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Top EU diplomat laments failure to ‘stop’ Netanyahu

EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell has voiced regret that no power, including the United States, can “stop” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying he appears determined to continue fighting in Lebanon and Gaza.

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Israel intercepts missile fired from Yemen that set off air raid sirens

Israel’s military said it intercepted a missile fired from Yemen that set off air raid sirens across the country’s center. Air raid sirens rang out across Israel’s populous central area, including the seaside metropolis of Tel Aviv.

Another missile from Yemen landed in central Israel about two weeks ago.

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Israel says secures $8.7 bn US military aid package

Israel's defense ministry said on Thursday it had secured an $8.7 billion aid package from the United States to support the country's ongoing military efforts, including upgrading air defense systems.

"The package includes $3.5 billion for essential wartime procurement ... and $5.2 billion designated for air defense systems, including the Iron Dome, David's Sling and an advanced laser system," the ministry said in a statement.

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Palestinian president calls for world to stop sending Israel weapons

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas called Thursday on the international community to stop sending weapons to Israel in order to halt bloodshed in the West Bank and Gaza.

"Stop this crime. Stop it now. Stop killing children and women. Stop the genocide. Stop sending weapons to Israel. This madness cannot continue. The entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people in Gaza and the West Bank," Abbas said in an address to the U.N. General Assembly.

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Hostages families urge Israel to agree to Gaza, Lebanon cease-fire

Families of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza for nearly a year are urging Israel to ensure than any possible cease-fire deal with Hezbollah includes provisions for the war in Gaza.

Gil Dickmann, whose cousin, Carmel Gat, was kidnapped and was one of six Israelis killed in Hamas tunnels in August, said the families of the hostages are feeling forgotten as attention shifts to the northern front.

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Qatar says 'not aware of a direct link' between Lebanon, Gaza truce talks

Qatar, a mediator in the Gaza war, said on Thursday there was no direct link between talks for a truce in Gaza and an international push for an immediate ceasefire between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israel.

"I'm not aware of a direct link, but obviously both mediations are hugely overlapping when you are talking about the same parties, for the most part, that are taking part," foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari told reporters.

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Biden warns 'all-out war is possible' in Middle East

U.S. President Joe Biden warned Wednesday of the possibility of an "all-out war" in the Middle East as Israel put troops on alert for possible entry into Lebanon and the war in Gaza grinds on.

"An all-out war is possible," Biden told ABC chat show "The View." "What I think is, also, the opportunity is still in play to have a settlement that could fundamentally change the whole region."

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UN, EU and World Bank call for unified Gaza-West Bank administration

The United Nations, the European Union and the World Bank have called for the Palestinian Authority to have a postwar role in Gaza in an administration united with the West Bank.

The three bodies released a postwar recovery strategy Wednesday that provided few details on how the war-ravaged territory would be governed or rebuilt.

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'We feel their pain': Gazans stunned by Israeli strikes on Lebanon

As Israeli bombs flattened buildings and sent smoke billowing skywards over Lebanon this week, Gazans looked on with both empathy and fear over how the widening war might affect them.

Israel carried out a third day of air strikes against Lebanon on Wednesday, saying it was targeting weapons caches and infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah.

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Netanyahu to address UN as Israel, bogged down by war, barrels toward another

From the dais of the U.N. General Assembly just a year ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu triumphantly hailed a new peace he said would sweep through the Middle East. A year later, as he travels back to that same world stage, that vision is in tatters.

The devastating war in Gaza is about to hit the one-year mark. Israel is on the cusp of a wider regional war with Hezbollah. And the country finds itself increasingly isolated internationally and led by a polarizing leader whose handling of the conflict has sparked protests both in global capitals and on the streets of his own country.

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