Yasmeen Altaji gives a round-up of today's trends
Trending Middle East
Israel passes Palestinian deportation law and Putin congratulates Trump
This is trending your daily rundown of news from the Middle East and around the world brought to you by The National. From Abu Dhabi, I'm Yasmin Altaji, here are today's headlines. Israel's parliament has passed a law to deport first-degree relatives of Palestinian attackers to the Gaza Strip and elsewhere. The move was passed in a 61-41 vote on Thursday. It's been widely criticized by human rights groups but welcomed by the country's right wing. The law would result in deportation for seven to twenty years and would apply to family members who knew of an attack or expressed support for one. Palestinian citizens of Israel make up about 20 percent of its population. The law also applies to Palestinian residents of occupied East Jerusalem but it's unclear whether it would apply to Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday congratulated Donald Trump on his election win. He praised him as a "real man" for his response to an assassination attempt earlier this year and signaled what appears to be a mutual desire for talks. Mr. Trump told NBC News, "I think we'll speak," referring to Mr. Putin. The president-elect has already spoken with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky who said their conversation was "warm and productive." Putin's congratulations follow Biden's rush of aid to Ukraine after Trump's election victory. And Israel is continuing its bombing campaign on Hezbollah strongholds in Syria. A war monitor reported Israeli planes struck smuggling routes near the Syrian city of Qasir on the border with Lebanon's Bikah Valley. Meanwhile, strikes on Lebanon continue. That's all for this morning's headlines. You can get these stories at our site and visit the national news.com/podcasts for more like this. Yes, me and Al-Taji, the national. [music] (upbeat music)