Israel’s war on Gaza : Snipers gun down civilians outside hospital
- Israeli snipers in Khan Younis kill at least 21 people outside of Nasser Hospital with medical staff also being targeted. Some 107 Palestinians were killed and 142 injured in the past 24 hours.
- US President Joe Biden calls Israel’s attack on Gaza “over the top” and says he continues to work “tirelessly” for an extended “pause in fighting”.
WATCH: What next for Gaza and the talks to end the war?
Negotiations continue on a possible ceasefire. Talks are under way about a possible truce in Gaza while Israel is still bombing much of the besieged territory after rejecting a Hamas offer for a lengthy pause.
So what next? And when will respite come for millions of Palestinians suffering from months of bombardment?
Muslim-American group demands whereabouts of abducted Americans
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) says the US government must demand the release of two American citizens reportedly kidnapped by Israeli forces in Gaza.
Two American brothers, their Canadian citizen father, a mentally disabled uncle, and two other adult male relatives were taken away by the Israelis and remain missing, news reports say.
“When the Biden administration provides political and material support for the far-right Israeli government’s indiscriminate campaign of genocide and ethnic cleansing, it is endangering the Americans who are trapped or held captive in Gaza,” said CAIR’s National Executive Director Nihad Awad.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the administration will talk with Israeli authorities about the reported detentions.
Israel ramps up deadly attacks on Gaza’s Rafah despite warnings
Israel is ramping up its attacks on Rafah as it prepares to mount a ground offensive despite warnings of “catastrophic” consequences for displaced Palestinians.
The military launched air strikes and tanks fired artillery on the southern city housing 1.4 million people, which has been described by Israel as a “safe zone”.
The US, the main military and financial backer of Israel and its war on Gaza, has cautioned against a large-scale offensive into Rafah, warning of “disaster” because of the large number of civilians sheltering in the city.
Palestinian foreign ministry: Pro-Israel countries must pressure it from carrying out Rafah attack
The Palestinian Authority’s foreign ministry said that discouraging Israel from carrying out attacks on the southern city of Rafah falls primarily on countries that still believe in “Israel’s right to defend itself”.
Half of the Gaza Strip’s population are crammed into the border city, after waves of displaced Palestinians swelled its population from 300,000 before October 7 to 1.4 million.
“In light of the continued killing of civilians, the entrenchment of their displacement, the prevention of adequate aid access, and the targeting of health and civilian centres, the world has begun to express deep concern about what a number of Israeli officials said regarding the start of the attack on the Rafah area, which has a high population density,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Israeli tanks target al-Quds Hospital in northern Gaza City
The Palestine Red Crescent Society says al-Quds Hospital in northern Gaza City sustained significant damage as a result of being fired on by Israeli tanks.
“The Israeli army deliberately targeted the society’s headquarters and vehicles to put them out of service,” Red Crescent spokesman Raed al-Nims said.
“The most severe Israeli attacks against the society were those in northern Gaza, which has caused a health and humanitarian crisis, especially after hospitals and medical centres went out of service there,” he added.
Al-Nims said only one health facility affiliated with the Red Crescent is now operating in northern Gaza. Israel has cut off medical and food supplies to the area.
The military is also hitting health facilities in southern Gaza. “The Israeli army is still besieging the society’s al-Amal Hospital, west of Khan Younis, from all sides… The hospital houses more than 200 patients, medical and administrative staff,” said Nims.
Biden, Germany’s Scholz to discuss Israel in White House meeting
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden are set to hold talks at the White House with Israel’s war on Gaza expected to be discussed.
White House spokesperson John Kirby said Biden and Scholz will talk about “what together we can do as … strong allies to continue to make sure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself and humanitarian assistance gets into the people that need it”.
The leaders are also likely to discuss threats by Houthi rebels to international shipping in the Red Sea, he said. No joint news conference is planned.
