Page 121 - Israel-palestine

Israel's military issues unprecedented orders to evacuate Gaza City

Israel's military told some 1 million Palestinians living in Gaza on Friday to evacuate the north, according to the United Nations, an unprecedented order for almost half the population of the sealed-off territory ahead of an expected ground invasion against the ruling Hamas militant group. The UN warned that so many people fleeing en masse would be calamitous, and Hamas, which staged a shocking and brutal attack on Israel this week, dismissed it as a ploy and called on people to stay in their homes, adding to widespread panic. The evacuation order, which includes Gaza City, home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, sparked confusion among civilians and aid workers already running from Israeli airstrikes and contending with a total siege and a territory-wide power blackout. Forget about food, forget about electricity, forget about fuel. The only concern now is just if you'll make it, if you're going to live, said Nebal Farsakh, a spokeswoman for the Palestinian Red Crescent in

Israeli bombardment of Gaza killed 13 hostages, including foreigners: Hamas

Hamas says Israel's heavy bombardment of the Gaza Strip has killed 13 hostages, including foreigners, held by the group. Hamas' military wing said in a statement Friday that the 13 were killed in various locations over the past 24 hours. It did not give the nationality of the foreigners. There has been no confirmation from Israel.

Woken by sound of sirens, spent time in shelters: Indians back from Israel

Glad to be home and traumatised by what they had seen in the last few days, the first batch of around 200 Indians returned from Israel on Friday with the sound of air raid sirens, rocket fire and screams ringing loud in their ears. Israel witnessed a surprise and unprecedented attack by Hamas in its southern parts on Saturday morning. At least 700 people have been killed and more than 2,100 injured in Israel the deadliest day for the country in at least 50 years. "We woke up to sounds of air raid sirens. We stay in central Israel and I don't know what shape this conflict will take," said Shashwat Singh soon after landing at Delhi airport along with his wife. The post-doctoral researcher in agriculture, who has been staring in Israel since 2019, said the sound of those sirens and the nightmarish experience of the past few days still haunt him. The evacuation of Indians is a "praiseworthy step", Singh said soon after the flight landed. "We hope peace will be restored and we will ret

254 Nepali students rescued from conflict-ridden Israel return home

A group of 254 Nepali students rescued from the strife-torn Israel and led by Foreign Minister N P Saud arrived in Kathmandu on Friday. A Nepal Airlines flight that took off from Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport on Thursday landed at Tribhuvan International Airport here this morning after a stopover in Dubai. Speaking to the media at the airport, Foreign Minister Saud, who flew to Israel a day before to facilitate the rescue mission, said the remaining Nepalis who have requested repatriation would be rescued soon. The minister said 557 Nepalis had provided their details in response to a request from the Embassy of Nepal in Tel Aviv to those wishing to return to Nepal or relocate to safer places. "Out of the 557 Nepalis, 503 had applied to return to Nepal and among them 254 have returned home today with us," he was quoted as saying by the Himalayan Times newspaper. Minister Saud also said that 54 Nepalis who had requested to be relocated from risky areas have been shifted

Security alert issued in New Delhi as Israel-Hamas war intensifies

Security has also been stepped up at Jewish religious establishments and the Israel Embassy

Israel-Hamas war: Red Cross warns Gaza hospitals could turn into 'morgues'

Israel has cut off electricity and water supply to Gaza, and stopped the entry of food and fuel

Israel-Hamas war: Iran's warning, support from world leaders, and more

Israel, which has vowed to crush Hamas, is now preparing for a possible ground offensive

France bans pro-Palestinian protests, vows to save Jews from antisemitism

France's interior minister on Thursday ordered local authorities to ban all pro-Palestinian demonstrations amid a rise in antisemitic acts since Hamas attacked Israel over the weekend. President Emmanuel Macron urged French people not to allow the war in the Mideast erupt into tensions at home. Soon before Macron spoke in a televised address to the nation about the Mideast conflict, Paris police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters who had defied a ban and demonstrated Thursday against the Israeli government. "Let us not bring ideological adventures here (to France) by imitation or by projection. Let us not add national fractures ... to international fractures,?" Macron pleaded. "Let us stay united." With several French-Israeli citizens believed held hostage by Hamas, Macron pledged that France would protect its Jewish citizens and be 'ruthless toward all those who bear hate" and noted concerns about hostility toward France's Muslims too. Fighting i

Israel orders evacuation of 1.1 mn people from northern part of Gaza: UN

Israel's military on Friday directed the evacuation of northern Gaza, a region that is home to 1.1 people, within 24 hours, a UN spokesman said. The order, delivered to the U.N., comes as Israel presses an offensive against Hamas militants. UN spokesman Stphane Dujarric called the order impossible without devastating humanitarian consequences. This could signal an impending ground offensive, though the Israeli military has not yet confirmed such an appeal. On Thursday it said that while it was preparing, a decision has not yet been made.

Hamas practised in plain sight, posting video of mock attack before breach

Less than a month before Hamas fighters blew through Israel's high-tech Iron Wall and launched an attack that would leave more than 1,200 Israelis dead, they practised in a very public dress rehearsal. A slickly produced two-minute propaganda video posted to social media by Hamas on September 12 shows fighters using explosives to blast through a replica of the border gate, sweep in on pickup trucks and then move building by building through a full-scale reconstruction of an Israeli town, firing automatic weapons at human-silhouetted paper targets. The Islamic militant group's live-fire exercise dubbed operation Strong Pillar also shows militants wearing body armour and combat fatigues swiftly carrying out operations that included the destruction of mock-ups of the wall's concrete towers and a communications antenna, just as they would do for real in the deadly attack last Saturday. While Israel's highly regarded security and intelligence services were clearly caught flatfooted by ..

Here's the assistance US is providing to boost Israeli military amid attack

Within hours of the horrific attack by Hamas, the U.S. began moving warships and aircraft to the region to be ready to provide Israel with whatever it needed to respond. A second U.S. carrier strike group departs from Norfolk, Virginia, on Friday. Scores of aircraft are heading to U.S. military bases around the Middle East. Special operations forces are now assisting Israel's military in planning and intelligence. The first shipment of additional munitions has already arrived. More is expected, soon. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will arrive in Israel Friday to meet with Israeli leaders to discuss what else the U.S. can provide. For now, the buildup reflects U.S. concern that the deadly fighting between Hamas and Israel could escalate into a more dangerous regional conflict. So the primary mission for those ships and warplanes is to establish a force presence that deters Hezbollah, Iran or others from taking advantage of the situation. But the forces the U.S. sends are capable of .

At least 27 Americans killed in Hamas attacks in Israel: White House

At least 27 American citizens have died and 14 remain unaccounted for as a result of unfolding violence in Israel and the US will arrange charter flights to evacuate its citizens from the strife-torn Jewish state, the White House has announced. Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out a barrage of air strikes in Southern Israel on Saturday. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in response launched multiple attacks targeting Hamas' key infrastructure. So far, over 2,000 people have been killed in Israel and the Gaza Strip in the biggest escalation in decades between the two sides. India is one of the first countries to evacuate its citizens from Israel. On the sixth day of violence, the Israeli military said more than 1,300 people, including 222 soldiers, were killed in Israel. In the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, over 1,400 people have been killed in Israel's offensive against the Palestinian militant group, according to authorities there. "We are all acutely aware of limited availability

US to arrange charter flights to evacuate its citizens from Israel: WH

: The United States will arrange for charter flights to evacuate its citizens from Israel, the White House said Thursday. So far, 27 American citizens have died in the attacks by palestinian militant group, Hamas and 14 remain unaccounted for. India is the first country to evacuate its citizens from Israel after Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7. On the sixth day, the Israeli military said more than 1,300 people, including 222 soldiers, were killed in Israel. In Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, over 1,400 people have been killed in Israel's offensive against the Palestinian militant group, according to authorities there. We are all acutely aware of limited availability right now on commercial flights out of Israel and the demand signal by U.S. citizens who may want to depart. The president has asked his team to ensure that we are assisting U.S. citizens who do want to leave Israel and providing them with a safe means of doing that, said John Kirby, Coordinator for Strategic Communications

Operation Ajay: Flight carrying 212 Indians from Israel lands in Delhi

MoS Chandrasekhar welcomed the passengers at the Delhi airport as they streamed into the lounge area from the tarmac side

As Israel battles Hamas, all eyes are on Hezbollah, the wild card on north

Will Lebanon's heavily armed Hezbollah militia join the Israel-Hamas war? The answer could well determine the direction of a battle that is bound to reshape the Middle East. Hezbollah, which like Hamas is supported by Iran, has so far been on the fence about joining the fighting between Israel and the Gaza Strip's Islamic militant rulers. For the past six days, Israel has besieged Gaza and hammered the enclave of 2.3 million Palestinians with hundreds of airstrikes in response to a deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel. Israel, which has vowed to crush Hamas, is now preparing for a possible ground offensive. While the country's political and military leaders weigh the next move, they are nervously watching Hezbollah on Israel's northern border and have sent troop reinforcements to the area. Hezbollah, with an arsenal of tens of thousands of rockets and missiles capable of hitting virtually anywhere in Israel, is viewed as a far more formidable foe than Hamas. Israel is anxious that

Trump's criticism of Netanyahu draws strong condemnation from GOP rivals

Several of former President Donald Trump's Republican rivals denounced him on Thursday for lashing out at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu days after Hamas' deadly attack, a rare moment in which multiple competitors directly criticised the GOP front-runner. Trump at a rally Wednesday night said Netanyahu let us down just before the U.S. killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in 2020. He also said Israeli leaders needed to step up their game" and referred to Hezbollah, the group Israel fears may launch a large-scale attack from the country's north, as very smart. In an interview that aired Thursday, he added to his criticism, saying Netanyahu was not prepared" for the deadly weekend incursion from Gaza. Now is not the time to be attacking our ally," said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, one of Trump's 2024 rivals, echoing denunciations from the White House and elsewhere. More than 2,700 people are dead on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides, and Hamas is believed to have ..

Zionist in my heart: US President's devotion to Israel faces a new test

Joe Biden had been to Dachau, the infamous concentration camp in Germany, several times before, but he sensed changes when he visited as vice president with a teenaged granddaughter. It seemed as though things had been rearranged to make visitors less uncomfortable," he recalled in a memoir published two years after the 2015 visit. "They had softened the cruel edges over the years. Unwilling to settle for what he believed was a more sanitised experience, Biden asked the guides to bring them to the gas chamber, where they slammed the door behind us with a frightening clank. For Biden, it's a direct line from there to the Hamas attacks on Israel, which caused the largest loss of Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust. In a searing speech from the White House, Biden said the bloodshed "brought to the surface painful memories and the scars left by a millennia of antisemitism and genocide of the Jewish people. The massacres and kidnappings have sparked a crisis that threatens t

US, Qatar agree to prevent disbursal of recently unfrozen Iranian funds

The U.S. and Qatar have reached an agreement that the Qataris will not act on any request from Tehran for the time being to access USD 6 billion in Iranian funds that were unblocked as part of a prisoner swap last month, a U.S. official said Thursday. The move, which stops short of a full refreezing of Iranian funds in Qatar's banking system, follows the deadly attacks by Hamas on Israel and continued Republican criticism of the Biden administration's deal with Iran, in which USD 6 billion was unfrozen in exchange for the release of five detained Americans. The official who outlined the understanding between the U.S. and Qatar was not authorized to comment and spoke on condition of anonymity. U.S. officials have strenuously pushed back against the criticism, noting that the money had yet to be spent by Iran and can only be used for humanitarian needs. None of the funds that have now gone to Qatar have actually been spent or accessed in any way by Iran, Secretary of State Antony ...

Israel-Hamas war: EU asks X for information on hate speech, illegal content

The European Commission on Thursday made a formal, legally binding request for information from Elon Musk's social media platform X over its handling of hate speech, misinformation and violent terrorist content related to the Israel-Hamas war. It is the first step in what could become the EU's inaugural investigation under the Digital Services Act, in this case to determine if the site formerly known as Twitter is in compliance with the tough new rules meant to keep users safe online and stop the spread of harmful content. San Francisco-based X has until Wednesday to respond to questions related to how its crisis response protocol is functioning. Responses to other questions must be received by Oct 31. The commission said its next steps, which could include the opening of formal proceedings and penalties, would be determined by X's replies. Representatives for X did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. The company's CEO, Linda Yaccarino, said earlier that the site h

At least 45 Palestinians killed in Israeli strike on refugee camp

Gaza's interior ministry on Thursday said that an Israeli airstrike on a residential building in the densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza has killed at least 45 people and wounded dozens more. Eyad Bozum, the spokesperson of the interior ministry, told The Associated Press that a late afternoon airstrike hit the al-Shihab family house at the center of the Jabaliya camp. The al-Shihab house was packed with dozens of relatives at the time of the airstrike. Some family members had fled heavy bombing from other parts of the strip and taken refuge there. Bozum said the death toll was likely to rise from that airstrike, because civil defence workers were still pulling bodies from the rubble and counting the dead.