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Nidal al-Mughrabi
For Nidal al-Mughrabi's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Israel and its allies mostly shot down all missiles and drones and there were no deaths, but Israel says it must retaliate to preserve the credibility of its deterrents.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 18, 2024
Israel will defend itself, Netanyahu says, as West calls for restraint
Israel said it must respond to a volley of attacks from Iran — which caused no deaths — to preserve the credibility of its deterrents.
A woman grieves for Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 17, 2024
Israeli forces return again to northern Gaza and strike Rafah
Israel is still imposing "unlawful" restrictions on humanitarian relief for the Gaza Strip, the U.N. human rights office has said.
Hamas' top leader, Ismail Haniyeh, speaks during a news conference in Tehran on March 26.
WORLD
Apr 11, 2024
Three sons of Hamas leader Haniyeh killed in Israeli airstrike
The Israeli military confirmed carrying out the attack, describing the three sons as operatives in Hamas' armed wing.
A person looks at a vehicle where employees from the World Central Kitchen were killed in an Israeli airstrike, according to the NGO, in Deir Al-Balah, in central Gaza, on Tuesday.
WORLD
Apr 3, 2024
Israel says airstrike unintentionally killed aid workers in Gaza
The U.S. and other allies called for explanations amid widespread condemnation.
Palestinians inspect the damage at Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital after the Israeli military withdrew from the complex housing the hospital on Monday.
WORLD
Apr 2, 2024
Israeli troops exit Gaza's Shifa Hospital, leaving rubble and bodies
More than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel's military offensive on Oct. 7.
A smoke plume erupts during Israeli bombardment on Khan Yunis as seen from Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 1, 2024
Fighting rages across Gaza amid revival of truce talks
More than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military offensive in Gaza since Oct. 7.
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 29, 2024
World Court orders Israel to halt famine as Hamas says cease-fire needed
The order from the International Court of Justice came as Israeli forces and Palestinian fighters battled in close combat around Gaza's Shifa Hospital.
Security personnel guard trucks carrying aid as they arrive in the southern Gaza Strip on Jan. 17.
WORLD
Mar 20, 2024
Palestinian clans and factions step in to protect Gaza aid
Numerous clans, civil society groups and factions — including Hamas' secular political rival Fatah — have stepped in to help provide security.
Palestinians gather to receive aid outside an UNRWA warehouse as Gaza residents face crisis levels of hunger on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 19, 2024
'Catastrophic' food shortages make mass death imminent in Gaza, agency warns
The number of people in parts of northern Gaza suffering the most severe food shortages is said to be more than triple the famine threshold.
Gaza on Sunday
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2024
Israel said to boycott Cairo cease-fire talks over hostage list
In past negotiations Hamas has sought to avoid discussing the well-being of individual hostages until after terms for their release are set.
U.S. President Joe Biden walks to board Air Force One for travel to New York from Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 27, 2024
Biden hopes for cease-fire in days as talks with Israelis and Hamas progress
The presence of both sides meeting mediators separately but in the same city suggested talks were further along than at any time since February.
Smoke billows following Israeli bombardment over Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 16, 2024
Israel raids main hospital in southern Gaza as Rafah concerns grow
The Israeli military said the raid was based on intel that Hamas militants were hiding and had kept hostages there, which the militant group denies.
Smoke rises during an Israeli ground operation in Khan Younis as seen from a tent camp sheltering displaced Palestinians in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 14, 2024
Gaza truce talks end inconclusively as Rafah braces for assault
The city teems with people living in makeshift shelters who fled there from Israeli bombardments in areas of Gaza farther north.
Displaced Palestinians react near their tents following an Israeli strike on a car in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 8, 2024
Gaza cease-fire hopes alive with more talks planned
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken sees room for negotiation in Hamas' counteroffer despite Israel's rejection of it.
Smoke rises over buildings in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip following Israeli bombardment on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 6, 2024
Palestinians hope Blinken visit hastens truce before Rafah strike
Blinken's meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman lasted about two hours.
Smoke rises from inside Gaza on Sunday. Gaza health authorities, which do not differentiate between militants and civilians in their tallies, said on Sunday more than 27,300 Palestinians have been confirmed killed since the Israel-Hamas war began.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 5, 2024
Hamas hounds Israeli forces in main Gaza cities
There has been persistent fighting in Gaza City in the north of the densely populated enclave, and in Khan Younis to the south.
Mourners react following the death of Palestinians in an Israeli raid, at a hospital in Jenin, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 30, 2024
Hamas studies Gaza cease-fire proposal after Israeli hospital raid
The raid underscored the risk of the war spreading to other fronts, while Israeli forces fought new battles with Hamas fighters in Gaza.
Families of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip by Palestinian militants gather with supporters for a demonstration demanding an immediate deal as they block off a road near the Israeli Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 30, 2024
U.S. vows to act after drone strike, endangering Gaza hostage talks
An attack Sunday by Iran-backed militants was the first deadly strike against U.S. troops since the Israel-Hamas war began, and marks a major escalation.
Palestinians fleeing Khan Younis, due to the Israeli ground operation, move toward Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 29, 2024
More Palestinians displaced as Israel battles Hamas in south Gaza
Israel said it was engaged in battles in Khan Younis, where it said troops "eliminated terrorists and located large quantities of weapons."
Israeli soldiers operate in the Gaza Strip
WORLD / Politics
Jan 24, 2024
One-month Gaza truce is the focus of intensive talks, sources say
Despite the difficulty of bridging the gap in positions, a source described the talks as intensive and said a deal could be agreed to "at any minute."

Longform

Historically, kabuki was considered the entertainment of the merchant and peasant classes, a far cry from how it is regarded today.
For Japan's oldest kabuki theater, the show must go on