Page 9 - Gaza Conflict

Israel launches new operation in Gaza to pressure Hamas over hostages

Israel said Saturday that it has launched a major operation in the Gaza Strip to pressure Hamas to release remaining hostages, following days of strikes across the Palestinian territory that killed hundreds of people. Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Operation Gideon Chariots was being led with great force. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had vowed to escalate pressure with the aim of destroying the militant group that has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades. The military operation came a day after US President Donald Trump concluded his Middle East trip without a visit to Israel. There had been hope that Trump's trip could increase the chances of a ceasefire deal or the resumption of humanitarian aid to Gaza, which Israel has prevented for more than two months. Negotiations between Israel and Hamas have yet to achieve progress in Qatar's capital, Doha. Hamas, which released an Israeli-American hostage as a goodwill gesture before Trump's trip, insists on a deal that ends the

Gaza faces famine threat as Israel blocks aid, crisis grows. What to know

The crisis in Gaza has reached one of its darkest periods, as Israel blocks all food and supplies from entering the territory and continues an intensifying bombardment campaign. Humanitarian officials caution that famine threatens to engulf the strip. Doctors say they are out of medicine to treat routine conditions. Israeli leaders are threatening an even more intense ground offensive. The military is preparing for a new organization with U.S. backing to take over aid delivery, despite alarms raised from humanitarian groups that the plans won't meet the massive need and could place restrictions on those eligible. It's unclear when operations would begin or who would fund them. This is the deadliest and most destructive phase of Israel's war on Gaza, yet the world has turned away," said Bushra Khalidi, policy lead for Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory at the humanitarian nonprofit Oxfam. "After 19 months of horror, Gaza has become a place where international law is ...

Microsoft gave AI to Israeli army but denies its use to harm Gaza civilians

Microsoft acknowledged Thursday that it sold advanced artificial intelligence and cloud computing services to the Israeli military during the war in Gaza and aided in efforts to locate and rescue Israeli hostages. But the company also said it has found no evidence to date that its Azure platform and AI technologies were used to target or harm people in Gaza. The unsigned blog post on Microsoft's corporate website appears to be the company's first public acknowledgement of its deep involvement in the war, which started after Hamas killed about 1,200 people in Israel and has led to the deaths of tens of thousands in Gaza. It comes nearly three months after an investigation by The Associated Press revealed previously unreported details about the American tech giant's close partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Defense, with military use of commercial AI products skyrocketing by nearly 200 times after the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack. The AP reported that the Israeli military use

Over 100 killed in Gaza as Israel hits 130 targets in 48 hours

Israeli strikes kill over 100 Palestinians in Gaza in 48 hours as ceasefire talks stall Netanyahu signals further escalation and aid plan faces global criticism

54 people killed in overnight airstrikes on Gaza's Khan Younis city

A hospital in southern Gaza says 54 people have been killed in overnight airstrikes on the city of Khan Younis. An Associated Press cameraman in Khan Younis counted 10 airstrikes on the city overnight into Thursday, and saw numerous bodies taken to the morgue in the city's Nasser Hospital. Some bodies arrived in pieces, with some body bags containing the remains of multiple people. The hospital's morgue confirmed 54 people had been killed. It was the second night of heavy bombing, after airstrikes Wednesday on northern and southern Gaza killed at least 70 people, including almost two dozen children. The strikes come as US President Donald Trump visits the Middle East, visiting Gulf states but not Israel. There had been widespread hope that Trump's regional visit could usher in a ceasefire deal or renewal of humanitarian aid to Gaza. An Israeli blockade of the territory is now in its third month.

New US-backed group set to begin aid operations in Gaza within weeks

A new humanitarian organization that has US backing to take over aid delivery to starving civilians in Gaza said Wednesday that it expects to begin operations before the end of the month after what it describes as key agreements from Israeli officials. A statement from the group, called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, identified several US military veterans, former humanitarian coordinators and security contractors that it said would lead the delivery effort. Many in the aid community believe it is meant to supplant the distribution system now run by the UN and other international aid agencies. The foundation failed to address much of the criticism and unanswered questions that the international community has about the group, including who would fund the work and how much involvement the US, Israel or any other government or military would have in controlling life-saving aid for Palestinian civilians. In an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press, Tom Fletcher, the U.N. ..

Israeli airstrikes in Gaza kill 48, including 22 children, say hospitals

At least 22 children were killed in Gaza overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday in a punishing series of Israeli airstrikes on homes in northern Gaza, according to local hospitals. The strikes killed at least 48 people in total, the Indonesian Hospital in Jabaliya reported. The strikes came a day after Hamas released an Israeli-American hostage in a deal brokered by the United States, and as President Donald Trump was visiting Saudi Arabia. On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there was no way Israel would halt its war in Gaza, dimming hopes for a ceasefire.

'World's worst hunger crises': WHO warns as 2.1 mn in Gaza face starvation

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed that Gaza is already in the grip of a hunger crisis and said that people are starving

Hamas frees Israeli-American hostage in goodwill move before Trump visit

An Israeli-American soldier held hostage for more than 19 months in the Gaza Strip was released Monday, Hamas said, in a goodwill gesture toward the Trump administration that could lay the groundwork for a new ceasefire with Israel. The Israeli military confirmed that Edan Alexander had been turned over to the Red Cross and was being brought to Israeli forces. Alexander was taken from his military base in southern Israel during Hamas' cross-border attack on October 7, 2023, which set off the war in Gaza. His release would be the first since Israel shattered an eight-week ceasefire with Hamas in March, unleashing fierce strikes on Gaza that have killed hundreds. Israel has promised to intensify its offensive, including by seizing the territory and displacing much of its population again. Days before the ceasefire ended, Israel blocked all imports from entering the Palestinian enclave, deepening a humanitarian crisis and sparking warnings about the risk of famine if the blockade isn'

Israeli strike on school-turned-shelter kills at least 16 people in Gaza

An Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter in the Gaza Strip killed at least 16 people early on Monday, mostly women and children, according to local health officials. At least five children and four women were among those killed in the strike on a school in the Jabaliya area, the Gaza Health Ministry's emergency service said. It also said that a number of people were wounded. The Israeli military says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because its fighters operate in densely populated areas. There was no immediate comment on the latest strike. The attack came as U.S. President Donald Trump is heading to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates this week. After ending a ceasefire two months ago, Israel is intensifying the war in the Gaza Strip, where its 10-week blockade on food, medicine and other supplies is worsening a humanitarian crisis. Here is the latest: Hamas says it will release last living American hostage in Gaza in a ceasefire ...

Israeli airstrikes kill 23 in Gaza amid growing outcry over aid blockade

Israeli airstrikes overnight and into Saturday killed at least 23 Palestinians in Gaza, including three children and their parents whose tent was bombed in Gaza City, health officials said. The bombardment continued as international warnings grow over Israeli plans to control aid distribution in Gaza as Israel's blockade on the territory of over 2 million people is in its third month. The UN and aid groups have rejected Israel's aid distribution moves, including a plan from a group of American security contractors, ex-military officers and humanitarian aid officials calling itself the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Among the 23 bodies brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours were those of the family of five whose tent was struck in Gaza City's Sabra district, Gaza's Health Ministry said. Another Israeli strike late Friday hit a warehouse belonging to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, in the northern area of Jabaliya. Four people were killed, according to the Indonesi

A look at Gaza's troubled history as Israel vows to take full control

Israel's Cabinet voted Monday to seize the Gaza Strip for an unspecified amount of time in a move that could see Israel reestablish control over a territory it vacated two decades ago. Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 after a decades-long occupation and then imposed a blockade on the territory along with Egypt. Israeli officials did not clarify Monday what a reoccupation of Gaza would entail, but the announcement raises the potential for the reestablishment of Israeli settlements inside the territory. Israel's settler movement has been emboldened under its current ultranationalist government. Details were not formally announced, and Israeli leaders have said the expansion of operations will not begin until after President Donald Trump's visit. The plan may be another measure by Israel to try to pressure Hamas into making concessions in ceasefire negotiations. Seizing Gaza would further dim hopes for Palestinian statehood, embed Israel inside a population deeply hostile to it and .

Troops to stay in Gaza for unspecified time as Israel approves takeover

Israel approved plans Monday to seize the Gaza Strip and to stay in the Palestinian territory for an unspecified amount of time, two Israeli officials said, a move that, if implemented, would vastly expand Israel's operations there and likely draw fierce international opposition. The new plan, which was approved in an early morning vote by Israeli Cabinet ministers, also calls for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to move to Gaza's south. That would likely amount to their forcible displacement and exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis. Details of the plan were not formally announced, and its exact timing and implementation were not clear. Its approval came hours after the Israeli military chief said the army was calling up tens of thousands of reserve soldiers. The plan may be another measure by Israel to try to pressure Hamas into making concessions in ceasefire negotiations. A third person, a defense official, said the new plan would not begin until after U.S. Preside

4 year-old girl, other children killed in Israeli strike on Gaza roadside

Massa Abed, 4, brought a rubber ball and her doll to play with friends on the street near her family's home on Sunday. It was a mundane day in Zawaida, the central Gaza town where the Abeds returned weeks ago, with calm largely restored in the area. But that afternoon, an Israeli strike hit a tent on the side of the road, killing Massa and some of the other children. Her older brother, 16, grabbed Massa's little body and rushed to the hospital on a donkey cart. When she was pronounced dead, he wailed, holding her. Days later, Massa's father, Samy Abed, turned the green ball in his hand, describing the incident to The Associated Press. She had a ball on her lap with a doll in her hand. Will she fight them with her football or doll? he said. She's 4 years old. What can she do? She can't even carry a rock. The Israeli army did not respond to requests for comment on the strike, and it remains unclear why the area near the city of Deir al-Balah was struck or who was targeted. Israeli

Israeli strikes kill 14 in Gaza, destroy rubble-clearing equipment

Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip killed at least 14 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and destroyed bulldozers and other heavy equipment that had been supplied by mediators to clear rubble. Separate strikes on Tuesday killed two people in Lebanon. Israel's 18-month offensive against Hamas has destroyed vast areas of Gaza, raising fears that much of it may never be rebuilt. The territory already had a shortage of heavy equipment, which is also needed to rescue people from the rubble after Israeli strikes and to clear vital roads. A municipality in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza said a strike on its parking garage destroyed nine bulldozers provided by Egypt and Qatar, which helped broker the ceasefire that took hold in January. Israel ended the truce last month, renewing its bombardment and ground operations and sealing the territory's two million Palestinians off from all imports, including food, fuel and medical supplies. The strikes also destroyed a water tanker and a

Israel admits 'professional error' in Gaza strike that killed 15 medics

An Israeli investigation into the killings of 15 Palestinian medics last month in Gaza by Israeli forces said Sunday it found a chain of professional failures and a deputy commander has been fired. The shootings outraged many in the international community, with some calling the killings a war crime. Medical workers have special protection under international humanitarian law. The International Red Cross/Red Crescent called it the deadliest attack on its personnel in eight years. Israel at first claimed that the medics' vehicles did not have emergency signals on when troops opened fire but later backtracked. Cellphone video recovered from one medic contradicted Israel's initial account. The military investigation found that the deputy battalion commander acted under the incorrect assumption that all of the ambulances belonged to Hamas militants. Video footage obtained shows the ambulances had lights flashing and logos visible as they pulled up to help another ambulance that earlier

Israeli probe finds 'professional failures' in Palestine medic killings

An Israeli probe into the killings of Palestinian medics in Gaza says it has found professional failures and a deputy commander will be fired. The findings issued on Sunday come after the killings of 15 medics last month by Israeli forces. Israel at first claimed that the medics' vehicles did not have emergency signals on when troops opened fire but later backtracked. Cellphone video recovered from one of the medics contradicted Israel's initial account of the shooting. The military investigation found that the deputy battalion commander, due to poor night visibility, assessed that the ambulances belonged to Hamas militants. Video footage obtained from the incident shows the ambulances had lights flashing.

Israeli strikes on Gaza kills over 90 people in last 48 hours: Palestinians

More than 90 people have been killed in Gaza by Israeli strikes in the last 48 hours, Gaza's Health Ministry said on Saturday. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The dead include at least 15 people killed overnight, among them women and children, some of who were sheltering in a designated humanitarian zone, according to hospital staff. Israel is ramping up attacks across Gaza as it tries to pressure Hamas to release its hostages and disarm. Israel has said it plans to occupy large security zones inside Gaza.

Ready to release all remaining hostages to end Gaza war, says Hamas

Khalil Al-Hayya, Hamas's Gaza chief and lead negotiator, said the group seeks a comprehensive deal including a full ceasefire, release of Palestinian prisoners, and Gaza's reconstruction

Troops to stay in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria indefinitely, says Israeli minister

Israel's defence minister said Wednesday that troops will remain in so-called security zones in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria indefinitely. Unlike in the past, the (Israeli military) is not evacuating areas that have been cleared and seized, Israel Katz said in a statement. The military will remain in the security zones as a buffer between the enemy and (Israeli) communities in any temporary or permanent situation in Gaza as in Lebanon and Syria. Israeli forces have taken over large areas of Gaza in recent weeks in a renewed campaign to pressure Hamas to release hostages after Israel ended their ceasefire last month. Israel has also refused to withdraw from some areas in Lebanon following a ceasefire with the Hezbollah militant group last year, and it seized a buffer zone in southern Syria after the overthrow of President Bashar Assad. Israel says it must maintain control of such territories to prevent a repeat of Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack, in which thousands of militants ...