Main points on November 19th
- The Israeli military forced food off UN trucks heading to Kamal Adwan Hospital and has “denied or impeded” all 31 aid missions to the north of Gaza so far this month, according to UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
- Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital, said many children and elderly patients are seeking treatment for malnutrition at the facility. This comes amid warnings of famine in north Gaza with Israel’s siege on the region now in its 46th day.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking from Gaza, has offered a reward of $5m to anybody who returns a captive held in the territory by Hamas.
- US envoy Amos Hochstein held talks in Lebanon and said a ceasefire “is now within our grasp” but, ultimately, it is “the decision of the parties [Hezbollah and Israel] to reach a conclusion”.
- The US has imposed sanctions on several Hamas leaders, according to a notice posted on the Treasury Department’s website.
- Turkey refused to let Israeli President Isaac Herzog use its airspace to travel to the COP29 UN Climate Change Conference in Azerbaijan.
Incoming Senate leader tells Israel: ‘Reinforcements are on the way’
Senator John Thune, the incoming Republican leader of the Senate, has said that Republicans “will make clear that the United States Congress stands squarely in Israel’s corner” when they reclaim the Senate majority in six weeks.
“To our allies in Israel and to the Jewish people around the world, my message to you is this: reinforcements are on the way,” Thune said in a video shared on X.
“We will help the Trump-Vance administration, defend Israel and promote peace in the region.”
Thune also criticised Senator Bernie Sanders’s push to block US arms sales to Israel and renewed calls for sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) for its investigations into Israeli official’s alleged war crimes.
“The ICC’s rogue actions are a threat to our ally, Israel, and left unchecked, it could pose a threat to America in the future,” he said.
To our allies in Israel, and to the Jewish people around the world, my message to you is this: Reinforcements are on the way.
In six weeks, Republicans will reclaim the Senate majority, and we will make clear that the United States Congress stands squarely in Israel’s corner. pic.twitter.com/4SaWDmWOMY
— Senator John Thune (@SenJohnThune) November 19, 2024
