Israeli airstrikes kill 23 in Gaza as outcry over aid blockade grows
Israeli airstrikes overnight and into Saturday killed at least 23 Palestinians in Gaza, including three children and their parents whose tent was bombed in Gaza City, health officials said.
The bombardment continued as international warnings grow over Israeli plans to control aid distribution in Gaza as Israel's blockade on the territory of over 2 million people is in its third month.
The U.N. and aid groups have rejected Israel's aid distribution moves, including a plan from a group of American security contractors, ex-military officers and humanitarian aid officials calling itself the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
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Among the 23 bodies brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours were those of the family of five whose tent was struck in Gaza City's Sabra district, Gaza's Health Ministry said.
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Another Israeli strike late Friday hit a warehouse belonging to UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, in the northern area of Jabaliya. Four people were killed, according to the Indonesian Hospital, where bodies were taken.
AP video showed fires burning in the shattered building. The warehouse was empty after being hit and raided multiple times during Israeli ground offensives against Hamas fighters over the past year, said residents including Hamza Mohamed.
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Israel's military said nine soldiers were lightly wounded Friday night by an explosive device while searching Gaza City's Shijaiyah neighborhood. It said they were evacuated to a hospital in Israel.
Israel resumed its bombardment in Gaza on March 18, shattering a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. Ground troops have seized more than half the territory and have been conducting raids and searching parts of northern Gaza and the southernmost city of Rafah. Large parts of both areas have been flattened by months of Israeli operations.
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Under Israel's blockade, charity kitchens are virtually the only source of food left in Gaza, but dozens have shut down in recent days as food supplies run out. Aid groups say more closures are imminent. Israel has said the blockade is meant to pressure Hamas to release remaining hostages and disarm. Rights groups have called the blockade a 'starvation tactic' and a potential war crime.
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Israel accuses Hamas and other militants of siphoning off aid in Gaza, though it hasn't presented evidence for its claims. The U.N. denies significant diversion takes place, saying it monitors distribution.
The 19-month-old war in Gaza is the most devastating ever fought between Israel and Hamas. It has killed more than 52,800 people there, more than half of them women and children, and wounded more than 119,000, according to the Health Ministry. The ministry's count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel says it has killed thousands of militants, without giving evidence.
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped over 250 others. Hamas still holds about 59 hostages, with around a third believed to still be alive.
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Israel approves plan to occupy Gaza indefinitely
Hamas released a video Saturday showing hostages Elkana Bohbot and Yosef-Haim Ohana, who appeared under duress. They were abducted during the Oct. 7 attack from a music festival where over 300 people were killed. Hamas released a video of them a month and half ago and has released several videos of Bohbot alone since then.
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Protesters on Saturday night rallied once more in Tel Aviv to demand a ceasefire that would bring all hostages home.
'Can you grasp this? The Israeli government is about to embark on a military operation that could and will endanger the lives of the hostages,' Michel Illouz, father of hostage Guy Illouz, told the gathering, referring to the plan to vastly expand operations in Gaza.
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CBC
16 hours ago
- CBC
At least 25 Palestinians killed in Israeli gunfire near aid site, local medics say
Israeli gunfire and airstrikes killed at least 60 Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday, most of them near an aid site operated by the U.S- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the centre of the enclave, local health officials said. Medical officials at Shifa and Al-Quds hospitals said at least 25 people were killed and dozens wounded as they approached a food distribution centre near the former Jewish settlement of Netzarim before dawn. Israel's military, which has been at war with Hamas militants since October 2023, said its forces fired warning shots overnight toward a group of suspects as they posed a threat to troops in the area of the Netzarim Corridor. "This is despite warnings that the area is an active combat zone. The IDF is aware of reports regarding individuals injured; the details are under review," it said. Later on Wednesday, health officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip said at least 14 people had been killed by Israeli gunfire as they approached another GHF site in Rafah. The foundation said it was unaware of Wednesday's incidents but added that it was working closely with Israeli authorities to ensure safe passage routes are maintained, and that it was essential for Palestinians to closely follow instructions. "Ultimately, the solution is more aid, which will create more certainty and less urgency among the population," it said by email in response to Reuters questions. "There is not yet enough food to feed everyone in need in Gaza. Our current focus is to feed as many people as is safely possible within the constraints of a highly volatile environment." In a statement, GHF said it distributed 2.5 million meals on Wednesday, the largest single-day delivery since it began operations, bringing to more than 16 million the number of meals provided since its operations started in late May. Gaza's Health Ministry says that since then, 163 Palestinians had been killed and over 1,000 wounded trying to obtain the food boxes. The United Nations has condemned the killings and has refused to supply aid via the foundation, which uses private contractors with Israeli military backup in what they say is a breach of humanitarian standards. Elsewhere in Gaza on Wednesday, its health ministry said at least 11 other people were killed by separate Israeli gunfire and strikes across the coastal enclave. The war erupted 20 months ago after Hamas-led militants took 251 hostages and killed some 1,200 people on Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli authorities say, in what was the country's single deadliest day. Israel's military campaign has since killed nearly 55,000 Palestinians, according to health authorities in Gaza, and flattened much of the densely populated strip, which is home to more than two million people. Most of the population is displaced and malnutrition is widespread. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday there had been "significant progress" in efforts to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza, but that it was "too soon" to raise hopes that a deal would be reached.
21 hours ago
These Gazan families came to Quebec for safety. Now, they face life without health coverage
When Nidal Zaqout arrived in Montreal last September from Gaza, he hoped to have a chance to rebuild his life. But safety didn't mean the struggle was over. He soon realized that he and his family would only receive public health coverage for three months after arrival — despite having fled Israel's deadly attacks on Gazans and their homeland. It's a bad feeling, I'm thinking about everything every day, Zaqout said from the living room of his West Island home, where he lives with his parents, two of his sisters, his wife and his two children. I have a big family, big responsibility. Zaqout fears what might happen if someone in his household becomes ill. His father suffers from severe knee pain and his mother from migraines and issues with her back, shoulder and neck. Without Quebec health insurance (RAMQ), going to a hospital is not an option, and the options are scarce and expensive. Not all the people have money, they cannot cover for the health because the people came from Gaza, said Aya, Zaqout's 15-year-old sister. Everything is destroyed, they don't have nothing. They lost everything. As Zaqout and his sister spoke, their mother served dates and coffee. The family gathered close and gently helped one another tell their story in Arabic, French, and English, attentive to every detail. Zaqout expressed gratitude toward the Canadian and Quebec governments and said he was happy and feels safe here, but wishes he and his family could have access to care. I can't live without a medical card, he said. 'I need health care after the war' Zaqout and his family arrived in Canada as temporary residents through the temporary residency program for Gazans (new window) . Their visas are valid for three years and they initially received three months of health coverage through the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) — after which the federal government says it's up to the provincial government to take over. But Quebec has faced criticism for failing to do so. More than 70 civil society and health-care groups in the province published an open letter in La Presse (new window) last month calling out the province for not providing health-care coverage to Gazans. Quebec remains the only province refusing to insure their health care, the letter stated. According to federal data, 823 Gazans have made it to Canada between October 2023 and May 2025. These families are among the Palestinians affected after Israel's army killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health authorities, and displaced 90 per cent of the enclave's population. That same month, a United Nations report (new window) concluded that Israel is deliberately inflicting conditions calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians as a group, one of the categories of genocidal acts in the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention. Everything got destroyed, my house, my everything, my business, my jobs, said Zaqout, showing a video of his former home in Gaza — a house with elegant architecture and a palm tree that once stood tall beside it. Enlarge image (new window) Jehan Elsayyed, left, a Gazan living in Sherbrooke, Que., with her husband and her daughter, broke her arm after she slipped on ice. Her health coverage expired shortly after and now, she continues to struggle with her recovery. (Submitted by Jehan Elsayyed) Photo: (Submitted by Jehan Elsayyed) Jehan Elsayyed, another Gazan who has been living in Sherbrooke, Que., since December, is all too familiar with Zaqout's loss. She tears up over videoconference as she recalls witnessing an old man forced to strip by an Israeli soldier and her time living in Gaza with 180 people in a single house without water, food or electricity. When she finally made it to Quebec, she slipped on ice and broke her arm. Her health coverage expired shortly after and now, she continues to suffer. I need health care after the war, she said. I don't want my health situation to be worse. Elsayyed is learning French and said she is trying to integrate into society, grateful for the help she's received from Quebecers. But she finds it very frustrating to live without health insurance. I hope that I can have the right to live as a respected person … and to be equal like other immigrants in Quebec, she said. 'We're making them even more vulnerable,' says doctor In the open letter, the 75 organizations pointed out a double standard after Quebec extended Ukrainians' health-care coverage (new window) — initially set to expire in March last year — until March 2028. The same protection has so far been denied to Palestinian families, including children, fleeing a situation described by many experts as genocide, read the letter. Sophie Zhang, a member of Quebec Doctors Against Genocide, was among the physicians who signed it. Our governments do play a role in what's happening to these Gazan families and the reason why they're here in the first place, said Zhang. So I do think we need to take this responsibility and at least give them basic rights like health care. Khadijé Jizi, a Montreal-based genetic counselor and member of the Health Worker Alliance for Palestine, highlighted that Gazan patients suffer from chronic conditions, gynecological and fertility issues and PTSD. These are all things that didn't disappear when they left Gaza. They're still there and they need medical attention, said Jizi. She also warned that without public coverage, Palestinian children won't be supported for potential developmental issues or language delays. These are vulnerable families, so them leaving a country during a genocide and coming to a whole new country … has its set of challenges, said Jizi. When we add not having access to health care, we're making them even more vulnerable. Conflicting explanations from Quebec and Ottawa In response to CBC's request, Quebec's immigration and health ministries issued a joint statement, declaring that provincial health coverage eligibility depends on documents issued by federal immigration authorities related to Gazans' status. The statement noted that the visa granted under the federal government's temporary public policy for Gazans does not include any specific designation, unlike the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel. Instead, the province said it is a general document allowing a foreign national to stay in Canada for a limited period, regardless of origin. The provincial ministries said they've asked the federal government to extend coverage under the temporary public policy to avoid a lapse and allow [Gazans] to regularize their status to qualify for the plan, but they say they have yet to receive a response. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, meanwhile, said public health-care coverage is primarily a provincial/territorial responsibility and that provinces and territories were also encouraged to consider extending access to health. Comparisons between Gaza and other crises, such as in Ukraine, oversimplify complex realities that must be considered, including provincial capacity to support newcomers, the ease of movement out of conflict zones, and the targets set by the 2025–2027 Immigration Levels Plan, the federal ministry wrote in a statement responding to CBC's follow-up questions. Dr. Sophie Zhang is a Montreal-based physician and member of Quebec Doctors Against Genocide. (Submitted by Sophie Zhang) Photo: (Submitted by Sophie Zhang) Zhang described the sentence as shocking and questioned why Ottawa would cite immigration targets in this context. She said she interpreted both governments' statements as attempts to deflect responsibility for an issue that is very easily solvable. Haya Alsakka, an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement in Montreal, described the lack of extended health coverage for Gazans as a policy of racism and discrimination, targeting Palestinian and Arab communities. She noted Quebec very quickly provided health coverage to Ukrainians. How are we supposed to believe that it really is an administrative issue that is barring Quebec from giving these families health-care access? asked Alsakka. Zaqout still has loved ones trapped in Gaza, including one of his sisters, along with her husband and child who remain in a tent. He explained that they were living in a different part of the enclave. When they tried to escape, the road was bombarded by the Israeli military. He also added that they didn't receive visas from the federal government. His family cries every day, longing for news and a chance to reunite. As he watches videos of himself treating Palestinian children inside tents in Gaza, he shares his experience as a nurse. Now, in Montreal, he hopes to put that same care to work for Quebecers. I want to succeed in my life. I want to provide all my experience, all my everything to these people here, said Zaqout. I hope to complete my family here and I hope to have a medical card. Hénia Ould-Hammou (new window) · CBC News
National Observer
a day ago
- National Observer
RFK Jr.'s firing of US immunization committee is worrisome Canadian scientists say
Canadian doctors and scientists say Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s firing of an immunization advisory committee south of the border is worrisome. On Monday, the US health and human services secretary — a longtime anti-vaccine advocate — said he will appoint new members to the scientific group that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about vaccination. Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the University of Saskatchewan, said Tuesday that the move will foster more false anti-vaccine beliefs, not only in the US but also in Canada. "It creates a culture in which anti-vaxx beliefs are more accepted and challenged a lot less. And also it creates an environment where there's an alternative to an evidence-based recommendation framework," she said. Even though Kennedy's new appointments will make vaccine recommendations specific to the United States, any disinformation could also feed vaccine hesitancy among Canadians, Rasmussen said. "We have a lot of the same anti-vaxx sentiment up here. Certainly this will at the very least empower (that)," she said. Rasmussen said current measles outbreaks in both countries show the consequences of disinformation that leads to parents not immunizing their children against preventable diseases. She said Canada could also experience some fallout if the new committee pulls back vaccination recommendations, because manufacturers may cut back on production and that could lead to shortages. "There's a lot of potential for really, really damaging vaccine access throughout the US and potentially around the world because the US market has a big impact on what vaccine manufacturers are actually going to make and manufacture," she said. "There's so many ways that this can end up really badly for vaccination in general. And it really causes me a lot of concern." Rasmussen said the firing of the advisory committee members is just the latest in a series of anti-public health actions Kennedy has taken. "It's a death by a thousand cuts," said Rasmussen, who is American and moved to Canada during the pandemic to work at the University of Saskatchewan's Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization. US President Donald Trump 's administration has already cut billions of dollars in research grants at the National Institutes of Health. In May, the administration cancelled a contract with mRNA vaccine manufacturer Moderna to develop a vaccine against potential pandemic influenza viruses, including H5N1 avian flu. "It just seems that there is a top-down approach that views mRNA vaccines in particular — vaccination in general, but mRNA vaccines in particular — with distrust and is trying to dismantle that particular avenue of medical research," said Dr. Jesse Papenburg, a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at Montreal Children's Hospital. Papenburg, who is a member of Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization but was not speaking on its behalf, said although the Moderna contract cancellation and the firing of the US vaccine advisory committee members are two separate actions, they're both concerning as Canada tries to prepare for potential human-to-human transmission of H5N1. "Both are potentially very dangerous when it comes to America's and the world's ability to respond to emerging infectious diseases for which vaccines could be a useful medical countermeasure," he said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 11, 2025.
