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Thousands of demonstrators massed in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, seeking to push the government to end the war in Gaza and strike a deal to return hostages, as the security cabinet convened.The first protests began at daybreak as demonstrators blocked roads in the commercial hub, where they waved Israeli flags and held up pictures of the hostages, AFP journalists reported.Israeli media said others rallied near the US embassy branch in the city, as well as outside the houses of various ministers.Hours later as the sun set over Tel Aviv, thousands more gathered in “Hostage Square”, which has served as a focal point for the protest movement for months. People in the crowd sounded air horns, blew whistles and banged on drums as they chanted: “The government is failing us, we won’t give up until every hostage is home.””I’m here first and foremost to protest, and to call for the government to make a deal and bring all the hostages home and to end the war,” said demonstrator Yoav Vider, 29. Following the cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later spoke at an event Tuesday evening, remaining vague about the government’s intentions as Israeli media reported the meeting had been inconclusive. “We have just come from a cabinet meeting. I don’t think I can elaborate too much,” said Netanyahu.”But I will say one thing: It started in Gaza, and it will end in Gaza. We will not leave those monsters there.”Israel is under mounting international pressure to wrap up its Gaza campaign, with Donald Trump’s envoy saying the US president would host a meeting on post-war plans for the shattered enclave Wednesday.”We’ve got a large meeting in the White House tomorrow, chaired by the president, and it’s a very comprehensive plan we’re putting together on the next day,” Steve Witkoff said on Fox News Tuesday, without offering more details.- Cabinet meeting -The security cabinet approved a plan in early August for the military to take over Gaza City, triggering fresh fears for the safety of the hostages and a new wave of protests that has seen tens of thousands take to the streets.Netanyahu last week ordered immediate talks aimed at securing the release of all remaining captives in Gaza, while also doubling down on the plans for a new offensive to seize Gaza’s largest city.That came days after Hamas said it had accepted a new ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators that would see the staggered release of hostages over an initial 60-day period in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.In Doha on Tuesday, Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari told a regular news conference that mediators were still “waiting for an answer” from Israel to the latest proposal. “The responsibility now lies on the Israeli side to respond to an offer that is on the table. Anything else is political posturing by the Israeli side.”Earlier in the day, the families of hostages in Tel Aviv lambasted the government for failing to prioritise a deal that could see those still held captive in Gaza released.”Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu prioritises the destruction of Hamas over releasing the hostages,” said Ruby Chen, whose son was abducted by militants in October 2023. “He believes it is OK and it is a valid alternative to sacrifice 50 hostages for political needs,” he said in a speech to one of Tuesday’s demonstrations.- Journalists killed -Pressure is building on Israel both at home and abroad to end its campaign in Gaza, where famine has been declared and much of the territory has been devastated.On Monday, Israeli strikes hit a Gaza hospital, killing at least 20 people, including five journalists working for Al Jazeera, the Associated Press and Reuters, among other outlets.Governments around the world, including staunch Israeli allies, expressed shock at the attack.The Israeli military on Tuesday said its forces were targeting a camera operated by Hamas in two strikes that killed the reporters. “Six of the individuals killed were terrorists,” it said, adding that the chief of staff instructed “to further examine several gaps”, including the “authorisation process prior to the strike”.Hamas later rejected the allegations, calling them baseless. The war in Gaza has been one of the deadliest for journalists, with around 200 media workers killed in the nearly two-year Israeli assault, according to press watchdogs.Later Tuesday, Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that at least 35 people were killed in attacks throughout the Palestinian territory.Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency or the Israeli military.The war was sparked by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.Out of 251 hostages seized during the attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 62,819 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

European stock markets and shares in French banks fell Tuesday as investors fretted over fresh political turmoil in France.The Paris stock market tumbled and French borrowing costs rose over fears that France’s minority government could be toppled, after Prime Minister Francois Bayrou proposed a confidence vote to break an impasse over his proposed budget cuts.”Delaying …

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Israeli forces raided the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday, targeting a currency exchange and, according to the Red Crescent, leaving dozens of Palestinians wounded.Israel carries out frequent raids across the West Bank, where tensions have remained high throughout the Gaza war, but incursions into central Ramallah — seat of the Palestinian Authority — are relatively rare.A military statement said that “forces conducted a targeted raid on a currency exchange business that transfers terror funds to Hamas”, the Palestinian militant group whose October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the ongoing war in Gaza.The forces arrested five people “suspected of terrorist activity” and confiscated “hundreds of thousands of shekels that were identified as terror funds”.The Palestine Red Crescent Society said that the Israeli operation left at least 27 people wounded, eight of them by live fire, 14 by rubber bullets and five by shrapnel. Another 31 people were treated for tear-gas inhalation.An AFP journalist saw soldiers on the ground around Al-Manara Square in the city centre and on balconies overlooking it.”Special forces suddenly stormed” the area, said witness Ihab Abu Sneineh, a 22-year-old shopkeeper.”We didn’t know what was happening,” he told AFP, adding that the forces were “storming from all directions” before entering an exchange office near his shop.Palestinians were throwing stones at troops as they began the operation, the AFP journalist said.Witnesses told AFP that the army withdrew in the early afternoon.According to the Red Crescent, its teams treated a 12-year-old boy shot in the back and a 71-year-old man wounded in the raid.The medical organisation also accused Israeli forces of impeding the evacuation of wounded people.Since the Gaza war began, Israeli raids on Palestinian population centres, particularly in the northern West Bank, have intensified.Previous Israeli operations, earlier this year and in December 2023, have similarly targeted currency exchange offices.Egypt condemned Tuesday’s raid and the “aggressive and extremist Israeli policies”, dubbing Israel “the main source of destabilisation in the region”.Since the start of the Gaza war, Israeli troops or settlers in the West Bank have killed at least 972 Palestinians, including militants and civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian Authority figures.In the same period, at least 36 Israelis, both civilians and security forces, have been killed in attacks or during military operations in the territory, according to Israeli figures.Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.vid-lam-crb-ds/ami/jsa

Protesters demanding an end to the Gaza war and the return of hostages to their homes took to the streets in Israel on Tuesday ahead of a security cabinet meeting scheduled for the evening.Demonstrators blocked roads in commercial hub Tel Aviv, where they waved Israeli flags and held up pictures of the hostages, AFP journalists reported. Israeli media said others rallied near the US embassy branch in the city, as well as outside the houses of various ministers. “Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu prioritises the destruction of Hamas over releasing the hostages,” said Ruby Chen, whose son was abducted by militants in October 2023. “He believes it is OK and it is a valid alternative to sacrifice 50 hostages for political needs,” he said in a speech to one of Tuesday’s demonstrations.Protests were expected to swell in Tel Aviv later in the day. The agenda of the security cabinet meeting has not been officially confirmed, but Israeli media reported that it could be to discuss ongoing negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal.The cabinet approved a plan in early August for the military to take over Gaza City, triggering fresh fears for the safety of the hostages and a new wave of protests that has seen tens of thousands take to the streets. Netanyahu last week ordered immediate talks aimed at securing the release of all remaining captives in Gaza, while also doubling down on the plans for a new offensive to seize Gaza’s largest city. That came days after Hamas said it had accepted a new ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators that would see the staggered release of hostages over an initial 60-day period in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.In Doha, Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari told a regular news conference that mediators were still “waiting for an answer” from Israel to the latest proposal. “The responsibility now lies on the Israeli side to respond to an offer that is on the table. Anything else is political posturing by the Israeli side.”- Journalists killed -Israel has been under mounting pressure both at home and abroad to wrap up its campaign in Gaza, where the war has created a humanitarian crisis and devastated much of the territory.On Monday, Israeli strikes hit a Gaza hospital, killing at least 20 people, including five journalists working for Al Jazeera, the Associated Press and Reuters, among other outlets.Governments around the world, including staunch Israeli allies, expressed shock at the attack.Netanyahu later expressed regret over what he called a “tragic mishap”, and the Israeli military ordered an inquiry. The war in Gaza has been one of the deadliest for journalists, with around 200 media workers killed in the Israeli assault now in its 23rd month, according to press watchdogs.The war was sparked by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.Out of 251 hostages seized during the attack, 49 are still held in Gaza including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 62,819 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

The Israeli army raided the West Bank city of Ramallah on Tuesday, leaving 14 people wounded as troops fanned out across the city centre, the Palestinian Red Crescent said.Tensions have remained high in the occupied West Bank since Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel which sparked the Gaza war, with repeated raids by the Israeli army on Palestinian population centres, particularly in the north. The Red Crescent said at least 14 people were wounded in the latest raid. Seven were hit by live rounds, while the rest were injured by rubber bullets or tear-gas inhalation. It added that Israeli forces were “preventing our teams from reaching the injured in a besieged area”.An AFP journalist saw soldiers on the ground around Al-Manara Square in the city centre and on balconies overlooking it. The Israeli army confirmed it had launched an operation in the area but did not provide more details.Although the army has carried out frequent operations in the cities and refugee camps of the northern West Bank, it has done so relatively rarely in Ramallah, headquarters of the Palestinian Authority.Palestinians were seen throwing stones at troops as they began the operation, which appeared to target currency exchange offices in particular.Witnesses told AFP that the army withdrew in early afternoon.Violence in the West Bank has intensified since the October 2023 attack. At least 972 Palestinians  — including both militants and civilians — have been killed in the territory by Israeli troops or settlers, according to an AFP tally based on Palestinian Authority figures. In the same period, at least 36 Israelis, both civilians and soldiers, have been killed in attacks or military operations in the territory, according to Israeli figures.Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the West Bank is home to about three million Palestinians and 500,000 Israelis living in settlements that are considered illegal under international law.vid-lam-crb-ds/kir

When Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodriguez announced their engagement this month, two things stood out: the outsized diamond ring, and their unmarried cohabitation in conservative Saudi Arabia.The celebrity couple and their blended brood of five children have been living in the birthplace of Islam for more than two years, untroubled by laws against extra-marital relationships.Their situation highlights the fact that while authorities now turn a blind eye for foreigners, such privileges remain off-limits for Saudis, who must still get married before living together.Foreign couples, including Muslims, can now move in together or stay at hotels without being married, an arrangement that has only been tolerated in recent times.It’s “part of a broader social transformation in Saudi Arabia”, said Sebastian Sons of the German think tank CARPO.”While conservative rules and regulations remain in place, they are less dominant than in previous years. As a result, these strict rules are now applied with greater flexibility and pragmatism,” he told AFP.In major cities, after decades of gender separation, young Saudis can now mingle freely in public spaces, another sign of the country’s loosening-up. However, living together before marriage remains a rarity, reserved mainly for the well-heeled who quietly share accommodation in expensive residential compounds.- ‘Children of sin’ – Ronaldo, 40, and model Rodriguez, 31, are an incongruous feature of Saudi life, continually posting about their luxurious lifestyle, often with sultry poses in revealing clothing.They have been generally embraced by the youthful Saudi population, two-thirds of it under 35, who reacted to their engagement with well-wishes, memes and jokes.However, buried among the good-humoured responses — and comments about the multimillion-dollar ring — were pockets of disapproval.”How could the land of the two holy mosques accept such impurity for two years?” posted Raad Mohammed on X, referring to Mecca and Medina, Islam’s holiest sites.”Their children are children of sin,” wrote another social media user called Asma.It is hard to imagine Ronaldo and Rodriguez in the Saudi Arabia of just a few years ago, when religious police would harangue women for violating the strict dress code, and cinemas and live music were banned.Under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler, much has changed, as he attempts to open up the country and end its economic reliance on oil.Many women now forgo veils and head-coverings in urban centres, non-Muslim tourists are allowed, and since 2018, women can legally drive.Saudi petrodollars have attracted a steady stream of international stars and sports events, and lavish resorts and entertainment districts have sprung up.”In the past we were strictly checking the marital status” of guests, said a Riyadh-based hotel reservations manager who gave his name as Al Waleed. “Now we don’t care about who stays with whom.”- ‘Role model’ -Ronaldo, signed by Al Nassr for a hefty fee in early 2023, has been central to this strategy. Since his arrival to enormous fanfare, a stream of top players have joined him in the Saudi Pro League, and Saudi has won a giant prize: hosting the 2034 World Cup.”Ronaldo has gained significant prominence within the Saudi football community, where he is seen as both a role model and an ideal ambassador for the government’s ambitious goal of placing Saudi Arabia firmly on the global football map,” said Sons.Ronaldo and Rodriguez, soon to be respectably married, will remain a fixture in Riyadh for some time.In June, after much speculation, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner extended his contract with Al-Nassr to 2027.

Shares in a South Korean penmaker surged on Tuesday, an unexpected outcome from the first summit between US President Donald Trump and his counterpart Lee Jae Myung in Washington.Lee signed a guest book before entering the Oval Office for talks with Trump and the handcrafted wooden fountain pen he used caught the US leader’s eye.”Is …

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