Netanyahu to seek approval for expanded Gaza offensive as 37 Palestinians are killed
An Israeli official said the Security Cabinet is expected to hold a lengthy debate and approve an expanded military plan to conquer all or parts of Gaza not yet under Israeli control. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity pending a formal decision, said that whatever is approved would be implemented gradually to increase pressure on Hamas.
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Global News
27 minutes ago
- Global News
Israel defends planned military offensive in Gaza, lashes out at ‘global campaign of lies'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday sought to defend a new military offensive in one of Gaza's most populated areas amid growing condemnation at home and abroad, declaring that Israel 'has no choice but to finish the job and complete the defeat of Hamas.' He spoke to foreign media just before an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Gaza. Notably, Netanyahu said he has directed Israel's military to 'bring in more foreign journalists' — which would be a striking development, as they haven't been allowed into Gaza beyond military embeds during 22 months of war. 'Our goal is not to occupy Gaza, our goal is to free Gaza,' Netanyahu asserted. He also rejected what he called a 'global campaign of lies' — and said Chancellor Friedrich Merz of Germany, one of Israel's strongest backers, had 'buckled under' by stopping exports of military equipment to Israel that could be used in Gaza. Merz, for his part, told public broadcaster ARD that Germany and Israel were talking 'very critically' but Berlin's overall policies of friendship haven't changed. Story continues below advertisement 3:29 'There's nothing left to occupy': Palestinians condemn Netanyahu's decision to take control of Gaza Netanyahu said there is a 'fairly short timetable' for next steps in Gaza, but didn't give specifics. The goals, he said, include demilitarizing the territory, the Israeli military having 'overriding security control' and a non-Israeli civilian administration in charge. Netanyahu again blamed many of Gaza's problems on the Hamas militant group, including civilian deaths, destruction and aid shortages. 'Hamas still has thousands of armed terrorists,' he asserted, adding that Palestinians are 'begging' to be freed from them. The prime minister, who has asserted that there is 'no starvation in Gaza,' did acknowledge hunger, saying, 'there was a problem with deprivation, no question about it.' Israel wants to increase the number of aid distribution sites, he said. U.S. defends Israel at Security Council meeting The United States defended Israel, saying it has the right to decide what's best for its security. It called allegations of genocide in Gaza false. Story continues below advertisement The U.S. has veto power at the council and can block proposed actions there. View image in full screen Samah Matar poses for a photo with her sons Yousef, 6, in her arms, and Amir, 4, who suffer from malnutrition and cerebral palsy, at a U.N.-run school in Gaza City, Saturday, July 26, 2025. Jehad Alshrafi/ AP Photo Other council members, and U.N. officials, expressed alarm. China called the 'collective punishment' of people in Gaza unacceptable. Russia warned against a 'reckless intensification of hostilities.' Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'This is no longer a looming hunger crisis; this is starvation,' said Ramesh Rajasingham with the U.N. humanitarian office. 'Humanitarian conditions are beyond horrific. We have frankly run out of words to describe it.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Humanitarian conditions are beyond horrific. We have frankly run out of words to describe it." View image in full screen Holding their pots, Palestinians wait to get donated food at a community kitchen in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Monday, June 2, 2025. Abdel Kareem Hana/ AP Photo More Palestinians killed as they seek aid At least 31 Palestinians were killed while seeking aid in Gaza, hospitals and witnesses said. Story continues below advertisement The Associated Press spoke to witnesses of gunfire in the Israeli-controlled Morag and Netzarim corridors and the Teina area in the south. All accused Israeli forces of firing at crowds as people tried to reach food distributions or waited for convoys. Fifteen people were killed while waiting for trucks near the Morag corridor that separates the southern cities of Rafah and Khan Younis, according to Nasser hospital. The situation is a 'death trap,' said Jamal al-Laweh, who said Israeli forces opened fire there. 'But I have no other choice to feed the kids.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "But I have no other choice to feed the kids." Six were killed while waiting for aid in northern Gaza near the Zikim crossing, according to Gaza's Health Ministry and Shifa hospital. 1:05 Palestinian teenager killed by air-dropped aid pallet in Gaza In central Gaza, witnesses said they heard warning shots before fire was aimed toward crowds trying to reach a distribution site operated by the Israeli-backed and U.S.-funded Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The AP could not independently confirm who fired. Awda hospital said four people were killed by Israeli gunfire. Story continues below advertisement Six other aid-seekers were killed while trying to reach GHF sites in Khan Younis and Rafah, Nasser hospital said. 2:26 Over 20 killed near Gaza aid sites amid deepening hunger crisis The GHF sites opened in May as an alternative to the U.N.-run aid system, but operations have been marred by deaths and chaos. Responding to AP inquiries, the GHF media office said: 'There were no incidents at or near our sites today and these incidents appear to be linked to crowds trying to loot aid convoy.' Israel's military said there were no incidents involving troops near central Gaza aid sites. Seven people were killed in airstrikes, local hospitals said — three near the fishermen's port in Gaza City and four, two of them children, in a tent in Khan Younis. Israel's military did not immediately comment. Hunger death toll among children hits 100 Israel's air and ground offensive has displaced most Palestinians and pushed the territory toward famine. Story continues below advertisement Two Palestinian children died of malnutrition-related causes on Saturday, bringing the toll among children to 100 since the war began. At least 117 adults have died of malnutrition-related causes since June, when the ministry started to count them. The hunger toll is in addition to the ministry's war toll of 61,400 Palestinians. The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals, doesn't distinguish between fighters or civilians, but says around half of the dead have been women and children. View image in full screen Omniya Mahra, holds shirtless for a photo her sons Oday, 4, left, and Mohammed, 3, who suffer from malnutrition and a genetic nerve disorder, at the Friends of the Patient Hospital in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 29, 2025. AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Story continues below advertisement Labor strike urged in Israel over looming offensive Hostages' relatives urged a labor strike in Israel next week over the plans to expand military operations in Gaza City, fearing it will endanger their loved ones. Fifty hostages remain after being taken in the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war. Twenty are believed to be alive. Lishay Miran-Lavi, whose husband, Omri, is among the hostages, appealed to U.S. President Donald Trump and special envoy Steve Witkoff to halt the fighting. Also Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz toured part of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where about 40,000 Palestinians have been driven from their homes this year in the West Bank's largest displacement since Israel captured the territory in 1967. Israel says the operations are needed to stamp out militancy, as violence by all sides has surged since the war in Gaza began. Katz said the military would remain in the area's refugee camps at least until the end of the year. Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip, and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel; Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed.
Toronto Sun
an hour ago
- Toronto Sun
Demonstrators seeking release of Gaza hostages march in London as Middle East tensions grip U.K.
Published Aug 10, 2025 • 2 minute read Demonstrators hold placards as they take part in the March for Hostages to Downing Street, in London, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2025. Photo by Alberto Pezzali / AP LONDON (AP) — Demonstrators seeking the release of Israeli hostages marched in central London on Sunday as the war in Gaza continues to inflame tensions across the United Kingdom. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account The protesters, who plan to march to the prime minister's residence for a rally, include Noga Guttman, a cousin of 24-year-old hostage Evyatar David, who was featured in a video that enraged Israelis when it was released by Hamas militants last week. The video showed an emaciated David saying he was digging his own grave inside a tunnel in Gaza. Hamas-led militants kidnapped 251 people when they attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Some 50 of the hostages still haven't been released, of whom 20 are thought to be alive. Israel last week announced its intention to occupy Gaza City as part of a plan to end the war and bring the captives home. Family members and many international leaders have condemned the plan, saying it would lead to more bloodshed and endanger the hostages. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'We are united in one clear and urgent demand: the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,' Stop the Hate, a coalition of groups organizing the march, said in a statement. 'Regardless of our diverse political views, this is not a political issue — it is a human one.' The march comes a day after police arrested 532 people at a protest in support of a banned pro-Palestinian organization. The demonstrators on Saturday sought to pressure the government to overturn its decision to ban the group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. Legislation passed last month makes it a crime to publicly support the group. The Metropolitan Police Service said it arrested 522 people for supporting Palestine Action. A further 10 were arrested on other charges, including assaults on police officers. The government banned Palestine Action after activists broke into a Royal Air Force base and damaged two tanker planes to protest British support for the war in Gaza. Palestine Action had previously targeted Israeli defense contractors and other sites in Britain that they believe have links with the Israeli military. Supporters of Palestine Action are challenging the ban in court, saying the government has gone too far in declaring a direct action group a terrorist organization. Columnists Columnists Canada Sports Toronto & GTA
Global News
2 hours ago
- Global News
Explainer: The controversy over Canada's rules on military exports to Israel
A Canadian senator is calling on Ottawa to be more transparent on its policy to restrict arms exports to Israel, following contradictory reports about what manufacturers have been allowed to send to the Middle East. 'I'm horrified to hear this news about certain arms exports and parts going to Israel, directly or indirectly,' Sen. Yuen Pau Woo said in an interview with The Canadian Press. 'Civilians are being killed and starved, and the Israeli government has only made things worse.' Ottawa insists it hasn't been allowing exports of lethal weapons to Israel and has been blocking any military goods that could be used in Gaza. Here's a look at what we know — and don't know — about Ottawa's efforts to keep Canadian weapons out of Gaza while allowing Israel to import military goods for other purposes. Story continues below advertisement What is Canada holding back from Israel? In March 2024, Parliament voted in favour of a non-binding motion to halt new arms permits for Israel. The government announced a review of export permits and suspended about 30 of them to determine whether they involved lethal uses. Ottawa has allowed all other military export permits for Israel to continue. There were 164 such permits used to export military goods to Israel in 2024, and some of them are valid for years. Of the 30 suspended permits, some have expired and the rest remain suspended, says Global Affairs Canada. In March 2024, the office of then-foreign affairs minister Mélanie Joly said that none of the valid permits allowed for the export of 'lethal goods' to Israel, such as weapons technology and equipment. Her office also said Canada stopped approving permits for Israel on Jan. 8, 2024, citing human rights concerns. While Israel's foreign minister suggested at the time the decision would undermine Israel's ability to defend itself, Israeli Ambassador Iddo Moed said 'we will be able to continue to defend ourselves.' 3:29 'There's nothing left to occupy': Palestinians condemn Netanyahu's decision to take control of Gaza What is Canada still allowing into Israel? Ottawa has said its restrictions exclude 'non-lethal' equipment. Story continues below advertisement The government provided Parliament with a list of all existing permits in June 2024. The list mentions circuit boards well over a hundred times. In September 2024, after the U.S. State Department approved the purchase of mortar cartridges made in Quebec for Israel, Joly said Canadian-made weapons were prohibited from reaching the Gaza Strip. 'We will not have any form of arms or parts of arms be sent to Gaza, period,' Joly said at the time. 'How they're being sent and where they're being sent is irrelevant.' Anand said in an Aug. 1 statement that this pledge actually goes back to January 2024. Groups like Project Ploughshares argue the term 'non-lethal' is poorly defined and misleading. Activists say Israel can use Canadian-made components such as lenses and cameras in the Gaza war and in military campaigns in the West Bank, despite Ottawa saying Israel is violating international law in both theatres. 2:33 NDP MP accuses feds of sending military arms to Israel without ensuring against use on civilians What does Israeli customs data say? Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy In late July, pro-Palestinian activists reported that the Israel Tax Authority had listed publicly imports from Canada that were officially recorded in customs data as bullets, guns and other weapons. Story continues below advertisement The data suggested 175,000 bullets were sent from Canada to Israel under the customs code that Israel uses for 'munitions of war and parts thereof,' with three similar shipments in 2024. Israeli customs agents recorded another Canadian shipment in the category of 'tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, motorized, whether or not fitted with weapons, and parts of such vehicles.' It took the Canadian government three days to respond to the claims. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand's office said it took the time 'to verify if any of the serious allegations of wrongdoing were true.' In her reply, Anand said the report was flawed and its findings 'are misleading and significantly misrepresent the facts.' The bullets were 'paintball-style projectiles' that cannot be used in combat, Anand's office said. Sen. Woo called that explanation trivializing and suggested Israel is likely using those materials to train its soldiers. Woo was among 32 senators — a third of the Senate — who called for a thorough investigation into what's reaching Israel from Canada. He called Anand's statement 'very limited, slippery and highly defensive.' 'She missed an opportunity to grasp the gravity of the situation in Gaza,' he said. What about aircraft? Advocates argue Canadian components are being used in Israeli fighter jets and drones, citing exports of items such as circuit boards and scopes or cameras. Story continues below advertisement The July report noted that specific companies in Israel receiving Canadian imports have also been equipping Israel's offensive in Gaza. The report pointed to no direct, explicit evidence that Canadian arms had been used on the ground in Gaza. Ottawa insists it is doing everything it can to ensure Canadian components aren't used in Gaza. What about that parliamentary report? On Aug. 4, the Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council released a report assembled by the Library of Parliament that it said disproves much of what the government has claimed. The July 8 report is marked 'not to be published' and the Library of Parliament said in a statement that it 'provides impartial customized research services for individual parliamentarians,' on the basis that the 'client's research request (will) remain confidential.' The government says the report is a rehash of publicly available information that doesn't contradict what the government has said publicly. Advocates seized on the portion of the report showing two arms permits to send goods to Israel were issued in 2024. Anand's office noted the permits were disclosed to Parliament last June and were issued on Jan. 8, 2024, the day Ottawa stopped issuing new permits. The advocates also noted that the report cited $2.3 million in Canadian sales to Israel listed as 'bombs, torpedoes, rockets, missiles, other explosive devices and charges and related accessories, components and equipment.' Story continues below advertisement Anand's spokesman James Fitz-Morris wrote that these were 'electronic components for detection equipment' in Israel's Iron Dome system, which intercepts and destroys incoming rockets. 2:11 Israel, Iran trade deadly strikes for fourth day with no signs of slowing down Did Carney change the Trudeau government's policy? While the government insists it hasn't changed policies, its language has shifted. Joly and her office spoke about non-lethal uses for arms. Anand has avoided that language. 'For a year and a half, we have been clear: if an export permit for an item used to protect civilians is requested, it will be approved,' her office wrote in a statement this week. 'Canada has not approved the export of any lethal weapons or munitions to Israel since January 2024, and any such permit that could have allowed such items were suspended and remains inactive today.' Story continues below advertisement Woo said Anand is 'prevaricating, with the shift in language and … an effort to try to be legalistic about the government's adherence to its own promise.' Fitz-Morris wrote that it would be 'a disingenuous claim, at best' to suggest Ottawa's language has been shifting. 'The government's position has not changed. Minister Anand is not reading from a script. She uses different words sometimes to convey the same message or to add clarity, depending on the circumstances and what she is responding to,' he wrote. 'The only permits that may be granted are for the items used to defend civilians, such as the Iron Dome, and items that are transiting through Israel as part of the global supply chain such as items (whose) end-users include Canada and/or NATO allies.' Why not end all arms exports to Israel? The government says it would compromise the complex supply chains that Canada and its allies rely on if Canada refused to export military goods to Israel, or to import them from that country. 'Any consideration of a two-way arms embargo that would block Israeli-made components from entering Canada would need to take into consideration the impact that would have on Canada, including the (Canadian Armed Forces),' Fitz-Morris wrote. Sen. Woo said Anand should halt all military trade with Israel. Story continues below advertisement 'She's digging a deeper hole for herself and for our government, particularly if there are in fact legal consequences around complicity, aiding and abetting war crimes,' he said. 'We are witnessing, in the memorable words of Amnesty International, a live-streamed genocide. It's tearing at our souls.' Israel says it's in an existential war of self-defence and blames Hamas for the high casualty count. 1:56 U.K. bans some arms sales to Israel over risk of breaking international law What do Canadians want? In an online survey of 1,522 Canadians conducted by the Angus Reid Institute from July 31 to Aug. 5, 54 per cent said they want Ottawa to ensure Canada is not selling lethal military equipment to Israel. One-fifth of respondents said they want the restrictions dropped. Another 27 per cent said they were unsure or opted not to respond. Story continues below advertisement Is the government being transparent? 'The Government of Canada tables regular reports concerning arms exports and has provided thousands of pages of documentation to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs — which the committee then published to its website,' Fitz-Morris wrote. That's not good enough, Woo said. 'To play with words, when a genocide is happening before our very eyes … it's scandalous,' he said.
