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Israel’s military said it carried out air strikes Tuesday targeting senior Hamas leaders in the Qatari capital Doha, the venue of multiple rounds of talks aimed at ending the Gaza war.Qatar, which is also a key US ally, condemned the strikes which it said targeted the homes of several members of Hamas’s political bureau residing in the Gulf country, where the militant group’s senior leadership is based.The strikes were carried out jointly by the Israeli military and the Shin Bet security agency, the two bodies said in a statement.Neither Israeli officials nor domestic media have confirmed whether the strikes hit their intended targets. Hamas has also not commented on the fate of its leaders.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the strikes in response to a Monday shooting in Jerusalem that killed six people and was later claimed by Hamas.”Yesterday, following the deadly attacks in Jerusalem and Gaza, Prime Minister Netanyahu instructed all security agencies to prepare for the possibility of targeting Hamas leaders,” said a joint statement from Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz. “Today at noon (0900 GMT), in light of an operational opportunity… the prime minister and the defence minister decided to implement the directive given last night.”A Hamas official in Gaza told AFP the group’s negotiators had been “targeted”, though it was not immediately clear whether the attack had caused any casualties.Among the key Hamas leaders based in Qatar are lead negotiator Khalil al-Hayya and political bureau chief Khaled Meshaal.A White House official told AFP that Israel had notified the United States in advance about the strikes in Qatar, which is home to a large US military base.But Netanyahu’s office said the Israeli strikes were a “wholly independent” operation.A video journalist working with AFP in Doha saw a plume of smoke rising from behind a low-rise building.”The name of the operation in Doha is Summit of Fire. These were air strikes,” an Israeli military official told AFP.- ‘Flagrant violation’ -Qatar condemned the attack, saying it had targeted residential buildings housing Hamas political bureau members.”The State of Qatar strongly condemns the cowardly Israeli attack that targeted residential buildings housing several members of the political bureau of Hamas in the Qatari capital, Doha,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said in a post on X.It is the first time Israel has carried out air strikes in the Western-backed Gulf state. Since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, it has also carried out strikes in Iran, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen, as well as the Palestinian territories. The Doha strikes come less than two weeks after Israel’s armed forces chief vowed to target Hamas leaders based abroad.”Most of Hamas’s leadership is abroad, and we will reach them as well,” Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said on August 31.Along with the United States and Egypt, Qatar has led multiple attempts to end the Israel-Hamas war, which was sparked by the Palestinian militant group’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.Despite sealing two temporary truces which saw some hostages exchanged for Palestinian prisoners, the successive rounds of talks have failed to bring a lasting end to the war.The main Israeli group campaigning for the release of hostages still held by Palestinian militants in Gaza expressed “deep concern” following the Israeli attack on Hamas leaders.”The families of the hostages are following the developments in Doha with deep concern and heavy anxiety. A grave fear now hangs over the price that the hostages may pay,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.- ‘Sledgehammer’ to diplomacy -The strikes have drawn condemnation, including from UN chief Antonio Guterres, who condemned Israel’s “flagrant violation” of Qatari sovereignty.Iran, a key backer of Hamas, condemned the attack as a “gross violation of all international rules and regulations, a violation of Qatar’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and an attack on Palestinian negotiators”.Western allies Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates also condemned the attack, among others.The attack came as Israel stepped up a deadly assault on Gaza City, the Palestinian territory’s largest urban centre.It marks a sharp escalation on the territory of a state that has been a driving force in ceasefire efforts, with analysts warning that it has derailed any potential for a Gaza truce and hostage release deal.”Israel knows exactly what it just did. It just killed the negotiations and any chance of getting its hostages back,” said Muhammad Shehada, a political analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations.”The office in Doha was central to mediation and de-escalation efforts with Hamas… So basically Netanyahu just took a sledgehammer to this, those decades of diplomacy,” he added.burs/kir/jsa

Ethiopia inaugurated the continent’s largest hydroelectric project on Tuesday in what Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed called a “great achievement for all black people”, but it drew a protest to the United Nations from downstream nation Egypt. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), straddling a tributary of the River Nile, is a national project of historic scale and a rare unifying symbol in a country torn apart by ongoing internal conflicts.Towering 170 metres (550 feet) and stretching nearly two kilometres (1.2 miles) across the Blue Nile near the Sudanese border, construction on the dam began in 2011.The $4-billion megastructure is designed to hold 74 billion cubic metres of water and generate 5,150 megawatts of electricity — more than double Ethiopia’s current capacity.That makes it the largest dam by power capacity in Africa, though still outside the top 10 globally. “GERD will be remembered as a great achievement not only for Ethiopia, but for all black people,” Abiy said at the opening ceremony, attended by regional leaders including Kenyan President William Ruto and Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.”I invite all black people to visit the dam. It demonstrates that we, as black people, can achieve anything we plan,” said Abiy, who has made the project a cornerstone of his rule.But Egypt, dependent on the Nile for 97 percent of its water, has long decried the project, with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi calling it an “existential threat” to its water security.In a letter to the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday, Egypt described the inauguration as a “unilateral measure that violates international law” and vowed to defend “the existential interests of its people”.Abiy again insisted the dam is not a threat. “For downstream countries, Ethiopia has accomplished GERD as a shining example for black people. It will not affect your development at all,” he said at the ceremony.- ‘No longer a dream’ -The festivities began the night before with a dazzling display of lanterns, lasers and drones writing slogans like “geopolitical rise” and “a leap into the future”.Analysts say the dam can boost Ethiopia’s industrial production, enable a shift towards electric vehicles and supply the region through power lines that stretch as far as Tanzania. Some 45 percent of Ethiopia’s 130 million people lack electricity, according to World Bank data, and frequent blackouts in the capital Addis Ababa force businesses and households to rely on generators.”It is no longer a dream but a fact,” Pietro Salini, CEO of Italian firm Webuild, the dam’s main construction contractor, told AFP.He said the project had to overcome huge manpower and financing challenges, as well as the brutal civil war of 2020-2022 between the government and rebels from the Tigray region.  But now, “this country that was dark in the evening when I first arrived here… is selling energy to neighbouring countries,” said Salini.The Blue Nile provides up to 85 percent of the water that forms the River Nile, combining with the White Nile before heading through Sudan and Egypt. But Salini dismissed concerns from the downstream nations.”The hydroelectric project releases water to produce energy. They are not irrigation schemes that consume water. There’s no change in the flow,” said Salini.Mediation efforts by the United States, World Bank, Russia, the UAE and the African Union have all faltered over the past decade. “For the Egyptian leadership, GERD is not just about water, it is about national security. A major drop in water supply threatens Egypt’s internal stability. The stakes are economic, political and deeply social,” said Mohamed Mohey el-Deen, formerly part of Egypt’s team assessing GERD’s impact.The tensions have not been all bad for Ethiopia’s government.”Ethiopia is located in a rough neighbourhood and with growing domestic political fragility, the government seeks to use the dam and confrontation with neighbours as a unifying strategy,” said Alex Vines, of the European Council on Foreign Relations. 

Pro-Palestinian protesters gathered Tuesday outside a major arms fair in London as it opened without the presence of Israeli government officials because of tension between Britain and Israel over the Gaza conflict.Police watched as around 300 protesters waved Palestinian flags and held up placards including one reading “UK: Stop arming Israel. Stop the Gaza Genocide.”Three protesters were arrested for assaults on police officers, London’s Metropolitan Police said.The British government excluded the officials from the four-day event, but 51 Israeli defence companies were set to attend, including major arms manufacturer Elbit.Rafael and Israel Aerospace Industries, both government-owned, were also scheduled to have stands, making Israel the fifth-largest national contingent at the fair at the Excel London exhibition centre.The Israeli companies “should be investigated for crimes against humanity, not invited to profit from the unspeakable devastation they have caused in Gaza”, Campaign Against Arms Trade spokesperson Emily Apple said in a statement.Neither company was immediately available for comment when contacted by AFP.Protester Omer Raz, 40, an Israeli postgraduate student living in London, carried a banner reading “Israelis Against Genocide”.He described the Israeli army’s actions in Gaza, where it says it is fighting to crush the Palestinian militant group Hamas, as “unacceptable”.”We believe it’s genocide. Lots of Israelis do oppose it but not strongly enough,” he said.Another protester, who gave her name only as Rose, a 22-year-old French student, said the world had been “witnessing genocide for two years”.”Our countries are still complicit and supplying weapons to Israel,” she said.Britain’s defence ministry announced at the end of August that no Israeli government delegation had been invited to the fair, citing Israel’s “decision to further escalate its military operation in Gaza”.Israel labelled the exclusion of its officials from the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) fair as “discrimination”.At the same time, Israeli President Isaac Herzog was due in London on Tuesday for a three-day official visit.- ‘Offensive weapons’ -The arms fair “includes unrivalled access to international governments, ministries of defence… alongside all UK front line commands”, according to the DSEI UK website.A record number of exhibitors and visitors are expected at the event, as global conflicts including the Russia-Ukraine war have prompted European and other governments to ramp up military spending.France, which is also represented at the show, had in June blocked access to the stands of several Israeli arms manufacturers at the Paris Air show for displaying what it termed “offensive weapons”.Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said Britain will formally recognise a Palestinian state later this month if Israel does not take steps, including agreeing to a ceasefire in the Gaza war, which was sparked by the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.London has suspended trade talks with Israel over the conflict, as well as some export licences for arms used in Gaza, but some UK-made parts, such as components for Israeli F-35 jets, are still exported.

Activists on a Gaza aid flotilla that alleged it was targeted by a “drone attack” off Tunisia overnight said Tuesday they remained “determined” to reach the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.The flotilla organisers had said late Monday that one of their boats was hit by a suspected UAV off the coast of Tunisia, but authorities there said “no drones” had been detected.”Our will is stronger and we are more determined (than ever) to break the blockade against Gaza,” Tunisian organiser Ghassen Henchiri told a crowd in Tunis.Nadir al-Nuri, a member of the steering committee, told AFP that the flotilla was set to depart the Tunisian capital on Wednesday as scheduled.The flotilla, which aims to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, arrived in Tunisia at the weekend and was anchored off the coast of Sidi Bou Said, north of Tunis, when it reported the incident.Some members of the flotilla said they saw the drone, adding that the boat’s bow caught fire immediately after.Authorities dismissed reports of a drone strike as “completely unfounded”, suggesting the fire may have been caused by a cigarette butt. Tunisian national guard spokesman Houcem Eddine Jebabli told AFP overnight “no drones have been detected”.But security footage posted by the flotilla organisers later showed a burning mass falling from a distance onto the ship.- ‘Drone above my head’ -Asked by AFP about the reported attack, Palestinian activist Saif Abukeshk implicitly blamed Israel.”No party has an interest in preventing the flotilla from setting sail except the occupying state,” he said.The Israeli military did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.The vessel was in Tunisian waters when a fire broke out and was quickly extinguished, according to an AFP journalist who arrived shortly after the flames had been doused.The flotilla organisers said that the boat suffered no substantial damage and that none of the six people on board at the time was hurt.Among them was Portuguese activist Miguel Duarte, who told reporters in downtown Tunis on Tuesday that he saw a drone drop an explosive device.”I was on the deck on the back part of the ship, and I heard a drone,” he said. “I came out of the cover of the deck to see a drone hovering about three or four metres above my head.””I called my fellow crew members,” Duarte added. “Then we saw the drone move to the (front) part of the deck. It stood for a few seconds on top of a bunch of life jackets and then dropped a bomb… there was a big flame.”The flotilla organisers denounced the incident as “acts of aggression aiming to derail (its) mission”.”We remain united and determined to leave tomorrow,” said Franco-Palestinian European Parliament member Rima Hassan in Tunis.- ‘State security’ -Organisers declined to react to the authorities’ account of the incident, with Henchiri saying it concerned “state security”.Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur for the Palestinian territories who lives in Tunis, told reporters at the port overnight that if the a drone strike is confirmed, it would amount to an “aggression against Tunisia”.The Sidi Bou Said port lies about two kilometres (1.2 miles) away from the Tunisian presidential palace in Carthage, which can be seen from its harbour.The incident comes as Gaza endures a war sparked by the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.The United Nations declared famine last month in parts of Gaza, warning that 500,000 people face “catastrophic” conditions.The Global Sumud Flotilla — “sumud” meaning steadfastness in Arabic — describes itself as an independent group not linked to any government or political party.Among its high-profile participants is Greta Thunberg, who addressed pro-Palestinian campaigners in Tunisia on Sunday.The flotilla is due to resume its voyage for the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, after being delayed multiple times by weather conditions and other issues.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered authorities on Tuesday to study a petition for a presidential pardon for prominent rights activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, the state-affiliated human rights council said.Sisi “directed the relevant authorities to study the petition” submitted by the National Human for Rights Council to pardon a number of individuals, including Abdel Fattah, a dual Egyptian-British activist who has been jailed for much of the past decade.The 43-year-old activist was a leading figure in Egypt’s 2011 uprising and was jailed under successive governments since.His mother, activist and academic Laila Soueif, recently ended a 10-month hunger strike demanding his release.Abdel Fattah himself has been on hunger strike since the start of September, following a partial strike that began in March in solidarity with his mother.The Egyptian presidency did not comment on the petition and the move does not guarantee Abdel Fattah’s release, as the pardon process can be lengthy and remains at the discretion of the president.The British government has consistently raised his case with Egyptian authorities, including during talks between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Sisi.The council said in a statement that the petition came in response to appeals from the prisoners’ families “to grant them a new chance in life”.Following Abdel Fattah’s latest arrest in 2019, he was sentenced in December 2021 to five years in prison for “spreading false news” after sharing a Facebook post about alleged torture in Egyptian jails.Authorities told his family they had decided not to count his two years in pre-trial detention, which normally counts towards jail sentences in Egypt.In July, the criminal court ordered his removal from the country’s terrorism list, ruling that recent investigations showed no evidence linking him to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. The United Nations has called his detention arbitrary and urged his immediate release.While Egypt has recently issued presidential pardons for several political prisoners, Abdel Fattah has remained behind bars.