GAZA: The Israeli military attacked the Gaza Strip for a third day on Thursday night, killing two people, the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency said, in another test of a fragile ceasefire agreement.
One Palestinian was killed by Israeli shelling and another was shot dead by Israeli forces, WAFA said on Friday.
The Israeli military did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment.
A third Palestinian died of wounds sustained from previous Israeli shelling, the news agency reported.
The US-brokered ceasefire, which left thorny issues like the disarmament of Hamas and a timeline for Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip unresolved, has been tested by periodic outbreaks of violence since it came into place three weeks ago.
Between Tuesday and Wednesday, Israel retaliated for the death of an Israeli soldier with bombardments that Gaza health authorities said killed 104 people.
Israel said on Wednesday that it remained committed to the ceasefire despite its retaliation.
Israel says the soldier was killed in an attack by gunmen on territory within the “yellow line” where its troops withdrew under the truce. Hamas has rejected the accusation.
Palestinian militant group Hamas handed over two bodies of deceased Israeli hostages on Thursday.
Under the ceasefire accord, Hamas released all living hostages held in Gaza in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and wartime detainees, while Israel agreed to pull back its troops, halt its offensive and increase aid.
Hamas also agreed to hand over the remains of all 28 dead hostages in exchange for 360 Palestinian militants killed in the war. After Thursday’s release, it had handed over 17 bodies.
Hamas has said that it will take time to locate and retrieve the bodies of all the remaining hostages. Israel has accused Hamas of violating the truce by stalling in handing over bodies.
Two years of conflict in Gaza have killed over 68,000 Palestinians, according to Gazan health authorities and left the enclave in ruins.
Israel launches more strikes on Gaza overnight, testing fragile truce
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Israel launches more strikes on Gaza overnight, testing fragile truce
Syria’s growth accelerates as sanctions ease, refugees return
- Economy grows much faster than World Bank’s 1% estimate, fueling plans for currency’s relaunch
NEW YORK: Syria’s economy is growing much faster than the World Bank’s 1 percent estimate for 2025 as refugees flow back after the end of a 14-year civil war, fueling plans for the relaunch of the country’s currency and efforts to build a new Middle East financial hub, central bank Governor AbdulKader Husrieh has said.
Speaking via video link at a conference in New York, Husrieh also said he welcomed a deal with Visa to establish digital payment systems and added that the country is working with the International Monetary Fund to develop methods to accurately measure economic data to reflect the resurgence.
The Syrian central bank chief, who is helping guide the war-torn country’s reintegration into the global economy after the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime about a year ago, described the repeal of many US sanctions against Syria as “a miracle.”
The US Treasury on Nov. 10 announced a 180-day extension of the suspension of the so-called Caesar sanctions against Syria; lifting them entirely requires approval by the US Congress.
Husrieh said that based on discussions with US lawmakers, he expects the sanctions to be repealed by the end of 2025, ending “the last episode of the sanctions.”
“Once this happens, this will give comfort to our potential correspondent banks about dealing with Syria,” he said.
Husrieh also said that Syria was working to revamp regulations aimed at combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism, which he said would provide further assurances to international lenders.
Syria’s central bank has recently organized workshops with banks from the US, Turkiye, Jordan and Australia to discuss due diligence in reviewing transactions, he added.
Husrieh said that Syria is preparing to launch a new currency in eight note denominations and confirmed plans to remove two zeroes from them in a bid to restore confidence in the battered pound.
“The new currency will be a signal and symbol for this financial liberation,” Husrieh said. “We are glad that we are working with Visa and Mastercard,” Husrieh said.
