Gaza death toll rises as Canada, Italy slam Israeli settler assault in West Bank

Gaza’s Civil Defence announced that it had managed to evacuate five injured people - including two women and two children - from the Sanafor area in Al-Tuffah neighborhood in eastern Gaza city.

It also reported that dozens of families who had been trapped by Israeli occupation forces who had fired on the area with tanks and drones were evacuated.

Hamas has said that the number of trucks entering Gaza does not meet even the bare minimum of basic needs. It says Israel is allowing in non-essential commercial trucks while not letting basic relief supplies get through. The group called on mediators to act urgently to allow in mobile homes and save civilians before the arrival of winter storms.

Gaza's Civil Defence said that a Palestinian woman and man were wounded by Israeli gunfire east of Gaza City in the central Gaza Strip, the Anadolu news agency reported. It added that dozens of families are trapped under intense Israeli fire and are appealing to be moved to safe areas.

Israel has reportedly granted a two-week extension to an indemnity waiver that allows Israeli banks to conduct transactions with Palestinian banks, The Times of Israel reported.

The waiver was due to expire yesterday, raising fears of a collapse in the West Bank’s Palestinian economy, which operates on the Israeli shekel under the Oslo Accords signed in the 1990s.

Several Palestinian news outlets also reported the extension.

Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich had previously refused to sign the waiver as part of efforts to undermine the Palestinian Authority.

Last month, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attempted to remove Smotrich’s authority over the matter, but the far-right minister threatened to bring down the government, forcing Netanyahu to retreat, according to an Israeli official cited by The Times of Israel.

The two-week extension is a temporary measure as Netanyahu works to resolve the issue, which has reportedly raised concerns within the Trump administration, a US official said.

Israeli army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said the shooting of two Palestinians who had surrendered in the West Bank by Israeli border police officers requires a full investigation.

"These events require a thorough clarification," Zamir said during a visit to the northern West Bank.

He added that "the operational inquiry be completed immediately after the conclusion of the investigation" by the Justice Ministry unit responsible for examining police misconduct.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump, according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office.

During the call, Netanyahu and Trump “emphasised … the importance and commitment to disarming Hamas and demilitarising the Gaza Strip, and discussed expanding the peace agreements,” the statement said.

The office also noted that “President Trump has invited Prime Minister Netanyahu to a meeting at the White House in the near future.”

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday it was important that Israel maintain a good dialogue with Syria as he expressed continued support for making Syria a prosperous country.

"It is very important that Israel maintain a strong and true dialogue with Syria, and that nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria’s evolution into a prosperous state," Trump said in a Truth Social post. 

More than a third of Israelis support granting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a pardon, according to two surveys published on Sunday.

A poll by the Kan public broadcaster found that 38 percent of those surveyed favour a pardon, while 43 percent are against it.

Channel 12 News reported almost identical findings in its own poll. It noted that backing for a pardon increases from 36 to 38 percent if it is conditional on Netanyahu leaving political life.

Israeli far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called on President Isaac Herzog to grant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a pardon, while launching an attack on the Justice Ministry unit responsible for investigating police misconduct.

Ben-Gvir claimed the department "never died – it operated under the radar as the left's political tool to bury police misconduct under left-wing governments," accusing it of ignoring claims of unlawful investigative tactics in Netanyahu’s corruption case.

He went on to say the unit "is only a tiny piece of the Deep State's well-oiled apparatus," which he alleged "politically persecutes the right, stopping at nothing."

He argued that "eliminating corruption in the legal system is just as critical as pardoning the prime minister."

Egypt is training hundreds of Palestinian police officers with an eye towards integrating them into a post-war security force in Gaza, AFP news agency reported- citing a Palestinian official.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty announced the plan to train 5,000 officers for Gaza during talks with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in August.

A first group of more than 500 officers were trained in Cairo in March and since September the two-month courses have resumed to welcome hundreds more people, the Palestinian official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

He said all members of the force will be from the Gaza Strip and paid by the Palestinian Authority, which is based in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

"I'm very happy with the training. We want a permanent end to war and aggression, and we're eager to serve our country and fellow citizens," said a 26-year-old Palestinian police officer.

He told AFP he hoped the security force would be "independent, loyal only to Palestine and not subject to external alliances or objectives".

"We received outstanding operational training, with modern equipment for border surveillance," said a Palestinian lieutenant who also requested anonymity for security reasons, as did everyone interviewed by AFP.

The president of the International Criminal Court (ICC) said on Monday that although US sanctions imposed on senior officials have disrupted their personal lives, the court will not be swayed by external pressure.

Earlier this year, the administration of President Donald Trump issued targeted sanctions against nine ICC officials- including prosecutors and judges- in response to investigations into alleged Israeli war crimes.

According to sources, Washington is also considering wider sanctions against the entire court.

Judge Tomoko Akane told the annual meeting of the ICC’s governing body in The Hague, which includes representatives from its 125 member states: "We never accept any kind of pressure from anyone on issues of interpretation of the statutory framework and adjudication of cases."

She added that the sanctions have affected the family lives of those targeted and caused difficulties with financial transactions, even within ICC member states in Europe.

The measures freeze any US-based assets belonging to the individuals and effectively sever their access to the US financial system, which is closely linked to most international banks.

The Haifa Magistrate’s Court has extended the detention of anti-government activist Yolanda Yavor until Wednesday.

Yavor was arrested on Friday on suspicion of incitement after she wrote a Facebook post earlier in the week urging Israelis to "fight the traitor".

The complaint was submitted by the far-right organisation Im Tirzu.

Police said they intended to request a five-day extension to her detention during the magistrate’s court hearing.

A Red Cross team, together with Hamas’s military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, has begun searching for the body of an Israeli captive in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.

In a separate announcement, Gaza’s Ministry of Health said it will proceed with the burial of 15 Palestinian bodies previously held by Israel, as they could not be identified.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health stated that hospitals in the Gaza Strip have received the bodies of nine Palestinians, along with one injured individual, within the past 24 hours.

According to the ministry, Israeli assaults have killed at least 356 Palestinians and injured a further 909 people since the end of the ceasefire on 10 October this year.

Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza has now killed 70,112 people and wounded 170,986 others since 7 October 2023.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Monday he would focus only on Israel's "best interests" when he weighs Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request for a pardon on corruption charges.

"It will be handled in the most correct and precise manner. I will consider solely the best interests of the State of Israel and Israeli society," Herzog said in a statement.

Netanyahu announced Sunday he had submitted a pardon request, saying the long-running cases were tearing Israel apart.

US President Donald Trump also wrote to Herzog last month, seeking a pardon for Netanyahu. The premier has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the proceedings.

Netanyahu and his wife Sara stand accused in one case of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods such as cigars, jewellery and champagne from billionaires in exchange for political favours.

The premier is also accused of seeking to negotiate more favourable coverage from two Israeli media outlets in another two cases.

Since the cases have exposed deep divisions in Israeli society between his backers and opponents, Netanyahu said he was seeking a pardon to help "lower the flames and promote the broad reconciliation that our country so desperately needs".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared in court on Monday for the first time since asking the country's president for a pardon in his long-running corruption trial, a move backed by close ally US President Donald Trump.

Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, was indicted back in 2019 on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust after years of investigations. His trial began in 2020.

The prime minister has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and made no admission of guilt in his request for a pardon, with Netanyahu's lawyers stating that he believed that the legal proceedings, if completed, would end in a complete acquittal.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared in the Tel Aviv District Court on Monday for the 58th time as part of his ongoing corruption trial.

At the start of the session, his lawyer Amit Hadad submitted a request to cancel Tuesday’s hearing “due to his political-security schedule.”

The Attorney General’s Office said it had agreed to cancel Tuesday’s session, provided that Wednesday’s hearing would be extended.

Palestinian outlet Al-Quds reported that Israeli settlers entered the village of Beit Lid, in the Nablus area of the occupied West Bank, on Sunday night and smashed the windows of several Palestinian vehicles.

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett has said he would back a pardon for Benjamin Netanyahu in his ongoing corruption trial, on the condition that the prime minister steps away from political life.

"In recent years, the State of Israel has been led to chaos and to the brink of a civil war that threatens its very existence," Bennett wrote on X.

"To rescue Israel from the chaos, I will support a binding agreement that will include a dignified withdrawal from political life alongside the end of the trial," he added.

"This way we will be able to put it behind us, unite and, together, restore the country."

Three Italians and a Canadian were treated at a Jericho hospital on Sunday after being attacked by settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, one of the group told AFP news agency.

The Palestinian official news agency Wafa described them as "international activists".

In Rome, the foreign ministry said in a statement that "three Italian international volunteers were attacked last night by Israeli settlers", adding that they were "still in shock from the incident".

Riyad Eid, director of the Jericho government hospital, told AFP: "Four foreigners arrived at the hospital this morning after being beaten by settlers, according to what they reported.

"They were suffering from bruises on the face for some of them, and on the chest, and one of them was beaten in a sensitive area.

"They were examined, given X-rays and ultrasound scans, provided with the necessary treatment and then discharged."

Pope Leo XIV prayed for peace in Lebanon and the region on Monday as he kicked off day two of his trip to the multi-confessional country with a visit to a famous pilgrimage site.

Thousands of people cheered, ululated and threw rice in celebration as Leo travelled in the popemobile up a winding road to a monastery in Annaya in the mountains north of Beirut which hosts the tomb of Saint Charbel, AFP news agency reported.

Leo arrived from Turkey on Sunday on his inaugural visit abroad as pontiff and brought a message of hope, particularly to youth in Lebanon whose faith in their crisis-hit country has dwindled.

"For the world, we ask for peace. We especially implore it for Lebanon and for the entire Levant," he said from deep inside the candle-lit stone monastery.

Saint Charbel is a Maronite hermit who was canonised in 1977 and who enjoys broad popularity beyond the Christian community.

Depictions of the white-bearded saint can be found in homes, vehicles and workplaces across the country.

Music resonated and bells rang out from the site where thousands had gathered amid strict security measures.

Leo has called on Lebanon's leaders to serve their long-suffering people, who have emigrated in droves from the Mediterranean country.

Thousands of people had braved the rain and lined the streets north of Beirut from early morning to give the pope a warm welcome as his motorcade passed, with some waving Lebanese or Vatican flags.

Israeli forces detained 44 Palestinians on Monday in the Bethlehem Governorate, specifically in the towns of Beit Fajjar and al-Ubeidiya, according to the Wafa news agency.

Security sources said that large numbers of Israeli troops swept into Beit Fajjar, south of Bethlehem, conducting raids on several homes. They detained 40 residents, interrogated them on site, and later released them.

The sources added that four additional Palestinians were detained in al-Ubeidiya, located east of Bethlehem.

The Israeli army said Sunday that it had killed more than 40 Palestinian fighters over the past week in operations targeting tunnels near Rafah in the Gaza Strip.

Earlier in the day, the army announced it had killed four operatives emerging from underground in the territory's southernmost city overnight.

Dozens of Hamas fighters are holed up in southern Gaza's tunnels, beneath areas controlled by the Israeli military.

Over the past 40 days, troops have been concentrating their efforts around eastern Rafah, "with the aim of dismantling the underground tunnel routes that remain in the area and bringing about the elimination of the terrorists hiding out within them", the military said in a statement.

It added that "more than 40 terrorists were eliminated" in the last week.

"Additionally, dozens of tunnel shafts and terrorist infrastructure sites, both above and below ground, were dismantled in the area."

AFP news agency, citing multiple sources, reported on Thursday that negotiations were under way regarding the fate of the fighters still in south Gaza's tunnel network.

On Wednesday, Hamas called on mediating countries to pressure Israel to allow them safe passage -- the first time the group had publicly acknowledged the situation.

Pope Leo XIV said Sunday that a two-state solution was the only one likely to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

Flying from Istanbul to Beirut during his first foreign trip since his election in May, the pope continued the tradition of his predecessors by speaking to reporters aboard the papal plane.

"The Holy See has publicly backed the proposal for a two-state solution for several years. We all know that Israel still does not accept it, but we consider it the only solution likely to resolve the current conflict," he said during a brief exchange.

He said he discussed the issue on Thursday in Ankara with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan "who fully supports this proposal".

"Turkey has an important role to play in this process," the pontiff added.

The Holy See has recognised the State of Palestine since 2015.

Since his election in May, the pope has expressed his solidarity with the "martyred land" of Gaza and denounced the forced displacement of Palestinians.

On Sunday, he said the Vatican maintained "friendly" relations with Israel and had offered its services as a mediator.

Israelis have taken to the streets in Tel Aviv after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested a presidential pardon for the fraud and corruption cases he is currently facing.

Demonstrators gathered outside President Isaac Herzog’s residence, urging him to reject the prime minister’s appeal.

The protest on Sunday evening followed Netanyahu, 76, formally seeking a full pardon in his long-running corruption trial without admitting any wrongdoing or offering an apology.

Opposition MPs — including Naama Lazimi — joined dozens of activists at the demonstration, organised under the slogan “Pardon = Banana Republic”, outside Herzog’s private home.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has been on trial for five years over three separate corruption cases involving allegations of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust.

💥The gathering protest outside the home of Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
"We haven't forgotten the betrayal!"
"The government is not above the law!"
"Pardon = Banana Republic."
(Tuvia Yaglenik/Rony Shapiro/ELAN/Yossi Yaron) pic.twitter.com/nQvfIpngWl

— Noga Tarnopolsky נגה טרנופולסקי نوغا ترنوبولسكي (@NTarnopolsky) November 30, 2025