Saturday, December 23, 2023
15:31 GMT - Israeli airstrike kills 76 members of an extended family
An Israeli airstrike has killed 76 members of an extended family, rescue officials have said, a day after the UN chief warned again that nowhere is safe in Gaza and that Israel's ongoing offensive is creating “massive obstacles” to the distribution of humanitarian aid.
Friday's strike on a building in Gaza City was among the deadliest of Israel's war on the besieged enclave, now in its 12th week, said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesman for Gaza's Civil Defence department.
He provided a partial list of the names of those killed — 16 heads of households from the al Mughrabi family — and said the dead included women and children.
14:10 GMT - US asks Israel to expedite release of remaining hostages in Gaza
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Defence Minister Yaov Gallant have discussed current initiatives to expedite the release of remaining hostages and increase humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
“Secretary Blinken and Defence Minister Gallant discussed active efforts to facilitate the release of all remaining hostages and increase levels of humanitarian assistance reaching Palestinian civilians in Gaza,” said a statement issued by State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on Friday, a day after the two leaders spoke on the phone.
The top US diplomat emphasised the importance of taking precautions to prevent conflict and tension from escalating, particularly in the occupied West Bank and Lebanon.
13:20 GMT - Israel planning to end ground operation in Gaza in '3rd phase of war'
Tel Aviv is preparing to end its military ground operation in Gaza as part of the third stage of its war in the coming weeks, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation has reported.
The broadcaster quoted unnamed sources as saying that the Israeli army "is preparing to move to the third phase of the fighting in Gaza during the coming weeks, in accordance with operational achievements."
"The third phase includes ending the ground operation in the Gaza Strip, reducing army forces and demobilizing reserves, resorting to air strikes, and establishing a buffer zone on the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip," according to the sources.
12:25 GMT - Jordanian foreign minister in Doha to discuss routes to end war in Gaza
Jordan's foreign minister has begun an official visit to Qatar's capital to discuss potential routes to ending Israel's war on Gaza.
“Today (Saturday), the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi begins a working visit to Doha,” the Jordanian Foreign Ministry said.
During his visit, Safadi will meet with Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, within “the framework of the ongoing coordination and consultation process to intensify targeted efforts to stop the raging war on Gaza.”
11:45 GMT - Gaza residents facing starvation: WHO chief
Residents in Gaza City are facing starvation and selling their possessions for food, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.
“Hunger is present, and famine is looming in Gaza,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote on X.
Four of five households in northern Gaza and half of displaced households in the south are going days and nights without eating, said Ghebreyesus.
10:24 GMT - Israeli army detain 20 Palestinians in occupied West Bank
The Israeli army has arrested at least 20 Palestinians across the occupied West Bank, sources have said.
The Palestinians were detained in Hebron, Ramallah, Jerusalem, Jenin, Qalqilya and Tubas, according to a statement by the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society and the Palestinian Authority Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs.
They were brutally beaten during the arrests, and their homes were damaged, it said.
09:30 GMT - Israel resumes its raids across occupied West Bank
Israeli forces launched raids on multiple locations in the occupied West Bank, targeting cities such as Jenin, Nablus, Jericho, Bethlehem, and Hebron, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
In Jericho, Israeli soldiers, accompanied by military vehicles, raided the Ayn es-Sultan and Akabeti Jabr refugee camps, leading to clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian youth.
Similar incursions took place in Hebron, including the Yatta district and the Dheisheh Refugee Camp in Bethlehem.
08:20 GMT - Palestine reacts to UNSC Gaza resolution amid Israeli onslaught
Palestine's Foreign Ministry has welcomed the adoption by the United Nations Security Council [UNSC] of a resolution intended to help bring more humanitarian aid into blockaded Gaza.
The ministry, which is part of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, called the resolution "a step in the right direction," and said it would help "end the aggression, ensure the arrival of aid and protect the Palestinian people."
"We consider it a step that may contribute to alleviating the suffering of our people in the Gaza Strip," the ministry statement added.
07:17 GMT - Israeli forces launch attacks on West Bank
Israeli forces launched raids on multiple locations in the occupied West Bank, targeting cities such as Jenin, Nablus, Jericho, Bethlehem, and Hebron, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.
In Jericho, Israeli soldiers, accompanied by military vehicles, raided the Ayn es-Sultan and Akabeti Jabr refugee camps, leading to clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian youth.
Similar incursions took place in Hebron, including the Yatta district and the Dheisheh Refugee Camp in Bethlehem.
06:10 GMT - Palestine reacts to UNSC Gaza resolution amid Israeli onslaught
Palestine's Foreign Ministry has welcomed the adoption by the United Nations Security Council [UNSC] of a resolution intended to help bring more humanitarian aid into blockaded Gaza.
The ministry, which is part of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, called the resolution "a step in the right direction," and said it would help "end the aggression, ensure the arrival of aid and protect the Palestinian people."
"We consider it a step that may contribute to alleviating the suffering of our people in the Gaza Strip," the ministry statement added.
05:41 GMT - Israeli army carrying out more West Bank invasions
Israeli forces have invaded the city and refugee camp of Jenin.
Eyewitnesses confirmed that a large number of Israeli military vehicles, accompanied by a bulldozer, entered the city and the camp from the Jalama checkpoint, sparking clashes between youth and Israeli occupational forces.
They reported that several military vehicles were positioned near Jenin Government Hospital, close to the Horse Roundabout adjacent to Jenin's main entrance. Additional reinforcements were being deployed by the Israeli forces from various directions.
05:00 GMT - Palestine aid group says UNSC resolution 'utterly insufficient'
The head of Medical Aid for Palestinians [MAP] said that the UN Security Council [UNSC] resolution that called for more aid and better access to besieged Gaza is not a sufficient move.
Melanie Ward welcomed the resolution but said, "It is an utterly insufficient response to the scale of humanitarian need," The CEO of the UK-based charity noted that 20,000 Palestinians have been killed while a quarter of hospitals function and said the world continues to "fail Gaza's people in their darkest hour."
Ward said the resolution will not halt the "disaster."
04:15 GMT - US alleges Iran 'deeply involved' in Red Sea attacks
Iran was "deeply involved" in planning operations against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and its intelligence was critical to enable Yemen's Houthi movement to target ships, the White House alleged on Friday.
Iran denies involvement in attacks by the Houthis in the Red Sea.
Houthis, who say their attacks are in support of Palestinians under siege by Israel in Gaza, have targeted shipping in the Red Sea with drones and missiles, forcing shippers to change course and take longer routes around the southern tip of Africa.
03:30 GMT - British Jews commemorate Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks
British Jewish group Na'amod has organised a vigil in London to mourn Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks.
The crowd gathered at the Gasholder Park to join "a call to global action by activists in Jerusalem, where any public expression of solidarity with Palestinians risks hostile reprisals and repression."
Calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, end to siege of the territory and release of hostages, the protesters carried signs, some of which read: "Each person is a world," "End the siege," and "Cease-fire now."
For our live updates from Friday, December 22, click here.
