In a post on X, UN Special Rapporteur to Palestine Francesca Albanese said another world order is necessary to “stop Palestinians’ unspeakable sacrifice and save us all.”.
Health officials in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip say more than 20,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war between Israel and Hamas.
The figure, amounting to nearly one percent of the territory’s prewar population, is a new reflection of the staggering cost of the war, which in just over 10 weeks has displaced more than 80 percent of Gaza’s people and devastated wide swaths of the tiny coastal enclave.
Gaza’s health ministry said Friday that it has documented 20,057 deaths in the fighting. It does not differentiate between combatant and civilian deaths. It has previously said that roughly two-thirds of the dead were women or minors.
Israel’s aggression is pushing Gaza into famine and a staggering 90 per cent of the people there are on the brink of starvation, UK-based anti-poverty organisation Oxfam warned, Anadolu Agency reports.
“While over 90pc of people in Gaza cannot find their next meal, some UN Security Council member states are still toying with words rather than voting for a ceasefire,” said Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East and North Africa regional director.
“Gaza’s shocking descent into starvation was so predictable as to be premeditated, an ongoing war crime by the Government of Israel,” Khalil was quoted as saying in the Oxfam statement.
Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat, from occupied East Jerusalem, reports that “sound bombs” could be heard near the Al-Aqsa Mosque a few minutes ago, just before the start of the Friday prayer.
“There have been a lot of clashes and, for the first time, not just in one area but outside several gates that take you to the old city,” she added.
A video on social media shows Israeli soldiers on horses chasing worshipers away from the Lions Gate, one of the seven gates of the Old City of Jerusalem, the news outlet reports.
Churches across Palestine announced the cancellation of all Christmas festivities in an expression of unity with Gaza — limiting activities to services and prayers, Al Jazeera reports.
All of this has affected Christmas tourism, which was revived only last year following a two-year hiatus due to health and travel restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic. Bethlehem usually receives up to 1.5 million tourists every year, according to the Palestinian Ministry for Tourism and Culture.
Rula Maayah, the Palestinian minister for tourism, said that the tourism sector has incurred significant losses as a result of the Israeli assault on Gaza. At a time when the world is celebrating Christmas, Bethlehem is “sad, silent, in pain, and completely besieged”, Maayah said.
“No one can reach it or leave it, its people are without work and without hope as a result of the disruption in tourism,” which is the backbone of its economy, she added.
Even the heads of religious establishments in Bethlehem speak of the importance of cancelling celebrations this year.
70pc of staff in Gaza displaced yet they continue to work, says UN aid agency official
At least one person has been killed and a number of people have been wounded in Israeli artillery shelling in the middle of the al-Bureij market in central Gaza, Al Jazeera reports citing a correspondent from the Palestinian Safa news agency
After a week of diplomatic back and forth, the United States has signalled that it is ready to support a United Nations Security Council resolution. Here is what we know about the draft resolution.
The original draft was put forth by the United Arab Emirates mission to the UN on December 15 and it called for a cessation of hostilities and unhindered flow of aid into the Gaza Strip.
It also said that the UN would exclusively monitor aid that enters Gaza through routes from outside states. Additionally, it called for an “immediate and unconditional release of all hostages”.
Initially, the US did not want the word “cessation” in the resolution. As a result, the language was substituted with “suspension of hostilities”.
However, Washington was unconvinced despite the first round of revisions and voting was delayed. Now, the problem was with the UN monitoring of aid entering Gaza
The Israeli army says it attacked a series of Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, including military sites and infrastructures belonging to the armed group, Al Jazeera reports.
The air attacks come after the military said that a barrage of 24 rockets were fired from Lebanon towards southern Israel.The number of journalists killed in the attacks by the Israeli army on the Gaza Strip nears 100, according to the government in the enclave, Anadolu Agency reports.
The death of Ala Abu Muammer brought the number of deaths to 98, the Media Office said in a statement.It did not provide details about Abu Muammer’s death.
The Israeli army says it has arrested at least 11 people during raids across the occupied West Bank. Military operations took place overnight in Beit Rima village and Dura, Al Jazeera reports.Palestinians across the occupied territories have seen an uptick in Israeli forces’ raids and mass arrests with more than 4,600 people taken in since October 7.
Since then, Israeli forces have killed at least 258 people, the vast majority with live ammunition, data from the UN show
At least 16 people from the Al-Bursh family have been killed after Israeli forces targeted their home on Old Gaza Street in Jabalia town, the Palestinian Shehab News Agency reports. Another 50 people were wounded in the attack, according to Al Jazeera.
Earlier, Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reported that Ministry of Health Director-General Munir Al-Bursh was critically injured following the Israeli air strike on his sister’s house, where he was sheltering. His daughter was among those killed.
Meanwhile, another nine Palestinians have been killed after Israeli forces bombed a house in the Abu Iskandar area in the Sheikh Radwan district of Gaza City, Quds News Network reports.
Human rights groups and independent bodies in the UK have condemned London, asserting its complicity in Israel’s alleged war crimes by continuing arms sales. They argue that failure to cease weapon exports to Israel, deemed in violation of international humanitarian law, warrants scrutiny and criticism, Anadolu Agency reports.
The Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) and the human rights organisation, Al-Haq, in Ramallah, have initiated legal action against the UK. They accuse the UK of disregarding demands to halt arms sales to Israel, citing violations of international law.
Al-Haq and GLAN have taken legal in the High Court, alleging persistent neglect of written requests to halt the arms sales. The application provides details on Israel’s policies, including attacks on civilians, infrastructure and facilities like hospitals and schools, as well as forced displacement and hunger-inducing measures.
The independent International Centre for Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) and civil society group, Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) have voiced support for the initiative.
Chinese automaker Geely warns its Electric Vehicle (EV) sales will likely be impacted by the “situation” in the Red Sea, where Yemeni Houthis are attacking vessels in response to Israeli attacks on Gaza, Al Jazeera reports.
Geely told the Reuters news agency that most shipping firms it uses to export its EVs to Europe have plans to go around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid the Suez Canal due to the uptick in hostilities.
The company added that shipping firms are expected to adjust freight rates if the Red Sea issue remains unresolved, resulting in rising transport costs.
Several global shippers have already said they would avoid the Red Sea due to the Houthi presence
The Israeli army radio says about 24 rockets were fired from Lebanon towards northern Israel, Al Jazeera reports.