Israel’s war on besieged Gaza, now in its 205th day, has killed at least 34,454 Palestinians — 70 percent of them babies, children and women — and wounded over 77,575 while some 8,400 people are feared buried under the rubble of bombed buildings.
Sunday, April 28, 2024
1504 GMT — Israeli army chief of staff Herzi Halevi has approved plans for a ground offensive in Rafah in the southern tip of Gaza, according to Israeli media.
The move comes despite efforts by mediators to reach a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
Plans for the Rafah ground attack were approved during a meeting between Halevi, Southern Command chief Yaron Finkelman and other division and brigade commanders, The Jerusalem Post newspaper reported.
The move followed a threat by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to bring down the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he accepts an Egyptian proposal for a Gaza ceasefire.
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1524 GMT — US Green Party presidential candidate Stein detained at pro-Palestinian rally
US Green Party’s Jill Stein was detained at a pro-Palestinian rally at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, according to her spokesperson.
According to reports, Stein was among over 100 other people detained by the police during a raid on protest camps on the university campus.
Stein, the Green Party candidate for the 2024 US presidential elections, along with her campaign manager and deputy, was detained, her spokesperson said.
1455 GMT — UK charity surveys unexploded Israeli bombs to ensure Gaza safety
A UK-based humanitarian group is surveying unexploded Israeli ordnance in Gaza to ensure safety in the Palestinian territory.
Members of Humanity and Inclusion UK, working with Handicap International in Gaza, examined and marked Sunday explosive remnants of Israel’s war in central Gaza’s Deir al Balah.
The group toured the neighborhoods and carried out an initial assessment of the unexploded bombs in the area.
1450 GMT — Gaza aid pier ready in two to three weeks, US says
The White House said that a US-made pier meant to boost aid to Gaza will become operational in a few weeks but cannot replace land routes with trucks as the best way to feed people in the enclave.
The Pentagon said last week that the US military had begun building a pier meant to speed up aid deliveries.
“It will take probably two to three weeks before we can really see an operation,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Sunday on ABC News.
1210 GMT — Hamas to respond to Israeli Gaza truce plan on Monday — official
A senior Hamas official told AFP that the Palestinian group would deliver its response to Israel’s latest counterproposal for a Gaza ceasefire on Monday in Egypt.
“A Hamas delegation headed by Khalil al Hayya will arrive in Egypt tomorrow… and deliver the movement’s response” to the Israeli proposal during a meeting with Egyptian intelligence officials, said the official who declined to be named.
The Israeli aggression has displaced most of the 2.3 million population and laid much of the densely populated enclave to waste.
1213 GMT — Gaza Contact Group discusses steps to pressure Israel, boost recognition of Palestine
The Gaza Contact Group, formed by members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League, convened to discuss steps to boost recognition of a state of Palestine and increase pressure on Israel and its supporters.
Diplomatic sources said the meeting, held in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh, has come to an end, with representatives also discussing decisions to be taken at the upcoming OIC Summit in Banjul, Gambia on May 4.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, a member of the group set up to push for a ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave, also attended the meeting.
1107 GMT — France’s top diplomat in Lebanon in push for calm with Israel
France’s top diplomat urged calm in Lebanon during his second visit to the country since cross-border tensions with Israel flared on the back of the war in Gaza.
During a visit to the headquarters of the United Nations’ peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL), French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne reiterated that Paris has been making proposals to “avoid war in Lebanon”.
“I will head to Beirut to meet political authorities to… make proposals,” he added. “Our responsibility is to mitigate escalation, and that is also our role in UNIFIL. We have 700 soldiers here.”
A French diplomatic source told AFP that the volume of cross-border attacks had doubled since April 13.
0940 GMT — Host Saudi warns of economic fallout from Gaza war at global summit
Saudi Arabia called for regional “stability”, warning of the effects of the ongoing Israeli war in Gaza on global economic sentiment at the start of a summit attended by a host of the conflict’s mediators.
The Gaza war along with conflicts in Ukraine and elsewhere put “a lot of pressure” on the economic “mood”, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan said at one of the first panel discussions of the two-day World Economic Forum (WEF) special meeting.
“I think cool-headed countries and leaders and people need to prevail,” Jadaan said. “The region needs stability.”
0938 GMT — Death toll from Israel’s brutal war in Gaza rises to 34,454
At least 34,454 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza during nearly seven months of Israel’s brutal war on the enclave, the health ministry in the besieged territory has said.
The tally includes at least 66 deaths in the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that 77,575 people have been wounded in Gaza since the war broke out on October 7.
0954 GMT — Hamas delegation to visit Cairo on Monday for Gaza ceasefire talks: official
A Hamas delegation will visit Cairo on Monday for Gaza ceasefire talks, a Hamas official who asked not to be named has said, adding that the delegation will discuss a proposed ceasefire offered by mediators as well as Israel’s response.
0945 GMT — Over 500 illegal Israeli settlers storm Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque amid Jewish Passover holiday
More than 500 illegal Israeli settlers have forced their way into the flashpoint of Al Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem to celebrate the Jewish Passover holiday.
“More than 500 settlers stormed Al Aqsa from the Mugharbah Gate and carried out provocative rounds and performed Talmudic rituals in its courtyards,” the Islamic Endowments Authority in Jerusalem said in a statement.
The authority added that the settlers’ incursions were carried out under the protection of police, who tightened military measures at the gates of the Old City and Al Aqsa Mosque.
0933 GMT — Israeli army detains 15 more Palestinians in occupied West Bank
The Israeli army has detained 15 more Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including three children.
According to a joint statement by the Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs Authority and the Palestinian Prisoners Society, the latest arrests brought the total number of Palestinians detained by the Israeli forces since Oct. 7, 2023, to 8,495.
Israeli forces beat and abused Palestinians and damaged their homes and property while making the arrests, the statement also said.
0906 GMT — Only US can stop Rafah invasion ‘disaster’: Palestine’s Abbas
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has said the United States is the only country capable of stopping an Israeli invasion of Rafah, saying it would be “the biggest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people”.
“We appeal to the United States of America to ask Israel to stop the Rafah operation because America is the only country capable of preventing Israel from committing this crime,” Abbas said at a global economic summit in the Saudi capital.
0500 GMT — Gaza to top agenda at Saudi summit amid ongoing Israeli strikes
Israeli attacks on Gaza and broader Middle East tensions are expected to get top billing at a Saudi-hosted special meeting of the World Economic Forum today.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Palestinian leaders and high-ranking officials from other countries trying to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas are on the guest list for the summit in Riyadh, capital of the world’s biggest crude oil exporter.
“The world is today walking a tightrope right now, trying to balance security and prosperity,” Saudi planning minister Faisal al-Ibrahim told a press conference on Saturday previewing the event.
“We meet at a moment when one misjudgement or one miscalculation or one miscommunication will further exacerbate our challenges.”
0358 GMT — Netanyahu worried top UN court could issue arrest warrant for him, top Israeli officials
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is worried that the International Criminal Court (ICC) might issue an arrest warrant for him and other senior officials, media reports have said.
Netanyahu was “unnaturally afraid and worried” due to the possibility of an arrest warrant by the ICC in The Hague, the Maariv newspaper quoted unnamed sources.
Netanyahu made telephone calls to international leaders and officials in recent days, especially to US President Joe Biden, to prevent the issuance of an arrest warrant.
0006 GMT — Hezbollah missiles hit Israeli settlement on Lebanese border
Hezbollah has said that it hit an Israeli settlement in the border region with dozens of missiles.
Dozens of Katyusha missiles were launched against the Meron settlement on the Israeli borderline, the group said in a statement.
The attack was carried out in response to Israeli attacks on villages and civilian homes in southern Lebanon, especially Qaouzah, Markabta and Srobbine.
Israeli forces monitored 25 rockets launched from the south of Lebanon toward the Meron region, and some were stopped and some fell into open areas, Israeli Army Radio wrote on X.
2330 GMT — X suspends Mandela’s account over support for Gaza Flotilla
Social media giant X has suspended the account of Nelson Mandela’s grandson after he made statements to Anadolu Agency in support of the International Freedom Flotilla.
Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela declared his support for the International Freedom Flotilla that is preparing to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza and break an Israeli blockade.
He arrived in Istanbul earlier this week to attend the 5th Conference of the Inter-Parliamentary Jerusalem Platform and support the preparations of the International Freedom Flotilla.
2305 GMT — Israeli far-right threatens Netanyahu if Rafah not invaded
Israeli far-right ministers threatened Netanyahu with an overthrow of his government unless there is an attack on Rafah, according to media reports.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir threatened to withdraw from the government unless there is a land invasion in Rafah, said Israeli public broadcaster KAN.
The reason for Smotrich and Ben-Gvir’s attack on Netanyahu was due to the stalled progress on a ceasefire.
The two ministers claimed that if the occupation of Rafah was abandoned, the responsibilities for Israel’s security would not be fulfilled.
