Latest: Australia to recognise a Palestinian state in September
Algeria calls Israel 'enemy of humanity' and seeks UN sanctions
New Gaza operation will be on 'fairly short timetable', says Netanyahu
Hamas accuses Netanyahu of 'series of lies' during Gaza media conference
At least 61,430 Palestinians killed and 153,213 wounded since Gaza war began
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Middle East Eye
an hour ago
- Middle East Eye
Israelis rally for end to Gaza war and release of captives
Israeli police arrested at least 22 protesters on Sunday as nationwide demonstrations and strikes called for an end to the war in Gaza and the release of captives. Demonstrators blocked several roads in Tel Aviv, including the highway connecting the city with Jerusalem. Activists set tyres on fire and caused traffic jams, while protest organisers and the main campaign group representing the families of captives called for a general strike on Sunday. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement that protesters would "shut down the country today [Sunday] with one clear call: Bring back the 50 hostages, end the war". Forty-nine Israeli captives remain in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Their faces were displayed across a large banner unfurled in Tel Aviv's so-called "Hostage Square", a focal point for protests. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Footage from AFP also showed a protest in Beeri, a kibbutz near Gaza that came under fire during the Hamas-led attack in southern Israel in October 2023, which led to the capture of hundreds of Israelis. The demonstrations came days after Israel's security cabinet approved plans to fully occupy Gaza City. Israeli government ministers condemned the demonstrations, saying they played into the hands of Hamas. Demonstrators raise flags during an anti-government protest demanding a deal to release Israelis held in Gaza by Hamas in Tel Aviv, on 17 August 2025 (AFP) Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that public pressure to secure a ceasefire agreement effectively "buries the hostages in tunnels and seeks to push the State of Israel to surrender to its enemies and jeopardise its security and future". Culture Minister Miki Zohar described the blocking of roads and other forms of direct action as a "reward to the enemy". The protests came as Israeli forces continue to pound the Gaza Strip. At least seven Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes and gunfire in Gaza in the last few hours. Four civilians were killed and others wounded when an Israeli air strike hit a tent sheltering displaced people in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. Elsewhere in the south, three Palestinians waiting to collect aid were killed and others wounded by Israeli gunfire in Rafah. Since October 2023, Israeli forces have killed at least 61,897 people in Gaza, most of them women and children. A further 155,660 have been wounded.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
Mediators revive plans for 60-day Gaza truce in final effort to stop Israeli ground assault
Egyptian and Qatari mediators have resurrected plans for a 60-day Gaza ceasefire and the release of 10 hostages, rather than a comprehensive agreement, in a last-minute effort to avert Israel's planned ground assault on Gaza city, sources told The National on Sunday. The plan also calls for the US to guarantee in writing that indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel on the withdrawal of troops from Gaza and a long-term ceasefire will commence during the truce and continue until an agreement is reached. "The Qataris and Egyptians have presented Israel and the United States with the plan and are now waiting for their response," one source said. "Falling back on the old plan for a partial, rather than a comprehensive, deal is designed to head off Israel's assault on Gaza." The sources said the plan provided for the release of 10 hostages, as well as the remains of at least 15 who died in captivity, in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians held in Israeli jails being freed. An estimated 50 hostages are still held by Hamas, with 20 believed to be alive. The latest proposal also includes the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, where dozens have died of starvation or hunger-related diseases. The plan also calls for Israeli troops to move away from populated areas. The sources said there was little hope that Israel would accept the proposed deal. It plans to send troops into Gaza city, where about one million people have sought shelter from the war. Israel's military is on Sunday expected to provide Gaza city residents with tents and other shelter equipment, before forcibly displacing them into area in the south of the enclave. This comes days after Israel said it intended to seize control of Gaza city, a plan that has sparked international criticism. The preparations for the offensive have been made as Israel says its war on Gaza will continue until Hamas is defeated and the group surrenders its weapons. Israel also wants a civilian administration to be put in place, without the involvement of the Palestinian Authority or Hamas. Israel has insisted on retaining an overall security role in Gaza. The sources said Hamas officials and the Egyptian and Qatari mediators have discussed plans for the group's military wing to store their arms under international supervision, rather than surrendering them. In recent days, Gaza city residents have described more frequent air strikes. The enclave's civil defence spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said conditions were deteriorating rapidly, with residents having little to no access to food and water. The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israeli communities in October 2023, killing about 1,200 and taking 240 hostage. Israel's relentless response has killed more than 61,700 Palestinians, Gaza's Health Ministry said. The Israeli campaign ha reduced most of the enclave to rubble, displaced the majority of its population and created a grave humanitarian crisis.
Dubai Eye
2 hours ago
- Dubai Eye
Israel plans Gaza resident relocation
Gaza residents will be provided with tents and other shelter equipment starting from Sunday ahead of relocating them from combat zones to the south of the enclave "to ensure their safety," the Israeli military said on Saturday. This comes days after Israel said it intended to launch a new offensive to seize control of northern Gaza City, the enclave's largest urban centre, in a plan that raised international alarm over the fate of the demolished strip, home to about 2.2 million people. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last Sunday said that before launching the offensive, the civilian population will be evacuated to what he described as "safe zones" from Gaza City, which he called Hamas' last stronghold. The shelter equipment will be transferred via the Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Gaza by the United Nations and other international relief organisations after being inspected by defence ministry personnel, the military said. A spokesperson for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs expressed concern over Israel's plans to relocate people to southern Gaza saying it would only increase suffering. But the U.N. body welcomed Israel's recognition that shelter is a desperate need and that tents and other shelter equipment will be allowed again into Gaza. "The UN and its partners will seize the opportunity this opens," the spokesperson said. The U.N. warned on Thursday that thousands of families already enduring appalling humanitarian conditions could be pushed over the edge if the Gaza City plan moves ahead. Palestinian and United Nations officials have said no place in the enclave is safe, including areas in southern Gaza where Israel has been ordering residents to move to. The military declined to comment when asked whether the shelter equipment was intended for Gaza City's population estimated at around one million people presently, and whether the site to which they will be relocated in southern Gaza would be the area of Rafah, which borders Egypt. Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Saturday that the plans for the new offensive were still being formulated. Israeli forces have already increased operations on the outskirts of Gaza City over the past week. Residents in the neighbourhoods of Zeitoun and Shejaia have reported heavy Israeli aerial and tank fire. Residents there have also reported explosions throughout the day, resulting from Israeli tank shelling against homes in the eastern parts of the neighbourhood. The Israeli military on Friday said that it had begun a new operation in Zeitoun to locate explosives, destroy tunnels and kill militants in the area.
