Death toll surpasses 10,000 in Gaza since start of Israel's devastating war

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Despite being roundly criticized for a similar stunt at the United Nations last week, Israel's ambassador to UN, Gilad Erdan, wore a yellow star again on Monday while addressing a "United for Israel" rally in New York, as reported by Haaretz.

Erdan told the UN that he would continue to wear the yellow star - symbolic of Nazi persecution of Jews during the Holocaust - until the international body condemned "Hamas atrocities."

The director of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum, Dani Dayan, slammed Erdan, saying he “dishonors both the victims of the Holocaust and the State of Israel.”

Yad Vashem and other Jewish critics have accused Dayan and other Israeli officials who wore the yellow star of trivialising and misusing the Holocaust. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would consider "tactical little pauses" in Gaza fighting to facilitate the entry of aid or the exit of hostages, but again rejected calls for a general ceasefire despite growing international pressure.

Speaking in a U.S. television interview, Netanyahu, whose country has vowed to destroy Gaza's Hamas rulers, said he thought Israel would need security responsibility over the Palestinian enclave for an "indefinite period" after the war.

Asked about the potential for humanitarian pauses in fighting, an idea supported by Israel's top ally the United States, Netanyahu said a general ceasefire would hamper his country's war effort.

"As far as tactical little pauses - an hour here, an hour there - we've had them before. I suppose we'll check the circumstances in order to enable goods, humanitarian goods to come in, or our hostages, individual hostages, to leave," Netanyahu told ABC News on Monday.

"But I don't think there's going to be a general ceasefire."

(Reuters)

The U.N. Security Council on Monday failed again to agree on a resolution on Israel's war on Gaza.

Despite more than two hours of closed-door discussions Monday, differences remained. The U.S. is calling for “humanitarian pauses” while many other council members are demanding a “humanitarian cease-fire” to deliver desperately needed aid and prevent more civilian deaths in Gaza.

“We talked about humanitarian pauses and we’re interested in pursuing language on that score,” U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood told reporters after the meeting. “But there are disagreements within the council about whether that’s acceptable.”

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres earlier Monday told reporters he wanted an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza and a halt to the “spiral of escalation” already taking place from the occupied West Bank, Lebanon and Syria to Iraq and Yemen.

Guterres said international humanitarian law, which demands protection of civilians and infrastructure essential for their lives, is clearly being violated and stressed that “no party to an armed conflict is above” these laws. He called for the immediate unconditional release of the hostages Hamas took from Israel to Gaza in its Oct. 7 attack.

China, which holds the Security Council presidency this month, and the United Arab Emirates, the Arab representative on the council, called Monday’s meeting because of the “crisis of humanity” in Gaza, where more than 10,000 civilians have been killed in less than a month.

UAE Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh said all 15 council members “are fully engaged” and efforts will continue to try to narrow the gaps and reach agreement on a resolution.

US Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan has received widespread criticism for a video she posted over the weekend that was deemed offensive to the Jewish community by some, but she said her critics should focus less on the words she used than on saving civilian lives in the Middle East.

“My colleagues are much more focused on silencing me — the only Palestinian American voice in Congress — than they are on ending the horrific attacks on civilians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank right now,” Tlaib said in a statement sent Monday to The Associated Press. "Instead of attacking me and distorting my words, they should listen to their constituents and call for a cease-fire to save innocent lives.”

She was responding to calls from national and Michigan Democrats asking her to take down a video posted Friday , which includes a clip of demonstrators chanting “from the river to the sea.” Tlaib also said in the video “we will remember in 2024” before text appears stating: “Joe Biden supported the genocide of the Palestinian people.”

Read the full report here.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday warned that the bombarded Gaza Strip was becoming a "graveyard for children," as he urged an immediate ceasefire in Israel's war on Gaza.

"The unfolding catastrophe makes the need for a humanitarian ceasefire more urgent with every passing hour," he told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York.

"The parties to the conflict -- and, indeed, the international community -- face an immediate and fundamental responsibility: to stop this inhuman collective suffering and dramatically expand humanitarian aid to Gaza," he said.

"The nightmare in Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis. It is a crisis of humanity."

Read the full report here. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that his country will take "overall security responsibility" of the Gaza Strip for an indefinite period after its war on the besieged Palestinian enclave.

"Israel will, for an indefinite period, have the overall security responsibility," he said in a television interview with ABC News. "When we don't have that security responsibility, what we have is the eruption of Hamas terror on a scale that we couldn't imagine."
 

The director of Al-Awda Hospital in Gaza, Ahmed Mahna, has warned the hospital could be forced to cease operating within 36 hours due to fuel shortages.

The hospital is currently facing a severe shortage of medications due to the limited medical supplies from the ongoing blockade in Gaza, he added.

Mahna reported that there is no alternative to fuel to power up hospitals, and the currently available supply is inadequate.

The hospital’s fuel reserves have reached a critical level that threatens a service shutdown within a maximum of two days.

Mona Abuamara, chief representative of the Palestinian delegation to Canada, says five members of her family have been killed after fleeing their home near al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.

“In Gaza, no place is safe & no family evades the pain of loss!” she wrote on X.

Taking a lead from the US, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refuses to support a ceasefire in Gaza, instead supporting "humanitarian pauses". 

A few hours ago, 5 members of my family were blown into pieces by an Israeli bomb that ravaged the diner they ran to for cover after fleeing their home, which is located next to #AlShifaHospital.
In Gaza, no place is safe & no family evades the pain of loss!
Mercy to the martyrs.

— Mona Abuamara منى أبو عمارة StandWith🇵🇸 (@MonaAbuamara) November 6, 2023

Hundreds of US Jewish activists peacefully occupied New York's Statue of Liberty on Monday to demand a ceasefire by Israel and an end to the "genocidal bombardment" of civilians in Gaza.

Dressed in black T-shirts emblazoned with the slogans "Jews demand ceasefire now" or "Not in our name," the protestors unfurled banners reading "The whole world is watching" and "Palestinians should be free" at the base of New York's iconic landmark.

Read the full report here.

Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters calling for a ceasefire in Gaza blocked traffic Monday at the Port of Tacoma, where a military supply ship had recently arrived.

Organizers said they opposed Israel's war on Gaza and targeted the vessel — the Cape Orlando — based on confidential information that it was to be loaded with weapons bound for Israel.

Read the full report here.

The President of the Palestinian Red Crescent Dr. Younis Al-Khatib has appealed to the international community on a video posted on X, saying that Palestinians are being "asked to choose between human cleansing and genocide, either to leave or to die”. 

“#Gaza is facing a catastrophic situation. #Gaza has been asked to choose between human cleansing and genocide, either to leave or to die”

A message from the PRCS President Dr. Younis Al-Khatib to the international community.#GazaGenocide #humanity #IHL pic.twitter.com/47c7txYxAf

— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 6, 2023

It was reported earlier that there would be an "exceptional meeting" of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Riyadh on Sunday addressing Palestine and Israel's war on Gaza, but it wasn't clear if Iran would attend.

The AFP are reporting that Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will indeed attend the meeting, marking his first visit to the Kingdom since China brokered a reconciliation between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

The full report can be read here. 

The Palestine Red Crescent has made an urgent appeal to international health and relief organisations to supply Gaza hospitals with essential supplies, warning that fuel reserves at al-Quds Hospital will run out in 48 hours.

“Life-saving equipment, neonatal incubators, and intensive care units will cease to function,” it said in a statement.

The Red Crescent also added that the vicinity of the hospital was being shelled by Israel continuously, leading to at least 60 injuries and causing infrastructural damage.

🚨📢 The @PalestineRCS urgently appeals to international health and humanitarian organizations to swiftly provide vital assistance and essential supplies to the #Gaza governorate and the northern region.

🔴The fuel reserves for Al_Quds Hospital's power generator are anticipated… pic.twitter.com/LVrI7EYY40

— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 6, 2023

The deputy speaker of the Bahraini parliament, Abdul Nabi Salman, has said that members of the body are pressing to reverse the normalisation of relations between the Gulf state and Israel, as reported by Al Jazeera.

Salman told the Russian-owned Sputnik news outlet that the parliament was continuing to demand an end to diplomatic relations with Israel, three years after Bahrain signed on to the US-brokered Abraham Accords.

“The demands of the Bahraini MPs are a reflection of the aspirations of the [Bahraini] people,” Salman was quoted as saying. “The most important demand is represented by the full cancellation of normalisation and cutting all ties, which would mean the cancellation of the Abraham Accords.”

Ultimately any decision on Bahraini-Israeli ties is taken by Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and his government.

The government has shown few signs that it is considering such a move, although Bahrain recalled its ambassador to Israel last week. 

The Rafah crossing between the bombarded Gaza Strip and Egypt reopened Monday to allow the evacuation of foreigners, dual nationals and wounded Palestinians, the Gazan government and an Egyptian official said.

The terminal was opened for three days on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday last week to allow dozens of wounded Palestinians and hundreds of foreign passport holders to cross before closing Saturday and Sunday amid a dispute over the passage of ambulances.

Sources within the Gazan government said the crossing reopened after an agreement with Israel -- secured with Egyptian mediation -- to allow the evacuation of 30 wounded people.

Six ambulances arrived at the Egyptian side of the crossing Monday carrying wounded Palestinians to be transported to hospitals, a border official told AFP.

The ambulances were followed by the week's first group of dual nationals, the Egyptian official added.

Read the full report here.

The United Arab Emirates will establish a fully equipped field hospital in the Gaza Strip, the state news agency said on Monday without elaborating whether there is an agreement on this initiative with Israel.

The agency said five aircraft carrying the equipment and requirements necessary for the establishment and operation of the field hospital departed from Abu Dhabi on Monday heading to Al-Arish airport in Egypt.

(Reuters)

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Biden administration sent formal notification to congressional leaders of the planned transfer of precision bombs at the end of October.

The transfer would be Spice Family Gliding Bomb Assemblies, which are a type of precision guided weapons fired from planes.

The transfer would include “support, assembly, testing and other technology related to the weapons use”, the newspaper reported.

US President Joe Biden and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday discussed the potential for "pauses" in the Israeli military's operations in Gaza, as the death toll in the territory surpassed 10,000.

"The two leaders discussed the possibility of tactical pauses to provide civilians with opportunities to safely depart from areas of ongoing fighting, to ensure assistance is reaching civilians in need, and to enable potential hostage releases," the White House said in a statement.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) said it will hold an exceptional summit on the situation in Palestinian territories in the Saudi capital Riyadh next Sunday, Al Arabiya TV reported.  

The meeting will be held at the invitation of Saudi Arabia, the channel said. 

Human Rights Watch has called for an embargo on the provision of weapons to Israel and Palestinian armed groups in Gaza, saying states who provide weapons that they know might contribute to unlawful attacks can make them complicit in war crimes.

“The United States, Iran and other governments risk being complicit in grave abuses if they continue to provide military assistance to known violators,” said Bruno Stagno, chief advocacy officer at the rights group. 

Breaking: @hrw calls for arms embargo on Israel, cutting arms to Palestinian armed groups. States risk complicity in grave abuses if they continue to provide arms amid atrocities. How many more civilians must be killed before the US & others pull the plug? https://t.co/eLDgGfR2fv pic.twitter.com/vyVWXs3nA3

— Omar Shakir (@OmarSShakir) November 6, 2023

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called on Monday for security zones to be set up around Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, keeping Palestinian farmers away during the olive harvest season.

The harvest season, when Palestinian olive growers spend more time in the open bringing in the crop, has often led to attacks by settlers on Palestinian inhabitants in the West Bank.

Smotrich, head of one of the extreme right religious-nationalist parties in the ruling right-wing coalition, wrote to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant to demand special zones around the settlements to stop Palestinians coming near "including for the olive harvest."

"I demand that a written directive be issued immediately by the political echelon to the [Israeli military] to create those wide security zones around the settlements and roads and to prevent Arabs from approaching them," he wrote, adding he proposed compensating those who were denied access to their crops.

Read the full report here.

With over 10,000 people now killed in Gaza by Israeli air strikes and bombardment, this short video from The New Arab looks into some of the grim details of Israel's relentless assault on the Palestinian enclave, including the fact that one child is killed every ten minutes in Gaza. 

The death toll in Gaza has now surpassed 10,000, as Israeli strikes continue to pound the besieged territory almost one month since the aggressions started 👇 pic.twitter.com/AHZpRuFXc7

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) November 6, 2023

The chairman of the Qatari Committee for the Reconstruction of Gaza, Mohammed El Emadi, shared Qatar’s “strong denunciation” of the Israeli claims involving Sheikh Hamad Hospital in Gaza.

El Emadi said the Israeli claims were made “without concrete evidence or an independent investigation” and are part of a “blatant attempt to justify the occupation’s targeting of civilian facilities”, including hospitals, schools and shelters.

El Emadi called on the international community “to line up firmly to condemn targeting health services in Gaza and compel Israel to comply with international laws”.

Chairman of Qatari Committee for the Reconstruction of #Gaza expresses Qatar’s denunciation of Israeli allegations about the existence of tunnels beneath Sheikh Hamad Hospital in the Strip#MOFAQatar pic.twitter.com/cTinhWWXbO

— Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Qatar (@MofaQatar_EN) November 6, 2023

The Qassam Brigades said in a statement on Monday that its militants fired 16 rockets on the town of Nahariya and the southern outskirts of the city of Haifa in retaliation for Israeli attacks on Gaza.

Haifa is the furthest city targeted by rockets from the Lebanese side since the start of Israel's war on Gaza nearly a month ago.

The Israeli army said approximately 30 rockets were fired from the Lebanese side targeting northern Israel, adding it was responding by shelling the origin points of rocket launches. The exchange lasted about half an hour and Israel's Iron Dome could be clearly seen intercepting rockets from Lebanon. Relative clam prevailed afterward.

About three hours later, Israel’s air force carried out airstrikes on “Hezbollah targets” inside Lebanon, Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, adding that details would follow later.

Strong explosions could be heard in the area.

Read the full report here.

88 UN workers killed in Israel war in Gaza

88 UN relief workers have been killed so far in the Israel's war in Gaza, United Nations' agency chiefs said, calling for a ceasefire.

"For almost a month, the world has been watching the unfolding situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory in shock and horror at the spiralling numbers of lives lost and torn apart," the heads of 18 UN organizations including UNICEF and the World Health Organization said in a rare joint statement late Sunday.

"Scores of aid workers have been killed since October 7 including 88 UNRWA colleagues - the highest number of United Nations fatalities ever recorded in a single conflict," they said, referring to the UN relief and works agency for Palestinian refugees.

🔺In the last 24 hours, 5 @UNRWA colleagues were killed due to strikes in the North, Middle and South areas of the📍#GazaStrip

🔺One @UNRWA colleague sustained serious injuries due to a strike that hit her home; her husband and three children were killedhttps://t.co/QgElNhGNxl pic.twitter.com/3kEjpIVqdu

— UNRWA (@UNRWA) November 6, 2023

During the last heavy conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in 2014, 11 UNRWA staff were killed, according to the United Nations.

The UNRWA currently employs some 13,000 staff in the Gaza Strip, a besieged territory that is home to 2.4 million people.

UN chief says ceasefire 'more urgent with every passing hour'

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday urged an immediate ceasefire in the Israel's war in Gaza, as he warned that the bombarded territory was becoming a "graveyard for children."

"The unfolding catastrophe makes the need for a humanitarian ceasefire more urgent with every passing hour," he told reporters at the UN headquarters.

"The parties to the conflict - and, indeed, the international community -- face an immediate and fundamental responsibility: to stop this inhuman collective suffering and dramatically expand humanitarian aid to Gaza," he said.

"The nightmare in Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis. It is a crisis of humanity."

Jordan keeping 'all options open' as Gaza war intensifies

Jordan said on Monday it was leaving "all options" open in its response to what it called Israel's failure to discriminate between military and civilian targets in its intensifying bombardment and invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Prime Minister Bisher al Khasawneh did not elaborate on what further steps Jordan would take, days after it recalled its ambassador from Israel in protest at Israel's offensive against Gaza launched after a cross-border Oct. 7 rampage by Hamas.

Jordan also announced last week that Israel's ambassador, who left Amman shortly after Hamas' attack, would not be allowed to come back to resume his duties for now, effectively declaring him persona non grata.

"All options are on the table for Jordan in our dealing with the Israeli aggression on Gaza and its repercussions," Khasawneh, whose country signed a peace treaty with Israel in 1994 - told state media.

Khasawneh said Israel's siege of the densely populated Gaza was not self-defence as it maintains. "The brutal Israeli attack does not discriminate between civilian and military targets and is extending to safe areas and ambulances," he said.

(Reuters)

Queen Rania: Being pro-Palestinian' isn't equal to 'antisemitism'

Jordan's Queen Rania, the wife of King Abdullah, has called for a ceasefire in Israel's war on Gaza, saying that advocating for the protection of Palestinian lives is not "antisemitism" or "pro-terrorism".

Read more here.

Iran President to travel to Saudi Arabia over Israel-Gaza war 

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will travel to Saudi Arabia on Sunday, the Etemadonline news website reported on Monday, the first visit by an Iranian head of state since Tehran and Riyadh ended years of hostility under a China-brokered deal in March.

"President Raisi will attend the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation' (OIC) summit in Riyadh, where the issue of Palestine will be discussed," the Iranian website reported.

Hamas armed wing fires rockets from Lebanon into Israel

Hamas' armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, said it fired 16 rockets from Lebanon towards northern Israel, saying they targeted areas south of the Israeli coastal city of Haifa.

The Brigades said the strikes came "in response to the occupation's (Israel's) massacres and its aggression against our people in the Gaza Strip".

Indonesia group denies Israeli claims that hospital is used by Hamas

The operator of the Indonesia hospital in Gaza on Monday denied an accusation by the Israeli military that its facility has been used by Hamas to launch an attack.

The comments were in response to the Israeli military's claims that Hamas uses hospitals, including Gaza's main hospital al-Shifa, the Qatari-funded Sheikh Hamad Hospital and a hospital built by groups from Indonesia, as cover to shield its underground operations.

"We built this hospital to help others, according to the needs of the Gazans," said Sarbini Abdul Murad, the chairman of MER-C, a voluntary group operating the Indonesia hospital.

"Israel's accusation is a precondition so that they can attack the Indonesian hospital in Gaza," he told a press conference in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.

(Reuters)

Al-Shifa hospital 'needs' protection: Health Ministry

Gaza's health ministry spokesperson has expressed concern that "something bad" will happen to the territory's Al-Shifa's hospital, as fuel supplies run out and Israeli attacks increase.

Israel has been targeting the hospital's solar panels which it relies on as fuel is scarce, amid Israel's siege.

Breaking: An Israeli airstrike just hit the rooftop of the al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical compound in the Gaza Strip, destroying the solar panels which the hospital partially relies on.
Dozens were killed and injured.

— Maha Hussaini (@MahaGaza) November 6, 2023

The spokesperson said the hospital cannot be evacuated, since it is housing thousands of wounded people, kidney dialysis patients and newborns in neonatal intensive care units, in addition to IDPs, Al-Jazeera reported earlier.

“The occupation is going beyond all the red lines. It is the responsibility of the UN, WHO, Red Cross and others to protect al-Shifa medical complex and they must adopt decisive procedures to do that,” he urged.

Three Palestinians killed by Israeli ambush in West Bank

Three Palestinians were killed after Israeli forces shot at their car in the West Bank city of Tulkarm, the Palestinian health ministry said on Monday.

A Palestinian is also in critical condition following the ambush, witnesses told Qatari channel Al-Jazeera.

#BREAKING| Israeli forces execute Palestinians in the #WestBak city of Tulkarm. pic.twitter.com/1XR7HT8v2d

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 6, 2023

More to follow...

Gaza's disabled face disproportionate suffering amid war

The UN agency OCHA warned that Gaza's disabled are faced with increased suffering during Israel's war on the territory, as shelters for IDPs are not adequately equipped for their needs.

"Shelters lack the required medical mattresses and beds, causing ulcers and other medical issues that cannot be treated in unsterilised conditions," it said.

Gaza's wounded arrive in Egypt as evacuations resume

Six ambulances carrying wounded Palestinians arrived in Egypt on Monday through the Rafah border crossing with the war-torn Gaza Strip, a border official told AFP.

The patients were undergoing medical examinations at the border before being transferred to hospitals, the official said, adding the passage of foreigners trapped in Gaza was also expected to resume on Monday.

Over 60% of jobs lost in Gaza following Israel war

More than 60 percent of jobs have been lost in Gaza since the Israel's brutal onslaught began, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Monday, adding to the dire economic situation in the Israeli-besieged enclave.

The losses amount to a total of 182,000 jobs in the densely-populated Palestinian territory, the ILO said in its first assessment of the impact of Israeli ground and air strikes on Gaza which began on October 7.

"Our initial assessment of the repercussions of the tragic current crisis on the Palestinian labour market has yielded extremely worrying results, which will only worsen if the conflict continues," ILO Regional Director for Arab States Ruba Jaradat said, adding that the crisis would reverberate for "many years to come" for jobs and businesses.

(Reuters)

Rafah crossing reopens for further foreign evacuations

Egypt's Rafah crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt reopened Monday to allow the evacuation of foreigners and dual nationals from the war-hit Palestinian territory being shelled by Israeli forces, Hamas said.

The terminal was opened for three days on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday last week to allow dozens of wounded Palestinians and hundreds of foreign passport-holders to cross before closing Saturday and Sunday amid a dispute over the passage of ambulances.

Death toll in Gaza surpasses 10,000 since start of devastating war

Israeli strikes have killed at least 10,022 Palestinians including 4,104 children in Gaza since Tel Aviv's brutal onslaught began on October 7 nearly a month ago, the health ministry in Gaza said on Monday.

The toll was announced in a press conference in Gaza by health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidreh.

(Reuters)

Lebanon must be kept out of Israel-Gaza war': top Patriarch

Lebanon's top Christian cleric urged state officials on Monday to shield the country from Israel's deadly war in Gaza, as both Tel Aviv and Shia group Hezbollah have clashed along the border on a number of occasions since October 7.

Maronite Christian Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai called for the application of a 2006 UN Security Council resolution which ended the deadly war between Israel and Lebanon, noting it ordered the sides to cease fire.

He called on state officials to work to keep Lebanon away "from the scourge of this war and to carry out its political and diplomatic role in support of the Palestinian cause. That is more effective," he said.

EU's Borrell suggests humanitarian pause in Gaza

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Monday suggested a plan under which Israel could suspend its deadly military operation in Gaza in return for the Red Cross getting access to hostages held by Hamas.

"I think that a humanitarian pause counterbalanced by an access to hostages with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as a first step to their release is an initiative in which we should work," Borrell told EU diplomats in Brussels.

Call it a truce, window, whatever, but we need that violence recedes and that international humanitarian law is being respected."

UN aid agencies and several Arab nations have urged Israel to implement a ceasefire in Gaza, however, Tel Aviv has rejected such requests.

Turkey's Fidan presses Blinken for 'immediate ceasefire' in Gaza

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Monday pressed visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to support an "immediate" ceasefire in the Israel war on the besieged Gaza Strip, a Turkish diplomatic source said.

"Minister Fidan requested an immediate ceasefire in Gaza," the source said, adding that the sides agreed "on the need to prevent civilians from being harmed in Gaza".

Blinken said he discussed with his Turkish counterpart efforts to expand humanitarian efforts in Gaza and to prevent the war in the region from spilling over in neighbouring countries.

Turkey has slammed Washington's support for Israel amid the war in Gaza.

(Reuters)

South Africa to recall its diplomatic staff from Israel: statement

The South African government said on Monday it would recall all its diplomats from Israel to "signal" its concern over the situation in Gaza.

"The South African government has decided to withdraw all its diplomats in Tel Aviv for consultation," Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, a minister in the president's office, told a press briefing.

Israel detains 70 Palestinians overnight in West Bank raid spree

Israeli forces have detained at least 70 Palestinians in overnight home raids across the West Bank, the  Palestinian Prisoners Commission and the Prisoner’s Society said.

Among those detained were three women, the group said, including renowned activist Ahed Tamimi.

The raids took place across several towns and cities in the West Bank, including Ramallah, Hebron, Qalqilya and occupied Jerusalem.

Since Israel's brutal war on Gaza on October 7, Israeli forces have detained at least 2150 Palestinians in the occupied territory.

Muslim states condemn Israel minister 'nuclear weapon on Gaza' comments

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation condemned comments made by the Israeli Minister of Heritage Minister, who said on Sunday that dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza' is an option in a recent radio interview.

"The Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemns the racist statements of Israeli Culture Minister Amichai Eliyahu, regarding his call to drop a nuclear bomb on the Gaza Strip," the OIC said.

The organisation went on to say that it considers the comments a reflection of "extremist and hate speech, incitement to violence, organised terrorism, and genocide committed daily by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian people, in flagrant violation of international law, international conventions and resolutions."

Eliyahu has since been suspended  "until further notice".

Iran accuses US of 'encouraging Israel' to kill Palestinians in Gaza

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Monday accused the United States of "encouraging" Israel to kill and carry out "cruel acts" against Palestinians in the war-torn, besieged Gaza Strip.

Israel has relentlessly bombarded Gaza and sent in ground troops, killing over 9,700 people as of Monday, with the death toll increasing by the hundreds on a daily basis.

"The aid from the United States to the Zionist regime (Israel) is encouraging them to kill and commit cruel acts of neglect against the Palestinian people," Raisi said at a joint news conference in Tehran with visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.

"We believe that the bombings must stop as soon as possible, that a ceasefire must be declared immediately and that aid be provided to the oppressed and proud people of Gaza," Raisi said.

"These horrible crimes against humanity are a genocide, which is carried out by the Zionist regime (Israel) with the support of the United States and certain European countries."

EU to increase Gaza humanitarian aid by 25 million euros

The European Union will increase humanitarian aid to Gaza by 25 million euros ($26.9 million), European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday.

"By doing so the European Union would spend a total of 100 million euros in humanitarian aid for the civilians in Gaza," von der Leyen said in a speech in Brussels.

(Reuters)

Iranian Jews express support for Palestinians in Gazan war 

Iran's Jewish community has demonstrated its support for the Palestinian people, currently under ferocious Israeli bombardment since October 7.

Many members of the community have taken to the streets of Iran to protest in solidarity with those suffering in Gaza.

Read more from The New Arab's Iran correspondent here.

Israeli kills Palestinian man in West Bank

Israeli forces killed a young Palestinian man and seriously injured three others in the town of Halhoul, in the south of the West Bank, according to the Ministry of Health.

Local sources said Israeli soldiers raided the town while shooting at Palestinians, killing Mahmoud Ahmad Atrash, 21, and injuring five others, three of them seriously.

Many others suffered suffocation from inhaling the toxic tear gas fired by the soldiers at homes in the area.

According to the Ministry of Health, Israel killed 155 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem since the start of its brutal war on Gaza on October 7.

UK withdraws embassy staff from Lebanon, warns against travel

The British Foreign Office has pulled out its staff from the Lebanese embassy and has warned against travel to the country, over rising border tensions with Israel, who is currently waging a war in Gaza.

"There are ongoing mortar and artillery exchanges and air strikes in South Lebanon, on the boundary with Israel. Tensions are high and events could escalate with little warning, which could affect or limit exit routes out of Lebanon," the FCDO’s website said. 

Israel and Lebanon militant group Hezbollah have gone on to exchange rocket fire across their shared border. At least 81 people have been killed on the Lebanese side in cross-border skirmishes, according to an AFP tally, including 59 Hezbollah fighters.

The move also comes as an Israeli strike killed four relatives of radio correspondent Samir Ayoub on Sunday. The victims were Ayoub's sister and three of her grandchildren, aged 10, 12 and 14.

Israel arrests Palestinian activist Ahed Tamimi in West Bank raids for 'incitement'

The Israeli army on Monday said it had arrested the prominent 22-year-old Palestinian activist Ahed Tamimi during a raid in the occupied West Bank.

"Ahed Tamimi was arrested on suspicion of inciting violence and terrorist activities in the town of Nabi Salih" near the city of Ramallah, an army spokesman told AFP.

"Tamimi was transferred to Israeli security forces for further questioning."

Tamimi became famous at age 14 when she was filmed biting an Israeli soldier to prevent him from arresting her little brother who had his arm in a cast.

She has become an icon of the Palestinian cause and a large portrait of her has been painted on the Israeli separation wall with the West Bank in Bethlehem near Jerusalem.

Since the start of the Gaza war triggered by the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Israeli security forces have carried out large-scale arrests of Palestinians suspected of links to Hamas or of inciting violence.

Palestinian Foreign Ministry welcomes Chad move recalling top envoy from Israel

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates on Sunday has welcomed Chad's decision to recall its Chargé d'Affaires from Israel over Tel Aviv's brutal war on Gaza.

Chad had made the move on Sunday citing Israel's "killing of innocent civilians" in the war-torn enclave. The Sahel country also condemned the loss of civilian life in Gaza, and had called for a ceasefire.

The Palestinian Ministry also said Chad's move "confirms" its rejection of Israel's crimes in the territory, as well as the African continent's stance on the Palestinian cause.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates welcomes the decision of the Republic of Chad to recall its Chargé d'Affaires from Israel due to the war on Gaza. 🇵🇸🇹🇩#Gaza_Under_Attack#CeaseFireNow#Palestine#IsraeliWarCrimes pic.twitter.com/e8KlIZ7ToF

— State of Palestine - MFA 🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@pmofa) November 5, 2023