Page 25 - Hamas

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 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 ...

PIL in SC seeks direction to Centre to halt export of arms to Israel

A PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a direction to the Centre to cancel licences and not to grant new ones to Indian firms exporting arms and other military equipments to Israel, which is fighting a war in Gaza. The PIL, filed through lawyer Prashant Bhushan, has made the union ministry of defence a party, and said, "India is bound by various international laws and treaties that obligate India not to supply military weapons to States guilty of war crimes, as any export could be used in serious violations of international humanitarian law". The plea filed by 11 people, including Ashok Kumar Sharma, a resident of Noida, said the supply of military equipments to Israel by companies, including a public sector enterprise, under the MoD violates India's obligations under international law coupled with Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. "Issue a writ of mandamus or any other appropriate writ or direction to the respondents, Union of India, through its various organs, to

US charges Hamas chief Sinwar, other leaders over Oct 7 attack on Israel

It also accuses Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah of providing financial support and weapons to Hamas

Israelis go on day-long protests nationwide as anger over hostages builds

The strike was called by the Histadrut labor federation, though a court order ruled Monday that it should end at 2.30 p.m.

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

World leaders express shock as six Israeli hostages found dead in Gaza

The deceased hostages have been identified as Hersh Goldberg-Polin (23), Eden Yerushalmi (24), Ori Danino (25), Alex Lobanov (32), Carmel Gat (40), and Almog Sarusi (27)

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

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

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

Threat of war with Israel redefines 'normal' life in Lebanon's Beirut

Beirut is used to living with the threat of war, and this was a couple of weeks ago. That threat is now getting more acute

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,

Will win war against terror by fighting together, says top Israeli official

Terrorism is a disease that will not stop unless all like-minded nations fight against it, a top Israeli official has said, asserting that his country will win the war against terror amid the escalating tensions in West Asia. Talking to reporters here on Tuesday, Yakoov Blitshtein, Director General of Foreign Affairs of Israel, said it was necessary to put an end to terror in Israel and all other places. "Terrorism is a disease that we must face (fight), not only in Israel but in the entire world. This is a disease that will not stop unless all of us, like-minded countries, fight against it," he said. Referring to the terror attack by Hamas on Israel in October 2023, Blitshtein said the country is in difficult times but shall overcome it. "We will build new cities, new homes and bring back all the citizens to their homes, to their villages, to their kibbutz, to the cities. We will win the war against terrorism," he said. His remarks come after Israel launched a wave of airstrikes

Israel, Hezbollah step back, but for how long? All eyes on Iran's next move

The Israelis claim to have thwarted what could have been a large-scale Hezbollah assault

Negotiations more effective than rescues in bringing Israeli hostages home

Israel's military has rescued its eight hostage from Gaza since the 10-month-old war began. While the rescue Tuesday set off celebrations, it also renewed calls from the families of hostages who are still being held in Gaza for a deal that would bring home their loved ones before it's too late. They say an agreement, not military rescues, is the best hope. International mediators have tried for months to broker a deal that would see scores of hostages still held by Hamas exchanged for Palestinian prisoners and a cease-fire. But Israel and Hamas cannot agree on key portions of the deal. Of some 250 hostages taken by Hamas militants in the Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war, around 105 were released in a cease-fire last November. Israel says 108 remain in Gaza, at least 36 of whom are believed dead. After 10 months, the IDF managed just to release a small number of hostages from Hamas and the rest of them must be released by negotiations and by ending this war, said Mazen Abu Siam,

Rescued another hostage abducted in Hamas' Oct 7 attack: Israeli military

The Israeli military said Tuesday that it has rescued one of the scores of people abducted in Hamas' October 7 attack, which ignited the ongoing war in Gaza. The rescue brought a rare moment of joy to Israelis amid months of grinding war but also another painful reminder of the scores of hostages remaining in captivity despite international efforts to broker a cease-fire agreement in which they would be released. The military said Qaid Farhan Alkadi was rescued from a tunnel in a complex operation in the southern Gaza Strip," without providing further details. It was not immediately known if the rescue was made under fire or if anyone was killed or wounded during the operation. The 52-year-old was one of eight members of Israel's Arab Bedouin minority who were abducted on October 7. He was working as a guard at a packing factory in Kibbutz Magen, one of several farming communities that came under attack. He has two wives and is the father of 11 children. Israel's Channel 12 showed

Risk of broader war eases a bit after Israel-Hezbollah exchange: US general

Brown noted Hezbollah's strike was just one of two major threatened attacks against Israel

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

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 .