by Lorenzo Cremonesi, correspondent and online editor
The news from Monday, December 25th, on the conflict between Israel and Hamas, live. According to the Strip's Ministry of Health, the number of victims is likely to rise given the large number of families living in the Al-Maghazi refugee camp.
• 79th day of the war: According to Hamas, more than 20,400 Palestinians were killed, including around 8,000 children. In Israel, 1,200 people died in the attack on October 7th.
• Netanyahu: We won't stop until we win.
• Egypt proposes a three-phase plan to end the conflict and release the hostages.
2:46 p.m. – Netanyahu says the war in Gaza is not over and fighting is intensifying
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war in Gaza was far from over and dismissed what he called false speculation in the media that his government might end the fight against Hamas. We don't stop. “We continue to fight, and we will intensify the fighting in the coming days, and the fighting will last a long time and is not yet near the end,” he said.
2:27 p.m. – Thirty thousand people, eight schools, one clinic: the Al Maghazi camp, hit by Israeli bombs at Christmas
Christmas Eve is also one of the bloodiest in the 80-day war between Israel and Hamas. A bomb attack by the Jewish State's army hit the Al Maghazi refugee camp, located in the center of the Gaza Strip, south of the Wadi Gaza River, identified by Israel as the line that separates the northern part of the Gaza Strip – from what has now become the Majority of the population has fled – and the south; and is located just a few kilometers from two other refugee camps, Nuseirat and Bureji. Al Maghazi camp is one of the eight camps in the Gaza Strip, and like the others, it is also operated by UNWRA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees), which describes it as one of the smallest camps in the Gaza Strip, both in terms of size as well as in terms of size and population. Read the full article here.
2:25 p.m. – Hamas and Islamic Jihad reject Egypt's plan
Hamas and Islamic Jihad (PIJ) have rejected an Egyptian proposal to hand over power in the Gaza Strip to a technocratic Palestinian government in exchange for a permanent ceasefire. This was said by two Egyptian security sources cited by Portal, referring to the three-phase plan promoted by Cairo together with Doha to end the conflict and release all Israeli hostages.
12:37 p.m. – Israel denies visas to two UN officials
The Israeli Foreign Ministry was ordered to deny a visa extension to a UN employee in Israel and to reject the visa application of another UN official. This is what the Foreign Minister of Tel Aviv wrote in a contribution to the terrible crimes of Hamas. Israeli Minister Eli Cohen ordered the State Department not to grant a senior United Nations official a visa and to deny entry to another staff member, the post said.
12.34 p.m. – Save the Children, attack on Maghazi, another horror episode in Gaza
The attack on the Maghazi camp is another horror episode in Gaza. Families and children are not targets and must be protected. To put an end to this tragedy, an immediate and definitive ceasefire is required. #savethechildren #stopthewaronchildren. Save the Children writes it on X.
12:28 p.m. – Israel: Confirmation of attack on Maghazi refugee camp
The Israeli army has begun reviewing the airstrike carried out yesterday evening in the Maghazi refugee camp in the central part of the Gaza Strip. The military radio reported it. Meanwhile, Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee (speaking in Arabic) returned today to call on the population in the central part of the Gaza Strip to move away from the fighting areas, which are currently focused on Khan Yunis and the Sallah-A artery. Dyn. For those attempting an evacuation, Adraee has provided an itinerary online that runs from the central sector to Deir al-Balah and from there along the sea to Rafah at the southern end of the Gaza Strip.
12.20 p.m. – Alarm in northern Israel, roads closed on the border with Lebanon
In many places in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, roads are closed to traffic. The Jerusalem Post writes that it reports on measures in place until further notice in connection with the increase in tensions between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah. The various locations affected by the new regulations include Kiryat Shmona, Metulla, Margaliot and Ramot Naftali. The IDF confirmed that it had carried out airstrikes against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon last night and this morning. At the beginning of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, and with tensions between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah, many Israelis living near the border with Lebanon left their homes.
12:18 p.m. – Pope, pain for Gaza, freeing hostages, ending the war
Get closer to Israel and Palestine, where war is shaking the lives of these populations. I embrace them all, especially the Christian communities of Gaza, the parish of Gaza and the entire Holy Land. I carry in my heart the pain of the victims of the heinous attack of October 7th and renew an urgent appeal for the release of those still held hostage. This is what Pope Francis says in the traditional Christmas message to the faithful before giving the Urbi et Orbi blessing. I implore that the military operations, with their frightening consequences of innocent civilian casualties, be stopped and that the desperate humanitarian situation be resolved by allowing aid. Let us not continue to foment violence and hatred, but rather strive for a solution to the Palestinian issue through a sincere and persistent dialogue between the parties, supported by a strong political will and the support of the international community, the Pope urged.
11:46 a.m. – Rummaging through the rubble in the Maghazi refugee camp
They are also digging with their bare hands through the rubble in the Maghazi refugee camp, which Hamas said was hit by an Israeli attack yesterday that left at least 70 dead. There were still injured people and bodies lying under the rubble, a spokesman for Al-Aqsa Hospital told Al Jazeera. The images show entire buildings being gutted and dozens of bodies being recovered sealed in plastic bags.
11:21 a.m. – More bombings
In southern Gaza, an AFP correspondent reported heavy shelling in Rafah and Khan Younis overnight, the Guardian reports. In the north, live footage from AFPTV on Monday morning showed a long plume of smoke stretching across the horizon. Jonathan Conricus, an Israeli military spokesman, announced yesterday that the armed forces are close to taking operational control of the northern Gaza Strip. He said the Israeli army would now concentrate its efforts against Hamas in the south of the Gaza Strip.
9:51 a.m. – Iran to Pope Francis: Stop the massacre in Gaza
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi appealed to Pope Francis in a Christmas message to stop the massacre in Gaza. Due to the lack of decisive action from international organizations, we have seen the deaths of over 17,000 people. “I hope that there will soon be an international initiative to stop the killing of innocent civilians in Gaza,” the Iranian president wrote in his message to the Pope.
9:46 a.m. – Israel raises the state of alert on the border with Lebanon
The Israeli army today further increased the state of alert on the border with Lebanon and closed large parts of the Upper Galilee to traffic. Checkpoints have been set up at around ten major road junctions, including in Sasa, Baram, Banyas and Naftali. The capitals of the Upper Galilee, Kiryat Shomona and Metulla, are completely deserted. Many buildings were damaged by the fire from Lebanon. Since the start of the war, 80,000 Israelis living near the border with Lebanon have had to be evacuated. Their representatives reiterate that they will not return to these locations until Hezbollah is removed from the border area.
8:57 a.m. – The ceasefire proposed by Egypt
A seven to ten day ceasefire in the conflict and the release of all civilians held by Hamas in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners. These are some of the conditions of the ceasefire proposal put forward by Egypt in the Gaza war, according to various media reports. Other elements of the agreement include the release of all female soldiers in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and a seven-day ceasefire, followed by a month-long negotiation for the release of all military personnel held by Hamas in exchange for many more prisoners and Israel's withdrawal to the borders of Gaza . An Israeli War Cabinet meeting is scheduled for that day to discuss Cairo's proposal.
8:26 a.m. – United Nations, 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza
The UNFPA (United Nations) is seriously concerned for women and girls in Gaza, including the approximately 50,000 pregnant women – 5,522 of whom are expected to give birth next month. According to a statement from the United Nations Population Fund. The escalation in the Gaza Strip – according to a statement from the UNFPA – is progressing rapidly, with more than half of the population forced to leave their homes and seek refuge in UN shelters, schools, hospitals or with relatives .
8:10 a.m. – The Israeli army bombs Hezbollah targets in Lebanon
The Israeli army has bombed Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon. This was reported to Jazeera. In particular, it should be noted that targets were hit in the village of Aita al-Shaab. There was no immediate comment from the IDF on the attacks, but they came amid repeated skirmishes on the border between Israel and Lebanon. According to The Times of Israel, Hezbollah has carried out daily attacks with rockets, missiles and drones in northern Israel, while the IDF has responded with attacks on sites and agents of the Lebanese terrorist group.
7:10 a.m. – Israel, bodies of five kidnapped soldiers recovered in Jabalia
The Israeli army has dismantled the Hamas tunnel structure in the northern Gaza Strip, with Jabalia in the center, where the bodies of five hostages whose deaths had already been confirmed were found. In recent weeks, the 551st Brigade of the 162nd Division has secured control of the Jabalia camp area, one of Hamas's operational centers in the Gaza Strip, an army statement said. There were also fierce battles during the operations, with many terrorists killed by soldiers and hundreds of weapons found, Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said. The bodies found correspond to those of the three soldiers captured on October 7th, Ziv Dado, Ron Sherman and Nick Beiser, as well as civilians Eden Zacharias and Elia Toledano. As part of the operation and after extensive intelligence, they discovered a network of strategic tunnels that served as Hamas's headquarters in the northern Gaza Strip, the army said. Jabalia's underground base included two levels: the first about ten meters deep and the second tens of meters deep. The tunnel network with numerous routes was used to control the fight and movement of terrorists. Weapons, weapons manufacturing infrastructure and emergency hideouts were found deep in military barracks, the army added. The network was connected to a well that led to the residence of Hamas' Northern Brigade commander Ahmad Andur and also ran beneath a school and a hospital.
10:17 p.m. – Hamas: The number of victims of the attack on Al-Maghazi has risen to 70 dead
The Health Ministry of the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip said at least 68 people were killed in an Israeli raid on several houses in the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in the center of the strip. Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said the number of martyrs of the Al-Maghazi massacre has so far risen to 70, after explaining that an apartment block was destroyed in the raid and that the number of victims was increased given the large number of those living there Families will probably increase.
In another incident, ten family members were killed in a raid on Jabalya camp, according to the ministry.
December 25, 2023 (modified December 25, 2023 | 3:21 p.m.)
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