1:40 p.m
Death toll in Gaza rises
The Hamas government’s Health Ministry says at least 6,546 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the war with Israel began. At least 2,704 children were among the victims. That toll is up by more than 750 deaths compared to Tuesday, as Israeli bombings have increased sharply in the past 24 hours. The ministry also reported 17,439 injuries.
12:50
AFP publishes new report on foreign victims
Many foreigners have been killed, taken hostage or disappeared since the attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against Israel on October 7, the press agency recalled today. The US, France and Thailand are the most affected foreign powers:
31 Americans were killed, the White House announced a week ago. 13 others are missing and President Joe Biden assured that there were Americans among the Hamas hostages. An American woman and her daughter were released on Friday.
30 French were killed according to the Quai d’Orsay. President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that nine French or French-Israeli people were hostage or missing, revising the number upward. Mia Shem was the only person whose name is public in a video released by Hamas on October 16.
30 Thais died and 19 were kidnapped, according to the Thai government. Note that around 30,000 Thais work in Israel, where they work primarily in agriculture.
Ukrainians and Russians also paid a high price: 19 Ukrainians and 19 Russian-Israelis were killed.
12:41
The IDF announces that it has killed two people who tried to enter Israel
The Israeli army announced that it killed two Palestinian terrorists who were trying to enter the Jewish state through a tunnel in the Zikim region – a kibbutz in southern Israel – last night, Israeli daily Haaretz reports.
12:01
The Turkish president cancels his visit to Israel
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that he would “cancel” all his travel plans to Israel despite the recent rapprochement between the two countries. “We were planning to go to Israel, but that was canceled. “We will not leave,” the head of state declared in front of parliament, who met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the first time in New York in September.
I shook hands with this man, we had good intentions, but he took advantage of us
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
“Relationships could have been different, but unfortunately that will no longer happen.” “You will not find another state whose army behaves so inhumanely,” he added of Israel’s retaliation in Gaza in response to the bloody Hamas attack on January 7 October added.
In a vicious speech, Recep Tayyip Erdogan assessed that the Palestinian group was not a terrorist organization, but that its members represented a “group of liberators protecting their land.”
Also read: Between Israel and Hamas, Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s uncomfortable position 11:55
UNRWA counts 600,000 displaced people in the Gaza Strip
“Today there is no safe place in Gaza,” says Philippe Lazzarine, head of UNRWA, about 150 emergency shelters set up by UNRWA in the Palestinian territory. But the infrastructure exceeds its capacity four times and many people sleep on the streets.
In the courtyard of a school converted into accommodation by UNRWA, October 25, 2023 – © MAHMUD HAMS / AFP
11:47
Lebanon: Meeting between Hezbollah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad
In Lebanon, the leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah met with leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad to discuss ways to support those Palestinian movements in their war with Israel, the pro-Iranian movement says, without specifying a date or date. Location of this meeting, between the Secretary General of Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah, the number two of Hamas Saleh al-Arouri and the leader of Islamic Jihad Ziad al-Nakhala. The three formations are part of the pro-Iranian “axis of resistance” against Israel and coordinate their actions with other Palestinian, Syrian, Iraqi and other factions.
11:24
Emmanuel Macron will meet the Egyptian President in Cairo
French President Emmanuel Macron continues his trip to the Middle East in Cairo on Wednesday. There he met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi after meeting King Abdullah II of Jordan in Amman that morning.
French President Emmanuel Macron meets King Abdullah II of Jordan on Wednesday October 25th. — © Nicolas Messyasz / keystone-sda.ch
He already visited the occupied West Bank on Tuesday to visit Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and also show his support for the Palestinian people. He wants to reactivate the “two-state solution,” one Palestinian and one Israeli, which seemed to have become obsolete in recent years amid the progressive normalization of relations between Israel and neighboring Arab countries. “There can be no lasting peace if the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to a state is not recognized,” he said.
Also read: In Israel, Emmanuel Macron wants a “merciless fight” against Hamas, “but not without rules” 10:55
“Strange”, “unreasonable”: The French press criticizes Emmanuel Macron’s surprise proposal against Hamas
The French president wants an international military coalition against Hamas. This idea surprises the media and overshadows the French president’s calls to restart the political process to end the war between Israel and Hamas.
Our press review.
10:36
Hamas appears to have reduced its use of cryptocurrencies
The United States and Israel have increased efforts to track Hamas’s funding through virtual currencies since the war began. The terrorist organization’s known addresses no longer appear to be as active as before.
“Since the beginning of the war, we have seen much less activity, largely because Israel has been very aggressive in reducing these fundraising efforts,” said Ari Redbord, responsible for global policy issues at TRM Labs, a company that specializes in tracking illicit cryptocurrency funds.
View the full report.
10:02
Four times more homeless people in Gaza
According to the United Nations Palestine Refugee Agency (UNRWA), emergency shelters are now four times larger than expected, housing more than 600,000 internally displaced people in 150 facilities.
🔺Almost 600,000 internally displaced people find refuge in 150 @UNRWA Facilities.
🔺Our shelters are FOUR TIMES over capacity – many people are sleeping on the streets as current facilities are overwhelmed.
🔺At least 40 @UNRWA Installations are affected. pic.twitter.com/2nHuZBSN7T
— UNRWA (@UNRWA) October 25, 2023
The agency said on social media that at least 40 UNRWA facilities had been hit by airstrikes. She added that “many people are sleeping on the streets because current facilities are overwhelmed.”
08:38
reaction
Israel-Hamas: Mr. Macron, this is not a war, it is an abyss
A two-state solution, a “political perspective”… Some of the expressions used on Tuesday during President Macron’s visit to Israel show how difficult it is to understand what the October 7 collapse means for Israelis and Palestinian means.
Read our editorial .
08:36
According to the IMF, the war between Israel and Hamas is “already having an impact” on the regional economy
The war between Israel and Hamas is already having an impact on the economies of neighboring countries, said the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at an investor forum in Riyadh. “Look at the neighboring countries: Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, where the effects are already visible,” said Kristalina Georgieva.
07:51
The Hamas government reported 80 deaths overnight
The Hamas government says at least 80 people were killed in Israeli strikes in various areas of the Gaza Strip on Tuesday night. These attacks also left hundreds injured, according to a statement from the Palestinian Territory Government Media Office.
07:31
in The Field
From one end of Tel Aviv to the other: the collision of stories
Overwhelmed with grief after the Hamas attack, Jewish Israelis are demanding revenge, while Palestinians in Israel who have family in Gaza fear for their loved ones.
Read our report: From one pain to another in Tel Aviv
07:18
UN aid to Gaza is still threatened with a standstill, and discussions about a humanitarian “pause” are intensifying
Talks are intensifying today over a humanitarian “ceasefire” or “pause” in the Gaza Strip, where the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) may have to suspend operations in the evening due to fuel shortages.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on the Security Council on Tuesday for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” and condemned the “clear violations of humanitarian law” in the Palestinian territories, which are under constant bombardment and where aid is scarce. These comments sparked strong reactions from Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen. “Mr Secretary General, what world do you live in?” he asked.
However, “humanitarian pauses” must be “considered” in the fight to provide aid, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the Security Council, while President Joe Biden assessed the aid deliveries as “not fast enough”.
05:55
Three dead in Israeli attack in West Bank
Three people were killed and several others injured in an Israeli attack near the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, Palestinian media reported. “An Israeli plane fired at least two rockets at a group of people near Jenin camp, killing three people and wounding several others,” Palestinian news agency Wafa said, citing local sources. The Israeli military said in a statement it had been conducting “anti-terrorism activities” in the area but did not mention any casualties.
02:49
S&P downgrades Israel’s rating outlook
Ratings agency S&P Global Ratings announces that it is lowering Israel’s credit outlook from “stable” to “negative,” citing the risk of an expansion of the conflict and its possible impact on the economy, which “affects Israel’s credit indicators.” “Israel more negative than expected.”’ “We currently expect the conflict to remain focused on Gaza and not last longer than three to six months,” S&P added.
S&P’s decision to change Israel’s “AA-” rating outlook to negative comes less than a week after ratings agencies Moody’s and Fitch put Israel’s long-term debt rating – currently at A1 – under scrutiny for possible deterioration. S&P expects Israel’s GDP to contract 5% in the fourth quarter compared to the third quarter before recovering in early 2024.
02:24
The Israeli army says it has carried out air strikes in Syria
The Israeli army said it struck targets in Syria in response to Tuesday’s shootings. “Israeli Army warplanes attacked military infrastructure and Syrian Army mortar launchers in response to the shooting in Israel yesterday,” the Israeli Army said in a statement. A spokesman said the attacks took place inside Syria.
02:23
The events on Tuesday
Here you will find our follow-up to the events of October 24, 2023.