War breaking news. Netanyahu: appeal to Cpi against arrest warrant. Hamas: ready for Gaza ceasefire

Donald Trump appoints General Keith Kellogg as assistant to the president and special envoy for Russia and Ukraine. This was announced by the president-elect himself on his social Truth. "Together we will make the world safe again," Trump said.

In the post on Truth Social, Trump recalls that the 80-year-old army general 'has been with me from the beginning, together we will secure peace through strength, and make America and the world safe again'. Kellogg during the first Trump administration served as acting White House National Security Adviser, after Michael Flynn was forced to resign because he was swept up in Russiagate. Eventually Trump appointed National Security Adviser, H.R. McMaster and in April 2018 Kellogg became National Security Adviser to Vice President Mike Pence. His appointment comes after it was written last week that Trump was considering for the post of envoy the name of Richard Grenell, another loyalist who was first, controversially, ambassador to Germany and then head of National Intelligence.

Last June, Kellogg, together with another Trump campaign advisor, Fred Fleitz, presented Trump with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, on the basis of which US military aid to Ukraine would be conditional on Kiev's agreement to enter into peace negotiations with Russia. The plan included a ceasefire that would respect the battle lines at the time of the negotiations and the possibility of drawing Moscow to the negotiating table with the promise that Ukraine's membership in NATO would be postponed for a long period.

To read more: Trump appoints Mike Huckabee ambassador to Israel. Rubio and Waltz, two hawks (loyalists) for foreign policy

The Israel Defence Forces claim that they have not yet withdrawn their troops from south Lebanon, because according to the ceasefire agreement they have 60 days to do so. Throughout the day, several incidents occurred among the Lebanese population, civilians and Hezbollah members, who tried to reach border villages and areas where the IDF is still deployed.

The death toll in clashes in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo between the Damascus military and jihadists has risen to 57. This was reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, according to which the victims include 26 militants of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (Hts, the former Syrian branch of al Qaeda) and 31 soldiers. According to the London-based NGO, the clashes broke out after the jihadists, with some allied groups, launched an attack against the military, which also brought in the Air Force, flanked by Russian fighters.

Israel conditioned France's involvement in the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon on a public announcement by Paris that it would not comply with the ICC arrest warrant against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he entered the country. Haaretz reports. After the ceasefire in Lebanon came into effect, France made an announcement stating that it could not arrest Netanyahu because it believes the Israeli PM has immunity from the ICC. A statement that seems at odds with the one made shortly after the arrest warrants were issued, when Paris said it would uphold the Court's decision.

Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu has decided that Israel will notify the International Criminal Court in The Hague (ICC) of its intention to appeal the arrest warrants issued for him and former Defence Minister Yoav Galant. Netanyahu made the decision at the last minute, as the deadline for the appeal expires at midnight today. Ynet reports.

Also read: Arrest warrant for Netanyahu: reactions

"My sincere congratulations to Von der Leyen on the approval of the new College of Commissioners". Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated on X, saying that 'we are confident that under the leadership of this European Commission Ukraine will achieve its ultimate strategic goal: EU membership'. Zelensky wishes the new commission 'success in strengthening a united Europe and enhancing the EU's role as a global leader'. 'We look forward to continuing our productive cooperation on key issues of the Ukraine-EU strategic agenda'.

In this handout video grab taken from a footage released by the Ukrainian Presidency, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the nation in Kyiv on November 21, 2024. Zelensky said that Russian leader Vladimir Putin was using Ukraine as a weapons-testing ground, accusing Moscow of having apparently launched an armed intercontinental ballistic missile at his country. If confirmed, it would be the first use of such a weapon in conflict in history, and a sharp escalation of the fighting in Ukraine. (Photo by Barbara LABORDE / UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE / AFP)

Unifil, the UN force in Lebanon, announced that it is adapting its operations to the 'new situation' in the country after the announcement of the ceasefire with Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz instructed the IDF not to allow the population to enter the area of villages near the border in southern Lebanon, in accordance with the first phase of the implementation of the ceasefire plan. The PM's office reports. "The Idf has arrested four Hezbollah operatives, including a local commander, who had entered the prohibited area, and will continue to take tough action against any violation" of the agreement, the note states.

Earlier, the Idf's Arabic-language spokesman again urged Lebanese civilians not to return to villages in southern Lebanon during the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. "For your safety and that of your family, it is forbidden for you to move south to the villages that the Idf has ordered to be evacuated or to the Idf forces in the area," he wrote on social media, indicating that from 5pm today (local time, 4pm in Italy) to 7am (6am in Italy) tomorrow, "it is absolutely forbidden" to cross the Litani River in a southerly direction. Those south of the Litani must remain where they are, he says. "We remind you that the Idf is still deployed in its positions in southern Lebanon in accordance with the terms of the ceasefire agreement and our forces will deal firmly with any movement that violates this agreement," the spokesman said. The IDF has 60 days to withdraw under the agreement. During that period, the Lebanese army will gradually assume responsibility for southern Lebanon and an American-led committee will be established to adjudicate complaints about potential ceasefire violations.

Moscow views the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah "positively". "We view positively any agreement, potential or concluded, that could stop the spiral of violence, halt the bloodshed in Lebanon and prevent further expansion of hostilities, but (such agreements) must be effective," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, quoted by the Ria Novosti news agency.

TOPSHOT - A tv grab taken from handout footage released on November 21, 2024 by the Russian Foreign Ministry shows Russia's foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, receiving a phone call during a live press briefing ordering her not to comment on reports of a ballistic missile strike on Ukraine. An unknown male voice on the phone can be heard addressing her: "On the 'Yuzhmash' ballistic missile strike that the Westerners have started talking about, we are not commenting at all," he says, referring to an aerospace manufacturer based in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. (Photo by RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP)

"An Italian flight with 40 tons of humanitarian aid for Gaza has just landed in Amman." This was said by Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, during question time at the Chamber of Deputies. "Soon 15 trucks that we donated to the UN World Food Programme will also leave Ravenna," he added. "We are at the forefront in providing humanitarian assistance, through ambitious initiatives such as Food for Gaza.

Il vicepresidente del Consiglio e ministro degli Esteri, Antonio Tajani, durante il suo intervento al Med 2024, Mediterranean Dialogues conference, a Rome. ANSA/ETTORE FERRARI

A 'starting point' for peace negotiations in Ukraine can be to return the territorial situation 'at least to 23 February 2022', i.e. to the eve of the Russian military intervention, when Crimea was already under Moscow's control. This was said by the head of Kiev's bureau, Andrii Yermak, in an interview with the Swedish newspaper Dagens Industri, which was filmed on his X profile. Recalling that President Zelensky has called for Ukraine to be invited to join the Atlantic Alliance as the first point in his so-called 'plan for victory', Yermak stressed that this "would not entail any obligation of NATO allies under Article 5", which provides for military intervention if one of the member countries suffers an attack. Such an invitation would instead, the cabinet chief added, 'encourage Russia to choose diplomacy'.

Germany denied it as a 'false accusation' that was circulated this morning by Moscow according to which the German authorities had closed the office of the Russian TV channel Primo Canale. In response to the alleged German initiative, which Berlin now denies, Russia has decided to expel two journalists from the German television group Ard. "The Russian claims are false: the federal government has not closed the offices of this channel, and Russian journalists can work freely and unhindered in Germany," said the Foreign Ministry spokesman in Berlin during a routine press conference.

Russia has decided to expel two journalists from the German TV group Ard in response to the closure of the Russian TV station First Channel in Germany. This was said by Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, quoted by Russian agencies.

"We hope that the extraordinary result" of the ceasefire in Lebanon, which "the Italian government has begun to build, including with the Prime Minister's mission in the country and with the presence of two peacekeeping missions, in Unifil and in Beirut, can lead to an agreement for a ceasefire in Gaza". This was reiterated today by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, during his speech at the closing of the Med Dialogues in Rome. "We are committed to the civilian population, a plane is in the air with food and medical aid, and to this will be added 15 trucks, which we have donated to the World Food Programme, which will remain in Gaza to distribute food to the civilian population," Tajani added.

Murad al-Rajoub, a Hamas terrorist responsible for the 2002 attack in Beersheba, was reportedly killed in a recent Israeli drone strike in Gaza City. This was announced by the IDF. According to the Israeli authorities, al-Rajoub was one of the two Hamas terrorists behind the May 2002 attack in which 10 civilians were injured. He was sentenced to 38 years before being released and deported to Gaza in a 2011 deal in which Israel exchanged 1,027 convicted terrorists for IDF prisoner-soldier Gilad Shalit. According to Palestinian media, al-Rajoub was killed on Friday during an attack along with three other Palestinians.

Saudi Arabia expressed its appreciation for ''all international efforts'' to bring about a cease-fire in Lebanon. A note from the Saudi Foreign Ministry ''expresses the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's welcome to the ceasefire in Lebanon''. The text states that ''the Saudi Kingdom appreciates all international efforts to this end''.

The Israeli army opened fire for the second time in a few hours in southern Lebanon at civilians trying to return to their destroyed homes near the demarcation line between the two countries. This was reported by the Ministry of Information, saying that after the artillery shots on Kafr Kila, in the eastern sector of the Blue Line, the Israeli military fired at the town of Adaysse, in the central sector. (

Qatar, which has tried to mediate for a truce in Gaza in recent months, hopes that the ceasefire in Lebanon will lead to a similar agreement in the Strip. In recent weeks Qatar has abandoned the negotiations after being at the centre of the talks for months with the ambiguous position of on the one hand inviting the parties to negotiate and on the other hand hosting Hamas leaders in exile in its palaces. Leaders whom Qatar recently expelled under American pressure.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has accepted Vladimir Putin's invitation to attend the May celebrations in Moscow for the victory in World War II. This was announced by Bratislava. A pro-Russian, against arms to Kiev and Ukraine's entry into NATO, tough on migrants, closed to any concessions on the front of LGBT rights and gay marriage, Robert Fico, born in 1964, has abandoned all the pro-European undertones of the beginning of his political career to embrace, over time, increasingly nationalist positions. Moving closer to Budapest than to Brussels, he has become a thorn in Europe's side: together with Viktor Orban, he has become a potential obstacle for majority decisions by the 27. In his last election campaign, he repeatedly attacked the EU for its support for Kiev but also for sanctions against Moscow. And he has always opposed Ukraine's membership of the Atlantic Alliance, reaffirming his position only a few months ago when he announced that Bratislava (which in the first phase of the war had contributed less than 1% to the European effort) would no longer supply arms to Zelensky.

Robert Fico e Vladimir Putin (Photo by ALEXEY NIKOLSKY / RIA NOVOSTI / AFP)

- Defence Minister Israel Katz said he had ordered the army to take "strong" measures to prevent what he described as Hezbollah members from entering border villages where Israeli troops might still be operating. The Times of Israel reports that. "Due to the entry of Hezbollah members into Kfar Kila," Katz ordered the military "to act forcefully and uncompromisingly against such developments," his office said in a statement. Hezbollah members are to be prevented from reaching areas in southern Lebanon where the IDF continues to prohibit travel.

The Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, Nabib Berri, leader of the influential Shia movement Amal, called for the rapid 'return' to their homes of people displaced or who fled the country due to the war between Israel and Hezbollah. In a televised speech a few hours after the ceasefire came into effect, Hezbollah's ally called on the Lebanese to show national 'unity' and spoke in favour of 'hastening the election of a President of the Republic', which the country has lacked for more than two years due to political differences

Due ragazze con la bandiera di hezbollah a Beirut EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

Shortly before the ceasefire came into force, the IDF delivered its deadliest blow against Hezbollah: one hundred bombs, many anti-bunker, pulverised the pro-Iranian militia's super-secret surface-to-surface missile factory in northern Lebanon. Channel 12 reports this, explaining that the raid was planned as a 'final attack' before the ceasefire. The aim: to prevent Hezbollah from independently producing long-range missiles for the future.

The city of Sevastopol in Crimea, where the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet is based, was attacked today by Ukrainian forces using drones and 'allegedly' missiles, according to the governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, writing on his Telegram channel. The Ukrainians launched five drones and 'allegedly two missiles', all of which were intercepted over the sea by air defences, Razvozhayev says. The governor reports that 'no civilian structures were damaged'.

Air defence systems last night shot down 22 drones launched by Ukrainian forces over various Russian regions, according to the Moscow Defence Ministry. Ten unmanned drones were intercepted over the Rostov region, seven over the territory of the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region and one each over the Kursk, Bryansk and Smolensk regions.

Russian forces have occupied another village in eastern Ukraine, Novaya Ilyinka, in their march to take the town of Kurakhovo in the Donetsk region. This was reported by the Ministry of Defence quoted by Russian agencies.

"Russia spends up to 9% of its GDP on defence. Europe spends an average of 1.9%. There is something wrong with this equation'. So said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the European Parliament in Strasbourg today, presenting her new team to MEPs. At noon MEPs will have to approve the new Commission team for five years.

Some US media report that US President Joe Biden, before leaving the White House, would make a final appeal to Congress for $24 billion in aid to Ukraine to bolster its military support and replenish dwindling US stocks. "This is not good," Elon Musk wrote on X in response to the news of Biden's request.

Israeli artillery in south Lebanon fired several rounds to prevent Lebanese civilians from returning to their homes in the Kafr Kila area in the eastern sector of the Blue Line. This was reported by the Lebanese Ministry of Information. Kafr Kila is a village almost completely razed to the ground by the Israeli army. After the ceasefire came into force, at 4am local time (3am in Italy), hundreds of families tried to return to their homes, even though they had been destroyed by Israel, in southern Lebanon. The Israeli army remains as the occupying force in the south of the country for the time being.

Manifestazione pro Hezbollah a Beirut dopo la tregua. (Photo by IBRAHIM AMRO / AFP)

"Iran will activate several thousand domestically produced advanced centrifuges in response to the US-backed resolution issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors on Friday and forwarded by the UK, France and Germany," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was quoted as saying by Irna.

"I welcome the ceasefire agreement reached today between Israel and Lebanon," which "must pave the way for a truce in Gaza as well, where the war rages," Macron said in a statement relaunched by the Elysée Palace on social media. "The agreement," Macron said, "is the result of efforts undertaken over many months with the Israeli and Lebanese authorities in close coordination with the United States and under the impetus of President Joe Biden. It is important that the ceasefire be respected in its duration, in order to restore the security of the Lebanese, the security of the Israelis, to allow the safe return of the displaced people from these two countries to their homes, and thus allow the return of Lebanon's sovereignty. The 'conditions of peace' are contained in the UN resolutions,' Macron continued, 'France will spare no effort to accompany the implementation of this agreement. France will continue to mobilise all its partners, whether American, European or Arab, for Lebanon. This agreement must open a new page for Lebanon, the cessation of hostilities offers an opportunity for the Lebanese to engage with the support of their partners in the lasting rehabilitation of the country. In the journey that now awaits Lebanon,' the French President continued, 'the Lebanese will be able to count on the unwavering support of France, faithful to its unique bonds of friendship with Lebanon. This ceasefire also marks an important moment for Israel, it will allow the inhabitants of the north to find their homes and it will provide a stable framework with a supervisory mechanism to allow for the security of the Israelis as well'. "This agreement," concludes the Elysée chief, "must not make us forget that the war still rages in Gaza, where France will continue its efforts with a view to a cessation of hostilities, the release of hostages and the massive entry of humanitarian aid, as well as a just and lasting political solution that passes through two states. This agreement must pave the way for a ceasefire that has been too long awaited in the face of the unmeasured suffering of the people of Gaza. The signed agreement shows the way to political courage, the only instrument that can give everyone in the Middle East peace and security over time'.

Manifestazione pro Hezbollah a Beirut dopo la tregua (Photo by Ibrahim AMRO / AFP)

Hamas said it was 'ready' for a truce in Gaza after the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

At 3 a.m. Italian time (4 a.m. local time), the ceasefire came into effect in Lebanon after two months of open warfare between the Israeli army and the Lebanese Hezbollah organisation. The truce had been announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu after the US proposal had been given the green light. In the hours leading up to the truce, Israel continued to bomb Beirut and Hezbollah launched drones at Tel Aviv.

The US announced that it had struck an Iranian-linked target in Syria in response to the attack on US personnel. In a post on X, Centcom, the US central command in the area, specified that it had attacked a munitions depot of the regime in Tehran. "The United States will not accept any attack against its personnel or those of its allies," Centcom stressed.

The Israeli army has again threatened to attack several buildings in southern Beirut, ordering nearby residents to evacuate a few hours before the ceasefire takes effect. In a post on X, the Arabic-speaking spokesman of the IDF, Avichay Adraee, published a map with several buildings in the southern suburbs of Beirut, which he identified as targets.

Una zona di Beirut colpita dagli israeliani prima della tregua . (Photo by AFP)

Lebanese Hezbollah claimed to have launched drones against 'sensitive military targets' in Tel Aviv this evening, in response to deadly Israeli attacks in Beirut and as the ceasefire agreement was announced. "In response to the attack on the capital Beirut and the massacres committed by the Israeli enemy against civilians," Hezbollah launched "drones against a group of sensitive military targets in the city of Tel Aviv and its suburbs," the Iran-backed group said in a statement

- Israeli forces will not immediately withdraw from Lebanon once the ceasefire has entered. This was said by a senior US administration official in a phone call with a small group of journalists. But they will have to do so within 60 days, according to the terms of the agreement.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomes the announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon and 'hopes that this agreement will bring an end to the violence, destruction and suffering that the populations of both countries are experiencing'. In a spokesperson's note, Guterres 'urges the parties to fully respect and swiftly implement all the commitments made', as well as to take immediate steps for the full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701.

US President Joe Biden announced from the Rose Garden that the cease-fire between Israel and Lebanon will come into effect at 4 o'clock local time on Wednesday, Israel and Lebanon time (3 o'clock in Italy). This was reported by the Israeli media.