Palestine-Israel war
Live Reporting
Palestinians denounce Israeli executions in occupied West Bank
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the executions are further proof that Israel wants to escalate tensions during the holy month of Ramadan.
“In 24 hours, the Israeli occupation has killed six Palestinians, including children. These are war crimes and crimes against humanity according to international law,” it says in a statement.
“The political and military echelon has enabled soldiers and settlers to shoot at Palestinian citizens who do not endanger them in any way. It is obvious that this escalation is proof that the governing coalition is adding fuel to the fire to expand the cycle of violence.”
Israel must be stopped from ‘dragging entire region into war’
Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry said it will file a complaint at the UN Security Council over Israel’s increasing attacks on the country which have, in recent days, stretched deeper into its territory.
In a statement cited by the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation, the ministry said Israel’s attacks have grown increasingly “violent”, killing and injuring numerous innocent civilians within residential areas.
“What is particularly concerning is that this escalation is occurring in areas far from the southern Lebanese borders, indicating Israel’s desire to escalate the conflict and drag the entire region into a war,” said the ministry’s statement.
It urged “the international community to pressure Israel to halt its continuous escalating attacks, and once again calls for the condemnation by all members of the Security Council of Israeli attacks against Lebanon”.
EU to announce $8bn in aid to Egypt
Fearing economic fallout in Egypt from the Gaza war, the EU is putting together a 7.4 billion euro ($8.08bn) aid package for Cairo, according to a Financial Times report.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will head to Cairo on Sunday, along with the Greek, Italian and Belgian PMs, to formally announce the funds, the report added.
Egypt’s economy, already in crisis before the Gaza war, has taken a further hit as Israeli attacks edge closer to its border with Rafah and tensions spiral in the Red Sea.
This has led to a drop in tourism and Suez Canal revenues, two of Egypt’s major sources of foreign exchange.
Two people hospitalised after Bethlehem checkpoint stabbing
The stabbing attack took place at a checkpoint several kilometres southwest of the city centre, quite close to Bethlehem, on the road travelling into Jerusalem.
An Israeli police spokesperson said the alleged attacker was “neutralised”. We don’t know the condition of that individual.
We do know that a 19-year-old and a 25-year-old were brought to a hospital here in Jerusalem for treatment for minor to moderate stab injuries, according to Israeli medical services.
This is the second stabbing incident at the same checkpoint since the start of the war on Gaza. The last was in November when five people were wounded.
Israeli military claims to kill 8 Palestinian fighters in Gaza
Israeli forces say they have “intensified” their operations within Khan Younis, engaging in heavy gun battles with fighters there.
Over the past 24 hours, the Israeli military said its troops exchanged fire with seven Palestinian fighters who were “barricaded inside a compound” in the Hamad City complex in Khan Younis, killing several of them.
An Israeli air strike killed the remaining fighters within the compound, a statement added.
A separate Israeli air strike in the central Deir el-Balah region killed another Palestinian fighter, the military said.
Israel’s latest round of strikes has also killed and injured dozens of civilians throughout Gaza, including four children in Gaza City’s Daraj neighbourhood, reports the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Displaced Syrians keep keys to their homes, like Palestinian refugees
Some Palestinians displaced by Israel’s war on Gaza hold on to keys from their damaged or destroyed homes as a symbol of returning to their land one day.
For many, it’s a tradition that their grandparents started during the Nakba, which means “catastrophe” in Arabic, in 1948.
In Syria, 13 years after the start of the country’s civil war, many of the thousands who have been displaced also keep the keys to the homes they were forced out of – just as Palestinian refugees do.
Greek military ship shoots at 2 drones in the Red Sea
A Greek military frigate, part of the EU’s naval mission in the Red Sea, has shot at two drones in order to push them back, a Greek defence official has said.
The EU launched its naval mission, dubbed Aspides, in February in response to the growing threat of Houthi attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis have said they are carrying out the attacks in response to Israel’s war on Gaza, and have pledged to increase their intensity during Ramadan.
Israeli soldiers shoot Palestinian during alleged stabbing attack
Israel police say that a Palestinian was “neutralised” after he allegedly stabbed two Israelis at the “Tunnel” military checkpoint near Bethlehem.
It is not clear if the Israelis were settlers or soldiers.
We will bring you more on this as soon as we can.
Israeli raid on Jenin camp ends, leaving behind death and devastation
Israeli forces have withdrawn from the refugee camp in the occupied West Bank after killing two Palestinians and destroying homes and infrastructure.
Health officials identified the two men as Rabi’ al-Noursi and Mahmoud Abu al-Heija.
Footage shared online shows bulldozed roads, destroyed homes and downed electric poles as well as burst water pipes.
According to a Quds news report, verified by Al Jazeera, an Israeli military force opened fire towards Khalil Suleiman Governmental Hospital.
Israeli soldiers targeted a group of citizens standing in front of the hospital’s emergency department, injuring a number of them. Two of them succumbed to their wounds later.
Decision to prepare Israeli prisons for more Palestinians a ‘dangerous escalation’
Muthafar Thouqan, coordinator of the committee to support Palestinian prisoners, says Netanyahu’s order to prepare jails for an influx of thousands of inmates is part of an Israeli plan to take in more detainees from Rafah but also the occupied West Bank.
“Not only does it affect the morale of detainees – as it causes overcrowding and spread of diseases – it also shows there are premeditated intentions to invade Rafah, which is housing more than 1.5 million people,” Thouqan told Al Jazeera.
On Sunday, we reported that Netanyahu ordered government ministries to prepare prisons for more detainees.
According to the Israel Prison Service, the number of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails has risen to about 9,000.
Thouqan says 12 Palestinians have died in detention since October 7 “due to torture and medical neglect”.
Is Israel hoping to escalate hostilities with Hezbollah in Lebanon?
As fighting between Israeli forces and Lebanon’s Hezbollah group escalates, some analysts worry that Israel may turn its full focus to the Lebanese front if a ceasefire is established in Gaza.
“Israel made it clear that once they are done with Gaza, they will turn their attention to the north,” Hilal Khashan, a professor of political science at the American University of Beirut, said.
“They want Hezbollah away from their border [be it] diplomatically or militarily. They’ve been clear on this matter.”
Fear, grief, anguish on Berlin’s ‘Arab Street’ as Israel levels Gaza
Since late last year, hundreds of people have been taking to the streets in Berlin’s borough of Neukoelln to protest against Israel’s war on Gaza. The protests – centred around Sonnenallee or Arab Street – have allegedly been followed by police crackdowns described by pro-Palestinian demonstrators as shocking and violent.
One woman who arrived in Germany in 2015 seeking refuge from Syria, said she was arrested at a demonstration recently.
“[Neukoelln] was always a political space for me, a place where a lot of people with a very unstable resident status could live,” the 27-year-old said.
“It was a shock for me to witness such a level of police violence. Authorities were not taking into consideration that this is an area where people are getting news about their family being killed in Gaza, it’s somewhere they want to express their grief and anger.”
EU foreign policy chief says Israel using starvation as ‘weapon of war’
Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, has said the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is “not a natural disaster” and has accused Israel of using starvation as a “weapon of war”.
“This is a man-made crisis,” Borrell told the UN Security Council on Tuesday. “When we look for alternative ways of providing support by sea or by air, we have to remind that we have to do it because the natural way of providing support to roads is being closed – artificially closed – and starvation is being used as a war arm.”
Gaza war: How Biden adopted call for 'ceasefire' without shifting policy
WASHINGTON (Agencies) - The US says it is seeking a ‘ceasefire’ for a limited time, but Palestinian rights advocates want a lasting end to the war. Cheers erupted when United States Vice President Kamala Harris called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza earlier this month.
But while her words seemed to echo calls for an end to Israel’s war, critics say she fell short of announcing a real policy shift.
US troops depart for mission to build Gaza aid port
JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS (United States) (AFP) – Four US Army vessels departed a base in Virginia on Tuesday carrying about 100 soldiers and equipment needed to build a temporary port on Gaza's coast for urgently needed aid deliveries.
The first -- a hulking gray-painted watercraft known as a Logistics Support Vessel -- slowly churned away from the pier at Joint Base Langley-Eustis as "The Imperial March" from "Star Wars" played over its loudspeaker system.
