Page 31 - Gaza Conflict

Israeli airstrike kills 25 in Gaza as assault shuts down medical facilities

An apparent Israeli airstrike on a school-turned-shelter in southern Gaza killed at least 25 Palestinians on Tuesday, as heavy bombardment in the north forced the closure of medical facilities in Gaza City and sent thousands fleeing in search of increasingly-elusive refuge. Israel's new ground assault in Gaza's largest city is its latest effort to battle Hamas militants regrouping in areas the army previously said had been largely cleared. Large parts of Gaza City and urban areas around it have been flattened or left a shattered landscape after nine months of fighting. Much of the population fled earlier in the war, but several hundred thousand Palestinians remain in the north. "The fighting has been intense," said Hakeem Abdel-Bar, who fled Gaza City's Tuffah district to the home of relatives in another part of the city. He said Israeli warplanes and drones were "striking anything moving" and that tanks had moved into central districts. The strike at the entrance to the school kil

Iran encourages Gaza war protests in US to stoke outrage, distrust

The Iranian government is covertly encouraging American campus protests over Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza in a bid to stoke outrage ahead of the fall election, the nation's top intelligence official said on Tuesday. Using social media platforms popular in the US, groups linked to Tehran have posed as online activists, encouraged campus protests and have provided financial support to some protest groups, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said in a statement. "Iran is becoming increasingly aggressive in their foreign influence efforts, seeking to stoke discord and undermine confidence in our democratic institutions," Haines said. This effort noted by the top US intelligence official is the latest evidence that America's adversaries are harnessing the internet to warp domestic debates and widen political divides ahead of the election. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it was important to warn Americans to help them "guard against efforts by foreign

Israeli protesters block highways, call for ceasefire to return hostages

Marking nine months since the war in Gaza started, Israeli protesters blocked highways across the country on Sunday, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down and pushing for a ceasefire to bring back scores of hostages held by Hamas. The demonstrations come as long-running efforts to broker a truce gained momentum last week when Hamas dropped a key demand for an Israeli commitment to end the war. The militant group still wants mediators to guarantee a permanent ceasefire, while Netanyahu is vowing to keep fighting until Israel destroys Hamas' military and governing capabilities. "Any deal will allow Israel to return and fight until all the goals of the war are achieved," Netanyahu said in a statement on Sunday that was likely to deepen Hamas' concerns about the proposal. Sunday's "Day of Disruption" started at 6:29 am, the same time Hamas militants launched the first rockets toward Israel in the October 7 attack that triggered the war. Protesters blocked main roads

Hamas drops objections to US-backed cease-fire proposal as talks continue

An Israeli delegation led by Mossad chief David Barnea was in Qatar earlier Friday for the talks, and returned home late in the day

Hamas broadly agrees with cease-fire framework with Israel: US official

The official spoke after a half-hour phone meeting between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

Israel orders mass evacuation, signals new assault on southern Gaza city

The Israeli army ordered a mass evacuation of Palestinians from much of Khan Younis on Monday, a sign that troops are likely to launch a new ground assault in the Gaza Strip's second largest city. The order suggested Khan Younis will be the target in the latest of Israel's repeated raids into parts of Gaza it had previously invaded during the past mearly nine months, pursuing Hamas militants as they regroup. Much of Khan Younis was already destroyed in a long assault earlier this year, but large numbers of Palestinians have since moved back in to escape another Israeli offensive in Gaza's southern-most city, Rafah. The order came as Israel released the director of Gaza's main hospital after holding him for seven months without charge or trial over allegations the facility had been used as a Hamas command centre. He said he and other detainees were held under harsh conditions and tortured. The decision to release Mohammed Abu Selmia raised questions over Israel's claims surrounding .

Israel releases head of Gaza's main hospital 7 months after hospital raid

Israel released the director of Gaza's main hospital on Monday, seven months after the military raided the facility over allegations it was being used as a Hamas command centre. The release of Mohammed Abu Selmia without charge or trial raised further questions about Israel's allegations regarding Shifa Hospital, which its forces have raided on two occasions since the start of its nearly nine-month war with Hamas. Abu Selmia said he and other prisoners had been tortured and held under harsh conditions, allegations that could not be independently confirmed but matched other accounts of Palestinian detainees who have been released back into Gaza. Our detainees have been subjected to all kinds of torture behind bars, he said. There was almost daily torture. Cells are broken into and prisoners are beaten. He said guards broke his finger and caused his head to bleed during beatings, in which they used batons and dogs. He said the medical staff at different facilities where he was held h

Israel presses Hamas in Gaza's Shejaya, destroys compounds in civilian area

Over the past day, the troops eliminated several terrorists, located weapons, and conducted targeted raids on booby-trapped combat compounds

5,000 new housing units planned for city of Sderot in Northern Gaza

The plan sees the complex surrounding the train station as a central and significant focal point in the region

Hamas' key weapons operative Muhammad Salah killed in Israeli airstrike

The operation by Israeli Air Force came following IDF intelligence. Salah was part of a project to develop strategic weaponry for the Hamas terrorist organisation

Won't agree to deal that ends war in Gaza, says PM Benjamin Netanyahu

The viability of a US-backed proposal to wind down the 8-month-long war in Gaza was cast into doubt on Monday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would only be willing to agree to a partial cease-fire deal that would not end the war, comments that sparked an uproar from families of hostages held by Hamas. In an interview broadcast late Sunday on Israeli Channel 14, a conservative, pro-Netanyahu station, the Israeli leader said he was prepared to make a partial deal -- this is no secret that will return to us some of the people, referring to the roughly 120 hostages still held in the Gaza Strip. But we are committed to continuing the war after a pause, in order to complete the goal of eliminating Hamas. I'm not willing to give up on that. Netanyahu's comments did not deviate dramatically from what he has said previously about his terms for a deal. But they come at a sensitive time as Israel and Hamas appear to be moving further apart over the latest cease-fire ...

Israel winding down Gaza operations, Lebanon war could be next: Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that the current phase of fighting against Hamas in Gaza is winding down, setting the stage for Israel to send more troops to its northern border to confront the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. The comments threatened to further heighten the tensions between Israel and Hezbollah at a time when they appear to be moving closer to war. Netanyahu also signaled that there is no end in sight for the grinding war in Gaza. The Israeli leader said in a lengthy TV interview that while the army is close to completing its current ground offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, that would not mean the war against Hamas is over. But he said fewer troops would be needed in Gaza, freeing up forces to battle Hezbollah. We will have the possibility of transferring some of our forces north, and we will do that, he told Israel's Channel 14, a pro-Netanyahu TV channel, in an interview that was frequently interrupted by applause from the studi

Visitors to Israel have new stop on their tours: Hamas' destruction site

A new kind of tourism has emerged in Israel in the months since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. For celebrities, politicians, influencers and others, no trip is complete without a somber visit to the devastated south that absorbed the brunt of the assault near the border with Gaza. Jerry Seinfeld, Elon Musk, Michael Douglas, former presidential candidate Nikki Haley, and Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are a few who have visited, at times posing for photos in front of burned-out homes. Many Israelis, including soldiers and security officials, are also visiting on organized trips. It's our personal story, but it's also the story of all of the state of Israel, said Irit Lahav, spokeswoman for Kibbutz Nir Oz, who gives many of the tours. A quarter of the approximately 400 Nir Oz residents fell victim to the attack. Hamas militants killed more than 20 and kidnapped over 80. In the dining hall, a wall of post office boxes is plastered with stickers red for killed, black for kidnapped, blue for ...

Houthi forces strike vessel in Red sea using drone, officials say

The drone attack happened around dawn off the coast of the rebel-held port city of Hodeida, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said

Thousands protest, demand new elections, return of hostages in Israel

Some protesters held signs demanding early elections, and others held banners calling for an end to the fighting in Gaza

At least 39 people killed in Israeli strikes across northern Gaza: Reports

At least 39 people were killed by Israeli air strikes across northern Gaza on Saturday, according to Palestinian and hospital officials. Fadel Naem, director of the al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, told The Associated Press that more than three dozen bodies arrived at the hospital. The Palestinian Civil Defense, an emergency group active in Gaza, said it pulled approximately the same number of bodies from a building hit by an Israeli strike in an eastern neighbourhood of Gaza City. The group said its emergency workers were also digging for survivors at the site of another strike in Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City. Israel said Saturday that its fighter jets struck two Hamas military sites in the Gaza City area but did not elaborate further. The deaths come a day after at least 25 people were killed in strikes on tent camps and 50 wounded near the southern city of Rafah. Israel said Saturday that it was continuing to operate in central and southern Gaza and has pushed ahead with

Israel's famed Iron Dome system could fail, warn US officials. Here's why

The Iron Dome is the bottom rung of Israel's three-tier missile defence system, according to the country's Missile Defense Organization

What is Hezbollah, the group threatening Israel with war with 'no rules'?

Hezbollah claims it has carried out over 2,100 military operations against Israel since October 8 in what it describes as a show of support for Palestinians and Hamas in the ongoing Gaza war

Amid war with Israel, bank heists have become the latest headache for Gaza

These thefts, amounting to millions of dollars, accounted for about one-third of the cash stored in now inaccessible vaults in Gaza

Israeli intel report gave warning of Oct 7 Hamas attack. What did it say?

The Gaza Division's document estimated that the target number of hostages Hamas might take during a possible attack was 200-250, almost the same as the 251 hostages actually taken on October 7