Latest news with #Houthi
Yomiuri Shimbun
an hour ago
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Four Palestinians Die in Storming of UN Food Warehouse a Day after Gunfire at New Gaza Aid Site
The Associated Press Palestinians storming a U.N. World Food Program warehouse and carry bags of flour in Zawaida, Central Gaza Strip, on Wednesday, May 28, 2025. DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hundreds of Palestinians stormed a United Nations food warehouse Wednesday in Gaza in a desperate attempt to get something to eat, shouting and shoving each other and ripping off pieces of the building to get inside. Four people died in the chaos, hospital officials said. The deaths came a day after a crowd was fired upon while overrunning a new aid-distribution sitein Gaza set up by an Israeli and U.S.-backed foundation, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding 48 others, Gaza's Health Ministry said. The Israeli military, which guards the site from a distance, said it fired only warning shots to control the situation. The foundation said its military contractors guarding the site did not open fire. A Red Cross field hospital said the 48 people wounded suffered gunshot wounds, including women and children. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country killed senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar, the brother of Yahya Sinwar, one of the masterminds of the militant group's Oct. 7, 2023, attack, who was killed by Israeli forces last year. Speaking before parliament, Netanyahu included Mohammed Sinwar in a list of Hamas leaders killed by Israeli forces, apparently confirming his death in a recent airstrike in Gaza. In other developments, Israel carried out airstrikes on the international airport in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, destroying the last plane belonging to the country's flagship airline. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said it was the last plane used by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. It was not immediately clear if anyone was killed or wounded in the strikes, which came after Houthi rebels fired several missiles at Israel in recent days, without causing casualties. The Israeli-backed distribution hub outside Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah was opened Monday by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which has been slated by Israel to take over aid operations. The crowd of Palestinians broke through fences Tuesday around the distribution site where thousands had gathered. An Associated Press journalist heard Israeli tank and gunfire and saw a military helicopter firing flares. The U.N. and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new aid system, saying it will not be able to feed Gaza's 2.3 million people and that it lets Israel use food to control the population. They have also warned of the risk of friction between Israeli troops and people seeking supplies. Four dead as crowd storms warehouse holding U.N. aid Palestinians burst into the U.N.'s World Food Program warehouse Wednesday in central Gaza. Two people were fatally crushed in the crowd, while two others died of gunshot wounds, officials at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said. Scores of aid-seekers could be seen carrying large bags of flour as they fought their way back out into the sunlight through throngs of people pressing to get inside. Each bag of flour weighs around 25 kilograms (55 pounds). A United Nations envoy compared the limited aid being allowed into Gaza to 'a lifeboat after the ship has sunk.' Sigrid Kaag, acting U.N. special coordinator for the Mideast, told the U.N. Security Council that people facing famine in Gaza 'have lost hope.' 'Instead of saying 'goodbye,' Palestinians in Gaza now say, 'See you in heaven,'' Kaag said. The World Food Program said 'humanitarian needs have spiraled out of control' after Israel's long blockade of supplies entering Gaza, which began in early March to pressure Hamas. The Palestinian ambassador to the U.N. broke down as he spoke of the 1,300 children killed and 4,000 wounded since Israel ended the latest ceasefire in March, and of mothers seen 'embracing their motionless bodies, caressing their hair, talking to them, apologizing to them.' 'If this is civilized,' Riyad Mansour said, 'what is barbarism?' Wael Tabsh, a displaced man from the city of Khan Younis, urged world leaders to help end the war. 'How long will this torture last?' he asked. Violence erupted soon after new hub opened Palestinians are desperate for food after nearly three months of Israeli border closures have pushed Gaza to the brink of famine. Israel says it helped establish the new aid mechanism to prevent Hamas from siphoning off supplies, but it has provided no evidence of systematic diversion, and U.N. agencies say they have mechanisms in place to prevent it while delivering aid to all parts of the territory. GHF says it has established four hubs, two of which have begun operating in the now mostly uninhabited Rafah. It said around eight truckloads of aid were distributed at the hubs on Wednesday without incident. About 600 trucks entered Gaza every day during the ceasefire earlier this year. The GHF sites are guarded by private security contractors and have chain-link fences channeling Palestinians into a what resemble military bases surrounded by large sand berms. Israeli forces are stationed nearby in a military zone separating Rafah from the rest of the territory. The U.N. and other aid groups have refused to participate in GHF's system, saying it violates humanitarian principles. They say it can be used by Israel to forcibly displace the population by requiring them to move near the few distribution hubs or else face starvation, a violation of international law. Netanyahu said Tuesday there was only a brief 'loss of control' at the site. He repeated that Israel plans to move Gaza's entire population to a 'sterile zone' at the southern end of the territory while troops fight Hamas elsewhere. Netanyahu has also vowed to facilitate what he refers to as the voluntary emigration of much of Gaza's population to other countries, a plan that Palestinians and many others view as forcible expulsion. Israel says it destroyed the Houthis' last plane The Israeli strikes on the main airport in Yemen destroyed the last plane belonging to the country's flagship carrier, Yemenia, according to the airport. The airline did not say if anyone was wounded. Yemenia had a total of four registered aircraft, according to the plane-tracking website FlightRadar24. Israel destroyed three in a May 6 airstrike on the airport that also riddled the runway with craters. Houthi-backed Yemeni President Mahdi al-Mashat visited the airport Wednesday and said his group 'will not back down' from its support of people in Gaza until the siege ends, according to SABA Yemen News Agency. The Houthis have targeted Israel throughout the war in Gaza in solidarity with Palestinians, raising their profile at home and internationally as the last member of Iran's self-described 'Axis of Resistance' capable of launching regular attacks on Israel. The Houthi missiles have mostly been intercepted, although some have penetrated Israel's missile defense systems, causing casualties and damage. Israel has frequently struck back, especially around the vital Hodeida port. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel in the Oct. 7 attack, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Hamas still holds 58 hostages, around a third of them believed to be alive. Most of the rest were released in ceasefire deals or other agreements. Israeli forces have rescued eight and recovered dozens of bodies. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry says women and children make up most of the dead, but it does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally.
India Today
4 hours ago
- Politics
- India Today
4 Palestinians killed as starving crowds storm UN warehouse in Gaza
Hundreds of Palestinians stormed a United Nations food warehouse in central Gaza on Wednesday, as a dire humanitarian crisis escalated across the territory. Desperate for basic necessities, the crowd pushed and shoved their way into the facility, leading to the deaths of four people—two fatally crushed in the chaos and two reportedly shot, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs surge of desperation came just a day after violence broke out at a newly established aid distribution hub near Rafah. The site, backed by the Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), had seen massive crowds breach security fences. advertisementGaza's Health Ministry reported one person killed and 48 injured, many suffering from gunshot wounds. While the Israeli military claimed only warning shots were fired, eyewitnesses and a Red Cross hospital said the injuries pointed to live ammunition. The UN and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the GHF system, accusing Israel of using food as leverage and warning that forcing Palestinians to relocate to access aid may amount to forced displacement. The aid distribution centers—described as militarized zones with chain-link fencing and guarded by private contractors—have been criticized for lacking safety and the stormed UN World Food Program warehouse, scenes of desperation unfolded as people clawed through crowds with heavy flour sacks. A UN envoy likened the limited food access to a "lifeboat after the ship has sunk," while the Palestinian ambassador to the UN emotionally described the unbearable toll on children and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the death of senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar, killed in a recent airstrike. Netanyahu reaffirmed plans to relocate Gaza's population to a "sterile zone" in the south and promote 'voluntary emigration,' a policy widely seen as forced Israel struck the international airport in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, destroying the last plane used by Houthi rebels, who had recently launched missiles at war began after the Palestinian militant group Hamas killed 1,200 people and abducted 251 in an October 7 attack. In response, Israel's campaign has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, with most of the dead reported to be women and Watch
Qatar Tribune
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Israel air strikes destroy last civilian plane at Yemen's Sanaa airport
Israel said it had launched air strikes on Yemen's main airport in the capital, Sanaa, a day after Yemen's Houthi rebels fired two projectiles towards Israel. The Houthi-affiliated news outlet Al Masirah TV reported on Wednesday that four strikes hit the runway. Khaled al-Shaief, general director of Sanaa International Airport, wrote on X that the strike had completely destroyed the last of the civilian planes that Yemenia Airways was operating from the airport. According to aviation data checked by Al Jazeera, the Yemenia plane was scheduled to take those performing the Muslim Hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. Defence Minister Israel Katz said that the Israeli air force struck Houthi 'terror targets' at the airport and 'destroyed the last aircraft remaining'. 'This is a clear message and a continuation of our policy: Whoever fires at the State of Israel will pay a heavy price,' Katz said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that any harm directed at Israel will meet greater force. The leader of the Houthis, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, said the attack was to pressure the group on their steadfast stance of solidarity in supporting Palestinians suffering under Israeli fire in Gaza. 'No matter the size of Israeli aggression and no matter how often it repeats, it will not affect our people's stance in supporting the Palestinian people. The Israeli enemy remained in a weak position following the cessation of American aggression due to its failure,' he said. 'The Israeli enemy is trying to restore deterrence through this repeated aggression on civilian facilities in our country,' he added. The attack comes a day after the Houthi armed group fired two projectiles towards Israel that were shot down by Israeli air defences. The Houthis later confirmed that they had launched two 'ballistic missiles'. Sanaa airport, the largest in Yemen, came back into service last week after temporary repairs and runway restoration following previous Israeli attacks. (Agencies)
Shafaq News
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Shafaq News
'Hot summer' for Israel: Houthis vow more attacks after Sanaa raid
Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, Yemen's Houthi movement (Ansarallah) warned of a 'hot summer' for Israel following an airstrike on Sanaa International Airport. Houthi political leader Mahdi al-Mashat, who visited the site after the strike, pledged intensified retaliation and reaffirmed support for Palestinians in Gaza. 'We will not retreat or surrender.' Mashat also warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Yemeni missiles would bypass Israeli air defenses. 'Our missiles will reach their targets. Shelters will not protect you,' he asserted, adding that commercial flights to and from Ben Gurion Airport could also be at risk. The airstrike marked Israel's tenth on Yemen since the outbreak of the Gaza war, with previous raids targeting cement plants, energy infrastructure, and ports. However, Israeli media have reported growing domestic criticism over the raids' limited deterrent effect.
MTV Lebanon
8 hours ago
- Politics
- MTV Lebanon
Watch: Israel Strikes Sana'a Airport in Clear Warning
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed that fighter jets from the Israeli Air Force struck targets at Sanaa International Airport, which is controlled by the Houthis. In a statement, Katz said the airstrikes "destroyed the last remaining aircraft used by the Houthis; previous planes had been destroyed in a strike on the airport on May 6." He added, "This is a clear message and a direct continuation of the policy we set: whoever fires at the State of Israel will pay a heavy price." Katz continued, "Targeting ports in Yemen will continue intensively, and Sanaa Airport will be repeatedly destroyed, along with other strategic infrastructure in the region used by the Houthi terrorist organization and its supporters." He clarified, "The Houthis will be under a naval and aerial blockade, as we promised and warned — anyone who harms us will suffer sevenfold damage."
