Iran warns airlines to avoid its airspace as Israel braces for possible retaliation

The Canadian government has said it will evacuate all the children of its diplomats out of Israel amid fears of escalating tensions.

Global Affairs Canada said it has approved the temporary relocation of the diplomats’ children and their guardians to a safe third country, according to Canadian media.

It added that diplomats stationed in Ramallah in the West Bank and in Beirut do not have dependents living with them.

It comes as Canada last week warned citizens to avoid all travel to Israel, citing the ongoing regional conflict and unpredictable security situation. It also urges its citizens to not travel to Gaza and the West Bank.

Israel‘s tensions with Iran and Hezbollah have fanned fears of a broader conflict in a region already on edge amid Israel‘s assault on Gaza which has killed tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis, including widespread hunger.

There has been an increased risk of escalation into a broader Middle East war after the killings of Palestinian Islamist group Hamas’ leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran and of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut drew threats of retaliation against Israel.

The US has urged Israel to probe the allegations of sexual abuse of a Palestinian prisoner after leaked surveillance footage purported to show an assault by masked soldiers.

State Department spokesperson said there ought to be “zero tolerance of any sexual abuse, rape, of any detainees, period”.

Israeli military police have arrested 10 soldiers on suspicion of their involvement in the abuse of a Palestinian detainee in a deserted military prison, Sde Teiman, where Israel is holding Palestinians detained in Gaza.

“We have seen the video and reports of sexual abuse of detainees are horrific,” Matthew Miller told reporters.

“Prisoners’ human rights need to be respected in all cases, and when there are alleged violations, the government of Israel needs to take steps to investigate those who are alleged to have committed abuses and, if appropriate, hold them accountable,” Miller said.

U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel will skip this year’s atomic bombing memorial service in Nagasaki because Israel was not invited, the embassy said Wednesday.

Emanuel will not attend the event on Friday because it was “politicized” by Nagasaki’s decision not to invite Israel, the embassy said.

He will instead honor the victims of the Nagasaki atomic bombing at a ceremony at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo, it said.

Yahya Sinwar’s appointment as the top leader of Hamas formalizes a role he assumed in the early hours of Oct. 7, when the surprise attack into Israel that he helped mastermind ushered in the bloodiest chapter of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

He is seen as a hard-liner with closer ties to Hamas’ armed wing than his predecessor, Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in an explosion in Iran’s capital last month that was widely blamed on Israel and could spark an all-out regional war.

Sinwar was already seen as having the final word on any cease-fire agreement for Gaza and the release of dozens of Israeli hostages still held by Hamas.

French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to new Iranian president Massoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday, Macron’s office said in a statement.

Macron told Pezeshkian “to do everything in his power to avoid a new military escalation, which would be in nobody’s interest, including Iran’s,” according to The New York Times.

The French leader’s office said he was sending a similar message to everyone in the region that he’s speaking to and it once again stated the French backing of “an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and a firm refusal of any escalation with Lebanon.”

This comes after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31.

Iran has threatened to launch a direct missile attack against Israel as revenge for the assassination, but some officials appear to be hesitant.

Pezeshkian urged restraint in the recent meeting with Khamenei to avoid escalating tensions into an unwanted war, sources told Iran International.

Turkey on Wednesday filed a request with a U.N. court to join South Africa’s lawsuit accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, the foreign minister said.

Turkey’s ambassador to the Netherlands, accompanied by a group of Turkish legislators, submitted a declaration of intervention to the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

With the development, Turkey, one of the fiercest critics of Israel’s actions in Gaza, becomes the latest nation seeking to participate in the case. Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Nicaragua and Libya have also asked to join the case, as have Palestinian officials. The court’s decision on their requests is still pending.

A number of Arab nations are urging Iran to show restraint as it responds to the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Tehran last week.

There are increasing concerns that a regional war may break out.

The efforts come as the US is attempting to cool the temperature in the region and once again try to produce a ceasefire in Gaza.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi met with top Iranian officials twice in the last week. Jordan’s minister of government communications, Muhannad al-Mubaidin, told The New York Times that “Jordan informed the Iranian brothers of its message in a clear manner.”

“We will not allow for our airspace or land to be used for any purpose. We are not willing to be a battlefield,” he added.

The Israeli military has responded to the killing of a World Central Kitchen warehouse worker.

The charity reported that Nadi Sallout was killed on Wednesday night near Deir Al-Balah, Gaza.

“The Israeli military is looking into the incident,” the Israeli Defense Force told The Independent’s Bel Trew.