Israeli strikes across Gaza kill at least 235 Palestinians and shatter ceasefire with Hamas [Update @post#234]

[Hitman]

Has Hamas surrendered yet? Did they drop weapons and waved white flag? Do they even care about Gazans? Any responsible government would have surrendered by now. It looks like Hamas wants more and more Gazans to die to garner more sympathy for them.

They wouldn't have carried out those cowardly terrorist attacks on 7th October, 2023 if they did indeed care about their people.​

 

[aboveandbeyond]

They wouldn't have carried out those cowardly terrorist attacks on 7th October, 2023 if they did indeed care about their people.​

76 years of brutal Occupation and oppression which even for a Man of your ignorance can work out goes way beyond October 7th 2023.

 

[BouncerGuy]

76 years of brutal Occupation and oppression which even for a Man of your ignorance can work out goes way beyond October 7th 2023.

They have only 7 October to defend Israel. Nothing else left in their tank to pull out and try to present that as a defense for the actions of Israel.

Pathetic are those who are trying to defend the killing of innocent souls but making such excuses.

 

[Hitman]

76 years of brutal Occupation and oppression which even for a Man of your ignorance can work out goes way beyond October 7th 2023.

Did Hamas know or not what the consequences of their actions on 7th October, 2023 would be? Or did they expect to be pardoned after giving their justifications?​

 

[aboveandbeyond]

They have only 7 October to defend Israel. Nothing else left in their tank to pull out and try to present that as a defense for the actions of Israel.

Pathetic are those who are trying to defend the killing of innocent souls but making such excuses.

Agree. Its embarrassing how low they can stoop to defend this.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Did Hamas know or not what the consequences of their actions on 7th October, 2023 would be? Or did they expect to be pardoned after giving their justifications?​

Carry on embarrassing and exposing yourself to be complicit in defending Genocidal extremists .

 

[Hitman]

Carry on embarrassing and exposing yourself to be complicit in defending Genocidal extremists .

Expected response when you are at a loss of reply.

 

[BouncerGuy]

US Jewish museum shooting suspect was mistaken for witness

The suspect accused of shooting and killing two Israeli embassy staff members at a Wednesday night event in Washington DC was mistaken for a witness by security, eyewitnesses told the BBC.

Jojo Kalin, who organised the American Jewish Committee event at the Capital Jewish Museum, said she saw the attacker inside the building, looking "very distraught" after the shooting.

"The security let this person in thinking they were a bystander or witness," she said, adding that she did not see a weapon on him. After she gave him water, she said the suspect pulled out a keffiyeh and yelled "free Palestine".

Police have named the suspect as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez of Chicago, who is now in custody.

Mr Rodriguez is accused of fatally shooting Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, who both worked at Israel's embassy in Washington DC.

The two were a couple, according to Israel's ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter. The ambassador said the young man had bought a ring this week and planned to propose next week in Jerusalem.

The shooting unfolded at around 21:05 local time (02:05 BST), when a gunman opened fire at the couple as they were leaving Wednesday night's event.

The chief of police in Washington DC, Pamela Smith, said Mr Rodriguez was allegedly seen pacing back and forth outside the museum before he approached a group of four and shot two of them with a handgun.

Moments later, eye witnesses said they spotted a man entering the museum "looking very distressed."

"We thought he just needed help and just needed safe shelter," Katie Kalisher, an eyewitness, told the BBC.

Another witness, Yoni Kalin, said "people were calming him down, bringing him water, taking care of him".

It later became apparent that the man they were helping was the alleged shooter, Mr Kalin said. After police arrived, Mr Kalin said the suspect confessed to the shooting and "pulled out a red keffiyeh".

"He said 'I did this for Gaza. Free Palestine,'" Mr Kalin told the BBC.

Ms Kalin, the organiser, said the event was about building coalitions in the Middle East. She told the BBC it is "deeply ironic that what we were discussing was bridge building, and then we were all hit over the head with such hatred".

Dan Bongino, the deputy director of the FBI, said police are interviewing the suspect and that "early indicators are that this is is an act of targeted violence".

BBC

Father of suspect accused of killing Israeli Embassy staffers in DC was guest at Trump's joint address

The father of the man accused of shooting two Israeli Embassy staffers outside the Washington, D.C., Capital Jewish Museum earlier this week attended President Donald Trump’s joint address in March at the invitation of a Democratic Illinois representative.

"Eric Rodriguez was our guest during the President’s Joint Speech to Congress, but we don’t know his family," a spokesperson for Rep. Jesús "Chuy" García, D-Ill., told Fox News Digital in a statement.

Rodriguez is an Iraq war veteran and steward for the Service Employees International Union who works at a Chicago VA hospital, according to the organization’s website.

"Eric represents the very best of our community – someone who has served his country, continues to serve his fellow veterans and fights every day to protect the dignity of working people," García previously said in a statement.

On the day of Trump’s address, Rodriguez denounced the administration’s treatment of veterans in a video posted by SEIU.

Rodriguez and SEIU did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR CONNECTS EMBASSY STAFFERS' SLAYING TO 'VERY IMPORTANT' BIGGER PICTURE

"The reason why I am in Washington, D.C., is because I’m concerned about what Donald Trump, Elon Musk and DOGE are doing to the VA system," Rodriguez said. "They’re indiscriminately cutting people’s jobs, they’re cutting funding and people rely on these funds. People rely on these services."

On Thursday, Rodriguez’s son, Elias, appeared in federal court to face multiple charges, including two counts of first-degree murder, after allegedly gunning down Yaron Lischinsky, 28, and Sarah Milgrim, 26, as they were leaving the Capital Jewish Museum.

Authorities allege Elias traveled from Chicago to Washington, D.C., the day before the shooting, transporting the legal firearm in checked luggage before purchasing a ticket to an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee.

SUSPECT CHARGED WITH MURDERING ISRAELI EMBASSY STAFF COULD FACE DEATH PENALTY

According to an unsealed FBI affidavit, surveillance footage allegedly shows Elias approaching Lischinsky and Milgrim from behind as they entered a crosswalk before opening fire on the couple.

As the victims collapsed to the ground, investigators say Elias allegedly continued shooting before pausing to reload his weapon and firing again.

Upon being approached by authorities, Elias allegedly said, "I did it for Palestine. I did it for Gaza. I am unarmed." As he was being arrested, bystander video shows Elias yelling, "Free Palestine."

If convicted, Elias could face the death penalty with a minimum sentence of 30 years in prison.

"I strongly condemn this horrible, senseless act of antisemitism," García said in a statement posted to X. "My heart is with the victims and everyone impacted by the attack. We mourn the lives lost and reject the idea that justice can be won through violence."

Father of suspect accused of killing Israeli Embassy staffers in DC was guest at Trump's joint address

Elias Rodriguez charged with murder after allegedly shooting Israeli Embassy staffers. His father, Eric, a veteran, attended Trump's speech to Congress.

www.foxnews.com

 

[Farhan The Man]

Lo jee

pakistanis with western passports reverting to their favorite pass time of bashing israel. On social media. 1 year and counting.

No actions. Just talk.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Lo jee

pakistanis with western passports reverting to their favorite pass time of bashing israel. On social media. 1 year and counting.

No actions. Just talk.

If you had a ounce of humanity, I'm sure your rhetoric maybe different. But then again, Hindutwas never think straight.

 

[Hitman]

If you had a ounce of humanity, I'm sure your rhetoric maybe different. But then again, Hindutwas never think straight.

If you had an once of patriotism, you wouldn't have moved to another country for your selfish ambitions.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Expected response when you are at a loss of reply.

Starvation methods are killing thousands of innocent children. Yet you continue to waffle embarrassingly.

 

[Hitman]

Starvation methods are killing thousands of innocent children. Yet you continue to waffle embarrassingly.

Why did it take place? Hint: 7th October, 2023.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

9If you had an once of patriotism, you wouldn't have moved to another country for your selfish ambitions.

Cant help i was born prior October 7th in the West.

 

[Hitman]

Cant help i was born prior October 7th in the West.

Who was responsible for it?

 

[Farhan The Man]

If you had a ounce of humanity, I'm sure your rhetoric maybe different. But then again, Hindutwas never think straight.

Whilst sitting comfortably in your western neighborhood. And all this time funding israel's existence with hard earned taxes.

Surely talk is cheap.

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Why did it take place? Hint: 7th October, 2023.

What happened on the 6th, 5th, 4th, 3rd, 2nd of October?

 

[IMMY69]

Did Hamas know or not what the consequences of their actions on 7th October, 2023 would be? Or did they expect to be pardoned after giving their justifications?​

and what happened to the Isreali security on that fateful day?
Have you not seen any documentaries on Israel and how secure their boarders are and the many checkpoints one has to go through? What happened there?

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Whilst sitting comfortably in your western neighborhood. And all this time funding israel's existence with hard earned taxes.

Surely talk is cheap.

Atleast you've admitted to your Hindutwa links.

What will irk you even more is our actions in the West by Boycotting, Protesting has led to our Governments openly being critical of Netanyahu with action .

 

[Suleiman]

and what happened to the Isreali security on that fateful day?
Have you not seen any documentaries on Israel and how secure their boarders are and the many checkpoints one has to go through? What happened there?

Would have more respect if he just came out and admitted he gets off to violence rather than pretend to be interested in justice.

His hatred for Muslims has been well documented for years. Every Eid he has to cry in the Eid thread as well…

 

[Farhan The Man]

Protesting has led to our Governments openly being critical of Netanyahu with action .

Which "governments"?

And what "actions"?

Let's hear of these empirical returns of your protests.

 

[sweep_shot]

Would have more respect if he just came out and admitted he gets off to violence rather than pretend to be interested in justice.

His hatred for Muslims has been well documented for years. Every Eid he has to cry in the Eid thread as well…

If he hates Muslims so much, what is he doing on a Muslim-majority platform?

Sanghis are truly astonishing.

 

[Hitman]

and what happened to the Isreali security on that fateful day?
Have you not seen any documentaries on Israel and how secure their boarders are and the many checkpoints one has to go through? What happened there?

Conspiracy theory, right?

 

[BouncerGuy]

PLEASE STAY ON TOPIC AND NO PERSONAL STUFF PLEASE.

 

[Rajdeep]

If you had a ounce of humanity, I'm sure your rhetoric maybe different. But then again, Hindutwas never think straight.

Atleast you've admitted to your Hindutwa links.

What will irk you even more is our actions in the West by Boycotting, Protesting has led to our Governments openly being critical of Netanyahu with action .

The way @Farhan The Man is treated here just for having a contrarian view by accusing him of Hindutwa agent etc, shows what likes of Danish Kaneria might have faced in real world.

 

[Rajdeep]

 

[globetrotter]

Israel will continue bombing Gaza and killing Palestinese till Israel citizens get released. IMO Hamas should surrender to Israel

 

[guard]

Whilst sitting comfortably in your western neighborhood. And all this time funding israel's existence with hard earned taxes.

Surely talk is cheap.

hindu jewish solidarity Saaaarr!

 

[BouncerGuy]

Israeli strike kills nine of Gaza doctor's children, hospital says

An Israeli air strike on Gaza hit the home of a doctor and killed nine of her 10 children, the hospital where she works in the city of Khan Younis says.

Nasser hospital said one of Dr Alaa al-Najjar's children and her husband were injured, but survived. Graeme Groom, a British surgeon working in the hospital, said he had operated on her surviving 11-year-old boy.

A video shared by the director of the Hamas-run health ministry and verified by the BBC showed small burned bodies being lifted from the rubble of a strike in Khan Younis on Friday.

The BBC has approached Israel's military for comment.

More than 70 people were killed in Israeli air strikes on Friday, with at least another six killed so far on Saturday, the Hamas-run civil defence agency told AFP.

Dr Muneer Alboursh, director of the health ministry, said on X that the family house was hit minutes after Dr al-Najjar's husband Hamdi had returned home after driving his wife to work.

Dr Alboursh said the eldest of Dr al-Najjar's children was aged 12.

Mr Groom said that the children's father was "very badly injured", in a video posted on the Instagram account of another British surgeon working at Nasser hospital, Victoria Rose.

He said he had asked about the father, also a doctor at the hospital, and had been told he had "no political and no military connections and doesn't seem to be prominent on social media".

He described it as an "unimaginable" situation for Dr al-Najjar.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for Gaza's Hamas-run Civil Defence agency, said on Telegram on Friday afternoon that his teams had recovered eight bodies and several injured from the al-Najjar house near a petrol station in Khan Younis.

The hospital initially posted on Facebook that eight children had been killed, then two hours later updated that number to nine.

In an interview recorded by AFP news agency, relative Youssef al-Najjar said: "Enough! Have mercy on us! We plead to all countries, the international community, the people, Hamas, and all factions to have mercy on us.

"We are exhausted from the displacement and the hunger, enough!"

On Friday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that people in Gaza were enduring what may be "the cruellest phase" of the war, and denounced Israel's blockade on humanitarian aid imposed in March.

Israel partially lifted the blockade earlier this week. Israeli military body Cogat said 83 more trucks carrying flour, food, medical equipment pharmaceutical drugs entered Gaza on Friday.

The UN has repeatedly said the amount of aid entering is nowhere near enough for the territory's 2.1 million people - saying between 500 to 600 trucks a day are needed - and has called for Israel to allow in much more.

The limited amount of food that trickled into Gaza this week sparked chaotic scenes, with armed looters attacking an aid convoy and Palestinians crowding outside bakeries in a desperate attempt to obtain bread.

A UN-backed assessment this month said Gaza's population was at "critical risk" of famine.

People in Gaza have told the BBC they have no food, and malnourished mothers are unable to breastfeed babies.

Chronic shortages of water are also worsening as desalination and hygiene plants are running out of fuel, and Israel's expanding military offensive causes new waves of displacement.

Israel has said the blockade was intended to put pressure on Hamas to release the hostages still held in Gaza.

Israel has accused Hamas of stealing supplies, which the group has denied.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas's cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 53,822 people, including at least 16,500 children, have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's health ministry.

BBC

 

[IMMY69]

Conspiracy theory, right?

When taken in context, on what occurred in October followed by the genocide, and it becomes a legitimate theory

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Israeli soldiers accused of widespread use of human shields in Gaza – Middle East crisis live

Israel’s military says it prohibits using civilians as shields, a practice it has long accused Hamas of using

www.theguardian.com

Our Hindutwa friends will spin this to claim HAMAS in IDF Uniforms who are using Palestinians as human Shields

 

[Champ_Pal]

76 years of brutal Occupation and oppression which even for a Man of your ignorance can work out goes way beyond October 7th 2023.

Gaza is ruled by Hamas. What occupation are you talking about.

 

[Boyka]

These Hindus are learning from the only people in the world more depraved than them. Imitating their speech, fanaticism, actions. A scourge on the world.

The only difference is Indian politics and society is not completely pulled to the right like Israelis.

We don’t hate these people enough.

 

[Rajdeep]

Teacher suspended after holding minute’s silence for Gaza victims​

A teacher in France has been suspended for nearly two months after holding a minute’s silence for Gaza victims in her class.

The physics and chemistry teacher at the Janot-Curie high school in Sens, Yens, was told by the local education authority that she failed to respect the principle of neutrality when she was suspended on 31 March.

On 25 March, days after resumed Israeli strikes ended the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the teacher is accused by the Dijon education authority of having organised a minute of silence for the Palestinians killed in the week before.

This was done on her own “personal initiative”, the education authority told The Independent - but this claim has been disputed by teaching unions.

"Respecting neutrality is a duty for civil servants, enshrined in their status, and any failure to comply with this obligation triggers disciplinary proceedings," the authority explained.

But the education branches of French unions FO, CGT and Sud insist that the students had requested the silence. “The teacher agreed, at the end of her class, to observe this time of homage with the students who wished to do so," they said.

"We demand that this teacher be reinstated immediately, that all charges be dropped, and that her dignity be officially restored in the eyes of the school, staff, and parents," the unions added in a joint statement.

Equally outraged were political figures including the first-secretary of the Socialist Party (PS), Olivier Faure.

“A minute of silence requested by the students, with those who do not want to join being able to withdraw, to pay tribute to the victims in Gaza, and it is the teacher who is suspended... really???” he wrote on X. “We are standing on our heads.”

It comes as France’s relationship with Israel becomes increasingly strained, after Israeli ministers responded furiously to condemnation by Western allies over its actions in the Gaza strip, including the previous 11-week blockade on aid and its resumed offensive.

President Emmanuel Macron joined the UK and Canada in issuing their strongest condemnation yet of Netanyahu’s government. A statement demanded Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu halt his “egregious” actions in Gaza, threatening “concrete actions” over the “intolerable” human suffering inflicted on the enclave.

Following the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington DC on Wednesday night, Mr Netanyahu echoed earlier statements by fellow ministers laying the blame at the door of the UK, France and Canada.

“I say to President Macron, Prime Minister Carney and Prime Minister Starmer: When mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers thank you, you're on the wrong side of justice,” he wrote on social media. “You're on the wrong side of humanity and you're on the wrong side of history.”

News | The Independent | Today's headlines and latest breaking news | The Independent

The latest breaking news, comment and features from The Independent.

www.independent.co.uk

MSN

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Israel’s aid plan for Gaza ‘will not succeed’, UNRWA chief says

Israel’s aid delivery plan for Gaza is not only incompatible with basic humanitarian principles, it is unworkable, says the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

“It is not possible for a humanitarian organisation, which truly respects the basic humanitarian principles, to adhere to such a scheme,” Philippe Lazzarini said in a statement published on UNRWA’s official Facebook page.

“I do not think that such a model will succeed. This model seems also to be put in place in order to support more a military objective than a real humanitarian concern.”

Israel is pushing for a new model of aid distribution in Gaza under the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US-backed organisation. But the UN says it will not work with the scheme because it is not impartial or neutral and will force more displacement.

Israel has also come under widespread condemnation for allowing a minimal amount of aid into the Strip over the last week after imposing a total blockade on Gaza for nearly three months. According to the WFP, almost Gaza’s entire population is now at risk of severe hunger and famine.

Source: Al Jazeera

 

[Hitman]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1925969465675526471

 

[BouncerGuy]

Simple question for all the Israeli sympathizers here.

WHY ISRAEL IS TARGETTING INNOCENT CIVILIANS..???

 

[Hitman]

Simple question for all the Israeli sympathizers here.

WHY ISRAEL IS TARGETTING INNOCENT CIVILIANS..???

Because they are a bully. And you don't escape consequences after you poke a bully in it's eye.​

 

[BouncerGuy]

Because they are a bully. And you don't escape consequences after you poke a bully in it's eye.​

Those innocent 1 month old children are bullies??? YOU ARE CRAZY BRO... SORRY Don't wanna chat with a guy like you.\\I am out.

 

[Hitman]

Those innocent 1 month old children are bullies??? YOU ARE CRAZY BRO... SORRY Don't wanna chat with a guy like you.\\I am out.

Hold on! Did it appear to you that I was defending Israel's actions. Didn't I just call them a bully? Let's talk about another bully. Was USA's invasion of Iraq justified, that too under the lie of the latter having weapons of mass destruction? Did the USA suffer any consequences for it?

Life isn't fair. Get used to it.​

 

[Hitman]

Those innocent 1 month old children are bullies??? YOU ARE CRAZY BRO... SORRY Don't wanna chat with a guy like you.\\I am out.

I called Israel a bully. A bully of unmatched proportions.

 

[BouncerGuy]

I called Israel a bully. A bully of unmatched proportions.

Then stop defending their acts, bro... It is not worth it...

Israel is a killer nation that is targeting children and women who have nothing to do with this whole thing...

Why haven't we seen any news about Hamas being targeted??? more than 60-70k people died till now..

 

[Hitman]

Then stop defending their acts, bro... It is not worth it...

Israel is a killer nation that is targeting children and women who have nothing to do with this whole thing...

Why haven't we seen any news about Hamas being targeted??? more than 60-70k people died till now..

What about the likes of you openly supporting and showering love and praises on those subhuman and barbaric Islamic invaders who did pretty much the same, or maybe even worse to my people? There are multiple threads created here on PP to glorify them. In that case you leave no stones unturned in singing their bhajans. And now you want us to cry for Palestine just because the roles are reversed?​

 

[BouncerGuy]

What about the likes of you openly supporting and showering love and praises on those subhuman and barbaric Islamic invaders who did pretty much the same, or maybe even worse to my people? There are multiple threads created here on PP to glorify them. In that case you leave no stones unturned in singing their bhajans. And now you want us to cry for Palestine just because the roles are reversed?​

Past violence doesn’t justify present oppression.
does it?

 

[Hitman]

Past violence doesn’t justify present oppression.
does it?

Is it necessary to support, glorify and shower admiration on those people who caused past violence just because they happened to be of your religion?

 

[BouncerGuy]

Is it necessary to support, glorify and shower admiration on those people who caused past violence just because they happened to be of your religion?

You trying to justify israeli genocide more than Israeli people themselves... Probably need Israeli visa???

I am out bruh... You are not worth my time ...

Find someone else who likes your views as much..

 

[Hitman]

You trying to justify israeli genocide more than Israeli people themselves... Probably need Israeli visa???

I am out bruh... You are not worth my time ...

Find someone else who likes your views as much..

Yea, Pakistanis can idolize those subhuman Islamic invaders openly, turning a blind eye to what they did to us. It's not important what they did, all that matters is that they were Muslims. They even name their missiles after them. But the moment we Indians don't show our support for Palestine, shame on us.

One word - HYPOCRITE.​

 

[BouncerGuy]

Yea, Pakistanis can idolize those subhuman Islamic invaders openly, turning a blind eye to what they did to us. It's not important what they did, all that matters is that they were Muslims. They even name their missiles after them. But the moment we Indians don't show our support for Palestine, shame on us.

One word - HYPOCRITE.​

Find someone else to satisfy your inhumana agenda bro... HUSSSSHHHH

 

[globetrotter]

You trying to justify israeli genocide more than Israeli people themselves... Probably need Israeli visa???

I am out bruh... You are not worth my time ...

Find someone else who likes your views as much..

But don’t you think Hamas is responsible for all this? Hamas is responsible for current war, if they haven’t kidnapped innocent Israeli girls and children then this war wouldn’t have happened. Yes innocent Palestinese are killing, but Hamas terrorists are taking shelters in civilian areas. Therefore it not Israel’s mistake if innocents are killing. Hamas has nothing to do if innocent Palestinese are getting killed, otherwise they would have surrendered

Therefore we

 

[rpant_gabba]

Past violence doesn’t justify present oppression.
does it?

when pasts thugs are celebrated and glorified it will be difficult to condemn current and contain thugs

 

[IMMY69]

when pasts thugs are celebrated and glorified it will be difficult to condemn current and contain thugs

Who supported and built up Hamas in the first place?

 

[rpant_gabba]

Who supported and built up Hamas in the first place?

Not sure how it is relevant to my point.

 

[Farhan The Man]

Who supported and built up Hamas in the first place?

Since we are digging graves here, why not go one step deeper.

Who supported israel's creation?

Aren't you a passport holder of that country? And funding it's very existence with your hard-earned taxed. To date.

 

[rpant_gabba]

Since we are digging graves here, why not go one step deeper.

Who supported israel's creation?

Aren't you a passport holder of that country? And funding it's very existence with your hard-earned taxed. To date.

Of course you have already asked the next question before. Who tried to collude and take over rest of palestine? Who worked a mercenary for the those colluders to hurt PLO?

They know thew answers, but all you'll hear is silence

 

[IMMY69]

Since we are digging graves here, why not go one step deeper.

Who supported israel's creation?

Aren't you a passport holder of that country? And funding it's very existence with your hard-earned taxed. To date.

You do go on about this a lot and I have already explained and answered this in other threads...

 

[Rajdeep]

You do go on about this a lot and I have already explained and answered this in other threads...

Do you mind explaining it once more due to public demand?

 

[IMMY69]

Do you mind explaining it once more due to public demand?

NO

 

[aboveandbeyond]

Hold on! Did it appear to you that I was defending Israel's actions. Didn't I just call them a bully? Let's talk about another bully. Was USA's invasion of Iraq justified, that too under the lie of the latter having weapons of mass destruction? Did the USA suffer any consequences for it?

Life isn't fair. Get used to it.​

Bully! That in itself is being sympathetic.

They are violent extremist criminals in the ilk of the Nazis.

 

[Ball Blazer]

Israeli strikes kill 23 in Gaza, including rescue service official and local journalist​

Israeli military strikes killed at least 23 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Sunday, including a senior rescue service official and a journalist, local health authorities said.

The latest deaths in the Israeli campaign resulted from separate Israeli strikes in Khan Younis in the south, Jabalia in the north and Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip, medics said.

In Jabalia, they said local journalist Hassan Majdi Abu Warda and several family members were killed by an airstrike that hit his house earlier on Sunday.

Another airstrike in Nuseirat killed Ashraf Abu Nar, a senior official in the territory's civil emergency service, and his wife in their house, medics added.

The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said that Abu Warda's death raised the number of Palestinian journalists killed in Gaza since October 2023 to 220.

Israel's military said in a statement that chief of staff Eyal Zamir visited troops in Khan Younis on Sunday, telling them 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," Zamir was cited as saying.

Source: Reuters

 

[aboveandbeyond]

BBC returns to Gaza baby left hungry by Israeli blockade

Malnourished five-month-old baby Siwar is now out of hospital in Gaza - but as we found, she and her family are struggling.

www.bbc.co.uk

Maybe the zionest sympathisers may still spin this to blame the victims

 

[sweep_shot]

 

[Ball Blazer]

Gaza aid foundation chief quits as further Israeli airstrikes kill dozens​

The head of a U.S.-backed foundation set to supply aid in Gaza quit unexpectedly on Sunday, a day before the group was due to begin operations, as an Israeli airstrike on a school building killed dozens of Palestinians sheltering inside.

Jake Wood, executive director of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation for the past two months, said he resigned because it could not adhere "to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence".

His departure underscores the confusion surrounding the foundation, which has been boycotted by the United Nations and the aid groups supplying aid to Gaza before Israel imposed a total blockade on the enclave in March.

The groups say the new system will undermine the principle that aid should be overseen by a neutral party. Israel, which floated a similar plan earlier this year, says it will not be involved in distributing aid but it had endorsed the plan and would provide security for it.

Source: Reuters

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Israel Rejects Latest Hamas Hostage Deal as US Pushes for Gaza Ceasefire​

Israel has rejected a new Hamas-backed proposal to release hostages in exchange for a temporary ceasefire, officials confirmed this week, as indirect talks continue through American channels.

The deal, delivered to Israel via backchannel contacts facilitated by Palestinian-American businessman Bishara Bahbah, would have included the release of five living Israeli hostages. In return, Israel would withdraw to positions it held in Gaza two months ago, open humanitarian access across the Strip, continue negotiations over other hostages, and acknowledge some form of American recognition of Hamas.

A senior Israeli official dismissed the proposal as “very far away from the outline that we are willing to negotiate on” and said it “cannot be accepted by any responsible government.” Another official added, “There is no genuine willingness on Hamas’s part to move forward with a deal.”

The proposal was conveyed to Israel by the United States after being passed along by Bahbah, who previously helped mediate the release of American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander. US President Donald Trump has expressed hope for a resolution. “We want to see if we can stop it. And we’ve talked to Israel, we want to see if we can stop this whole situation as quickly as possible,” he told reporters.

The plan reportedly modified the so-called Witkoff outline—named after Trump’s special envoy to the region, Steve Witkoff—by expanding the ceasefire to roughly 70 days and including the phased return of both living and deceased hostages.

Speaking in his first press conference since December, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last Wednesday, “If there is an opportunity for a temporary ceasefire to return hostages, we are prepared for it.” He added that 20 hostages are still alive in Gaza and pledged to bring them home.

Source: The Media Line

 

[BouncerGuy]

New US-backed group says it has begun aid distribution in Gaza

A controversial new aid distribution group backed by the US and Israel has begun working in Gaza.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) said lorry loads of food had been delivered to secure sites and that it had begun distribution to people. It did not say where or how much aid had been handed out.

The group, which uses armed American security contractors, aims to bypass the UN as the main supplier of aid to the 2.1 million Palestinians in Gaza, where experts are warning of a looming famine after an Israeli blockade that lasted 11 weeks.

The UN and many aid groups have refused to co-operate with GHF's plans, which they say contradict humanitarian principles and appear to "weaponise aid".

Israel says a new system is needed to stop Hamas stealing aid, which the group denies doing.

In a statement sent to journalists on Monday night, GHF announced that it had "commenced operations in Gaza" and delivered "truck loads of food to its Secure Distribution Sites, where distribution to the Gazan people began".

"More trucks with aid will be delivered [on Tuesday], with the flow of aid increasing each day," it added.

Handout photos showed just over a dozen men carrying away boxes from an unspecified location.

The BBC has asked the GHF how many lorry loads of aid got in and how many people were able to pick up aid, but it has not yet received a response.

The GHF's statement also said John Acree, a former senior manager at USAID - the US government agency responsible for administering foreign aid - had been named interim executive director.

Acree succeeds Jake Wood, who resigned from the position on Sunday. Wood said the group's aid distribution system could not work in a way that would be able to fulfil the principles of "humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence".

The GHF's board rejected the criticism, accusing "those who benefit from the status quo" of being more focused on "tearing this apart than on getting aid in".

It said the system was fully consistent with humanitarian principles and would feed a million Palestinians by the end of the week.

Under the GHF's mechanism, security-screened Palestinians will be expected to collect boxes containing food and basic hygiene items for their families from a small number of distribution sites which are mainly in southern Gaza. The sites will be secured by American contractors, with Israeli troops patrolling the perimeters.

UN and other aid agencies insisted they will not co-operate with any scheme that fails to respect fundamental humanitarian principles.

They have warned that the GHF's system will practically exclude those with mobility issues, including those with injuries, disabilities and the elderly, force further displacement, expose thousands of people to harm, make aid conditional on political and military aims, and set an unacceptable precedent for aid delivery around the world.

They have said they have thousands of lorries waiting to go into Gaza and a detailed plan to ensure aid gets to people in need and looting is minimised.

Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, told the BBC on Monday that the GHF was "militarised, privatised, politicised" and "not in conformity with neutrality".

"The people behind it are military - they are ex-CIA and ex-military people... Let's go back to the system that worked," he said.

Hamas has warned Palestinians not to co-operate with GHF's system, saying it would "replace order with chaos, enforce a policy of engineered starvation of Palestinian civilians, and use food as a weapon during wartime".

GHF's statement condemned what it said were "Hamas's death threats targeting aid groups supporting humanitarian operations at GHF's Safe Distribution Sites, and efforts to block the Gazan people from accessing aid at the sites".

Israel imposed a total blockade on humanitarian aid to Gaza on 2 March and resumed its military offensive two weeks later, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas.

It said the steps were meant to put pressure on the armed group to release the 58 hostages still held in Gaza, up to 23 of whom are believed to be alive.

On 19 May, the Israeli military launched an expanded offensive that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said would see troops "take control of all areas" of Gaza. The plan reportedly includes completely clearing the north of civilians and forcibly displacing them to the south.

Netanyahu also said Israel would allow a "basic" amount of food into Gaza to prevent a famine following pressure from allies in the US.

Since then, Israeli authorities say they have allowed at least 665 lorry loads of humanitarian aid, including flour, baby food and medical supplies, into Gaza.

However, the head of the UN's World Food Programme warned on Sunday that the aid was only a "drop in the bucket" of what was needed in the territory to reverse the catastrophic levels of hunger, amid significant shortages of basic foods and skyrocketing prices.

Half a million people face starvation in the coming months, according to an assessment by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response Hamas's cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 53,977 people have been killed in Gaza since then, including 3,822 since Israel resumed its offensive 10 weeks ago, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

BBC

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Arab countries condemn Israeli minister’s storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem​

Arab countries continued to condemn on Tuesday the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem by far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, calling it a dangerous provocation and a blatant violation of international law and the status quo governing the city’s holy sites.

Ben-Gvir stormed Islam’s third-holiest site on Monday to mark Israel's occupation of East Jerusalem in 1967.

In a Tuesday statement, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry called Ben-Gvir’s intrusion a “provocative act” and “part of Israeli escalatory practices.”

It warned that such practices offend the beliefs and sentiments of millions of Muslims around the world and would have “grave consequences on the security and stability of the region.”

It called on the international community to "confront Israeli grave violations, and support the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people," including the establishment of the Palestinian state.

Jordan’s Foreign Ministry denounced his intrusion as a “flagrant violation of the historical and legal status quo (of Al-Aqsa Mosque) and of Israel's obligations as the occupying power.”

The ministry’s statement stressed that such intrusions will not “alter the fact that East Jerusalem is an occupied city over which Israel holds no sovereignty.”

Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs echoed the condemnation, describing the move in a statement as part of “ongoing Israeli attempts to alter the religious and historical status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque” and calling it “a provocation to more than two billion Muslims worldwide.”

The ministry warned that “Israel’s escalation policy in the occupied Palestinian territories—including the ongoing genocidal war in Gaza—will inevitably widen the circle of violence and chaos across the region and undermine efforts to implement a two-state solution and achieve a comprehensive, just and sustainable peace.”

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said Ben-Gvir’s raid was part of “the genocide, displacement, Judaization, and annexation to which the Palestinian people are subjected.”

It called for "urgent international action” to halt the Israeli violations immediately and to take the necessary measures “to protect the Palestinian people from the aggression of the occupation army and settlers."

The extremist minister was joined by other Israeli officials, including Minister of the Negev, Galilee and National Resilience Yitzhak Wasserlauf, and Knesset member Yitzhak Kroizer.

Monday’s intrusion was the seventh by the far-right minister into the Al-Aqsa complex since he joined Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in 2022.

More than 2,700 illegal Israeli settlers forced their way into the mosque complex on Monday under police protection to mark the occupation of East Jerusalem, with many performing provocative rituals in the mosque's courtyards, the Islamic Endowment Department in Jerusalem said in a statement.

Since the outbreak of the Gaza war on Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli authorities have imposed strict measures limiting Palestinians’ access from the occupied West Bank into East Jerusalem.

Palestinians consider these restrictions part of Israel’s broader efforts to Judaize East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa Mosque is located, and erase its Arab and Islamic identity.

Since 2003, Israel has allowed illegal settlers into the flashpoint compound on an almost daily basis with the exception of Fridays and Saturdays.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the Temple Mount, saying it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognized by the international community.

Source: Anadolu Agency

 

[Bhaijaan]

I support the creation of Palestine in the middle East.
Not within Israel which belongs to the Jews because they're the original inhabitants of that region since 5,000 years.

Palestinians who wish to continue to live Israel must convert and swear allegiance to the State of Israel

 

[sweep_shot]

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Israeli forces raid foreign exchange shops in occupied West Bank; one dead

Israeli forces have raided money exchanges across the occupied West Bank, using live fire and tear gas as they stormed the city of Nablus, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding more than 30.

Exchange shops in the cities of Ramallah, Nablus, Hebron Arrabeh, el-Bireh, Bethlehem, Jenin and Tubas were attacked on Tuesday, residents said.

In the northern city of Nablus, Israeli soldiers raided a foreign exchange belonging to the Al-Khaleej company and a gold store, according to local media reports. They also fired smoke bombs in the centre of Jenin, and streets were closed in Tubas and Bethlehem in the occupied Palestinian territory.

The Ramallah-based Ministry of Health said one man was killed and eight injured by live ammunition during a raid in Nablus.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society said it treated 20 people for tear gas inhalation and three injured by rubber bullets.

The raids on foreign exchanges came as Israel continued its intensified military campaign in Gaza, killing more than 54,000 Palestinians since the war began on October 7, 2023, as tens of thousands of people starve in the besieged enclave.

Israeli forces raid foreign exchange shops in occupied West Bank; one dead

Palestinian groups slam the raids targeting exchanges in several cities in a widespread operation in the territory.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert says his country is committing war crimes

The former prime minister of Israel Ehud Olmert has said Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza, and that “thousands of innocent Palestinians are being killed, as well as many Israeli soldiers”.

Olmert, who was the 12th prime minister of Israel from 2006 to 2009, wrote in an opinion piece for the Israeli newspaper and website Haaretz that “the government of Israel is currently waging a war without purpose, without goals or clear planning and with no chances of success”.

He added: “Never since its establishment has the state of Israel waged such a war … The criminal gang headed by Benjamin Netanyahu has set a precedent without equal in Israel’s history in this area, too.

The former Israeli PM and former member of Likud, the same party as Netanyahu, wrote that the “pointless victims among the Palestinian population” were reaching “monstrous proportions” in recent weeks.

Former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert says his country is committing war crimes

Leader from 2006 to 2009 says Palestinian victims are at ‘monstrous proportions’ and Netanyahu heads a ‘criminal gang’

www.theguardian.com

 

[Ball Blazer]

Food trucks in Gaza raided, underscoring aid distribution problems

U.N. trucks delivering food to Gaza were stopped and looted overnight, Gaza residents and merchants said on Wednesday, hours after desperate Palestinians overran a distribution site run by a U.S.-backed group trying to start delivering aid.

The incidents underscore the problems getting supplies to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing worsening hunger and starvation after a weeks-long Israeli blockade.

On Tuesday, Israeli troops fired warning shots as crowds rushed to a distribution point run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.-backed group that began supplying aid under a new system which Israel hopes will prevent aid reaching Hamas.

The United Nations and other international aid groups have refused to take part, saying the scheme violates the principle that aid should be distributed neutrally, based only on need.

As the new system began, the Israeli military also allowed 95 trucks belonging to the U.N. and other aid groups into the enclave, but three Gaza residents and three merchants said a number of trucks were targeted by looters.

One Palestinian transport operator said at least 20 trucks belonging to the U.N. World Food Programme were attacked shortly before midnight.

"Some trucks made it through, then it seems that people became aware of that," one witness told Reuters via a chat app, declining to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue.

"They woke up, some placed barriers on the road intercepted and stole the goods."

Israeli forces, which resumed their operation in Gaza in March following a brief truce, continued strikes on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people including eight members of the family of a local journalist, Palestinian health officials said.

To qualify for aid under the new system, people seeking food are supposed to undergo screening to ensure they are not linked to Hamas, a measure that has heightened Palestinian suspicion of the operation.

But witnesses on Tuesday said that no effective identification process seemed to be in place.

"What we saw yesterday was a very clear example of the dangers of distributing food," said Ajith Sunghay, Head of the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

"We are exposing people to death and injury," he told reporters in Geneva, adding that 47 people had been wounded by gunfire as the chaos unfolded.

Footage shared on social media showed fences broken down by crowds trying to reach crates of supplies as private security contractors operating the site fell back.

"I am a big man, but I couldn't hold back my tears when I saw the images of women, men, and children racing for some food," said Rabah Rezik, 65, a father of seven from Gaza City.

Israel imposed the blockade on aid supplies in March, accusing Hamas of seizing supplies meant for civilians, a charge Hamas denies. U.N. officials say they have seen no evidence that the militant group has been looting trucks since Israel eased the blockade this month under mounting international pressure.

However, Hamas has told people in Gaza not to go to the four distribution points in southern Gaza set up for the new system. It denied accusations from Israel that it was blocking access to the sites.

INCREASING PRESSURE

The U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, called it "sad and disgusting" that the United Nations and other groups were not taking part in the new system to distribute aid.

"There were lines of people that got food which was not stolen by Hamas. The manner in which it was distributed is effective so far," he told Reuters.

Israel has faced increasing pressure over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, even from countries long reluctant to voice strong criticism. France, Britain and Germany have said they may take action if the military campaign is not halted. On Wednesday, Italy also said the offensive had become unacceptable and must stop immediately.

Israel launched its campaign in Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas-led attack on communities in southern Israel on October 7, 2023 that killed some 1,200 people and saw 251 hostages abducted into Gaza.

Its assault has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians and reduced much of the crowded coastal enclave to rubble, with the population of more than 2 million now squeezed into narrow areas on the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.

Source: Reuters

 

[Rajdeep]

Food trucks in Gaza raided, underscoring aid distribution problems

U.N. trucks delivering food to Gaza were stopped and looted overnight, Gaza residents and merchants said on Wednesday, hours after desperate Palestinians overran a distribution site run by a U.S.-backed group trying to start delivering aid.

The incidents underscore the problems getting supplies to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing worsening hunger and starvation after a weeks-long Israeli blockade.

On Tuesday, Israeli troops fired warning shots as crowds rushed to a distribution point run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.-backed group that began supplying aid under a new system which Israel hopes will prevent aid reaching Hamas.

The United Nations and other international aid groups have refused to take part, saying the scheme violates the principle that aid should be distributed neutrally, based only on need.

As the new system began, the Israeli military also allowed 95 trucks belonging to the U.N. and other aid groups into the enclave, but three Gaza residents and three merchants said a number of trucks were targeted by looters.

One Palestinian transport operator said at least 20 trucks belonging to the U.N. World Food Programme were attacked shortly before midnight.

"Some trucks made it through, then it seems that people became aware of that," one witness told Reuters via a chat app, declining to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue.

"They woke up, some placed barriers on the road intercepted and stole the goods."

Israeli forces, which resumed their operation in Gaza in March following a brief truce, continued strikes on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people including eight members of the family of a local journalist, Palestinian health officials said.

To qualify for aid under the new system, people seeking food are supposed to undergo screening to ensure they are not linked to Hamas, a measure that has heightened Palestinian suspicion of the operation.

But witnesses on Tuesday said that no effective identification process seemed to be in place.

"What we saw yesterday was a very clear example of the dangers of distributing food," said Ajith Sunghay, Head of the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

"We are exposing people to death and injury," he told reporters in Geneva, adding that 47 people had been wounded by gunfire as the chaos unfolded.

Footage shared on social media showed fences broken down by crowds trying to reach crates of supplies as private security contractors operating the site fell back.

"I am a big man, but I couldn't hold back my tears when I saw the images of women, men, and children racing for some food," said Rabah Rezik, 65, a father of seven from Gaza City.

Israel imposed the blockade on aid supplies in March, accusing Hamas of seizing supplies meant for civilians, a charge Hamas denies. U.N. officials say they have seen no evidence that the militant group has been looting trucks since Israel eased the blockade this month under mounting international pressure.

However, Hamas has told people in Gaza not to go to the four distribution points in southern Gaza set up for the new system. It denied accusations from Israel that it was blocking access to the sites.

INCREASING PRESSURE

The U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, called it "sad and disgusting" that the United Nations and other groups were not taking part in the new system to distribute aid.

"There were lines of people that got food which was not stolen by Hamas. The manner in which it was distributed is effective so far," he told Reuters.

Israel has faced increasing pressure over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, even from countries long reluctant to voice strong criticism. France, Britain and Germany have said they may take action if the military campaign is not halted. On Wednesday, Italy also said the offensive had become unacceptable and must stop immediately.

Israel launched its campaign in Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas-led attack on communities in southern Israel on October 7, 2023 that killed some 1,200 people and saw 251 hostages abducted into Gaza.

Its assault has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians and reduced much of the crowded coastal enclave to rubble, with the population of more than 2 million now squeezed into narrow areas on the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.

Source: Reuters

Who is looting these aid trucks? It is obvious Hamas is doing it. They steal all the foods and aids send to them and then blame Israel for starving Palestinians. IAF must supervise these food delivery and ensure only Palestinian people gets them and not Hamas.

 

[Vikram1989]

Hamas Gaza chief is eliminated

 

[BouncerGuy]

Gaza warehouse broken into by 'hordes of hungry people', says WFP

The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) says that "hordes of hungry people" have broken into a food supply warehouse in central Gaza.

Two people are reported to have died and several others injured in the incident, the programme said, adding that it was still confirming details.

Video footage from AFP news agency showed crowds breaking into the Al-Ghafari warehouse in Deir Al-Balah and taking bags of flour and cartons of food as gunshots rang out. It was not immediately clear where the gunshots came from.

In a statement, the WFP said humanitarian needs in Gaza had "spiralled out of control" after an almost three-month Israeli blockade that was eased last week.

The WFP said that food supplies had been pre-positioned at the warehouse for distribution.

The programme added: "Gaza needs an immediate scale-up of food assistance. This is the only way to reassure people that they will not starve."

The WFP said it had "consistently warned of alarming and deteriorating conditions on the ground, and the risks imposed by limiting humanitarian aid to hungry people in desperate need of assistance".

Israeli authorities said on Wednesday that 121 trucks belonging to the UN and the international community carrying humanitarian aid including flour and food were transferred into Gaza.

Israel began to allow a limited amount of aid into Gaza last week. However, UN Middle East envoy Sigrid Kaag told the UN Security Council this was "comparable to a lifeboat after the ship has sunk" when everyone in Gaza was facing the risk of famine.

A controversial US and Israeli-backed group - the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) - was also established as a private aid distribution system. It uses US security contractors and bypasses the UN, which said it was unworkable and unethical.

The US and Israeli governments say the GHF, which has set up four distribution centres in southern and central Gaza, is preventing aid from being stolen by Hamas, which the armed group denies doing.

The UN Humans Right Office said 47 people were injured on Tuesday after people overran one of the GHF distribution sites in the southern city of Rafah, a day after it began working there.

Another senior UN official told journalists on Wednesday that desperate crowds were looting cargo off of UN aid trucks.

Jonathan Whittall, the head of the UN's humanitarian office for the occupied Palestinian territories, also said there was no evidence that Hamas was diverting aid coordinated through credible humanitarian channels.

He said the real theft of relief goods since the beginning of the war had been carried out by criminal gangs which the Israeli army "allowed to operate in proximity to the Kerem Shalom crossing point in Gaza".

The UN has argued that a surge of aid like the one during the recent ceasefire between Israeli and Hamas would reduce the threat of looting by hungry people and allow it to make full use of its well-established network of distribution across the Gaza Strip.

BBC

 

[BouncerGuy]

Israel announces major expansion of settlements in occupied West Bank

Israeli ministers say 22 new Jewish settlements have been approved in the occupied West Bank - the biggest expansion in decades.

Several already exist as outposts, built without government authorisation, but will now be made legal under Israeli law, according to Defence Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

The issue of settlements - which are widely seen as illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this - is one of the most contentious areas of dispute between Israel and the Palestinians.

Katz said the move "prevents the establishment of a Palestinian state that would endanger Israel", while the Palestinian presidency called it a "dangerous escalation".

The Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now said the new settlements would "dramatically reshape the West Bank and entrench the occupation even further".

Israel has built about 160 settlements housing some 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem - land the Palestinians want as part of a future state - in the 1967 Middle East war.

BBC

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Netanyahu accepts new truce plan as hopes rise for Gaza hostage deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly agreed to a new ceasefire proposal for Gaza, presented by US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. The development marks a potential breakthrough in efforts to halt the months-long conflict and secure the release of remaining hostages held by Hamas.

According to Israeli state broadcaster Kan, Netanyahu conveyed his government's acceptance of the US-brokered proposal during a closed-door meeting with families of hostages, some of whom are believed to be deceased. The Prime Minister's Office has not yet issued an official statement.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian militant group Hamas confirmed that it had received the proposal through mediators and is currently reviewing its contents.

Citing senior Israeli officials, Kan reported that the proposal outlines a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza in exchange for the release of 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 others, to be carried out in two phases. In return, Israel would release 1,236 Palestinian detainees, including the bodies of 180 Palestinians.

Notably, the agreement does not require Israel to permanently end its ongoing military campaign in Gaza but commits both parties to begin negotiations for a long-term truce. The United States, Egypt, and Qatar would act as guarantors of the proposed agreement.

Israel believes 58 hostages remain in Gaza, 20 of whom are thought to be alive. They were taken during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which triggered Israel’s full-scale offensive in the enclave.

Netanyahu accepts new truce plan as hopes rise for Gaza hostage deal | The Express Tribune

Israel says 58 hostages remain in Gaza, 20 alive, taken in Hamas attack on Oct 7 that sparked its Gaza offensive

tribune.com.pk

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Israel orders closure of al-Awda Hospital, a ‘lifeline’ in north Gaza

Israel has ordered the closure of al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza, leaving health officials scrambling to relocate dozens of people who remain at the medical facility, as deadly bombardment and starvation rack the besieged enclave.

At least 70 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks since the early hours of Thursday.

The Gaza Health Ministry called Israel’s push, which forced the hospital out of commission, a “continuation of the violations and crimes” against the medical sector in the territory.

Al-Awda was the last operating hospital in northern Gaza, according to health officials. Shutting down the hospital came amid continued Israeli forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, the latest order late on Thursday impacting large numbers of people north and east of Gaza City.

“The Health Ministry calls on all concerned sides to ensure protection for the health system in the Gaza Strip, as guaranteed by international and humanitarian laws,” the ministry said in a statement.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said 97 people, including 13 patients, are still at the hospital. The United Nations agency is planning a mission on Friday to transfer the patients to another facility.

Israel orders closure of al-Awda Hospital, a ‘lifeline’ in north Gaza

Dozens of people remain at the medical centre, the last functioning hospital in the north of the Palestinian territory.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[BouncerGuy]

Hamas official says it rejects new US Gaza ceasefire plan backed by Israel

A senior Hamas official has told the BBC the Palestinian armed group will reject the latest US proposal for a new Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal.

The White House said on Thursday that Israel had "signed off" on US envoy Steve Witkoff's plan and that it was waiting for a formal response from Hamas.

Israeli media cited Israeli officials as saying it would see Hamas hand over 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 dead hostages in two phases in exchange for a 60-day ceasefire and the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

The Hamas official said the proposal did not satisfy core demands, including an end to the war, and that it would respond in due course.

The Israeli government has not commented, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly told hostages' families on Thursday that he accepted Witkoff's plan.

Israel imposed a total blockade on Gaza and resumed its military offensive against Hamas on 18 March following the collapse of a two-month ceasefire brokered by the US, Qatar and Egypt.

It said it wanted to put pressure on Hamas to release the 58 hostages it is still holding, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

On 19 May, the Israeli military launched an expanded offensive that Netanyahu said would see troops "take control of all areas" of Gaza. The next day, he said Israel would also ease the blockade and allow a "basic" amount of food into Gaza to prevent a famine.

Almost 4,000 people have been killed in Gaza over the past 10 weeks, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

The UN says another 600,000 people have been displaced again by Israeli ground operations and evacuation orders, and a report by the UN-backed IPC warns that about 500,000 people face catastrophic levels of hunger in the coming months.

At a news conference in Washington DC on Thursday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked whether she could confirm a report by Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya TV that Israel and Hamas had agreed a new ceasefire deal.

"I can confirm that Special Envoy Witkoff and the president submitted a ceasefire proposal to Hamas that Israel backed and supported. Israel signed off on this proposal before it was sent to Hamas," she said.

"I can also confirm that those discussions are continuing, and we hope that a ceasefire in Gaza will take place so we can return all of the hostages home," she added.

However, a senior Hamas official later said the deal contradicted previous discussions between the group's negotiators and Witkoff.

The official told the BBC that the offer did not include guarantees the temporary truce would lead to a permanent ceasefire, nor a return to the humanitarian protocol that allowed hundreds of trucks of aid into Gaza daily during the last ceasefire.

Nevertheless, he said Hamas remained in contact with the mediators and would submit its written response in due course.

Earlier, Israel's Channel 12 TV reported the Netanyahu told hostages' families at a meeting: "We agree to accept the latest Witkoff plan that was conveyed to us tonight. Hamas has not yet responded. We do not believe Hamas will release the last hostage, and we will not leave the Strip until all the hostages are in our hands."

His office later issued a statement accusing one of the channel's reporters of trying to "smuggle" a recording device into the room where the meeting took place. But it did not deny that he had agreed to the US proposal.

Netanyahu has previously said that Israel will end the war only when all the hostages are released, Hamas is either destroyed or disarmed, and its leaders have been sent into exile.

Hamas has said it is ready to return all of those held captive, in exchange for a complete end to hostilities and full Israeli pull-out from Gaza.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response Hamas' cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

Another four people, two of them dead, were already being held captive in Gaza before the conflict.

So far, Israel has secured the return of 197 hostages, 148 of them alive, mostly through two temporary ceasefire deals with Hamas.

At least 54,249 people have been killed in Gaza during the war, including 3,986 since Israel resumed its offensive, according to the territory's health ministry.

On Thursday, at least 54 people were killed by Israeli strikes across Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency. They included 23 people who died when a home in the central Bureij area was hit, it said.

The Israeli military said it had struck "dozens of terror targets" over the past day.

BBC