20:33 GMT -Defense expert refutes Israeli military claim about hospital attack in Gaza
A defense expert on Wednesday dismissed the Israeli military's claim that the hospital attack in Gaza, which killed 471 people, including women and children, was caused by a rocket fired from within the coastal strip, calling it unrealistic and asserting that if it was fired from Gaza, Israel's Iron Dome air defense system should have been activated.
"If a rocket was fired from Gaza, Israel's Iron Dome air defense system should have been activated, says Murat Aslan, an expert who examined Tel Aviv's claims from various perspectives.
Aslan is a senior research associate at the Foundation for Political, Economic, and Social Research (SETA) and associate professor at Hasan Kalyoncu University.
19:47 GMT - Algeria suspends all football matches in solidarity with Palestine
The Algerian Football Federation (FAF) suspended all matches "until further notice" to show solidarity with Gaza which has been bombarded by Israeli airstrikes.
The FAF on Wednesday said it "respects the memories of venerable and glorious martyrs victims" of attacks in Gaza.
The body said on Sunday that it agreed to host "all official and non-official matches" of the Palestinian national football team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers and to cover costs related to the events.
19:20 - US, Israeli embassies in Argentina get bomb threats after Gaza hospital strike
Israeli and US embassies in Buenos Aires, Argentina were the targets of false bomb threats on Wednesday amid ongoing conflict in Israel and Gaza, according to authorities.
The threats were received via email.
The US diplomatic headquarters in Israel received an email detailing a possible attack with an explosive. The building, however, was not evacuated.
“There are no credible threats against the US Embassy in Argentina and we are continuing to operate normally,” according to a statement by the embassy.
19:02 GMT - Islamic bloc OIC calls for immediate cessation of Israel’s ‘barbaric aggression’ against Palestinians
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Wednesday called for the immediate cessation of Israel’s “barbaric aggression” against the Palestinian people.
In a final communique issued following an extraordinary meeting of the OIC Executive Committee, the bloc called for the immediate lifting of Israeli’s siege on Gaza.
The OIC's latest communique follows international outcry over the killing of 471 people by an airstrike on Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza on Tuesday.
18:43 GMT - UN calls for investigation into Gaza hospital attack
The UN called for an investigation into an attack on a hospital in Gaza which claimed the lives of nearly 500 people on Tuesday.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said it is "early days" and the UN will "have to see what is done by way of investigation."
"It is essential that there could be some form of investigation into this," he added.
18:04 - UK’s Labour Party shaken by string of resignations over stance on Gaza
A number of councilors from the UK’s main opposition Labour Party have resigned in the past days in protest over party leader Keir Starmer’s support for what he called Israel’s "right" to cut power and water supplies to Palestinians living in Gaza.
Some prominent leading members of the shadow cabinet and other senior party members have made similar remarks in defense of Israel's latest actions, including Emily Thornberry, the shadow attorney general; John Healey, the shadow defense minister; and David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary.
Prior to announcing her resignation from the Labour Party, Kensington and Chelsea Councilor Mona Ahmed, said that comments made by both the ruling Conservatives and her party “have been deplorable.”
17:40 - Saudi Arabia urges nationals to leave Lebanon ‘immediately’ amid tension on Israel border
Saudi Arabia called on its nationals to leave Lebanon immediately amid growing tensions along the Lebanese-Israeli border.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Saudi Embassy in Lebanon said “it is closely following the developments of the current events in southern Lebanon. We call on all citizens to adhere to the travel ban and to leave Lebanese territory immediately for those who are currently in Lebanon,” it added.
Tensions have flared along the Lebanese-Israeli border amid an exchange of fire between Israeli forces and the Hezbollah group.
The escalation came amid Israeli airstrikes against the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas into Israeli border towns.
17:06 GMT - Greeks rally in Athens in support of Palestine
Thousands of Greeks marched in Athens on Wednesday in support of Palestine, carrying banners with anti-US and anti-Israel slogans.
The demonstrators chanted slogans for Palestine's freedom while carrying Palestine flags and displaying banners with slogans condemning the US, EU, and Israel for decades of bloodshed in the Middle Eastern country.
The rally was called by the major left-wing trade union PAME, and it was attended by Palestine Ambassador to Greece Yussef Dorkhom and Dimitris Koutsoumpas, secretary general of the country's fourth largest party, the Greek Communist Party (KKE).
Thanking the crowd and organizers and Greek people in his speech, Dorkhom said “Our people have never ceased to fight for the right to freedom and life. The criminal terrorist occupation will end.”
16:56 - GMT Bosnian politician ‘unequivocally’ condemns ‘brutal attack’ on hospital in Gaza
Bosnia and Herzegovina's Bosniak member of the Presidential Council, Denis Becirovic, condemned the brutal attack on the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in northern Gaza that killed hundreds and injured many others.
"I unequivocally condemn the brutal attack on al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza, in which innocent Palestinian civilians, including many children and women, were killed. Attacks on hospitals, which are symbols of helping people, are attacks on humanity," Becirovic said in a statement on Wednesday.
"Protection of medical personnel and health institutions and the provision of medical assistance to the wounded and sick is guaranteed by international human law," Becirovic added.
16:52 - University students hold pro-Palestinian rally in France's Toulouse city
Hundreds of university students gathered in the southern French city of Toulouse on Wednesday to demonstrate their support for Palestine.
The student protests at Toulouse-Jean Jaures University's Mirail Campus were posted on X by Revolution Permenante, a French leftist political organization.
"With the call of 7 student and trade union organizations, nearly 400 people gathered at Mirail University in solidarity with the Palestinian people, and to demand an end to the bombing of Gaza," the organization said.
16:48 GMT - Hospital attack has taken ‘massacre in Gaza’ to another level: Turkish president
The deadly Israeli attack on a hospital in Palestine has taken "the massacre in Gaza" to another level, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday.
"Yesterday, the massacre in Gaza was taken to another dimension with the heinous attack on Al-Ahli Arabi Hospital. I condemn the perpetrators of this attack, which constitutes a crime against humanity and amounts to genocide against the people of Gaza."
"Those who have poured fuel on the fire with the statements they have made since October 7 are as responsible as the perpetrators for yesterday's massacre, which broke our hearts," Erdogan said on X.
16:35 GMT - Israel's currency shekel down 5% since beginning of clashes
Israel's shekel, which was at 3.84 to the US dollar on October 6, saw the 4.03 level on Wednesday, a drop of 5% in 12 days.
Since Hamas started the Operation Aqsa Flood on October 7 against Israel, Israel's economy has been facing stronger headwinds.
The country's benchmark index, the TA-35, dropped around 7.2% over the same period from the 1,830 level to 1,700.
The Bank of Israel had to intervene in markets last week to inject billion of US dollars to rebalance the shekel's value.
16:21 GMT - Israel to allow humanitarian aid from Egypt to Gaza Strip
In a sharp reversal, Israel said it will allow humanitarian aid from Egypt to go to civilians in the southern Gaza Strip.
"In light of (US) President (Joe) Biden's request, Israel will not prevent the flow of humanitarian aid from Egypt as long as it is food, water, and medical supplies for the Palestinian population in the southern Gaza strip and as long as it doesn't go to Hamas,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement, referring to the Palestinian group it has been in armed combat with since October 7,2023.
“Any aid diverted to Hamas will be prevented," the statement added.
Israel said, however, it will not allow any humanitarian aid to be delivered from Israeli territory to Gaza until the hostages being held by Palestinian groups from the Oct. 7 attack are returned.
16:01 GMT - Biden announces $100M in humanitarian aid for Gaza, West Bank
US President Joe Biden announced a $100 million humanitarian aid package for war-stricken Palestinians living in Gaza and the West Bank.
"Today, I'm also announcing $100 million in new US funding for both Gaza and the West Bank," Biden said on Wednesday after pushing Israel to allow the International Red Cross into Gaza to visit hostages there."
"This money will support more than one million displaced and conflict-affected Palestinians, including emergency needs in Gaza," he added.
15:32 GMT - Gaza death toll rises to 3,478: health ministry
At least 3,478 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel began bombarding the coastal enclave, the Hamas-controlled health ministry said Wednesday.
More than 12,000 others have been wounded in Israel's response to an assault launched by Hamas militants on Israel on October 7.
15:09 Türkiye to declare 3-day national mourning over Gaza attacks: Lawmaker
Türkiye will declare a 3-day national mourning in response to incessant Israeli attacks on Gaza, a lawmaker said on Wednesday.
Ozlem Zengin, deputy group chair of Justice of Development (AK) Party, said the decision will be announced through a presidential decree.
Speaking at the Turkish parliament, Zengin said the legislature had condemned in a joint statement Israeli attacks on hospitals, adding tha t bombing medical facilities is against the laws of war.
15:03 GMT - Besiktas winger Ghezzal voices support for Palestine
Besiktas winger Rachid Ghezzal voiced his support for Palestine on Tuesday.
The Algerian player reposted French legend Eric Cantona's message posted on Instagram on Tuesday, which carries a message of support for Palestine.
"Defending the human rights of Palestinians does not mean you are pro-Hamas," the Instagram post read, and added, "Saying 'Free Palestine' does not mean you are anti-Semitic or 'want all the Jews gone."
"'Free Palestine' means free Palestinians from the Israeli occupation that's been robbing them their basic human rights for 75 years.
14:55 GMT - Gaza hospital massacre must be investigated as 'war crime': Irish president
The deadly airstrike on Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza must be investigated as a war crime, Ireland’s President Michael D Higgins has said.
Speaking in Italy, Higgins said that it is “very, very important that there be a reliable investigation as to how it (incident) came to be, who is responsible and what the consequences are.”
“It must be investigated, certainly, as a war crime,” the president was quoted as saying by the journal.ie, an online Irish newspaper on Wednesday.
Higgins said people in southern Gaza were “already living in very stressed conditions” due to lack of food and water, expressing his outrage on any attacks on civilians.
14:42 GMT Fitch places Israel's ratings on negative watch
In light of the current Mideast conflict, Fitch Ratings has placed Israel's long-term foreign- and local-currency issuer default ratings (IDR) of A on rating watch negative.
The move "reflects the heightened risk of a widening of Israel's current conflict to include large scale military confrontations with multiple actors, over a sustained period of time," it said in a statement on Tuesday. "This could include Hezbollah, other regional militant groups and Iran."
The global rating agency said large-scale escalation, in addition to human loss, could result in significant additional military spending, destruction of infrastructure, sustained change in consumer and investment sentiment, and thus lead to a large deterioration of Israel's credit metrics.
Fitch warned that a major escalation could result in negative rating action.
14:30 GMT South Africa condemns Israel's bombing of Gaza hospital, calling it 'war crime'
South Africa condemned the Israeli airstrike on Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza which killed more than 500 people and injured over 1,000, calling it a “war crime.”
“Just as the attack by Hamas on civilians in Israel was abhorrent, there are no words to fully express South Africa’s condemnation of Israel’s bombing of the Ahli Arab Baptist hospital,” the Foreign Ministry, known as the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, said in a statement on Wednesday.
Pretoria has been vocal against Tel Aviv’s atrocities in occupied Palestinian territories. On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor held discussions with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on how to get humanitarian aid to Palestinians, according to a statement.
13:33 GMT - Hundreds of Pakistani doctors volunteer to serve in besieged Gaza
Hundreds of Pakistani doctors have volunteered to serve at the heavily burdened health facilities in Gaza, urging the international community to pressure Israel to stop targeting hospitals and paramedics.
However, Pakistani citizens cannot travel to the besieged city as Pakistan has no diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv as it doesn't recognize Israel. Thus, Pakistani aid groups are collaborating with counterparts in Türkiye and Egypt to reach suffering Palestinians.
Representatives of the two main bodies of Pakistani health professionals – Pakistan Islamic Medical Association, and Pakistan Medical Association – said that hundreds of doctors, surgeons, anesthetists and paramedics have registered themselves to serve at the broken health facilities if they are permitted to enter Gaza.
13:21 Hamas accuses US of being 'complicit in the massacres' in Gaza
Hamas has slammed the United States accusing Israel's long-time ally of being complicit in the ongoing strikes in Gaza, following a deadly strike on a hospital that health officials say killed hundreds.
"The continued endorsement of the Zionist narrative by the US administration makes it complicit in the occupation's massacres and the Baptist hospital massacre in Gaza," the group said in a statement.
13:13 GMT — Islamic Jihad rejects Israel's hospital bombing allegations
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group has rejected Israeli allegations that it struck the Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza on Tuesday with a misfired rocket, which killed hundreds of people.
The group in a statement on Wednesday said Israel's attempts to point fingers at it were baseless, stressing that it does not make use of public facilities, particularly hospitals, for military purposes.
The statement said that the movement, along with other resistance groups in Gaza, is “committed to not using places of worship, public facilities, particularly hospitals, military centers, or weapon storage,” and considers “Israeli accusations as a serious attempt to evade responsibility for such crimes and the targeting of other hospitals.”
12:08 GMT - 'Shocked' China urges ceasefire
China on Wednesday strongly condemned Israel's attack on the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in central Gaza, saying it was "shocked" by the incident.
"We mourn for the victims and extend sympathies to the injured," said a Foreign Ministry statement in the wake of the Tuesday night attack that left hundreds dead.
Calling for an "immediate cease-fire and cessation of hostilities," Beijing urged for "every possible effort to protect civilians and avert an even worse humanitarian disaster."
11:47 GMT - Palestinian death toll in Gaza tops 3,300 with 13,000 injured
The death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza has surpassed 3,300, with over 13,000 injured since October 7, the Palestinian health minister has said.
"The number of martyrs in Gaza exceeds 3,300 Palestinians, while the number of injured is more than 13,000," Health Minister Mai al Kaila said at a press conference in Ramallah, adding that these are estimated numbers due to the dire situation in Gaza as a result of continued Israeli bombardment.
She also emphasised that there is a severe shortage of medicines in Gaza, along with problems in accessing hospitals. Water cuts and the deterioration of the sewage system have increased the risks of the spread of infectious diseases.
10:28 GMT - Putin: Gaza hospital blast 'terrible event, catastrophe'
Russian President Vladimir Putin has described the attack on the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in central Gaza that killed hundreds of people as a "terrible event, a catastrophe."
"As for the attack on the hospital, the tragedy that occurred there, it is a terrible event, hundreds of dead, hundreds of wounded. This is, of course, a catastrophe," Putin told a news conference in Beijing, where he is attending the third Belt and Road forum.
The Russian leader said he expects that the event will be a signal to end this conflict as soon as possible, and to start "some contacts and negotiations."
10:14 GMT - Pope Francis to believers "take only one side... the side of peace"
Pope Francis deplored the "desperate" situation in Gaza on Wednesday as he urged the faithful to take "only one side" in the Israel-Hamas conflict, the side "of peace."
Speaking during his weekly audience in St Peter's Square, the Pontiff said: "War does not solve any problem, it only sows death and destruction, increases hatred, multiplies revenge. War erases the future".
He pleaded for all possible efforts "to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe", and announced special prayers for peace in St Peter's Basilica on Oct. 27, which all those who care for world peace are invited to join in
9:54 GMT - Situation in Gaza 'spiralling out of control': WHO
The situation in Gaza is spiralling out of control, the head of the UN health agency has warned, following a blast at a hospital that killed hundreds of people.
"The situation in Gaza is spiralling out of control," the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X. "We need violence on all sides to stop."
"Every second we wait to get medical aid in, we lose lives," he added. "We need immediate access to start delivering life-saving supplies."
9:47 GMT - Gaza's doctors struggle to save hospital blast survivors
With dwindling medical supplies, doctors in Gaza are performing surgery on hospital floors, often without anesthesia, in a desperate bid to save badly wounded victims of the deadly strike on Al Ahli hospital.
The Hamas militant group blamed the blast on an Israeli airstrike, while the Israeli military blamed a rocket misfired by other Palestinian militants.
The Gaza Health Ministry says about 3000 people have been killed and another 12,000 wounded within 12 days of Israel's revenge attacks following the October 7 ambush by Hamas fighters.
9:36 GMT - Biden backs Israel account of Gaza hospital strike
US President Joe Biden on a solidarity visit to Israel Wednesday backed the ally's account that Palestinian militants caused a devastating hospital strike in Gaza, adding Hamas had brought "only suffering."
"I was deeply saddened and outraged by the explosion at the hospital in Gaza yesterday. And based on what I've seen, it appears as though it was done by the other team, not you," Biden said as he opened a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv.
"But there's a lot of people out there not sure so we have to overcome a lot of things," Biden. The Israeli military blame Palestinian militants, saying an outgoing Islamic Jihad rocket misfired and that it would provide evidence.
09:06 GMT — Egypt's Sisi suggests Israel to take Palestinians temporarily
Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el Sisi has said that forced displacement of Palestinians cannot be implemented.
Palestinians could be moved to the Negev desert in Israel "till militants are dealt with," Sisi stressed.
He also noted that what's happening in Gaza right now isn't just a military operation against Hamas, but an attempt to force people to seek refuge in Egypt.
08:58 GMT — 'No excuse for hitting a hospital' in Gaza: EU chief
"There is no excuse for hitting a hospital full of civilians" in Gaza, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has told EU lawmakers, adding that "facts need to be established" on the deadly attack.
The EU president, speaking before the European Parliament in Strasbourg, said the overnight explosion that hit the Gaza hospital, killing at least 500, turned it into "a hell of fire".
"All those responsible must be held accountable," she said, not apportioning blame for the strike.
8:32 GMT - Biden arrives in Israel as tensions grow in the Middle East after hospital blast
President Joe Bi den has arrived in Israel on an urgent mission to keep the Israel-Hamas conflict from spiraling into a broader regional conflict and to encourage the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.
Air Force One landed at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv on Wednesday morning. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was on the tarmac to greet Biden and the two embraced.
Biden and Netanyahu are expected to meet then hold a broader meeting with members of Israel’s war cabinet. White House officials say Biden will also meet with the country’s first responders and with family members of those who were killed, wounded or taken hostage during the Hamas attack on October 7.
7:59 GMT - Prove you didn't strike Gaza hospital, Russia to Israel
Russia's foreign ministry has said that a strike on a hospital in Israel-besieged Gaza that killed hundreds of Palestinians was a shocking crime, adding that Tel Aviv should provide satellite images to prove that it was not involved in the attack.
Hamas blamed the blast on an Israeli airstrike, while the Israeli military blamed a rocket misfired by another militant group.
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Radio Sputnik that the attack was a shocking "dehumanising" crime.
Separately Russia and the United Arab Emirates called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Wednesday.
7:30 GMT - UN chief seeks 'immediate humanitarian ceasefire' after Gaza hospital strike
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire" after a hospital in besieged Gaza was hit by Israeli air strike, killing at least 500 Palestinians.
He added that the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel did not justify the "collective punishment" of Palestinians.
Speaking at a forum of China's Belt and Road infrastructure initiative in Beijing, he reiterated what he called "two urgent humanitarian appeals".
6:29 GMT - Jordan cancels summit with Biden after Israel bombs Gaza hospital
Jordan has cancelled the summit with US President Joe Biden and leaders of Egypt and Palestine, saying "there is no use in talking now about anything except stopping the war."
The summit will be held "when the decision to stop the war and put an end to these massacres has been taken," said Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi.
Amman cancelled the summit after Israel bombed a hospital in besieged Gaza, killing at least 500 Palestinians and wounding countless others.
6:10 GMT — US raises travel advisory for Lebanon to 'do not travel'
The US State Department has raised its travel alert for Lebanon to "do not travel," citing the security situation related to rocket, missile, and artillery exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah.
The State Department authorised the voluntary, temporary departure of family members of US government personnel and some non-emergency personnel from the US Embassy in Beirut because of the unpredictable security situation in Lebanon.
5:40 GMT — Israeli embassy in Brazil protests comments by Lula's party
The Israeli embassy in Brazil has protested against a resolution by the party of leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva that accuses Israel of "genocide" and "war crimes."
"It is very unfortunate that a party that defends human rights compares the terrorist organisation Hamas, which goes from house to house to murder entire families, with what the Israeli government is doing to protect its citizens," the embassy in Brasilia posted on X, formerly Twitter.
"There must be a strong separation between the Hamas terrorist organisation and the Palestinians," the embassy added, in response to a resolution published on Monday by the Lula's Workers Party, or PT.
5:10 GMT — Palestinian resistance group rejects Israeli accusation
Palestinian resistance group Islamic Jihad has described as "lies" the Israel army's accusations that it was responsible for strike on Gaza hospital.
"The Zionist enemy is trying hard to evade its responsibility for the brutal massacre he committed by bombing the Baptist Arab National Hospital in Gaza through his usual fabrication of lies, and through pointing the finger of blame at the Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine," it said in a statement.
"We therefore affirm that the accusations put forward by the enemy are false and baseless," it added.
4:15 GMT — Biden speaks to Israel's PM, Jordan's king after Gaza hospital attack
US President Joe Biden has spoken with King Abdullah of Jordan, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel after Israel's hospital attack in besieged Gaza left hundreds dead.
Biden was also briefed on the attack by his national security team and spoke over the phone with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the White House added.
3:30 GMT — Hundreds of protesters outside French, UK embassies in Tehran
Hundreds of protesters have gathered outside the British and French embassies in Tehran, an AFP news agency correspondent said, as regional anger grows over Israel's deadly strike on a Gaza hospital.
"Death to France and England," protesters shouted, throwing eggs at the walls of the French embassy compound in the Iranian capital.
3:00 GMT — Biden postpones Jordan visit following Gaza blast
US President Joe Biden has postponed his visit to Jordan after Israel’s deadly strike on Al Ahli hospital in Gaza and will only go to Israel on his Middle East trip, the White House said.
Biden decided after "consulting" with Jordan's King Abdullah II and "in light of the days of mourning" announced by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who was due at the summit along with Egypt's president, the White House said in a statement.
2:39 GMT — Palestinian UN envoy blames Israel for Gaza hospital strike
Palestinian United Nations Ambassador Riyad Mansour, standing with Arab UN envoys, said they were all outraged by a deadly strike on Al Ahli hospital and blamed Israel, which says a Palestinian militant group was responsible.
"We condemn this act in the strongest possible terms, and we hold Israel responsible for this massacre, this crime, and those responsible for this crime should face justice," Mansour told reporters at the United Nations.
