“The war is not over yet,” the Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee has said in a message in Arabic to Palestinian civilians in Gaza. In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said:
The humanitarian pause is temporary. The northern Gaza Strip is a dangerous war zone and it is forbidden to move north. For your safety, you must remain in the humanitarian zone in the south.
It is only possible to move from the north of the Strip to the south via Salah al-Din Road. The movement of residents from the south of the Strip to the north is not allowed and dangerous
Prior to the ceasefire, Israel repeatedly bombed the south of Gaza despite telling Palestinians to flee there.
Aid trucks have begun entering the Gaza Strip from Egypt around 90 minutes after a truce began between Israel and Hamas fighters, according to Reuters TV footage.
Two of the trucks, representing Egyptian organisations, sported banners that said “Together for Humanity”. Another said “For our brothers in Gaza”.
Pictures taken during the first hours of the truce have begun emerging from Gaza and the border area:
Advanced plans by Saudi Arabia to strike a peace deal with the Houthi rebels in Yemen are being jeopardised by Houthi attacks on Israel and this week’s seizure of an Israeli-linked commercial vessel in the Red Sea.
Saudi Arabia hopes it can maintain a firewall between the Yemen peace talks and the Houthis’ attacks on Israel, but in London and Washington there is pressure to redesignate the Houthis as a terrorist organisation, which would threaten any deal.
There are also reports that the US is willing to launch an attack on Houthi military sites in and around Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, as well as its port operations room, unless the ship seized on Sunday, the Galaxy Leader, is released.
Last week the Saudis summoned the official UN-recognised Yemen government for further talks in Riyadh to present a revised roadmap that would lead to foreign forces, including those from Saudi Arabia, leaving in six months. It includes a budget deal under which large sums would be transferred from the oil-rich south to the impoverished north, which is dominated by the Iranian-backed Houthis.
Critics of the deal claim it empowers the Houthis, but Saudi Arabia, eager to exit what has proved to be an ill-judged military intervention in Yemen’s civil war, wants to end its engagement as quickly as possible.
Britain will provide a further £30m ($37.38m) of humanitarian aid to Gaza, the UK foreign secretary, David Cameron, has said as he travels to the occupied Palestinian territories on the second day of his visit to the region.
Cameron will meet Palestinian leaders and aid agencies.
On Thursday, he met the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, during which he expressed hope that the truce with Hamas would be an “opportunity to crucially get hostages out and get aid into Gaza”.
We are hopeful that today will see the release of hostages, and I am urging all parties to continue to work towards the release of every hostage. A pause will also allow access for life-saving aid to the people of Gaza.
I am proud that a fourth UK flight carrying critical supplies landed in Egypt today, and I can announce new £30m of funding which will be spent on vital aid such as shelter and medical provisions.
It is vital to protect civilians from harm, and we are urgently looking at all avenues to get aid into Gaza, including land, maritime and air routes. The new pledge will double the amount of additional aid Britain has committed to Gaza since the conflict began in October.
The hostage release is due to start at 4pm, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz has reported, without citing a source.
It’s not clear who will be in the first batch to be released but there have been lots of reports about the possibility of Avigail Idan, an American child who turns four on Friday, being among them.
When asked about the possibility of her being among those released, the US president, Joe Biden, said: “I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
Avigail was kidnapped from kibbutz Kfar Aza on 7 October during the Hamas attack on southern Israel, according to the Jerusalem Post. Her parents, Roee and Smadar Idan, were killed while her two older sibilings survived by hiding in closets.
No soldiers are expected to be among the women released.
“The war is not over yet,” the Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee has said in a message in Arabic to Palestinian civilians in Gaza. In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said:
The humanitarian pause is temporary. The northern Gaza Strip is a dangerous war zone and it is forbidden to move north. For your safety, you must remain in the humanitarian zone in the south.
It is only possible to move from the north of the Strip to the south via Salah al-Din Road. The movement of residents from the south of the Strip to the north is not allowed and dangerous
Prior to the ceasefire, Israel repeatedly bombed the south of Gaza despite telling Palestinians to flee there.
Around 40 minutes into the truce it’s difficult to say whether it’s holding. The Israeli military (IDF) said sirens warning of potential incoming rockets had sounded in two Israeli communities near Gaza but there was no immediate confirmation that attacks had occurred or of any damage or casualties.
A CNN team in the southern Israel city of Sderot meanwhile reported “loud booms” that sounded like Israeli artillery fire landing in Gaza, up to 15 minutes after the ceasefire was meant to be in place. Smoke was also continuing to rise from Gaza, the source of which was unknown, the team said.
Hostilities appeared to have continued up until the last moment, with Israeli forces reportedly attacking the Indonesian hospital in northern Gaza overnight, as well as striking a residential building in Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
A BBC reporter also in Sderot noted an Israeli airstrike as well the sound of small arms fires, drones and mortars with less than an hour to go before the truce.
Sirens warning of potential incoming rockets have sounded in communities near the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military (IDF) has said in a Telegram post.
As we reported earlier it said sirens had sounded in a kibbutz near the Strip a couple of hours before the truce was due to come into effect. Fifteen minutes before the 7am start time it said sirens had also sounded in kibbutz Nir Oz.
Our correspondent Jason Burke has interviewed Dr Paul Ley, a French orthopaedic surgeon at the European hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, where conditions are dire. Here’s an excerpt from his story:
Ley said the hardest thing for doctors was to make triage decisions. “We do our triage … [asking] are we going to take this patient because they will have a good chance of surviving rather than doing desperate measures on a patient who will die in two or three days? That sounds nice on paper, but when you have to make the decision it is different. There’s a 12-year-old with 90% burns so we won’t treat him except for pain control that is not enough,” he said.
“We try to keep our heads cool and steady, but for local staff this is their families, friends, their people. They never want to amputate. They say: ‘I can’t do it any more’ and so I say: ‘OK I will do it, don’t worry,’ and you can feel the relief”.
Ley said he had been shocked at how passive many patients were, such as one 35-year-old woman whose husband and children had been killed when the family’s home was destroyed, and who appeared unmoved when told both her legs would need to be amputated. “So many just don’t care any more,” he said.
The truce should now theoretically be in effect, as the clocks have struck 7 am in Israel and Gaza.
Israeli strikes on Gaza have reportedly continued overnight, with Al Jazeera reporting an attack on a residential building in Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza.
A BBC reporter in Sderot in southern Israel also noted an Israeli airstrike, drones and the sound of small arms and mortar fire coming from Gaza with less than an hour to go before the truce is supposed to be implemented.
Earlier today, the head of the Irish police, Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, was asked who he thought was behind the rioting.
"We have a complete lunatic, hooligan faction driven by a far-right ideology, and then also this disruptive tendency engaged in serious violence."
Harris said people should ignore misinformation about the stabbing that was circulating online.
The Irish Justice Minister, Helen McEntee, said some people were taking advantage of a tragic event: "There is group of people, thugs, criminals who are using this appalling attack to sow division and to wreak havoc in our city centre."
Sources have have said the man suspected of carrying out the stabbing is an Irish citizen, who has lived in the country for 20 years.
The situation in Dublin has calmed, but a large number of police remain on the streets in riot gear.
Geert Wilders described it as the “most beautiful day” of his political life. But for many across the Netherlands, news that Wilders’ far-right, anti-Islam party had emerged with the most votes in Wednesday’s election set off alarm bells over what might lie ahead in a country once regarded as a beacon of tolerance.
“These election results are shocking for Dutch Muslims,” saidMuhsin Köktas of the Contact Body for Muslims and Government. “We did not expect such a party with a programme that is against the basic principles of the rule of law to be so big.”
Though he sought to soften his anti-Islam rhetoric in the lead-up to the elections, the party’s manifesto includes a ban on mosques, the Qur’an and Islamic headscarves in government buildings. As his party’s gains became clear on Wednesday evening, Wilders vowed to push policies “within the law and constitution”.
The apparent change in tone was of little comfort to Köktas. “We have great concerns about the future of Islam and Muslims in the Netherlands,” he said.
He hoped that people from across the Netherlands would join together to defend and protect the rule of law. “This is absolutely necessary, not only for the future of Muslims but also for the future of the peaceful Dutch society,” he added.
With nearly all votes counted, preliminary results from Wednesday’s election showed PVV taking 37 seats, more than any other party.
“The distress and the fear are enormous,” said Habib El Kaddouri, who leads a Dutch organisation representing Dutch Moroccans. “Wilders is known for his ideas about Muslims and Moroccans. We are afraid that he will portray us as second-class citizens.”
While it remains to be seen whether Wilders can cobble together enough support to form a majority or become prime minister, El Kaddouri pointed to the wider message sent by the Dutch embracing a man who has been labelled as a Dutch version of Donald Trump. “I don’t know if Muslims are still safe in the Netherlands,” he told the news agency ANP. “I am worried about this country.”
Stephan van Baarle, leader of the minority rights party Denk, refused to congratulate Wilders on the PVV’s election success. “The fact that the PVV is the biggest party is a threat for a million Dutch Muslims,” he told broadcaster Nos.
“Mr Wilders wants to take away their rights,” he added, describing the electoral results as a “threat to our legal state” and undeserving of any congratulations. “It’s a reason to fight harder and harder against discrimination.”
On Wednesday evening, Wilders said he would seek to live up to the hopes of his voters and vowed that “the Netherlands will be returned to the Dutch, the asylum tsunami and migration will be curbed”.
At the Dutch Council for Refugees, the hardline stance on asylum was met with dismay. In a statement, the NGO noted it was “very concerned about the people who have to flee war and violence, now that a party that unequivocally advocates an asylum freeze has become the largest in the Netherlands”.
The council added that it was impossible to ignore the VVD and NSC. The two parties also advocate for fewer asylum seekers, and also received a significant number of votes as people in the Netherlands grapple with issues such as a housing shortage and the climate crisis.
“We ask the next cabinet not to get bogged down in symbol politics that fuel polarisation,” said Frank Candel, chair of the council’s board. “But to get to work on solutions that address the concerns of citizens and are good for refugees.”
While the possibility of Wilders becoming the Netherlands’ next prime minister remained small, the fact that so many voters had backed him was disappointing, said Mustafa Ayranci of the Turkish workers’ association HTIB. “The Dutch people have made a statement. We must respect that,” he told Dutch news agency ANP.
Ayranci said that should Wilders win enough support to form a coalition with a working parliamentary majority, he would be watching to see if the far-right leader would keep his promise, made in the lead-up to the election, to act as a prime minister for all Dutch people.
The hope, he said, would be “that he will not only become the prime minister of Jan and Piet, but also of Mustafa and Ahmed”.
Mohammed Aknin, a prominent Muslim leader in the city of Tilburg, said he had spent Wednesday evening fielding WhatsApp messages from worried members of the community. “People are afraid that there will soon be a ban on headscarves, for example.”
What comes next is anyone’s guess, he told the public broadcaster Omroep Brabant. “The fox may lose his hair, but not his cunning,” he said. “Over the past 20 years he has been clear in what he thinks. We just have to wait and see what he can do next.”
A four-day ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas will begin on Friday morning, a day later than originally announced, after negotiators worked out final details of the deal, which will lead to the release of dozens of hostages held by militants as well as Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Majed al-Ansari, a spokesperson for the foreign ministry of Qatar, which played a key role in mediating with Hamas, announced the cease-fire will start at 7 a.m. local time Friday (5 a.m. GMT.)
He said the two sides had exchanged lists of those to be released, and the first group of hostages held by Hamas – including 13 women and children – would be freed Friday afternoon. Increased aid for Palestinians will start to enter “as soon as possible,” al-Ansari said.
The exchange of female and minor hostages and prisoners was due to take place on Thursday but postponed as last minute logistical issues were worked out over 24 hours of frantic diplomacy.
The truce, which initially would last for four days, was announced early on Wednesday after days of speculation and has raised hopes for a more durable pause in the violence.
Under the agreement, Hamas will free at least 50 of the more than 240 mostly Israeli hostages they have held since launching bloody attacks into southern Israel on 7 October. In turn, Israel will release at least 150 Palestinian prisoners and allow up to 300 trucks of humanitarian aid into Gaza after more than six weeks of bombardment, heavy fighting and a crippling blockade of fuel, food, medicine and other essentials.
There will be a halt to Israeli air sorties over southern Gaza, with air activity over northern Gaza restricted to six hours a day. According to a Hamas statement, Israel has agreed not to arrest anyone in Gaza for the duration of the truce.
The UK’s foreign secretary, David Cameron, has met Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, during a visit to Israel today.
Cameron, who earlier visited kibbutz Be’eri, the scene of some of the worst violence during the Hamas assault inside Israel on 7 October, told the Israeli leader in Jerusalem:
I wanted to come here in person ... to see just the true nature of the horrific attacks that you faced, I think that’s very important to do that and see that, we stand with the people of Israel.
He added that he believed the announcement of a truce between Israel and Hamas would be an opportunity to get the hostages out and to get aid into Gaza, adding:
I hope everyone who is responsible and behind this agreement can make it happen.
Netanyahu vowed to “continue with our war aims, namely to eradicate Hamas”, adding:
There is no hope for peace between Israel and the Palestinians and between Israel and the Arab countries if we do not eradicate this murderous movement, which threatens the future of all of us.
Ziad, a 35-year-old Palestinian in Gaza, on helping a child suffering from toothache, marvelling at a family’s ability to laugh and sing, and how a simple scarf can allow you to dream of better times for her diary for the Guardian:
8am A woman I know once wondered about what life would be like if tears were coloured. If there was a specific colour for tears of joy, sadness, anger, despair and helplessness.
We have reached a stage where it is not a surprise to see someone crying in the street. They might have lost someone, they might have lost their home or maybe they have no place to go. The list could go on and on.
I leave early every day to start searching for anything useful. The shops open early to welcome all the lost souls. I call us the lost souls because we don’t know who we are any more. We had jobs, dreams and somewhat normal routines. Then suddenly we had to leave, and found ourselves in places we have never lived in before. Now we are facing the unknown. Our minds and souls are lost.
I see a man bringing a big bag with Saj bread. He starts calling out to let people know that he has something to sell. I run and reach him first. I ask him for some bread and pay him. Just like that. Then many people start running towards him. I take the bread – no, I hug the Saj bread – and pass through the gathering crowd. I have a big smile over my face. For almost half an hour I keep walking, not focusing where I am going. I’m just feeling happy.
A tear falls down my face, it does not need a colour. It is not a tear of sadness. We have reached a stage where getting bread easily is a victory, and it was a tear of gratefulness. I was grateful.
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has urged Israel to rethink its offensive in Gaza, telling its president and prime minister the number of dead Palestinians is “truly unbearable”.
Sánchez’s blunt pleas came during a visit to the Middle East with the Belgian prime minister, Alexander De Croo, during which he called for a peace conference and reiterated that the creation of a Palestinian state remained the best way to bring peace and security to the region.
The response to Hamas’s terrorist attacks last month cannot include “the deaths of innocent civilians, including thousands of children”, Sánchez said.
Speaking as he met Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on Thursday afternoon, Sánchez said Spain had repeatedly condemned Hamas’s “shocking acts of terrorism” and acknowledged Israel’s right to defend itself. But he added:
Let me also be clear: Israel must abide by international law, including international humanitarian law, in its response … The whole world is shocked at the images that we see coming from Gaza every day. The number of Palestinians killed is truly unbearable. I believe that all civilians must be protected at all costs.
The armed wing of Hamas, the Izz ad-Din al Qassam brigades or al-Qassam brigades, has confirmed that a four-day pause in fighting will begin at 7am local time in Gaza (0500 GMT).
During the truce, all military actions by al-Qassam Brigades and Israeli forces will cease, according to a statement on Thursday.
It added that Israeli military would stop flights over the southern Gaza Strip and would also cease flying for six hours daily, from 10am to 4pm over Gaza City and the northern areas.
The statement also sayss Israeli “prisoners, women and children under the age of 19, will be released”. Three Palestinian prisoners, including women and children, would be released for every Israeli, it added.
In addition, 200 trucks containing medical supplies would be brought into Gaza on a daily basis, along with four trucks containing fuel and cooking gas.
A four-day ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas will begin on Friday morning, a day later than originally announced, after negotiators worked out final details of the deal, which will lead to the release of dozens of hostages held by militants as well as Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Majed al-Ansari, a spokesperson for the foreign ministry of Qatar, which played a key role in mediating with Hamas, announced the cease-fire will start at 7 a.m. local time Friday (5 a.m. GMT.)
He said the two sides had exchanged lists of those to be released, and the first group of hostages held by Hamas – including 13 women and children – would be freed Friday afternoon. Increased aid for Palestinians will start to enter “as soon as possible,” al-Ansari said.
The exchange of female and minor hostages and prisoners was due to take place on Thursday but postponed as last minute logistical issues were worked out over 24 hours of frantic diplomacy.
The truce, which initially would last for four days, was announced early on Wednesday after days of speculation and has raised hopes for a more durable pause in the violence.
Under the agreement, Hamas will free at least 50 of the more than 240 mostly Israeli hostages they have held since launching bloody attacks into southern Israel on 7 October. In turn, Israel will release at least 150 Palestinian prisoners and allow up to 300 trucks of humanitarian aid into Gaza after more than six weeks of bombardment, heavy fighting and a crippling blockade of fuel, food, medicine and other essentials.
There will be a halt to Israeli air sorties over southern Gaza, with air activity over northern Gaza restricted to six hours a day. According to a Hamas statement, Israel has agreed not to arrest anyone in Gaza for the duration of the truce.
While this press conference in Doha has been going on, Israel’s prime minister’s office has confirmed it has received an “initial” list of the hostages expected to be released at 4pm local time on Friday.
It said: “The relevant officials are checking the details of the list and are currently in contact with all families.”
The Times of Israel is reporting that there has also been confirmation from Hamas that the ceasefire will last four days, and that 50 hostages will be released in total.
The Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said 13 Israeli hostages are expected to be released tomorrow and this will be followed by a release of Palestinian detainees from Israel’s jail.
The Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson has described the Israel-Hamas deal as “a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel”.
He has said that the criteria to prioritise hostages was humanitarian with a focus on women and children. He said he hoped there would be momentum generated by the deal to help everybody get out and “lessen the hardship of the people in Gaza through the humanitarian pause that is taking place”.
The press conference is taking place in Doha, where a 7am ceasefire in Gaza and a 4pm Israeli hostage release for Friday has been announced.
One question that has just come from a journalist in the room has been to have reassurance that all the hostages on the list for initial release are alive. The spokesperson said they are alive, but he also said he does not have verifiable information of the total number of hostages and their status.
The Qatar foreign ministry briefing is being given by Majed al-Ansari. He has said a ceasefire will start in Gaza tomorrow at 7am local time Friday morning, and that the first hostages will be released at 4pm local time Friday afternoon. Thirteen Israelis are expected to be returned. This will be followed by the release of some Palestinian detainees from Israel’s jails. He has said for security reasons he cannot disclose the exact mechanics.
The Q&A portion of this press conference is being given in Arabic or English, depending on which media organisation has asked the question.
Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson said Gaza is a war zone, and the delay in the plan was to ensure safety all round.
He said the lists and timings of release have only been agreed for the first day and that subsequent days will be announced as it goes along.
He says it is important that lines of communication stay open. He says the truce is a cessation of all hostilities, and could be broken by any resumption of hostilities, however it is defined.
He said he thinks they have reached a point now where they are ready to go on the ground and that there should be no further delays.
The Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson in Doha has said they are unable to discuss for security reasons where hostages will be released to, but has said the Red Cross will be involved.
They have also said it is anticipated that Israel will make a Palestinian prisoner release tomorrow following the release of hostages. It is expected that 13 Israeli hostages will be released at 4pm local time tomorrow. He did not specify how many Palestinians detained by Israel would be released in the first instance.
At a press conference in Doha, a Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson has said the ceasefire will begin Friday at 7am (5am GMT) and that the first hostage release, of 13 hostages, will be at 4pm Friday (2pm GMT).
The spokesperson said they expect aid to start moving into Gaza through the Rafah crossing as soon as the ceasefire starts.
Hamas is believed to have seized at least 240 Israeli hostages during its 7 October attack inside Israel. The deal, drawn up between Israel and Hamas, brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the US, envisages that 50 Israeli hostages will be returned in exchange for a four-day pause in hostilities, and the release of 150 Palestinians held in Israeli detention.
It had been hoped that the first release could have taken place on Thursday, but last-minute hitches delayed the expected implementation of the ceasefire.
The Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October killed at least 1,200 people. The subsequent Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip has, according to the health ministry there, killed at least 13,000 Palestinians, many of them children. It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify the casualty figures issued during the conflict.
More details soon …
Here are the latest headlines …
A long-awaited hostage and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas won’t take effect before Friday, US and Israeli officials have said, dashing the hopes of families who thought captives may be freed earlier and prolonging the suffering of Palestinians under bombardment in Gaza. It was not immediately clear what caused the delay. The deal had been expected to come into force from Thursday.
Under the agreement, Hamas will free at least 50 of the more than 240 mostly Israeli hostages they took on 7 October. In turn, Israel will release at least 150 Palestinian prisoners and allow up to 300 trucks of humanitarian aid into Gaza after more than six weeks of bombardment, heavy fighting and a crippling blockade of fuel, food, medicine and other essentials.
A Palestinian official told AFP on Thursday a delay in implementation of a truce in the Gaza Strip between Israeli forces and Hamas was due to “last minute” details over which hostages would be released and how. The Wall Street Journal, citing senior Egyptian officials, reported that a failure to exchange lists for the swap and disagreements about access for the Red Cross have caused the delay.
The Israeli military confirmed today that the director of al-Shifa hospital in the Gaza Strip had been held for questioning. Muhammad Abu Salmiya was reportedly detained with other medical staff while heading to the south of the Gaza Strip. In a statement the IDF said: “In the hospital, under his management, there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity. Findings of his involvement in terrorist activity will determine whether he will be subject to further questioning.” The Palestinian health minister, Mai Al-Kayl, said the arrests showed that Israel was flouting international humanitarian law.
The Israeli military (IDF) says it struck more than 300 “Hamas terror targets” in total over the past day. In a Telegram post the IDF said it had struck “military command centres, underground terror tunnels, weapon storage facilities, weapon manufacturing sites and anti-tank missile posts”.
Gaza’s health ministry, which is run by the Hamas-led government, has resumed its detailed count of casualties from the Israel-Hamas war in the territory. The director of the health ministry, Medhat Abbas, confirmed the resumption, said it has documented more than 13,000 deaths, and that another 6,000 people have been reported missing and are feared buried under the rubble. Israel’s assault on Gaza followed the Hamas attack on 7 October which killed at least 1,200 Israelis. It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify casualty figures during the conflict.
A spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross has told Al Jazeera that its staff were fired upon while trying to deliver humanitarian support in northern Gaza.
Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, has met Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah in Beirut.
Israel and Hezbollah have again exchanged fire over the UN-drawn blue line that divides Israel and Lebanon. Israel claims to have intercepted multiple launches.
The US says it has downed drones in the Red Sea that had been launched from Yemen.
The British foreign secretary, David Cameron, is in Israel, where he has visited kibbutz Be’eri, one of the sites attacked by Hamas on 7 October in an assault that one of the survivors described as a “pogrom”.
The Israeli military has provided no details on the circumstances of the detention of the al-Shifa hospital director, Muhammad Abu Salmiya, but Reuters reports the Palestinian health ministry said he and a number of doctors were arrested at dawn at a checkpoint on the road linking northern Gaza to the south.
The Palestinian health minister, Mai Al-Kayla, said the arrests showed that Israel was flouting international humanitarian law. Al-Kayla is the minister for the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank, which has no control over the health system in Gaza, which has been governed by Hamas since 2007.
Hamas has condemned the arrest, saying: “We consider it a despicable act that only comes from an entity that lacks all sense of humanity and morals.”
Water is one of the most precious resources in Israel and the Palestinian territories. But there is a stark imbalance in how this resource is distributed. In the occupied West Bank, Israeli-owned farms are flourishing, while Palestinians often do not have enough water to drink. And in Gaza, Palestinians are facing deadly levels of water shortage. Josh Toussaint-Strauss examines how Israel took control of the region’s water supply and created a deadly scarcity crisis for Palestinians.
There has been considerable speculation about why the release of hostages and the implementation of a temporary truce has been delayed. The Wall Street Journal has an account, which it sources to senior Egyptian officials. Jared Malsin and Summer Said write:
Senior Egyptian officials said Hamas failed to formally sign off on the mechanism for the hostages’ release, and didn’t provide Israel with a specific list of around a dozen or more to be freed first.
Israel for its part delayed the handover of a list of the first group of Palestinian prisoners it plans to free, according to officials familiar with the talks.
Among the technical issues gumming up the process is access by the International Committee of the Red Cross to the released hostages, and negotiations over the exit through which they will leave Gaza, according to officials familiar with the situation.
Israel had wanted the hostages to be handed over to the Red Cross before their transfer to Israel, while Hamas is now asking for them to be given directly to Egypt, the officials said. Israel has also asked that the Red Cross be given access to those hostages who remain in Gaza after the first exchange, something Hamas hasn’t agreed to.
Here is the full IDF statement on the detention of Muhammad Abu Salmiya, the director of al-Shifa hospital:
The director of the al-Shifa hospital in the Gaza Strip was apprehended and transferred for ISA questioning following evidence showing that the al-Shifa hospital, under his direct management, served as a Hamas command and control centre. The Hamas terror tunnel network situated under the hospital also exploited electricity and resources taken from the hospital. In addition, Hamas stored numerous weapons inside the hospital and on the hospital grounds.
Furthermore, after the Hamas massacre on 7 October, Hamas terrorists sought refuge within the hospital, some of them taking hostages from Israel with them. A pathological report also confirmed the murder of CPL Noa Marciano on the hospital premises.
In the hospital, under his management, there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity. Findings of his involvement in terrorist activity will determine whether he will be subject to further ISA questioning.
The IDF also rereleased the statement from the Israeli military spokesperson, Daniel Hagari, yesterday, in which he said: “Now, the irrefutable truth of Hamas’s exploitation of hospitals in Gaza is on full display to the world. We have an important question to ask the international community: what will you do to stop Gaza’s hospitals from being turned into terror bases in the future? Will you condemn Hamas? Or will you continue to be silent? Will you remain silent? I want to make it clear that Israel is at war with Hamas. We are not at war with the people of Gaza.”
Hamas and medical staff within Gaza’s hospitals have repeatedly denied the Israeli accusation.
The Israeli military confirmed today that the director of al-Shifa hospital in the Gaza Strip had been held for questioning. Muhammad Abu Salmiya was reportedly detained while heading to the south of the Gaza Strip.
Reuters reports that Israel said it was questioning him over evidence that the facility had been used as a command and control centre for the Islamist movement Hamas.
“In the hospital, under his management, there was extensive Hamas terrorist activity,” the military said in a statement.
Abu Salmiya had frequently spoken to international media over the course of the conflict about conditions in and around the hospital during the Israeli bombardment and siege of the Gaza Strip.
Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of using hospitals as cover for its activities, which Hamas and medical staff have repeatedly denied.
Earlier this week Israel released footage, which showing reinforced tunnels allegedly used by Hamas, with what the IDF said showed a meeting room, kitchen and bathroom.
A spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross has told Al Jazeera that its staff were fired upon while trying to deliver humanitarian support in northern Gaza.
It said: “Healthcare workers have special protection under international law and we are pressing for immediate protection for all civilians,” adding that hospitals in Gaza had been “turned into cemeteries and war fields”.
Dani Dayan, chair of Jerusalem’s Yad Vashem World Holocaust memorial centre, has told AFP that comparisons between the Hamas attack on 7 October and the Holocaust were “simplistic”, even if “the genocidal intentions, sadism and barbarism of Hamas” had similarities with Nazi atrocities.
He told the news agency: “The crimes that took place on 7 October are on the same level as Nazi crimes, but they are not the Shoah. I do not accept the simplistic comparison with the Holocaust even if there are similarities in the genocidal intentions, sadism and barbarism of Hamas.
“For any Jew who has heard the stories of families putting their hands over a baby’s mouth to stop it from crying, the association of ideas is obvious. We have all thought about it.”
Dayan said, however, that aside from the scale of the events, unlike many of the Jews targeted during the second world war, Israelis are far from defenceless victims, and the state has hit back hard.
“We cannot compare it with the period of the Holocaust because there is an army here, which is fighting and making Hamas pay the price,” he said.
Dayan has previously criticised Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, who pinned a yellow star to his chest insisting he would wear it until the UN security council condemned the Hamas attack. “This act disgraces the victims of the Holocaust,” Dayan said at the time.
He has also criticised the UN secretary general, António Guterres, who had said the Hamas attacks “did not happen in a vacuum”.
“I asked him what context could explain the beheading of children, rapes or shootings of young people at a music festival,” Dayan said.
The memorial centre itself counts some of its own staff among the victims of 7 October. Polish-born Israeli historian Alex Dancyg, 75, who worked at Yad Vashem, was last seen at the Nir Oz kibbutz and is feared to be among the hostages, as is one of the guides, Liat Atzili.
A long-awaited hostage and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas won’t take effect before Friday, US and Israeli officials have said, dashing the hopes of families who thought captives may be freed earlier and prolonging the suffering of Palestinians under bombardment in Gaza.
“The contacts on the release of our hostages are advancing and continuing constantly,” Israeli national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said in a statement. “The start of the release will take place according to the original agreement between the sides, and not before Friday.”
Multiple news outlets later cited anonymous Israeli officials as saying that the halt in fighting would not begin on Thursday either, as had been widely expected.
White House spokesperson Adrienne Watson later said final logistical details for the release were being worked out. “That is on track and we are hopeful that implementation will begin on Friday morning,” Watson said.
It was not immediately clear what caused the delay. The deal had been expected to come into force from Thursday. An Egyptian security source told Reuters that mediators had sought a start time of 10am.
Here’s our full report on the deal:
British foreign secretary David Cameron has made some comments to the media while visiting kibbutz Be’eri, which was the scene of some of the worst violence during the Hamas assault inside Israel on 7 October.
The former prime minister said:
I wanted to come here to see it for myself; I have heard and seen things I will never forget.
Today is also a day where we hope to see progress on the humanitarian pause. This is a crucial opportunity to get hostages out and aid in to Gaza, to help Palestinian civilians who are facing a growing humanitarian crisis.
Cameron was accompanied by Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen, who said “World leaders need to see the horrors of Hamas with their own eyes.”
Earlier the IDF posted to its Telegram channel that “a number of launches were detected from Lebanese territory towards Israeli territory.”
Haaretz is now reporting that Hezbollah has claimed responsibility for firing 48 rockets towards the Upper Galilee region in Israel’s north.
There are, to date, no reports of any casualties.
A Palestinian official told AFP on Thursday a delay in implementation of a truce in the Gaza Strip between Israeli forces and Hamas was due to “last minute” details over which hostages would be released and how.
The truce, widely expected to go into force on Thursday but delayed during the night, had been put back over “the names of the Israeli hostages and the modalities of their release”, said the official, who has knowledge of the negotiation process but asked to remain anonymous.
Lists of those to be freed had been exchanged by both sides, he added. Questions were also being raised over Red Cross access to the hostages before they would be released into Egypt, he said, and whether the Red Cross would have access to those who remained.
A senior Hamas official reached by phone told AFP there were “obstacles linked to the situation on the ground”, hoping that there would not be “a mistake that has a negative impact on the truce or prevent it happening”.
But “mediators are shuttling between the two sides and the atmosphere is still constructive”, he added.
Gaza’s health ministry, which is run by the Hamas-led government, has told Associated Press it has resumed its detailed count of casualties from the Israel-Hamas war in the territory.
The director of the health ministry, Medhat Abbas, confirmed the resumption, saying it has documented more than 13,000 deaths.
The latest count is based on updated figures from hospitals in the south and 11 November figures from the northern hospitals. The real toll, it said, is likely higher.
The health ministry says another 6,000 people have been reported missing, and are feared buried under the rubble.
The health ministry had stopped updating its figures on 11 November after the breakdown of access and communication in northern Gaza.
It is 11am in Gaza City and in Tel Aviv. Here are the latest headlines …
A long-awaited hostage and ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas won’t take effect before Friday, US and Israeli officials have said, dashing the hopes of families who thought captives may be freed earlier and prolonging the suffering of Palestinians under bombardment in Gaza. It was not immediately clear what caused the delay. The deal had been expected to come into force from Thursday.
Under the agreement, Hamas will free at least 50 of the more than 240 mostly Israeli hostages they took on 7 October. In turn, Israel will release at least 150 Palestinian prisoners and allow up to 300 trucks of humanitarian aid into Gaza after more than six weeks of bombardment, heavy fighting and a crippling blockade of fuel, food, medicine and other essentials.
The Israeli military (IDF) says it struck more than 300 “Hamas terror targets” in total over the past day. In a Telegram post the IDF said it had struck “military command centres, underground terror tunnels, weapon storage facilities, weapon manufacturing sites and anti-tank missile posts”.
The chief of the general staff of Israel’s armed forces has told soldiers “we are not ending the war”. In comments to brigade commanders inside Gaza released to the media, Herzi Halevi said: “We are not ending the war. We will continue until we are victorious, going forward and continuing in other Hamas areas. I’m very proud of you, you are doing an outstanding job.”
The Israeli offensive in Gaza has so far killed between 13,000 and 14,000 people, thousands of them children, according to Palestinian officials. More are thought to be under rubble. Israel launched the assault after the Hamas attacks on 7 October inside Israel, which killed at least 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and during which an estimated 240 people were taken hostage. It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify the casualty figures being issued during the conflict.
Sarbini Abdul Murad, the head of the Indonesian charity Medical Emergency Rescue Committee, has said: “The Indonesia hospital in Gaza is now empty. The doctors and the wounded were moved to the European hospital. Our volunteers are sheltering at a school with thousands of others.”
In another development, unconfirmed reports say the director of the al-Shifa hospital has been detained by Israeli forces.
The US says it has downed drones in the Red Sea that had been launched from Yemen.
Israel’s military spokesperson, Danial Hagari, has said the IDF has again attacked targets inside Lebanon. There had been indications yesterday that while it was not a direct part of the Israel-Hamas deal, Hezbollah would respect a truce period on the northern boundary between Israel and Lebanon. The IDF reported “a number of launches” from Lebanon into Israel.
The British foreign secretary, David Cameron, is in Israel, where he has visited kibbutz Be’eri, one of the sites attacked by Hamas on 7 October in an assault that one of the survivors described as a “pogrom”.
Spain’s foreign minister, José Manuel Albares, on Thursday said his country is in favour of the recognition of a viable Palestinian state “in the very short term”.
Germany’s interior ministry said 15 properties of members and supporters of Hamas and another Palestinian organisation – Samidoun had been raided in four regions. The groups are banned in the country. There are an estimated 450 Hamas members in Germany, according to official figures.
Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy has been appearing on television in the UK, where he told viewers that Hamas could choose to release any of the hostages it holds at any time, and that it did not have to be contingent on a deal.
He said on Sky News that the delay in releasing hostages was “heartbreaking”, saying:
You know, Hamas could release the hostages now. It could have released them yesterday. It could have released them on 7 October. And every moment that it chooses not to release those vulnerable little children is a moment that it continues to psychologically terrorise these children’s families.
They’ve been holding them in the dark and they’ve been keeping their families in the dark. Their families know nothing about their condition. Physically, mentally, emotionally. You know, maybe even worse, these children don’t know what has happened to their families.
This hostage crisis is intensely personal for everyone in Israel. We’re a small country. Everyone knows someone who has had someone stolen from them. And we’re hoping to begin bringing back our stolen children, bring back those hostages, and we’re committed to the pledge that we will bring all of them back, and there will be no one left behind.
Here are some of the latest images sent to us over the news wires from Gaza and Israel.
The UK’s shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has said she urges Hamas to “finally do the right thing” and release the hostages it is holding.
Speaking on Sky News, she said:
[For] all hostages and their families [it] is just so awful. It’s 7 October. It’s weeks now. Not knowing. Not hearing the conditions of the person you love the most and particularly the children, but also for elderly people who need access to medicine. And they’ve been locked in tunnels in who knows what conditions.
So much hope yesterday that prisoners were going to be released today. Let’s hope it’s tomorrow. Let’s hope that deal can be got across the line.
It is so important that the hostages are released, but also that support is getting into Gaza, but that won’t happen until the hostages are released.
So I urge Hamas, a terrorist organisation, to finally do the right thing and release those hostages.
Al Jazeera is reporting that the Indonesia hospital in Gaza has been evacuated.
It quotes Sarbini Abdul Murad, head of the Indonesian charity Medical Emergency Rescue Committee (MER-C), saying:
The Indonesia hospital is now empty, and our volunteers have been moved to a school near the European hospital in Rafah. The doctors and the wounded were moved to the European hospital. Our volunteers are sheltering at a school with thousands of others.
More details soon …
The chief of the general staff of Israel’s armed forces has told soldiers “we are not ending the war”.
In comments released by Israel’s military, Herzi Halevi, speaking to brigade commanders inside Gaza, said:
We are trying to connect the goals of the war, so that the pressure from the ground operation brings about the ability to also achieve the goal of this war, to create the conditions for the release of the abducted hostages. We are not ending the war. We will continue until we are victorious, going forward and continuing in other Hamas areas. I’m very proud of you, you are doing an outstanding job.
The Israeli offensive has killed between 13,000 and 14,000 people, thousands of them children, according to Palestinian officials. More are thought to be under rubble.
Israel launched the assault after the Hamas attacks on 7 October inside Israel, which killed at least 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and during which an estimated 240 people were taken hostage.
It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify the casualty figures being issued during the conflict.
