Residential buildings, ambulance hit in Jabalia
- Heavy fighting continues in Jabalia, where Israeli forces have targeted residential buildings and an ambulance.
- Battles rage in Gaza’s north with Palestinian groups targeting invading Israeli troops in small-arms ambushes and with rocket fire and IEDs.
Israeli attack hits ambulance in Jabalia
An Israeli military attack has hit an ambulance from Jabalia’s al-Awda Hospital, injuring at least two paramedics, according to our colleagues on the ground.
The report comes as heavy fighting continues in Jabalia, where tens of thousands of civilians have fled since Saturday.
Yesterday, as we reported, a Palestinian nurse was among those killed by gunfire in the city, adding to more than 500 health professionals killed in Gaza during the war.
Israeli soldier casualties causing more Israelis to question war operations
The death of Israeli soldiers is putting a lot of pressure on the Israeli government.
The more the Israeli public hears about these deaths in Gaza, the more people are questioning the efficacy of how operations are being put forth.
In poll after poll, you’re seeing a majority of Israeli citizens saying they do back the war effort, but more and more are questioning how the war is being prosecuted.
This is because they are seeing the death of Israeli soldiers, and they are seeing the Israeli military go back into areas they previously said they had cleared of Hamas fighters.
We’re also seeing a lot of discord among Israeli military leaders and politicians.
At least 39 killed over past 24 hours: Health ministry
Gaza’s health ministry says 35,272 Palestinians have been killed and 79,205 have been injured in Israel’s military offensive on Gaza since October 7.
The toll includes at least 39 deaths over the past 24 hours, the ministry statement said.
Hezbollah, Israeli military trade fire
The Israeli military has issued an operational update in which it says 40 rockets were launched from Lebanon towards the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
For its part, Lebanese group Hezbollah said it “launched a missile attack with more than 60 Katyusha rockets” on several Israeli military positions.
The strikes were “in response to the Israeli enemy’s attacks last night on the Bekaa region” in eastern Lebanon’s Baalbek area, the group said in a statement.
Hezbollah and the Israeli military have regularly traded fire since the start of the war on Gaza.
The Israeli military said several of the rockets launched today were successfully intercepted by Israel’s air defence systems.
Additionally, it said five rockets were launched towards Zarit in northern Israel from Lebanon.
The Israeli military reported no injuries and said it responded by targeting the source of the attacks.
Four more killed in Jabalia
Israeli forces have now shelled a house in the al-Faluja area of Jabalia in northern Gaza, killing at least four Palestinians and wounding others, report our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic.
Israeli shelling has also targeted the al-Faluja cemetery within Jabalia refugee camp.
French MP tells protesters: ‘Don’t be afraid of those who want to silence you’
French MP Thomas Portes has criticised the French government’s bias in favour of the Israeli occupation.
Speaking at a demonstration in Paris, Thomas Portes said politicians and the media did not recognise the word genocide and forbid it in all forums, but that the crimes committed in Gaza constituted genocide.
The MP denounced France’s participation in those crimes and the authorities’ treatment of students and pro-Palestine demonstrators.
“Don’t be afraid of those who want to prevent you and silence you and do not stop supporting the Palestinian people … we must stop this government’s support for genocide,” he said.
Swedish city proposes ban on purchases from Israel
Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter is reporting that the governing body of the country’s second-largest city, Gothenburg, wants to stop buying goods from Israel.
A coalition that includes the Swedish Social Democratic Party, Left Party and the Green Party, who have a majority in the municipality’s governing committee, has proposed that the city phase out all purchases of goods originating in states that illegally occupy other states.
“Israel is conducting an illegal occupation of the West Bank that has only worsened in the shadow of the widespread killing of civilians in Gaza,” Jonas Attenius, chairman of the municipal board in Gothenburg, said in a press release. “Our tax money should not go to financially support occupation forces.”
The proposal would also affect purchases from Russia and Morocco.
Gaza’s main crossings still shuttered, not viable: UN
It is “nearly impossible” to distribute aid within Gaza, where more than 1.7 million people are displaced, says the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), adding that the crossings are either “closed, unsafe to access, or not logistically viable”.
The main Rafah crossing on the border with Egypt, now seized by Israel’s military, has been completely shuttered since May 8, cutting off the only evacuation route for injured Palestinians in need of medical treatment.
Israeli attacks on Jabalia intensifying by the hour
Jabalia refugee camp is now the main battle zone, with confrontations raging and the Israeli military ramping up its attacks every single hour.
In the last couple of hours, we have recorded a clear surge in bombardment, not only on residential buildings, but also on the camp’s central market. The place is very densely populated.
The Israeli military has also targeted a kindergarten in the camp with an armed drone, injuring at least five Palestinians. Within these operations, the Israeli military has even targeted medics. Two medics hit by a drone attack have been wounded.
More than $1m seized in Israeli raids on Palestinian exchange shops
It’s been another busy night in the occupied West Bank. What stands out is the raids on all 11 branches of one exchange company where four people were also detained. Israel says the exchange company is dealing with “terrorist groups”.
The company estimates that their losses are about 4 million shekels, or more than $1m. In December, the Israeli military carried out similar raids on exchange branches of various companies, including this one. Last time, they said they lost 1 million shekels, close to $300,000.
In the latest raids, computers were confiscated. They even took safes and everything inside them.
There were no legal proceedings before these raids. The Israeli forces made accusations and left flyers saying that any sort of association with any armed group makes them guilty of being terrorists.
This has the hallmarks of a heist more than any sort of police action. It has made people more afraid and paranoid. It is yet another example of a kind of collective punishment where Israel accuses civilian businesses of being affiliated with so-called terror groups or armed groups, without providing evidence.
Satellite images show preparation of Israeli logistical supply routes for Rafah crossing
Satellite imagery taken from May 3 to 11 shows bulldozing and blowing up of buildings east of the Rafah crossing and the construction of new Israeli logistical supply routes to Rafah.
The images show Israeli forces paved two logistical supply routes, the first connecting the Kerem Shalom military site to the Rafah land crossing, 300 metres (984 feet) from the Philadelphi Corridor (the strip of land between the Egypt and Gaza borders), and up to 3.5km (2 miles) long, and its completion appears in the photos taken on May 11.
The photos also show the construction of a second road linking the Amitai military base to the north of Rafah, in addition to the bulldozing and destruction of lands and buildings located at a distance of 600m (984 feet) from the Philadelphi axis.
ICJ hearing a chance to ‘put real pressure on Israel’
Hassan Barari, a professor of International Affairs at Qatar University, says today’s hearing at the International Court of Justice is a continuation of South Africa’s effort that began late last year when it went to the court accusing Israel of violating its obligations under the Genocide Convention during its war on Gaza.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Barari said the new request for additional provisional measures also provides “much evidence” for international powers to step in and “put real pressure on Israel”.
“When I say ‘real pressure’ I’m saying [placing] a price tag, because if you keep saying that ‘Israel should do this’ or ‘Israel should not do that’, the Israelis would listen to that but then they would continue business as usual. But when you place a price tag, Israel would rethink its position,” he added.
Barari concluded that the hearing is “very important” but also noted: “The question whether it’s going to being an end to the war, I think, this is maybe far-fetched.”
