• It is the 131st day of the war: Over 28,600 people are killed in Gaza. In Israel, 1,200 people died in the attack on October 7th.
• Israel: “Two-state option? This is no time for gifts for the Palestinians.”
• The Houthis claim a British ship was attacked
• OK from the Knesset for the bill against UNRWA in Israel
• Blink: “A hostage deal is possible”
11:09 a.m. – ActionAid: “Hunger crisis on an unprecedented scale” in Gaza
The hunger crisis in Gaza has reached “unprecedented proportions” as the population has also run out of food for animals. The tragic alarm was raised today by the NGO ActionAid. “An unprecedented and entirely avoidable food crisis” has left “every single person in the region suffering from extreme hunger,” we read in a statement from the organization, which warns: “As grim as the picture is, so is the situation If Israel continues its plans for a military operation in Rafah, the situation will become significantly worse.
11:03 a.m. – The Israeli army continues operations at Nasser Hospital
The Israeli army continues to operate at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunisi as part of a “precise and limited operation against the terrorist organization Hamas.” The military spokesman said the operation was based on “intelligence information indicating that Hamas activities are being carried out from the hospital.” The source confirmed that “over 20 terrorists involved in the October 7 massacre have been arrested so far and dozens of suspects have been detained for questioning.” “Mortar shells, grenades and other Hamas weapons were found in the hospital area,” he continued.
10:03 a.m. – Israeli attack on Lebanon, 5 Hezbollah and Amal men killed
Five fighters from Hezbollah and its ally the Amal Movement were killed in Israeli raids in southern Lebanon last night, the two groups announced. The attacks come after escalation in the border region, where firefights between Israel and Hezbollah have intensified in recent days. According to the official national news agency (Ani), the Israeli Air Force carried out attacks on five villages in the south of the country during the night. The Shiite Amal Movement, led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, regretted the death of three of its members who were killed during the raid on a house in Al-Qantara village. Hezbollah, for its part, announced the deaths of two of its fighters. This brings the number of members of the powerful Iranian-backed and armed movement killed since Wednesday to twelve.
9:55 a.m. – Middle East: Shiite factions in Iraq claim to have attacked Israel in the Golan Heights
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a coalition of pro-Iranian Iraqi militias, has claimed responsibility for a drone strike on an Israeli military target in the Golan Heights. In a statement published on their Telegram channel, the same factions said: “The bombing was carried out in support of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and in response to the massacres carried out by Israel against Palestinian civilians.”
9:29 a.m. – Moscow organizes conference with Hamas and Islamic Jihad
Russia has invited 14 Palestinian factions, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, to take part in an intra-Palestinian conference to be held in Moscow from February 29 to March 2. This was stated by Special Envoy for the Middle East Mikhail Bogdanov, quoted by the Tass agency.
9:19 a.m. – Power outage at Nasser Hospital, 3 die in intensive care
Three patients died in the intensive care unit of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip as a result of a power outage caused by the Israeli army operation. “We hold Israeli occupation forces responsible for the lives of patients and staff, considering that the complex is now under their full control,” the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said in a statement. “We appeal to all international institutions to intervene quickly to save the patients and staff of Nasser Hospital before it is too late,” the ministry added, explaining that two women gave birth in “inhumane” conditions without Electricity, water and heating.
9:08 a.m. – The US opens an investigation into the deaths of two Palestinian-American boys
The United States has launched an independent investigation into two shootings by Israeli security forces that reportedly killed Palestinian-American boys last month. Investigators from the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem visited the crime scene and the victims' homes, took statements from families and collected evidence for a report. One of the deaths the Americans are investigating is that of 17-year-old boy Muhammad Ahmed al-Khadour, who was born in Florida and shot last Saturday while driving a car with his cousin near his village. The second death is that of 17-year-old Tawfik Hijazi, who was hit in the head by a bullet during a clash with soldiers near Ramallah in January.
9:06 a.m. – Poll: Netanyahu would lose the elections if the vote were taken now
If we voted today, Israel's political landscape would fundamentally change. This is once again underlined by the latest survey by the newspaper Maariv, which on the one hand confirms Netanyahu's election loss and predicts a landslide victory for the centrist Benny Gantz, but on the other hand also predicts the departure of, for example, Bezalel Smotrich from the Knesset of the currently ruling radical right leader. According to the poll, the current opposition, which includes Benny Gantz – who nevertheless agreed to become a minister in the current war cabinet – would win 76 out of 120 seats, compared to 44 for the right-wing opposition led by Netanyahu: a deficit of 32 representatives .
8:59 a.m. – Israeli Ambassador Schutz: “The misunderstanding with the Vatican? An error in the translation”
(Gian Guido Vecchi) VATICAN CITY – “Unfortunately my Italian is poor to non-existent, our everyday work is in English.” The word we used in the original statement was unfortunate and I stand by it. As for the most accurate translation into Italian, I leave the word to those who are bilingual.” Raphael Schutz, Israel's ambassador to the Holy See, glosses over it with caution. On Wednesday, an embassy statement called Cardinal Pietro Parolin's statement on the ongoing “carnage” in Gaza “deplorable.” Yesterday's clarification: The adjective regrettable “could have been translated more accurately as 'unfortunate'.” In diplomatic language, these are important nuances. Read the full interview here.
8:42 a.m. – At least 25 rockets were fired by Hezbollah at Kiryat Shmona
At least 25 rockets were fired by Hezbollah at Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel in the evening. The army announced this, saying that the artillery responded by attacking the areas from which the rockets were fired across the border. The collapse of a power pylon hit by a rocket left parts of the city and the surrounding area in darkness.
08:08 – Another Israeli soldier dies in Gaza
The Israeli army has announced the death of another soldier killed in fighting in the southern Gaza Strip. The military spokesman announced this and added that it was Noam Haba (20 years old). The number of soldiers killed since the ground operation began in the Gaza Strip now stands at 234.
5:16 a.m. – Media, six dead in Israeli bombing in Rafah
Six people were killed by Israeli shelling near Rafah. This is reported by the Jerusalem Post, citing Arab media.
4:53 a.m. – Israel, media: Hundreds of Palestinians are working on the wall to the Gaza Strip
Hundreds of Palestinian workers from the West Bank are working in Israel to help build a new barrier along the Gaza Strip border, despite the Israeli security cabinet prohibiting them from doing so, the Ynet news site reports, citing eyewitness accounts from Israeli defense IDF soldiers stationed in the region . According to Ynet, Palestinian workers are engaged in engineering work on breakthroughs in the fence, which was damaged in dozens of places at the start of the war against Hamas. Israel's Defense Ministry responded to the rumors by saying that only four Palestinians are working on the project, stating that it is hiring contractors “in accordance with the security guidelines, classification and sensitivity of the work” and that the workers are from a group Palestinian-origin workers were “granted permission to work on essential projects” for Israel.
3:13 a.m. – Biden to Netanyahu, no Rafah offensive without civilian protection
American President Joe Biden called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and reiterated US opposition to an attack on Rafah “without protection for Palestinian civilians.” The White House announced this in a statement. Biden, we read in the US statement, “reiterated that the military operation cannot continue without a credible and implementable plan to ensure the security and support of the civilian population in Rafah.” The American president and Netanyahu also discussed ongoing negotiations for the release of Israeli hostages still in the hands of Hamas, the White House added.
2:05 a.m. – Gaza, Guterres condemns Israeli raid on Khan Yunis hospital
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned yesterday's Israeli raid on the Khan Yunis hospital complex. “We reiterate that hospitals must be kept away from combat and not subjected to military action.” “Any kind of military action against a hospital must be condemned,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric told international media.
1:55 a.m. – Gaza, 12 dead in Israeli attack on Nuseirat refugee camp
At least twelve people died yesterday in an Israeli airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp in the center of the Gaza Strip. This was announced by a spokesman for Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, citing international media. Ten of the victims were women and children, the source said.
1:52 a.m. – WHO, conditions in Gaza are hellish
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in an interview with CNN that the health situation in Gaza had deteriorated “indescribably.” Ghebreyesus reiterated his call for a permanent ceasefire, saying conditions in Gaza were “hellish.” “I reiterated our grave concern about a possible major attack on Rafah that would cause unimaginable suffering,” he added.
1:17 a.m. – Netanyahu, Israel rejects dictate over Palestinian state
After speaking with US President Joe Biden, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement in the middle of the night emphasizing that Israel would not be pressured to accept a Palestinian state. Israeli media reported on this. “My positions can be summarized in the following two sentences: Israel categorically rejects international dictates regarding a permanent agreement with the Palestinians. “This agreement will only be reached through direct negotiations between the parties without preconditions,” Netanyahu said in a post on October 7 Massacre would be an enormous reward for unprecedented terrorism and would hamper any future peace agreement.”
00:39 – «WSJ»: «Egypt builds fence for displaced people from Gaza»
Egypt is building a kind of mega-fence with high walls in the Sinai Desert near the border in case there is an exodus of displaced Palestinians. Egyptian officials told the Wall Street Journal, saying that in the event of a large influx of Palestinians from Gaza, Egypt would try to limit the number of refugees to around 50,000 to 60,000 people, far below the territory's capacity. However, Egyptian authorities deny that they are building the project.
For weeks, Egypt has been trying to strengthen security on the border by deploying soldiers and tanks to keep the Palestinians out. More than 100,000 people could be housed in the new camp surrounded by concrete walls, Egyptian officials said, adding that a large number of tents that had not yet been erected had also been delivered to the site. Cairo has been trying for weeks to prevent a wave of refugees crossing the Egyptian borders and, after the offensive against Hamas, is even threatening to withdraw from the ten-year peace treaty with Israel if that happens.
The fact that Cairo is now moving forward with contingency plans signals that the Egyptian authorities see this danger getting ever closer. The governor of North Sinai has denied reports of the construction of a refugee camp for Palestinians, saying the activity in the area was part of a project to inventory homes destroyed during Egypt's military campaign against Islamic State extremists in the area.
00:34 – Gaza, media: 8 dead in Israeli raid on Rafah and Jabalia
The Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that at least six people died and several others were injured in an Israeli shelling that hit a house in the Al-Nasr neighborhood of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in the early hours of today. Two more people died yesterday evening in a raid by Israeli forces on two houses east of Jabalia in the north of the Palestinian enclave.
Another Israeli bomb attack on a vehicle and a group of people in the city of Gaza killed at least three people and injured several others in recent hours, according to Wafa. According to the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Ministry, the total death toll in Gaza since October 7 is at least 28,663 dead and 68,395 injured.
00:34 – Gaza, media: 8 dead in Israeli raid on Rafah and Jabalia
The Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that at least six people died and several others were injured in an Israeli shelling that hit a house in the Al-Nasr neighborhood of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in the early hours of today. Two more people died yesterday evening in a raid by Israeli forces on two houses east of Jabalia in the north of the Palestinian enclave.
Another Israeli bomb attack on a vehicle and a group of people in the city of Gaza killed at least three people and injured several others in recent hours, according to Wafa. According to the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Ministry, the total death toll in Gaza since October 7 is at least 28,663 dead and 68,395 injured.