Page 27 - Gaza Conflict

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

India shares with Israel its concern over escalating situation in West Asia

India and Israel on Wednesday held a key meeting during which the two sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral endeavours even as New Delhi shared its concern over the "escalating situation" in West Asia and emphasised "restraint, dialogue, and diplomacy", an official statement said. During the 17th India-Israel Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) hosted here, the two sides also shared views on the prevailing situation in the Indo-Pacific, the Ministry of External Affairs said in the statement. The Indian side was led by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, and the Israeli side by the Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Yaakov Blitshtein. "Reiterating India's strong and unequivocal condemnation of the October 7 terror attacks on Israel, the Foreign Secretary called for the unconditional and immediate release of all hostages, ceasefire, the need for continued humanitarian assistance, and adherence to international humanitarian law," it said. "At the same time,

UN aid operations in Gaza halted after Israel issues evacuation orders

The official said UN staff on the ground had been directed to try and find a way to keep operating. He said UN operations had not been formally suspended

One of Gaza's last working hospitals empties out as Israeli forces approach

One of Gaza's last functioning hospitals has been emptying out in recent days as Israel has ordered the evacuation of nearby areas and signalled a possible ground operation in a town that has been largely spared throughout the war, officials said Monday. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah is the main hospital serving central Gaza. The military has not ordered its evacuation, but patients and people sheltering there fear that it may be engulfed in fighting or become the target of an Israeli raid. Israeli forces have invaded several hospitals over the course of the 10-month-old war, accusing Hamas of using them for military purposes, allegations denied by Palestinian health officials. Israeli evacuation orders now cover around 84 per cent of Gaza's territory, according to the United Nations, which estimates that around 90 per cent of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have been forced from their homes. Many have been displaced multiple times, fleeing with what they can carry

Economists suggest ending war to revive Israel's struggling economy

In Jerusalem's Old City, nearly all souvenir shops are closed. In Haifa's flea market, forlorn merchants polish their wares on empty streets. Airlines are canceling flights, businesses are failing and luxury hotels are half empty. Nearly 11 months into the war with Hamas, Israel's economy is struggling as the country's leaders grind ahead with an offensive in Gaza that shows no signs of ending and threatens to escalate into a wider conflict. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has tried to allay concerns by saying the economic damage is only temporary. But the bloodiest, most destructive war ever between Israel and Hamas has hurt thousands of small businesses and compromised international trust in an economy once thought of as an entrepreneurial dynamo. Some leading economists say a cease-fire is the best way to stop the damage. The economy right now is under huge uncertainty, and it's related to the security situation how long the war will go on, what the intensity will be and the .

Hezbollah's Nasrallah says attack on Israel completed after drone attack

Expectations of an escalation had risen since a missile strike in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights last month killed 12 youths

Hamas sending delegation to Cairo for update on ceasefire negotiations

In a statement, Hamas spokesman Izzat Al-Rishq said the team, led by senior official Khalil Al-Hayya, is traveling "at the invitation of the mediators in Egypt and Qatar."

Israeli airstrikes kill dozens in Gaza ahead of high-level ceasefire talks

Multiple Israeli airstrikes killed at least three dozen Palestinians in southern Gaza, health workers said Saturday, as officials including a Hamas delegation gathered for high-level cease-fire talks in neighboring Egypt. Among the dead were 11 members of a family, including two children, after an airstrike hit their home in Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital, which received a total of 33 bodies from three strikes in and around the city that also hit tuk-tuks and passersby. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said it received three bodies from another strike. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. First responders also recovered 16 bodies from the Hamad City area of Khan Younis after a partial pullout of Israeli forces, 10 bodies from a residential block west of Khan Younis and two farther south in Rafah. The circumstances of their deaths were not immediately clear, but the areas were repeatedly bombed by the Israeli military over the past week. An Associated Press

Israel evacuation orders cram Palestinians into shrinking humanitarian zone

Young girls screamed and elbowed each other in a crush of bodies in southern Gaza, trying desperately to reach the front of the food line. Men doled out rice and chicken as fast as they could, platefuls of the nourishment falling to the ground in the tumult. Nearby, boys waited to fill plastic containers with water, standing for hours among tents packed so tightly they nearly touched. Hunger and desperation were palpable Friday in the tent camp along the Deir al-Balah beachfront, after a month of successive evacuation orders that have pressed thousands of Palestinians into the area that the Israeli military calls a humanitarian zone. The zone has long been crowded by Palestinians seeking refuge from bombardment, but the situation grows more dire by the day, as waves of evacuees arrive and food and water grow scarce. Over the last month, the Israeli military has issued evacuation orders for southern Gaza at an unprecedented pace. At least 84 per cent of Gaza now falls within the ...

White House says it is making progress on Gaza ceasefire as talks continue

The White House said on Friday that cease-fire talks in Cairo have been constructive and will continue over the weekend as the US and Mideast allies continue to press Israel and Hamas to forge an agreement. CIA Director William Burns and Brett McGurk, a senior adviser on the Middle East to President Joe Biden, are leading the US side of negotiations that began on Thursday amid major differences between Israel and Hamas over Israel's insistence that it maintain forces in two strategic corridors in Gaza. There has been progress made, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said, We need now for both sides to come together and work towards implementation. Kirby did not detail where progress had been made, but he did insist that there's been momentum in the conversations among the mediators from the US, Israel and Hamas's interlocutors Egypt and Qatar. Diplomatic efforts have redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of leaders of the