By Elena Salvoni
Published: 08:20, October 25, 2023 | Updated: 11:33, October 25, 2023
The IDF says it “thwarted” Hamas divers as they attempted to enter Israel by sea
The IDF has released footage showing Hamas divers being picked off as they attempt to enter Israel by sea.
The Israeli military said it had identified at least two terrorists as they tried to gain access to the Zikim area, north of the Gaza Strip.
The IDF says it has “no patience for nonsense” on Lebanon’s northern border as fighting with Hezbollah continues
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner of the IDF said his troops have “no patience for nonsense” on Lebanon’s northern border as fighting continues with the Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah.
“Hezbollah has aggravated the situation on the northern front with Lebanon and there is concern that the northern front itself, from Syria to Lebanon, will increase its hostility towards Israel,” he told Sky News.
Speaking about the night’s attacks on Syria, he also said that Israel sees the border with Lebanon and Syria as “one big front.”
In the picture: Israeli soldiers and tanks wait for deployment on the northern border with Lebanon
Turkish President Erdogan cancels his visit to Israel
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan will no longer visit Israel as planned and has criticized the country’s war against Hamas.
In a speech to Parliament he said:
- Hamas is not a terrorist organization, but a liberation group waging a fight to protect its country.
- He criticized Western support, saying: “Tears shed for Israel are an expression of betrayal.”
IDF shares note “found on Hamas terrorist.”
Video: Israeli airstrikes hit complex with ten residential buildings in the Gaza Strip
Israeli opposition leader asks: “How many Jews have to die before you stop blaming us for everything that happens?”
Fourth aid convoy with 20 trucks enters Gaza, aid official says
- A fourth convoy of 20 aid trucks arrived in Gaza from Egypt early this morning, an aid official said.
- The Palestinian Red Crescent and UNRWA received the aid, said Khaled Zayed, the head of the Egyptian Red Crescent in North Sinai.
Pictured: Members of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society distribute aid to people in the town of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip
Turkey says Israeli ground operation in Gaza will lead to massacre
An Israeli ground operation in the Gaza Strip would turn the fighting there into a massacre, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said.
In a press conference with his Qatari counterpart in Doha, Fidan said that those who support Israel’s actions under the pretext of solidarity are “accomplices in its crimes.”
Pictured: Clouds of smoke billow over the northern Gaza Strip after Israeli air strikes
According to UNICEF, child victims in Gaza are a “stain on our collective conscience.”
- The United Nations Children’s Fund has said it is deeply concerned by the high number of child victims in Gaza.
- During the course of the conflict, 2,360 children were reportedly killed and 5,364 injured, UNICEF said last night.
Adele Khodr, Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said:
The situation in the Gaza Strip is increasingly weighing on our collective conscience. The number of deaths and injuries to children is simply shocking.
Even more frightening is the fact that the daily death toll will continue to rise if tensions are not eased and humanitarian aid is not allowed.
Pictured: Destroyed buildings across the Gaza Strip after another night of intense Israeli bombing
The head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah met with leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad to discuss what their alliance must do to “win a real victory for the resistance,” the group said.
Israeli police say they have arrested 110 people and charged 17 with inciting violence related to Hamas attacks
The baby was safely delivered by cesarean section after her pregnant mother’s apartment was hit by an Israeli missile
Navine Abu Owdah’s home in Khan Younis was hit by an airstrike yesterday, seriously injuring the pregnant 30-year-old.
Owdah was quickly rushed to the nearby al-Amal Hospital, where doctors thankfully managed to deliver a healthy baby girl.
“A caesarean section was performed in the emergency room and their baby girl, who is in good condition, was delivered,” said Dr. Salim Saqer.
The mother, who has suffered multiple fractures and is suffering from abdominal bleeding, remains under observation and is receiving treatment.
The United Nations warns: “There is no safe place in Gaza today” as people are forced to sleep on the streets due to Israeli airstrikes
Israel to block visas for UN officials after secretary-general says Hamas attacks ‘did not happen in a vacuum’
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations said his country would deny visas to officials after Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said “Hamas’ attacks did not take place in a vacuum.”
“Because of his statements, we will refuse to issue visas to UN representatives,” Gilad Erdan told Army Radio this morning.
“We have already denied a visa to Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths,” Erdan said, adding: “It is time to teach them a lesson.”
More than 100 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank since the Gaza war began
- More than 100 Palestinians have been killed across the occupied West Bank since war broke out between Israel and Hamas on October 7, the Health Ministry said.
- Many of the deaths occurred during raids by Israeli troops. Authorities in Ramallah said the Palestinians were killed by Israeli “bullets and rockets.”
- There has also been a rise in violence between Palestinians and Israeli settlers, with both civilians and fighters killed on both sides.
The war is costing Israel over £200 million a day, says the Chancellor of the Exchequer
- Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the war against Hamas was costing around 1 billion shekels (over 200 million pounds or $245 million) a day.
- He said the state budget was “no longer relevant” and would be changed because the country was in a war situation.
- He was unfazed by S&P Global’s downgrade of Israel’s outlook from “stable” to “negative.”
The IDF claims it killed a senior Hamas commander in an attack on the southern Gaza Strip
Pictured: Teddy bears with pictures of children taken hostage by Hamas are displayed in Tel Aviv as families demand their release or rescue
Minister says government disagrees with UN chief over ‘violations of humanitarian law’ in Gaza
Home Secretary Robert Jenrick said the government did not agree with UN chief Antonio Guterres’ assessment that “clear violations of international humanitarian law” had been committed in Gaza.
If he is referring to the events of the last two weeks, we do not believe that Israel has violated international law. In international law there is a clear right for a nation to defend itself, and that is exactly what Israel is doing.
We want Israel to surgically degrade and eradicate Hamas wherever it is practically possible – and that is immensely difficult. That’s what they’re trying to do, and of course we hope they succeed because the world will be a better place… it would be a blessing if we could rid the world of Hamas.
“Horrible scenes” in Gaza make hell “look like a tea party,” Helfer says
Dr. Mads Gilbert from the Norwegian Relief Committee waits to enter the Gaza Strip with relief supplies from Egypt.
He spoke to the BBC about the “terrible scene” his colleagues witnessed in the bombed enclave:
- “Imagine a hospital with 5,000 to 15,000 civilian refugees, overcrowded with patients in need of surgical care, and then the lights go out,” he said.
- He said the stress of the bombing caused premature labor in pregnant women.
- Poor sanitation and lack of clean water and food make disease outbreaks likely.
- Critical equipment malfunctions and the doctors must deal with their own grief and fear as they deal with the bombing.
- He added: “It makes Dante’s Inferno look like a tea party.”
Pictured: Palestinians assess the destruction wrought by Israeli airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip overnight
Good morning and welcome to our live blog
Here’s what you need to know as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict enters its 19th day:
- Israel launched an intensive bombardment of the southern Gaza Strip overnight, with Hamas claiming at least 80 people were killed
- Eight Syrian military personnel have been killed in an Israeli airstrike on the country, according to Syrian state media
- The UN agency caring for the Palestinians has said it will have to suspend operations this evening due to fuel shortages
- British minister Robert Jenrick said Britain is “not demanding a ceasefire” in the Middle East
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken Blinken has called on UN Security Council members to consider “humanitarian pauses” in the conflict
- Remarks by UN chief Antonio Guterres that Hamas’ October 7 attacks “did not take place in a vacuum” continue to spark anger in Israel
Israel-Hamas war LIVE: Fourth aid convoy enters Gaza – as UN warns its aid operations must end tonight
