Gaza civil defence carries out 45 operations in a day

Express Tribune

5 days ago

Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike where Al Jazeera says its journalists Anas Al Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh and three photojournalists were killed, in Gaza City, August 11, 2025. REUTERS
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Gaza Civil Defence conducts 45 operations in 24 hours including two firefighting missions, eight rescues, 24 ambulance calls and 11 other tasks.
According to sources from Al Jazeera, operations included transporting a civil defence officer injured in a car accident to al-Shifa Hospital, evacuating several injured civilians from areas in Beit Lahiya and Gaza City, and assisting gunshot victims.
Members of the Palestinian Civil Defence work at the site of an Israeli strike in Gaza City [Reuters]
In Gaza City, crews removed hazards from multiple damaged buildings, retrieved the bodies of three people and evacuated three wounded near the port, and responded to air strikes in the Sabra neighbourhood.
In the central governorate, firefighters extinguished a blaze in an apartment in al-Sawarha, while ambulances transported several patients from homes, schools and refugee camps to hospitals.
In Khan Younis, teams recovered five bodies from areas hit in air strikes, retrieved another body from Salah Shehadeh Street, and transported patients to Nasser Hospital. Also, in Rafah, crews evacuated eight wounded individuals from a strike on displaced people's tents in the Zourob area, towed a stranded water truck and responded to other medical emergencies.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas says Israel's war in Gaza is growing 'more dangerous by the hour' and emphasises that conflict is not the solution.
The war in Gaza grows more dangerous by the hour.
EU priorities remain humanitarian support, including access for NGOs, with an immediate ceasefire and release of remaining hostages.
If a military solution was possible, the war would already be over. pic.twitter.com/hRDukCT4Uu — Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) August 11, 2025
Global protests, UN agencies condemn killing of Gaza journalists
The European Union has condemned Israel's killing of five Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza, Kallas says.
'The EU condemns the killing of five Al Jazeera journalists in an [Israeli military] air strike outside al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, including the Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif,' she stated after EU foreign ministers discussed the war in virtual talks.
Kallas said that while the EU noted Israel's allegations labelling al-Sharif as belonging to a terrorist cell, 'there is a need in these cases to provide clear evidence, in respect of the rule of law, to avoid targeting journalists.'
Senior political analyst Marwan Bishara said Israel's latest killings of journalists in Gaza add to a 'long list of criminality'.
'We at Al Jazeera do not want to be the story; we are forced to be the story because of the criminality of the Israeli government,' he said.
Bishara described Israeli claims that al-Sharif was a Hamas member as lies, adding that several other journalists killed alongside him had not even been accused of such links.
'Why assassinate him when he is among his colleagues? How many more journalists is it acceptable to kill as collateral damage?' he asked, calling the act 'particularly psychopathic'.
Bishara said al-Sharif was part of the fabric of Jabalia refugee camp, whose residents have sacrificed their lives for decades. He claimed the timing of the killings was no coincidence, as Netanyahu faced mounting international pressure while planning to seize Gaza City.
Read: Anas al-Sharif, four more Al Jazeera journalists killed in Gaza
Activists organised demonstrations and vigils in several European capitals to condemn Israel's assassination of journalists in Gaza.
In Oslo, Norway, a march ended with a vigil in front of the Norwegian Parliament, with protesters carrying pictures of dozens of killed journalists. One journalist set fire to his international press card in protest.
In Stockholm, Sweden, demonstrators raised Palestinian flags and carried banners denouncing the silencing of journalists.
In the United Kingdom, protesters gathered outside the BBC headquarters to denounce the silence on the genocide in Gaza and the targeting of journalists.
Al Jazeera staff members gather at the network's studios, to remember their colleagues Anas Al Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and another colleague, who were killed in Gaza City by an Israeli strike, in Doha, Qatar on August 11, 2025. — Reuters
Israel rejects Australia's recognition of Palestine
The world is not blind, and more countries have begun recognising Palestine.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he made the announcement partly due to Israel's decision to 'double down on its military solution without a political solution being advanced or forwarded by the Netanyahu government'.
Australia's Albanese says Netanyahu 'in denial' over suffering in Gaza | Reuters
That included Israel's recent plan 'to go in and to occupy Gaza City', Albanese said.
The foreign ministries of Qatar and Saudi Arabia welcomed the Australian move, as well as New Zealand's announcement that it was considering taking a similar step.
In a statement, Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the announcements a 'positive step' aligned with global support for Palestinian rights, 'enabling them to exercise their right to self-determination and establish their independent state along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital'.
#Riyadh | Deputy Minister for Political Affairs, Ambassador Dr. Saud Al-Sati, received German Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Mr. Michael Kindsgrab. 🇸🇦🇩🇪
They discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations to serve the two countries' aspirations. pic.twitter.com/c2vjeuZUTF — Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) August 11, 2025
Saudi Arabia said the 'current stage requires peace-loving countries to recognise the State of Palestine and support efforts to end the protracted war, particularly in light of the ongoing Israeli violations of international law'.
UNHCR urges action against Gaza killings
Thameen Al-Kheetan, spokesperson for the UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), said Israel's killing of journalists in Gaza was 'a clear breach of international humanitarian law' and constituted a 'war crime'.
'Any condemnations by member states today need to be followed by action,' Al-Kheetan told Al Jazeera.
Countries with 'leverage' must pressure Israel to stop its war on Gaza, he said.
'It is the responsibility of the international community to do all that it can to stop this war,' he added.
'The apparent targeting of Palestinian journalists in Gaza, when combined with the fact that Israel is denying access to foreign journalists, appears to indicate a deliberate attempt by Israel to limit the flow of information from Gaza,' Al-Kheetan said.
He described the targeted killing near the entrance to al-Shifa Hospital as a 'catastrophe'.
Read More: Thousands rally in Tel Aviv demanding end to Gaza war
Disarmament conditions
A Palestinian official with knowledge of the ceasefire talks said Hamas was prepared to return to the negotiating table, and the leaders who are visiting Cairo on Tuesday would reaffirm that stance.
"Hamas believes negotiation is the only way to end the war and is open to discuss any ideas that would secure an end to the war," the official, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters.
Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News television said the Hamas delegates have arrived in Egypt "for consultations over ceasefire talks."
However, the gaps between the sides appear to remain wide on key issues, including the extent of any Israeli military withdrawal and demands for Hamas to disarm.
A Hamas official told Reuters on Tuesday, the group was ready to relinquish Gaza governance on behalf of a non-partisan committee, but it wouldn't drop its arms before a Palestinian state is established.
Netanyahu, whose far-right ultranationalist coalition allies want an outright Israeli takeover and re-settlement of Gaza, has vowed the war will not end until Hamas is eradicated.
Israel's war on Gaza
The war, now in its 21st month, has killed more than 61,499 Palestinians and wounded 153,575, according to Gazan health authorities. Most of the victims are reported to be women and children.
A mourner attends the funeral of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes, according to medics, at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City August 12, 2025. PHOTO: REUTERS
Last November, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over its conduct in Gaza.