeting on Monday, said the report by the bloc’s diplomatic service failed to consider Israel’s challenges and was based on inaccurate information.
“The Foreign Ministry of the State of Israel rejects the document ... and finds it to be a complete moral and methodological failure,” the note said, adding that it should be dismissed entirely.
European nations have been increasingly critical of the massive civilian toll of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military campaign against Palestinian militant group Hamas since its October 7, 2023 attack on Israeli communities.
