• It is the 141st day of the war: over 29,600 people have been killed in Gaza. In Israel, 1,200 people died in the attack on October 7th
• USA: “Agreement on “general framework conditions” for the release of hostages”
• Netanyahu: “Total victory will come a few weeks after the Rafah operation”
• Palestinian Prime Minister submits his resignation to Abu Mazen
• Netanyahu's army unveils plan to evacuate civilians from Palestinian Authority Rafah: “Stop Israeli madness before it's too late.”
1:37 p.m. – An Israeli delegation in Qatar for talks on the agreement with Hamas
An Israeli delegation traveled today to Qatar, where Hamas has its political office, to work on the terms of a ceasefire for Gaza and a deal to release hostages with the Palestinian extremist movement, a source told Portal. Israel is under pressure from its main ally, the United States, to agree to a ceasefire soon to avert a threatened Israeli attack on Rafah, the last town at the southern end of the Gaza Strip, which is home to over half of the 2.3-strong population The enclave has sought refuge for millions of people. The source said the Israeli working delegation, made up of personnel from the army and the Mossad spy service, had been tasked with setting up an operations center to support the negotiations. Their job includes controlling the militants whose release Hamas is demanding as part of a hostage deal.
1:35 p.m. – Iran: “Israel will gain nothing by continuing the war in Gaza”
Israel will gain nothing by continuing the ongoing war in Gaza because “the resistance front” is militarily strong. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said this during a conversation in Geneva with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, on the sidelines of the 55th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR). . The head of Tehran's diplomacy expressed concern about “the desperate humanitarian conditions” in the Gaza Strip and explained that the United States is more likely to talk about how to reduce tensions than how to end the war, reflecting the lack of will of the Gaza Strip American side expressed an end to the conflict. According to reports from Irna, Spoljaric Egger praised Iran's political efforts to help end the war and expressed deep concern about the terrible humanitarian situation in Gaza and urgently send aid to the Gaza Strip.
1:12 p.m. – New Palestinian government by the end of the week
A new Palestinian Authority (PA) government could be formed by the end of this week. This was reported by Palestinian sources quoted by Asharq News, a Dubai-based broadcaster. This morning, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh announced his resignation in preparation for the post-war period, as U.S. and foreign pressure grows on the Palestinian Authority to reform with the aim of establishing post-war governance in the Gaza Strip to take over. Israel strongly rejects the idea, insisting on the need to maintain security control over the coastal enclave while handing management over to independent local officials.
12:00 p.m. – HRW: 2.3 million Palestinians die of hunger
“The Israeli government is starving the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, putting them in even greater danger than before the International Court of Justice’s binding order” on aid. This was reported by Omar Shakir, director of the Israeli-Palestinian division of Human Rights Watch. “The Israeli government – continues Shakir – simply ignored the ruling of the International Court of Justice and, in a way, even increased its repression by further blocking life-saving aid.” The humanitarian organization recalls how the court condemned Israel on January 26, 2024 due to the “catastrophic conditions” in Gaza to “take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance” and to report on compliance with the specific measures “within one month”. A month later, HRW finds that Israel continues to impede the provision of essential services, as well as the importation and distribution of fuel and life-saving aid into the Gaza Strip. According to the organization, these are acts of collective punishment that amount to war crimes and include the use of civilian starvation as a weapon of war.
11:56 a.m. – Lebanon: Two dead in Israeli attack on Baalbek
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) attack on the town of Baalbek, 67 kilometers from Beirut, Lebanon, claimed two lives. This was reported by the Lebanese newspaper “An Nahar”. Previously, media reported two raids in the area: the first near a grocery store; the second, near a house on the Adous plain. The IDF, in turn, announced on its Telegram channel that it was “currently attacking Hezbollah terrorist targets deep in Lebanon.”
11.32 a.m. – Trial between Israel and Turkey in The Hague: “We demand preventative measures”
“We demand that preventive measures be taken to stop Israel.” Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmet Yildiz made serious accusations against the Jewish state in The Hague today and called for the use of preventive measures to stop Israel in a hearing before the International Court of Justice To stop military operations in the Gaza Strip. “In this process we are discussing the violation of the 1948 Genocide Convention, violations to the detriment of the Palestinian people, which occurred both in the invasion of the territories of Palestine and in East Jerusalem.” “Israel has plunged Gaza into the darkness of a new Middle Ages,” Yildiz explained in court. “Israel’s attempt to change the status of some occupied territories cannot go unnoticed,” Yildiz said. The same applies to attacks directed against the Palestinian people.” The Turkish deputy foreign minister then declared that the UN Security Council had “failed” because it “did not take steps towards peace.” Ankara insists on a political process leading to the creation of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders; A solution that Yildiz today defines as “necessary for the coexistence of the two peoples.”
11:27 a.m. – Palestinian Authority: “Rafah? Stop the Israeli madness before it is too late.”
The Palestinian Authority rejects and “condemns” the plan announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to transfer Palestinian civilians to the Gaza Strip because “the aim is to restore Israeli occupation in the Palestinian enclave.” This was reported by the Palestinian agency Wafa. Palestinian Authority President Nabil Abu Rudeineh's spokesman once again accused the United States of its support for Israel, which “continues its aggression” against the Palestinians, calling for them to “act differently” and “stop this.” Israeli madness before it's too late.” Yesterday, Netanyahu's office confirmed that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had submitted to the War Cabinet its plan to relocate Palestinian civilians from potential conflict zones to Rafah, a southern Gaza city where millions are displaced have found refuge.
11:22 a.m. – Pastor of Gaza: “The streets have become cemeteries”
“The majority of the Christian community in the Gaza Strip continues to take refuge in the Catholic Church of the Holy Family in the Zeitoun district, just a few hundred meters from the Orthodox church where the relics of Saint Porphyry are kept.” This was announced by the parish priest of Gaza, Fr Gabriel Romanelli, the Fides service. Romanelli is in Jerusalem (he has not been able to return to Gaza since October 7) and celebrated Mass there today for Saint Porphyry, bishop of Gaza in the year 400. “Some Christian families – continues Father Romanelli – are in the south of the Gaza Strip are people of great faith, they wait and implore that this Way of the Cross, this Calvary of all citizens, ends with the liberation of all those deprived of their freedom on both sides and the injured, tens of thousands, more than 69,000 , are taken care of, and the dead are buried and we can cry on their graves.” The streets of Gaza have become cemeteries: “As soon as a piece of sandy land is available,” says Father Romanelli, “the dead will be buried there.” Gaza has more than 29,000 victims, including at least 12,000 children. Over 7,000 are missing. We – adds the priest – continue to pray and ask the international community, all authorities and everyone who has the power to do everything possible to stop this massacre. May this war, which harms everyone, both Israel and Palestine, not continue. We pray that Porfirio, with his intercession, can also bring a touch of justice and peace to this part of the Holy Land, the Gaza Strip.”
11:04 a.m. – Lebanon: Hezbollah, Israeli drone shot down that crossed border
The pro-Iranian Shiite party Hezbollah announced that it shot down an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) drone flying over Lebanese territory. The Islamist movement itself announced this on its Telegram channel. «In support of the Palestinian people of Gaza and (…) their brave and honorable resistance, the air defense unit of the Islamic Resistance (Hezbollah) shot down an Israeli Hormuz 450 drone (now Lebanese) at 09:20, Italian time 8: 20) on the morning of Monday, February 26,” the note reads.
11:01 a.m. – Lebanon: Israeli bombings in Baalbek, near Beirut
Israel is currently attacking “deep inside” Lebanese territory. This was announced by the military spokesman. The Lebanese media also writes that Israel today carried out the first airstrike in eastern Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, a stronghold of the Lebanese Hezbollah, since the conflict began with the same pro-Iranian armed movement on October 8. According to media reports, the airstrike targeted the outskirts of Baalbek, about 100 km northeast of the capital Beirut. It is the first time the city has been hit since clashes began between the IDF and the pro-Iranian Lebanese Shiite party Hezbollah following the attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on October 7, 2023. In fact, most clashes have been concentrated along the Israel-Lebanese border.
10:40 a.m. – Three dead in Israeli bomb attack on a house in Rafah
At least three Palestinians were killed in an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) bomb attack on a house in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, yesterday evening. This was reported by the Palestinian news agency “Wafa”, according to which the victims included a woman and a minor as well as several injured people.
10:03 a.m. – Sirens blared in various areas of the Golan
Sirens blared in several areas of the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan this morning. This was reported by the correspondent of the television channel “Al Jazeera”. On the Israeli side there is suspicion of drone infiltration from Syria. Sirens sounded in the Golan Heights and several areas in the Upper Galilee, Israel.
9:32 a.m. – Palestinian Prime Minister hands Abu Mazen his resignation
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayeh has “tendered his resignation” to President Abu Mazen. This was reported by Wafa, the official Palestinian agency.
8:54 a.m. – Israeli forces present Rafa evacuation plan
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has submitted to the War Cabinet a plan for the evacuation of Palestinian civilians from combat zones in the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip, Rafah, and its future operational strategy. This was announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, adding that the cabinet had approved the provision of humanitarian aid to the southern Gaza Strip “to prevent looting in the northern Gaza Strip and other areas.” Israel is pushing ahead with plans for a ground operation in Rafah, considered the last stronghold of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza and where around 1.5 million Palestinians have sought refuge since the start of the conflict. Last night, Netanyahu said an Israeli military operation in Rafah could be “slightly postponed” if an agreement on the hostage exchange and a ceasefire lasting a few weeks was reached.
8:19 a.m. – USA, the soldier who set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington dies
A US Air Force soldier set himself on fire in protest outside the Israeli embassy in Washington and died of severe burns. 25-year-old Aaron Bushnell organized his extreme protest by broadcasting the entire video live on Twitch. The dramatic scene was removed from the platform, but then reposted by thousands of users with the gesture “it's nothing compared to the suffering of the Palestinians.”
7:33 a.m. – Israel authorizes the direct import of aid north of Gaza
The Israeli war cabinet has approved the direct importation of humanitarian aid into the northern Gaza Strip. According to the presidency of the Council of the Jewish State, the aim is to prevent local residents from looting humanitarian convoys. Convoys are currently entering the Gaza Strip through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom border crossings in the southern part of the Gaza Strip and are having difficulty getting north, Haaretz points out. The Prime Minister's Office added in its statement that the IDF presented its plan to evacuate civilians from Rafah at a meeting last night to launch a ground operation in the area.
5:01 a.m. – USA: Pro-Palestine demonstrators at the Jewish Center in New York
For about two hours, numerous pro-Palestinian demonstrators in New York have been protesting in front of the Jewish Culture Center on 92nd Street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The area is patrolled by dozens of police officers, access to the center is blocked, barriers have been set up to keep people at a safe distance, while on the sidewalk outside, between 92 Street and Lexington Avenue, demonstrators shout pro-Gaza, anti- Joe Biden and anti-genocide while still flying Palestinian flags. There are no clashes at the moment. There is tension, but everything passes without incident.
02:18 a.m. – Washington, US soldier sets fire to the Israeli embassy live on Twitch: “Stop the genocide”
A US Air Force soldier set himself on fire in protest outside the Israeli embassy in Washington. Aaron Bushnell, 25 years old, which is the identity of the soldier spread by the US media, organized his extreme protest by broadcasting the entire video live on Twitch. Now the young man, who works as a software developer for the US Army, is in very serious condition in the hospital. The dramatic scene was removed from the platform, but then reposted by thousands of users with the gesture “it's nothing compared to the suffering of the Palestinians.”
The incident occurred at 3500 International Drive Northwest, the heart of the US capital's “diplomatic” district. In the video, Bushnell can be seen approaching the entrance to the US Embassy, managing not to arouse suspicion as he is wearing a combat uniform. The security officers asked if he needed anything, but at one point the soldier spilled gasoline on himself with a canteen and set himself on fire with a lighter. In the first part of the video, Bushnell had warned that he was about to stage a high-profile protest, mentioning the “massacre” of thousands of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces in response to the October 7 massacre of more than 1,200 Israelis have been killed by Hamas militants and many women and girls have been raped. CNN recalls that a similar incident occurred last December, when a man set himself on fire in front of the Israeli consulate in Atlanta, in what local police described as an “extreme act of political protest.”
1:40 a.m. – The Israeli army presents a plan to evacuate Rafah
The Israeli army presents a plan to “evacuate” civilians from “combat zones” in the Gaza Strip. This was announced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office. The plan comes ahead of Israel's announced offensive in Rafah, a crowded city in the southern Palestinian territory that Netanyahu describes as the “last stronghold” of the Islamist movement Hamas.
00:24 – Hamas: “We are still far from Israel on the ceasefire and the withdrawal of the IDF”
Despite minor adjustments, Israel has not fundamentally changed its position on a possible ceasefire in Gaza and the withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) from the Palestinian enclave, which remain the two main points of contention in the negotiations over the release of Israeli hostages. A senior Hamas official told the Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese television channel Al Mayadeen. “There are some new adjustments on contentious issues between Hamas and Israel, but Israel has not made any significant changes to the terms of the ceasefire and military withdrawal from the Gaza Strip,” the official said. “These two issues are critical and non-negotiable for Hamas and the Palestinian resistance groups,” he said. The official also added that the ratio of released Palestinian prisoners to Israeli hostages has “changed” and now varies “between three and thirteen prisoners.”
1:40 a.m. – Netanyahu wants the most dangerous Palestinian prisoners to be released and go to Qatar
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for the transfer of all maximum-security Palestinian prisoners to Qatar, who would be released in exchange for hostages held in the Gaza Strip under a deal with Hamas. This was reported by Channel 12 and explained that the request was formulated after the Paris summit at the weekend and not during it.