Israel

United States President Donald Trump descends on Tuesday on the Middle East for a regional tour that will begin in Saudi Arabia and include stops in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. It is a business trip in every sense of the term, involving potentially trillions of dollars in investment and trade deals.

The UAE, for example, has already pledged $1.4 trillion in investments to the US over 10 years in sectors ranging from artificial intelligence and energy to mining and aluminium production. Saudi Arabia, for its part, has committed to investing $600bn in the US over the next four years. According to the Reuters news agency, Trump will also be offering the kingdom an arms package to the tune of $100bn.

Meanwhile, in keeping with the president’s solid history of nepotism and self-enrichment, it just so happens that the Trump Organization is currently presiding over real estate projects and other business ventures in all three Gulf countries he is slated to visit.

And yet one country is conspicuously absent from the regional itinerary despite being the US’s longstanding BFF in the Middle East: Israel, the nation that has for the past 19 months been perpetrating genocide in the Gaza Strip with the help of gobs of US money and weaponry. The official Palestinian death toll stands at nearly 53,000 and counting.

Although the genocide kicked off on the watch of his predecessor President Joe Biden, Trump was quick to embrace mass slaughter as well, announcing not long after reassuming office that he was “sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job” in Gaza. It appears, however, that Israel is taking a bit too long for the US president’s liking – particularly now that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has prescribed an intensified offensive against an enclave that has already been largely reduced to rubble.

The issue, of course, is not that Trump cares if Palestinian children and adults continue to be massacred and starved to death while Israel takes its sweet time “finishing the job”. Rather, the ongoing genocide is simply hampering his vision of the “Riviera of the Middle East” that will supposedly spring forth from the ruins of Gaza, the creation of which he has outlined as follows: “The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too. We’ll own it.”

So while war may be good for business – just ask the arms industry – it seems that too much war can ultimately be a counterproductive investment, at least from a Trumpian real estate perspective.

In the run-up to Trump’s Middle Eastern expedition, reports increasingly circulated of tensions between the US president and the Israeli prime minister – and not just on the Gaza front. On Sunday, NBC News noted that Netanyahu had been “blindsided – and infuriated – this past week by Trump’s announcement that the US was halting its military campaign against the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen”.

Even more annoying to the Israeli premier, apparently, is Trump’s refusal to endorse military strikes on Iran. Plus, the US has reportedly discarded the demand that Saudi Arabia normalise relations with Israel as a condition for US support for the kingdom’s civilian nuclear programme.

What, then, does the strained Trump-Netanyahu rapport mean for the ever-so-sacred “special relationship” between the US and Israel? According to an article published by the Israeli outlet Ynetnews: “Despite the tensions, Israeli officials insist behind-the-scenes coordination with the Trump administration remains close, with no real policy rift.”

The dispatch goes on to assure readers that US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has “denied rumors that Trump might announce support for a Palestinian state during the visit” to the three Gulf nations. Of course, it’s not quite clear what sort of “Palestinian state” could ever be promoted by the man proposing US ownership of the Gaza Strip and expulsion of the native Palestinian population.

Although Israel may be sidelined on this trip, that doesn’t mean it won’t continue to serve a key function in general US malevolence. Just last month, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir – source of the idea that there is “no reason for a gram of food or aid to enter Gaza” – was hosted by Republican officials at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. After a dinner held in his honour, Ben-Gvir boasted that Republicans had “expressed support for my very clear position on how to act in Gaza and that the food and aid depots should be bombed”.

Flashy trillion-dollar Gulf deals aside, rest assured that the Trump administration remains as committed as ever to capitalising on Israeli atrocities.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

Hamas says it will release US-Israeli captive Edan Alexander and confirms direct talks with the US, while Israel insists it has not agreed to any ceasefire – signaling a possible rift with Washington, analysts say.

Israeli PM says negotiations with Hamas will continue ‘under fire’, with just a pause for the planned release of Edan Alexander.

Israel has not agreed to any ceasefire or prisoner swap with Hamas ahead of the expected release of Israeli-American soldier Edan Alexander, but is continuing to prepare to intensify its military operations in Gaza, its prime minister has stated.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement released on Monday that ceasefire negotiations “will continue under fire, during preparations for an intensification of the fighting”. The Israeli leader insisted that military pressure had forced Hamas to make the release.

“Israel has not committed to a ceasefire of any kind” or the release of Palestinian prisoners, but has only agreed to allow safe passage for the release of Alexander, the last surviving United States captive held in Gaza, the statement said.

A Hamas source told the AFP news agency later on Monday that mediators had informed the Palestinian group that Israel would pause military operations in Gaza for the handover.

‘Final deal?’

Hamas said on Monday that Alexander’s release was imminent. The armed group agreed to release him as a goodwill gesture to US President Donald Trump, who is due to arrive in the Middle East later.

The previous day, the Palestinian group had revealed that it had agreed to the release in talks with the US. Arab mediators Qatar and Egypt called it an encouraging step towards a return to ceasefire talks for war-torn Gaza.

Khalil al-Hayyah, a Hamas leader in Gaza, said the group was ready to “immediately start intensive negotiations” to reach a final deal for a long-term truce, including an end to the war, the exchange of Palestinian prisoners and remaining Israeli captives in Gaza, and the handing over of power in the enclave to an independent body of technocrats.

Alexander’s family said they hoped the decision would open the way for the release of the 59 other captives, only 21 of whom are believed to be alive.

Families of the captives and their supporters in Israel have pressed the government to reach a deal to secure the release of those still held in Gaza, but Netanyahu has faced heavy pressure from hardliners in his cabinet not to end the war.

Last week, Netanyahu announced that Israel plans a total conquest of Gaza in an intensive military operation. Israeli officials have said that the step-up in military action would not start until Trump wraps up his Middle East visit.

Israel continues to bombard the enclave.

Gaza’s Civil Defence agency reported on Monday that several people were killed and many more injured in an overnight air attack on a school housing displaced people.

“At least 10 [dead], including several women and children, as well as dozens of wounded, were transported following an Israeli air strike on the Fatima Bint Asad school, which is home to more than 2,000 displaced people in the city of Jabalia,” Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal said.

Israeli forces also continued attacks across the Gaza Strip, including Gaza City in the north, Rafah in the south and the Nuseirat refugee camp in the centre.

Amid ferocious Israeli attacks on Yemen, ostensibly in response to Houthi attacks on Israel, surprising news from the United States seemed to shake matters briefly.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that a ceasefire had been agreed between his country and the Houthis, claiming the Houthis had bent the knee and this was a victory for the US.

He also praised the Houthis for their bravery and resilience.

This meant the US would no longer be bombing Yemen, and the Houthis would stop firing at ships in the Red Sea in support of the Palestinians in Gaza.

There was no mention of Israel in Trump’s announcement – a sign, to many, of a possible chill between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Houthis, for their part, made it clear that the deal does not extend to Israel and they would continue their attacks until Israel allowed aid into Gaza, ending the starvation it is imposing on the people there.

Israel left out?

Israel has been launching attacks on Yemen, claiming it wants to deter the Houthis, who took control of Sanaa in 2014 and already fought a years-long war against the internationally recognised Yemeni government.

Israel’s most recent attack, on Sunday, bore an eerie resemblance to how it has operated when bombing the trapped population of Gaza, issuing “warnings” to people in three Yemeni ports in Hodeidah governorate to flee, with less than an hour’s notice.

Whether this escalation is a reaction to the announced US ceasefire remains to be seen, but many analysts have spoken of a widening rift between Netanyahu and Trump.

Netanyahu has reportedly expressed his frustration with Trump’s Middle East policy in private conversations.

He has been publicly against the US administration’s talks with Iran, claiming there is no diplomatic way to resolve differences with Tehran, yet Iran and the US have continued their talks.

He went on to blame Iran for the Houthis’ attacks, claiming Israel’s attacks are a message to the “Houthis’ sponsors”.

Trump, for his part, has seemed unconcerned.

“It’s worth noting Trump didn’t say anything about [Houthi] attacks on Israel, which seem to be continuing amid this escalation,” Nicholas Brumfield, a Yemen analyst, told Al Jazeera.

“In [this] case, it’s a US drawdown because the Houthis haven’t been attacking international shipping,” Brumfield said. “They’ve been attacking Israel. The US has been doing its thing, and the Houthis have been targeting US ships.”

After Israeli attacks on Monday and Tuesday, which killed at least three people and wounded 35 others and damaged Hodeidah Port and Sanaa Airport, the Houthis promised retaliation.

The attacks “will not go unanswered”, the Houthi political bureau said in a statement.

That kind of statement is typical of the Houthis, who have managed to weather more than a decade of attacks by forces with far superior military capabilities.

Air strikes by the US and United Kingdom on Yemen in early 2024 were unable to stop the Houthis’ attacks on Red Sea traffic.

Years of air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen’s internationally recognised government taught the Houthis to keep their military infrastructure agile, analysts told Al Jazeera.

A senior US government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Al Jazeera that recent US attacks on the Houthis have pushed leaders underground after the killing of some key military commanders.

However, unlike under US President Joe Biden’s administration, the attacks under Trump have been indiscriminate and have led to more civilian deaths. More than 250 people have been killed by US attacks on Yemen since mid-March, including at least 68 people at a centre housing detained African refugees and migrants in late April.

Experts told Al Jazeera that despite the increased ferocity of those attacks, the Houthis have not been deterred.

“The Houthis aren’t going to stop,” Brumfield said.

Israel still striking

The Houthis have made their stance clear vis-à-vis the agreement with the US and the continuation of attacks on Israel, which has also made clear that it plans to keep attacking.

“The stated aim is to deter [the Houthis] or deplete their military capabilities to the point that the Houthis cannot target Israel any more, but these are both very unrealistic goals,” Hannah Porter, an independent Yemen analyst, told Al Jazeera.

Israel already considers that it has diminished the capabilities of two of its biggest foes, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, over the past 19 months.

But trying something like that on the Houthis would be a vastly different challenge, she said.

“Israel has probably not gathered the amount of intel on the Houthis that they have on Hamas or Hezbollah, so tracking and targeting leaders will be harder,” Porter said.

“More importantly, the geographic area is much larger in northern Yemen, meaning that there are far more potential targets.”

“The terrain is a factor, too,” she added. “Northern Yemen is very mountainous with plenty of places to hide people and weapons.”

For now, Israel and the Houthis seem intent on continuing their exchange of attacks. And the first to suffer will be the people of Yemen.

Israel struck numerous targets in recent days in Yemen, including Sanaa’s airport and the port in Hodeidah, which experts said is likely to exacerbate Yemen’s dire humanitarian situation.

Israel destroyed at least three civilian planes in the attacks.

Yemen is already suffering one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. More than 18.2 million people require humanitarian assistance and protection services, according to the United Nations.

More than 17.1 million Yemenis suffer acute food shortages, and about five million are on the brink of famine.

While analysts said Israel’s attacks on ports will not be a “knockout blow”, they are among a matrix of factors that leave many Yemenis in an increasingly precarious position.

“The humanitarian situation will just get worse,” Raiman Al-Hamdani, a Yemen researcher with the international development company ARK, told Al Jazeera.

“Destroying the two main ports of northern Yemen, where the majority of the population lives, coupled with the FTO [“foreign terrorist organisation”] designation with cuts to the aid system around the world and the deteriorating economy … is a recipe for [unprecedented] humanitarian disaster.”

“[Israel’s attacks] are a continuation of its strategy. It’s out of spite, targets civil infrastructure and the policy of creating human suffering,” Al-Hamdani said.

Both sides seem unwilling to stop, however.

“I cannot see anything quite good coming out of this unless the war Israel is waging on Gaza comes to some form of truce,” Al-Hamdani said.

BOSTON — A Tufts University student from Turkey who was seized on a street by federal immigration agents has returned to Boston after being released from a Louisiana immigration detention center where she was held for more than six weeks.

Upon arrival at Logan Airport, Rumeysa Ozturk told reporters Saturday she was excited to get back to her studies during what has been a “very difficult” period.

“In the last 45 days, I lost both my freedom and also my education during a crucial time for my doctoral studies,” she said. “But I am so grateful for all the support, kindness and care.”

A federal judge ordered Ozturk’s release Friday pending a final decision on her claim that she was illegally detained following an op-ed she co-wrote last year criticizing her university’s response to Israel and the war in Gaza.

Ozturk said she will continue her case in the courts, adding, “I have faith in the American system of justice.”

She was joined by her lawyers and two of Massachusetts’ Democratic members of Congress, Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley.

“Today is a tremendous day as we welcome you back, Rumeysa,” Markey said. “You have made millions and millions of people across our country so proud of the way you have fought.”

Appearing by video for her bail hearing the previous day, Ozturk, 30, detailed her worsening asthma attacks in detention and her desire to finish her doctorate focusing on children and social media.

U.S. District Judge William Sessions in Vermont ruled that she was to be released on her own recognizance with no travel restrictions. She was not a danger to the community or a flight risk, he said, while noting that he might amend the release order to consider any conditions by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, in consultation with her lawyers.

Sessions said the government offered no evidence for why Ozturk was arrested other than the op-ed.

The U.S. Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review did not respond to an email message seeking comment Friday.

Ozturk was one of four students who wrote the opinion piece last year in campus newspaper The Tufts Daily. It criticized the university’s response to student activists demanding that Tufts “acknowledge the Palestinian genocide,” disclose its investments and divest from companies with ties to Israel.

On March 25 immigration officials surrounded Ozturk in Massachusetts and took her into custody. She was then driven to New Hampshire and Vermont and flown to a detention center in Basile, La.

Her student visa had been revoked several days earlier, but she was not informed of that, her lawyers said.

Ozturk’s lawyers first filed a petition on her behalf in Massachusetts, but they did not know where she was and were unable to speak to her until more than 24 hours after she was detained. A Massachusetts judge later transferred the case to Vermont.

A State Department memo said Ozturk’s visa was revoked following an assessment that her actions “may undermine U.S. foreign policy by creating a hostile environment for Jewish students and indicating support for a designated terrorist organization.” Ozturk co-authored an op-ed that found common ground with a group that was temporarily banned from campus.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in March, without providing evidence, that investigations found that Ozturk engaged in activities in support of Hamas, which the U.S. has designated as a terrorist group.

Last week a federal appeals court upheld Sessions’ order to bring Ozturk back to New England for hearings to determine whether her constitutional rights, including free speech and due process, were violated, as her lawyers argue.

Immigration proceedings for Ozturk, initiated in Louisiana, are being conducted separately in that state and Ozturk can participate remotely, the court said.

Ngowi and Rush write for the Associated Press and reported from Boston and Portland, Ore., respectively. AP writers Kathy McCormack and Holly Ramer in Concord, N.H., and Michael Casey in Boston contributed to this report.