edited by Barbara Bisazza
According to Palestinian sources, at least twelve people died in Israeli attacks on the Indonesian hospital in the north of the Gaza Strip. Some hostages kidnapped by Hamas were taken to Shifa, under which a tunnel and a militia control room were discovered: Israel announced this. A deal on prisoners appears closer: Hamas says a ceasefire will begin today, but Israel denies this. Beijing welcomes Arab Muslim countries and agrees to “work for peace.” Mattarella convenes the Supreme Defense Council today for briefings on the Middle East.
40 humanitarian trucks in Gaza today
The Gaza Coordination and Liaison Administration has announced that 40 humanitarian trucks will enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing in the next few hours, carrying equipment sent from the United Arab Emirates and destined to set up a field hospital.
Palestinian killed in Hebron: “Shooting at suspicious car”
A Palestinian from el-Arub (near Hebron, West Bank) was shot dead when Israeli police opened fire on a car deemed “suspicious” that was fleeing. This was reported by the Maan news agency. Tensions remain high in Hebron after Hamas carried out two attacks on police checkpoints in the last week. Meanwhile, Israeli public broadcaster Kan reports that some Israeli cars were ambushed by armed Palestinian militiamen in the north of the West Bank last night. Two of them were hit, but the passengers were uninjured.
Haaretz: Hamas is ready to release more hostages
A source involved in the negotiations with Hamas told Haaretz that the Islamist group has expressed its willingness to increase the number of hostages it wants to release. According to the Israeli newspaper, the number and identity of the hostages to be released have not yet been clarified and negotiations are ongoing. “Indirect contacts between Israel and Hamas have already failed twice when it was assumed that the agreement could be reached. We need more patience,” he added. Israel, the United States and Qatar have expressed optimism in recent days that an agreement could be reached in the coming days. One reason negotiations are moving slowly is that Hamas’s leader in the Gaza Strip, Yahya Sinwar, does not maintain continuous contact with the organization’s negotiating teams.
Israel: 2 more soldiers dead, total 65
The army announced the deaths of two more soldiers fighting in northern Gaza. With the latter two killed, the total number of deaths since ground operations began is 65.
Iran: “Russia should play a more active role in resolving the Gaza war”
Iran has called on Russia to play a “more active role” in resolving the Gaza war. In a phone call with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian added that “the resistance will undoubtedly decide the final result.” According to Al Jazeera, the two government officials mainly discussed the war in Gaza during their meeting, with Amirabdollahian supporting the United States Accused states of fueling the war. They also stressed the need for a ceasefire and urgent assistance to affected civilians.
UN: shocked by recent horrors in Gaza
“Shocked by the terrible events of the last 48 hours in Gaza.” This is what the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, wrote on his X account. The killing of so many people in schools converted into emergency shelters during the escape of hundreds of people from Al-Shifa Hospital and the ongoing evacuations in the southern Gaza Strip are in complete contradiction to the protection of civilians required by international law, he continues.
IDF surrounds Indonesian hospital in Gaza, 12 dead in clashes
The death toll from Israeli attacks on an Indonesian hospital in Gaza has risen from eight to 12, according to the enclave’s health ministry. According to Al Jazeera, doctors and patients were among those killed. The update comes as Israeli tanks continue to surround the hospital.
Mon: IDF, 3 Hamas commanders killed in night raids on Gaza
Three Hamas company commanders were killed in nighttime raids in the Gaza Strip. This was announced by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), according to the Times of Israel. The IDF said the raids were carried out against the hideouts of suspected Hamas commanders based on intelligence from the Shin Bet and military intelligence. The army then announced that another airstrike had been carried out at the direction of Nahal Brigade troops against a building that also served as an arms depot and where a group of Hamas operatives were hiding. The building was destroyed.
Middle East, Wang: China will work to restore peace
“Let us work together to quickly calm the situation in Gaza and restore peace in the Middle East as quickly as possible,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told diplomats from Arab and Muslim-majority countries visiting Beijing. Wang stressed that a humanitarian catastrophe is occurring in Gaza that affects all countries in the world and “challenges the human sense of right and wrong and the profits of humanity.”
Gaza, media: 8 dead in raid on Indonesian hospital
At least eight people were killed at an Indonesian hospital in northern Gaza after Israeli forces reportedly shelled and surrounded the medical facility, according to Palestinian media. The victims included patients and those seeking protection. According to local news reports, the hospital has lost power and Israeli forces are shooting anyone who tries to leave the facility.
Also read: Palestinians in Gaza reject Hamas: 73% want peace with Israel
The US is confident that Arab countries will not use oil as a weapon
The United States believes that Arab oil-producing countries will not use energy as a weapon despite their anger over Israel’s siege and bombing of the Gaza Strip. White House energy adviser Amos Hochstein said this in an interview with the Financial Times. “Oil has been used as a weapon from time to time, so we are always concerned. We have two wars in the world, one involving the world’s third largest oil producer, Russia, and the other in the Middle East, where missiles fly near oil production sites. However, prices are close to their lowest levels of the year,” emphasized Hochstein.
Also read: An exploding powder keg on the border with Lebanon
Ukraine: Zelensky fires commander of medical forces
Yesterday Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired the commander of the medical detachment Tetyana Ostashenko and replaced her with Anatoly Kasmirchuk. Zelensky himself announced this in his daily address to the nation. Previously, Kazmirchuk headed the National Military Medical Clinical Center in Kiev. According to local media, Ostashenko was released following repeated requests from Ukrainian paramedics and volunteers. MP Solomiia Bobrovska said in July that the medical command did not purchase first aid kits in 2023 and that first aid kits provided through international aid were not properly checked. “We need a completely new level of medical support for our soldiers,” Zelensky said.
Ukraine: Drone from Moscow and Kiev shot down on Russian capital
Air defense units shot down a drone over the town of Elektrostal in Moscow Oblast, the mayor of the Russian capital Sergei Sobyanin said in a Telegram post last night. Sobyanin claims that the drone flew towards the center of Moscow. The mayor also said emergency services were at the crash site, but no injuries or damage to infrastructure were reported.
Gaza: Macron announces new flight with 10 tons of aid supplies
French President Emmanuel Macron said last night he wanted to use “another air force plane to transport more than 10 tons of medical supplies” to Gaza. In a post on his X account, Macron recalled that flights carrying more than 100 tons of humanitarian aid have already been delivered to Egypt, which borders the Gaza Strip. The new flight “will include two mobile medical units, each of which will treat around 500 seriously injured people,” the French president wrote on the social network. Macron added that an “amphibious helicopter carrier” would arrive in Egypt “in the next few days” and would have “40 beds” to treat “serious injuries” and “facilitate the transfer of injured civilians to nearby hospitals if necessary.”
Israel, Tunnel found under Shifa Hospital in Gaza City
Israeli soldiers have found a 55-meter-long “terror tunnel” at a depth of 10 meters beneath the Al Shifa hospital complex in Gaza City. This is what the military spokesman said. “A deep staircase leads to the entrance to the mouth of the tunnel, which – he explained – consists of various defenses, including an explosion-proof door and a bullet hole. This type of door is used by the terrorist organization Hamas to prevent Israeli forces from entering the organization’s command centers and underground facilities.
Barbara Bisazza
Deputy Head of Service
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