Father reflects on anguish of having wife, daughters kidnapped by Hamas
At the centre of this war are approximately 50 hostages who remain with Hamas, with the group releasing videos of two emaciated Israeli hostages over the weekend.
One of them Evyatar David was filmed digging a hole that, he says in the video, was for his own grave.
For Yoni Asher, the video was "traumatic to watch", as his wife and two daughters were kidnapped by Hamas in its October 7 attacks, and held hostage until they were released a few weeks later.
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The Australian
an hour ago
- The Australian
Israel plans Gaza 'full takeover' as ex-security chiefs urge war's end
For the first time the IDF will operate in areas where hostages are being held, as hundreds of former security officials write to Donald Trump urging him to pressure Netanyahu to end the war. Israel is planning to expand its military operation in Gaza, including - for the first time = areas where the remaining hostages are being held, in a reported 'full takeover.' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly told ministers that he will seek cabinet backing for a plan to fully occupy the Gaza Strip, despite reservations by the Israel Defence Forces. Mr Netanyahu's office told The Jerusalem Post that IDF chief Eyal Zamir, who opposes a full takeover of the Strip, had been advised: 'If this does not suit you, then you should resign.' General Zamir has cancelled plans for a short trip to the US. The Israel Defence Forces have previously avoided areas in Gazawhere hostages are thought to be held, in case they are killed by their militant captors or die in the crossfire. However Mr Netanyahu The Times of Israel reports that Mr Netanyahu used the term 'occupation of the Strip' in private conversations, while Ynet TV quoted an official close to the Prime Minister as saying: 'The die is cast — we are going for a full occupation of the Gaza Strip.' The decision follows the publication of two videos of emaciated captives warning they were on the point of death, which shocked the country. It comes as Foreign Minister Penny Wong reiterated her calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza, warning: 'There will be no Palestine left to recognise if the world does not act.' Senator Wong also urged Mr Netanyahu to listen to the 600 former Israeli security officials who have written to US President Donald Trump urging him to convince Mr Netanyahu to end the war. 'It is our professional Judgement that Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel,' the officials said. 'Your credibility with the vast majority of Israelis augments your ability to steer Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government in the right direction: End the war, return the hostages, stop the suffering,' they wrote. The Prime Minister is facing increasing pressure to return the remaining hostages in Gaza, as well as mounting international calls to address the dire food situation in the Gaza Strip. — UnXeptable (@UnxeptableD) August 3, 2025 Separately from the letter to Mr Trump, 19 former intelligence and military chiefs and a former prime minister published a video calling for the war to end, and admitting: 'We are on the precipice of defeat.' In the video message, the former officials said that between them, they had 'more than a thousand years' experience in national security and diplomacy.' 'We have a duty to stand up and say what we need to say,' former Shin Bet director Ami Ayalon said. 'This war started as a just war. It was a defensive war. But once we achieved all its military objectives, once we achieved a brilliant military victory against all our enemies, this war stopped being a just war. It is leading the State of Israel to the loss of its security and identity.' Another ex-Shin Bet director Nadav Argaman said: 'We are now mostly offsetting losses,' while former Mossad director Tamir Pardo admitted: 'We are on the precipice of defeat.' Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said ahead of the UN session in New York that 'the world must put an end to the phenomenon of kidnapping civilians. It must be front and centre on the world stage'. Israel – backed by the United States and Panama – is preparing to convene a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday to highlight the fate of the hostages. At his weekly cabinet meeting, Mr Netanyahu reiterated that Israel's three war goals remain 'the defeat of the enemy, the release of our hostages and the promise that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel'. Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, 49 are still held in the Palestinian territory, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. The UN session was called after Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad published last week three videos showing hostages Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David appearing weak and emaciated. Mr Netanyahu said he had asked the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to provide food and medical treatment to the Israeli captives. Hamas's armed wing said it was willing to allow access to the hostages in exchange for opening aid corridors into all of Gaza, where UN-mandated experts have warned famine was unfolding. The ICRC said in a statement it was 'appalled by the harrowing videos' and reiterated its 'call to be granted access to the hostages'. Mr Netanyahu's government has faced repeated accusations by relatives of hostages and other critics of not doing enough to rescue the captives. 'Netanyahu is leading Israel and the hostages to ruin,' said the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group. 'For 22 months, the public has been sold the illusion that military pressure and intense fighting will bring the hostages back. 'The truth must be said: expanding the war endangers the lives of the hostages, who are already in immediate mortal danger.' AFP Read related topics: Donald TrumpIsrael World Russia says it will consider redeploying short and intermediate range nuclear missiles, claiming military actions by the US, Australia and NATO are putting its national security at risk. The Wall Street Journal The US President lavished praise on Sydney Sweeney's ad campaign for the jeans maker after a reporter informed him the actor is a registered Republican.
Daily Telegraph
an hour ago
- Daily Telegraph
Israel to push to reoccupy all of Gaza in ‘updated' war plan
Don't miss out on the headlines from World. Followed categories will be added to My News. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised to update Israel's Gaza war plan, a day before a UN Security Council meeting on the fate of hostages still held in the Palestinian territory. Addressing a cabinet meeting with the war well into its 22nd month, the Israeli leader told ministers on Monday that later in the week he would instruct the military on how 'to achieve the three war objectives we have set'. Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 and the Jerusalem Post newspaper quoted officials in Mr Netanyahu's office saying that the 'updated strategy' would be to reoccupy all of Gaza, including areas in Gaza City where the military believes hostages are being held. The cabinet would meet on Tuesday to endorse the plan, the reports said. Get all the latest news happening around the world as it happens — download the app direct to your phone. Mr Netanyahu said he would instruct the military on how 'to achieve the three war objectives we have set'. Picture; X There was no immediate official confirmation, but the Palestinian Authority's foreign ministry denounced what it called a 'leaked' plan and urged the international community to intervene to quash any new military occupation. Mr Netanyahu is facing mounting domestic and international pressure to bring the remaining hostages in Gaza home and allow much more aid into the starving territory. Israel – backed by the United States and Panama – is preparing to convene a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday to highlight the fate of the hostages. Mr Netanyahu on Monday reiterated that Israel's three war goals remained 'the defeat of the enemy, the release of our hostages and the promise that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel'. His statement came after hundreds of retired Israeli security chiefs wrote to US President Donald Trump to urge him to convince Mr Netanyahu to end the war. 'Immediate mortal danger' Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said ahead of the UN meeting that 'the world must put an end to the phenomenon of kidnapping civilians. It must be front and centre on the world stage'. Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. The UN session was called after Palestinian militant groups last week published three videos showing hostages Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David appearing weak and emaciated, causing shock and distress in Israel. Mr Netanyahu said he had asked the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to provide food and medical treatment to the Israeli captives. Hamas's armed wing said it was willing to allow access to the hostages in exchange for opening aid corridors into all of Gaza, where UN-mandated experts have warned famine is unfolding. Mr Netanyahu said he had asked the International Committee of the Red Cross to provide food and medical treatment to the Israeli captives. Picture: Alex Wroblewski / AFP Mr Netanyahu's government has faced repeated accusations by relatives of hostages and other critics that it has not done enough to rescue the captives. 'Netanyahu is leading Israel and the hostages to ruin,' said the Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group. 'For 22 months, the public has been sold the illusion that military pressure and intense fighting will bring the hostages back. 'The truth must be said: expanding the war endangers the lives of the hostages, who are already in immediate mortal danger.' 'Only through a deal' Mediation efforts led by Qatar, Egypt and the United States have failed to secure a truce. Hundreds of retired Israeli security officials including former heads of intelligence agencies have urged US President Donald Trump to pressure their own government to end the war. 'It is our professional Judgement that Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel,' the former officials wrote in an open letter shared with the media on Monday. The war 'is leading the State of Israel to lose its security and identity', said Ami Ayalon, former director of the Shin Bet security service, in a video released to accompany the letter. The letter argued that the Israeli military 'has long accomplished the two objectives that could be achieved by force: dismantling Hamas's military formations and governance'. 'The third, and most important, can only be achieved through a deal: bringing all the hostages home,' it added. Palestinians struggle to get food and humanitarian aid from the back of a truck as it moves along the Morag corridor near Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday, August 4. Picture: AP Photo/Mariam Dagga 'We are starving' The October 2023 Hamas attack that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to a tally of official figures. Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed at least 60,933 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, which are deemed reliable by the UN. Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli fire on Monday killed at least 19 Palestinians, including nine who were waiting to collect food aid from a site in central Gaza. In Gaza City, Umm Osama Imad was mourning a relative she said was killed while trying to reach an aid distribution point. 'We are starving … He went to bring flour for his family,' she said. 'The flour is stained with blood. We don't want the flour anymore. Enough!' UN rights chief Volker Turk on Monday said 'the images of people starving in Gaza are heart-rending and intolerable. That we have reached this stage is an affront to our collective humanity.' He called on Israel to urgently allow aid into the territory, adding that denying it 'may amount to a war crime'. He also described the videos of hostages as 'shocking', calling for the ICRC to be allowed immediate access to them. Originally published as Israel to push to reoccupy all of Gaza in 'updated' war plan
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Five years after Beirut port blast, Lebanese demand justice
The loved ones of those killed in a catastrophic explosion at Beirut's port five years ago gathered to demand justice on the anniversary of the blast Monday, as Lebanon's president vowed to hold those responsible to account. The August 4, 2020 disaster was one of the world's largest non-nuclear explosions, and devastated swathes of the Lebanese capital, killing more than 220 people and injuring over 6,500. Authorities have said the blast was triggered by a fire in a warehouse where tonnes of ammonium nitrate fertiliser had been stored haphazardly for years after arriving by ship, despite repeated warnings to senior officials. Hundreds gathered in Beirut on Monday afternoon to mark the anniversary, some brandishing signs reading "No compromises on justice" and "The crime of August 4 was not an accident". Georgette Khoury, 68, was there to honour the memory of three of her loved ones who perished in the blast. "Five years have passed, but it still feels like the explosion just happened. It's a gaping wound in the heart of every Lebanese person," she said, attending the commemoration for the first time. "We demand justice, and if it is not delivered here, it will be served above." A few steps away, Youssef Romanos, 44, raised a photo of his neighbour, a nun killed in the explosion. "We are waiting for justice to take its course," he said. "It will not bring back our martyrs but it will be a relief." - 'Transparency' - Judge Tarek Bitar resumed his investigation into the blast this year as Lebanon's balance of power shifted following a war between Israel and Hezbollah that weakened the Iran-backed militant group, which had spearheaded a campaign for Bitar's resignation. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Monday that the state was "committed to uncovering the whole truth, no matter the obstacles or how high the positions" involved. "The law applies to all, without exception," he added. "The blood of your loved ones will not be in vain," the president told victims' families, adding: "Justice is coming, accountability is coming." After resuming work following a more than two-year impasse, Bitar has finished questioning defendants and suspects, a judicial official told AFP on condition of anonymity. Those questioned include former prime minister Hassan Diab, as well as military and security officials, while several former ministers did not appear for questioning, the official said. Bitar is waiting for some procedures to be completed, including receiving responses from several Arab and European countries following a request for "information on specific incidents", the official added, without elaborating. The judge will then finalise the investigation and refer the file to the public prosecution for its opinion before he issues an indictment, the official said. President Aoun said "we are working with all available means to ensure the investigations are completed with transparency and integrity". Officials named in the investigation had filed a flurry of lawsuits seeking to prevent it from going forward. Nobody is currently in custody in relation to the case. - 'Chain of responsibility' - Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said in a joint statement on Monday that "despite the resumption of the investigation, the road to justice remains littered with political and legal challenges". They urged authorities to ensure a comprehensive, unobstructed investigation that establishes "the facts and circumstances surrounding the explosion, encompassing the full chain of responsibility", whether domestic or international. Mariana Fodoulian from the association of victims' families said that "for five years, officials have been trying to evade accountability, always thinking they are above the law". "We're not asking for anything more than the truth," she told AFP. "We won't stop until we get comprehensive justice." On Sunday, Culture Minister Ghassan Salame said the port's gutted and partially collapsed wheat silos would be included on a list of historic buildings. Victims' families have long demanded their preservation as a memorial of the catastrophe. "The silos are the only witness to what happened on August 4," said Fodoulian.
