Tuesday, September 17, 2024
14:12 GMT — Israel has announced the expansion of its war aims, widening its nearly year-long attacks on Gaza to focus on Hezbollah along its northern border with Lebanon.
The announcement came with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken due back in the region this week to try to revive stalled ceasefire talks for the Israeli war on Gaza.
"The political-security cabinet updated the goals of the war this evening so that they include the following section: the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement.
13:41 GMT — Lebanon lodges new UN complaint against Israel after deadly strike on Froun town
Lebanon has filed a new complaint with the UN Security Council against Israel over a deadly air strike that killed four firefighters.
An Israeli drone strike targeted a civil defence fire truck in the town of Froun in southern Lebanon on September 7, leaving four firefighters dead.
The complaint was submitted by Lebanon's mission to the UN upon instructions from caretaker Foreign Minister Abdullah Bou Habib, according to the state-run National News Agency.
12:59 GMT — Israeli strike kills three in Lebanon's Blida village: ministry
An Israeli strike on Lebanon has killed three people, the Health Ministry has said, with Israel saying they were Hezbollah militants, as tensions intensified.
The Health Ministry said an "Israeli enemy strike" on the border village of Blida killed "three people and wounded two", without specifying if they were militants or civilians.
Hezbollah did not immediately announce any members had been killed, but claimed a series of attacks on Israeli troops and positions near the border on Tuesday.
11:43 GMT — UN expert calls European arms sales to Israel amid continued attacks on Gaza 'regrettable'
A UN independent expert has expressed concern over continued European arms sales to Israel amid its attacks on Gaza, calling the situation "regrettable."
In an interview, George Katrougalos, special rapporteur on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order, decried the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, stressing the high civilian death toll.
Katrougalos urged the international community to take a more active stance in pressuring Israel to halt hostilities and agree to an immediate ceasefire.
11:24 GMT — Israel’s full-scale war in Lebanon closer ‘than ever’: report
Israel’s full-scale war in southern Lebanon is closer now than ever before amid escalating cross-border clashes with Hezbollah, an Israeli newspaper has said.
The Jerusalem Post said that if the offensive did not take place in four to six weeks, it may be impossible to launch a large-scale offensive until spring 2025.
“Right now is the closest Israel has been to a full war with Hezbollah since October 7,” the newspaper said in an analysis.
10:01 GMT — Turkish FM to take part in Gaza contact group meeting in Jordan
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will travel to Jordan on Wednesday to participate in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and Arab League Contact Group meeting on Gaza.
Key topics include steps to end the "genocide" in Gaza, implementing a two-state solution, and ensuring uninterrupted humanitarian aid delivery to the region.
Increasing support for the work of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) will also be on the agenda.
Fidan is expected to advocate for increased international pressure on Israel and push for Palestine's full membership in the UN.
He will also reiterate calls for more countries to intervene in the genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
09:52 GMT — Hezbollah, Israel trade attacks as border tension mounts
Lebanese group Hezbollah claimed attacks against military sites in northern Israel as Tel Aviv bombed border towns in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah said that its fighters had targeted buildings used by Israeli soldiers in the Manara settlement with “appropriate weapons,” resulting in a direct hit.
The group said it also attacked Israeli forces in the vicinity of the Al-Abad site with a missile, causing casualties among soldiers.
The attacks came as US Special Envoy Amos Hochstein continued his talks with Israeli officials in Tel Aviv to prevent a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah.
08:58 GMT — Israel kills 26 more Gazans as death toll passes 41,250
At least 26 more Palestinians lost their lives in relentless Israeli attacks in Gaza, taking the overall death toll since last October 7, to 41,252, the Health Ministry in the battered territory said.
A ministry statement added that some 95,497 others have been injured in the ongoing assault.
“Israeli forces killed 26 people and injured 84 others in three ‘massacres’ of families in the last 24 hours,” the ministry said.
08:31 GMT — Scores killed, injured in Israeli air strikes on Gaza refugee camp
Scores of people were killed and injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, the Civil Defense Service said.
Israeli warplanes bombed several houses on the eastern side of the camp as dozens of people were inside, the service said.
“More than 50 people are estimated to have been inside these houses during the Israeli attack,” it added in a statement.
The service said four people, including a child, had so far been recovered, while scores of people remained under the rubble of destroyed houses.
05:30 GMT — Israel blocks 83 percent of food assistance to Gaza — aid groups
People in Gaza are surviving on an average of one meal per day as the Israeli army blocks 83 percent of the necessary food aid, according to a joint statement by 15 aid organisations.
The statement noted a significant increase in aid obstruction compared to 2023, when 34 percent of food aid was blocked.
Amjad Al Shawa, director of the Palestinian NGOs Network (PNGO), highlighted the dire situation, saying the entire population of Gaza is now reliant on aid, and the shortages have led to widespread hunger.
04:10 GMT — Israeli forces conduct arrests in Balata camp and Madama village
Israeli troops have raided the Balata refugee camp near Nablus in the occupied West Bank, arresting three Palestinian men, according to the Wafa news agency.
Additionally, a fourth man was arrested in the nearby village of Madama, south of Nablus, Wafa reported.
03:30 GMT — Israel vows to return settlers to areas near Lebanon border
Israel has expanded its stated goals of the war on besieged Gaza to include enabling settler to return to communities in northern Israel that have been evacuated due to clashes between Israeli military and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The decision was approved by PM Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet, Netanyahu's office said.
It comes amid reports of Israeli military planes dropping leaflets on the residents of southern Lebanon, warning them of consequences if they don't flee.
03:00 GMT — Casualties as Israel strikes Gaza
Israel has killed six Palestinians in northern and central besieged Gaza, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.
Citing local sources, WAFA said Israel targeted a group of Palestinian civilians in the north of the blockaded enclave, killing three and wounding several others.
In the Nuseirat camp, Israel targeted a house with warplanes, killing three and wounding others.
02:48 GMT — Blinken to travel to Egypt to discuss Gaza ceasefire
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will address Gaza ceasefire efforts with Egyptian officials this week, the State Department said, as he visits the North African country, which has played an important role in truce talks.
This will be his 10th Gaza truce mission to Middle East. All of his previous attempts to convince ally Israel for a truce failed due to PM Netanyahu's intransigence and sabotage.
Blinken "will meet with Egyptian officials to discuss ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza that secures the release of all hostages, alleviates the suffering of the Palestinian people, and helps establish broader regional security," spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.
02:30 GMT — Houthi official says US offered to recognise group's government
A senior Houthi official has said that the US offered to recognise the Houthi government in Sanaa in a bid to stop the Yemeni group's attacks, in remarks a US official said were false.
The Houthi official's remarks came a day after a ballistic missile from the group reached central Israel for the first time, prompting Netanyahu to say Israel would inflict a "heavy price" on them.
"There is always communication after every operation we conduct," Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthi movement's political bureau, told Al Jazeera Mubasher TV.
02:00 GMT — UN chief condemns 'collective punishment' of Palestinians
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has told the AFP news agency that nothing justifies Israel's collective punishment of the people of Gaza as they endure "unimaginable" suffering.
Guterres lashed out at Israel's handling of its carnage in the devastated Palestinian territory, now almost in its second year, as the UN prepares to host world leaders starting next week.
"It is unimaginable, the level of suffering in Gaza, the level of deaths and destruction have no parallel in everything I've witnessed since (becoming) secretary-general," said Guterres, who has led the embattled international organisation since 2017.
For our live updates from Monday, September 16, 2024, click here.
