Israel restarts ground operations in northern Gaza Strip in renewed campaign
Israel has restarted ground operations in the northern Gaza Strip and killed at least 25 people in airstrikes on the southern city of Khan Younis in what it says is a renewed military campaign aimed at pressuring Hamas into releasing Israeli hostages.
At least 25 people were killed in the attack on Khan Younis early on Friday, the local Nasser hospital told AFP, as the search for survivors continued.
More than 1,250 Palestinians in the besieged territory have been killed in Israeli bombings since 18 March, including at least 100 people on Thursday alone in airstrikes that hit three schools turned shelters. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the targets were Hamas control centres.
According to the UN, 280,000 people have been forced to leave their homes or shelters since Israel decided to abandon a two-month-old ceasefire with Hamas, cutting off aid and fuel on 2 March and resuming large-scale bombing two weeks later.
Ground troops have since reentered the strip's southernmost city of Rafah and the Netzarim corridor that cuts off Gaza City from the rest of the territory. On Friday, the IDF said troops were advancing in Shuja'iya, a northern suburb of Gaza City.
Israel officials vowed this week to seize large swathes of the strip as security zones and establish a new military corridor between Rafah and Khan Younis, exacerbating Palestinian fears of permanent displacement and annexation.
Friday also saw escalations on other fronts in the regional conflagration set in motion by Hamas's October 2023 attack on southern Israel. Israel says 1,200 people, the majority of them civilians, were killed and a further 250 taken captive in the attack; all but 59 have since been released in hostage and detainee swaps. Israel's retaliatory military campaign on Gaza has killed at least 50,600 people, most of them civilians, according to the territory's health ministry.
In Lebanon on Friday, the Israeli military said it had killed Hassan Farhat, a senior Hamas commander, in an airstrike on the southern city of Sidon, a move that threatens to upset the fragile truce signed in November with the Hamas-allied Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
The bombing came after Israel targeted what it said were Hezbollah facilities in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, last week for the first time since the ceasefire went into effect. That attack was launched in response to rocket fire aimed at northern Israel, which neither Hamas nor Hezbollah claimed responsibility for.
Tensions between Israel and the new transitional government in Syria are also rising after a wave of Israeli airstrikes across the country and a deepening Israeli ground incursion in the Daraa border area on Thursday, in which 13 people were killed.
Israel has long targeted Hezbollah and Iranian assets in Syria but has continued its bombing campaign since Islamist-led rebel groups forced the dictator Bashar al-Assad to flee the country in December. It has also seized land in southern Syria and warned that Islamist groups must stay away from Israeli territory.
Hakan Fidan, the foreign minister of Turkey, which backs the new regime in Damascus, on Friday accused Israel of fuelling regional instability.
'Israel is taking out, one by one, all these capabilities that a new state can use against Isis and other terrorist threats,' he said in an interview on the sidelines of a Nato summit in Brussels. 'What Israel is doing in Syria is not only threatening the security of Syria, but also is paving the way for future instability of the region.'
Also on Friday, the Israeli army confirmed troops killed a Palestinian teenager after shooting at a group of boys and young men throwing stones near the occupied West Bank village of Husan the night before. Palestinian officials gave his name as Yusef Zaoul, 17. The IDF did not comment on the deceased's name or age.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
29 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Putin could attack Nato by 2030, alliance boss warns as ‘Europe needs to build its own Golden Dome defence system'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) VLADIMIR Putin could launch an assault on NATO by 2030, an alliance chief has warned. Mark Rutte, NATO's secretary general, has urged Europe to build "its own Golden Dome defence system" to protect countries from Russia's looming threat. 6 The NATO chief warned the end of the war in Ukraine won't stop the Russian threat Credit: AP 6 The alliance boss warned of Russia's threat to the UK and other European countries Credit: Getty 6 Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte spoke about Russia's looming threat at Chatham House Credit: PA The NATO head said that the alliance would need to take a "quantum leap" in building up its defence systems as Putin's war machine is "speeding up, not slowing down." Speaking at the world-leading policy institute, Chatham House, he urged European leaders to increase their air and missile defence capabilities by a staggering 400 per cent. Europe should also be prepared to protect its skies, as Russia's war on Ukraine has shown the despot leader "delivers terror from above". He said: "The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defence. "The fact is, we must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full. "The fact is, danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends." In an urgent plea to leaders, he called for militaries to be armed with thousands more vehicles and tanks, and millions more artillery shells. He also insisted allies double their resources supporting military power including logistics, transport and medical aid. Terrifyingly, Rutte also hinted at a potential triple threat - with Mad Vlad teaming up with despot leaders in China, North Korea and Iran. Russia currently produces in three months what the whole of NATO produces in a year, he said. Russia's ambassador to the UK 'blames Britain' for Ukraine's daring drone attack & warns of 'WWIII risk' China is also modernising and expanding its military, with its battle force expected to increase to 435 ships by 2030. He warned: "Wishful thinking will not keep us safe. We cannot dream away the danger. "Hope is not a strategy. So NATO has to become a stronger, fairer and more lethal alliance." The alliance chief's comments came as he pushed for NATO members to commit to ramping up defence spending at a key summit of the western military alliance later this month. Rutte is urging NATO members to commit to 3.5 percent of GDP on direct military spending by 2032, and an additional 1.5 percent on broader security-related expenditure. The proposal is a compromise deal designed to satisfy US President Donald Trump, who has demanded that allies each spend 5 percent of economic output on defence, up from a current commitment of two percent. Rutte said he "expects" leaders to agree to the proposal at the summit of the 32-country alliance on June 24-25 in The Hague. 6 The Israeli Iron Dome air defence system has protected the state from missile attacks Credit: AP 6 Donald Trump recently unveiled plans to build a Golden Dome over America "It will be a NATO-wide commitment and a defining moment for the alliance," he said in his speech. Russia condemned Rutte's comments before he took to the stage, denouncing NATO as "an instrument of aggression". NATO "is demonstrating itself as an instrument of aggression and confrontation", Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow. This follows Rutte's meeting with the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer - their second Downing Street talk since the Labour leader came into power last year. Starmer's government this year pledged to increase defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, but has not yet set a firm timeline for further hikes. Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada would hit two percent this year. US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said last week the allies were close to an agreement on the split five-percent target. "That combination constitutes a real commitment, and we think every country can step up," he said on Thursday. Space rockets & hypersonic interceptors…Trump unveils half-a-trillion dollar Golden Dome air defence to be ready by 2029 DONALD Trump has unveiled plans for a high-tech "Golden Dome" missile defence system, which the president claims should be operational by the end of his term in office. The futuristic concept announced by Trump would see American weapons put in space for the first time ever. Trump had already signalled his intent to set up a Golden Dome following his return to the White House, calling missile attacks the "most catastrophic threat facing the United States". The idea is modelled on Israel's Iron Dome defence system, which uses radar to detect incoming missiles and calculates which ones pose a threat to populated areas. But the Golden Dome would be an infinitely bigger project, not least because the United States is more than 400 times larger than Israel. During his announcement in the Oval Office yesterday, Trump said his new Golden Dome would be "capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from the other side of the world". NATO members have been scrambling to bolster their defence capabilities since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Trump's return to the White House in January, and question marks over his commitment to European security, has added urgency. Rutte warned: "Danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends. "We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full." He added that if countries cannot commit to 5 percent for defence spending "you could still have the National Health Service, or in other countries, their health systems, the pension system, etc, but you better learn to speak Russian. I mean, that's the consequence". Britain announced plans last week to build up to 12 nuclear-powered attack submarines and six munitions factories to rearm the country in response to what it said were threats from Russia.
Telegraph
34 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Left-wing activists like Greta Thunberg care more about fame than facts
This image will forever be compared with the horror show of the actual kidnap of hostages by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups. There are girls younger than Greta, with bloodied pants, their Achilles tendons cut; a mother clutching her two red-haired children whom we now know are dead; a terrified old lady being abducted. It is said that the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) will force Thunberg and her crew to watch the brutal footage recorded on October 7. I doubt this will make much difference. In 2023, the IDF showed Hamas body cam footage collected after the Nova festival attack to the press in London. Most of the viewers were in tears but certain activist 'journalists' came out saying there was no proof of women being raped as they had not been shown that. Thunberg, like so many of her generation wrapped up in their made-in-China keffiyehs, are not interested in the specifics of this conflict. This is what happens when a young girl with a penchant for protest becomes too feted. She addressed national parliaments and Davos as a climate activist and was interviewed everywhere, so she must have grasped the fact that her youth and passion energised many. Unsurprisingly, then, her symbolic power was soon commodified as she appeared at protest after protest, morphing effortlessly from climate change activism to Palestinian solidarity. Political activism is now algorithmic. Hey, if you liked that cause, then try this one. The 'Left' these days often seems little more than a collection of disparate causes: eco stuff, trans rights and Free Palestine. The contradictions between these beliefs are underplayed as they become bundled together as an omnicause. I first heard that word used in 2023. The omnicause can incorporate everything from animal rights to emptying the jails. Forget the single issues that require specific, often boring campaigning: the omnicause is a moronic vacuum where analysis goes to die. It is a product partly of the horizontalisation of social media. By this, I mean that something such as Black Lives Matter and Defund the Police, which had relevance in America a few years ago, gets picked up here… even though we have a quite different population and methods of policing. Those protesting what is happening in Gaza are not all uninformed, but many are. Younger people recruited from Just Stop Oil (and now presenting as Youth Demand) have stopped soup-throwing in favour of this new pressing cause. But they have not talked about famine in Yemen or the atrocities of Sudan. Interconnectedness has its limits, after all. There may well be links between climate change and war. Many argue that drought was a factor in the unrest that led to the Syrian civil war. The omnicause, though, does not do specifics. It favours symbolic demonstrations that can go viral. These simplistic spectacles of righteousness often backfire. What did Fossil Free Books achieve, for instance? It decided to campaign against companies that had any connection to Israel. The result was that investment firms such as Baillie Gifford stopped funding book festivals. How this helped either the environment or indeed the Palestinian cause is something of a mystery. Thunberg's stunt has been similarly self-aggrandising and vacuous. Watching footage of this climate activist and her mates all chucking their expensive phones into the sea as they were about to be taken by the Israelis showed that, of course, when the chips were down, environmental concerns went out of the window. The omnicause does not require logic, consistency or even coherence. It is closer to acting than activism. It depends on melodrama and a narrative of provocative images. Thunberg may be brave and have been prepared to sacrifice herself – though for what, exactly, I am not sure. But now we have seen the pictures, I am afraid that what she has sacrificed has been her integrity. The omnicause burns itself out in the end because it has no actual strategy. It simply signifies tribal loyalty. It gobbles everything up and spits out its participants, who simply move on to the next 'wrong' thing. You might think that, for Thunberg, her ship has sailed. But that does not mean she won't clamber aboard the next one that hoves into view.
Glasgow Times
an hour ago
- Glasgow Times
Stop the War protest outside Glasgow's Buchanan Galleries
The demonstration, held on the Buchanan steps outside Buchanan Galleries, was organised by Glasgow Stop the War as an 'emergency protest' in response to the interception of a yacht carrying aid to Gaza. The group began to gather at around 5.30pm today, June 9. The vessel, described by organisers as a 'symbolic' mission, was reportedly attempting to break the Israeli naval blockade and deliver humanitarian supplies. RIGHT NOW: Emergency demonstration in Glasgow Release the Madleen crew immediately, end Israel's genocide now! — Glasgow Stop the War (@GlasgowStopWar) June 9, 2025 (Image: Newsquest) READ MORE: Activists surround police van as man 'detained' at pro-Palestine protest It was carrying 12 pro-Palestinian activists from around the world, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. In a video recorded before the yacht's interception, activists said: 'If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped." The Glasgow protest was held in solidarity with the detained activists, with organisers urging the public to 'defend the flotilla.' Footage from the scene showed demonstrators chanting 'Stop the bombing' and holding signs that read 'Cut war, not welfare.' Emergency demo 🚨 Defend the Flotilla Buchanan steps tonight Monday 9 June 5.30pm 🇵🇸 — Glasgow Stop the War (@GlasgowStopWar) June 9, 2025 (Image: Newsquest) The protest takes place amid intensifying global scrutiny of Israel's military operations in Gaza, which began nearly 20 months ago following the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, in which approximately 1200 people were killed and 251 hostages taken. In the months since, the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza reports that more than 54,880 people have been killed during the ongoing Israeli campaign. READ MORE: Pro-Palestine protesters target Glasgow firm linked with supplying weapons to Israel The activists aboard the intercepted yacht included nationals from Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey. Israel's foreign ministry confirmed the vessel had been seized and was 'safely making its way to the shores of Israel.' The Glasgow protest is the latest in a series of demonstrations held across the UK and beyond, as calls grow louder for an immediate ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza.
