Gaza Confrontation
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Live Reporting
UK shoots down drone targeting commercial shipping in Red Sea
British defence minister Grant Shapps said on Saturday that a navy ship HMS Diamond shot down a suspected attack drone targeting merchant shipping in the Red Sea.
"HMS Diamond shot down a suspected attack drone which was targeting merchant shipping in the Red Sea.
Al Jazeera cameraman killed in Gaza by drone strike on school
A cameraman for Al Jazeera was killed by a drone strike on Friday while reporting on the earlier bombing of a school used as a shelter for displaced people in the southern Gaza Strip, the Arabic broadcaster said.
Cameraman Samer Abu Daqqa was unable to get to safety or medical treatment after being injured in the strike on the Farhana School in Khan Younis and died of his wounds before ambulances were allowed in the area.
Israel, Qatar explore revival of deal for Gaza hostages
Israeli and Qatari officials were set to meet in Norway on Saturday in an effort to revive talks about the release of hostages held in Gaza in return for a ceasefire and the freeing of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Palestinian media reports dozens killed in Israel airstrikes
GAZA (Reuters) - Dozens of Palestinians were killed in Gaza on Saturday in air strikes by Israel, Palestinian media said, after the US urged Israel to scale down its military campaign and narrowly target Hamas leaders.
At least 14 people died from strikes that hit two houses on Old Gaza Street in Jabalia, and dozens were killed in a strike that hit another home in Jabalia, the official WAFA news agency said.
The Palestinian agency reported a large number of civilians were trapped under rubble.
Iran says it has executed a ‘Mossad spy’
Iran says it has executed a person in its southeastern Sistan and Baluchistan province over charges for spying for Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad.
The individual, who has not been identified, was executed this morning for “knowingly gathering classified information” and handing them over to foreign intelligence services, especially the Israeli spy agency, according to the official news outlet of the Iranian judiciary.
The person was reportedly tried and convicted for his intelligence gathering “with the goal of disturbing the country’s order and propaganda in favour of groups and organisations opposed to the Islamic Republic”.
Journalists under attack in Israel’s war on Gaza
At least 59 Palestinian journalists have been killed since the Israel-Hamas war began more than two months ago.
Al Jazeera’s cameraman Samer Abudaqa is among the 59, and the latest Palestinian journalist to be killed by Israel. Many others have been wounded, including Wael Dahdouh, Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau chief whose family was killed in an earlier Israeli attack.
At least seven non-Palestinian journalists have also been killed, including four Israelis and three Lebanese.
Shipping firms suspend Red Sea traffic after Yemen rebel strikes
DUBAI (AFP) – Two of the world's largest shipping firms, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, said Friday they were suspending passage through a Red Sea strait vital for global commerce, after Yemeni rebel attacks in the area.
The Iran-backed Huthis, who control much of Yemen but are not recognised internationally, say they're targeting shipping to pressure Israel during its two-month-old war with Palestinian Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
The maritime tensions have added to fears that the Gaza conflict could spread.
Palestinian fighters retaining degree of ‘tactical effectiveness’ in Gaza: Think tank
Palestinian fighters are attempting to lure Israeli forces into “tactically sophisticated” ambushes in Gaza where they continue to do battle behind Israel’s line of advancement in the north of the Palestinian territory and are confronting Israel’s advances in the south.
The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington, DC-based think tank, said “house-borne” improvised explosive devices, minefields and anti-tank traps are among the dangers encountered by Israeli troops.
Israel’s “forces encountered a tactically sophisticated Hamas ambush involving a speaker system set up outside a tunnel system that runs through civilian infrastructure, including a school, clinic, and mosque,” the think tank said in its later battlefield assessment.
“Israeli forces identified anti-tank positions and a minefield during the operation. The ambush demonstrates that Hamas retains a degree of tactical effectiveness that allows its fighters to undertake complex tactical tasks,” it said.
Attacks from Houthi-controlled Yemen hit two ships
DUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) - Attacks from Houthi-controlled Yemen struck two Liberian-flagged ships in the Bab al-Mandab Strait on Friday, the U.S. military said, underlining the threat to vessels in shipping lanes being targeted by the Iran-aligned group.
Danish shipping company A.P. Moller-Maersk said it would pause all container shipments through the Red Sea until further notice. German container line Hapag Lloyd said it was considering a similar move.
A drone struck one of the Liberian-flagged vessels, the Al Jasrah, causing a fire which was eventually extinguished, U.S. Central Command said.
Protesters call for new talks on captives after Israel’s military kills 3 Israelis held in Gaza
Reuters news agency reports that hundreds of people took part in protests in Tel Aviv after the Israeli military announced it had mistakenly killed three captives being held in Gaza by Hamas.
Images on Israeli television showed large crowds gathering and blocking a main street in the city.
“I would say that he [Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] is responsible for everything that is happening … that happened, and is still happening,” protester Ilana Zeffren told Reuters.
“He has blood, a lot of blood on his hands, and he should resign now, and let people that are responsible and care … and care for this country, unlike him, to take over, and get this war over with and get all the kidnapped people back home now,” Zeffren said.
Protester Gori Parnes said: “A deal should have been made much, much earlier. And all those lives of all the innocent people could have been spared. I think it’s a big tragedy what is happening here now.”
Palestinian fighters retaining degree of ‘tactical effectiveness’ in Gaza: Think tank
Palestinian fighters are attempting to lure Israeli forces into “tactically sophisticated” ambushes in Gaza where they continue to do battle behind Israel’s line of advance in the north of the Palestinian territory and are confront Israel’s advance in the south.
The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington DC-based think tank, said “house-borne” improvised explosive devices, minefields and anti-tank traps and are among the dangers encountered by Israeli troops.
Israel’s “forces encountered a tactically sophisticated Hamas ambush involving a speaker system set up outside a tunnel system that runs through civilian infrastructure, including a school, clinic, and mosque,” the think tank said in its later battlefield assessment.
“Israeli forces identified anti-tank positions and a minefield during the operation. The ambush demonstrates that Hamas retains a degree of tactical effectiveness that allows its fighters to undertake complex tactical tasks,” it said.
Israeli armed forces killed 3 hostages by mistake -spokesperson
GAZA (Reuters) - The Israeli military mistakenly killed three hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas during an incident which is "under review", a military spokesperson said on Friday.
The military said the hostages were killed during combat with militants in Gaza and expressed its condolences to the families while saying there would be "full transparency" in the investigation into the incident.
A statement from the military said that during an intense battle in Gaza it "identified three Israeli hostages as a threat". "As a result, the troops fired toward them and they were killed."
US envoy hints at disagreement with Israel over timing to scale down war
CAIRO/GAZA (Reuters) - The United States hinted on Friday at disagreement with Israel over how quickly to scale down the war in Gaza, with President Joe Biden's national security adviser saying such timing was now the subject of "intensive discussion" between the allies.
With intense ground fighting having expanded this month across the length of the Gaza Strip and aid organisations warning of a humanitarian catastrophe, Biden said at the start of the week that Israel risked losing international support because of "indiscriminate" air strikes killing Palestinian civilians.
Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, visited Israel on Thursday and Friday, and U.S. officials briefed journalists that he was carrying a message to Israel to scale down the broad military campaign and transition to more narrowly targeted operations against Hamas leaders.
