Australia, Canada, New Zealand urge Israel to protect civilians in Gaza
The three governments have issued a statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, saying “the situation in Gaza is catastrophic”.
“The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue,” it said.
The statement condemned the October 7 attack on Israel led by Hamas, urging the group to lay down its arms and release all Israeli captives, but urged Israel to “listen to the concerns of the international community”.
“The protection of civilians is paramount and a requirement under international humanitarian law. Palestinian civilians cannot be made to pay the price of defeating Hamas. It must end,” the three governments said.
“An immediate ceasefire is needed desperately. Civilians must be protected, and a sustained increase in the flow of assistance throughout Gaza is needed to address the humanitarian situation,” they added.
Israel sets up 25 illegal outposts in West Bank since October 7: Report
Peace Now Israel, a group pushing for a two-state solution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, says since the war on Gaza began, Israel has established at least “25 outposts, most of them agricultural outposts”, in the occupied West Bank.
“The cabinet approved the establishment of five new settlements: Evyatar, Givat Assaf, Sde Ephraim, Adorayim, and Nachal Haletz, all illegal outposts intended to become official settlements,” the report said.
It found that far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich instructed ministries and authorities to begin funding “70 illegal outposts, establish public buildings, and connect them to water, electricity, and other infrastructure”.
It added that 1,205 Palestinian structures have been “demolished by Israel”, leading to more than 2,500 Palestinians losing their homes. The majority of the structures, 1,027, were demolished in the West Bank and 178 were in East Jerusalem.
UN puts 4th century Gaza monastery on endangered site list
The St Hilarion complex, one of the oldest monasteries in the Middle East, has been put on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in danger due to the war in Gaza, the agency says.
UNESCO cited the “imminent threats” it faces and stressed that the site, which dates back to the fourth century, has been placed on the endangered list at the request of Palestinian authorities. It is located near Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
“It’s the only recourse to protect the site from destruction in the current context,” Lazare Eloundou Assomo, director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, told the AFP news agency.
In December, the UNESCO Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict decided to grant “provisional enhanced protection” – the highest level established by the 1954 Hague Convention – to the site.
