Page 15 - Israel-palestine

Israel won't annex Gaza, seeks end to war with Hamas, says Netanyahu

Israel doesn't want to annex or occupy Gaza and its sole aim is to destroy Hamas and hand over the strip to a transitory government, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday. The prime minister also said that Israel wants to take control of Gaza's security after ending the war as soon as possible. In an interaction with a group of visiting Indian journalists, Netanyahu said over two million tonnes of food were sent to Gaza, but the supplies were "interdicted". The Israeli prime minister's comments came amid increasing international criticism of his government over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, as an estimated 60,000 people were killed in the Israeli military offensive in the last 22 months. Israel launched the war in Gaza after Hamas' attack on October 7, 2023, killed about 1,200 people. Hamas also took 251 people as hostages. "Our plan is not to occupy or annex Gaza. Our goal is to destroy Hamas and get our hostages back, and then hand over Gaza to a transito

What to know as Israel considers Gaza reoccupation amid war escalation

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering ordering the full reoccupation of the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli media, a move that would draw fierce opposition internationally and within Israel. It would mark a stunning escalation of the nearly 22-month war in the territory that has already been largely destroyed and where experts say famine is unfolding. It would put the lives of countless Palestinians and about 20 living hostages at risk, and deepen Israel's already stark international isolation. It would also face fierce opposition within Israel: Families of the hostages would consider it a virtual death sentence, and much of the security establishment is also reportedly opposed to an open-ended occupation that would bog down and further strain the army after nearly two years of regional wars. The threat to reoccupy Gaza could be a negotiating tactic aimed at pressuring Hamas after talks mediated by the United States, Egypt and Qatar appeared to have broken down

Israel says Hamas starving hostages; UNSC says Israel starving Palestinians

Israel called an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Tuesday to demand the release of its emaciated hostages, including one seen digging his own grave. Their plight drew widespread sympathy -- but the 2 million Palestinians starving in Gaza got even more. Not only the Palestinians but most council members blamed the Israeli government and military for the two-month blockade of Gaza and failure to allow enough food into the conflict-wracked territory, where its health ministry has reported over 100 deaths from starvation, including many children. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, who flew to New York to attend the council meeting, accused Russia and other unnamed council members as well as the international media of perpetuating "so many lies". He pointed to Hamas and Islamic Jihad's starvation of hostages taken during the October 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel "while the terrorists enjoy meat, fish and vegetables". Saar insisted that Israel is facilitating "huge

Netanyahu hints at wider war in Gaza, former military & spy chiefs object

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at wider military action in devastated Gaza on Tuesday, even as former Israeli army and intelligence chiefs called for an end to the nearly 22-month war. The new pressure on Netanyahu came as Gaza's Health Ministry said the Palestinian death toll had surpassed 61,000. Health officials reported new deaths of hungry Palestinians seeking food at distribution points. As desperation mounts, the Israeli defence body coordinating aid announced a deal with local merchants to improve aid deliveries. Among those speaking out were former leaders of Israel's Shin Bet internal security service, Mossad spy agency and the military -- and also ex-Prime Minister Ehud Barak. In a video posted to social media this week, they said far-right members of the government are holding Israel "hostage" in prolonging the conflict. Netanyahu's objectives in Gaza are "a fantasy", Yoram Cohen, former head of Shin Bet, said in the video. "If anyone imagines that we

Hamas denies disarmament claim, calls US envoy's Gaza visit a 'staged show'

Hamas issued a statement in response to remarks allegedly made by Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, during a meeting with families of Israeli captives held in Gaza

Hamas deputy commander Salah al-Din Za'ara eliminated in Gaza strike

Za'ara previously served as the commander of the battalion's combat support company and was responsible for directing and promoting numerous terror operations

UAE, Jordan lead Gaza aid airdrop with France, Germany, Italy, and Spain

Under President Mohamed bin Zayed's directives, the UAE is leading global efforts to deliver urgent land, air, and sea aid to Palestinians in Gaza amid severe humanitarian conditions

Israeli military intel goes back to basics with focus on spies, not tech

The plan is to rely less on technology and instead build a cadre of spies and analysts with a broad knowledge of dialects - Yemeni, Iraqi, Gazan - as well as a firm grasp of radical Islamic doctrines

Statehood a distant dream for Palestinians as nightmare unfolds in Gaza

Plans announced by France, the United Kingdom and Canada to recognise a Palestinian state won't bring one about anytime soon, though they could further isolate Israel and strengthen the Palestinians' negotiating position over the long term. The problem for the Palestinians is that there may not be a long term. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects Palestinian statehood and has vowed to maintain open-ended control over annexed east Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank and the war-ravaged Gaza Strip territories Israel seized in the 1967 war that the Palestinians want for their state. Israeli leaders favour the outright annexation of much of the West Bank, where Israel has already built well over 100 settlements housing over 500,000 Jewish settlers. Israel's offensive in Gaza has reduced most of it to a smoldering wasteland and is pushing it toward famine, and Israel says it is pressing ahead with plans to relocate much of its population of some 2 million to other ...

Seeking to turning the tide in Gaza, global community calls out Israel

For the first time, four of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council are likely to extend recognition to Palestine (China and Russia being the other two), isolating the US

$30 potatoes, $300 flour: Food prices reach extraordinary heights in Gaza

The mayhem and the limited amount of aid entering the enclave in the first place has led many Palestinians to give up trying to get humanitarian aid, even though starvation is mounting

Statehood for Palestine? The legal test, the war, and the global shift

Global calls for Palestinian statehood rise, but legal, political, and diplomatic roadblocks remain complex and contested

Canada to recognise Palestinian state, risking split with US, Israel

Canadian PM Mark Carney cites Gaza crisis and eroded peace framework as Ottawa prepares to recognise Palestine at the UN, joining France and possibly the UK

Dozens killed while seeking food in Gaza as US envoy heads to Israel

At least 48 Palestinians were killed and dozens were wounded on Wednesday while waiting for food at a crossing in the Gaza Strip, according to a local hospital that received the casualties. The latest violence around aid distribution came as the US Mideast envoy was heading to Israel for talks. Israel's ongoing military offensive and blockade have led to the worst-case scenario of famine in the coastal territory of some 2 million Palestinians, according to the leading international authority on hunger crises. A breakdown of law and order has seen aid convoys overwhelmed by desperate crowds. US envoy Steve Witkoff, who has led the Trump administration's efforts to wind down the nearly 22-month war and release hostages taken in Hamas' Oct. 7 attack that sparked the fighting, will arrive in Israel on Thursday for talks on the situation in Gaza. Wooden carts ferry the wounded as survivors carry flour Shifa Hospital in Gaza City said the dead and wounded were among crowds massed at the

Trump says US, Israel to run more Gaza food centres, offers few details

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the US will partner with Israel to run new food centres in Gaza to address the worsening humanitarian crisis there, but he and US officials offered few additional details about the plan or how it would differ from existing food distribution centres. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he returned from a trip to Scotland that Israel would preside over the new food centres to make sure the distribution is proper. We're going to be dealing with Israel, and we think they can do a good job of it," Trump said. The opaque details come as the Trump administration is facing calls at home and abroad to do more to address the hunger crisis in Gaza. The U.S.'s close ally, Israel, is at the center of an international outcry as more images of emaciated children continue to emerge. That pressure comes after the U.S. pulled out of talks last week to try to broker a ceasefire in the 21-month Israel-Hamas war, accusing Hamas of acting in bad faith. B

India reiterates support at UN for two-state solution to Israel conflict

India told a high-level UN conference that global efforts must now focus on achieving a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict through "purposeful dialogue and diplomacy". It also said that one should not be content with paper solutions but strive to achieve practical ones. India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said on Tuesday that deliberations during the preparation for the UN High-Level International Conference on The Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution' confirm that the international community continues to believe there is no substitute for a two-state solution. He said the conference offers an opportunity to reflect on the path traversed so far in the journey towards achieving peace through a two-state solution. Our efforts must now focus on how to bring about a two-state solution through purposeful dialogue and diplomacy, and bringing the parties to the conflict to

Gangs, merchants sell food aid in Gaza, where IDF shattered security

Since Israel's offensive led to a security breakdown in Gaza that has made it nearly impossible to safely deliver food to starving Palestinians, much of the limited aid entering is being hoarded by gangs and merchants and sold at exorbitant prices. A kilogram of flour has run as high as $60 in recent days, a kilogram of lentils up to $35. That is beyond the means of most residents in the territory, which experts say is at risk of famine and where people are largely reliant on savings 21 months into the Israel-Hamas war. Israel's decision this weekend to facilitate more aid deliveries under international pressure has lowered prices somewhat but has yet to be fully felt on the ground. Bags of flour in markets often bear U.N. logos, while other packaging has markings indicating it came from the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation all originally handed out for free. It's impossible to know how much is being diverted, but neither group is able to track who receives its aid. I

Israel's leader claims no one in Gaza is starving; Data, witnesses disagree

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says no one in Gaza is starving: There is no policy of starvation in Gaza, and there is no starvation in Gaza. We enable humanitarian aid throughout the duration of the war to enter Gaza otherwise, there would be no Gazans. President Donald Trump on Monday said he disagrees with Netanyahu's claim of no starvation in Gaza, noting the images emerging of emaciated people: Those children look very hungry. After international pressure, Israel over the weekend announced humanitarian pauses, airdrops and other measures meant to allow more aid to Palestinians in Gaza. But people there say little or nothing has changed on the ground. The U.N. has described it as a one-week scale-up of aid, and Israel has not said how long these latest measures would last. "This aid, delivered in this way, is an insult to the Palestinian people, said Hasan Al-Zalaan, who was at the site of an airdrop as some fought over the supplies and crushed cans of chickpeas ...

Israeli fire kills dozens in Gaza, aid delivery remains chaotic: Officials

Israeli strikes or gunfire killed at least 78 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Monday, including a pregnant woman whose baby was delivered after her death but also died, local health officials said. Dozens were killed while seeking food, even as Israel moved to ease restrictions on the entry of aid. Under mounting pressure over the spiralling hunger crisis in Gaza, Israel said over the weekend that the military would pause operations in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi for 10 hours a day and designate secure routes for aid delivery. International airdrops of aid have also resumed. Aid agencies say the new measures are not enough to counter worsening starvation in the territory. Martin Penner, a spokesperson for the UN food agency, told The Associated Press that all 55 of its aid trucks that entered on Sunday were unloaded by crowds before reaching their destination. Another UN official said nothing on the ground has changed and no alternative routes were allowed. Israel sai

What to expect at UN meeting on Israel-Palestinian two-state solution?

The UN General Assembly is bringing high-level officials together this week to promote a two-state solution to the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict that would place their peoples side by side, living in peace in independent nations. Israel and its close ally the United States are boycotting the two-day meeting, which starts Monday and will be co-chaired by the foreign ministers of France and Saudi Arabia. Israel's right-wing government opposes a two-state solution, and the United States has called the meeting counterproductive to its efforts to end the war in Gaza. France and Saudi Arabia want the meeting to put a spotlight on the two-state solution, which they view as the only viable road map to peace, and to start addressing the steps to get there. The meeting was postponed from late June and downgraded from a four-day meeting of world leaders amid surging tensions in the Middle East, including Israel's 12-day war against Iran and the war in Gaza. It was absolutely necessa