Israeli tanks push deep into central Gaza town, air strike kills 20 in south

Victims of an Israeli army strike react outside of Kuwait hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip following on December 28, 2023, as battles continue between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)
Victims of an Israeli army strike react outside of Kuwait hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip following on December 28, 2023, as battles continue between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)
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Updated 28 December 2023
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Israeli tanks push deep into central Gaza town, air strike kills 20 in south

Victims of an Israeli army strike react outside of Kuwait hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip following on December 28.
  • In Israel’s latest deadly airstrike, 20 Palestinians were killed and 55 wounded in Rafah, Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qidra said

CAIRO/GAZA: Israeli tanks thrust deep into a town in the central Gaza Strip on Thursday after days of relentless bombardment that forced tens of thousands of already displaced Palestinian families to flee in a new exodus.
A Palestinian journalist posted pictures of Israeli tanks near a mosque in a built-up area of Bureij, the armored contingent having apparently advanced from orchards on the eastern outskirts.
Further south Israeli forces hit the area around a hospital in the heart of Khan Younis, Gaza’s main southern city, where residents feared a new ground push into territory crowded with families made homeless in 12 weeks of an Israel-Hamas war.
In Israel’s latest deadly airstrike, 20 Palestinians were killed and 55 wounded in Rafah, a major town near the southern border with Egypt, Gaza health ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qidra said. Their bombed building was housing displaced civilians, according to local medics and residents.
Reuters video showed rescuers scrabbling frantically through rubble to uncover and pull out victims including a baby and several children and rushing them through milling crowds of dazed and weeping people to the nearby Kuwaiti Hospital.
Palestinian health authorities said earlier that 210 people were confirmed killed in Israeli strikes in the past 24 hours, raising the toll of Palestinians killed in the war so far to 21,320 — nearly 1 percent of Gaza’s population. Thousands more dead were feared to be buried or lost in the ruins.
Over the course of the war, the Israeli military has expressed regret for civilian deaths but it accuses Hamas of operating in densely populated areas and using civilians as human shields, a charge the group denies.
Israel has escalated its ground offensive in Gaza sharply since just before Christmas despite public pleas from its closest ally the United States to scale the campaign down in the closing weeks of the year.
It launched the war to destroy Hamas that runs Gaza after fighters rampaged through Israeli towns in a cross-border raid on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking about 240 hostages.
Of the hostages, 110 were freed during a short truce in late November and another 23 have now been declared dead in absentia, an Israeli government spokesperson said on Thursday.
The main focus of fighting is now in central areas south of the wetlands that bisect the narrow coastal strip, where Israeli forces have ordered civilians out over the past several days as their tanks close in.
Tens of thousands of people fleeing the densely packed Nusseirat, Bureij and Maghazi districts were heading south or west on Thursday into the already overwhelmed city of Deir Al-Balah along the Mediterranean coast, crowding into hastily built camps of makeshift tents.
“Over 150,000 people — young children, women carrying babies, people with disabilities & the elderly — have nowhere to go,” the main UN organization operating in Gaza, UNRWA, said in a social media post.
The eastern part of Bureij was a theater of heavy fighting on Thursday morning, with Israeli tanks thrusting in from the north and east, residents and militants said.
“That moment has come, I wished it would never happen, but it seems displacement is a must,” said Omar, 60, who said he had been forced to move with at least 35 family members. He declined to give his surname for fear of reprisals.
Yamen Hamad, living in a school in Deir Al-Balah since fleeing from the north, said the people who were newly displaced from Bureij and Nusseirat were setting up tents wherever there was open ground.

Fighting near hospital in Khan Younis
Khan Younis, where Israeli forces advanced this month after a truce collapsed on Dec. 1, also came under heavy bombardment on Thursday morning from warplanes and tanks near Al-Amal hospital, west of Israeli positions.
The Palestinian Red Crescent, which runs the hospital and has its headquarters nearby, said 10 Palestinians were killed and 12 wounded in one bombardment there, the third strike targeting the area around the hospital in less than an hour.
Residents said they believed Israeli forces were trying to provoke a new exodus ahead of a further ground assault.
Nearby at Nasser Hospital, the main medical center in Khan Younis and largest still functioning in Gaza, women and children shrieked as the dead and wounded were brought in.
A toddler lay motionless on a cot while medics tried to revive him; one doctor nodded “no,” signalling the boy was dead.
Israel reported three more of its soldiers killed, bringing its toll in the ground campaign to 169. The past week has seen some of its heaviest losses of the war so far.
Virtually all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been driven from their homes at least once and many several times. Only a handful of hospitals still function.
In a statement on Thursday, the Israeli military said it “regrets the harm caused to uninvolved civilians” from a Dec. 24 air strike on the Maghazi refugee camp that killed 70 people, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
The statement said warplanes struck two targets adjacent to where Hamas militants were operating, and a preliminary inquiry showed further buildings nearby were also hit, “which likely caused unintended harm to additional uninvolved civilians.” It added: “The IDF ... is acting to draw conclusions and learn lessons from this event.”
The Palestinian health ministry denounced the attack as a massacre in a crowded residential square.
US President Joe Biden warned this month that “indiscriminate bombing” in Gaza jeopardized sympathy for Israel among its allies. Washington has said Israel should make a transition from full-scale ground war to a targeted campaign against Hamas leaders.
Egypt, which has acted as a mediator including hosting the leader of Hamas last week, said it had put forward a proposal to end the bloodshed, including a three-stage plan for a cease-fire, but had yet to hear the warring sides’ responses.


Israel must comply with ICJ measures to prevent genocide: UN human rights chief

Israel must comply with ICJ measures to prevent genocide: UN human rights chief
Updated 6 sec ago
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Israel must comply with ICJ measures to prevent genocide: UN human rights chief

Israel must comply with ICJ measures to prevent genocide: UN human rights chief
  • Volker Turk’s office publishes report covering violations between November 2023, April 2024
  • UN Human Rights Office: Almost 70% of fatalities in Gaza are children, women

NEW YORK: The UN high commissioner for human rights on Friday called on Israel to “fully and immediately” comply with the provisional measures issued in January by the International Court of Justice demanding action to prevent a genocide from being perpetrated against the Palestinians.

Volker Turk also called on states to honor their obligations under international law and “assess arms sales or transfers and provision of military, logistical or financial support to a party to the conflict, with a view to ending such support if this risks serious violations of international law.”

His warning comes as a new report by his office, published on Friday, warned that “if committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, (Israel’s violations) may constitute genocide.”

In January, after considering an original case brought by South Africa accusing Israel of genocide, the ICJ issued a ruling that included provisional measures ordering Israel to take action to prevent and punish the commission of, or the incitement to commit, genocide; to halt the indiscriminate killing of Palestinians; and to immediately facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.

Turk said Israel’s compliance with the ICJ ruling is now “even more critical and urgent” in light of the new report, which details “the horrific reality that has unfolded for the people of Israel and Gaza since 7 October 2023,” and concludes by demanding justice with respect to the grave violations of international law that have been committed.

The ICJ measures are also more pertinent than ever given the most recent events, Turk said, including Israel’s operations in northern Gaza and its adoption of legislation banning the main UN aid agency for Palestinian refugees from operating in Israel and occupied East Jerusalem.

“It is essential that there is due reckoning with respect to the allegations of serious violations of international law through credible and impartial judicial bodies and that, in the meantime, all relevant information and evidence are collected and preserved,” said Turk.

The new report covers violations that occurred from November 2023 to April 2024, including the killing of civilians and breaches of international law that it said could amount to war crimes.

“If committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population, further to a State or organizational policy, these violations may constitute crimes against humanity,” the report says.

Turk urged support for the work of accountability mechanisms, including the International Criminal Court, in relation to the conflict in Gaza, for the exercise of universal jurisdiction to investigate and try crimes under international law in national courts, and for compliance with extradition requests of suspects of such crimes to countries where they would receive a fair trial.

The report highlights repeated statements from Israeli officials calling for Gaza’s entire destruction and the exodus of its people.

It documents Israel’s efforts to “rationalize discrimination, hostility and violence towards, and even the elimination of, Palestinians.”

The report underscores how civilians have borne the brunt of the attacks, including through the initial “complete siege” of Gaza, as well as Israel’s continuing “unlawful failures” to allow the entry of humanitarian aid, the destruction of civilian infrastructure, and mass displacement of Palestinians.

“This conduct by Israeli Forces has caused unprecedented levels of killings, death, injury, starvation, illness and disease,” the reports says, adding that Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups have also committed serious violations of international law on a wide scale

“The rules of war, in force now for 160 years, were designed to limit and prevent human suffering in times of armed conflict,” Turk said.

“Their wanton disregard has led to the current extremes of human suffering which we continue to see today.

“It seems inconceivable that the parties to the conflict refuse to apply universally accepted and binding norms developed to preserve the very bare minimum of humanity.”  

The UN Human Rights Office says close to 70 percent of fatalities in Gaza are children and women, indicating “a systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, including distinction and proportionality.”

The continuation of these attacks “demonstrates an apparent indifference to the death of civilians and the impact of the means and methods of warfare selected,” the report states. 

It also raises concerns over the forcible transfer of Palestinians, attacks on hospitals in “apparent systematic fashion” as well as journalists, and the reported use of white phosphorus munitions.

“Our monitoring indicates that this unprecedented level of killing, and injury of civilians is a direct consequence of the failure to comply with fundamental principles of international humanitarian law — namely the principles of distinction, proportionality and precautions in attack,” Turk said.

“Tragically, these documented patterns of violations continue unabated, over one year after the start of the war.

“The trends and patterns of violations, and of applicable international law as clarified by the International Court of Justice, must inform the steps to be taken to end the current crisis,” he added.

“The violence must stop immediately, the hostages and those arbitrarily detained must be released, and we must focus on flooding Gaza with humanitarian aid.” 


Lebanon state media says Israel blows up houses in 3 border villages

Lebanon state media says Israel blows up houses in 3 border villages
Updated 08 November 2024
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Lebanon state media says Israel blows up houses in 3 border villages

Lebanon state media says Israel blows up houses in 3 border villages
  • ‘Since this morning, the Israeli enemy’s army has been carrying out bombing operations inside the villages of Yaroun, Aitaroun and Maroun Al-Ras in the Bint Jbeil area’

BEIRUT: Lebanon state media said the Israeli army on Friday detonated explosives planted inside houses in three border villages that have been battered by the Israel-Hezbollah war.
“Since this morning, the Israeli enemy’s army has been carrying out bombing operations inside the villages of Yaroun, Aitaroun and Maroun Al-Ras in the Bint Jbeil area, with the aim of destroying residential homes there,” the official National News Agency said, the latest in a string of similar incidents that have impacted the flashpoint border area.


Suffering in Gaza ‘almost unparalleled’: Humanitarian chief

Suffering in Gaza ‘almost unparalleled’: Humanitarian chief
Updated 08 November 2024
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Suffering in Gaza ‘almost unparalleled’: Humanitarian chief

Suffering in Gaza ‘almost unparalleled’: Humanitarian chief
  • Norwegian Refugee Council secretary-general: Palestinians pushed ‘beyond breaking point’
  • Jan Egeland: Gaza rendered ‘uninhabitable’ due Israel’s policies

LONDON: Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are experiencing “almost unparalleled” suffering, one of the world’s foremost humanitarian officials has warned following a visit to the enclave, The Guardian reported on Friday.

Jan Egeland, secretary-general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, traveled to Gaza this week, reporting that families, widows and children have been pushed “beyond breaking point” by Israel’s year-long war.

He witnessed “scene after scene of absolute despair” as Palestinian families had been torn apart by attacks, with survivors unable to bury their dead relatives.

Gaza has been rendered “uninhabitable” as a result of Israel’s policies, supported by Western-supplied weaponry, Egeland said.

“This is in no way a lawful response, a targeted operation of ‘self-defence’ to dismantle armed groups, or warfare consistent with humanitarian law,” he added.

“The families, widows and children I have spoken to are enduring suffering almost unparalleled to anywhere in recent history. There is no possible justification for continued war and destruction.”

Since last year, families across the enclave have been repeatedly forced to move from one area to another as a result of Israeli evacuation orders, which now cover 80 percent of Gaza.

The situation is even more dire in northern Gaza, where a month-long Israeli offensive and siege have cut off an estimated 100,000 people from humanitarian aid.

An Israeli brigadier general said this week that there is no intention of allowing the return of Palestinians to their homes in northern Gaza.

Such a policy of forcible transfer would amount to war crimes, humanitarian law experts have said.

As aid continues to be cut off from the Palestinian population, the UN has condemned “unlawful interference with humanitarian assistance and orders that are leading to forced displacement.”

Egeland warned of the “catastrophic impact of strangled aid flows” on the Palestinian population, with people left unable to access food or water for days at a time.

The former Norwegian foreign minister and diplomat said: “There has not been a single week since the start of this war when sufficient aid was delivered in Gaza.”

Despite the acute shortage of humanitarian aid, Israel’s parliament this week passed bills banning the UN Relief & Works Agency from operating in the Occupied Territories, designating it as a terrorist organization.

Egeland called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza to prevent the “deadly” situation from worsening, adding: “Those in power on all sides act with impunity, while millions across Gaza and the region pay a terrible price.

“Humanitarians can speak out on what we are seeing, but only those in power can end this nightmare.”


Turkiye’s foreign minister visits Athens to help mend ties between the regional rivals

Turkiye’s foreign minister visits Athens to help mend ties between the regional rivals
Updated 08 November 2024
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Turkiye’s foreign minister visits Athens to help mend ties between the regional rivals

Turkiye’s foreign minister visits Athens to help mend ties between the regional rivals
  • Both NATO members, Greece and Turkiye have been at loggerheads for decades over a long series of issues

ATHENS, Greece: Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan arrived Friday in Athens for meetings with his Greek counterpart as part of efforts to ease tension between the two neighbors and regional rivals.
Both NATO members, Greece and Turkiye have been at loggerheads for decades over a long series of issues, including volatile maritime boundary disputes that have twice led them to the brink of war. The two have renewed a diplomatic push for over a year to improve ties.
“Step by step, we have achieved a level of trust so that we can discuss issues with sincerity and prevent crises,” Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis said in an interview with Turkiye’s Hurriyet newspaper published Thursday.
The meeting between the two foreign ministers follows a series of high-profile talks between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as part of a relation-mending initiative launched in 2023.
Officials in Athens are expected to raise concerns about rising illegal migration, as Greece has seen an uptick in arrivals. And, despite deep disagreements on Israel and fighting in the Middle East, both foreign ministers are also expected to explore ways to improve regional stability.
The talks will help set the stage for a Greece-Turkiye high-level cooperation council planned for early 2025 in Ankara, Turkiye.


Turkiye’s Erdogan hopes Trump will tell Israel to ‘stop’ war

Turkiye’s Erdogan hopes Trump will tell Israel to ‘stop’ war
Updated 08 November 2024
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Turkiye’s Erdogan hopes Trump will tell Israel to ‘stop’ war

Turkiye’s Erdogan hopes Trump will tell Israel to ‘stop’ war

ANKARA: Turkiye’s President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that he hoped US President-elect Donald Trump will tell Israel to “stop” its war efforts, suggesting a good start would be halting US arms support to Israel.
“Trump has made promises to end conflicts... We want that promise to be fulfilled and for Israel to be told to ‘stop’,” Erdogan told reporters on a return flight from Budapest, according to an official readout.
“Mr. Trump cutting off the arms support provided to Israel could be a good start in order to stop the Israeli aggression in Palestinian and Lebanese lands,” he was cited as saying.
Turkiye has fiercely criticized Israel’s offensives in the Palestinian territory of Gaza and in Lebanon, and has halted trade with Israel as well as applied to join a genocide case against Israel at the World Court. Israel strongly denies the genocide accusations.
Trump’s presidency will seriously affect political and military balances in the Middle East region, Erdogan said, adding that pursuing current US policies would deepen deadlock in the region and spread the conflict.