France’s Macron proposes an anti-IS coalition against Hamas
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (r) shakes hands with French President Emmanuel Macron (l) after the joint press conference on October 24, 2023 in Jerusalem.
Christophe Ena | Afp | Getty Images
French President Emmanuel Macron has proposed expanding an existing coalition fighting ISIS to also fight the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
“That is why France is ready for the international coalition against Daesh, in which we are committed to our operations in Iraq and Syria, to also fight against Hamas,” he said, according to a press conference alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to CNBC translation .
Macron arrived in Israel earlier in the day and also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
He points to the 86-member Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh, which was founded in September 2014 to dismantle ISIS and its funding and military infrastructure.
“Hamas is a terrorist group whose goal is the destruction of the Israeli state,” Macron said on Tuesday.
“I propose to our international partners – I told you this morning – that we can form a regional and international coalition to fight the terrorist group that threatens us all.”
Macron reiterated that the fight against Hamas must be waged “without mercy, but not without rules,” urging no civilian deaths and respecting international laws governing warfare.
— Ruxandra Iordache
“I went through hell”: Hostage released by Hamas speaks about kidnapping
Released hostage Yocheved Lifshitz, previously held by Hamas, speaks to the media in Tel Aviv, Israel, October 24, 2023.
Alexi J. Rosenfeld | Getty Images News | Getty Images
85-year-old Yocheved Lifshitz, one of two Israeli hostages released by Hamas on Monday, has spoken about her abduction during the Palestinian group’s multiple terror attacks on October 7.
In a news conference, she said she was captured on a motorcycle, beaten with sticks and taken into a network of tunnels that looked like “spider webs,” according to a translation by NBC News.
“I went through hell,” she said.
She added that the prisoners were treated “well” and were cared for and provided with medical treatment and medication at the place where they were held.
Lifshitz’s daughter said her father remained a Hamas hostage and called for his release.
Israeli forces estimate that about 222 people were captured during the Hamas offensive. So far only four people, including Lifshitz, have been released.
— Ruxandra Iordache
The U.N. aid agency says it will be unable to provide aid without fuel after Wednesday
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) will no longer be able to carry out relief operations without fuel deliveries to the Gaza Strip after Wednesday night, said director Thomas White.
“The key message is: We need fuel to get to Gaza, otherwise the relief effort – clean drinking water, functioning hospitals – will end on Wednesday evening,” White said said in a television interview with Al Jazeera.
“We are now supplying fuel for the operation of desalination plants for drinking water. That lasts.” [Intensive Care] Units operating in hospitals enable us to distribute relief supplies. “The reality is, even if a convoy comes into Gaza, if we don’t have fuel for our trucks, we can’t pick it up,” he added, pointing out that no fuel has yet crossed the border into Gaza. despite the few humanitarian aid deliveries that have been coming from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing since the weekend.
UNRWA, which provides shelter and distributes aid to the Palestinian population in the besieged Gaza Strip, said on Monday 35 of its employees have been killed since the Israeli-Hamas conflict began.
— Ruxandra Iordache
Israel does not want war with Hezbollah, says Israeli president
Israel does not want war with the militant group Hezbollah, but Lebanon will “pay the price” if the two countries get into such a standoff, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said.
At a press conference with visiting French President Emmanuel Macron, Herzog said: “We are following the situation in Lebanon very closely. I think Hezbollah is playing with fire… And I want to be clear that we are not seeking confrontation.” On our northern border with everyone else, we are focused on destroying Hamas infrastructure and returning our citizens to their homes, “But if Hezbollah goes to war with us, it should be clear that Lebanon will pay the price.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks at a joint session of the U.S. Congress at the U.S. Capitol on July 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Since the terrorist attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7, Israel has been engaged in a firefight with Hezbollah. Hezbollah claims solidarity with the Palestinian people and retaliation for Israel’s killing of several of the group’s members. As a result of the hostilities, Israel has had to evacuate several settlements near the border with Lebanon, raising concerns about the possibility of the conflict with Hamas spreading into the wider Middle East region.
Both Hamas and Hezbollah have benefited in the past from support from Iran, which praised the Hamas offensive in early October but denied involvement.
“Lebanon cannot be a sovereign member of the international community whose citizens carry a Lebanese passport, but when it comes to attacking Israel, they are not responsible,” Herzog said Tuesday.
— Ruxandra Iordache
The Israeli military says it attacked over 400 Hamas targets as part of a comprehensive 24-hour operation
Israeli forces said they had carried out a large-scale operation in the past 24 hours, hitting over 400 targets belonging to the Palestinian militant group Hamas. according to a social media update.
The targets included Hamas gunmen setting up rocket fire, an operational tunnel shaft allowing infiltration of Israel by sea, command centers and the provision of weapons, the IDF said.
CNBC could not independently verify developments on the ground.
Following the group’s multi-pronged terrorist attack on October 7, the IDF is conducting a comprehensive campaign to dismantle Hamas’s military capabilities in the Gaza Strip.
— Ruxandra Iordache
France’s Macron reiterates his solidarity with Israel during his visit
French President Emmanuel Macron with a couple on October 18, 2023.
Chesnot | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks left 30 French nationals dead and nine others still missing or held hostage by the Palestinian militant group, French President Emmanuel Macron said on social mediaduring a visit to Israel.
“We are bound to Israel by grief,” he said, according to a CNBC translation. “In Tel Aviv, together with their families, I expressed the solidarity of the nation.”
As Portal reported, Macron landed in Tel Aviv on Tuesday and is expected to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog later in the day.
Since last week, numerous high-ranking Western politicians have traveled to Israel to show their solidarity, including US President Joe Biden.
— Ruxandra Iordache
Bank of Israel should and will place ‘great emphasis’ on stabilizing market: Former governor
Karnit Flug, former governor of the Bank of Israel and vice president of research at the Israel Democracy Institute, discusses what the central bank should do after the war between Israel and Hamas.
China urges Israel to abide by international humanitarian law in its self-defense
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks at a press conference during the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing on October 18, 2023.
Wang Zhao | Afp | Getty Images
China called on Israel to abide by international humanitarian law and protect the safety of civilians in its war with the militant group Hamas, and called for peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians on “important decisions between war and peace.”
“Every country has the right to self-defense, but every country should abide by international humanitarian law and protect the safety of civilians,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reportedly told his Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen in a phone call on Monday.
Read this story for more.
– Clement Tan
Obama warns that ignoring the human cost of war could “ultimately backfire.”
Former US President Barack Obama warned that “any Israeli military strategy that ignores the human cost could ultimately backfire.”
Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Former US President Barack Obama has called for restraint in the Israel-Hamas war.
“The world is closely watching events unfold in the region, and any Israeli military strategy that ignores the human cost could ultimately backfire,” Obama warned in a blog post.
Stressing his support for the Jewish state and its right to protect its citizens, he said: “I fully support President Biden’s call for the United States to support our long-time ally in the pursuit of Hamas.”
“But even as we support Israel, we should also be clear that the way Israel pursues this fight against Hamas affects matters,” Obama said, emphasizing that Israel must abide by international rules, “including those laws which aim to avoid, as far as possible, the death or suffering of the civilian population.”
“This is an extremely difficult task. War is always tragic, and even carefully planned military operations often endanger civilians,” he acknowledged.
“The Israeli government’s decision to cut off food, water and electricity to a trapped civilian population not only threatens to worsen a growing humanitarian crisis; It could also further harden Palestinian attitudes for generations, undermine global support for Israel and play into the hands of Israel’s enemies.” “And undermine long-term efforts for peace and stability in the region,” he warned.
– Joanna Tan
According to the UN humanitarian agency, the lack of clean water is a “major problem” in the Gaza Strip
The lack of clean water remains a “major concern” in the Gaza Strip as humanitarian supplies begin to flow into the besieged area, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in its latest update.
“The lack of clean drinking water remains a major problem, along with water consumption from unsafe sources,” OCHA said.
“On October 23, the Rafah border crossing into Egypt was opened for the third day in a row, allowing the entry of 20 trucks carrying food, water and medical supplies. This represents about four percent of the daily average volume of goods previously entering Gaza.” The hostilities. None of the aid shipments included urgently needed fuel to run hospitals and water systems.
Lacking Israeli resources, the Gaza Strip received humanitarian aid over the weekend when UN-brokered truck convoys entered the area from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing.
The UN agency raised further alarm bells about the overcrowding of hospitals in the Gaza Strip. The Shifa facility – the largest in the region – is currently treating 5,000 patients, more than seven times its capacity of 700 patients.
OCHA estimates that there are currently 1.4 million internally displaced people in the Gaza Strip, with 590,000 people seeking refuge in the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees’ shelters.
— Ruxandra Iordache
The release of the Hamas hostage is an attempt to “buy time,” says an IDF spokesman
The “cynical” release of two Israeli hostages on Monday was an attempt by the Palestinian militant group Hamas to buy time and did not lay the foundation for a ceasefire, an Israeli spokesman said overnight.
“Hamas is doing what we expect from them: very cynical, psychological warfare, trying to bide time, buy time by using the release, the slow drip release of some hostages,” Israel Defense Forces spokesman Jonathan Conricus said said NBC News In a television interview, he stressed that all 222 hostages taken by Hamas on October 7 must be returned.
On Monday, Hamas released two hostages, bringing the total to four. According to Conricus, the IDF played no role in negotiations for the prisoners’ return.
Israeli Army spokesman for international media, Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus.
Jalaa Marey | Afp | Getty Images
Asked whether Hamas’s concession on Monday paved the way for a ceasefire, the IDF spokesman said: “I am not aware of any such discussions. The only thing I know of is that there are troops on the ground ready and the air force is attacking Hamas targets from the air and an increased understanding within the IDF that there is an enormous task ahead that must be completed. “
The IDF has deployed troops along the border with the Gaza enclave in preparation for a long-awaited ground attack that some have begun to question whether U.S. diplomacy could deter.
“Our ground forces are ready to begin significant military operations in Gaza and lead the fight against Hamas in its home territory. As soon as we receive the instruction from the war cabinet, this will begin,” Conricus said, adding that this is “very close” to “coordination at both the military and strategic international levels between Israel and the United States,” particularly around Israeli overreach -To prevent Hamas conflict from spreading to the entire Middle East.
— Ruxandra Iordache
Two elderly Israeli hostages arrive in Tel Aviv after being released
One of the freed hostages in a wheelchair leaves a military helicopter after landing on the roof of Ichilov Hospital.
Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images
Two Israeli women who were kidnapped and subsequently released by Hamas landed in Tel Aviv, Israel, early Tuesday.
According to Portal footage, an Israeli military helicopter carrying Nurit Cooper, 79, and Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, landed on the roof of Ichilov Hospital.
One of them was seen in a wheelchair while the other was carried on a stretcher.
Hamas’ military wing said in a statement on Telegram that the women were released for “compelling humanitarian” reasons. The Israel Defense Forces had previously said that by releasing hostages, the militant group was “trying to present itself to the world as a humanitarian organization.”
Hamas militants massacred 1,400 people, including babies, women and the elderly, and kidnapped more than 200 people from Israel in their October 7 rampage. Little is known about their well-being and whereabouts.
The militants have so far released four hostages.
– Joanna Tan
Third aid convoy enters Gaza, UN warns that fuel is running out
A third convoy of humanitarian aid trucks delivered water, food and medicine to the besieged Gaza Strip on Monday. However, the United Nations warned that fuel was not included and reserves would be depleted in the next two days.
Humanitarian deliveries from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing began on Saturday after disputes over procedures for inspecting aid and bombings on the Gaza side of the border left aid stranded in Egypt.
—Portal
Not the time for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict, says Kirby from the White House
This is not the time for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas militants, White House national security spokesman John Kirby told CNN on Monday.
“We do not believe this is the time for a ceasefire,” he said. “Israel has the right to defend itself. They still have a lot of work to do to take action against the leadership of Hamas.”
—Portal
Israel says the two hostages released by Hamas will soon receive medical treatment and see their family members
Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, who was held hostage by Palestinian Hamas militants, is seen in this handout image obtained by Portal on October 23, 2023, as Hamas announced her release.
Hostages and missing families | via Portal
A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed that Nurit Cooper, 79, and Yochaved Lifshitz, 85, were released by Hamas after being held hostage for just over two weeks.
“Following their handover to the Israeli Defense Forces, they are currently making their way to a medical center in Israel that has been specially set up and prepared to receive them. Their family members will be waiting for them there,” Netanyahu’s office wrote in a statement.
Nurit Cooper, 79, who was held hostage by Palestinian Hamas militants, is seen in this handout image obtained by Portal on October 23, 2023, as Hamas announced her release.
Hostages and Missing Families Forum | via Portal
“We thank Egypt for its help and the Red Cross for its important role as a lifesaver. The Government of Israel, the IDF and the entire security establishment will continue to use their best efforts and efforts to locate everyone.” “We will eliminate the missing and return all those abducted home,” the statement continued.
– Amanda Macias