Page 36 - Israel

Aid workers feel helpless as Israel's blockade pushes Gaza towards famine

Two cases pushed nutritionist Rana Soboh to wits' end. First, a woman was rushed to a Gaza emergency room after fainting while she breastfed her newborn. She told Soboh she hadn't eaten in days. The next day at another medical facility, Soboh found a severely malnourished 1-year-old boy weighing 5 kilogramme, less than half what's normal. He hadn't grown any teeth. He was too weak to cry. The mother was also malnourished, a skeleton, covered in skin. When the mother asked for food, Soboh started crying uncontrollably. A feeling of powerlessness has overwhelmed her. Soboh said sometimes she gives a little money or a bit of her own food. But now she, too, is struggling. This is the worst feeling, wanting to help but knowing you can't. I wished the earth would crack open and swallow me, she said. What more cruel scenes does the world need to see? After months of trying to raise alarm, humanitarian workers are overflowing with anger, frustration and horror over Israel's nearly three-m

Israeli strikes across Gaza kill at least 103, including women, children

Hospitals and medics in the Gaza Strip say Israeli strikes across the Palestinian enclave killed at least 66 people overnight and into Sunday. The hospitals and medics said women and children were among the dead. The bloodshed came as Israel launches an escalation of its war in Gaza, which it says is meant to ramp up pressure on Hamas to agree to a temporary ceasefire. The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

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

Israeli strikes kill 82 people in Gaza as Trump wraps up Middle East visit

Israeli strikes killed at least 20 people in Gaza on Friday morning, as US President Donald Trump wraps up his Middle East visit. An Associated Press journalist counted the bodies at the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, where they were brought. Survivors said many people were still under the rubble. The widespread attacks across northern Gaza come as Trump finishes his visit to 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. The Israeli military had no immediate comment on the strikes. The strikes lasted hours into Friday morning sending people fleeing from the Jabaliya refugee camp and the town of Beit Lahiya and followed days of similar attacks that killed more than 130 people, according to Gaza's health ministry. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed earlier in the week to push ahead with a

Turkiye to buy Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles from US for $225M

This purchase from the US is expected to further boost the air defence system of Turkiye, which is already investing heavily to make its military stronger

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.

UN humanitarian chief slams Israel for 'deliberately' blocking aid to Gaza

The United Nations' top humanitarian official blasted Israel on Tuesday for deliberately and unashamedly imposing inhumane conditions on Palestinians, including the risk of famine one of the strongest condemnations by a high-ranking U.N. official during the war in Gaza. Tom Fletcher, head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, briefed members of the Security Council, describing this work as a grim undertaking since Israel began blocking all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza more than 10 weeks ago. He went as far as saying that the council must act now to prevent genocide. Israel vehemently denied that is taking place. I ask you to reflect for a moment on what action we will tell future generations we each took to stop the 21st century atrocity to which we bear daily witness in Gaza, said Fletcher, a longtime British diplomat who took up the U.N. post in November. It is a question we will hear, sometimes incredulous, sometimes furious but always there

Highlights: Echoes of Operation Sindoor's success heard across the globe, says PM Modi

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WATCH: Freed by Hamas, US-Israeli hostage reunites with family in Israel

US-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander freed after 19 months by Hamas reunites with family in Israel as ceasefire talks loom amid escalating Gaza conflict and Trump's regional visit

Netanyahu credits Trump for Edan Alexander's release after 584 days

Welcoming Alexander back, Netanyahu credited the success of the rescue to Israeli military pressure and diplomatic efforts led by US President Donald Trump, calling it "a winning combination"

Australian prime minister names new Cabinet that drops Israel critic

Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his new Cabinet on Monday after former minister Ed Husic blamed his demotion on his own criticism of Israel's war in Gaza. Albanese named the 30 lawmakers who will fill Cabinet and outer-ministry positions after his centre-left Labor Party won a landslide victory in the May 3 elections. Labor has claimed 92 seats in the 150-seat House of Representatives, the lower chamber where parties need a majority to form government. As vote counting continues, Albanese said his government could hold as many as 95 seats. Labor had never held more seats since the first Parliament sat in 1901, he said. I'm deeply humbled by the trust that was put into my government with the election and we certainly won't take it for granted, Albanese told reporters at Parliament House. While Labor prime ministers allocate the ministerial portfolios, the party's factional leaders pick the 30 lawmakers who will get them based on the proportion of seats each fact

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 ...

Israel warns of evacuations at 3 Yemen ports after US-Houthi ceasefire

The evacuation warning issued by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Arabic media spokesperson Avichay Adraee on X asked people to evacuate the ports of Ras Isa, Hodeidah, and Salif

Trump visiting Gulf Arab states while crises escalate in Gaza, Iran

On his trip this week to the Middle East, US President Donald Trump will visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, though his most pressing regional challenges concern two other countries: Israel and Iran. After ending a ceasefire two months ago, Israel is intensifying the war in the Gaza Strip, where a blockade on food, medicine and other supplies is worsening a humanitarian crisis. And Iran, an enemy of Israel and a rival of Saudi Arabia, stands on the cusp of being able to develop nuclear weapons. Yet Trump will focus his attention on three energy-rich nations home to existing or planned Trump-branded real estate projects places where he aims to leverage American economic interests to do what he personally revels in: making business deals. This is his happy place, said Jon B Alterman, a senior vice president at the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies. His hosts will be generous and hospitable. They'll be keen to make deals. They'll flatt

Hamas agrees to free last living US hostage in Gaza, says Trump envoy

Hamas said Sunday that the last living American hostage in Gaza, Edan Alexander, will be released as part of efforts to establish a ceasefire, reopen crossings into the Israeli-blockaded territory and resume the delivery of aid. Two Hamas officials told The Associated Press they expect the release in the next 48 hours. US President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed late Sunday in a message to AP that Hamas had agreed to release Alexander as a good will gesture toward Trump. The announcement of the first hostage release since Israel shattered a ceasefire in March comes shortly before Trump visits the Middle East this week. It highlighted the willingness of Israel's closest ally to inject momentum into ceasefire talks for the 19-month war as desperation grows among hostages' families and Gaza's over 2 million people under the new Israeli blockade. Alexander is an Israeli-American soldier who grew up in New Jersey. He was abducted from his base during the Oct. 7, 2023, ...

Overnight Israeli strikes on Gaza kill 15 people, mostly women, children

Israeli strikes overnight and into Sunday killed nine people in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, according to local health officials. Two of the strikes hit tents in the southern city of Khan Younis, each killing two children and their parents. A third strike killed another child and wounded seven people, according to Nasser Hospital, which received bodies from all three strikes. The Israeli military says it only targets militants and tries to avoid harming civilians. It blames Hamas for civilian deaths in the 19-month-old war because the militants are embedded in densely populated areas. There was no immediate Israeli comment on the latest strikes. Israel has sealed Gaza off from all imports, including food, medicine and emergency shelter, for over 10 weeks in what it says is a pressure tactic aimed at forcing Hamas to release hostages. Israel resumed its offensive in March, shattering a ceasefire that had facilitated the release of more than 30 hostages. Aid groups say