Following extensive discussions with Netanyahu, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the two have agreed to develop a plan for delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza. As for the UN, it reports that most Palestinians in Gaza lack access to water, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns Iran and Hezbollah not to get involved.
One of the most visited places in the world, Jerusalem’s Old City, has closed its stores, churches, and other public areas due to the ongoing hostilities between Israel and Hamas militants, that started on October 7. Tourists and pilgrims have fled the city in fear of escalating violence.
Following the first Friday prayers since the start of the Israeli-Hamas war less than a week ago, Jerusalem was explosive on Friday, with clashes outside the Old City near the Palestinian-Israeli border. Yan Boechat has this report from Jerusalem.
In a Monday press conference in New York, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the deaths that resulted from the weekend’s Hamas strikes and Israeli counterattacks. According to Margaret Besheer, a U.N. correspondent for VOA, Guterres called for a two-state solution to the crisis through negotiation and urged both sides to protect civilians and Hamas to release hostages. Guterres also urged both sides to protect civilians.
The number of people killed during the Hamas incursion into Israel has surpassed 600, making it the deadliest single day in Israeli history. Israeli airstrikes in retaliation have claimed at least 300 Palestinian lives.Linda Gradstein has this report from Jerusalem. VOA News
Israel showcases its urban warfare training program, which teaches soldiers how to avoid collateral damage, at a part of an army base designed to look like a Palestinian city in response to criticism over its recent raid on the Jenin Palestinian refugee camp.
Israel has vowed to crack down on the Lion’s Den, an armed Palestinian resistance group in West Bank that has attacked Israeli soldiers and civilians numerous times over the past six months.
Malaysian authorities are investigating whether Israel’s spy agency was involved in the kidnapping of a Palestinian in Kuala Lumpur in late September, a senior police official said Wednesday