Israel’s war on besieged Palestinians of Gaza — now in its 175th day — has killed at least 32,552 people and wounded 74,980 as World Court orders Israel to stop Gaza starvation crisis.
Friday, March 29, 2024
0415 GMT — The US said that it is deeply disturbed by the “alarming” contents of a video showing Israeli forces shooting two apparently unarmed Palestinians and burying them with a wheel loader and called for an investigation.
When asked about the video, a State Department spokesperson told Anadolu they were not able to independently verify the footage, adding they would urgently seek more information from the Israeli government.
“We expect this incident to be thoroughly investigated and, if appropriate, seek accountability,” the spokesperson said.
“Moreover, we have been clear that Israel has an obligation to investigate credible allegations of law of war violations, ensure appropriate accountability, and institute measures to prevent any violations from recurring,” the spokesperson added.
The video, aired by Al Jazeera Arabic, shows the victims walking in an open area along the Gazan coast waving a white fabric — the international sign for surrender.
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0217 GMT — Yemen’s Houthis targeted 86 ships since start of Gaza war
Yemen’s Houthi group said that they have attacked 86 vessels in the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and Indian Ocean linked to Israel, the US and the UK since Israel’s war on Gaza started last October.
In a speech on Al Masirah TV, Houthi leader Abdulmalik Al Houthi said the Yemeni Navy, which is aligned with the group, noted that it targeted nine ships this week.
Al Houthi said that in the 10 operations conducted throughout the week, they used 37 ballistic missiles and drones, adding the group also carried out missile strikes on several targets in the southern Israeli city of Eilat.
Emphasising the significant decrease in Israel’s navigation in the Red Sea, he warned that operations will continue if attacks on Gaza persist.
0322 GMT — Jordan welcomes additional measures by world court in genocide case against Israel
Jordan welcomed a decision by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to order additional provisional measures including the “unhindered provision” of aid to Gaza in the ongoing genocide case against Israel at South Africa’s request.
In a statement cited by the official Petra news agency, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry emphasised the significance of carrying out the ICJ’s ruling, which demands that Israel cease its genocide in Gaza and allow unhindered humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza.
The statement emphasised the necessity to cooperate with the UN on the entry of humanitarian aid, which would help put an end to Israel’s atrocities against the Palestinian people and an end to the hunger and unparalleled humanitarian tragedy.
The Foreign Ministry also stressed the importance of “a firm international stand” to stop the ongoing war on Gaza and to compel Israel to stop its policy of starvation against Palestinians in Gaza.
“The catastrophic living conditions of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have deteriorated further,” said the ICJ order, referring to the change in the situation since its interim ruling on January 26.
0340 GMT — Japan to resume funding to UN Palestinian refugee agency
Japan is preparing to resume funding to the UN’s crisis-hit Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), which coordinates nearly all aid to Gaza, the government said.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa met UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini in Tokyo on Thursday to discuss measures taken by the agency to strengthen governance and transparency.
“Japan and the UNRWA confirmed that they will advance final coordination about necessary efforts to resume Japan’s contribution,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Japanese media reports said the resumption of funding, which was suspended in January, was expected to come in the first half of April.
0439 GMT — Pro-Palestine protesters denounce Biden outside fundraiser venue in New York
Hundreds of pro-Palestine protesters converged on Radio City Music Hall in New York City during a fundraising event Thursday for US President Joe Biden ahead of November’s presidential elections.
The demonstrators, protesting Israel’s continued killing of civilians in Gaza and the US’s failure to support a lasting ceasefire in the region, chanted slogans including “Genocide Joe has got to go!” and “Free, Free Palestine.”
Many of the protesters waved Palestinian flags, and others held signs denouncing Biden and the Democratic Party as “war criminals.”
They also called for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza, urging Democratic voters in New York, where primary elections are ongoing in the context of the 2024 presidential race, to protest by casting blank votes at the ballot box.
1930 GMT — Netanyahu seeks delay in ultra-Orthodox conscription row
Israel’s hawkish PM Benjamin Netanyahu has asked the top court for a new delay on compulsory military service for ultra-Orthodox Jews, an issue that has put his ruling coalition at risk.
While the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to Netanyahu’s request, it ruled separately that state subsidies for military-age ultra-Orthodox men studying in seminaries rather than serving in uniform be suspended as of Monday.
The two ultra-Orthodox parties in Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition, United Torah Judaism and Shas, denounced the ruling as a “mark of Cain.” They vowed to fight for what they deemed their constituents’ “right” to stay in seminaries — but stopped short of threatening to walk out of the government.
2028 GMT — Israel bombs home in Rafah, killing 12 Palestinians in Gaza city
Israel has killed at least 12 Palestinians in a strike targeting a house in besieged Gaza’s Rafah city, health officials told the Reuters news agency.
Two children and four women were among the dead pulled from the rubble, said Dr. Saleh al-Hams, the head of the nursing department at the European Hospital.
Eight of the bodies, including two mangled and unidentifiable corpses, were transferred to the European Hospital. The rest of the remains were taken to Abu Yousef al-Najjar Hospital, according to hospital records. After almost six months of war, about a dozen of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are only partially functioning.
Israel has vowed to launch a ground invasion of Rafah, claiming the city on the border with Egypt is the last remaining Hamas stronghold in Gaza. Israeli militry has continued to bombard areas where they told civilians to take shelter — including Rafah.
Over half of Gaza’s population has sought refuge in Rafah, many in makeshift tent camps, United Nations shelters and crowded apartments.
