Live: Israel delays release of 602 Palestinian prisoners

A recent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) opinion piece - "If Indians and Pakistanis Can Relocate, Why Can’t Gazans?" - has received an onslaught of criticism this week from people online who say the argument obscures the violence that ensued after India's partition. 

The piece, published on Wednesday, argues that population transfers were not invented by US President Donald Trump - who is set on "taking over" the Gaza Strip and "cleaning" it out by transferring Palestinians into nearby countries - and that "there are plenty of examples from the 20th century",  such as the 1947 partition of India.

“No one expects Pakistan to transform its religious demography by offering a ‘right of return’ to descendants of Hindu and Sikh refugees. Why should it be any different for Israel?" the piece says, referring to the Palestinians' legal argument that refugees and their descendants have a right to return to the land from which they were displaced. 

Read more: WSJ opinion article gets heat for using partition of India to justify Trump's Gaza 'takeover'

The Vatican’s secretary of state, Pietro Parolin, has criticised US President Donald Trump’s proposal to forcibly remove Palestinians from Gaza.

“The Palestinian population must remain on its land,” Parolin stated at the Italy-Vatican summit, according to ANSA news agency.

“This is one of the fundamental points of the Holy See: no deportations,” he added, reaffirming the Vatican’s opposition to forced displacement.

A senior Trump administration official suggested that Washington may permit Israel to maintain control over five outposts in southern Lebanon, telling Haaretz, "Israeli presence in the five points directly bears on whether the government of Lebanon ultimately does what it has promised to do."

The official also stated that the US would closely monitor Lebanon’s compliance with ceasefire commitments.

Earlier reports revealed that Israel had sought to delay its withdrawal from these five positions along the border with northern Israel, raising concerns over its refusal to fully withdraw from Lebanese territory.

A key organiser of the pro-Palestine march in Central London in January pleaded "not guilty" on Thursday to breaking protest restrictions after police arrested him.

Chris Nineham, 62, the Stop the War Coalition's vice-chair, appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court and pleaded not guilty to two counts of breaking the Public Order Act.

Ahead of Nineham's hearing, protesters gathered outside the court in a show of solidarity, condemning the police's decision to ban marchers from reaching the BBC. 

Nineham, a veteran anti-war activist, serves as the chief steward for the National Protest for Palestine and has played a leading role in organising pro-Palestine demonstrations in Central London.

During the hearing, District Judge Neeta Minhas dropped bail conditions that banned Nineham from attending protests organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

Read more: Pro-Palestine protest leader pleads 'not guilty' after London arrest

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola has visited Gaza, making her the first EU leader to do so in over a decade, according to a statement

“At this critical moment for the region and the world, I wanted to come here to underline and witness first-hand Europe’s critical role in getting humanitarian aid into Gaza,” she said.

Metsola said that Europe is prepared to increase its involvement, supporting a ceasefire and the release of hostages while pushing for more aid and a long-term peace framework.

As part of her Middle East tour, she has also met Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and plans to hold talks with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Palestinian leaders in Ramallah. Her visit aims to assess the state of humanitarian aid deliveries, the statement added.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has criticised US President Donald Trump’s policies, including his proposal to expel Palestinians from Gaza, calling them a danger to global peace.

"To tell the truth, I do not find Mr Trump’s behaviour in the past period and his current statements and challenges to many countries in the world to be right, and I do not see these as a positive development,” Erdogan said.

He made the remarks during an interview with Indonesian journalist Najwa Shihab, which was broadcast on YouTube.

During his quarter-of-a-century rule of Jordan, King Abdullah had few working visits that were more intense than this week's trip to Washington.

Sitting nervously next to Donald Trump on Tuesday, the monarch mostly watched on in silence as reporters shouted questions about the president's plan to "take over" Gaza or what has been called an "ethnic-cleansing" plan by human rights bodies, political leaders and critics worldwide.

Trump has insisted for several weeks that Jordan, as well as Egypt, will take expelled Palestinians as part of his plan to "own Gaza". 

While Abdullah didn't give away much in the presence of an erratic president, his position is well documented. It's a non-starter. 

“A large-scale displacement of Gazans to Jordan is going to be the death knell for the Hashemite monarchy in Jordan,” Andreas Krieg, assistant professor at King's College in London's defence studies department, told Middle East Eye.

Read more: Why Trump’s plans are an 'existential threat' for Jordan

The Palestinian Red Crescent reported that Israeli occupation forces shot and wounded a Palestinian in Bani Naim on Thursday, a town east of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

More than 350 rabbis, along with Jewish artists and activists, have signed a full-page ad in The New York Times condemning Donald Trump’s call for the mass expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza.

“Trump has now called for the removal of all Palestinians from Gaza. Jewish people say NO to ethnic cleansing!” the ad declares.

The signatories rejected any plan that would displace Palestinians, citing historical injustices and ethical responsibilities. Cody Edgerly, director of the In Our Name Campaign, stressed the urgency of their message:

“Our message to Palestinians is that you are not alone, our attention has not wavered and we are committed to fighting with every breath we have to stop ethnic cleansing in Gaza,” he said.

A majority of Democrats in the US House of Representatives have called on President Donald Trump to abandon his proposal for an American "takeover" of Gaza, condemning it as both unlawful and unethical.

In a letter signed by 143 Democratic lawmakers, they said that such an action would violate the Geneva Convention, endanger US troops, and damage America’s global reputation.

"Your remarks also risk jeopardizing the opportunity for the United States to work with our Arab partners - who have reaffirmed their commitment to comprehensive regional peace based on the rebuilding of Gaza and a pathway to a two-state solution," they wrote.

The lawmakers urged Trump to collaborate with Israel and international partners to uphold the ceasefire and secure the release of captives, adding that a globally supported effort to rebuild Gaza and improve conditions for its residents was needed.

"Rather than pursue the illegal and immoral path you have proposed, we urge you to work with Israel, as well as regional and global partners, to uphold the ceasefire agreement and bring all of the hostages home. Together, we can develop a realistic, internationally-backed, and funded plan to make Gaza livable for its existing residents as quickly as possible.

Egyptian tribal leader Ibrahim al-Organi has continued to exercise de facto control over the entry of aid and commercial trucks into Gaza after the ceasefire that came into effect on 19 January, Middle East Eye can reveal.

Efforts to bring aid into Gaza after the ceasefire are complicated by the exorbitant fees imposed on the entry of trucks, and the power granted to Organi’s firms to determine which trucks enter the strip, according to Egyptian and Palestinian sources who briefed MEE. 

Organi is a Sinai businessman, politician and tribal leader allied with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Organi's name has become synonynous with unofficial profits made out of the suffocating Gaza blockade, particularly from desperate Palestinians attempting to flee the fighting.

MEE last year revealed that Organi made at least $2m daily from Palestinians who left the Gaza Strip via the border crossing point with Egypt, the only one not directly controlled by Israel at the time. Another report revealed that Organi’s companies charged aid trucks $5000 to enter Gaza.

Read more: Exclusive: Egyptian firm charges trucks entering Gaza $20,000 in ‘bribes’

Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri said the US informed him Israel plans to withdraw on 18 February but intends to remain in five locations.

He said he made it clear, on behalf of the president and prime minister, that Lebanon completely rejects this.

Berri said that if Israel refuses a complete withdrawal, it will be Lebanon’s responsibility to respond, adding that the army is fully carrying out its duties south of the Litani River.

The US Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan.

This follows President Donald Trump’s decision last week to freeze assets and impose travel bans on ICC officials after the court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza.

Hamas leader Taher al-Nunu told Al Jazeera that talks on the second phase of the ceasefire agreement must begin without delay.

He said that mediators should work to eliminate obstacles and ensure Israel meets its commitments in full.

Nunu said that Israel would be responsible for any delays, adding that humanitarian issues, including prisoners, are central to the agreement. He added that committees in Cairo are monitoring the deal’s implementation.

The UAE called the plan to expel Gaza's population “difficult” but said there is a lack of other options.