Latest news with #IsraelGaza
The National
18 hours ago
- General
- The National
At least 24 killed and 200 injured near Gaza aid distribution centre in Rafah
Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza At least 24 Palestinians were killed waiting for aid at a distribution centre, after Israeli troops opened fire in Gaza's southern city of Rafah early on Tuesday morning, the enclave's Health Ministry said. "Israeli artillery and aircraft fired shells and gunfire at displaced people as they waited for aid near a humanitarian aid distribution point," the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported, adding that 200 others were injured. This comes after 31 people were killed on Sunday in a similar incident near a distribution centre run by the controversial US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Another three were killed on Monday. The Israeli military said on social media it fired shots at individuals about half a kilometre from the distribution complex after "identifying a number of suspects moving towards forces". "Reports of casualties are known, details of the incident are under investigation," it added. The military said it does "not prevent Gaza residents from reaching the aid distribution complexes." Israel's army first said it was unaware of the casualties caused on Sunday, then said its troops did not fire at civilians "near or within" the food bank in the south of Gaza, adding that "reports to this effect are false". The UN has criticised the aid distribution plan, which leaves the usual co-ordinators such as Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA out of the loop. Little is known about the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, and aid groups say it endangers rather than helps civilians by delivering food through narrow, militarised corridors.
The National
26-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Far-right Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visits Al Aqsa Mosque compound on 'Jerusalem Day'
Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Monday visited the Al Aqsa Mosque compound as Israel held its annual celebrations marking the capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. Mr Ben-Gvir's visit to the site came amid an escalation in Israel's war against Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups in Gaza, where nearly 54,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since October 2023. Claiming he was at the site to mark Jerusalem Day, Mr Ben Gvir said he "prayed for victory in the war, for the return of all our captives and for the success of the newly appointed Shin Bet chief, Maj Gen David Zini". His words came in a post on X, accompanied by a video of himself with Al Aqsa Mosque in the background. "Happy Jerusalem Day!" he added. Photos circulated on Palestinian social media channels showed a smiling Mr Ben-Gvir flanked by religious Jewish families, with some people draped in Israel flags, and a large security detail. Any Israeli political or non-Muslim religious practice at Al Aqsa Mosque compound is deeply inflammatory for Muslims, who consider the site the third holiest in Islam. The Department of Islamic Endowments in Jerusalem said 1,427 Israeli settlers stormed Al Aqsa in the morning in groups, under the protection and escort of national police, with more expected in the afternoon. Extremist Israelis attacked Palestinian residents, activists and journalists at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City ahead of the provocative flag march through the Muslim Quarter for Jerusalem Day. The National saw elderly women being pushed over, men being hit as they protected women and children, racist graffiti being scrawled on shops and pictures of Al Aqsa Mosque being torn down. There were chants of 'death to Mohammed'. The area inside Damascus Gate, the busiest commercial area in the Old City, was entirely closed down. Businesses there have been targeted in previous years. Jordan, the custodian of Al Aqsa Mosque compound, condemned Mr Ben-Gvir's visit. "The practices of this extremist minister and his continued incursions into the blessed Al Aqsa Mosque ... do not negate the fact that East Jerusalem is an occupied city over which Israel has no sovereignty," the Jordanian Foreign Ministry said. The complex is administered by an Islamic trust funded and controlled by Jordan in a security arrangement with Israel after the two nation signed the peace treaty in 1994. Under the arrangement, Jews are not allowed to pray in the compound but can do so at the nearby Western Wall. Hamas, which triggered the war in Gaza with an attack on Israel in which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken hostage, condemned the move, calling it "a blatant violation of the sanctity and status of Al Aqsa Mosque in the eyes of the entire Islamic nation". It also "represents a desperate attempt by the occupation to implement the complete Judaisation of the mosque", Hamas said.
The National
26-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Leaked plan suggests Israel aims to control 75% of Gaza in two months
Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza Israel intends to control three quarters of Gaza's territory within two months, according to a plan shared with Israeli media which suggest Palestinians could be relocated to three small zones in the strip. About 40 per cent of Gaza is occupied, according to Israeli estimates, but the military expects that to rise to 75 per cent within two months, under the plan reported by outlets including the Times of Israel and the Jerusalem Post. Those reports say civilians would be divided between three areas in northern, central and southern Gaza. One would be in Gaza City, a second in Deir Al Balah and the third in Al Mawasi in the south, where many evicted Gazans have already been forced to relocate to a "safe zone" that has come under repeated attacks. The plan is described as aiming to push Hamas into a state of collapse and force it to negotiate on Israeli terms. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last week that 20 hostages held by the militant group were "certainly alive". Mr Netanyahu says Israel has eliminated dozens of Hamas leaders, including Yahya Sinwar and his brother Mohammed Sinwar. The leaked plan would be Israel's latest shift towards seeking control of large areas of Gaza, in addition to fighting Hamas militants. Israel's military said in a statement that chief of staff Lt Gen Eyal Zamir told troops on a visit to Khan Younis, in Gaza, on Sunday that "this is not an endless war" and that Hamas has lost most of its assets, including its command and control. "We will deploy every tool at our disposal to bring the hostages home, dismantle Hamas and dismantle its rule," Lt Gen Zamir was quoted as saying. Israel resumed its offensive in Gaza in mid-March after a two-month ceasefire and set about seizing large areas of territory. Mr Netanyahu previously expressed a desire to relocate Gazans to other countries. Israel also hopes to take control of aid distribution in the strip, where it blocked humanitarian deliveries for 11 weeks before allowing modest supplies to resume last week. Cindy McCain, the executive director of the UN World Food Programme, on Sunday denied Israel's claims that Hamas is looting food lorries. "These people are desperate," she told CBS News. "They see a World Food Programme truck coming in and they run for it. This doesn't have anything to do with Hamas or any kind of organised crime or anything. This has simply to do with the fact these people are starving to death.'
The National
26-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Israeli air strike on Gaza school kills at least 40, mostly women and children
Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza At least 40 people were killed in an Israeli air strike on a Gaza city school at dawn on Monday, medics said. Graphic footage, purportedly filmed by rescuers, showed children's bodies being pulled from the rubble and paramedics desperately searching for survivors. One video showed a child trying to find their way out of the burning structure. 'Civil defence crews in Gaza city retrieved martyrs and injured from inside Fahmi Al Jarjawi School in Al Daraj neighbourhood, after the Israeli occupation forces targeted it at dawn today,' Gaza's civil defence agency said. According to local health authorities, the strike on the school-turned-shelter killed at least 40 people, mostly women and children. It also wounded more than 55 people, said Fahmy Awad, head of emergency services. He said the school was hit three times while people slept, setting their belongings ablaze. The Israeli army said it attacked a militant command and control centre inside the school that Hamas and Islamic Jihad used to gather intelligence for attacks. Israel's war in Gaza has drawn increasing condemnation from the international community in recent days as an aid blockade lasting almost three months has worsened shortages of food, water, fuel and medicine in the Palestinian territory. The strike came after leaked documents showed Israel intends to control three quarters of Gaza's territory within two months, which suggests Palestinians could be relocated to three small zones in the enclave. About 40 per cent of Gaza is occupied, according to Israeli estimates, but the military expects that to rise to 75 per cent within two months, under the plans reported by outlets including The Times of Israel and The Jerusalem Post. Those reports say civilians would be divided between three areas in northern, central and southern Gaza. One would be in Gaza city, a second in Deir Al Balah, and the third in Al Mawasi in the south, where many evicted Gazans have already been forced to relocate to a 'safe zone' that has come under repeated attacks. On Sunday, Spain's Foreign Minister called for sanctions on Israel as European and Arab nations gathered in Madrid. The talks aimed to stop Israel's 'inhumane' and 'senseless' war in Gaza, Jose Manuel Albares told reporters before the meeting opened. Humanitarian aid must enter Gaza 'massively, without conditions and without limits, and not controlled by Israel', he added, describing the territory as humanity's 'open wound'. Spain also urged partners to impose an arms embargo on Israel and 'not rule out any' individual sanctions against those 'who want to ruin the two-state solution forever', he added. The new condemnation came after Gaza rescuers said 22 people were killed and dozens more wounded in Israeli air strikes across the Palestinian territory on Sunday. Civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said seven people were killed in a strike on a home in Jabalia, in the north. Some people were still under the debris, he added, as 'the civil defence does not have search equipment or heavy equipment to lift the rubble to rescue the wounded and recover the martyrs'. Two more people, including a woman who was seven months pregnant, were killed in an attack targeting tents sheltering displaced people around Nuseirat in central Gaza, he said, adding that doctors were unable to save the unborn child. Two Red Cross workers were killed in a strike on their home in Khan Younis, the ICRC said. The strike was carried out on Saturday, the ICRC added, without saying who staged the attack. Israel has acknowledged that it carried out strikes in Khan Younis on Saturday. 'Their killing points to the intolerable civilians death toll in Gaza,' the ICRC said. 'The ICRC reiterates its urgent call for a ceasefire and for the respect and protection of civilians, including medical, humanitarian, relief and civil defence personnel.'
The National
26-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Israeli air strike on Gaza school kills at least 13
Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza An Israeli air strike at dawn on Monday killed 13 people at a Gaza city school, according to medics, as Israel presses ahead with its war. "Civil defence crews in Gaza city retrieved 13 martyrs and 21 injured from inside Fahmi Al-Jarjawi School in the Al Daraj neighbourhood, after the Israeli occupation forces targeted it at dawn today," Gaza's civil defence agency said. Israel's war in Gaza against Hamas drew condemnation from the international community as an aid blockade lasting almost three months has worsened shortages of food, water, fuel and medicine in the Palestinian territory. The strike came after leaked documents showed Israel intends to control three-quarters of Gaza's territory within two months, which suggests Palestinians could be relocated to three small zones in the strip. About 40 per cent of Gaza is occupied, according to Israeli estimates, but the military expects that to rise to 75 per cent within two months, under the plans reported by outlets including the Times of Israel and the Jerusalem Post. Those reports say civilians would be divided between three areas in northern, central and southern Gaza. One would be in Gaza city, a second in Deir Al Balah, and the third in Al Mawasi in the south, where many evicted Gazans have already been forced to relocate to a "safe zone" that has come under repeated attacks. On Sunday, Spain's foreign minister called for sanctions on Israel as European and Arab nations gathered in Madrid. The talks aimed to stop Israel's "inhumane" and "senseless" war in Gaza, Jose Manuel Albares told reporters before the meeting opened. Humanitarian aid must enter Gaza "massively, without conditions and without limits, and not controlled by Israel", he added, describing the territory as humanity's "open wound". Spain also urged partners to impose an arms embargo on Israel and "not rule out any" individual sanctions against those "who want to ruin the two-state solution forever", he added. The new condemnation came after Gaza rescuers said 22 people were killed and dozens more wounded in Israeli air strikes across the Palestinian territory on Sunday. Civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said seven people were killed in a strike on a home in Jabalia, in the north. Some people were still under the debris, he added, as "the civil defence does not have search equipment or heavy equipment to lift the rubble to rescue the wounded and recover the martyrs". Two more people, including a woman who was seven months pregnant, were killed in an attack targeting tents sheltering displaced people around Nuseirat in central Gaza, he said, adding that doctors were unable to save the unborn child.
