Wednesday, December 20, 2023
19:30 GMT – Number of casualties in Gaza 'unacceptable': UN
A UN spokesperson on Wednesday voiced concern over the surging death toll in the Gaza Strip as fighting between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas continued for the 75th day.
"The number has been unacceptable and huge and sheer and whatever adjective you want to use for quite some time," Stephane Dujarric told reporters.
"Again, we want to see a humanitarian ceasefire. We want to see the guns fall silent as we can reach the people of Gaza who need the most help right now," he said.
18:40 GMT – Gaza death toll from Israeli attacks exceeds 20,000
The government's media office in Gaza has said that at least 20,000 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since the war began.
Some 8,000 children and 6,200 women were among those who were killed by Israeli attacks, it said, as the conflict continued to rage more than two months after it broke out on October 7.
Israel has continued to defy calls for ceasefire in its attacks on Gaza.
17:25 GMT – Twenty-five more Palestinians detained in West Bank
The Israeli forces rounded up 25 more Palestinians in the West Bank on Wednesday, taking the tally to 4,630 since October 7, according to prisoners' affairs groups.
The new arrests took place in the cities of Nablus, Tulkarm, Salfit, Tubas, Ramallah, Bethlehem and East Jerusalem, the Commission for Detainees and Ex-Prisoners' Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a joint statement.
The figure of detainees does not include those arrested by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip, the statement said.
11:50 GMT — Israeli attacks on Gaza have displaced more than 90 percent of the territory’s population, the UN Palestinian refugee agency has said.
"Over 60 percent of the infrastructure in Gaza has been destroyed or damaged," the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said in a statement.
"This is a staggering and unprecedented level of destruction and forced displacement, taking place in front of our eyes," it added.
12:43 GMT — Netanyahu becomes 'millstone around neck', must be dismissed: Knesset member
A member of Israel’s Knesset (parliament) has called for dismissing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying he has become a “burden” for the state.
"It pains me to say these words in the midst of the war, but it seems there is no other option," Meirav Cohen, a member of the "There is a Future" Party led by opposition leader Yair Lapid, said in a video posted on X.
"When the prime minister fails and continues to fail, proving that he is not qualified for the position, that he is the wrong person in the wrong place at the wrong time, he must be replaced immediately."
12:33 GMT — Some 'external forces' trying to use Gaza conflict to fuel regional unrest: Russia
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that some "external forces" are attempting to fan a fire of regional discord between Middle Eastern states by exploiting the situation in Gaza.
The purpose of such actions is to "weaken countries that pursue an independent foreign policy course," Lavrov said at the Russian-Arab Cooperation Forum in Morocco's capital, Marrakesh.
"Some external forces want to use the current escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to their advantage, to ignite a fire of regional discord," the Russian Foreign Ministry said, quoting the country’s top diplomat.
12:15 GMT — Islamic Jihad delegation to visit Egypt for talks on hostage deal with Israel
A delegation from the Palestinian group Islamic Jihad will visit Egypt for talks on a possible hostage swap deal with Israel, according to a group official.
"The delegation will discuss ways to stop the [Israeli] war on Gaza and a prisoner exchange deal," Ziad al Nakhala, Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad group, said in a statement.
He said his movement would press for a halt to the Israeli onslaught, withdrawal of all Israeli forces and the reconstruction of Gaza in return for any hostage deal.
11:31 GMT — Israel troops kill motorist in West Bank: Palestinian media
Israeli troops killed a Palestinian motorist in the occupied West Bank, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa has reported, while the army said it had "neutralised a terrorist".
Basel Wajeeh al Muhtasib, 28, "died as a result of being shot by occupation (Israeli army) bullets" as he drove through Bayt Inun junction, north of the city of Hebron, Wafa reported.
Israeli security forces cordoned off the area preventing Muhtasib from being taken to hospital, the report said.
The army said troops had opened fire on the vehicle after the driver attempted to carry out a "car-ramming attack". It did not give further details.
11:18 GMT — Israeli paratrooper commander killed in battles in southern Gaza
The Israeli army has announced that a paratrooper commander was killed in clashes with Palestinian groups in Gaza, bringing the total death toll since Oct. 7 to 466.
The army said in a statement that Major Reserve Orel Cohen, 33, of the Givati Brigade, was killed in a battle in southern Gaza.
10:56 GMT — Communications, internet services fully cut off again in Gaza
Communications and internet services were completely cut off in wide areas of Gaza amid ongoing Israeli air strikes in various parts of the enclave.
This marks the seventh outage in the Palestinian territory since the outbreak of the clashes on Oct. 7, Jawwal and Paltel telecom providers said in a statement.
In the six previous outages, fixed-line, cellular, and internet communications were cut off for several hours.
08:11 GMT — Hamas leader Haniyeh touches down in Egypt for truce, POW deal
Hamas's leader Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Cairo for negotiations over a ceasefire for Gaza war and a prisoner exchange.
Haniyeh arrived "in the Egyptian capital Cairo to hold negotiations with Egyptian officials over the developments of the Zionist (Israeli) aggression on the Gaza and other matters", the group said in a statement.
Separately a source briefing Reuters has said that sides are looking at which hostages and prisoners may go free in any Gaza deal
Israel is insisting women and infirm male hostages be included in the release roster, according to the source.
Negotiations were underway on another cease-fire and the release of more hostages held by Hamas, but the two sides were believed to be far from an agreement.
07:02 GMT — Israel kills dozens of Palestinians in dawn strikes
Israeli aircraft and artillery have bombarded various areas in Gaza, with a focus on Jabalia and Khan Younis in the northern and central regions.
Reports from Gaza reveal that a substantial Israeli onslaught struck Jabaliya in the north, resulting in the tragic loss and injury of numerous Palestinian civilians, predominantly children and women, according to the Palestinian official news agency, WAFA.
The intensified bombing on Jabalia comes after a deadly incident the previous evening, where 20 civilians lost their lives, and over 70 others sustained injuries in an attack on the town and Jabalia camp, according to Gaza Health Ministry.
Protection and health sources in Gaza confirm that the occupation forces killed more than 13 individuals at the Anan family home, in full view of children and women in northern Gaza.
Simultaneously, Israeli warplanes conducted a series of raids on Khan Younis, situated in the southern part of Gaza, accompanied by intense artillery shelling from Israeli forces.
06:24 GMT — Israeli soldiers' death toll swells as war deepens
The Israeli army has announced the death of one more officer in clashes with Palestinian resistance factions in southern Gaza, bringing the death toll since Oct. 7 to 465.
"Captain Linor Sion (32 years old), a combat officer in Battalion 363, Brigade Harel (10), was killed in a battle in the southern Gaza Strip," the official Israeli Broadcasting Authority quoted the army as saying.
This brings the total number of Israeli soldiers and officers killed since Oct. 7 to 465, including 133 during the ground incursion that commenced on Oct. 27, according to the broadcasting authority.
On Tuesday, the Israeli army also confirmed the death of an officer and a soldier in battles in northern Gaza.
Furthermore, on Tuesday evening, it was disclosed that 15 officers and soldiers were injured in the battles in Gaza within 24 hours, including six with serious injuries.
05:42 GMT — Hezbollah announces two more military members were killed by Israel
Hezbollah has announced the deaths of two more members in the conflict with the Israeli army along the southern border region of Lebanon.
The casualties, Hasan Ali Ibrahim and Visam Haydar Murtaza, were reported to have lost their lives on the "Jerusalem path."
This adds to the toll of Hezbollah members killed in the clashes, reaching 117 since the conflict began on October 8 on the Lebanon-Israel border.
The conflict has not only claimed the lives of Hezbollah members but also resulted in the deaths of 24 Lebanese civilians, 5 Israeli civilians, and 6 Israeli military personnel.
04:30 GMT — Hamas fighters battle invading Israeli troops on Gaza streets
Hamas resistance fighters and invading Israeli troops are locked in fierce gun battles on the streets of Gaza's second-biggest city, residents and witnesses said.
Residents of Khan Younis reported intensifying gun battles in the centre and eastern districts of the southern city.
Gaza health officials said 12 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli strike on a house in the city. Israel has lost 132 soldiers in the fighting inside Gaza since it invaded the territory.
The fresh fighting comes as United Nations delayed a vote on a bid to boost aid deliveries to the Palestinian enclave facing a humanitarian disaster.
Israel's land invasion and indiscriminate bombardment has left the coastal enclave in ruins, brought widespread hunger and homelessness, and killed nearly 20,000 Palestinians, according to enclave's officials.
03:40 GMT — Haniyeh heads to Egypt for talks on ending Israel's Gaza war
Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh is set to visit Egypt for talks on a ceasefire in Gaza and prisoner-captive swap deal with Israel, a source close to the Palestinian resistance group said.
Haniyeh, based in Qatar, will head a "high-level" Hamas delegation to Egypt, where he is due to hold talks with Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel and others, the source told the AFP news agency.
The discussions will be "on stopping the aggression and the war to prepare an agreement for the release of prisoners (and) the end of the siege imposed on the besieged Gaza", the source said on condition of anonymity, as he was not authorised to talk about the visit.
Under a week-long truce deal last month that Qatar helped negotiate, backed by Egypt and the United States, 80 Israeli captives were freed in exchange for 240 Palestinians languishing in Israeli jails. But Israel has arrested thousands of Palestinians since October 7.
According to the Hamas source, the talks in Egypt will focus on "the delivery of humanitarian aid, the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Gaza and the return of displaced persons to their towns and villages in the north".
Haniyeh's visit will be his second to Egypt since the start of Israel's war on Gaza on October 7, following a trip in early November.
02:30 GMT — Islamic Jihad releases video of two Israelis pleading for their release
The Al Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, has released a video of two male Israeli captives in Gaza pleading for their release on its Telegram account.
The two men identified themselves as Gadi Moses and Elad Katzir and appeared in a short video asking for efforts to be intensified so they can reunite with their families.
"We are dying every moment. We are in an unbearable situation," said Moses, looking at the camera against a plain background. The two men were both unshaven and appeared to have lost weight.
Moses is a Jewish settler farmer aged about 79 who was captured from a kibbutz on October 7 when the Hamas fighters carried out a raid in southern Israel. Katzir, 47, was also taken from a kibbutz along with his mother, who was later released. His father was killed, according to media reports.
01:47 GMT — Police in US arrest protestors calling for Gaza truce
A group of demonstrators have staged a protest at the Capitol building to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The US Capitol police reportedly made arrests after protestors gathered at the Capitol rotunda. Some reports put their number between 60-100.
The demonstrators also protested against US support for Israel.
They also carried banners that said "The people chose life. Cease-fire now!," "Protect Immigrant Asylees" and "Divest from Militarism, Invest in Life."
For our live updates from Tuesday, December 19, click here.
