- 23:05: ➤ Israel warns Hezbollah sternly – the militia is “playing with fire”
- 9:12 p.m.: Israeli army announces evacuation of babies from Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza
- 7:15 pm: Head of Hezbollah talks about the increase in attacks on Israel with new weapons
- 5:12 pm: Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza remains under heavy fire
- 3:45 pm: Syrian President Assad calls for action in the Gaza war
- 3:10 p.m.: Iran’s president accuses archenemy Israel of the “most brutal crimes.”
- 2:36 pm: Army: takes control of eleven Hamas military posts
- 1:45 pm: Special Arab-Islamic summit begins in Riyadh on the situation in Gaza
➤ Israel warns Hezbollah sternly – militia is ‘playing with fire’
In light of continued attacks from its northern neighbor, Israel issued stern warnings to Lebanon on Saturday night. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had alerted the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah. “Don’t make the mistake of going to war. That would be the mistake of your life”, said the head of government. “Your entry into the war will seal the fate of Lebanon.”
Israeli Defense Minister Joav Galant said that on his country’s northern border, “provocations turned into aggression.” He warned: “Hezbollah is playing with fire.”
Galant emphasized that the majority of the Israeli Air Force is no longer involved in the Gaza Strip. The aircraft’s noses are now pointing north. “The citizens of Lebanon should know that if (Hezbollah leader Hassan) Nasrallah makes a mistake, the fate of Beirut could be like the fate of Gaza.”
Since the start of the Gaza war on October 7, following a Hamas massacre in Israel and subsequent Israeli counterattacks, the situation on the border with Lebanon has continued to deteriorate. It is the worst escalation since the second Lebanon war in 2006.
There are repeated clashes on the border between the Israeli army and Hezbollah. There were deaths on both sides, including civilians. Mutual attacks are reaching deeper and deeper into the other country day by day.
Hezbollah has links to Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip, but is considered much more influential and powerful. It is also considered Iran’s most important non-state ally and is part of the self-proclaimed “Axis of Resistance”, a front of militias with the aim of fighting Israel, Iran’s arch-enemy.(dpa)
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Balance of power in the Middle East: US/Israel allies, Iran allies © dpa-infografik GmbH
More news about the war in the Middle East from November 11th:
Israeli army announces evacuation of babies from Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza
The Israeli army announced its help in the evacuation of children from the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip, Al-Shifa Hospital, in Gaza. Clinic staff asked the military “to help move the babies from the pediatric ward to a safer hospital tomorrow,” army spokesman Daniel Hagari said Saturday night. “We will provide the necessary support.”
Israeli medical organization Doctors for Human Rights Israel had previously reported that two premature babies died due to power cuts in the neonatology intensive care unit at Al-Shifa Hospital and that another 37 premature babies were “in real danger to their lives.”
Surgeon Mohammed Obeid confirmed the deaths of the two newborns and reported that an adult patient also died when his ventilator failed. “We want someone to give a guarantee that they can evacuate the patients, because we have about 600 hospitalized patients,” he said in an audio message released by the aid group Doctors Without Borders.
Witnesses at the hospital told AFP news agency by telephone that there was continuous gunfire, airstrikes and artillery fire near the hospital complex. Gunshots and explosions could be heard throughout the day on a live AFP camera installed near the hospital.
Israel has repeatedly accused radical Islamist Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, of using hospitals as hideouts and command centers and abusing civilians as human shields, which the militant Palestinian organization denies.
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Hezbollah chief talks about increasing attacks on Israel with new weapons
The Islamic Hezbollah militia in Lebanon has increased its attacks on Israel and is using new types of weapons, according to its leader Hassan Nasrallah. In recent days, the number of attacks has increased, as has the number of targets attacked, Nasrallah said in a televised speech on Saturday. In addition, Hezbollah first used combat drones and “Burkan rockets” with a bomb load of 300 to 500 kg and guided surveillance drones into northern Israel.
Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned Hezbollah against starting a war against Israel. “If she makes this kind of mistake, it will be Lebanese citizens who will pay the price,” Gallant said, according to his office, on Saturday during a visit to troops on Israel’s northern border: “What we do in Gaza, we can also I do in Beirut.”
Since the war between Israel and radical Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip began on October 7, military clashes on the border between Lebanon and Israel have increased. There is international concern that Hezbollah, which is supported and heavily armed by Iran, could enter the war against Israel.(afp)
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Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza remains under massive fire
In the war against radical Islamist Hamas, Israel faces growing demands to protect civilians in the Gaza Strip, while fighting increases around hospitals in the Palestinian territory.
Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza city came under heavy artillery fire on Saturday night and was left without power for hours, said its director, Mohammad Abu Salmija. Other hospitals were also affected.
“We received calls about dozens of deaths and hundreds of injuries from air and artillery attacks, but our ambulances could not leave because of the shelling,” said hospital director Abu Salmija. He called on the international community to pressure the Israeli government “to stop attacking hospitals and ambulances.” Al-Shifa Hospital is the largest and most important hospital in the Gaza Strip.
The humanitarian organization “Doctors Without Borders” said on Saturday morning on the online service X, formerly Twitter, that “attacks on Al-Shifa Hospital have increased dramatically in the last few hours”. She spoke of a “catastrophic” situation at the facility. (AFP)
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Syrian President Assad calls for action in Gaza war
Syrian leader Bashar Al-Assad called for action in the Gaza war at a special Arab-Islamic summit.
“If we do not have real influence, all our movements and speeches will be meaningless,” Assad said at the meeting in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Saturday. He called for Arab unity to combat what he described as “Zionist cruelty and massacres.”
It was one of his first appearances at an international meeting since the start of the civil war in his country. After about a decade of isolation, Assad only returned to an Arab League summit in March.
The Arab League suspended Syria’s membership in 2011 after Assad’s government brutally repressed protests in the country. This evolved into a civil war with international involvement that continues to this day and has so far resulted in more than 300,000 civilian deaths. (dpa)
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The president of Iran accuses archenemy Israel of the “most brutal crimes”.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi harshly criticized Israel at the special summit of Arab and Islamic states on the Gaza war.
“We are here to make a historic decision on one of the most important issues in the Islamic world and one of the most brutal crimes against humanity,” Raisi said in a speech at the summit in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Saturday.
Raisi called for an immediate end to attacks on Gaza and the opening of an aid corridor to allow the transport of food and medicine to the civilian population. Furthermore, Islamic states should sever their political and economic relations with Israel.
Iran views Israel as its archenemy. He supports both the Palestinian Islamic organization Hamas and the Shiite Hezbollah militia in southern Lebanon, which has increased its attacks on Israel in the wake of the war in Gaza. (dpa)
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Army: takes control of eleven Hamas military posts
The Israeli armed forces claim to have taken control of eleven military posts from Hamas since the beginning of their ground operations in the Gaza Strip. The army has also killed other suspected terrorists in the coastal area in recent days and destroyed their tunnels, rocket launchers, weapons depots and observation posts, the military said.
The military also killed a high-ranking member of Hamas. Ahmed Siam is said to have already stopped around 1,000 Palestinians from fleeing to the south of the Gaza Strip at Rantisi Hospital in the north. The information could not initially be independently verified.
Palestinian extremists fired rockets from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel again on Saturday. According to the army, rocket alarms were triggered several times in border towns. (dpa/thp)
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Special Arab-Islamic summit begins in Riyadh on the situation in Gaza
Heads of state from Arab and other Islamic states discussed the Gaza war at an extraordinary summit in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Saturday. “We demand an immediate ceasefire,” said Saudi Crown Prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman at the start of the special summit.
Humanitarian corridors to Gaza must be protected. The only solution to achieve stability in the region is to end the occupation, settlements and siege, said the Crown Prince, referring to Israeli actions. At the same time, he demanded the release of all hostages and innocent people.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said at the outset: “Our Palestinian people face the most terrible and brutal aggression and even an unprecedented war of annihilation.” Gaza is an integral part of Palestine. Any political solution must encompass the entire Palestinian territory, including the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza.
The president of Iran, Ibrahim Raisi, also participates in the summit. It is Raisi’s first visit to the kingdom since the resumption of diplomatic relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Additionally, Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad arrived in Riyadh for the summit.
It is one of his first appearances at an international meeting since the civil war broke out in his country. After about a decade of isolation, Assad only returned to an Arab League summit in March. (dpa/thp)
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Israel announces “tactical pause” and two escape routes in Gaza
On Saturday, the Israeli army once again promised residents of the north of the disputed Gaza Strip two safe escape corridors to the south. A “tactical pause” in fighting was also announced for the Jabalia refugee district.
“Military activities” will be suspended in the northern district of the coastal strip between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm (9:00 am to 1:00 pm CET) for “humanitarian purposes”, the military announced Saturday on Platform window of time to move south of the coast.
According to information, the Army wants to provide safe conduct for a total of seven hours on a route that has already been used in the past. “For your safety, join the hundreds of thousands of residents who have moved south in recent days,” an army spokesperson wrote in Arabic on X. Additionally, people could also have a second route on the coast to escape to the south. , continued.
The army also asked civilians to contact them if Hamas prevented them from escaping. The military provided, among other things, a telephone number. (dpa)
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Scholz: Israel must remain a safe place for Jews worldwide
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) emphasized the importance of Israel as a safe place for Jews. “And it is important that the whole world knows that this place exists,” he added on Saturday, on the sidelines of a two-day congress of the Party of European Socialists (PES) in Málaga, southern Spain.
“That’s why our solidarity with Israel must be clear. Hamas’ terrible and barbaric attack on Israeli citizens, on children, on the elderly, on young people participating in a festival, the humiliation that was filmed there, that is something we will I will never accept it”, said the Social Democrat.
At the same time, everything must be done to prevent an escalation of the conflict and to provide the necessary humanitarian aid to the population of the Gaza Strip. (dpa/thp)
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London is preparing for a demonstration in Gaza with hundreds of thousands of participants
London police are preparing for a large-scale pro-Palestinian demonstration with hundreds of thousands of participants. Organizers expect around 500,000 protesters to take part in Saturday’s rally in the British capital. That would make this one of the biggest political protest marches in British history.
Protesters planned to march from downtown Hyde Park to the US Embassy at noon, demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Almost 2,000 police officers are on duty. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called on protesters to behave peacefully and respect Britain’s commemoration of the Second World War on Armistice Day.
On the anniversary of the First World War armistice in 1918, politicians and the Royal Family traditionally remember the war dead at the Cenotaph war memorial in the city center.
Several conservative politicians called on the London police to ban the pro-Palestinian demonstration, so as not to overshadow the celebration. But the authority rejected this, citing the law. A call to voluntarily resign from the rally was silenced. (dpa/thp)
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Report: BKA records more than 2,700 crimes related to Hamas attacks
According to a media report, the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) recorded more than 2,700 crimes related to the attack on Israel by the Islamist Hamas.
These mainly involve material damage, incitement to hatred and crimes of resistance, as stated by the BKA according to “Welt am Sonntag”. The number of violent crimes is in the “mid-three-digit range.”
Internet buzz has also increased significantly. According to the newspaper, since October 7, the number of reports of anti-Semitic content or anti-Semitism explicitly related to Israel on the “Hessen gegen Incitement” platform operated by the Ministry of State for the Interior has quadrupled compared to previous months. .
There have been 350 reports with anti-Semitic content since October 7th. 192 of them would have criminal relevance. Previously, around 80 complaints were registered per month. According to information, “Hessen gegen Hetze” forwards cases to the BKA or the Central Office for Combating Internet Crime (ZIT) in Frankfurt am Main. (afp/thp)
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Updated November 10, 2023, 1:51 pm
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called on Israel to immediately stop attacks with particularly explosive weapons in densely populated areas in the Gaza Strip. (Photo credit: photo alliance/KEYSTONE/MARTIAL TREZZINI)
Baerbock on Saudi Arabia crisis negotiations
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock continued her two-day crisis talks on the Gaza war in Saudi Arabia. On Saturday she met with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in the capital, Riyadh.
At the same time as the Green Party politician’s visit, he was in the city for an emergency Arab League meeting on the Gaza war. Saudi Arabia currently presides over the league’s 22 member countries. The meeting was called at the request of the Palestinians.
Following the conversation with Al Thani, a meeting was planned between the Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs and Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud. On Friday evening, Baerbock met with Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. She then flew to Riyadh.
Like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are seen as potential influential mediators, for example when it comes to the release of Hamas hostages and a future peace solution. From Riyadh, Baerbock wanted to travel to Israel around noon (local time). (dpa/thp)
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Netanyahu rebuts Macron’s ceasefire
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu contradicted French President Emmanuel Macron and considers Hamas, which governs there, solely responsible for the suffering of the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.
“While Israel does everything in its power to spare civilians and urges them to leave combat zones, Hamas uses them as human shields and does everything to prevent them from leaving for safer areas,” wrote Netanyahu on Saturday on the X news platform.
Macron had already called for a ceasefire. “Civilians, babies, women and the elderly are being bombed and killed. There is no justification for attacking civilians. We call on Israel to stop this,” Macron said in an interview with the British television channel BBC. “I would like to remind everyone of international law, I call for a ceasefire.” (dpa/thp)
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WHO: 20 of 36 hospitals in the Gaza Strip are no longer in use
In the Gaza Strip, 20 of the 36 hospitals are no longer functioning due to heavy bombing, destruction and lack of medical supplies. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported this on Friday in Geneva.
Even hospitals that were still operating were operating only in emergency mode because many did not have enough disinfectants and anesthetic preparations or electricity to provide normal care to patients. Hospitals that are still operating sometimes have twice as many patients as beds, said WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris.
The WHO received reports of intense fighting around Shifa Hospital on Friday. “But we don’t have any information about damage,” Harris said. Shifa Hospital is the only one with a children’s ward. There are children in the intensive care unit and others who need dialysis. An interruption in their care would be life-threatening. (dpa/thp)
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Erdogan: Israel is questioning its own legitimacy with its actions
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israel of expansionism in view of the war in Gaza. Israel is trying to “build a state whose history goes back only 75 years and whose legitimacy is questioned by its own fascism,” he said in Ankara.
When the state was founded in 1948, Israel “forcibly appropriated the land where the Palestinian people had lived for thousands of years,” Erdogan continued. The conservative Islamic politician has repeatedly supported the Palestinians in the past and blamed Israel for the decades-long conflict in the Middle East. (dpa/thp)
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With material from dpa and AFP
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