LIVE UPDATES – 08/05/2024 (Day-215)
Disclaimer: Independent Press takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments on the Israel-Palestine conflict. However, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.
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- People are pouring into central Gaza by the thousands, mainly to Deir el-Balah city, after Israel’s seizure of the vital Rafah crossing on the border with Egypt.
- Rafah’s largest hospital, al-Najjar, has ceased operations, and the city’s remaining healthcare facilities have only three days of fuel left, says WHO, which pleaded for the reopening of Gaza border crossings.
- A full-scale invasion of Rafah by Israeli forces would be “a strategic mistake, a political calamity, and a humanitarian nightmare”, UN secretary-general warns.
- “With each day that Israeli authorities block life-saving aid, more Palestinians are at risk of dying,” Human Rights Watch says.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a ceasefire proposal agreed to by Hamas “falls far short” of Israel’s demands, but an Israeli delegation has arrived in Cairo for further talks.
- At least 34,844 people have been killed and 78,404 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attacks stands at 1,139 with dozens of people still held captive.
Biden administration says ‘absolutely critical’ to reopen Rafah crossing
State Department spokesperson Miller has stressed the need to allow fuel into Gaza via the Rafah crossing, which was captured by Israeli forces earlier this week.
He also noted that the Rafah crossing allows humanitarian workers in and out of Gaza.
“So it’s absolutely critical that that crossing open, that it remains open, and we’re gonna continue to press for that,” Miller said.
On Tuesday, the spokesperson said it was “legitimate” for Israel to seize the Palestinians side of the Rafah gate, which he said was a source of revenue for Hamas.
Asked today who should control the crossing, Miller said the US would like to see the Palestinian Authority in charge of it as part of a unified Palestinian government in the West Bank and Gaza.
“Now, what happens in the time between now and then ultimately is a question for Israel,” he said.
“Israel has seized that crossing. Israel is in control of it now. So, the responsibility to open that crossing and make sure that it is running effectively right now is a responsibility of the government of Israel.”
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Israeli attacks kill, injure Palestinians across Gaza
A number of Palestinians have been killed by Israeli air raids and artillery attacks across Gaza, including in Rafah, Palestine’s Wafa news agency reports.
Seven people were killed and others injured in Israeli shelling that targeted a group of civilians near the al-Aybaki Mosque in the al-Daraj neighbourhood in eastern Gaza City, Wafa reported.
Several civilians were also killed and injured in Israeli raids that targeted a house belonging to the Radi family in the new camp west of Nuseirat refugee camp.
Earlier, we reported that Israeli shelling killed at least one Palestinian in Rafah.
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US says it did not approve Israel’s offensive in Rafah
Asked whether Washington gave a green light to Israel’s ongoing assault on Rafah, which saw Israeli forces seize the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said: “It did not happen with our approval.”
On Tuesday, Miller said the offensive appears to be “limited” and warned Israel against expanding it, but Israeli forces have been intensifying their attacks on Rafah.
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Palestinian Islamic Jihad says three of its fighters killed in Lebanon
The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian group, has identified the fighters as Mahmoud Blawni, Ahmada Halawa and Mohamad Jawad.
It said they were killed while fighting in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which is allied with Hezbollah, has claimed previous attacks against Israel launched from Lebanese territory.
Hezbollah has been exchanging cross-border fire with Israeli forces since the outbreak of the war on Gaza.
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Rafah crossing takeover doesn’t violate peace treaty with Egypt: Israel
Israel says its capture of the Rafah crossing in the southern Gaza Strip doesn’t violate its peace treaty with Egypt.
“Israel is aware of the sensitivity of military operations near the Egyptian border. We affirm this operation does not violate the peace treaty between the two countries,” Ofir Gendelman, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said in a video message on X.
“The operation at the Rafah crossing will continue until Hamas is eliminated and releasing the Israeli hostages.”
The Egyptian foreign ministry called the move a “dangerous escalation”.
Israel and Egypt signed a peace treaty in 1979 under which Israeli forces withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula and the two countries normalised relations. The Israeli army seized control on Tuesday of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing on the border with Egypt, a vital route for humanitarian aid into the besieged territory.
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People buried alive at al-Shifa Hospital: Gaza health official
Motasem Salah, director of the Gaza Emergency Operations Centre, says medics recovered more than 50 bodies from the mass grave at the medical complex since Tuesday.
“There were also bodies in the reception and emergency department. Part of the department was completely demolished, and the rubble and debris were moved over the patients,” Salah said in a video message.
“The bodies we found were on beds at the reception and emergency department, meaning Israel destroyed the department over the heads of sick and injured people – and they were buried alive.”
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Rafah incursion looms: ‘Some streets look like a ghost town’
Tens of thousands of Palestinians are on the move again after being ordered to evacuate southern Rafah by the Israeli military. About 1.5 million people are sheltering there, raising the prospect of mass casualties in an Israeli ground invasion.
People in the Jneina, al-Shawka, al-Salam and other neighbourhoods have fled in anticipation of an assault.
“Some streets look like a ghost town now,” said Aref, 35, who asked his surname not be used, fearing Israeli reprisals. “We don’t fear death and martyrdom. But we have kids to care for and live for another day when this war ends and we rebuild the city.”
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Israel’s UN ambassador says US pausing arms shipments ‘very disappointing’
Israel’s UN ambassador Gilad Erdan says he did not believe the US would stop supplying arms to Israel but called Washington’s decision to hold up some weapons shipments “very disappointing”, even frustrating.
US President Joe Biden “can’t say he is our partner in the goal to destroy Hamas [in the Gaza war] while on the other hand delay the means meant to destroy Hamas”, Erdan said in an interview on Israel’s Channel 12 News.
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‘Absolutely right’: Bernie Sanders backs US pausing arms shipment to Israel
The progressive US senator has voiced support for Biden’s decision to halt an arms shipment to Israel, calling for further moves to pressure Israel to end abuses against Palestinians.
“This must be a first step. The US must now use ALL its leverage to demand an immediate ceasefire, the end of the attacks on Rafah, and the immediate delivery of massive amounts of humanitarian aid to people living in desperation,” Sanders said in a statement.
“Our leverage is clear. Over the years, the United States has provided tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Israel. We can no longer be complicit in Netanyahu’s horrific war against the Palestinian people.”
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Israel’s UN ambassador says US pausing arms shipments ‘very disappointing’
Israel’s UN ambassador Gilad Erdan says he did not believe the US would stop supplying arms to Israel but called Washington’s decision to hold up some weapons shipments “very disappointing”, even frustrating.
US President Joe Biden “can’t say he is our partner in the goal to destroy Hamas [in the Gaza war] while on the other hand delay the means meant to destroy Hamas”, Erdan said in an interview on Israel’s Channel 12 News.
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‘Absolutely right’: Bernie Sanders backs US pausing arms shipment to Israel
The progressive US senator has voiced support for Biden’s decision to halt an arms shipment to Israel, calling for further moves to pressure Israel to end abuses against Palestinians.
“This must be a first step. The US must now use ALL its leverage to demand an immediate ceasefire, the end of the attacks on Rafah, and the immediate delivery of massive amounts of humanitarian aid to people living in desperation,” Sanders said in a statement.
“Our leverage is clear. Over the years, the United States has provided tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Israel. We can no longer be complicit in Netanyahu’s horrific war against the Palestinian people.”
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ICRC says ‘extremely concerned’ by Rafah operation
A spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross says the group will be unable to carry out its operations in Gaza if the military operation in Rafah continues.
“Our operations despite the challenges continue in Rafah and in the middle area,” Hisham Mhanna told Al Jazeera from Rafah.
“However, we are extremely concerned that we will not be able to maintain our operations if the military operation expands and the Rafah crossing remains closed.”
Mhanna said the ICRC was currently supporting kitchen centres, providing meals to thousands of families on a daily basis, providing support to hospitals, helping civil defence teams with retrieving bodies under the rubble, and other services.
“This will be a drop in the ocean if the situation deteriorates further,” Mhanna added.
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AIPAC hits out at Biden’s decision to delay arms shipment to Israel
The influential pro-Israel US lobby group described the move, confirmed by defence chief Lloyd Austin earlier, as a “dangerous and counterproductive message”.
“It emboldens Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah, and undermines America’s commitments to all our allies,” the American Israel Public Affairs Committee said in a social media post.
“Congress must demand the Biden Admin reverse this delay and ensure Israel has what it needs to win this war.”
AIPAC has been spending millions of dollars on US elections to defeat candidates critical of Israel.
Delaying this arms transfer is a dangerous and counterproductive message. It emboldens Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah, and undermines America’s commitments to all our allies.
Congress must demand the Biden Admin reverse this delay and ensure Israel has what it needs to win this war. https://t.co/uS9k0tjkYH
— AIPAC (@AIPAC) May 8, 2024
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New US bill aims to deport international students arrested at Gaza protests
The measure was introduced by Republican Congressman Andy Ogles amid a bipartisan US push to punish student protesters and accuse them of anti-Semitism.
The proposed legislation calls for revoking the visas of international students who have been arrested “while establishing, participating in, or promoting an encampment on the campus of an institution of higher education on or since October 7, 2023”, according to a copy of the bill published by The Daily Caller right-wing publication.
US authorities have arrested more than 2,000 students over the past weeks to break up encampments across the country that urged their universities to end investments in Israeli firms and weapon manufacturers.
Ogles faced backlash earlier this year when he said, “I think we should kill them all”, when asked about the killing of children in Gaza.
🚨My message is clear: if you’re a student visa holder rioting AGAINST American values and FOR Hamas terrorists, you can go study abroad in Gaza.
Read more about my latest bill.👇 https://t.co/UekRTahnEY
— Rep. Andy Ogles (@RepOgles) May 8, 2024
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Pressuring Hamas for better deal Israel’s main priority
Israeli columnist Akiva Eldar says the rescue of captives in Gaza is not a priority for the Netanyahu-led government. He also accused the prime minister of “gambling on the lives of the Israeli captives”.
“The first priority of the government is to put more pressure on Hamas, which they feel will get them a better deal,” he told Al Jazeera.
Eldar noted the Americans have suspended one arms transfer to Israel, “but as long as they don’t put their foot down and say enough is enough” the attacks on Gaza will continue.
But he also highlighted the growing public pressure on Netanyahu and his cabinet. “In the Israeli public opinion, every day we see more and more people demonstrating and closing and blocking highways,” he added.
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Gallant: Summer may be ‘hot’ on Israel-Lebanon border
Israel’s defence minister says “the mission has not been completed” in the conflict with Lebanon’s Hezbollah, and that he remains determined to allow the return of evacuated residents to their homes.
“This summer might be a hot summer,” he said in a recorded statement, alluding to a possible expansion of hostilities along the northern border with Lebanon.
Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging fire since October 8, a day after Hamas and other Palestinian groups attacked Israel.
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Hamas calls on international groups to document Gaza mass graves
The group that governs Gaza says the recent discovery of another mass grave at al-Shifa Hospital is further evidence that Israel’s aim is to displace and exterminate Palestinians in Gaza.
Hamas said Israel’s conduct should compel the UN to take action to end the “barbaric” aggression against Gaza.
“We call on all rights groups and relevant organisations to document these crimes and submit them to the International Criminal Court and other courts,” it said in a statement.
Last month, United Nations chief Antonio Guterres demanded an independent investigation into reports by Palestinian authorities of mass graves discovered in Gaza.
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‘Please, please have a ceasefire now,’ WHO says
World Health Organization spokesperson Margaret Harris has warned that hospitals in Gaza only have fuel to operate for the next two to three days as Israel continues to block the Rafah crossing.
Harris said the entry of humanitarian and medical supplies to Gaza has “stopped completely”.
“We were expecting to have fuel delivered today. We don’t have it,” she told Al Jazeera. “So we’ve had to suspend some of our activities to the north because we want to reserve that fuel for the hospitals to ensure that they can continue their life-saving work.”
She warned that the outbreak of diseases could become a “death sentence” for malnourished children across Gaza.
“We, as humans, must not let this continue. Please, please have a ceasefire now,” Harris said.
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About 200 Palestinians leaving Rafah each hour, UNRWA says
An average of 200 people are leaving Rafah every hour following Israel’s evacuation order, according to estimates by the UN relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA).
“The displacement is ongoing and people are leaving towards Khan Younis and the Middle Areas,” said UNRWA communications director Juliette Touma.
“It’s not possible to give a total number of people displaced at the moment given how fluid the situation is,” she added.
A senior UNRWA official told US broadcaster CNN that approximately 50,000 people had left Rafah since Monday.
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US pause of Israel weapons shipment due to Rafah plans: Austin
Biden’s decision to hold up the delivery of high payload munitions to Israel was made in the context of Israel’s plan to carry out an offensive in Rafah, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has said.
“We’ve been very clear … from the very beginning that Israel shouldn’t launch a major attack into the Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace. And again, as we have assessed the situation, we have paused one shipment of high payload munitions,” he told a Senate hearing.
“We’ve not made a final determination on how to proceed with that shipment.”
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Main maternity hospital in Rafah stops admitting patients
The main maternity hospital in Rafah has stopped admitting patients, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has told Reuters.
The UNFPA said Al-Helal Al-Emairati Maternity Hospital had been handling some 85 births each day out of a total of 180 births in Gaza prior to an escalation of fighting between Hamas and Israeli troops on Rafah’s outskirts.
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Most US Democrats say Israel is committing genocide: Survey
The majority of voters from President Biden’s Democratic Party agree that the US ally is committing genocide in Gaza, a new study shows.
The survey by Data for Progress, in collaboration with Zeteo, found that 56 percent of Democratic respondents agree with genocide accusations against Israel, while only 22 percent reject them.
Overall, a plurality of 39 percent of respondents said Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza.
The UN defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group”, including killings and measures to prevent births.
The findings could spell political trouble for Biden who has been facing increasing pressure from his Democratic base over his “ironclad” support for Israel, months before the presidential elections in November.
The survey, which included responses from 1,265 likely US voters, also found that 70 percent of respondents support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
Most US Democrats say Israel is committing genocide: Survey
The majority of voters from President Biden’s Democratic Party agree that the US ally is committing genocide in Gaza, a new study shows.
The survey by Data for Progress, in collaboration with Zeteo, found that 56… pic.twitter.com/GCt82HdMtA
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) May 8, 2024
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Most US Democrats say Israel is committing genocide: Survey
The survey by Data for Progress, in collaboration with Zeteo, found that 56 percent of Democratic respondents agree with genocide accusations against Israel, while only 22 percent reject them.
Overall, a plurality of 39 percent of respondents said Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza.
The UN defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group”, including killings and measures to prevent births.
The findings could spell political trouble for Biden who has been facing increasing pressure from his Democratic base over his “ironclad” support for Israel, months before the presidential elections in November.
The survey, which included responded from 1,265 likely US voters, also found that 70 percent of respondents support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
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International Rescue Committee calls for Israel to stop further violence
“It is unconscionable to target such a densely populated area, leaving 1.3 million people with no safe haven,” Bob Kitchen, the IRC vice president of emergencies, said in a statement.
“The international community must wield all diplomatic influence at its disposal to bring the parties to an agreement and halt the humanitarian tragedy under way in Rafah.”
Hezbollah claims several attacks against Israeli forces
Hezbollah also said it targeted Israeli troops in the Kfar Shuba Hillso, which Lebanon claims at its own.
Earlier, the group claimed a “precise” drone attack on a newly established Israeli command centre in the western sector of the border.
Some recovered bodies at al-Shifa Hospital found ‘without heads’
The vast majority of the 49 Palestinian bodies so far recovered from the grave in al-Shifa Hospital were decomposed.
Gaza’s Government Media Office has confirmed they found bodies without heads. That’s absolutely terrifying and gives a clear reflection about what was happening inside the compound [during the Israeli raid].
That brings the total number of recovered bodies to 520 bodies that have been recovered from al-Shifa Hospital, Nasser Hospital in the south alongside Kamal Adwan Hospital in the northern parts of the territory.
It’s absolutely terrifying as Israeli bombardments across the territory have not stopped in the last 24 hours.
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MAP confirms shutdown of al-Najjar Hospital, Rafah’s largest
Medical Aid for Palestine (MAP) says it has received an update from Dr Marwan Homs, head of al-Najjar, who said the hospital is no longer functioning because all staff have been ordered to evacuate.
“This was Rafah’s largest hospital,” MAP said.
“This means Rafah’s already overstretched and under resourced health system is now left with only Kuwaiti Hospital, which is an NGO hospital with around [a] 16-bed capacity; Marwani field hospital, which is only a trauma stabilization point; and Al-Emairati Hospital, which is only a maternity hospital,” it added.
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Deir el-Balah’s only water station faces crisis as thousands flee Rafah
The situation has been exacerbated by the flight of thousands of displaced people from Rafah to Deir el-Balah, straining the water supply.
Ismail Shallah, who was displaced from Shujaiya to Rafah and now to Deir el-Balah, said: “We have fled the shelling, we are exhausted from the war. I have been waiting for an hour and a half for my turn to get drinking water”.
Um al-Abed, another displaced person from Rafah, shared her experience: “I walked for an hour in search of water and found myself at this station. It may be undrinkable water, especially since my child has respiratory problems and needs clean water.”
Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh holds call with Iraqi PM
Hamas said in a statement that al-Sudani welcomed the Palestinian group’s stance on the ceasefire deal and pledged support for Palestinians at international forums.
Al-Sudani also expressed condolences to Haniyeh over the killing of his three sons in an Israeli attack in Gaza last month, Hamas said.
Israel has ‘nothing to add’ to reports US withheld arms shipment
The AFP, Reuters and The Associated Press news agencies on Tuesday quoted unnamed US officials as saying Washington began to “carefully review proposed transfers of particular weapons to Israel that might be used in Rafah” in April when it seemed Israel appeared close to making a decision on the assault.
The officials cited in these reports said that the Biden administration paused a shipment of weapons to Israel to express opposition to its apparently imminent ground invasion of Rafah in southern Gaza.
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WHO sounds alarm on dire state of healthcare in Rafah
Yesterday, Israel seized and closed the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, effectively cutting off the Strip from the outside world and the hundreds of aid trucks piled up at the Egyptian border.
“Without fuel all humanitarian operations will stop. Border closures are also impeding delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza”, Tedros said.
He added: “One of the three hospitals in Rafah, Al-Najjar, is no longer functioning due to the ongoing hostilities in its vicinity and the military operation in Rafah.”
Echoing calls of world political and humanitarian leaders, Ghebreyesus also pleaded for a halt to military operations in Rafah, which the Israeli army has said will move forward with or without a ceasefire deal.
Fighter jets, artillery strike Hezbollah in southern Lebanon: Israeli military
It says these targets included weapons storage facilities and other military infrastructure.
Since October 8, when Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel in solidarity with Palestinians, the Lebanese armed group and the Israeli military have regularly traded fire.
Why the Rafah border crossing is vital
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Florida’s represetative in US Congress incites annihilation of Gaza
Mast was responding to a question by human rights activist Medea Benjamin on whether he thinks Israel should agree to a ceasefire following an agreement by Hamas.
“I think Israel should go in there and kick the s*** out of them. Just absolutely destroy them, their infrastructure, level anything that they touch.”
If you’re just joining us
- Thousands of Palestinians are “exhausted” and “panicked” as they struggle to set up makeshift shelters in central Gaza after fleeing Rafah amid Israel’s ongoing incursion, reports Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud.
- A third mass grave, holding at least 49 bodies, has been discovered in Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital, according to Gaza’s Government Media Office.
- The United States’ CIA director, William Burns, is in Israel to meet with Israeli PM Netanyahu regarding ongoing truce negotiations with Hamas.
- Israel has not seen a breakthrough in the Cairo talks so far, but according to an Israeli official quoted by Reuters, it will continue to keep a team of its negotiators there.
- Switzerland has opted to resume funding UNRWA but proposed halving its previously committed funds for 2024 to $11m to cover only “pressing basic needs”.
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No aid entering Gaza: UNRWA
While aid supplies are cut off, the area around the Rafah border crossing has come under “continued bombardment” today, Anderson added.
If aid to Gaza continues to be blocked, critical diesel fuel supplies are set to run out by the end of the day, senior UN officials have warned, forcing the closure of a major water-production facility and cutting off drinking water for northern Gaza.
Will the US adopt IHRA’s anti-Semitism definition? What’s the controversy?
The United States House of Representatives passed a bill on May 1 that could expand the federal definition of anti-Semitism, and the Senate – the upper house of Congress – is now expected to debate and vote on the legislation.
Democratic Party Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Thursday that the bill faced objections from some Democrats and Republicans but that “we’re going to look for the best way to move forward”.
At the heart of the debate and controversy over the bill is the definition of anti-Semitism that it seeks to adopt – despite opposition from several civil liberties groups.
‘Hamas will move northwards’: Israeli military spokesman
“I want to tell the public so that they do not delude themselves: Even after we deal with Rafah, there will be terror,” Hagari said in an interview with Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
“Hamas will move northwards and try to reconstitute itself, even in the next few days. In every place Hamas returns to, including in northern and central Gaza, we will return to operating.”
Israel sees no sign of breakthrough in truce talks: Report
The official said Israel would still keep its delegation of mid-level negotiators in the Egyptian capital.
On Monday, Hamas said it agreed to a ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators Egypt and Qatar.
The proposal is split into three stages and would see an initial halt in the fighting and, eventually, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Palestinian territory.
It would also ensure the release of Israeli captives in Gaza as well as an unspecified number of Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
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Third mass grave found at al-Shifa Hospital: Gaza’s media office
It said the team expects to find dozens more as the process of retrieving bodies continues.
The media office said there have been a total of seven mass graves found inside hospitals so far.
“We condemn in the strongest terms the crimes of genocide and the continuous killing committed by the occupation army against our Palestinian people,” it said in a Telegram post.
“We hold the US administration, the international community and the occupation fully responsible for these mass graves and this blatant aggression.”
Switzerland lifts ban on UNRWA donations, offers half its original pledge
A statement said, “Switzerland’s 10 million Swiss francs contribution to UNRWA will be restricted to Gaza and will cover the most pressing basic needs, such as food, water, shelter, basic healthcare, and logistics.”
In January, Israel accused about a dozen of UNRWA’s 13,000 Gaza employees of being involved in the Hamas-led attack on October 7.
This led many donor nations, including the US and Switzerland, to abruptly suspend funding to the agency, threatening its efforts to deliver desperately needed aid in Gaza.
An independent review group of UNRWA, led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, said Israel had yet to provide evidence for its chief allegations.
Islamic Jihad’s armed wing says it fired mortars at Israeli soldiers near Rafah
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes in the municipality of ash-Shoka in eastern Rafah killed at least one Palestinian, report our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic, adding to dozens who have been killed and injured since Israel launched an incursion in the east of the province earlier this week.
‘Exhaustion’, ‘panic’ as the displaced search for shelter in Deir el-Balah
Events are evolving rapidly. People in Rafah are filling up the roads and evacuating from the city.
They are moving their stuff either by car or by animal-drawn cart, using whatever means of transportation available as Israel expands its intense bombing campaign. The bombing seems to be moving a little further towards central Rafah, as well as the western part of it.
People are pouring into central Gaza by the thousands, mainly to Deir el-Balah city.
The vicinity of this hospital – Al-Aqsa Hospital – is becoming very crowded, with many families looking for any small, empty area… to set up tents or whatever they’re able to construct.
Exhaustion and panic define what these families are experiencing.
Support from lecturers and no arrests as Spanish students rally for Gaza
Huge Palestinian flags are hanging on campuses across Spain as thousands of students protest against Israel’s war in Gaza.
Some classes have stopped this week as students demonstrate in Barcelona, Valencia, the Basque Country and Madrid.
Across Europe, similar sit-ins have taken place at universities in the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, Finland, Denmark and Germany, as young people join their United States peers who are facing a violent police response.
In Amsterdam, police arrested about 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian camp at the University of Amsterdam on Tuesday.
But in Spain, a country that historically supports the Palestinian cause, police have so far not been involved in trying to break up the protests.
CIA director has arrived in Israel: Report
Burns has been involved in the ongoing negotiations to bring about a truce deal between Israel and Hamas.
The Israeli war cabinet will then convene at 7:30pm (16:30 GMT), according to Haaretz.
Israel sees pause on US weapons shipment as ‘signal of dissatisfaction’ with Rafah
The US shares Israel’s strategic goal of removing Hamas from power and returning the captives, but it also has certain things it wants from Israel, he said.
For the past several months, it wanted Israel to let in more humanitarian aid and wanted Israel to ensure there was “a plan to avoid a bloodbath when they go into Rafah”.
“The US doesn’t oppose [the invasion of Rafah] on principle at all, but they certainly want that to happen after displaced people have been offered a solution so that they’re not in the way of fire,” Perry said.
Rafah buildings catch fire due to artillery shelling: Report
Palestinian rescue services are struggling to respond to the scene and put out the fires due to continuous artillery shelling, reports Wafa.
Israeli artillery shelling has hammered central and eastern Rafah throughout the day, including in the densely populated neighbourhoods of Salam and al-Jnaina, reports Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud from Deir el-Balah.
US and Israeli government in ‘very delicate dance’
“Biden would like the Palestinian Authority, or some version of it to be restored to Gaza and Biden would like Netanyahu to cooperate on his plans for a Sunni-Israeli Western alliance against Iran and its proxies and allies,” the author of the Ask Questions Later newsletter told Al Jazeera.
“Netanyahu can do neither of those things without risking his government falling because his coalition depends for survival on the extreme right in Israel,” he added. “This is a very delicate dance and Netanyahu risks causing real alienation on the part of the Biden administration.”
Police clear tent encampment at George Washington University, dozens arrested
According to GW Hatchet, the university’s independent student-run newspaper, “Officers gave their third and final warning to demonstrators to move at about 3.30am (10:30 GMT), saying all who remained … in front of the plaza would be arrested.”
University officials had warned in statements of possible suspensions for students engaging in protest activities on University Yard.
Local media had reported that some protesters were pepper sprayed as police stopped them from entering the encampment, and nearly 30 people had been arrested, according to community organisers.
Gaza death toll rises
The ministry added that 55 people were killed and 200 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.
Israel tears down six Palestinian homes in occupied West Bank
- four in the village of al-Jiftlik, near Jericho
- one in Beit Dajan village, near Nablus
- one in Beit Tamar town, east of Bethlehem
The string of demolitions comes on the back of an Israeli operation to tear down nearly 50 Bedouin homes in the Negev.
Since October 7, Israel has stepped up demolitions of Palestinian homes under a policy rights activists say is a tool of “forced displacement”.
So far in 2024, Israel has demolished 404 Palestinian-owned structures, displacing 737 people, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
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Swedish singer wears a keffiyeh at Eurovision show, draws criticism from broadcasters
Eric Saade, 33, a Swedish singer-songwriter whose father is Palestinian, opened last night’s Eurovision Song Contest semifinal show with a keffiyeh wrapped around his wrist, drawing criticism from Sweden’s national broadcaster and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
“We think it’s sad that he uses his participation in this way,” Ebba Adielsson, the contest’s executive producer, told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.
The EBU, which organises the event, expressed “regret” that Saade chose to “compromise the non-political nature of the competition”.
Saade has since issued a statement in which he said those who consider the keffiyeh a political symbol are racist.
He said he got the keffiyeh from his father as a little boy “to never forget where the family comes from”, adding, “I didn’t know then that it would one day be called a political symbol”.
This year’s contest held in Sweden has come under sharp criticism for allowing Israel to participate, in light of its war on Gaza.
Attendees can bring and display flags of the 37 participating countries, including Israel. The only exceptions are rainbow and pride flags. Palestinian flags and pro-Palestinian symbols are banned at the show.
Photos: Israeli tanks amass in southern Israel near the border with Gaza
Death toll from Khan Younis attack rises to three
Israeli attacks have also targeted al-Mughraqa area of central Gaza, according to the Wafa news agency, as more Palestinians fleeing Rafah flood into the central areas.
‘An Israeli offensive in Rafah will be catastrophic’: UK MP
He said Palestinians in Rafah were already experiencing air strikes in densely packed areas while northern Gaza was in “full-blown famine”.
“Half the children in Gaza are in Rafah; where can they go – I ask the deputy foreign secretary – to be safe?” Lammy said.
Israeli military says it is continuing operation in eastern Rafah
As part of this operation, the Israeli army is carrying out “targeted raids” on the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, which it took operational control of on Tuesday morning, according to a military statement.
Israel has also continued to wage attacks on military infrastructure across Gaza over the past day, the statement said, hitting 100 targets, including launch sites and observation posts.
The latest attacks have created a new wave of displacement from Rafah and caused dozens of casualties, according to health officials in Gaza.
If you’re just joining us
- Israeli forces have arrested at least 30 Palestinians across the occupied West Bank in the last 24 hours.
- Israeli bulldozers have begun tearing down 47 homes in the Bedouin village of Umm Batin in the Negev, claiming they do not have the proper building permits.
- Qatar’s Foreign Ministry has urged the international community to prevent an Israeli assault on Rafah.
- Family members of captives and protesters calling for a ceasefire deal have blocked an interchange on Ayalon Highway in Tel Aviv, according to Israeli media reports.
- Israel’s military says fighter jets attacked sites in several areas of southern Lebanon overnight in what it said were operations against “military buildings” and “terrorist infrastructure” of the Hezbollah movement.
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Israeli attacks hit densely populated Rafah neighbourhoods
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reporting from Deir el-Balah, central Gaza
More air strikes and attacks concentrated in Rafah city, mainly in the eastern part, have been reported.
Within the past 45 minutes, there have been reports of constant artillery shelling of the entire eastern area, including the Salam neighbourhood. That’s in the southeastern part of Rafah city, where the vast majority of residential buildings have been targeted. The Israeli military also continues to strike at al-Jnaina neighbourhood.
These are the two most attacked neighbourhoods, not just in the last 48 hours, but since the initial weeks of this war.
I am familiar with the Salam neighbourhood, as I sheltered there for the past five months. It is densely populated, with displaced families setting up tents on the roads and the side of the roads. Every pocket of land there turned into a tent refugee camp. Now people are forced to move out of the area to seek shelter elsewhere.
There are reports of many with injuries being transferred to field hospitals in the western part of Rafah city, as well as the Kuwaiti Hospital.
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PLO rejects ‘any form of guardianship over the Rafah crossing’
Palestine Liberation Organization Secretary-General Hussein al-Sheikh posts on X: “We reject any form of guardianship over the Rafah crossing and attempts to undermine Palestinian sovereignty over it in partnership with our brothers in the Arab Republic of Egypt.”
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Israel must comply with international law in Rafah: Moscow
The Russian Foreign Ministry says Israel must strictly observe international humanitarian law after its tanks entered Rafah.
At a briefing, spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Russia sees the incursion as “an additional destabilising factor” in an area with more than a million civilians, and therefore “we demand strict observance of the provisions of international humanitarian law”, the RIA Novosti state news agency reported.
Moscow, she added, sees no prospect of a peace settlement in Gaza or the wider Middle East so far.
Photos: Palestinians displaced from Rafah set up tents near Deir el-Balah beach
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Thirty Palestinians arrested in occupied West Bank in last 24 hoursThe arrests took place during a familiar night of Israeli army raids across the occupied West Bank, with most occurring in the governorates of Hebron, Bethlehem, and Nablus, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society.Those arrested include one woman and several former prisoners, the group said.In total, Israeli forces have carried out 8,640 arrests of Palestinians in the West Bank since the start of the war on Gaza.Thousands of those arrested are held without charge under Israel’s mass use of “administrative detention”, where prisoners are held indefinitely and given no information about the charges against them or the ostensible evidence incriminating them.———————————————-Rafah’s displaced crowd into Deir el-BalahAl Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reporting from Deir el-Balah, central GazaThe courtyard of Al-Aqsa Hospital and its vicinity in Deir el-Balah is getting crowded as more people pour into the central area.The vast majority of people are coming from Rafah city, mainly its eastern central parts. They were forced to evacuate as leaflets were dropped and bombing intensified in their areas.We can see quite clearly that this city is going to be overcrowded and running out of space.———————————————-Israeli forces killing Palestinians in West Bank with impunity: HRW
Israeli forces are killing Palestinians unlawfully at a “level without recent precedent”, without fear of repercussions from the government, according to a new report from Human Rights Watch (HRW).
The report, based on research into the killings of eight Palestinians between July 2022 and October 2023, found that Israeli forces either “wrongfully fatally shot or deliberately executed” the individuals, despite them posing no security threat.
In one instance, Israeli forces repeatedly shot a man in Jenin as he crawled wounded on the ground, according to HRW. In another, Israeli forces shot dead a 15-year-old in Tulkarem, only to fire on his father minutes later as he tried to retrieve his son’s body. Neither the father nor the son appeared to be armed, according to footage reviewed by HRW.
“The Israeli government’s permissive and discriminatory practices on the use of force and endemic impunity are one facet of the apartheid and structural violence Palestinians face every day,” said Richard Weir, the rights group’s senior crisis and conflict researcher.
“The unlawful killings in the West Bank will continue so long as the Israeli authorities’ systemic repression of Palestinians continues,” Weir added.
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Israel plays down US arms shipment hold-up
The Israeli military says it resolves any disagreements with the US “behind closed doors” following news that the US has held up an arms shipment amid concerns over Israeli military operations in Rafah.
At a conference hosted by the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, chief military spokesperson Daniel Hagari described coordination between Israel and the US as reaching “a scope without precedent, I think, in history”.
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Israeli shelling kills Palestinian in Rafah
The attack, which also wounded several people, happened in the Brazil neighbourhood of eastern Rafah, our colleagues on the ground are reporting.
The casualties add to dozens who have been killed and wounded in Rafah since Israel launched its military incursion on Monday.
Over the past 24 hours, the Kuwaiti Hospital, one of the few health facilities still operational in Rafah, has received the bodies of 35 people killed and 129 wounded, medical sources have told Al Jazeera.
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Negev demolitions will destroy the homes of an entire Bedouin family
Al Jazeera’s Bernard Smith reporting from Ramallah, occupied West Bank
About 400 family members will have nowhere to live tonight because contractors have destroyed 47 to 60 of their homes.
Hundreds of police have kept people back to allow this demolition to go ahead.
This is a community of Palestinian citizens of Israel. They’re Bedouins, perhaps some of the most discriminated against people in Israel because of their status – who they are and where they live.
Many of them actually serve in the Israeli army, but it has afforded them little protection over the years.
This is part of a perhaps greater plan to clear parts of the Negev for the expansion of settlements.
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US reported pause on weapon shipment to Israel ‘just a drop in the ocean’
Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Jamjoom
Reporting from Amman, Jordan, because Israel’s gov’t has banned Al Jazeera
We haven’t gotten any official response from the Israeli government to the reports of the US pausing a shipment of weapons to Israel.
We are seeing statements by some anonymously sourced officials in Israeli media that there are concerns among members of the security establishment that the halting of this weapon shipment is a tactic by the US to increase pressure on the Israeli government to stop an all-out invasion of Rafah and to accept the terms of a ceasefire.
Not many details are being reported about what was in that weapons shipment. We are seeing numbers like perhaps around 1,800- and 2,000-pound bombs and around 1,700 and 500-pound bombs.
We should stress that this is a very small amount of weapons compared to the number of weapons that the US provides to Israel – this is just a drop in the ocean.
There is concern among the security and military establishment based on Israeli media reports that this perhaps is a harbinger of things to come, meaning that if Israel doesn’t start adhering more to what the US wants, perhaps the US will halt further shipments of weapons going forward.
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Biden showing Netanyahu ‘he’s serious’ with weapons transfer ‘pause’
The reported decision by the Biden administration to pause a shipment of US weapons to Israel is a “very significant move”, according to Amir Oren, a journalist with the Haaretz newspaper.
With the US saying it opposes a major Israeli assault on Rafah, which started on Tuesday, Oren told Al Jazeera that the reported move was an act of “deterrence” by the US.
“Biden had to show Netanyahu that he’s serious,” Oren said.
When asked if the US move was purely symbolic given it would not prevent the Israeli assault on Rafah, Oren said, “No battle is the very last one.”
“[Israel] must replenish its stock in order to prepare for Lebanon for instance, or for another Iranian contingency,” he told Al Jazeera. “So [pausing weapons transfers] doesn’t have to do only with what is happening tomorrow, you must think about next week and next year.”
The Biden administration has faced sharp criticism over its policy of arming Israel, which critics say violates US laws banning military aid and weapon sales to countries engaged in rights abuses.
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Israel’s Ben-Gvir cheers on home demolitions in Negev
Israeli bulldozers have begun tearing down 47 homes in the village of Umm Batin in the Negev, claiming they do not have the proper building permits.
That has led to protests in the local Bedouin community while police prevented a Palestinian member of the Israeli parliament from approaching the site.
In a post on X, Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir praised the demolitions as “an important step towards restoring governance” and promised Israel would tear down more homes.
The Higher Steering Committee of the Arabs of the Negev called the demolitions an “unprecedented crime” against “Arab citizens of the Negev”.
Israel demolishes hundreds of homes belonging to Palestinians each year under the pretext they lack an Israel-issued building permit, in a policy decried as “forced displacement”.
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Israel attacks, clears out eastern Rafah
Al jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reporting from Deir el-Balah, central Gaza
Overnight and into the early hours of the morning, the Israeli military continued to pound parts of eastern Rafah city.
The majority of residential homes and farmland have been cleared, as well as the central part of Rafah city, including the vicinity of al-Najjar Hospital, which is the only large health facility in Rafah city. That facility, which has been ordered to evacuate, is not operational at all, putting more pressure on the city’s remaining health facilities.
There are reports of more casualties being taken to field hospitals in the western part of the city, including the Kuwaiti Hospital, a small health facility that is largely unprepared and unequipped to receive a large number of casualties.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military continued to pound the central area of Gaza. As of early this morning, loud explosions could clearly be heard from anywhere in the central area.
They were largely concentrated in the Nuseirat refugee camp, which has been repeatedly targeted. Over the past few weeks, the Israeli military stormed the northern part of the camp, destroying the vast majority of its residential homes and public facilities, forcing people into more internal displacement.
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Israeli military carries out more arrests in the occupied West Bank
The Israeli military has detained more Palestinians in raids across the occupied West Bank, adding to a spate of arrests in recent hours.
The Wafa news agency reports that Israeli forces have arrested two men in the town of Yabad, south of Jenin, while a third man has been arrested in the Jenin refugee camp.
Three more Palestinians have also been arrested in the city of Nablus, adding to two arrests made earlier in the village of Asira al-Qibliya, south of Nablus.
Earlier we reported that Israeli forces had arrested seven people in the city of Hebron, while six others were arrested in the city of Bethlehem.
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Qatar condemns Israel’s Rafah incursion, urges international intervention
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry has urged the international community to prevent an Israeli assault on Rafah.
The ministry released a statement warning that Israel forcibly displacing civilians from Rafah would constitute a serious violation of international laws and would exacerbate the worsening humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave.
“The State of Qatar condemns in the strongest terms the Israeli occupation forces’ bombardment of the Rafah governorate, invasion of the land crossing and threat to displace citizens from shelter and housing centers,” the statement reads.
Qatar also called for “urgent international action” to “prevent the invasion of the city and the commitment of a genocide, and to provide full protection for civilians in accordance with international law and international humanitarian law”.
Qatar has been a key mediator since the start of the war, including in the ongoing ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel.
On Sunday, diplomatic sources told Al Jazeera that Qatar would not accept becoming a tool of pressure in its mediation efforts. They added that certain parties had worked to criticise and attack it in an attempt to disrupt the Gulf state’s work as an honest mediator.
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Why was the Rafah border crossing so vital for aid entering Gaza?
After the October 7 attacks, when Israel closed its border crossings with Gaza, the Rafah crossing – which was not controlled by Israel and is located on the Egypt-Gaza border – emerged as a crucial lifeline for aid entering the besieged Palestinian enclave.
Now the Israeli military has seized control of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, cutting off the vital aid corridor and travel route to Egypt.
The Karem Abu Salem crossing, which Israel calls the Kerem Shalom crossing, connects Gaza with Egypt and Israel. It was reopened in mid-December following mounting pressure from the US, but Israeli authorities have allowed only a trickle of aid to pass through, and in recent days, it has been closed again.
The Beit Hanoon (Erez) crossing from Israel to northern Gaza was tentatively opened last week to allow some aid into the territory.
Photos: The aftermath of an Israeli strike on a Rafah home
Eight-year-old girl wounded in Israeli attack denied treatment after Rafah crossing seizure
As we’ve been reporting, Israeli tanks have blocked the Rafah border crossing.
The closure of the crossing has put a chokehold on any essential aid coming into Gaza and also prevented the departure of wounded people and patients who were waiting to travel to receive treatment.
Among them is eight-year-old Lama Abu Holi and her cousin, who both sustained injuries in an Israeli air attack last month.
“Today, my name was at the border, and I should travel to get my legs treated,” she told Al Jazeera.
“They hurt. I am supposed to have an operation. Because the border crossing is shut today, I could not travel. I am sad because I did not leave today.”
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‘This will be the fifth displacement’
Many here were forced from central and northern Gaza to escape Israeli bombardment. They had been told Rafah would provide safety. But with the Israeli military striking, many are grabbing what little they have and leaving.
“I was displaced from Shujayea to Nuseirat, then to Deir el-Balah, then to Rafah – and this will be the fifth displacement,” Mohammad al-Ghul told Al Jazeera.
“We have no idea where we will go. The situation is bad. We didn’t sleep throughout the night with shells over our heads,” he said.
Another displaced Palestinian, Emad, said people’s futures were unclear.
“My family’s made up of four people, there are also four others in my brother’s family totalling eight. Where can we go?” he told Al Jazeera.
“I haven’t even taken down my tent. We need money to take it down.”
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What to know about the Cairo ceasefire talks
Here’s what to know:
- On Monday, Hamas accepted an Egypt and Qatar-brokered three-phase ceasefire proposal that would see an end to Israel’s war on Gaza as well as the release of Israeli captives held in the enclave and Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
- Optimism that an agreement may be close was short-lived, however, as Israel said the proposal agreed by Hamas did not meet its “basic demands”.
- While Israel said it would engage in further negotiations in Cairo, its army launched military operations against the city of Rafah in southern Gaza and seized the vital Rafah crossing on the border with Egypt.
- Netanyahu said Hamas’s proposal was not acceptable in its current form and labelled it a failed attempt to “torpedo” Israel’s military incursion into Rafah.
- On Tuesday, Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan said the “ball is now in Netanyahu’s court” and called on the US to pressure Israel to make a deal.
- An anonymous Hamas official has told AFP that the talks in Cairo may be Israel’s “last chance to recover the Israeli captives alive”.
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One killed in Israeli artillery attack near Khan Younis
Earlier, an Israeli air raid also hit the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.
The attacks come as thousands of Palestinians move towards areas of central Gaza and Khan Younis governorate from Rafah, where the Israeli military has launched a limited incursion.
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Photos: From LA to Seoul, protesters call for ‘all eyes on Rafah’
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Israeli forces arrest seven people in Hebron
Israeli forces have arrested seven people in the town of Hebron, adding to a string of overnight arrests across the occupied West Bank.
The Hebron arrests took place as Israeli forces searched homes, set up new military checkpoints, and closed roads throughout the governorate.
Earlier, we reported that Israeli forces arrested six people in Bethlehem, two people near Nablus, and one person near the Nur Shams refugee camp, where clashes broke out with Palestinian resistance fighters.
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Israeli protesters block busy highway in Tel Aviv
Family members of captives along with protesters calling for a ceasefire deal with Hamas that will secure the release of all the remaining people held in Gaza have blocked an interchange on Ayalon highway in Tel Aviv, according to Israeli media reports.
The protesters are carrying a banner reading “Save who can still [be saved]”.
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Israeli Air Force carries out wave of attacks on southern Lebanon
Israel’s military said jet fighters attacked sites in several areas of southern Lebanon overnight in what it said were operations against “military buildings” and “terrorist infrastructure” of the Hezbollah movement.
Accompanied by grainy, aerial footage of night-time bombing runs and missile attacks, Israel’s military said the sites attacked were located in South Lebanon’s Kfar Kila, Aita al-Shaab, Khiam, Maroun al-Ras, Hula and Aitaroun areas.
Israeli ground forces also attacked the Tayr Harfa area and al-Jabin, the military said.
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Actor Mark Ruffalo says people in Gaza face dire choice: ‘Die in the desert or in your home’
The outspoken Hollywood actor has said that “help is desperately needed” for children in Gaza where the population of Rafah is now being forced to move “to what are essentially internment camps of human neglect and suffering”.
In a post on social media, Ruffalo – who has long faced criticism for his support of the Palestinian cause – said people in Gaza have essentially been given a choice: “Die in the desert or in your home”.
The actor posted his comments alongside a statement from the UN’s children fund (UNICEF) on Tuesday, which points out that more than half of all the children in the Gaza Strip are now living in Rafah, and called on Israeli forces to not launch their offensive against the city that was the last refuge for civilians fleeing the war.
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If you’re just joining us
Here’s a look at some of the latest key developments:
The Israeli military has bombed an apartment complex in the Zeitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City, killing a family of seven, including five children, Wafa reports.
Fuel supplies needed to power water pumps, maintain communications and deliver humanitarian aid within Gaza will run out today, a senior UN official said after Israel’s closure of the two key border crossings.
The US paused sending a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that it would launch a full-scale assault on Rafah, the AP reports.
CIA chief William Burns is set to meet Netanyahu today as Israel forges ahead with military operations in Rafah and truce talks resume in Cairo.
The Bahamas has formally recognised Palestine as a state, joining a growing number of countries doing so in recent weeks.
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Israeli military arrests six people in Bethlehem
The Israeli military has arrested six people in Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, the Wafa news agency reports.
Violent clashes have also broken out between Palestinian resistance fighters and Israeli forces in the Nur Shams refugee camp, east of the city of Tulkarem, after Israeli troops raided the area and arrested a Palestinian man.
Two Palestinians have also been arrested in the village of Asira al-Qibliya, south of Nablus, Wafa reports.
Israeli raids have been reported in the Shu’fat refugee camp, north of occupied Jerusalem, and the town of Tuqu, southeast of Bethlehem.
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MSF chief says Israeli operation threatens to ‘turn Rafah into a graveyard’
Israel’s military onslaught against Rafah, where “more than 1.5 million civilians are crowded into a narrow sliver of land”, risks turning the former refuge for civilians “into a graveyard”, said Avril Benoit, the executive director of Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF.
Benoit said in a post on social media that “a further military escalation in Rafah would be a direct attack on a trapped population”, and Israel must immediately halt its plans.
A military escalation in Rafah “would crush an already fragile humanitarian response at a time when health and humanitarian needs are soaring”, Benoit said.
“For seven months, we have witnessed the indiscriminate killing of civilians, attacks on aid workers – including our own staff – the destruction of medical facilities, and the obstruction of lifesaving assistance,” the MSF chief said in a statement.
“We cannot imagine what a further escalation of this conflict would mean for people who have already suffered so much in this war without rules”.
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No damage or injuries as Houthis launch drones, antiship ballistic missile: US
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said Houthi forces in Yemen launched three “uncrewed aerial systems” and an antiship ballistic missile at vessels in the Gulf of Aden late on Monday night and early Tuesday morning.
Two of the aerial drones were “engaged” and destroyed by US and coalition warships operating in the Red Sea and the third drone crashed in the Gulf of Aden on Monday, CENTCOM said. No damage or injuries were reported, the US command said.
Later, in the early hours of Tuesday morning, an antiship missile was launched by Houthis forces, which also caused no damage or injuries, according to CENTCOM.
“These weapons presented an imminent threat to both coalition forces and merchant vessels in the region,” CENTCOM added.
Incensed by Israel’s war on Gaza, Houthi forces have declared war on all vessels linked to Israeli firms or seaports, and say their campaign will end when Israel ends its war on Gaza.
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Photos: Malaysians protest at defence expo over weapons companies supplying Israel
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CIA director to travel to Israel for talks with Netanyahu amid Rafah attack
Bill Burns is set to travel to Israel today to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, an anonymous source has told Reuters.
The CIA director’s visit comes as Israel has launched military operations in Rafah, seized the vital Rafah border crossing with Egypt, and instructed the more than 1 million Palestinians sheltering in the city in southern Gaza to evacuate.
Israel’s Rafah assault has also cast doubt over the viability of ongoing ceasefire negotiations, with delegations from Israel, Hamas, the US, Qatar and Egypt set to meet in Cairo today.
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US paused bomb shipment to Israel over Rafah invasion plan: Report
AP is reporting that the US paused sending a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel would launch a full-scale assault on Rafah.
Attributing the information to “a senior administration official”, the news agency said the shipment was to have consisted of 1,800 2,000-pound (more than 900kg) bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs (226 kg).
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the decision to pause the shipment was made last week and no final decision had been made yet on whether to proceed with the transfer of weapons at a later date.
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In Gaza, ‘suffering will be remembered by the generation that follows’
Martin Griffiths, the UN’s humanitarian aid chief, says decisions being made amid Israel’s incursion into Rafah and the “human suffering” that results will not be forgotten.
In a post on social media, Griffiths said more than 1 million people remain in Rafah, including 600,000 children, and Israel’s orders for people to flee the area “and their ground operation will bring more death and displacement”.
Israel’s closure of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt also cut fuel supplies and “shuts off the movement of aid and staff to and from Gaza”, he said.
“The decisions that are made today and their consequences in human suffering will be remembered by the generation that follows us. Let us be ready for their reproaches,” he added.
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US CENTCOM chief visits Egypt, discusses humanitarian aid for Gaza
The senior commander of the US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) has visited Egypt, where he discussed regional security and “alleviating humanitarian suffering in Gaza” with the country’s military leaders.
Erik Kurilla said that Egypt has been “instrumental” in enabling “humanitarian assistance for the people of Gaza”.
“Meetings like today’s are crucial to building a deeper understanding of the regional challenges and maintaining the relationships necessary to improve security,” he said.
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UN chief warns fallout from Rafah invasion will be felt ‘across the region’
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres took to social media to warn of the “repercussions” from Israel’s incursion into Rafah and that a “full-scale assault” would amount to a “catastrophe”.
“Countless more civilian casualties. Countless more families forced to flee yet again – with nowhere safe to go,” he said.
“The repercussions will be felt far beyond, in the occupied West Bank, and across the region,” he added.
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UN warns fuel running out in Gaza, hitting water, food, medical and aid operations
Critical diesel fuel supplies needed to power drinking water pumps, maintain communications and deliver humanitarian aid within the war-torn Gaza Strip will run out today, a senior UN official said after Israel’s closure of the two key border crossing points into the Palestinian territory
Andrea De Domenico, the head of the UN’s humanitarian aid office in the Palestinian territory, said Israel’s military incursion and order for people to leave Rafah has resulted in “the forced displacement of tens of thousands of people”.
De Domenico said the UN normally uses 200,000 litres of diesel fuel a day in Gaza. As of Tuesday night, the UN had 30,000 litres remaining.
Without a fuel delivery, the main water production facility in northern Gaza will be shut, “depriving the entire population of access to drinking water.” The same shutdown will happen in another day for the middle and south of Gaza, affecting 1.9 million people, the Associated Press news agency reports.
De Domenico also said the area that Israeli officials have told Palestinians to move to is mainly sand dunes and has no toilets, water points, drainage, shelter or health facilities.
Israeli authorities are also not on the ground providing humanitarian services, he said, adding that without fuel and more flour, the 16 bakeries supported by the UN throughout Gaza will be forced to suspend operations.
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Biden administration to miss deadline for Israel weapons report: Sources
US President Joe Biden’s administration is set to miss Wednesday’s deadline to report to Congress on whether Israel is using US-supplied weapons to violate international humanitarian law in Gaza, four anonymous sources have told the Reuters news agency.
Biden issued a National Security Memorandum (NSM-20) in February, requiring the State Department to report to Congress by May 8 over the credibility of Israeli assurances that its use of US weapons has not violated US or international law.
The sources told Reuters that the Biden administration had informed congressional committees that it hoped to provide its findings within days, but it would not make the May 8 deadline. There are no indications the delay is politically motivated, the sources added.
Last month, four State Department bureaus submitted internal memos to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken raising “serious concern over non-compliance” with international humanitarian law during Israel’s prosecution of its war on Gaza.
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Mexico condemns Israel’s assault on Rafah, calls for ceasefire
The Mexican government has condemned Israel’s assault on the city of Rafah and has called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in the conflict.
In a statement published on Tuesday, it said that attacks on civilians represent a “serious violation of international humanitarian law”.
“The Government of Mexico condemns the military offensive of Israeli armed forces against Rafah and expresses its deep concern over the catastrophic consequences that the advance could have on the lives of thousands of civilians in the city,” the statement said.
It added that a two-state solution is the “only structural solution” to the conflict.
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The Bahamas formally recognises the State of Palestine
The Bahamas Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that it has formally recognised Palestine as a state, joining a growing number of countries doing so in recent weeks.
In a statement published on Tuesday, The Bahamas said it had joined the “Caribbean Community’s consensus on this matter”.
“The Bahamas became an independent nation in 1973 as an act of self-determination. Therefore, The Bahamas supports the legal right of the Palestinian people of self-determination,” the statement said.
Last week, the government of Trinidad and Tobago announced that it was officially recognising the State of Palestine, while several EU countries are set to recognise Palestine as an independent state by the end of May.
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Israeli military bombs apartment building in Gaza City, killing 7
The Israeli military has bombed an apartment complex in the Zeitoun neighbourhood in the east of Gaza City, killing seven people, the Wafa news agency reports.
A family of seven was killed, a husband and wife and their five children, according to Wafa.
Two people have also been killed and more injured in Rafah after the Israeli military bombed a motorcycle at Salah al-Din Gate, south of the city in southern Gaza.
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US: Israel will open Rafah crossing for fuel deliveries on Wednesday
“Hamas responded and in its response made several suggestions. It’s not the same as accepting,” Miller told reporters in Washington, DC.
He said Israel told the US it will open the crucial Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing in Rafah on Wednesday. “Israel has committed to reopen Kerem Shalom tomorrow. We’re working to make sure that actually happens so humanitarian assistance can continue to come through.”
Miller suggested Israeli ground forces taking over the crossing and massing near Rafah doesn’t mean a large-scale attack is imminent.
“It is not our assessment that a major military operation has begun at this point. But that can obviously change at any moment, and we’ll continue to make clear that’s not one we can support.”
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Israel’s war on Gaza in numbers
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Welcome to our live coverage
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Small protest held in Tel Aviv against invasion of Rafah
A handful of Israeli protesters gathered in Tel Aviv in opposition to the invasion of Rafah, calling for an end to the war.
Video shared by Israeli photojournalist Oren Ziv shows a crowd of demonstrators with signs reading “Stop the war”, “freedom, equality, return”, and “Biden, you can stop the war, don’t choose the wrong side of history.”
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Rafah closure makes ‘catastrophic situation far worse’: WHO
Richard Brennan, regional emergency director for the eastern Mediterranean for the World Health Organization, says the impact of the Rafah crossing now being closed “makes a disastrous, catastrophic situation far worse”.
Aid has already “fallen well short of what’s required” over the last few months and food, essential water supplies and sanitation equipment “are now far less accessible to the people of Gaza”, Brennan said.
“Today, we were expecting to evacuate 140 [critically ill] patients, but now that life line is closed off to patients,” he said, noting the movement of humanitarian personnel is also now paused.
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Biden administration denies that Hamas accepted ceasefire proposal
The Biden administration has denied in a news briefing that Hamas accepted a ceasefire proposal yesterday.
“[State Department spokesperson] Matthew Miller said that Hamas did not accept the ceasefire proposals, it responded and in their response made several suggestions. This is very different interpretation of what Hamas itself thinks that it did, and is certainly the kind of comment that could have an impact on what is happening in Cairo at present,” Al Jazeera correspondent Mike Hanna reported from the State Department in Washington, DC.
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Clashes break out in pro-Palestinian rally in Greece
Clashes broke out between police and protesters during a pro-Palestine rally in central Athens. More than 300 people carrying Palestinian flags and banners reading “Hands off Rafah!” rallied outside the parliament building in the Greek capital.
“We are here in solidarity and we will respond any time the Palestinians call [for solidarity],” said protester Antonis Davanellos, a 60-year old pensioner.
Police fired tear gas to disperse a small group of protesters who climbed up the gate of the Egyptian embassy opposite parliament. The clashes were brief.
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Egyptian media: Talks under way in Cairo
Egyptian state-linked media outlet Al-Qahera News has reported that talks in Cairo between delegates from Qatar, Hamas, Egypt and the US are under way.
“The Qatari and US delegation continue their discussions with the Egyptian delegation and that of Hamas,” the outlet reported, citing a “senior official”.
The talks seek to reach an agreement on a ceasefire in Gaza, a proposal to which Hamas responded positively yesterday. Reports say that there are still gaps between Hamas’s and Israel’s positions.
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Israeli settlers attack aid convoy on way to Erez crossing
Jordan says Israeli settlers have attacked a humanitarian aid convoy on its way to Erez crossing in northern Gaza and “tampered with its contents” in the second such incident in less than a week.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Sufyan Qudah said the convoy, which drove through the Israeli-occupied West Bank from Jordan, later managed to continue its journey and reach its destination in war-devastated Gaza.
“Jordan holds Israel responsible for the attack by extremist settlers … it constitutes a breach of its legal obligations as an occupying power,” Qudah said.
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Targeting Rafah crossing hinders any negotiation process: Hamas
Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan says Israel’s attack on the Rafah border crossing with Egypt is an attempt by Netanyahu to hinder agreement on and implementation of a ceasefire.
“The occupation forces attacking Rafah crossing is a crime and a serious and dangerous escalation against a civilian facility that is under the protection of international law,” Hamdan said at a news briefing in Beirut.
“Invading and attacking the Rafah crossing by [Israeli forces] with predetermination by Netanyahu is an attempt to hinder the implementation of the agreement to stop the attack on our people. It’s a desperate attempt to create a pseudo-victory that can save some face for Netanyahu. This will never be achieved.”
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Israel bombs Rafah municipal building
Al Jazeera’s correspondent reports that Israeli army artillery fire has hit the headquarters of the local government in Rafah, as it steps up strikes on the southern Gaza city.
We will continue to bring you more on Israel’s attacks on Rafah as information comes in.
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‘Ball is in Netanyahu’s court’: Hamas spokesperson
Hamas spokesperson Osama Hamdan has said that the mediators’ proposal is being put in jeopardy by Netanyahu.
“Hamas movement’s agreement on the proposal by the mediators have placed Netanyahu in a hard place and caused him to act in a hysteric fashion with statements that reveal a poltiical defeat and a stretagic loss,” Hamdan said at a news briefing in Beirut.
“The ball now is in Netanyahu’s court. Their behaviour and attitude after we announced our agreement reflects the determination by this criminal to spoil all attempts of mediation including those of the US and expresses carelessness for the lives of the captives who are threatened every day through the bombardments of the Israeli military.
“The ball is also in the court of the US administration … to prove and establish their sincerity by pressuring Netanyahu’s government.”
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Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo for ceasefire talks
A statement from the Palestinian group says that its negotiations, led by Khalil al-Hayya, arrived in Cairo a short while ago from Doha.
The Hamas delegation travelled to Cairo in order to “follow up on efforts with the mediator brothers in Egypt and Qatar, to complete the agreement to stop the aggression against our people in the Gaza Strip”, according to the statement.
Hamas negotiators left Cairo late last week, saying that the current round of talks was over, before surprising the world yesterday by saying the group accepts a ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators Qatar and Egypt.
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‘They have gone crazy’: Intense tank fire on Rafah
Rafah residents report heavy tank shelling in the evening in some areas of eastern Rafah.
“They have gone crazy. Tanks are firing shells, and smoke bombs cover the skies and with smoke over al-Salam and Jnaina neighbourhoods,” said Emad Joudat, 55, a Gaza City resident displaced in Rafah.
“I am now seriously thinking of heading north, maybe to the central Gaza area. If they move farther into Rafah, it will be the mother of massacres.”
About 1.4 million people have been crammed into tent cities and makeshift shelters and are suffering from shortages of food, water, medicine and other essentials.
Israel’s military says it is conducting “a limited operation” in Rafah to kill Palestinian fighters and dismantle infrastructure used by Hamas. It ordered civilians to go to what it calls an “expanded humanitarian zone” 20km (12 miles) away.
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White House hopeful Hamas-Israel can close ‘remaining gaps’
The Biden administration is hopeful Israel and Hamas can “close the remaining gaps” in their ceasefire talks and a deal is reached soon.
“A close assessment of the two sides’ positions suggests that they should be able to close the remaining gaps, and we’re going to do everything we can to support that process,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
Kirby said Hamas offered amendments on Monday to an original Israeli proposal aimed at ending the impasse. The deal text, as amended, suggests the remaining gaps can “absolutely be closed”.
He also said CIA chief William Burns will attend the ongoing Cairo truce talks. “Everybody’s coming to the table. That’s not insignificant.”
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German police break up pro-Palestine protest at university in Berlin
German police broke up a demonstration in solidarity with Gaza at the Free University in Berlin, where protesters wearing keffiyehs chanted, “Viva, viva Palestina.”
Pro-Palestine protesters have faced crackdowns by authorities in Europe and the US, but opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, has continued to grow.
In recent weeks, pro-Palestine encampments on college campuses across the US have also been cleared out by police.
“An occupation is not acceptable on the FU Berlin campus,” Free University President Guenter Ziegler said in a statement. “We are available for academic dialogue — but not in this way.”
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US says Israel assures it Rafah operations will be ‘limited’
White House national security spokesman John Kirby tells reporters during a news briefing that Israel has informed the US that its operations in Rafah will be focused on blocking weapons and financial support from being smuggled into Gaza.
The US has warned Israel against an assault on Rafah, which humanitarian groups say would have cataclysmic results for the hundreds of thousands of displaced people originally instructed by Israel to relocate there, but Washington has given few signs that it would dampen its support for Israel’s war if such an assault moves forward.
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‘Stand firm’: Israel PM says delegation in Egypt for Gaza talks
Israeli negotiators have arrived in Cairo for talks on a truce in Gaza and release of abuctees, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says in a statement shared by his office.
He said he instructed the Israeli delegation to “stand firm on the conditions necessary for the release” of Israeli captives held in Gaza and on “essential requirements for guaranteeing Israel’s security”.
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Pro-Palestine protesters gather in Paris
Video posted on X, and verified by Al Jazeera, shows a large gathering of people showing support for Palestinians in Gaza and for an end to Israel’s war at Place de La Republique in the French capital.
Early in the war, France banned protests against the war and cracked down heavily against demonstrators. However, by the beginning of November 2023, protests in solidarity with Palestinians were allowed.
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Biden rallies support for Israel in speech on antisemitism
The speech also comes as the Biden administration faces demonstrations against the war on college campuses across the country, which he has previously distanced himself from and accused of leaning into antisemitic rhetoric. Jewish and Arab communities have both reported upticks in discrimination since the beginning of the war.
“Not 75 years later, but just seven and a half months later [after an assault by Hamas on southern Israel on October 7], and people are already forgetting, they’re already forgetting, that Hamas unleashed this terror that it was Hamas that brutalized Israelis, that it was Hamas that took and continues to hold hostages,” Biden said. “I have not forgotten, nor have you. And we will not forget.”
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Plumes of smoke cloud Rafah’s skies
The Israeli army has been heavily shelling areas of the Gaza Strip’s southernmost city since the early hours of the morning.
In this social media video, smoke can be seen in the skies of the al-Junea neighbourhood east of the city.
World leaders continue to warn Israel against a full-scale military operation against Rafah, but its senior officials have said that such an offensive will commence soon.
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Report: Biden administration delaying bomb shipments to Israel
The US media outlet Politico reports the Biden administration, which has enabled Israel’s war in Gaza through massive weapons and funding transfers, is delaying the shipment of two kinds of precision bombs to try to pressure Israel.
The story, which cites an anonymous US official and six others familiar with the issue, was published as Israeli officials pledged to move forward with an assault on Rafah, an area of Gaza where it had previously told hundreds of thousands of displaced people to relocate for their own safety.
International organisations and foreign governments, including the US, have warned against an attack on the tightly packed area, saying that it would be a humanitarian catastrophe. The Biden administration, however, has given no indication that it will cut off weapons supplies if the assault moves forward.
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Israeli minister promises to ‘deepen’ Rafah offensive if captive deal fails
Israel will continue its operation in Rafah until Hamas fighters in the area are destroyed or the group hands over one of the Israeli captives it still holds, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant says.
Gallant visited troops in the Rafah area and said Israel is willing to make “compromises” to bring home captives.
“If that option is removed, we will go on and deepen the operation. This will happen all over the Strip – in the south, in the centre and in the north. Hamas only understands force, so we will intensify our action, and the military pressure will result in us crushing the Hamas organisation,” the Times of Israel quoted him as saying.
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‘Israel will not end the war’: Former diplomat
Alon Liel, the former director general of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, says Israel is “ready to pay the price, even if it’s high” internationally to go into Rafah.
“Israel will not end the war and there will be no wording in the agreement to release hostages for any permanent ceasefire, any permanent ending of the war. Everybody can just forget about it. The Israeli government is not strong enough to sign such a deal, it will fall if it does,” Liel told Al Jazeera.
“Only if there’s meaningful change to the text that exists now that Hamas agreed to, then we might see a deal. Israel sees this Hamas so-called acceptance of the deal as a Hamas offer, not as an American-backed deal. And this cannot be accepted,” he added.
The former diplomat noted it’s Holocaust Day and the US government will not pressure Israel. “The feeling is here if Israel is not accepting [the deal], the Americans will not push further, especially on such a day.”
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UN official says Gaza being ‘choked off’ from aid
Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the UN’s humanitarian agency, says the closure of two main crossing points into Gaza is sealing off the Strip from aid, even as officials warn famine is spreading further south amid Israel’s assault.
Speaking to reporters, Laerke said, “The two main arteries for getting aid into Gaza are currently choked off.”
“If no fuel comes in for a prolonged period of time, it would be a very effective way of putting the humanitarian operation in its grave,” he added.
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Initial move into Rafah just the beggining: Mercy Corps aid worker
Saleem, an aid worker for Mercy Corps in Gaza, says he believes the initial Israeli invasion of the eastern area of Rafah signals the start of a larger military operation.
“It’s a matter of time and all of Rafah will be invaded. There’s a pervasive fear that some areas will be suddenly bombed without prior evacuation warnings,” he said.
Saleem – whose name has been changed for safety reasons – said he’s thinking of heading to the central region, mostly Deir el-Balah, but the journey is “one of the most challenging things right now” as 1.5 million displaced people are also seeking to move.
Transportation costs 10 times more than usual with the average price $270. “There’s a genuine concern for a repeat of the famine scenario seen in the north. Should the invasion of Rafah persist without a ceasefire, the upcoming period will be marked by immense difficulty and tragedy.”
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PM Netanyahu: Attacking Rafah necessary to return captives
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the capture of the Rafah crossing is an “important step” towards “dismantling Hamas”.
Netanyahu added military pressure on Hamas is a necessary condition for “the return of our captives”.
The proposal Hamas agreed to on a ceasefire “falls far short of Israel’s essential demands”, the beleaguered Israeli leader said.
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‘Forced displacement is a war crime’: UN
Israel has strict obligations under international humanitarian law to ensure the safety of civilians in Gaza, a spokeswoman for the UN human rights office says.
The comments came hours after Israeli forces seized the Rafah border crossing with Egypt in a push against the southern city.
Ravina Shamdasani said that, according to international law, Israel must ensure civilians have access to medical care, adequate food, safe water and sanitation.
“Failure to meet these obligations may amount to forced displacement, which is a war crime,” Shamdasani said. “There are strong indications that this [Rafah offensive] is being conducted in violation of international humanitarian law.”
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Israeli captive dies of wounds from Israeli attack: Hamas
Hamas says the captive died of injuries sustained in an air strike a month ago.
Abu Ubaida, a spokesperson for the Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, identified the deceased as Judy Feinstein, 70, saying she and another captive sustained serious injuries in an Israeli attack on a site where they were held.
Hamas is believed to be holding more than 130 captives taken from southern Israel during its October 7 attacks.
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‘Deliberately’ intensifying Gaza war: Brazil condemns Israeli incursion
Brazil has condemned the start of operations by Israeli armed forces in the city of Rafah, saying it could compromise ongoing ceasefire efforts.
Israel has chosen to “deliberately intensify the conflict in an area known to have a high concentration of the civilian population”, disregarding calls from the international community, including its closest allies, a Brazilian Foreign Ministry statement said.
The Israeli military took control of the vital Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, pushing into the southern Gaza town after a night of air strikes and as prospects for a ceasefire deal hang in the balance.
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‘There is no Plan B for the people in Rafah’
More than 30 British NGOs have signed a joint statement urging the UK government to work urgently to prevent any further assault on Rafah.
In their statement, the signatories including Action Aid UK, Christian Aid UK, Care International UK, International Rescue Committee UK, Medical Aid for Palestinian, Oxfam GB and Save the Children UK said repeated statements by British politicians “have been ignored by Israel”.
“The failure of our leaders to back words with meaningful action is glaring,” the groups said, calling on the government to “finally act to stop the slaughter”.
“The UK must work urgently to stop any further assault on Rafah from going ahead, demand an immediate lasting ceasefire, resume funding to UNRWA, and suspend arms sales to Israel for as long as there is a risk they may be used to violate international humanitarian law,” they added.
“A ceasefire is the only way to stop the death and destruction, get more aid to those who desperately need it, and safely release the hostages.
“There is no Plan B for the people in Rafah.”
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1.5 million people ‘cannot simply vanish into thin air’: Germany
A “major offensive” in Rafah must not be launched, Germany says, after Israel sent tanks into the city in southern Gaza.
“I warn against a major offensive on Rafah,” Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on X.
“A million people cannot simply vanish into thin air. They need protection. They need more humanitarian aid urgently … the Rafah and Kerem Shalom [Karem Abu Salem] border crossings must immediately be reopened.”
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A recap of yesterday’s developments
- Hamas said it accepted mediated proposals for a ceasefire agreement that involves three phases and includes the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, a return of displaced Palestinians to their homes as well as an exchange of Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners.
- The Israeli cabinet said it is sending a delegation to continue talks in Cairo, but also signalled it is moving ahead with attacks on Rafah as bombing of the southern city in Gaza increased overnight.
- Protesters held demonstrations in multiple Israeli cities to demand that the authorities accept a ceasefire deal and bring back some 130 captives still believed to be held in Gaza.
- Iran welcomed the Hamas stance, saying it supports the plan that includes a sustainable ceasefire, exchange of prisoners, withdrawal of Israeli troops and reconstruction of Gaza. The US said it is still “reviewing” the proposals and will not get into details.
- The Hamas announcement came hours after the Israeli military ordered the evacuation of 100,000 Palestinians from Rafah to make way for what it called a “limited” military operation in a city where 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering.
Israeli forces take control of the Palestinian side of Rafah border crossing
The Rafah border crossing is located on the Egypt-Gaza border and is the only crossing with Gaza not controlled by Israel. Since a 2007 agreement with Israel, Egypt has controlled the crossing but supplies entering Gaza through Rafah require Israeli approval. The crossing emerged as a crucial lifeline for aid after Israel closed its border crossings with Gaza on October 7.
US senators call on Biden administration to apply Leahy Law to Israel
Nine US senators have called on the Biden administration to consistently apply the Leahy Law to Israel as it does for other recipients of US military assistance.
The Leahy Law prohibits assistance to foreign military units that commit abuses. (You can find out more about it here.)
“My predecessor Patrick Leahy wrote the law that bans U.S. aid to foreign military units that violate human rights, yet multiple administrations have failed to equally implement the law,” Senator Peter Welch said on X.
“My colleagues and I are calling for the consistent application of the Leahy Law to the [Israeli forces].”
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UN chief tells the international community to act to halt Gaza ‘tragedy’
In his speech, Guterres urges Israel’s allies to press its leadership to stop the war on Gaza.
“I appeal to all those with influence over Israel to do everything in their power to help avert even more tragedy. The international community has a shared responsibility to promote a humanitarian ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and a massive surge in life-saving aid,” he said.
“It is time for the parties to seize the opportunity and secure a deal for the sake of their own people.”
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‘Hold him accountable for genocide’: Tlaib urges ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu
Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American lawmaker in the US Congress, has called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister and other senior Israeli officials over the country’s military conduct in Gaza.
The Democrat called on the ICC to “finally hold them accountable for this genocide, as is obviously warranted by these well-documented violations of the Genocide Convention under international law”.
In a statement posted on X, Tlaib, who serves as a representative for Michigan, said: “There is nowhere safe in Gaza. Nearly 80 percent of the civilian infrastructure has been destroyed. There is no feasible evacuation plan, and the Israeli government is only trying to provide a false pretense of safety to try to maintain legal cover at the International Court of Justice. Netanyahu knows that he will only stay in power as long as the fighting continues.”
She added: “Many of my colleagues are going to express concern and horror at the crimes against humanity that are about to unfold, even though they just voted to send Netanyahu billions more in weapons.
“Do not be misled, they gave their consent for these atrocities, and our country is actively participating in genocide. For months, Netanyahu made his intent to invade Rafah clear, yet the majority of my colleagues and President Biden sent more weapons to enable the massacre,” Tlaib wrote.
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Initiative for agreement has to come from Biden, Israeli society
Gershon Baskin, Middle East director with the International Communities Organisation, says there is a catch-22 regarding Israel and Hamas reaching an agreement.
“Israel will not agree to any plan that puts an end to this war, and Hamas will not agree to any plan that does not put an end to the war,” he told Al Jazeera.
Baskin argued the initiative for an agreement has to come from US President Joe Biden and the Israeli society, pointing to an increasing number of antigovernment demonstrations in Israel.
“We understand that the US withheld a shipment of weapons to Israel; this needs to be an American policy now and Israel needs to be told that the US will no longer fuel the war that’s happening in Gaza,” he said.
“We need a change of leadership in Israel; we need to go to elections as soon as possible, because with Netanyahu in power, we are never going to see an end to this war and we’ll probably never see a return of the hostages, which is tragic,” Baskin added.
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‘Haven’t civilians suffered enough death and destruction?’ Guterres asks
The UN chief warns Israel that an assault on Rafah, where 1.4 million Palestinians are sheltering, would “be a strategic mistake, a political calamity and a humanitarian nightmare”.
“After more than 1,100 Israelis killed in the Hamas terror attacks of 7 October … after more than 34,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza, haven’t we seen enough? Haven’t civilians suffered enough death and destruction? Make no mistake – a full-scale assault on Rafah would be a humanitarian catastrophe,” Guterres said.
He also demanded that Israel reopen the land crossings it closed so desperately needed aid supplies can get into Gaza, where famine has already taken hold in the territory’s north.
“The closure of both the Rafah and Kerem Shalom [Karem Abu Salem] crossings is especially damaging to an already dire humanitarian situation. They must be reopened immediately.”
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Amnesty says Rafah assault to further compound ‘unspeakable suffering of Palestinians’
The rights group has called on the international community to pressure Israel to immediately halt its ground operations in Rafah and ensure unfettered access for humanitarian aid in Gaza.
“The Israeli military must also rescind their order to civilians to ‘evacuate’ eastern Rafah unless they can guarantee the population’s safety, which is highly unlikely under the intense military attacks that Israel has been relentlessly conducting for seven months across the entire Gaza Strip,” Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s senior director of research, advocacy, policy and campaigns, said in a statement.
Guevara-Rosas said Israel’s long-threatened, large-scale ground operation in Rafah would further compound “the unspeakable suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza”.
“Palestinian civilians in Gaza are human beings, not pawns to be moved around a chessboard at the whim of the Israeli authorities. The notion that displaced civilians are safe anywhere in Gaza has proved a fallacy time and again as the Israeli military has attacked areas it had previously designated as safe.”
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‘I’m disturbed and distressed’ by Israeli military operations in Rafah: UN chief
The UN secretary-general has appealed to all parties involved in the Gaza war to do everything possible to get a ceasefire deal done and prevent further deaths and destruction after seven months of war.
“I reiterate my call to both parties to show political courage and spare no effort to secure an agreement now to stop the bloodshed, to free the hostages and to help stabilize the region, which is still at risk of explosion,” Antonio Guterres said in a video address.
The UN chief spoke after Hamas said it had agreed to a truce proposal, but Israel said it did not and instead launched a ground incursion into eastern Rafah.
“This is a crucial opportunity that the region – and indeed the world – cannot miss,” Guterres said of the peace talks. “I’m disturbed and distressed by the renewed military activity in Rafah.”
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Berlin university protesters demanded ‘genocide be stopped’
Al Jazeera’s Dominic Kane reporting from Freie Universitat Berlin, Germany
The situation now is very calm.
Police officers are inspecting what’s left from the sit-in protest that took place here for several hours. Earlier, they moved in to break up what had been taking place here when several hundred people decided to congregate and protest.
The officers moved in, taking people away, detaining them in ones, twos and threes, and dragging people away.
We now have to wait to find out whether charges will be presented, but clearly, the university authorities wanted these people away.
The demands of the people were pretty clear, basically saying that it’s time that Germany should take part in the protest movement around the world.
They demand that the genocide, they say, that it’s taking place in Gaza be stopped. They also say that students who take part in these protests should not be banned from doing so and should not lose their status as students – that is something that many students who’ve taken part in protests are afraid of.
The question is going to be now that this has been broken up, will they come back? Will they target other universities in this city in the coming days and weeks? That’s to be seen.
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Israel’s evacuation orders not compliant with international humanitarian law
Arwa Mhanna, senior policy and advocacy adviser for the Middle East at Mercy Corps, says Israel’s evacuation orders are not compliant with international humanitarian law.
“People were given only one day to evacuate. There was no clarity about where to go … they moved to places that are as described ‘unlivable’. They don’t have infrastructure and even the roads they were asked to take weren’t guaranteed to be safe,” she told Al Jazeera.
“They were asked to go to so-called ‘safe zones’ and by history, we know safe zones that are announced unilaterally are not safe. Civilians are protected under international humanitarian law; they should be safe everywhere and not in zones or specific zones.”
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More from Israeli government spokesperson
Israeli negotiators will leave for Cairo shortly to further assess a three-stage ceasefire proposal backed by Hamas.
Earlier, Israel said the proposal didn’t meet its “core demands” and it has gone ahead with an incursion of eastern Rafah.
Israel’s goal remains to destroy Hamas, the Reuters news agency quoted an unnamed Israeli government spokesperson as saying, adding Palestinian armed groups must put down their weapons and release the Israeli captives it’s holding in order to end the war.
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Palestinians subjected ‘to a war of extermination, systematic starvation’: Hamas
Hamas has issued a statement calling Israel’s storming of the Rafah crossing a “dangerous escalation” which threatens the lives of hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians in Rafah and facilities protected by international law.
The group also warned the attack will exacerbate the humanitarian situation in Gaza and prevent the flow of much-needed emergency relief aid.
Palestinians in Gaza “are subjected to a war of extermination and systematic starvation” by Israel, which it dubbed “the Nazi occupation”, Hamas said.
“This crime – which comes directly after the Hamas movement announced its approval of the mediators’ proposal – confirms the occupation’s
intention to disrupt mediation efforts for a ceasefire and the release of prisoners,” the statement added, calling on the US and the international community to put pressure on Israel to stop the escalation.
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International agencies must leave Rafah areas with active military operations: Israeli gov’t
In a statement cited by the Reuters news agency, an Israeli government spokesperson called on international organisations to evacuate from areas of Rafah where military operations are ongoing.
The spokesperson claimed that aid is continuing to flow into the enclave despite the military incursion.
But in recent days, Israel has shut off the two major border crossings used to get aid into Gaza, including the Rafah crossing, totally cutting off Rafah from the outside world and blocking the limited aid that had been allowed in.
For months, aid groups have warned that Israel’s restrictions on aid flow into Gaza are bringing the enclave to the brink of famine.
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US still pushing for captives deal: Report
In its first response to the Israeli army seizing control of the Rafah crossing, the US State Department has only said that it has made its views on a major ground invasion of that area clear to Israel.
“We continue to believe that a hostage deal is in the best interest of the Israeli and the Palestinian people; it would bring an immediate ceasefire and allow increased humanitarian assistance into Gaza,” a spokesperson told the Reuters news agency.
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At least 23 people killed in overnight attacks on Rafah: Report
Israel’s wave of overnight strikes in Rafah, where it has launched a long-promised military incursion in the east, have killed at least 23 people, including six women and five children, according to hospital records cited by Reuters news agency.
One man in Rafah, Mohamed Abu Amra, lost five close relatives in an attack that flattened his house.
“We did nothing … we don’t have Hamas,” said Abu Amra, whose wife, two brothers, sister, and niece were all killed. “We found fire devouring us. The house was turned upside down.”
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Israel’s expanded military operation in Rafah ‘must end now’: WHO
Hanan Balkhy, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, says Israel’s incursion into Rafah is putting the lives of 1.5 million people, including 600,000 children, “in grave danger” and “must end now”.
While the the UN’s health agency and its partners “are committed to staying and delivering” services in Rafah, Balkhy wrote in a post on X, this requires “unimpeded access of aid through the Rafah border crossing, which must be urgently reopened”.
“An urgent ceasefire in Gaza is needed now, for humanity’s sake,” Balkhy said.
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NUJ calls Al Jazeera shutdown in Israel ‘direct attack on free speech’
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ), a trade union representing British media workers, has called the Israeli government’s decision earlier this week to close Al Jazeera’s operations in Israel as “dangerous and wrong”.
“Targeting Al Jazeera as the Israeli government has is a direct attack on free speech that brings shame on those responsible,” Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary, said in a statement.
“I hope they will soon realise their error and reverse this decision.”
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Police break up pro-Palestine protest at Berlin university
The German police have broken up a protest by hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists who had occupied a courtyard of Berlin’s Free University earlier today.
The protesters had put up about 20 tents and formed a human chain around the tents.
Police called on the protesters via loudspeakers to leave the campus.
Most protesters had covered their faces with medical masks and had draped keffiyehs around their heads, shouting slogans like “viva, viva Palestina”, meaning “long live, Palestine”.
In recent days, students have protested or set up encampments in Finland, Denmark, Italy, Spain, France, and the UK.
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‘Aerial target’ landed in northern Israel, caused a fire: Israeli military
We now have an update from the Israeli military regarding the air raid alerts we reported earlier.
The sirens were activated due “to a number of suspicious aerial targets”, the military said.
It added that an air defence system intercepted one object while another fell in Yiftah, causing a fire. Two objects fell in an open area, while others caused light damage, it added, without elaborating.
No casualties have been reported.
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PA appeals to US to stop Rafah invasion
Palestinian Authority (PA) spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh has called on the US to pressure its ally Israel to abandon the Rafah invasion, saying it threatens to double the suffering of Gaza’s displaced population.
In comments carried by the Wafa news agency, Abu Rudeineh said the Rafah invasion would further displace more than one million Palestinians, cut off aid from the enclave, and block sick and wounded Palestinians from getting treatment outside the territory.
He called out the US for providing Israel with “weapons, money and political cover” even as it creates an “unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe”.
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Multiple air raid sirens sound in northern Israel
Four air raid alerts, which can indicate rocket or drone incursions, have been activated in northern Israel in a space of less than 30 minutes.
There are no reports of any causalities, and no group has claimed responsibility for any attack.
Hezbollah and the Israeli military have repeatedly exchanged fire since October 8.
Hezbollah says these cross-border attacks will continue until Israel stops its war on Gaza. Israeli leaders have said they will stop only after removing Hezbollah from Lebanon’s south, even if by force.
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Israeli missile fired at mosque in central Rafah
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reporting from Rafah, southern Gaza
What’s been disturbing is the expansion of the bombing campaign.
Within the past half hour, a drone fired a warning missile at a mosque in the centre of Rafah city. This happened near a market area that was very busy with people, with many trying to restock and buy supplies on their way out of Rafah.
The strike caused a great deal of mayhem and panic, with people starting to run and flee the area.
We’ve learned the missile that was fired at the mosque was a warning shot, in preparation for completely bombing the mosque. We don’t know when that’s going to happen.
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Pro-Palestine protesters set up encampment at Naples University
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations and sit-ins continue to spread at universities around the world.
An encampment has now been set up on a lawn located in the centre of Italy’s University of Naples Federico II, one of the world’s oldest academic institutions.
There have been regular pro-Palestine protests across Italy since Israel’s war on Gaza began seven months ago.
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Hamas accuses Israel of sabotaging ceasefire talks
In a statement, Hamas has said Israel’s military incursion in the Rafah crossing is aimed at thwarting the continuing ceasefire talks.
“By deciding to close the Rafah and Kerem Shalom [Karem Abu Salem] border crossing, Israel is leading the region toward a disaster and continues its policy of starvation and persecution of [Palestinians],” said Hamas, which on Monday accepted a three-phase ceasefire deal proposed by Egyptian and Qatari mediators.
In its statement, the Palestinian group also urged for “international intervention” to push Israel towards a ceasefire, saying it holds the administration of US President Joe Biden and the international community fully responsible for the war’s continuation.
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A recap of recent developments
Here’s a look at some of the latest key developments:
Israeli forces have achieved “operational control” of the Rafah crossing and halted aid flow, saying they received intelligence it was being used for “terrorist purposes”.
The Israeli incursion came after Hamas said it had accepted a Gaza ceasefire proposal put forward by Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
The United Nations says Israeli authorities have denied access to the Rafah crossing into southern Gaza.
Israeli officials have told Axios that the US government knew about the ceasefire deal proposal Egypt and Qatar negotiated with Hamas, but it did not inform Israel before Hamas announced yesterday it agreed to it.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry has said the Israeli military operation in Rafah threatens efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza.
Israel’s military has shelled an area in Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, causing numerous injuries, including to children.
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Rafah border closure means ‘people will die’
Mustafa Barghouti, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, says Israel’s closure of the Rafah border crossing will have a “terrible impact” on the people of Gaza.
He told Al Jazeera that the border closing will deplete already scarce humanitarian aid supplies and cut off the only exit point for thousands of sick and wounded Palestinians, including cancer patients, who need treatment abroad.
“People will die,” Barghouti said. “Die because of these Israeli measures, in addition of course to the possible massacre that could take place if Israel continues its military operation in Rafah.”
He added: “It’s a terrible disaster. This all happens at a time when Hamas declares it has accepted the ceasefire agreement.”
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Mid-level Israeli team heads to Cairo to assess Hamas position: Report
Quoting a senior Israeli official, Reuters reports that a team of mid-ranking Israeli officials will go to Cairo in the next few hours to assess whether Hamas can be persuaded to shift on its latest ceasefire offer.
The official reiterated that the proposal as it currently stands was unacceptable to Israel.
“This delegation is made up of mid-level envoys. Were there a credible deal in the offing, the principals would be heading the delegation,” the official told Reuters.
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Israeli fighter jets strike northern Gaza after rockets fired
The Israeli military says three rockets were fired on Monday from northern Gaza into Israel, of which two were intercepted.
Following the incident, it said, fighter jets targeted military infrastructure in the Gaza Strip as well as a group of Palestinian fighters in Beit Hanoon in northern Gaza.
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Rafah’s Kuwaiti Hospital overloaded with cases, says director
Suhaib al-Hamas, the director of Kuwaiti Hospital, says the facility is teeming with dozens of wounded patients as Israel’s military operation intensifies in the city, reports the Wafa news agency.
The hospital is receiving more patients than usual since the city’s main public health facility, al-Najjar Hospital, is now located within the Israeli military’s red zone and unable to take them in.
But Kuwaiti Hospital does not have enough beds, health supplies, or fuel to remain operational at its current pace for much longer, al-Hamas said in comments carried by Wafa. Even the facility’s X-ray machine has stopped working due to overuse, he added.
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‘No safe zone in Gaza’: EU foreign policy chief
Josep Borrell has warned that “there is no safe zone in Gaza” for Palestinian civilians to flee to, noting that there were “600,000 children” in the densely populated enclave.
At a meeting of EU development ministers, he stressed that the EU and the US had asked Netanyahu not to go ahead with his assault on Rafah.
“In spite of these warnings and this request, an attack was started yesterday night,” Borrell said.
“I am afraid that this is going to cause again a lot of casualties, civilian casualties.
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Rafah’s dialysis patients fear the worst with potential hospital closure
An elderly dialysis patient in Rafah has told Al Jazeera she could die if she is unable to reach al-Najjar Hospital, located within the Israeli military’s declared red zone, as the military intensifies its operation in the city.
The patient, Laila al-Eid, said she and others rely on dialysis treatment at the facility for their kidney conditions and fear they will have nowhere to turn “if the hospital is attacked”.
“If I don’t get daily treatment, toxins will spread in my body”, al-Eid told Al Jazeera.
Many more sick and wounded in Rafah, who already struggle to access basic healthcare, are at greater risk with the closure of the Rafah crossing, a vital aid lifeline and the only exit point from the enclave.
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Pro-Palestine campus protests spread to the Nordic countries
In Finland, dozens of protesters from the Students for Palestine solidarity group have set up an encampment outside the main building at the University of Helsinki.
Demonstrators say they will stay at the site in central Helsinki until the university, which is Finland’s largest academic institution, cuts academic ties with Israeli universities.
In Denmark, students also set up a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Copenhagen.
About 45 tents were erected on the lawn outside the Faculty of Social Sciences campus.
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Israel frustrated with US handling of talks: Report
Israeli officials have told Axios that the US government knew about the ceasefire deal proposal Egypt and Qatar negotiated with Hamas, but it did not inform Israel before Hamas announced yesterday it agreed to it.
Three Israeli officials said Hamas’s announcement took the Israeli government by surprise, according to the publication. Israel did not get the text of the group’s response from the mediators until an hour after Hamas released its statement, the officials said.
When the Israeli side read Hamas’s response, they were surprised to see it contained “many new elements” that were not part of a previous proposal that Israel agreed on and that was presented to Hamas by the US, Egypt and Qatar 10 days ago, according to the officials.
“It looked like a whole new proposal,” one official was quoted as saying by Axios.
A senior US official pushed back, telling the website that “American diplomats have been engaged with Israeli counterparts. There have been no surprises.”
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Turkey says Israel’s Rafah operation is another war crime
“By carrying out a ground attack on Rafah, just a day after Hamas approved Qatar and Egypt’s proposal for a ceasefire deal, Israel has added another to the war crimes it has committed in Palestinian territories since October 7,” Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz says in a post on X.
Ankara would continue working for the Israeli leadership to be legally punished, he added.
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People in Rafah know there ‘is no safe place in the entire Gaza Strip’
The situation is getting more difficult by the hour with the presence of the Israeli military. Its tanks and armoured vehicles in the area are causing more waves of panic for an already traumatised, displaced 1.5 million Palestinians in overcrowded Rafah.
Within the past hour or so, many injured people have arrived at Kuwaiti Hospital. They are from the vicinity of the Rafah crossing, as well as from areas that were heavily bombed in overnight attacks on the eastern part of the city.
More leaflets have been dropped within the past 45 minutes in the eastern area of Rafah city and the western part of Salah al-Din Street, ordering people to leave the area.
There’s a sense of chaos as people don’t have much trust in the Israeli narrative.
They’re taking matters into their own hands. They’re going to areas that they think may provide some safety for them and their family members, but they realise there is no safe place in the entire Gaza Strip.
People are moving to areas hoping and praying that it’s going to be safe.
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More from the UN OCHA on Rafah border crossing
“If no fuel comes in for a prolonged period of time, it would be a very effective way of putting the humanitarian operation in its grave,” he said.
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Egypt condemns Israel’s Rafah operation
The ministry’s statement came shortly after the Israeli military took control of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
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Photos: Israeli forces take control of the Palestinian side of Rafah border crossing
UN says its access to Rafah crossing ‘denied’ by Israel
The United Nations says Israeli authorities have denied access to the Rafah crossing into southern Gaza.
“We currently do not have any physical presence at the Rafah crossing as our access … has been denied by COGAT,” said Jens Laerke, a spokesman for the UN’s humanitarian agency OCHA, referring to the Israeli agency that oversees supplies into the Palestinian territories.
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Israeli shelling hits children near Nuseirat camp
Israel’s military has shelled an area in Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, causing numerous injuries, including of children, report our colleagues on the ground.
Nuseirat is one of the areas in central Gaza that Palestinians fleeing Rafah, where Israel’s military has launched a limited incursion, have begun heading to.
But even as they flee, they know no area is fully safe from Israeli military attacks, reports Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary.
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Hamas’s armed wings claims it launched rockets at Israeli troops at Gaza border crossing
In a statement, the Qassam Brigades said it has fired rockets at the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing near Israel, targeting a “gathering of enemy forces”.
Israel closed the Karem Abu Salem crossing in southern Gaza over the weekend after Hamas claimed an attack on it that killed four Israeli soldiers.
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‘Chaos’ in central Gaza as Palestinians fleeing Rafah seek shelter
Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir el-Balah, Gaza
It is not only people on the eastern side of Rafah that are evacuating … a lot of people from different areas [of Rafah] that were not designated as red are also evacuating to the middle area and Khan Younis.
It’s packed. People are not even finding a place to set up a tent. They are setting up their tents near the beach, very close to the coastline, on agricultural land.
Two hospitals are also evacuating their patients to the central area. The situation is chaos. All the streets are filled with cars and people putting all their stuff on their cars. You can see mats and pillows on every car that is coming from the south. Palestinians do not know what they’re going to do, where they’re going to settle, and they’re 100 percent sure that Deir el-Balah is also not safe.
There’s no guarantee that evacuating from Rafah will keep them safe from the Israeli air strikes and shelling and artillery.
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Twenty-two arrested in latest West Bank raids
Israeli forces have detained 22 people throughout the occupied West Bank in the last day, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society.
Most arrests took place in the Tulkarem governorate, known as a centre of Palestinian resistance, while others occurred in the governorates of Ramallah, Bethlehem, Nablus, Jericho and Tubas.
The latest round of arrests bring the total number of Palestinians detained in the West Bank since October 7 to 8,610, according to the Prisoner’s Society.
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Border crossings have been the ‘lifeblood’ for Palestinians: UNRWA
Sam Rose, director of planning at the UNRWA, spoke to Al Jazeera about the closure by Israel of Gaza’s border crossings.
He said Israel’s push to close the Rafah crossing and the Karem Abu Salem crossing – which Israel calls Kerem Shalom – has had “devastating impacts for the people of Gaza who are already on the verge of famine”.
The crossings have been the “lifeblood for the small amounts of goods that have been coming into Gaza since October”.
“There’s no ability for desalination plants to operate and provide safe water. There’s no electricity; it cuts off everything,” Rose said.
The UN agency, he added, has a host of immediate concerns, in particular, the fuel shortage in the enclave as well as the humanitarian impacts of the Israeli military operation, which appears to have started in eastern Rafah.
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China urges Israel to ‘stop attacking Rafah’
China is calling on Israel to listen to the international community and stop its attacks on Gaza’s Rafah.
“China … strongly calls on Israel to heed the overwhelming demands of the international community, stop attacking Rafah, and do everything it can to avoid a more serious humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian.
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End of the war would mean ‘accountability’ for Netanyahu
Marc Owen Jones, an associate professor of Middle East studies and digital humanities at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, says there appears to be a “blame game” being played between Israel and Hamas regarding the ceasefire talks.
Jones told Al Jazeera that there have been reports that Netanyahu has deliberately sabotaged recent negotiations as well as reports in the Israeli media that Hamas’s announcement that the group had accepted a deal is a “ruse designed to make Israel look like they had sabotaged the deal”.
He said it’s very clear that Netanyahu, as he has been since the start of the war, is not interested in a ceasefire.
An end to the war would mean “accountability, not just domestically for his various criminal accusations, but now potentially by the International Criminal Court”, Jones said.
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Momentum as Israel sends negotiators to Cairo, but deal won’t be easy
Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Jamjoom
Reporting from Amman, Jordan, because Israel’s gov’t has banned Al Jazeera
In the past, when Israeli negotiators have been sent, the prime minister has often failed to give them a wide mandate to fully negotiate. He has insisted that they continue to consult with him and the war cabinet before they take actions that might ease the way to a final negotiation or final ceasefire.
So a lot is going to depend on how wide of a mandate these Israeli negotiators have.
Up until yesterday even, until the announcement that Hamas was accepting the deal proposed to them, the Israelis continued to say that they were not going to send a delegation to Cairo until and unless they had a response from Hamas that they considered positive.
So what exactly does this mean? Clearly, it shows that there is some momentum – but how much momentum? The Israelis have indicated in quotes that they’ve given to Israeli media outlets that there are still large gaps, and that this is not something that is going to be easy.
This speaks to the fact that Netanyahu is under a lot of pressure politically right now. He’s under pressure from the far-right wing members of his coalition, people like National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who continues to insist that the prime minister go into Rafah with full force.
And then the opposition is after the prime minister to try and negotiate to make sure there is a ceasefire so captives can be released.
It seems that the political landscape for Netanyahu is really narrowing in terms of what he can do. Crucial hours, but it’s unclear what these negotiators are going to do.