Latest news with #IsraeliDefenceForces
Metro
19 hours ago
- Health
- Metro
These pictures show the scale of 'mass starvation' in Gaza
The situation in Gaza is worsening by the hour, prompting more than 100 international aid organisations to warn of targeted 'mass starvation'. Photos of starving Palestinians, some of them infants, have emerged from Gaza in the past weeks, sparking public outcry for intervention in the conflict, which is about to enter its third year. Israel has denied any responsibility for what experts have deemed a famine, despite controlling the flow of all aid into the enclave. The UN has documented dozens of deaths from malnutrition this week, citing others who collapsed in the streets while trying to reach food. 'With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organisations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes,' they said. The desperation for food has led to crowding at the few aid locations in Gaza. 73 people were killed by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) while trying to reach aid. The UN World Food Programme said 25 trucks with aid entered for 'starving communities' when it encountered massive crowds that came under gunfire. Ehab Al-Zei, who had been waiting to get flour from the aid station, said: 'Suddenly, tanks surrounded us and trapped us as gunshots and strikes rained down. We were trapped for around two hours. 'I will never go back again. Let us die of hunger, it's better.' Israel denies deliberately targeting civilians and aid staff as part of its war with Hamas and has shifted blame onto UN agencies for 'failing to deliver food it has allowed in'. One-year-old Muhammad Zakariya Ayyoub al-Matouq in Gaza City is facing death after dropping from 9 to 6 kilograms. The UN Secretary General said that hunger and displacement are at 'record levels' in Gaza. 'Diplomacy may not have always succeeded in preventing conflicts, violence and instability, but it still holds the power to stop them.' And there are new fears after Israel's military issued evacuation orders for areas of central Gaza, where many international organisations attempting to distribute aid are located. Doctors have reported record rates of acute malnutrition, especially among children and the elderly. 'Illnesses like acute watery diarrhoea are spreading, markets are empty, waste is piling up, and adults are collapsing on the streets from hunger and dehydration,' the joint statement from 109 humanitarian organisations warned. More Trending 'An aid worker providing psychosocial support spoke of the devastating impact on children: 'Children tell their parents they want to go to heaven, because at least heaven has food.' 'Children starve while waiting for promises that never arrive. It is not just physical torment, but psychological. Survival is dangled like a mirage. The humanitarian system cannot run on false promises. 'Humanitarians cannot operate on shifting timelines or wait for political commitments that fail to deliver access.' They also recorded the IDF murdering more than 1,050 Palestinians at aid points since May 27. The IDF have maintained they only fired 'warning shots'. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: I've heard enough words – I want more Government action on Israel-Palestine MORE: Decomposing bodies pile up on streets after more than 1,000 killed in Syria MORE: Opera cast member unfurls Palestine flag during curtain call on London stage
Time of India
a day ago
- Politics
- Time of India
IDF Caught Off Guard By Hamas Bomb In Gaza; Sudden Explosion Hits 3 Israeli Troops
The Israeli Defence Forces announced that three more soldiers have been injured in clashes in Gaza on Tuesday. They claim that a platoon commander, two combat engineers, and a soldier were hit by an explosive device during operations in Rafah. Meanwhile, Hamas's Al-Qassam Brigades issued two separate statements detailing operations in Gaza. In one attack, they claim to have blown up an Israeli troop carrier in Deir al-Balah, while in the second attack an Israeli command and control center in Rafah was reportedly hit. Watch for more details. Read More
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Health
- Telegraph
WHO accuses Israel of strip-searching aid workers and striking staff homes
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has accused the Israeli military of strip-searching and detaining aid workers during attacks on staff housing and a warehouse in Deir al-Balah in Gaza. Three Israeli Defence Forces air strikes reportedly targeted the homes of WHO staff and their families on Monday, resulting in a fire and extensive damage. In a statement posted on X, the WHO said: 'Israeli military entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot toward Al-Mawasi amid active conflict. 'Male staff and family members were handcuffed, stripped, interrogated on the spot, and screened at gunpoint. Two WHO staff and two family members were detained. Three were later released, while one staff member remains in detention. 'WHO demands continuous protection of its staff and the immediate release of the remaining detained staff member.' Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director General, said the strikes would further hinder attempts to support hospitals and doctors in the war-torn region at a time they are 'already critically short on medicines, fuel, and equipment'. 'As the lead agency for health, compromising WHO's operations is crippling the entire health response in Gaza,' Dr Tedros said. WHO operations compromised following attacks on warehouse and facility sheltering staff and families in Gaza WHO condemns in the strongest terms the attacks on a building housing WHO staff in Deir al Balah, in the middle area of Gaza, the mistreatment of those sheltering there,… — World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) July 21, 2025 Israel launched an offensive into southern and eastern districts of Deir al-Balah for the first time on Monday, an area the IDF suspects hostages may be held. Tank shelling in the area struck houses and mosques, killing at least three Palestinians and wounding several others, local medics said. Earlier in the day, the IDF had ordered Palestinians to evacuate Deir al-Balah – an area where many of the displaced had sought refuge as it is one of the few territories where Israel has not conducted major ground operations. Dr Tedros said on X that a ceasefire in Gaza 'in not just necessary, it is overdue'. 'With the main warehouse non-functional and the majority of medical supplies in Gaza depleted, WHO is severely constrained in adequately supporting hospitals, emergency medical teams and health partners, already critically short on medicines, fuel, and equipment,' he said. 'WHO urgently calls on member states to help ensure a sustained and regular flow of medical supplies into Gaza.' . @WHO 's staff residence in Deir al Balah, #Gaza, was attacked three times today as well as its main warehouse. Israeli military entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot toward Al-Mawasi amid active conflict. Male staff and family members were… — Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) July 21, 2025 Dr Tedros's renewed calls for a ceasefire come as the British government signed a joint statement with 28 international partners who have warned that the war must end as the suffering of civilians in Gaza had 'reached new depths'. The statement, also signed by France, Canada and Australia, condemned the 'drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food'. It criticised the Israeli government for its denial of 'essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population' and said it was 'horrifying' that more than 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid. On Sunday, a day before the statement was released, at least 85 Palestinians were killed seeking aid – the highest death toll in 21 months inflicted by the Israeli military. The UN food agency, the World Food Programme, said the majority of those killed had gathered near the border fence with Israel in the hope of getting flour from a UN aid convoy when they were fired on by Israeli tanks. Last week, The Telegraph spoke to Professor Nick Maynard, a top Oxford surgeon currently working in Gaza, who said that snipers were deliberately targeting 'certain body parts on different days, such as the head, legs or genitals' near US-Israeli run aid distribution points. He added that he was seeing 'unprecedented levels' of severe malnutrition. 'The malnutrition I'm seeing here is indescribably bad. It's much, much worse now than a year ago.' Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private organisation backed by Israel and the United States, currently limits food distribution to four fixed sites in Gaza. Israel and the US have been criticised over near-daily shootings near the distribution sites, which have killed 875 Palestinians seeking food since May, according to the UN human rights office. In July, more than 170 NGOs called for the GHF food aid distribution scheme to be dismantled over concerns it is putting civilians at risk of death and injury. Israel's foreign ministry said the statement signed by Britain and its international partners was 'disconnected from reality'. 'The statement fails to focus the pressure on Hamas and fails to recognise Hamas's role and responsibility for the situation,' the Israeli statement said. The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, called the statement 'disgusting' and said blaming Israel was 'irrational' because Hamas rejects every proposal to end the war.
Hans India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
IDF destroys Houthi regime's terror infrastructure in Yemen's Port Hodeidah
Jerusalem: The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) on Monday claimed that it attacked and destroyed the military infrastructure of the Houthi regime in Yemen's port of Hodeidah. Taking to X, the IDF said, "Among the infrastructure targetted: engineering tools used to restore the port's infrastructure, fuel tanks, and vessels used for military activities and to exert force against the State of Israel and ships in the maritime area near the port, as well as additional terror infrastructure used by the Houthi terror regime". The Hodeidah port has been used by the Houthi regime for 'military' purposes, due to which it has had to face several attacks in the past. Along with carrying out terror operations against Israel as well as its allies, the port was also used to transfer weapons from the Iranian regime, the IDF stated. The IDF claimed to have pinned down a number of attempts to rebuild the terror infrastructure at the port. 'The IDF identified ongoing activity and attempts to restore terror infrastructure in the port by the Houthi terror regime's forces, and therefore, the components used to advance this activity were attacked,' the statement mentioned. According to the IDF, the Houthi terror regime has, time and again, exploited the maritime region to conduct terror activities as well as exerted pressure on commercial, passing ships in the global shipping space. The targets that have been attacked, in and near the port, are allegedly very similar to the Houthi terror regime's military use of the civilian infrastructure, for the purpose of spreading terror. The IDF has also stated that it will continue to strike out any threats against Israel, including the Houthi terror regime. "The IDF will act with force against the repeated attacks by the Houthi terror regime against the citizens of the State of Israel and is determined to continue striking with force any threat to the State of Israel, in any area where it is required," it said.
Leader Live
3 days ago
- Politics
- Leader Live
John Swinney demands ‘urgent international action' after aid convoy attack
The Israeli Defence Forces are said to have fired what it described as 'warning shots' at crowds who gathered around aid trucks bringing emergency supplies. The Scottish First Minister insisted: 'Reports that those seeking what little aid is permitted to enter Gaza face violence and death at the hands of the Israeli government demands urgent international action.' This statement @WFP is unbearable to read. The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow. — John Swinney (@JohnSwinney) July 21, 2025 His comments came as the UN World Food Programme told how its 25-truck convoy 'carrying vital food assisted' for 'starving communities in northern Gaza' had come 'under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire'. In a statement after the incident on Sunday July 20, it said: 'We are deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives.' Mr Swinney said that that was 'unbearable to read'. He insisted: 'The international community must require the Israeli Government to stop these attacks and there must be a ceasefire now to allow humanitarian aid to flow.' The First Minister made the demands as he wrote in a letter how a recent attack on the only Catholic church in Gaza had brought the 'horror of the situation painfully close to home'. Mr Swinney and his wife Elizabeth met the priest from the Holy Family Church in Gaza, Father Gabriel Romanelli, in Glasgow last year. I am deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life and injury caused by the military attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in #Gaza. I assure the parish community of my spiritual closeness. I commend the souls of the deceased to the loving mercy of Almighty God, and pray for… — Pope Leo XIV (@Pontifex) July 17, 2025 Father Romanelli was injured when an explosion hit the front of the church, killing three people and leaving others seriously injured. Pope Leo XIV has already said he was 'deeply saddened' by the 'military attack' on the church. And in a letter to Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and leading Catholic authority in the area, Mr Swinney told how people across Scotland are 'moved with both distress and anger at the unimaginable suffering facing the people of Gaza'. The First Minister told Cardinal Pizzabella: 'The heart-breaking reality of the situation in Gaza is that this tragedy, that has taken the lives of three of your parishioners, is but one of an untold number of tragedies that has come to pass in the region since October 7 2023.' Mr Swinney continued: 'That the people of Gaza can not even find peace and sanctuary within the confines of their place of worship beings me real pain.' He told the Cardinal that he would 'pray for the families of the dead, for the injured and for lasting peace in Gaza'. But Mr Swinney also pledged: 'The government I will lead will continue to do everything it can to help achieve a ceasefire in the region.' The First Minister's comments came as he noted that 'over 55,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began', adding that 'many more are being starved of food, water and humanitarian aid'.
