Page 15 - Palestine

Israel-Hamas war: Israeli strikes kill 10 in Gaza, say Palestine officials

Palestinian health officials say Israeli strikes have killed at least 10 people in the Gaza Strip. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital received 10 bodies, including the remains of a woman and three children, after strikes overnight and into Thursday. An Associated Press reporter at the hospital counted the bodies. A man held the body of a child wrapped in a white shroud as a woman next to him wept, saying: My love, my soul. The Israeli offensive launched in response to Hamas' October 7 attack has killed over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the local Health Ministry, which does not say how many were militants or civilians. Hamas and other militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack and abducted around 250. Around 110 hostages are still inside Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence. It blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants fight in den

Israeli tanks push deeper into central, southern Gaza, as Biden urges peace

A phone call between Biden and Netanyahu late on Wednesday followed a whirlwind trip to the region by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that ended on Tuesday without producing a breakthrough

Blinken ends Mideast visit without cease-fire, warning 'time is of essence'

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ended his ninth visit to the Middle East since the war in Gaza began without securing a cease-fire deal, warning on Tuesday that time is of the essence even as Hamas and Israel signalled that challenges remain. After meetings in fellow mediating countries Egypt and Qatar, Blinken said that because Israel has accepted a proposal to bridge gaps with the militant group, the focus turns to doing everything possible to get Hamas on board and ensure both sides agree to key details on implementation. Our message is simple. It's clear and it's urgent," he told reporters before leaving Qatar. "We need to get a cease-fire and hostage agreement over the finish line, and we need to do it now. Time is of the essence. There has been added urgency to reach a deal after the recent targeted killings of militant leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah in Iran and Lebanon, both attributed to Israel, and vows of retaliation that have sparked fears of a wider regional war. F

Mediators hold ceasefire talks as Palestinian death toll nears 40K

International mediators were set to hold a new round of talks Thursday aimed at halting the Israel-Hamas war and securing the release of scores of hostages, with a potential deal seen as the best hope of heading off an even larger regional conflict. The United States, Qatar and Egypt were to meet with an Israeli delegation in Qatar as the Palestinian death toll from the 10-month-old war nears 40,000. Hamas has not said whether it will participate, accusing Israel of adding new demands to an evolving proposal that had US and international support. A cease-fire in Gaza would likely calm tensions across the region and may persuade Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah to refrain from retaliatory strikes on Israel after the killing of a top Hezbollah commander in an Israeli airstrike and of Hamas' top political leader in an explosion in Iran's capital. The mediators have spent months trying to hammer out a three-phase plan in which Hamas would release scores of hostages captured in the October 7

26 pro-Palestinian demonstrators charged for blocking Golden Gate Bridge

San Francisco prosecutors have charged 26 protesters who blocked the Golden Gate Bridge for hours in April to demand a cease-fire in Gaza. The protest on April 15 was one of many held by pro-Palestinian demonstrators who blocked roadways around the country, causing traffic jams and temporarily shutting down travel into some of the nation's most heavily used airports. The protesters were charged with felony conspiracy, false imprisonment, trespassing to interfere with a business, obstruction of a thoroughfare, unlawful assembly, refusal to disperse at a riot, and failure to obey the lawful order of a uniformed officer, the San Francisco District Attorney's Office announced Saturday. Traffic snarled for hours after demonstrators blocked lanes with vehicles, shutting down all vehicle, pedestrian and bike traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge. The demonstration was part of coordinated protests across the country to demand an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and an end to military aid to ...

Israel broadens its evacuation orders after deadly strike on Gaza shelter

The Israeli military ordered more evacuations in southern Gaza early Sunday after a deadly airstrike on a school-turned-shelter in the north killed at least 80 Palestinians, according to local health authorities. Israel said it targeted a militant command post, killing at least 19 fighters. Israel has repeatedly ordered mass evacuations as its troops have returned to heavily destroyed areas where they had previously battled Palestinian militants. The vast majority of Gaza's population of 2.3 million people have been displaced by the 10-month old war, often multiple times. Hundreds of thousands have crammed into squalid tent camps with few public services or sought shelter in schools like the one struck on Saturday. Palestinians say nowhere in the besieged territory feels safe. The latest evacuation orders apply to areas in Khan Younis, including part of an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone from which the military said rockets had been fired. Israel accuses Hamas and other militants

Reports of abuse against Palestinian detainees 'deeply concerning': WH

Pierre said that it is essential that the rule of law and due process prevail

Israel kills nine militants in West Bank amid ongoing cease-fire talks

Two Israeli airstrikes in the West Bank killed nine Palestinian militants on Saturday, Israel's army said, as violence flared again in the Israeli-occupied territory with tensions high over the war in Gaza and a potential regional escalation. Cease-fire discussions on Gaza continued, with an Israel delegation led by the Mossad chief briefly visiting Cairo, an Egyptian official said. The US has urged Israel to seize the chance for a cease-fire after the shock killing of Hamas' political leader in Iran, which Tehran blames on Israel. That killing and Israel's assassination of a Hezbollah commander in Lebanon have the region holding its breath for retaliation against Israel on either front, or both, after Iran and its proxies vowed to act. Hamas said its command had begun discussions on choosing a new leader. In the northern West Bank, the Israeli army said its forces first struck a vehicle in a rural area outside the city of Tulkarem early Saturday, killing the five occupants. The arm

Hamas commander among nine killed in Israeli airstrike in West Bank

An Israeli airstrike on a vehicle in the occupied West Bank killed five Palestinians, according to Israel's army and Palestinian media, as violence flares in the Israeli-occupied territory. The Israeli army said its forces struck a vehicle carrying five militants in a rural area northwest of the city of Tulkarem in the northwest West Bank early Saturday morning, as the occupants were on their way to carry out an attack. According to an Associated Press journalist and witnesses, the blast took place along a road connecting the Palestinian villages of Zeita and Qaffin. I was going to work in the morning and I heard an explosion here next to the house, said Taiser Abdullah, a Zeita resident. The official Palestinian news agency Wafa said the five slain Palestinians were taken to a nearby hospital, and that four of the bodies were burned and charred beyond recognition. The Palestinian health ministry has not commented on the deaths. Over 590 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli f

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in 'Israeli raid' in Iran

Just a day before his assassination, the Hamas chief on Tuesday attended the inauguration ceremony of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian

Deadly rocket attack in Golan Heights threatens harsh Israeli payback

In a separate attack in central Gaza, at least 30 people, including children, were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced Palestinians

Germany bans group accused of Iran links and showcasing Hezbollah support

The German government on Wednesday banned a Hamburg-based organisation accused of promoting the Iranian leadership's ideology and supporting Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group, as police raided 53 properties around the country. The ban on the Islamic Centre Hamburg, or IZH, and its various sub-organisations elsewhere in Germany followed searches in November. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said material gathered in the investigation confirmed the serious suspicions to such a degree that we ordered the ban today. The IZH promotes an Islamist-extremist, totalitarian ideology in Germany, while it and its sub-organisations also support the terrorists of Hezbollah and spread aggressive antisemitism, Faeser said in a statement. Her ministry alleged that as the direct representative of Iran's Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution," the IZH disseminates the ideology of the Islamic Revolution in an aggressive and militant way and seeks to bring about such a revolution in the Federal Republ

13 Palestinians killed in central Gaza strikes as ceasefire talks continue

At least 13 people were killed in three Israeli airstrikes that hit refugee camps in central Gaza overnight into Saturday, according to Palestinians health officials, as cease-fire talks in Cairo appear to make progress. Among the dead in Nuseirat Refugee Camp and Bureij Refugee Camp were three children and one woman, according to Palestinian ambulance teams that transported the bodies to the nearby Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital. The 13 corpses were counted by AP journalists at the hospital. The latest casualties follow a rare moment of hope in war ravaged Gaza, after a medical teams recovered a live baby from a heavily pregnant Palestinian mother killed in an airstrike that hit her home in Nuseirat late Thursday evening. Heavily pregnant Ola al-Kurd, 25, was killed along with six others in the blast, but was quickly rushed by emergency workers to Al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza in the hope of saving the unborn child. Hours later, doctors told The Associated Press that a baby boy had .

Israel asks ICJ to clarify that its opinion is not legally binding

Marmorstein said that the opinion ignores the atrocities that took place on October 7 and the security imperative of Israel to defend its territory

Israel's presence in occupied Palestinian territories is illegal: UN court

The top UN court says Israel's presence in the Palestinian occupied territories is unlawful and called on it to end. The International Court of Justice said in its non-binding opinion issued on Friday that Israel has abused its status as the occupying power in the West Bank and east Jerusalem by carrying out policies of annexing territory, imposing permanent control and building settlements. It said such acts render "Israel's presence in the occupied Palestinian territory unlawful. It says its continued presence was illegal" and should be ended as rapidly as possible". The top United Nations court said Israel's settlement policy in the West Bank and east Jerusalem violates international law, as it delivered a non-binding advisory opinion on the legality of Israel's 57-year occupation of lands sought for a Palestinian state, a ruling that could have more effect on international opinion than it will on Israeli policies. International Court of Justice President Nawaf Salam was expecte

India releases first tranche of $2.5 mn to UN for Palestinian refugees

The Indian government has released the first tranche of USD 2.5 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) as part of its annual contribution of USD 5 million for the year 2024-25, the Representative Office of India here said on Monday. The UNRWA, which has carried out direct relief and works programmes for registered Palestinian refugees since 1950, is making efforts to keep up its functioning in the middle of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. The Representative Office of India in Ramallah in its statement on X said: "The Government of India released the first tranche of USD 2.5 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), as part of its annual contribution of USD 5 million for the year 2024-25." Over the years, in its endeavour to support the Palestinian refugees and their welfare, India has provided financial support to the tune of USD 35 million till 2023-24 for t

Israel targets Hamas' leader in Gaza. Who is he and what it means for war?

Israel on Saturday said it tried to assassinate Mohammed Deif, the shadowy leader of the Hamas group's military wing who has long topped the country's most-wanted list. The strike took place in an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone in southern Gaza, killing at least 90 Palestinians and wounding nearly 300 more, according to local health officials. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was still not absolutely certain whether Deif and another target of the strike, Rafa Salama, were killed. He also told a news conference that Hamas' entire leadership is marked for death. Here is a closer look at Hamas' elusive military leader and what his death could mean for the trajectory of the war. Who is Mohammed Deif ? Deif was among the founders of Hamas' military wing, the Qassam Brigades, in the 1990s and has led the unit for over 20 years. Israel has identified him and Hamas' Gaza leader, Yahya Sinwar, as the chief architects of the Oct. 7 attack that killed some 1,200 people i

UAE reportedly deports university student who yelled 'Free Palestine'

At the graduation ceremony of New York University Abu Dhabi this May, a student wearing the traditional Palestinian black-and-white keffiyeh scarf shouted Free Palestine! as he crossed the stage to receive his diploma, witnesses say. Days later, he reportedly was deported from the United Arab Emirates. The incident at the graduation comes as the UAE tries to balance its diplomatic recognition of Israel with the ongoing Israel-Hamas war that's devastated the Gaza Strip. While offering aid to the Palestinians, there have been none of the mass demonstrations that swept the Arab world here in the UAE, a federation of seven emirates that tightly controls speech and where political parties are illegal. That's stretched into academic life at NYU Abu Dhabi, where students say activities over the war have been barred, and into cultural events in the country's capital as well where those wearing the keffiyeh have been stopped from entering. I think the government and the laws of the country .

US-built pier to be put back in Gaza to move aid, then permanently removed

The pier built by the US military to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza will be reinstalled Wednesday to be used for several days, but then the plan is to pull it out permanently, several US officials said. It would deal the final blow to a project long plagued by bad weather, security uncertainties and difficulties getting food into the hands of starving Palestinians. The officials said the goal is to clear whatever aid has piled up in Cyprus and on the floating dock offshore and get it to the secure area on the beach in Gaza. Once that has been done, the Army will dismantle the pier and depart. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because final details are still being worked out. Officials had hoped the pier would provide a critical flow of aid to starving residents in Gaza as the nine-month-long war drags on. But while more than 19.4 million pounds (8.6 million kg) of food has gotten into Gaza via the pier, the project has been hampered by persistent heavy seas and stalled .

Highlights: Delhi Police books TMC MP Mahua Moitra for 'derogatory' social media post on NCW chief

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