LIVE | Israel military shows ‘Hamas weapons’ at Gaza’s Shifa Hospital; no sign of tunnels
Two and a half weeks after sending tanks and ground troops into northern Gaza, Israeli forces searched Shifa Hospital on Wednesday where they claim Hamas militants operate.
The Israeli military displayed what it says are Hamas weapons and military equipment it uncovered in Shifa Hospital. But so far, its search showed no signs of tunnels or a sophisticated command centre that it has said Hamas maintains on the grounds of the hospital.
Hamas and Gaza health officials deny militants operate in Shifa.
Mohammed Zaqout, the director of hospitals in Gaza, said Israeli tanks were inside the medical compound and that soldiers had entered buildings, including the emergency and surgery departments, which house intensive care units.
More than 11,200 Palestinians — two-thirds of them women and minors — have been killed since the war began, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilian and militant deaths. About 2,700 people have been reported missing.
(With AP inputs)Live Updates
- 16 Nov 2023 10:57 AM GMT
UN refugee agency gets initial fuel delivery, says needs a lot more
The head of UNRWA confirmed receipt of 23,000 liters of fuel via the Rafah crossing but stressed the need for more to enter Gaza. He said that Israeli authorities permitted the fuel solely for aid transportation, excluding its use for broader humanitarian purposes like medical care, water facilities, or UNRWA operations. Philippe Lazzarini reiterated UNRWA's daily requirement of 160,000 liters for fundamental humanitarian tasks.
- 16 Nov 2023 10:53 AM GMT
Israeli army claims 'operational control' of Gaza port has been achieved
The Israeli army reported that in a recent coordinated operation, soldiers assumed operational command of the Gaza harbor, previously under the control of the Hamas group. The statement mentioned that all structures within the harbor vicinity were vacated.
- 16 Nov 2023 8:41 AM GMT
‘We will eliminate Hamas’: Netanyahu visits Israeli troops near Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told troops at the Zikim military base near north Gaza: “There is no place in Gaza that Israel will not reach.” Standing next to soldiers at the base, Netanyahu said: “Do you remember when we were told that we would not break into Gaza? We broke through. We were told that we would not reach the outskirts of Gaza City – we arrived. We were told that we won't enter Shifa – we entered.
“There is no hiding, no shelter, no refuge for the murderers of Hamas,” Netanyahu said.
“We will arrive and eliminate Hamas and return our abductees – these are two sacred missions.”
- 16 Nov 2023 8:41 AM GMT
A hosptial in northern Gaza treats dozens of patients each day amid bombing
Around 40 patients a day are coming in to Awda Hospital in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza, said Dr. Ahmed Mhanna, the hospital's manager.
Awda Hospital is still operating but the facility's main generator is no longer functioning, he said, and the hospital is also delivering around 20 babies each day, he said.
“The situation is critical,” he said in a recorded message. Jabaliya has been heavily bombed since October 7.
Mhanna said that Israel strikes were still pounding the areas immediately around the hospital, with shrapnel striking the building. Eight staff members have been injured from the bombing, he added.
- 16 Nov 2023 8:37 AM GMT
3/4 of Gaza's hospitals aren't working: WHO
Only a quarter of Gaza's hospitals are still functioning, with about 26 out of 36 institutions now closed — either because they have been damaged or because they ran out of fuel, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Wednesday.
The UN health agency has lost contact with health workers at Shifa hospital, the largest in the Gaza Strip, said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in Geneva. He said the Israeli military raid of the institution “totally unacceptable.” Approximately 82 bodies from Shifa were buried in a mass grave Wednesday, with another 80 bodies left unburied, said Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO's representative in the West Bank and Gaza. He said about 45 patients were receiving dialysis and that there were no central supplies of oxygen, water or fuel.
Peeperkorn said several organisations, including the WHO, were “urgently exploring the possibility of an evacuation of patients and medical staff.” He called for a plan to evacuate about 2,000 critically ill patients out of Gaza over the next three months, possibly to Egypt.
- 16 Nov 2023 8:37 AM GMT
White house says US didn't know about Israel raid on Shifa hospital beforehand
US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby on Wednesday said that the United States did not sign off on Israel's raid on Shifa hospital.
Kirby, responding to questions about the timing of the operation and his statement that the US knows Hamas militants shelter in hospitals, said the United States doesn't expect advance notice from Israel before its military operations.
“We did not give an OK to their military operations around the hospital,” Kirby said, speaking to reporters from San Francisco, where President Joe Biden was preparing to meet with China's leader on Wednesday. “We don't expect the Israelis to inform us.” Kirby suggested the timing of his announcement about US intelligence findings that Hamas uses hospitals for command and control and for shelter followed the Israeli military operation was a coincidence. He said his delivery of some “downgraded” intelligence information “had nothing to do with operational timing.” He said “it is a violation of the law of war to headquarter yourself in a hospital” and that what Hamas is doing in that regard should not be forgotten. Kirby said Shifa is an “active, legitimate hospital.
- 16 Nov 2023 8:33 AM GMT
UNSC overcomes deadlock, adopts resolution calling for urgent humanitarian pauses in Gaza
The UN Security Council has called for urgent humanitarian pauses and corridors throughout Gaza to allow unhindered humanitarian access in the strip, finally overcoming deadlock and adopting a resolution in the month-long Israel-Hamas conflict.
The 15-nation Council adopted a resolution on Wednesday that called for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, especially children, as well as ensuring immediate humanitarian access.
The Malta-drafted resolution was adopted with 12 votes in favour, none against and three abstentions from Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
The resolution calls for “urgent and extended humanitarian pauses and corridors throughout the Gaza Strip for a sufficient number of days to enable, consistent with international humanitarian law, the full, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access” for United Nations humanitarian agencies and their implementing partners to facilitate the continuous, sufficient and unhindered provision of essential goods and services throughout the Gaza Strip.
The adoption of the resolution came after four failed attempts last month in the council to take action on allowing humanitarian access in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The resolution by the US that would have affirmed the right of member states to defend themselves against threats to peace and security posed by acts of terrorism, was vetoed by Russia and China. Two resolutions by Moscow failed to get sufficient votes in their favour while the Brazil text that would have called for humanitarian pauses to allow full access for aid to the Gaza strip was vetoed by the US.
- 16 Nov 2023 8:28 AM GMT
US: Police, protesters clash during demonstration over Israel-Hamas war
Police and protesters clashed outside Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington on Wednesday night during a demonstration for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, the latest reflection of boiling tensions over the bloody conflict.
Scores of Democratic representatives and candidates, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, were inside the building for a campaign reception when it was interrupted by chanting outside. Protesters said they wanted to block entrances and exits to force politicians to encounter their candlelight vigil and their calls for an end to the fighting. Many of them wore black shirts saying “Cease Fire Now.”
However, the situation swiftly devolved. US Capitol Police said about 150 people were “illegally and violently protesting” in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington. But protesters blamed police for the violence, saying officers rushed them without warning.
Inside the Democratic headquarters, police rushed into the reception and directed lawmakers to the basement, according to Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif. Some were later evacuated in police vehicles. Capitol Police said six officers were treated for minor injuries and one protester was arrested for assaulting an officer. Video posted on social media showed shoving and scuffles as police moved in.
