The Israeli military has claimed the air strike in Sidon, saying it killed a Palestinian “terrorist”.
The army, in a short statement, identified the target of the attack on the vehicle in the Lebanese city as Muhammad Shaheen, adding that he was the head of the operations department for Hamas in Lebanon.
It claimed he was involved in promoting “terrorist plots” directed and financed by Iran from Lebanon against Israel, and accused him of helping to fire rockets towards Israel during the war.The armed wing of Hamas has hailed Muhammad Ibrahim Shaheen, who as we reported earlier was killed by an Israeli drone strike in Sidon, as an influential figure in the Palestinian organisation.
The Qassam Brigades said in a statement that he had a “pioneering role and special fingerprints” in the resistance against Israel, including during the war on Gaza.
The Palestinian group said it will continue its operations “until the dream of our people for liberation and return is achieved”.
Israelis held demonstrations across the country calling for the ceasefire in Gaza to be extended so more captives abducted in the October 2003 Hamas-led attack can be freed.
“All I care about, all I want, is for my friends to return. There were six of us living in unbearable conditions in a 6-square-metre [65-square-foot] space. I got out, but they are still there,” said Ohad Ben Ami, released last week.
Captives don’t count days while in captivity, they count minutes, Ben Ami said
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is meeting Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the US Department of State says.
The visit comes during Rubio’s first Middle East tour as the top United States diplomat.
The meeting in Riyadh began just before 6pm (15:00 GMT), a State Department official said. Rubio is expected to discuss US President Donald Trump’s widely criticised plan for the US to take control of the Gaza Strip and move its Palestinian inhabitants elsewhere.
Abdulaziz Alghashian, a senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation Middle East, says many people are preparing themselves for something “very negative on the horizon” in regards to the ongoing yet fragile Gaza ceasefire.
“I think they sense that Netanyahu is someone who’s really confident, especially after leaving Washington [and] getting a great deal of support from the White House for his dream of pushing people out of Palestine,” he told Al Jazeera.
The emboldened Israeli prime minister might, at some point, try to draw the United States into attacking Iranian nuclear facilities, Alghashian said.
“Netanyahu is trying to create a great deal of instability so he could prolong his political career.”
On Saudi Arabia’s role in the region, Alghashian noted the kingdom is increasingly positioning itself as a mediator in a “multi-polarising world”.
“If Saudi is becoming a focal point, a hub for mediation, it simply adds to the security of Saudi Arabia,” he said.
What are the terms of the Hamas-Israel ceasefire?
Mediated talks are belatedly set to begin between Israel and Hamas on implementing a potential second phase of the Gaza ceasefire. Here’s a quick look at the deal, which consists of three six-week phases:
Phase one
It commenced on January 19 and includes the release of 33 captives held in Gaza in exchange for about 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel.
It saw the withdrawal of the Israeli military from the so-called Netzarim Corridor, which bisected northern and southern Gaza, along with some other areas.
Hundreds of trucks carrying food, water, medicine and fuel have arrived daily in Gaza, but much more aid is needed after 16 months of devastation.
Phase two
It is scheduled to begin immediately after the first phase on March 1 and will include the release of all remaining living male Israeli captives, including soldiers. So far, 19 captives have been released.
In return, Israel has agreed to fully withdraw from Gaza and release more Palestinian prisoners.
The final phase entails Hamas releasing the bodies of deceased Israeli captives with Israel reciprocating.
It includes a full Israeli military withdrawal from the enclave and implementation of plans to rebuild Gaza.
Palestinian prisoners subjected to ‘severe torture’ under Israeli detention: Monitor
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor reports that the terrible health conditions in which Palestinians have been released from Israeli prisons indicate a pattern of torture and abuse until the very last moments.
“All prisoners and detainees were released under appalling conditions by the Israeli occupation forces, who also stormed their homes and locations designated to receive and celebrate their release. They attacked family gatherings, suppressing them with tear gas and bullets and injuring some people,” the Geneva-based organisation said.
Israeli violations “turned into a systematic policy of retaliation against all Palestinian prisoners and detainees” who were subjected to “severe torture, intentional starvation, and prolonged solitary confinement as part of punitive measures that ramped up brutally after the events in the Gaza Strip”, it added.
