Former Israeli military chiefs call for immediate end to Gaza war
In a joint video statement, they said Israel had turned legitimate self-defence into a strategic deadlock and was now at risk of losing the gains it had achieved.
They added that the army is 'stuck' in Gaza and that there has been no progress in negotiations to secure the release of captives held in the territory.
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TimesLIVE
2 minutes ago
- TimesLIVE
Six more die of hunger in Gaza, Israel says UN trucks make fuel delivery
Six more people died of starvation or malnutrition in Gaza over the past 24-hours, its health ministry said on Sunday, as Israel said it allowed a delivery of fuel to the enclave, which is in the throes of a humanitarian disaster after almost two years of war. The new deaths raised the toll of those dying from what international humanitarian agencies said may be an unfolding famine to 175, including 93 children, since the war began, the ministry said. Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV said two trucks carrying 107 tonnes of diesel were set to enter Gaza, months after Israel severely restricted aid access to the enclave before easing it slightly as starvation began to spread. Cogat, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, said later in the day four tankers of UN fuel had entered to help in operations of hospitals, bakeries, public kitchens and other essential services. There was no immediate confirmation whether the two diesel fuel trucks had entered Gaza from Egypt. Gaza's health ministry has said fuel shortages have severely impaired hospital services, forcing doctors to focus on treating only critically ill and injured patients.
Saudi Gazette
3 minutes ago
- Saudi Gazette
Leaders condemn videos of emaciated hostages as Red Cross calls for access
JERUSALEM — Western leaders have condemned videos of emaciated Israeli hostages filmed by their captors in Gaza, with the Red Cross calling for access to all remaining in captivity. UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said "images of hostages being paraded for propaganda are sickening" and they must be released "unconditionally". The calls come after the Palestinian Islamic Jihad published video of Rom Braslavski, thin and crying, on Thursday, and Hamas released footage of an emaciated Evyatar David on Saturday. Israeli leaders accused Hamas of starving hostages. Hamas's armed wing denied it intentionally starves prisoners, saying hostages eat what their fighters and people eat amid a hunger crisis in Gaza. Reports from Gaza say Palestinians desperately seeking aid near distribution points came under fire from Israeli troops at two different locations on Sunday. At least 27 Palestinians were killed, hospitals in Gaza Israeli hostages Braslavski, 21, and David, 24, were abducted from the Nova music festival on 7 October 2023 during the Hamas-led attack on southern are among 49 hostages, out of 251 originally taken, who Israel says are still being held in Gaza. This includes 27 hostages who are believed to be the videos were released, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with the two hostage families, expressing "profound shock" and telling them that efforts to return all the hostages "will continue constantly and relentlessly".On Sunday, Netanyahu spoke to the head of the Red Cross in the region, requesting his immediate involvement in providing food and medical care to International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it was "appalled" by the videos that gave "stark evidence of the life-threatening conditions in which the hostages are being held".The charity reiterated its call to be granted access to the hostages to assess their condition, give them medical support and facilitate contact with their armed wing Al-Qassam Brigades said it would respond positively to any Red Cross request to deliver food and medicine to prisoners if humanitarian corridors were opened into Gaza on a regular and permanent basis, and air strikes halted during the time of receiving Red Cross has faced heavy criticism in Israel over its role in the war, with claims that it has failed to help the hostages being held in this year, amid anger over chaotic scenes as hostages were freed as part of a deal between Israel and Hamas, the organisation explained the limits of its role, saying it relies on the warring parties' goodwill to operate in conflict has also been criticism from Palestinians, as the group has not been allowed to visit Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails since 7 October the weekend in Tel Aviv, crowds of protesters and hostage families gathered once again, calling on the Israeli government to secure the release of and Braslavski's families said at a rally on Saturday that "everyone must get out of hell, now."In one video, Braslavski is seen crying as he says he has run out of food and water and only ate three "crumbs of falafels" that day. He says he is unable to stand or walk, and "is at death's door".Braslavski's family in a statement said "they managed to break Rom" and pleaded to Israeli and US leaders to bring their son home."He has simply been forgotten there," they the second video, David said "I haven't eaten for days... I barely got drinking water" and is seen digging what he says will be his own family said he was being "deliberately and cynically starved in Hamas's tunnels in Gaza - a living skeleton, buried alive".German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he was "appalled" by the images, adding the release of all hostages was a mandatory prerequisite for a ceasefire between Israel and President Emmanuel Macron, who said Hamas embodies "abject cruelty", added France continues to work tirelessly towards the release of hostages, to restore a ceasefire, and to enable humanitarian aid to enter said this effort must be accompanied with a political solution, with a two-state solution "with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace". France recently announced its intention to recognise a Palestinian state, along with Canada and the UK, under certain conditions. Israel has strongly condemned the images of emaciated hostages are coming out as UN-backed agencies have said the "worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out" in Gaza, with malnutrition deaths reported Hamas-run health ministry said on Sunday that 175 people, including 93 children, have died of malnutrition since the start of the UN, aid agencies and some of Israel's allies blame the hunger crisis on Israeli restrictions on the entry and delivery of humanitarian aid. Israel denies the allegation and blames the overwhelming evidence, Israeli authorities, and part of the country's press, strongly reject that there is starvation in Gaza, and say the crisis is a lie fabricated by Hamas and spread by international pictures of emaciated children have been displayed by Israeli protesters calling for a deal with Hamas, but many in Israel seem unaware of the extent of the emergency the war continues, Israel faces growing international isolation, as the widespread destruction in Gaza and the suffering of Palestinians spark around the world suggest that public opinion is increasingly negative about Israel, which is putting pressure on leaders to act. — BBC
South Wales Guardian
5 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
33 more Palestinians killed by Israeli fire while seeking food aid in Gaza
Witnesses described facing gunfire as hungry crowds surged towards aid sites on Sunday, and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said a staff member was killed when Israeli forces shelled its office. Israel's military said it was reviewing the Red Crescent's claim. The Red Cross called it an 'outrage' that so many first responders have been killed in the war. Desperation has gripped the Palestinian territory of more than two million, which experts warn faces 'a worst-case scenario of famine' because of Israel's blockade. No aid entered Gaza between March 2 and May 19, and supplies have been limited since then. Two hospitals in southern and central Gaza reported receiving bodies from routes leading to the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid sites, including 11 killed in the Teina area while trying to reach a distribution point in Khan Younis. Three Palestinian witnesses, including one travelling through Teina, told The Associated Press they saw soldiers open fire on the routes, which are in military zones secured by Israeli forces. Israel's military said it was not aware of casualties as a result of its gunfire near aid sites in the south. The United Nations says 859 people were killed near GHF sites from May 27 to July 31 and hundreds of others have been killed along the routes of UN-led food convoys. The GHF says its armed contractors have only used pepper spray or fired warning shots to prevent deadly crowding. Israel's military has said it only fires warning shots. Both claim the death tolls have been exaggerated. The GHF's media office said on Sunday that there was no gunfire 'near or at our sites'. Gaza's Health Ministry said six more Palestinian adults had died of malnutrition-related causes over the past 24 hours, taking the toll among adults to 82 over the five weeks that such deaths have been counted. Malnutrition-related deaths are not included in the ministry's count of war casualties. Ninety-three children have died of malnutrition-related causes since the war began, the ministry added. Israel has taken steps in the past week to increase the flow of food into Gaza, saying 1,200 aid trucks have entered while hundreds of pallets have been airdropped, but the UN and relief groups say conditions have not improved. The UN has said 500 to 600 trucks a day are needed. About 1,200 people were killed by Hamas militants in the 2023 attack that sparked the war and another 251 were abducted. Israel's retaliatory military offensive has killed more than 60,800 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, is staffed by medical professionals. The UN and other independent experts view its figures as the most reliable count of casualties. Israel has disputed the figures but has not provided its own account of casualties. The latest casualties came the day after videos of hungry and suffering Israeli hostages — released by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the second-largest militant group in Gaza — triggered outrage across the political spectrum after the hostages, speaking under duress, described grim conditions and an urgent lack of food. Tens of thousands rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday urging Israel and the US to urgently pursue the hostages' release after suspending ceasefire talks. 'In this new video, his eyes are extinguished. He is helpless, and so am I,' Tami Braslavski, mother of one of the hostages, Rom Braslavski, said in a statement. 'They do not want a deal,' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said of Hamas. 'They want to break us using these videos of horror.' His office said it had spoken with the Red Cross to seek help in providing the hostages with food and medical care. The International Committee of the Red Cross said it was 'appalled by the harrowing videos' and called for access to the hostages.
