logo
Israeli strikes hit school in Gaza

Israeli strikes hit school in Gaza

Observer08-05-2025

GAZA: Israeli air strikes on a school housing conflict-displaced families and close to a crowded market and restaurant in Gaza City killed at least 38 people on Wednesday, local health authorities said. Medics said two strikes targeted the Karama School in Tuffah, a suburb of Gaza City, killing 15. Later in the day, an Israeli strike near a restaurant and market in the city killed at least 23 people, including women and children, medics said.
Footage of the scene near the market showed wounded men being rushed away on the back of pickups and carts. Ambulances sped down shattered streets and a woman in tears carried a baby away from the scene, with two young children beside her. Two Israeli air strikes on another school, housing displaced people in Bureij camp in central Gaza, killed at least 33 people, including women and children, local health authorities said. The Israeli military said it struck "terrorists" operating from a command centre in the compound. — Reuters

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Russia, Ukraine swap first prisoners in large-scale exchange
Russia, Ukraine swap first prisoners in large-scale exchange

Observer

time6 hours ago

  • Observer

Russia, Ukraine swap first prisoners in large-scale exchange

KYIV: Russia and Ukraine on Monday swapped a first group of captured soldiers — part of an agreement reached during peace talks that appeared to be in doubt over the weekend. The deal to exchange prisoners of war and repatriate the bodies of killed fighters was the only concrete agreement reached at the talks, which have failed to lead to a breakthrough towards ending the three-year war. Progress has stalled. Russia has issued tough conditions for halting its attack and has repeatedly rejected calls for an unconditional ceasefire. "Today an exchange began, which will continue in several stages over the coming days," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media. He posted images of soldiers draped in Ukrainian flags, cheering and hugging. "Among those we are bringing back now are the wounded, the severely wounded, and those under the age of 25," he added. Russia's defence ministry also confirmed the swap was part of "agreements reached on June 2 in Istanbul". Neither side said how many prisoners were released. After the talks in Istanbul, both said it would involve more than 1,000 captured soldiers, making it the largest exchange of the three-year war. Police experts work at the site of the Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia. — Reuters The swap itself had appeared in jeopardy over the weekend, when Moscow and Kyiv traded accusations of delaying and thwarting the planned exchange. Zelensky accused Russia on Sunday of playing a "dirty, political game" and of not sticking to the agreed parameters — to free all captured soldiers that are sick, wounded or under the age of 25. Russia said Kyiv was refusing to take back bodies of dead soldiers, 1,200 of which it said were waiting in refrigerated trucks near the border. Pressed by US President Donald Trump to end the conflict, the two sides have opened direct negotiations for the first time in more than three years in search of an agreement. But they appear as far apart as ever from an agreement. In Istanbul on June 2, Russia demanded Ukraine withdraw its forces from areas still under its control, recognise Moscow's annexation of five Ukrainian regions and renounce all Western military support. Kyiv is seeking a full ceasefire and a summit between Zelensky, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump to try to break the impasse. While welcoming POW exchanges, Zelensky said last week said it was "pointless" to hold further talks with the current Russian delegation since they could not agree to a ceasefire. Prisoners of war (POWs) are seen after a swap, at an unknown location in Ukraine. — Reuters Meanwhile fighting on the front lines and in the skies has intensified. Russia said on Sunday its troops had crossed into Ukraine's industrial Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time in its campaign — a potentially key advance given that Moscow has not put forward a territorial claim to that region. And Moscow launched a record 479 drones at Ukraine overnight, Kyiv's air force said on Monday. The Ukrainian mayor of the western city of Rivne, Oleksandr Tretyak, called it "the largest attack" on the region since the start of the war. Russia said it had targeted an airfield near the village of Dubno in the Rivne region. 70 buildings — including private houses and a nursery — were damaged in the attack. It called the attack "one of the retaliatory strikes" for a brazen drone attack by Ukraine on June 1 against Russian military jets stationed at air bases thousands of kilometres behind the front line. Kyiv also claimed responsibility for an attack on a Russian electronics factory overnight, saying it manufactured parts for drones. Russian officials said the site had been forced to temporarily suspend production after a Ukrainian drone attack. Moscow said Monday its strikes are continued retaliation for a bold Ukrainian attack on its bomber planes parked deep inside Russia, including in Siberia, that infuriated the Kremlin. Russia said it had targeted an airfield near the village of Dubno in the Rivne region. "This is one of the retaliatory strikes against terrorist attacks by the Kyiv regime on Russian military airfields," its defence ministry said. — AFP

Türkiye slams Israel for intercepting Gaza-bound aid boat
Türkiye slams Israel for intercepting Gaza-bound aid boat

Observer

time6 hours ago

  • Observer

Türkiye slams Israel for intercepting Gaza-bound aid boat

ISTANBUL: Türkiye slammed Israel for intercepting a Gaza-bound boat carrying activists including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg early on Monday, describing it as a "heinous attack". The Madleen left Italy on June 1 to raise awareness over food shortages in Gaza, which the United Nations has described as the "hungriest place on Earth", with the entire population at risk of famine. "The intervention by Israeli forces on the 'Madleen' ship.. while sailing in international waters is a clear violation of international law," Türkiye said, calling it as a "heinous attack" by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a statement, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said Israeli troops "forcibly intercepted" the vessel in international waters at 0102 GMT as it was approaching the Gaza Strip. Türkiye's foreign ministry said there were Turkish nationals among those on board, with FFC's website indicating there were 12 people from seven countries, including Türkiye. Two of them hold Turkish passports. Gaza's Hamas rulers condemned the move in a statement that said the Madleen was being taken to the Israeli port of Ashdod. A Turkish foreign ministry source said the boat was "expected to reach land in the evening" and that its consular officials had taken "the necessary initiatives to meet them as soon as they disembark from the ship and to ensure their release". "We are also in contact with other countries whose citizens are on board. The families of our citizens are being regularly updated," the source added. The ministry earlier said Israel's "aggressive and lawless attitude will not silence the voices defending human values" and that the international community's "justified reaction to Israel's genocidal policies, which use hunger as a weapon in Gaza and prevent the delivery of humanitarian aid, will continue". The boat's interception came just over 15 years after Israeli commandos staged a botched raid on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish ship carrying activists to Gaza, killing 10 civilians — all of them Turkish nationals. The assault sparked a years-long diplomatic crisis between Türkiye and Israel, which only restored diplomatic ties in 2022 — in a reconciliation which has since been shattered by Israel's war on Gaza's rulers. France on Monday said it would work to ensure the rapid return home of French citizens aboard a boat carrying aid bound for Gaza that was intercepted by Israeli security forces. President Emmanuel Macron has requested that the six French nationals aboard the Madleen "be allowed to return to France as soon as possible", a presidential official said, asking not to be named, while Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that Paris would work "to facilitate their swift return to France". Iran on Monday condemned Israel's interception of a Gaza-bound aid vessel carrying international activists, describing it as an act of piracy. "The assault on this flotilla — since it happened in international waters — is considered a form of piracy under international law," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told a press briefing in Tehran. On Saturday, Israeli forces had killed at least 36 Palestinians, six of them in a shooting near a US-backed aid distribution centre. The Israeli military said that troops had fired "warning shots" at individuals it said were "advancing in a way that endangered the troops". The shooting deaths were the latest reported near the aid centre run by the Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) in the southern district of Rafah, and came after it resumed distributions following a brief suspension in the wake of similar deaths earlier this week. The GHF, officially a private effort with opaque funding, began operations in late May as Israel partially eased a more than two-month-long aid blockade. UN agencies and major aid groups have declined to work with it, citing concerns it serves Israeli military goals. On Saturday, the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said that the overall toll for the Gaza war had reached 54,772, the majority civilians. The UN considers these figures reliable. — AFP

Israeli forces seize Gaza aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg
Israeli forces seize Gaza aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg

Observer

time13 hours ago

  • Observer

Israeli forces seize Gaza aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg

Israeli naval forces boarded and seized a charity vessel that had tried to break a naval blockade of the war-torn Gaza Strip on Monday and the boat with its crew of 12, including activist Greta Thunberg, is now heading to a port in Israel. The British-flagged yacht, Madleen, which is operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition, was aiming to deliver a symbolic amount of aid to Gaza later on Monday and raise international awareness of the humanitarian crisis there. However, the boat was boarded during the night before it could reach shore, the FFC said on its Telegram account. The Israeli Foreign Ministry later confirmed that it was under Israeli control. "The 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. The passengers are expected to return to their home countries," the ministry wrote on X. All passengers were safe and unharmed, the ministry later added. "They were provided with sandwiches and water. The show is over." Among the 12-strong crew are Swedish climate campaigner Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. CREW ARRESTED "The crew of the Freedom Flotilla was arrested by the Israeli army in international waters around 2 a.m.," Hassan posted on X. A photograph showed the crew seated on the boat, all wearing life jackets, with their hands in the air. The yacht is carrying a small shipment of humanitarian aid, including rice and baby formula. The Foreign Ministry said it would be taken to Gaza. "The tiny amount of aid that was on the yacht and not consumed by the 'celebrities' will be transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels," it wrote. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the military on Sunday to prevent the Madleen from reaching Gaza, calling the mission a propaganda effort in support of Hamas. Katz said he had instructed that upon the boat's arrival at Ashdod port, the activists will be shown videos of atrocities committed during the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, which triggered the Gaza war . Hamas condemned the seizure of the boat as "state terrorism" and said it salutes its activists. Israel imposed a naval blockade on the coastal enclave after Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007 to stop weapons from reaching the militant group, which is designated as a terrorist organisation by Israel and the West. The blockade has remained in place through multiple conflicts, including the current war, which began when Hamas-led militants rampaged through southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing more than 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, by Israeli tallies. Israel's retaliatory offensive against Hamas has since killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in Hamas-run Gaza and left its more than 2 million population largely displaced and at risk of famine, according to the United Nations. The United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, has supported the FFC operation and on Sunday, urged other boats to challenge the Gaza blockade. "Madleen's journey may have ended, but the mission isn't over. Every Mediterranean port must send boats with aid & solidarity to Gaza," she wrote on X.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store