
Israel to Start Call-Up of 60,000 Reservists for Gaza Offensive
An announcement on the call-up could come as soon as Wednesday, said the official, who wasn't authorized to speak publicly. The move will almost double the number of military personnel in or around Gaza.
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News24
8 minutes ago
- News24
UN chief Antonio Guterres urges Israel ‘to avoid the death and destruction' of Gaza operation
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israel to halt its Gaza war. Israel announced plans to take over Gaza City. US senators asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to press Israel on granting media access to Gaza. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, after Israel announced the first steps of an operation to take over Gaza City. 'It is vital to reach immediately a ceasefire in Gaza,' that was necessary 'to avoid the death and destruction that a military operation against Gaza City would inevitably cause', Guterres said in Japan where he is attending the Tokyo International Conference on African Development. Israel, which has called up tens of thousands of army reservists, is pressing ahead with its plan to seize Gaza's biggest urban centre despite international criticism of an operation likely to force the displacement of many more Palestinians. Israel currently holds about 75% of the Gaza Strip. The war in Gaza began on 7 October 2023, when gunmen led by Hamas attacked southern Israeli communities, killing some 1 200 people, mainly civilians, and taking 251 hostages including children into Gaza, according to Israeli figures. Israel's military offensive on the Gaza Strip has killed at least 60 000 Palestinians, according to enclave's health ministry. Guterres called for the unconditional release of hostages held by Hamas. He also urged Israel to reverse a decision to expand 'illegal' settlement construction in the West Bank. The Israeli settlement plan, which would bisect the occupied West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, was announced last week and received the final go-ahead from a Defence Ministry planning commission on Wednesday. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said the construction would isolate Palestinian communities living in the area and undermine the possibility of a two-state solution. In the US, AFP reported that a group of 17 US Senators sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday calling for the United States to press Israel to grant access and protection to journalists in Gaza. AFP The letter comes one week after an Israeli strike killed a group of Palestinian journalists in the besieged territory. 'The United States must make it clear to Israel that banning and censoring media organisations and targeting or threatening members of the press is unacceptable and must stop,' the Democratic senators said in a statement. The letter to Rubio, a staunch supporter of Israel, said: 'We urge you to press the Israeli government to protect journalists in Gaza and allow international media to access the territory.' Last week, an Israeli strike killed four journalists for Al Jazeera, including Qatari television correspondent Anas al-Sharif, as well as two freelance journalists. The attack spurred an international outcry. Yousef Al Zanoon/Anadolu via Getty Images The letter condemned the attack, writing: 'Absent a compelling explanation of the military objective for this attack, it appears Israel is publicly admitting to targeting and killing journalists who have shown the world the scale of suffering in Gaza, which would be a violation of international law.' Among the signatories were Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine and 13 other Democratic senators, as well as Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a registered independent who caucuses with the Democrats. The Washington Post on Wednesday night also reported that a member of the press office for the US State Department's Bureau of Near East Affairs, Shahed Ghoreishi, was fired after suggesting Washington offer condolences for the journalists killed in Gaza. Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders said in early July that more than 200 journalists had been killed in Gaza since the war began, including numerous Al Jazeera journalists. With Gaza sealed off, many media groups around the world, including AFP, depend on photo, video and text coverage of the conflict provided by local Palestinian reporters.


CNN
34 minutes ago
- CNN
Chinese troops train for massive parade
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Bloomberg
38 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Zelenskiy Rules Out China as One of Postwar Security Guarantors
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy pushed back against Russia's idea to add China as a security guarantor in the event of a ceasefire. 'We don't need guarantors who don't help Ukraine, and didn't help Ukraine at the moment when we really needed it,' Zelenskiy told reporters in Kyiv. 'We need security guarantees only from those countries that are ready to help us.'