Israeli gunfire kills at least 25 in Gaza as Netanyahu says he will allow Palestinians to leave
Netanyahu wants to realize U.S. President Donald Trump's vision of relocating much of Gaza's population of over 2 million people through what he refers to as 'voluntary migration' — and what critics have warned could be ethnic cleansing.
'Give them the opportunity to leave! First, from combat zones, and also from the Strip if they want,' Netanyahu said in an interview aired Tuesday with i24, an Israeli TV station, to discuss the planned offensive in areas including Gaza City where hundreds of thousands of displaced people shelter. 'We are not pushing them out but allowing them to leave.'
Witnesses and staff at Nasser and Awda hospitals, which received the bodies, said people were shot dead on their way to aid distribution sites and while awaiting convoys entering Gaza. Israel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ceasefire talks set to resume
Efforts to revive ceasefire talks have resumed after apparently breaking down last month. Hamas and Egyptian officials met Wednesday in Cairo, according to Hamas official Taher al-Nounou.
Israel has no plans to send its negotiating team to talks in Cairo, the prime minister's office said.
Israel's plans to widen its military offensive against Hamas to the areas of Gaza that it does not yet control have sparked condemnation and criticism at home and abroad, and could be intended to raise pressure on Hamas to reach a ceasefire.
The militants still hold 50 hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war. Israel believes around 20 of them are alive. Families fear a new offensive endangers them.
Netanyahu was asked by i24 News if the window had closed on a partial ceasefire deal and he responded that he wanted all of the hostages back, alive and dead.
Egyptian Foreign Ministry Badr Abdelatty told reporters that Cairo is still trying to advance an earlier proposal for an initial 60-day ceasefire, the release of some hostages and an influx of humanitarian aid before further talks on a lasting truce.
Hamas says it will only release the remaining hostages in return for the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. The militant group has refused to lay down its arms.
South Sudan calls reports of resettlement talks baseless
Israel and South Sudan are in talks about relocating Palestinians to the war-torn East African nation, The Associated Press reported Tuesday.
The office of Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister, Sharren Haskel, said Wednesday she was arriving in South Sudan for a series of meetings in the first visit by a senior government official to the country, but she did not plan to broach the subject of moving Palestinians.
South Sudan's ministry of foreign affairs in a statement called reports that it was engaging in discussions with Israel about resettling Palestinians baseless.
The AP previously reported that U.S. and Israel have reached out to officials of three East African governments to discuss using their territories as potential destinations for moving Palestinians uprooted from Gaza.
Killed while seeking aid
Among those killed while seeking aid were 14 Palestinians in the Teina area approximately 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from a food distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, according to staff at Nasser hospital.
Hashim Shamalah said Israeli troops fired toward them as people tried to get through. Many were shot and fell while fleeing, he said.
Israeli gunfire killed five other Palestinians while trying to reach another GHF distribution site in the Netzarim corridor area, according to Awda hospital and witnesses.
GHF said there were no incidents at or near its sites Wednesday.
The U.S. and Israel support GHF, an American contractor, as an alternative to the United Nations, which they claim allows Hamas to siphon off aid. The U.N., which has delivered aid throughout Gaza for decades when conditions allow, denies the allegations.
Aid convoys from other groups travel within 100 meters (328 feet) of GHF sites and draw crowds attempting to loot them. An overwhelming majority of violent incidents over the past few weeks have been related to those convoys, the GHF said.
Israeli fire killed at least six other people waiting for aid trucks close to the Morag corridor, which separates parts of southern Gaza, Nasser hospital said.
UN says starvation at highest levels of the war
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric on Tuesday shared the warning from the World Food Program and said Gaza's Health Ministry told U.N. staff that five people died over the previous 24 hours from malnutrition and starvation.
The Health Ministry says 106 children have died of malnutrition-related causes during the war and 129 adults have died since late June.
The U.N. and humanitarian partners still face significant delays and impediments from Israeli authorities who prevent the delivery of food and other essentials at the scale needed, Dujarric said.
Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the 2023 attack. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefires or other deals.
Israel's air and ground offensive has since displaced most of Gaza's population, destroyed vast areas and pushed the territory toward famine. The offensive has killed more than 61,700 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not say how many were fighters or civilians but says around half were women and children.
The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Associated Press
23 minutes ago
- Associated Press
South Korean and US militaries begin annual summertime drills to cope with North Korean threats
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea and the United States began their annual large-scale joint military exercise on Monday to better cope with threats by nuclear-armed North Korea, which has warned the drills would deepen regional tensions and vowed to respond to 'any provocation' against its territory. The 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield, the second of two large-scale exercises held annually in South Korea, after another set in March, will involve 21,000 soldiers, including 18,000 South Koreans, in computer-simulated command post operations and field training. The drills, which the allies describe as defensive, could trigger a response from North Korea, which has long portrayed the allies' exercises as invasion rehearsals and has often used them as a pretext for military demonstrations and weapons tests aimed at advancing its nuclear program. In a statement last week, North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang Chol said the drills show the allies' stance of 'military confrontation' with the North and declared that its forces would be ready to counteract 'any provocation going beyond the boundary line.' Ulchi Freedom Shield comes at a pivotal moment for South Korea's new liberal President Lee Jae Myung, who is preparing for an Aug. 25 summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington. Trump has raised concerns in Seoul that he may upend the decades-old alliance by demanding higher payments for the American troop presence in South Korea and possibly reducing it as Washington shifts its focus more toward China. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula remain high as North Korea has brushed aside Lee's calls to resume diplomacy with its war-divided rival, with relations having soured in recent years as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un accelerated his weapons program and deepened alignment with Moscow following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Seoul's previous conservative government responded to North Korean threats by expanding military exercises with the United States and seeking stronger U.S. assurances for nuclear deterrence, drawing an angry reaction from Kim, who last year renounced long-term reconciliation goals and rewrote the North's constitution to label the South a permanent enemy. In his latest message to Pyongyang on Friday, Lee, who took office in June, said he would seek to restore a 2018-inter-Korean military agreement designed to reduce border tensions and called for North Korea to respond to the South's efforts to rebuild trust and revive talks. The 2018 military agreement, reached during a brief period of diplomacy between South Korea's former liberal President Moon Jae-in and Kim, created buffer zones on land and sea and no-fly zones above the border to prevent clashes. But South Korea suspended the deal in 2024, citing tensions over North Korea's launches of trash-laden balloons toward the South, and moved to resume frontline military activities and propaganda campaigns. The step came after North Korea had already declared it would no longer abide by the agreement. When asked whether the Lee government's steps to restore the agreement would affect the allies' drills, the South's Defense Ministry said Monday that there are no immediate plans to suspend live-fire training near the Koreas' disputed maritime border. While the allies have postponed half of Ulchi Freedom Shield's originally planned 44 field training programs to September, U.S. military officials denied South Korean media speculation that the scaled-back drills were meant to make room for diplomacy with the North, citing heat concerns and flood damage to some training fields. Dating back to his first term, Trump has regularly called for South Korea to pay more for the 28,500 American troops stationed on its soil. Public comments by senior Trump administration officials, including Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, have suggested a push to restructure the alliance, which some experts say could potentially affect the size and role of U.S. forces in South Korea. Under this approach, South Korea would take a greater role in countering North Korean threats while U.S. forces focus more on China, possibly leaving Seoul to face reduced benefits but increased costs and risks, experts say. In a recent meeting with reporters, Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, stressed the need to 'modernize' the alliance to address the evolving security environment, including North Korea's nuclear ambitions, its deepening alignment with Russia, and what he called Chinese threats to a 'free and open Indo-Pacific.'
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
Hong Kong court begins hearing final arguments in Jimmy Lai's national security trial
HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court began hearing final arguments Monday in the landmark national security trial of former pro-democracy newspaper founder Jimmy Lai, who could be sentenced to up to life in prison if he is convicted. Lai, 77, was arrested in 2020 under a national security law imposed by Beijing following anti-government protests in 2019. He is being tried on charges of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiring with others to issue seditious publications. Lai founded Apple Daily, one of the local media outlets that was most critical against Hong Kong's government. His high-profile case — which has already stretched nearly 150 days, far beyond the original estimate of 80 days — is widely seen as a trial of press freedom and a test for judicial independence in the Asian financial hub. Prosecutors allege that Lai asked foreign countries, especially the United States, to take actions against Beijing 'under the guise of fighting for freedom and democracy.' On the first day of his testimony, he denied he had asked then-Vice President Mike Pence and then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to take action against Hong Kong and China during the 2019 protests. Later, when Lai's lawyer questioned him about an Apple Daily report saying he had asked the U.S. government to sanction Beijing and Hong Kong leaders, he said he must have discussed it with Pompeo, as he had no reason to doubt the accuracy of the report by the now-defunct newspaper he founded. But Lai said he would not have encouraged foreign sanctions after the national security law was enacted on June 30, 2020. The closing arguments have been delayed twice, first due to weather then to concerns over Lai's health. On Friday, his lawyer, Robert Pang, said Lai had experienced heart palpitations while in prison. The judges wanted him to secure a heart monitor and medication first. After Friday's hearing, the Hong Kong government alleged foreign media outlets had attempted to mislead the public about Lai's medical care. It said a medical examination of Lai found no abnormalities and that the medical care he received in custody was adequate. It is unclear when the verdict will be delivered. Lai's yearslong detention, especially in solidarity confinement, has drawn concerns from foreign governments and rights groups. U.S. President Donald Trump, before being elected to his second term in November, said he would talk to Chinese leader Xi Jinping to seek Lai's release: 'One hundred percent, I will get him out.' In a Fox News radio interview released last Thursday, Trump denied saying he would '100%' save Lai, but rather that he would bring the issue up. 'I've already brought it up, and I'm going to do everything I can to save him,' he said. China has accused Lai of stirring a rise in anti-China sentiments in Hong Kong and said it firmly opposes the interference of other countries in its internal affairs. Dozens of people waited in the rain Monday for a seat in the main courtroom to see Lai. Former Apple Daily reader Susan Li said she worried about Lai's health as he looked visibly thinner, and she would continue to pray for him. 'I wanted to let him know we are still here,' she said. When Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to China in 1997, Beijing promised to retain the city's civil liberties for 50 years. But critics say that promise has become threadbare after the introduction of the security law, which Chinese and Hong Kong authorities insist was necessary for the city's stability.
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Hong Kong court begins hearing final arguments in Jimmy Lai's national security trial
HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court began hearing final arguments Monday in the landmark national security trial of former pro-democracy newspaper founder Jimmy Lai, who could be sentenced to up to life in prison if he is convicted. Lai, 77, was arrested in 2020 under a national security law imposed by Beijing following anti-government protests in 2019. He is being tried on charges of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiring with others to issue seditious publications. Lai founded Apple Daily, one of the local media outlets that was most critical against Hong Kong's government. His high-profile case — which has already stretched nearly 150 days, far beyond the original estimate of 80 days — is widely seen as a trial of press freedom and a test for judicial independence in the Asian financial hub. Prosecutors allege that Lai asked foreign countries, especially the United States, to take actions against Beijing 'under the guise of fighting for freedom and democracy.' On the first day of his testimony, he denied he had asked then-Vice President Mike Pence and then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to take action against Hong Kong and China during the 2019 protests. Later, when Lai's lawyer questioned him about an Apple Daily report saying he had asked the U.S. government to sanction Beijing and Hong Kong leaders, he said he must have discussed it with Pompeo, as he had no reason to doubt the accuracy of the report by the now-defunct newspaper he founded. But Lai said he would not have encouraged foreign sanctions after the national security law was enacted on June 30, 2020. The closing arguments have been delayed twice, first due to weather then to concerns over Lai's health. On Friday, his lawyer, Robert Pang, said Lai had experienced heart palpitations while in prison. The judges wanted him to secure a heart monitor and medication first. After Friday's hearing, the Hong Kong government alleged foreign media outlets had attempted to mislead the public about Lai's medical care. It said a medical examination of Lai found no abnormalities and that the medical care he received in custody was adequate. It is unclear when the verdict will be delivered. Lai's yearslong detention, especially in solidarity confinement, has drawn concerns from foreign governments and rights groups. U.S. President Donald Trump, before being elected to his second term in November, said he would talk to Chinese leader Xi Jinping to seek Lai's release: 'One hundred percent, I will get him out.' In a Fox News radio interview released last Thursday, Trump denied saying he would '100%' save Lai, but rather that he would bring the issue up. 'I've already brought it up, and I'm going to do everything I can to save him,' he said. China has accused Lai of stirring a rise in anti-China sentiments in Hong Kong and said it firmly opposes the interference of other countries in its internal affairs. Dozens of people waited in the rain Monday for a seat in the main courtroom to see Lai. Former Apple Daily reader Susan Li said she worried about Lai's health as he looked visibly thinner, and she would continue to pray for him. 'I wanted to let him know we are still here,' she said. When Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to China in 1997, Beijing promised to retain the city's civil liberties for 50 years. But critics say that promise has become threadbare after the introduction of the security law, which Chinese and Hong Kong authorities insist was necessary for the city's stability.
