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It’s night-time, and the lights of our 4×4 guide the way up a mountain road in the West Bank.

We’re above the village of Battir, south of Jerusalem, on rocky land that has been farmed by generations of the same Palestinian families over decades.

They didn’t create this road. It was bulldozed one evening by an Israeli settler living nearby. In the weeks that followed, he moved sheep on to the land, built a pen for them, and then dug a hole out the side of the hill.

We’re with Hasan, one of the villagers who has fought to reclaim this land through Israeli courts.

“He (the settler) was just over there, and he started expanding all over this hilltop.

“He brought some kind of big containers on wheels and he created like a big camp, with electricity generators and so on, and bringing all the facilities of water tanks and stuff like that.”

Every evening, men from Battir come up here to keep watch on a rota. Within minutes of us arriving, a spotter saw the car lights and raised the alarm.

Hasan said: “His (the settler’s) claim was a grazing permit to come just to graze his sheep in the area. Then he starts saying this is the promised land of Israel and this is the land of the state of Israel, and I have the right to be here.

“But he never showed any evidence of land ownership or a contract that he got through any legal body.”

Every night men from the village of Battir take in turns to come up to the hill and keep watch and try and prevent Israeli settlers
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Every night, men from Battir take it in turns to keep watch and try to stop Israeli settlers

Hasan and his fellow villagers have been threatened and on one occasion had tear gas fired at them by Israeli security when they tried to stand their ground.

“There were over a hundred settlers coming all together. We were really worried that it will become like a violent reaction. The third time he came in March or in February 2022, it was the most dangerous one when he came with some support of soldiers with him.

“They start shooting tear gas on us to prevent us from even getting closer from the hilltop over there. So we learn that this is getting violent. We are not looking to lose somebody from our village or our brothers or our cousins.”

It is a story you hear regularly in the West Bank. Israeli settlement expansion is illegal under international law and opposed by the US, UK, EU and the UN. It is the source of extreme anger for many Palestinians.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has flown in at a “pivotal moment” as the security situation here grows ever more volatile by the day.

He met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Monday and will sit down with Palestinian leaders in Ramallah on Tuesday.

Although the US still talks of a two-state solution, as do other international governments, it is a non-starter right now.

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The village of Battir in south Jerusalem
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The village of Battir, south of Jerusalem

Mr Netanyahu is facing international pressure to calm the tensions, whilst at the same time beholden to extreme right-wing voices in his new cabinet.

In response to recent terror attacks in Jerusalem, the government has said it wants to arm more Israeli civilians and there has already been talk of introducing the death penalty.

The future for Hasan, and other Palestinians, is concerning.

Hasan said: “Unfortunately, this is a very dangerous situation. We are really worried about all the support that the settlers are gaining through the new government.

“We are really worried they will come and they will attack us with their weapons, and we will not be allowed to be here anymore.”

What do you want? I ask him.

“I want to live in peace. I want to live in freedom. I want freedom because freedom will get us peace and justice. Without the freedom, we will never get peace and justice in this country.

“And there should be a solution if they want to have a one-state, two-state, 10-state solution, I don’t mind, I just want a free state that we could live in as Palestinians.”

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Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy pushes for Gaza ceasefire deal ahead of US inauguration

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Donald Trump's Middle East envoy pushes for Gaza ceasefire deal ahead of US inauguration

Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy has met Israel’s prime minister in an effort to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza before the president-elect takes office on 20 January.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed details of the meeting with Steve Witkoff on Saturday, adding that the head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency has been deployed to Qatar in order to “advance” talks.

It was not immediately clear when David Barnea would travel to Doha for the latest round of indirect discussions between Israel and Hamas.

Earlier on Saturday, an Israeli official said some progress had been made, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, to reach a deal in Gaza.

Israel's Chief of the Mossad David Barnea and Security Agency director Ronen Bar attend a memorial ceremony of the Hamas attack on October 7 last year that sparked the ongoing war in Gaza, at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem on October 27, 2024. GIL COHEN-MAGEN/Pool via REUTERS
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Ronen Bar (left), director of Israel’s security agency, and David Barnea (right), head of Mossad, at a ceremony marking the 7 October Hamas attack. File pic: Reuters

The mediators are making renewed efforts to halt fighting in Gaza and free the remaining Israeli hostages held there before Mr Trump takes office.

A deal would also involve the release of some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Families of Israeli hostages welcomed Mr Netanyahu’s decision to dispatch the officials, with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters describing it as a “historic opportunity”.

Mr Witkoff arrived in Doha on Friday and met the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s foreign ministry said.

Egyptian and Qatari mediators received reassurances from Mr Witkoff that the US would continue to work towards a fair deal to end the war soon, Egyptian security sources said, though no further details were released.

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Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed across its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.

Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Mr Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home.

Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the area destroyed and gripped by a humanitarian crisis, with most of its population displaced.

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Pope Francis honoured by Joe Biden with Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction

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Pope Francis honoured by Joe Biden with Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction

Pope Francis has been honoured with America’s highest civilian award by President Joe Biden, who has described the pontiff as “a light of faith, hope, and love that shines brightly across the world”.

It is the first time Mr Biden, 82, has given the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction during his four years in office.

In a statement, the White House said the award is “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavours”.

Mr Biden had been scheduled to present the medal to Pope Francis, 88, in person on Saturday in Rome on what was to be the final overseas trip of his presidency. But the president cancelled his visit to monitor the California wildfires.

The White House said Mr Biden bestowed the award during a phone call in which they also discussed efforts to promote peace and alleviate suffering around the world.

President Joe Biden presents Bono with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Pic: AP
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President Joe Biden presented Bono with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Pic: AP

President Joe Biden presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Denzel Washington. Pic: AP
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Denzel Washington was also recognised. Pic: AP

President Joe Biden presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Michael J Fox. Pic: AP
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Michael J Fox was bestowed with the honour. Pic: AP

The award can be presented with or without distinction.

Mr Biden presented the medal of freedom – without distinction – on 5 January to several people including fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton, humanitarian and U2 singer Bono, fashion designer Ralph Lauren and actors Michael J Fox and Denzel Washington.

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Mr Biden himself is a recipient of the award with distinction, recognised when he was vice president by then president Barack Obama in a surprise ceremony eight years ago.

President Barack Obama presents Vice President Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom during a ceremony in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Jan. 12, 2017. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
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Barack Obama presented Joe Biden with the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction in 2017. File pic: AP

The citation for the pope’s honour said his “mission of serving the poor has never ceased”.

“A loving pastor, he joyfully answers children’s questions about God. A challenging teacher, he commands us to fight for peace and protect the planet. A welcoming leader, he reaches out to different faiths,” it added.

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Ukraine says it has captured two North Korean soldiers on the battlefield in Russia

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Ukraine says it has captured two North Korean soldiers on the battlefield in Russia

Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers fighting in Russia’s Kursk region, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.

The injured pair are now in Kyiv and communicating with the Security Service of Ukraine, the country’s domestic intelligence agency, he said.

Ukrainian special forces and paratroopers captured the North Koreans, Mr Zelenskyy said in a post on X.

“As with all prisoners of war, these two North Korean soldiers are receiving the necessary medical assistance,” he said.

“I have instructed the Security Service of Ukraine to grant journalists access to these prisoners.

“The world needs to know the truth about what is happening.”

Mr Zelenskyy said capturing the soldiers alive was “not easy”. He also claimed Russian and North Korean forces fighting in Kursk have tried to conceal the presence of North Korean soldiers, including by killing wounded comrades on the battlefield to avoid their capture and interrogation by Ukraine.

The post included images of the two men – one with a bandage around his jaw and the other around both hands and wrists – and what appeared to be a Russian military document.

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Ukraine’s security service SBU on Saturday provided further details.

It said one of those detained had no documents at all, while the other had been carrying a Russian military ID card in the name of a man from Tuva, a Russian region bordering Mongolia.

“The prisoners do not speak Ukrainian, English or Russian, so communication with them takes place through Korean translators in cooperation with South Korean intelligence,” a statement said.

One of the soldiers claimed he had been told he was going to Russia for training, rather than to fight against Ukraine, according to the SBU.

The agency added both men are being provided with medical care in line with the Geneva Conventions, and investigated “in cooperation with South Korean intelligence”.

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North Korean regular troops entered the war on Russia’s side in October, according to Ukraine and its Western allies.

US, South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence assessments suggest up to 12,000 North Korean combat troops have been sent by Pyongyang under a pact with Moscow.

They believe North Korea has also been supplying Russia with vast quantities of artillery shells.

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