Page 26 - Gaza Conflict

SC rejects PIL asking to halt export of arms, military equipments to Israel

The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a PIL seeking a direction to the Centre to stop the export of arms and military equipments to Israel which is fighting a war in Gaza, saying the court cannot enter into the domain of the nation's foreign policy. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the Indian firms, involved in the export of arms, equipments to Israel, may be sued for breach of contractual obligations and hence they cannot be stopped from supplying. "We cannot enter into the nation's foreign policy domain," the bench said. "Can we direct that under the UN's genocide convention you ban the export to Israel...why this restraint. This is because it impacts the foreign policy and we do not know what the impact will be," the CJI said. A PIL was filed by Ashok Kumar Sharma and others through lawyer Prashant Bhushan seeking a direction to the Centre to cancel licences and not to grant new ones to Indian firms exporting arms an

Amid polio vaccination drive Israeli strikes in Gaza kill more than dozen

Israeli air raids in the Gaza Strip killed more than a dozen people overnight into Saturday, hospital and local authorities said, as health workers wrapped up the second phase of an urgent polio vaccination campaign designed to prevent a large-scale outbreak. The vaccination drive was launched after health officials confirmed the first polio case in the Palestinian enclave in 25 years, in a 10-month-old boy whose leg is now paralyzed. The nine-day campaign by the UN health agency and partners aims to vaccinate 640,000 children, an ambitious effort during a war that has destroyed Gaza's health care system and much of its infrastructure. The third phase of vaccinations is in the north. Israel, meanwhile, kept up its military offensive. In central Gaza's urban refugee camp of Nuseirat, Al-Awda Hospital said it received the bodies of nine people killed in two separate air raids. One hit a residential building, killing four people and wounding at least 10, while five people were killed in

US, UK intelligence agencies issue joint statement for ceasefire in Gaza

The heads of the American and British foreign intelligence agencies said Saturday they are working ceaselessly for a cease-fire in Gaza, using a rare joint public statement to press for peace. CIA Director William Burns and MI6 Chief Richard Moore said their agencies had exploited our intelligence channels to push hard for restraint and de-escalation. In an opinion piece for the Financial Times, the two spymasters said a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war could end the suffering and appalling loss of life of Palestinian civilians and bring home the hostages after 11 months of hellish confinement. Burns has been heavily involved in efforts to broker an end to the fighting, traveling to Egypt in August for high-level talks aimed at bringing about a hostage deal and at least a temporary halt to the conflict. So far there has been no agreement, though United States officials insist a deal is close. U.S. President Joe Biden said recently that just a couple more issues remain unresolved.

UN accuses Israel of starvation campaign in Gaza that Netanyahu denies

The UN independent investigator on the right to food accused Israel of carrying out a "starvation campaign" against Palestinians during the war in Gaza, an allegation that Israel vehemently denies. In a report this week, investigator Michael Fakhri claimed it began two days after Hamas' surprise attack in southern Israel that killed some 1,200 people, when Israel's military offensive in response blocked all food, water, fuel and other supplies into Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said accusations of Israel limiting humanitarian aid were "outrageously false". "A deliberate starvation policy? You can say anything it doesn't make it true," he said in a press conference Wednesday. Following intense international pressure especially from close ally the United States Netanyahu's government gradually has opened several border crossings for tightly controlled deliveries. Fakhri said limited aid initially went mostly to southern and central Gaza, not to the north where ..

Walz condemns Hamas, says Gaza activists protesting for 'all right reasons'

Vice presidential candidate Tim Walz said Thursday that those protesting American support for Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza are doing so for all the right reasons," as the Democratic ticket looks to balance its support for Israel with the humanitarian plight of civilians in the war-torn enclave. Walz' comments came in an interview with a local Michigan public radio station a state with a large Muslim American population that is also a potentially pivotal swing state in this November's election. His comments appeared to mark tonal shift, though not a policy one, from the steadfast support for Israel that Vice President Kamala Harris espoused at the Democratic National Convention last month. Walz said the October 7 attack by Hamas that touched off the war, was a horrific act of violence against the people of Israel. They certainly have the right to defend themselves. But, he also said that, we can't allow what's happened in Gaza to happen. The Palestinian people have every right

UN hails limited pauses in fighting in Gaza to allow polio vaccinations

United Nations officials on Wednesday hailed limited pauses in the fighting between Israel and Hamas to allow children's polio vaccinations as rare moments of hope in the nearly yearlong war in Gaza. Top U.N. officials on peacebuilding and humanitarian affairs spoke at a meeting requested by Israel, which was backed by its allies, veto-holding permanent council members France, Great Britain and the United States. Israel's ambassador on Wednesday focused on the hostages taken during Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks on Israel that launched the war and the recent killing of six captives. Algeria, which sits on the 15-member council until next year, also requested that the U.N. body meet to discuss the broader situation in the Palestinian territories. Both Rosemary DiCarlo, U.N. undersecretary-general for political and peacebuilding affairs, and Edem Wosornu, director of the Operations and Advocacy Division at the U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, spoke about the ...

Gaza war: US expects ceasefire soon; key Philadelphi Corridor deal likely

The US is pushing Israel for a Gaza ceasefire deal as the conflict with Hamas approaches its one-year mark, with at least 40,000 Palestinians dead and extensive regional devastation in Gaza

161,000 children vaccinated against polio in Gaza in 2 days, says WHO

The WHO official confirmed that vaccination teams faced larger numbers of residents in Al-Maghazi, Al-Bureij and Al-Masdar

UK halts 30 out of 350 arms export licences to Israel amid Gaza conflict

Lammy clarified that it is not a complete ban on arms exports to Israel and that it continues to support Israel's right to self-defence, as per Al Jazeera

Netanyahu pushes back against new pressure over Gaza cease-fire deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday pushed back against a new wave of pressure to reach a cease-fire deal in Gaza after hundreds of thousands of Israelis protested and went on strike and U.S. President Joe Biden said he needed to do more after nearly 11 months of fighting. In his first public address since Sunday's mass protests showed many Israelis' furious response to the discovery of six more dead hostages, Netanyahu said he will continue to insist on a demand that has emerged as a major sticking point in talks continued Israeli control of the Philadelphi corridor, a narrow band along Gaza's border with Egypt where Israel contends Hamas smuggles weapons into Gaza. Egypt and Hamas deny it. Netanyahu called the corridor vital to ensuring Hamas cannot rearm via tunnels. This is the oxygen of Hamas, he said. And he added: No one is more committed to freeing the hostages than me. But no one will preach to me." Israelis had poured into the streets late Sunday in grief

Strike call in Israel over dead Gaza hostages reflects political divisions

A rare call for a general strike in Israel to protest the failure to return hostages held in Gaza led to closures and other disruptions around the country on Monday, including at its main international airport. But it was ignored in some areas, reflecting deep political divisions. Hundreds of thousands of Israelis poured into the streets late Sunday in grief and anger after six hostages were found dead in Gaza. The families and much of the public blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying they could have been returned alive in a deal with Hamas to end the nearly 11-month-old war. But others support Netanyahu's strategy of maintaining military pressure on Hamas, whose October 7 attack into Israel triggered the war. They say it will force the militants to give in to Israeli demands, potentially facilitate rescue operations and ultimately annihilate the group. A labour court ruled that the strike must end by 2:30 pm local time, accepting a petition from the government saying it w

Protestors in Israel demand ceasefire deal after 6 more captives killed

The protesters chanted Now! Now! and demanded that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reach a ceasefire deal

Israel's main labour union calls strike as pressure mounts for hostage deal

High-tech companies, manufacturers to join strike. Protesters block key roads to pressure government

Israel's main labour union calls strike as pressure mounts for hostage deal

High-tech companies, manufacturers to join strike. Protesters block key roads to pressure government

Large-scale polio vaccinations begin in Gaza after first case in 25 years

Palestinian health authorities and United Nations agencies on Sunday began a large-scale campaign of vaccinations against polio in the Gaza Strip, hoping to prevent an outbreak in the territory that has been ravaged by the Israel-Hamas war. Authorities plan to vaccinate children in central Gaza until Wednesday before moving on to the more devastated northern and southern parts of the strip. The campaign began with a small number of vaccinations on Saturday and aims to reach about 640,000 children. The World Health Organisation has said Israel agreed to limited pauses in the fighting to facilitate the campaign. There were initial reports of Israeli strikes in central Gaza early Sunday, but it was not immediately known if anyone was killed or wounded. The pause ended Sunday afternoon, according to a schedule released by Israel. Hospitals in Deir al-Balah and Nuseirat confirmed that the campaign had begun. Israel has said the vaccination program will continue through Sept. 9 and last .

Palestinian militants kill 3 Israeli police officers in West Bank

Palestinian militants killed three Israeli police officers on Sunday when they opened fire on a vehicle in the occupied West Bank, where Israel has carried out large-scale raids in recent days. The attack took place along a road in the southern West Bank. The raids have mainly been focused on urban refugee camps in the northern part of the territory, where Israeli forces have traded fire with militants on a near-daily basis since the outbreak of the war in Gaza. The police confirmed that all three killed were officers and said the assailants slipped away. A little-known militant group calling itself the Khalil al-Rahman Brigade claimed responsibility. Hamas praised the attack as a natural response to the war in Gaza and called for more. The West Bank has seen a surge in violence since Hamas' October 7 attack out of Gaza ignited the war there. Over 650 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, mainly during Israeli military arrest raids. Most appear to have been militants ...

640k kids, 1.3 mn doses, 3 days: UN's plan to vaccinate Gaza against polio

The UN health agency and partners are launching a campaign starting Sunday to vaccinate 640,000 Palestinian children in Gaza against polio, an ambitious effort amid a devastating war that has destroyed the territory's healthcare system. The campaign comes after the first polio case was reported in Gaza in 25 years a 10-month-old boy, now paralyzed in the leg. The World Health Organization says the presence of a paralysis case indicates there could be hundreds more who have been infected but aren't showing symptoms. Most people who have polio do not experience symptoms, and those who do usually recover in a week or so. But there is no cure, and when polio causes paralysis it is usually permanent. If the paralysis affects breathing muscles, the disease can be fatal. The vaccination effort will not be easy: Gaza's roads are largely destroyed, its hospitals badly damaged and its population spread into isolated pockets. WHO said Thursday that it has reached an agreement with Israel for

Polio vaccine campaign begins in Gaza amid strikes, West Bank still on edge

A campaign to inoculate children in Gaza against polio and prevent the spread of the virus began on Saturday as Palestinians in both the Hamas-governed coastal enclave and in the occupied West Bank reeled from Israel's ongoing campaigns in both regions. Children in Gaza began receiving vaccines on Saturday, the Strip's health ministry announced in a news conference, a day before the large-scale rollout and planned pause in fighting agreed to by Israel and the United Nations World Health Organisation. Associated Press reporters saw roughly ten infants receiving doses of vaccine in the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis on Saturday afternoon. Hours earlier, Gaza's Health Ministry said hospitals received 89 dead on Saturday, including 26 who died in an overnight Israeli bombardment, and 205 wounded one of the highest daily tallies in months. Meanwhile, parts of the West Bank remained on edge Saturday as Israel's military continued its largescale military campaign, the deadliest since the

Israeli Defence Minister Gallant discusses war goals with IDF chief

The focus of the discussion was expanding the goals of the war to include ensuring the return of Israel's northern communities

Israel, Hamas agree to zoned 3-day pauses for Gaza polio vaccinations: WHO

The WHO confirmed on Aug. 23 that at least one baby has been paralyzed by the type 2 polio virus, the first such case in the territory in 25 years