29 minutes ago
Red Cross in contact with Israeli and Hamas officials
The International Committee of the Red Cross said it was working with representatives of both Israel and Hamas, urging the release of prisoners held by the Palestinian militant group and an end to the suffering of civilians.
“We are in contact with both Hamas and Israeli officials to gain access to individuals who have been deprived of their liberty. We demand the unharmed release of hostages,” the agency said in a post on X, previously known as Twitter.
Hamas kidnapped Israeli civilians in a bloody attack on Saturday. In response, Israel has launched a full siege of the Gaza Strip and cut off deliveries of electricity, fuel, water and food to the enclosed region.
“If electricity goes out in Gaza, hospitals will also lose power, endangering newborns in incubators and elderly patients receiving oxygen… Without power, hospitals risk turning into morgues,” the Red Cross said in a statement Thursday .
Access to electricity in Gaza has been a problem since the region’s only operating power plant ran out of fuel on Tuesday. Some Gazans have access to backup generators, but these also require fuel.
— Ruxandra Iordache
47 minutes ago
Blinken arrives in Israel
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Tel Aviv, Israel.
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said on Tuesday that Blinken would meet with Israeli officials and offer condolences to the victims of the Palestinian militant group Hamas’ multi-pronged terrorist attacks over the weekend.
“He will also discuss measures to strengthen Israel’s security and underscore the United States’ unwavering support for Israel’s right to self-defense,” Miller said.
On Thursday, Palestine Liberation Organization Secretary General Hussein al-Sheikh said said on X, previously known as Twitter, said Blinken will meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday. The US State Department has yet to confirm this appointment.
As a historic supporter of Israel, the US has strongly condemned Hamas’ attacks, with US President Joe Biden calling them “pure atrocity” on Wednesday.
“I would argue it is the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust,” Biden said at the time.
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
“No one will preach morality to us” in Gaza, says Israeli minister
No one will “preach morality” to Israel on humanitarian grounds over the siege of the Gaza Strip, Israeli Energy and Infrastructure Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday.
“Humanitarian aid for Gaza? No electric switch will be turned on, no water hydrant will be opened and no tanker truck will enter until the Israeli abductees are returned home. Humanitarian for humanitarian. And no one will preach morality to us.” he said in a Google-translated post on the social media platform Xformerly known as Twitter.
Earlier this week, Israel declared a total siege on the Gaza Strip following terrorist attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas. It is no longer possible to supply the approximately 2.3 million people in the region with food, water, fuel and electricity.
The United Nations has expressed concern about the well-being of civilians following these restrictions, and the United States has mentioned the possibility of a humanitarian corridor for the people of Gaza.
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
Death toll rises
At least 1,200 Israelis have been killed in Israel since the multi-pronged terrorist attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas over the weekend, according to the latest update from Israel Defense Forces spokesman Jonathan Conricus. Israeli public broadcaster Kan increased that number to 1,300 on Thursday. Inconsistencies have previously been identified in the reporting of various official bodies.
A combined 1,232 people were killed in the West Bank and Gaza Strip following airstrikes by Israel and a full siege of Gaza in response to the Hamas attack, Palestinian officials said.
Thousands more people are injured in all three regions.
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
Blinken meets Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Thursday
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken watches as US President Joe Biden (not pictured) speaks about the conflict in Israel after Hamas launched its biggest attack in decades at the White House in Washington, DC on October 7, 2023.
Elizabeth Frantz | Portal
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to arrive in Israel on Thursday and meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss developments since the brutal attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas over the weekend.
Regardless, the Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization Hussein al-Sheikh said on XTwitter previously reported that Blinken will meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday.
Abbas will also meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Amman on Thursday, al-Sheikh added.
The US has previously condemned Hamas’ terrorist hostilities and said it was in talks with Egypt about establishing a humanitarian corridor for civilians in the Gaza Strip, which is under complete siege by Israel.
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
X responds to EU disinformation claims following Hamas hostilities
X/Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino speaks onstage during Vox Media’s 2023 Code Conference at the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel on September 27, 2023 in Dana Point, California.
Jerod Harris | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images
The social media platform said in a public letter.
Yaccarino’s comments came after Thierry Breton, the EU’s internal market commissioner, on Tuesday gave X owner Elon Musk 24 hours to respond to claims that his platform “be used to spread illegal content and disinformation in the EU,” after Hamas hostilities.
The X Platform has already introduced policies to try to curb disinformation in crisis situations by adding alerts to refute false claims about events.
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
Brazil is calling for a UN Security Council meeting on Friday on the war between Israel and Hamas
Brazil called for a U.N. Security Council meeting on Friday to “address the situation in the Gaza Strip,” the Foreign Ministry said.
The country’s foreign minister, Mauro Vieira, has postponed a planned trip to the Philippines and will travel to New York for the meeting.
Brazil currently holds the monthly rotating presidency of the UN Security Council in October. As Portal reports, the council held its first meeting on Sunday, immediately after the terrorist attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas against Israel the day before.
In a Wednesday post translated by Google On the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, Brazilian President Lula da Silva called for an end to the conflict and the release of children held captive by Hamas.
“International humanitarian intervention is urgently needed. A ceasefire is urgently needed to protect Israeli and Palestinian children,” he said. “Brazil, under the interim presidency of the UN Security Council, will join efforts to bring the conflict to an immediate and definitive end.”
— Ruxandra Iordache
An hour ago
The Saudi and Iranian leaders discuss the Israel-Hamas conflict in the first conversation since resuming relations
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman before a working lunch at the G20 summit on November 15, 2022 in Nusa Dua, Indonesia.
Leon Neal | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi spoke about the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in their first official telephone conversation since the resumption of diplomatic relations between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
The conversation took place on Wednesday and lasted 45 minutes, according to a Google-translated report from the state news agency of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was also noted by the Saudi press agency.
Iran and Saudi Arabia have both supported the cause of the Palestinian people in the past, with Tehran also supporting Hamas. Since Hamas’ bloody terrorist attacks against Israel over the weekend, Riyadh has called for a “immediate end to the escalation between both sides“While Iran has repeatedly denied involvement in the hostilities, it has also described it as a “natural reaction.”
Wednesday’s appointment was the first conversation between senior officials from both countries, which only ended years of tensions and agreed to resume diplomatic ties in a China-brokered deal in March.
— Ruxandra Iordache
3 hours ago
UN Secretary General calls for immediate release of Israeli hostages and protection of civilians in the Gaza Strip
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres speaks at the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at the UN Headquarters in New York City on September 19, 2023.
Adam Gray | Getty Images News | Getty Images
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called for the immediate release of all Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. He called on all parties to protect Gaza civilians caught in the crossfire as Israel declared war on Hamas militants who control the Palestinian enclave.
“I call on all parties – and those who have influence on these parties – to avoid any further escalation and spillover,” Guterres said at a news conference on Wednesday. It was his second statement in three days on the Israel-Hamas conflict. “International humanitarian law must be respected and upheld.”
“UN buildings and all hospitals, schools and clinics must never be attacked,” the secretary-general said, adding that some UN staff had died while working to support the people of Gaza.
As Israel halts all deliveries while the Jewish state continues its bombardment of the Gaza Strip, aid organizations and staff are scrambling to find alternative routes through which humanitarian supplies can flow into Gaza.
“I would like to thank Egypt for its constructive commitment to facilitating humanitarian access through the Rafah border crossing and making El Arish Airport available for critical assistance,” Guterres added.
– Clement Tan
13 hours ago
Biden tells Iranians: ‘Be careful’
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks at a roundtable with Jewish community leaders in the Indian Treaty Room of the White House on October 11, 2023.
Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Images
President Joe Biden said his administration had warned Iran to be cautious following Hamas attacks on Israel.
After listing the aid the U.S. is sending to Israel, Biden “made it clear to the Iranians: Be careful.”
The president made the remarks Wednesday afternoon at a roundtable of Jewish leaders at the White House.
Sources tell NBC News that US intelligence shows that Iranian leaders were surprised by Hamas’ attack on Israel, but White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Tuesday that Iran was “complicit” in the attack because it who have supported Hamas for decades.
Biden called the Hamas attack “pure atrocity.”
“I would argue it is the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust,” Biden said.
– Emma Kinery
19 hours ago
Israel wants to form an emergency government for the war against Hamas
Israel will form an emergency government amid the war against Hamas to strengthen security decision-making as the conflict with the Palestinian militant group continues.
Then Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz arrives at the presidential residence for a photo during a ceremony for the new coalition government in Jerusalem on June 14, 2021.
Emmanuel Dunand | AFP | Getty Images
Israeli media reported that opposition leader and former army chief Benny Gantz will join Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet alongside Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
–Sam Meredith
5 hours ago
Medical care in Gaza is entering a “critical phase,” the Palestinian Health Ministry says
Paramedics attend to children injured by Israeli airstrikes at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on October 11, 2023.
Mohammed Abed | Afp | Getty Images
Health care in the Gaza Strip is at a “critical stage,” the Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a Facebook post.
“Medicines, medical supplies and fuel are running low” and hospitals are at capacity, with wounded patients “on the ground due to the intensification of Israeli aggression,” a spokesman said.
“Urgent measures must be taken to create a safe corridor for medical supplies and the wounded and patients should leave before it is too late,” the ministry warned.
Egypt is reportedly negotiating with the US to provide aid to Palestinians across Egypt’s border with Gaza, Portal reported, citing Egyptian security sources, adding that moves to establish safe passage for fleeing refugees from the Palestinian enclave have been rejected.
– Joanna Tan
4 hours ago