Leaders from Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso are hoping to find a way to repel advancing fighters linked to al-Qaeda. Al Jazeera’s Laura Khan explains what’s at stake at an Alliance of Sahel States summit in Bamako.
Published On 21 Dec 202521 Dec 2025
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Israeli authorities are engaged in multiple major efforts, including building settlements and pursuing annexation, to ensure there will be no Palestinian state in the future.
Israeli authorities are expected to advance plans to build 9,000 new housing units in an illegal settlement on the site of the abandoned Qalandiya airport in occupied East Jerusalem, in another attempt to cut off Palestinian lands from each other and block any possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state ever emerging.
The so-called Atarot neighbourhood in northern East Jerusalem, reminiscent of the E1 plan to undermine Palestinian statehood, is to be discussed and have its outlines approved on Wednesday by the District Planning and Building Committee, according to Israeli group Peace Now.
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The advocacy group said the new settlement is envisioned to be built within a densely populated Palestinian urban area, stretching from Ramallah in the occupied West Bank and Kafr Aqab in the north through the Qalandiya refugee camp, ar-Ram, Beit Hanina and Bir Nabala.
It would build an Israeli enclave in an area where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians live in close proximity, with the aim of blocking development in a key area and further damaging the likelihood of a sovereign Palestinian state being established.
“This is a destructive plan that, if implemented, would prevent any possibility of connecting East Jerusalem with the surrounding Palestinian area and would, in practice, prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel,” Peace Now said.
Translation: The massacre government is working to establish a new ultra-Orthodox mega-settlement across the Green Line north of Jerusalem. The new political attack called ‘Atarot’ is planned to be built in the heart of the Palestinian state that will be established alongside Israel. This involves 9,000 housing units that Israel will have to evacuate. Isn’t it a shame?
The organisation said the far-right government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seizing every moment to bury chances for a future of peace and compromise.
“Especially now, when it is clear to everyone that the ideas of ‘managing the conflict’ and ‘decisive victory’ have led to a security disaster for Israel, we must act to resolve the conflict.”
The plan’s advancements date back to early 2020, when Israel’s Housing Ministry sent it to the Jerusalem municipality to prepare it for approval. It completed the bureaucratic preparation process within months, but faced objections from the Environmental Protection and Health ministries, according to Peace Now, which said the administration of United States President Barack Obama had also opposed it.
It would need further government consideration and approval before being given legal effect and moving towards tender processes to select construction contractors.
Most of the plan area is designated as “state land” by Israeli authorities, meaning they would not have to seek permission from Palestinian landowners.
Israel has been quickly advancing with several major projects to build illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian territory and pursuing annexation of the occupied West Bank, alongside its genocidal war on Gaza that started in October 2023 and has now killed more than 70,000 people.
The E1 plan, which would see the construction of thousands of illegal Israeli homes in the occupied West Bank, is hailed by Israeli officials despite international condemnation.
Israel’s security cabinet last week signed off on plans to formalise 19 illegal settlements across the West Bank.
Israeli forces continue to launch raids across the occupied West Bank and support violent settlers in attacking Palestinian lands while issuing permits to demolish Palestinian homes.
Israeli authorities began carrying out demolition operations Wednesday morning in the town of Biddu, located northwest of occupied East Jerusalem, under the pretext that the Palestinian buildings lacked permits.
In the central part of the West Bank, settlers, who have been rampaging with impunity often backed by the Israeli military, burned Palestinian vehicles and wrote racist slogans in the village of Ein Yabrud in Ramallah on Wednesday.
Several Palestinians were also arrested during raids across the West Bank, including in Nablus.
Local authorities said the Israeli military plans to demolish 25 residential buildings in the Nur Shams refugee camp this week.
Due to the ongoing advance of M23/AFC rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), scores of displaced people have crossed into Bujumbura, the capital city of Burundi, on Dec. 9.
Burundi is facing a major surge in refugees as families escape ongoing conflict. The unexpected influx, which includes individuals with ties to armed groups, has raised fears of a security and humanitarian crisis in the country. The chaotic situation at the South Kivu border sees both civilians and armed personnel caught up in the turmoil.
Refugees from Luvungi, Katogota, Bwegera, Luberizi, Mutarule, and Sange of the DRC crossed the border en masse at the Kaburantwa bridge under construction, on the 6th avenue in the Buganda zone of Bukinanyana district. According to local Burundian media, the rout of armed groups and regular forces allowed armed fighters to blend into the crowd.
On Dec. 8, joint operations conducted by Burundian soldiers, Congolese Wazalendo militias, and Rwandan rebels resulted in the seizure of weapons and uniforms, and the arrest of men suspected of being infiltrated fighters. These operations took place in Kansega, in the border area of Ndava, Bukinanyana district.
Burundi has also accused the M23 rebels of conducting a bombing attack within its territory, signalling an increase in regional tensions, despite several peace agreements. The militant actions by the rebels continue despite the ratification of the Washington peace accord signed between DR Congo, the M23/AFC rebels, and Rwanda under the Trump administration.
Despite facing strong resistance from the DR Congo national army, the M23/AFC rebels, with support from Rwanda, continue to advance on the ground toward the capture of the city of Uvira in South Kivu, which has become the province’s provisional capital.
The two main parties involved in the conflict in the eastern Congo, the Kinshasa government and the M23/AFC rebels, previously signed a framework agreement. This agreement aimed to initiate new discussions on the underlying causes of the conflict and, eventually, to reach a comprehensive peace accord to restore normalcy in North Kivu and South Kivu.
Despite multiple meetings with the mediator and several signed documents, including mechanisms for prisoner exchange and cease-fire verification, the measures have not yet been implemented.
Kinshasa officials accuse Kigali of continuing to support M23/AFC rebels, violating the Washington Accords.
The advance of M23/AFC rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo has led to a surge of refugees crossing into Burundi, resulting in fears of a security and humanitarian crisis. Burundi has accused M23 rebels of a bombing attack, raising regional tensions despite existing peace agreements.
Burundian, Congolese, and Rwandan forces have been conducting joint operations to address the situation, arresting suspected infiltrators. Despite efforts and multiple agreements, including the Washington Accords, conflicts persist with accusations of Rwanda supporting the rebels in violation of these agreements.
The conflict has centered around discussions and agreements intended to address underlying issues and establish peace in the affected regions of North and South Kivu, but implementation has faltered. The city of Uvira is currently a focal point, as the rebels advance despite resistance from the DR Congo’s national army.