Turkiye to close airspace, cut trade ties with Israel over Gaza war

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says his country will completely sever economic and trade ties with Israel and has closed its airspace to its aircraft, amid tensions over the war in Gaza.

Speaking at an extraordinary session of the Turkish parliament on Gaza, Fidan said Israel has been “committing genocide in Gaza for the past two years, ignoring basic humanitarian values right before the world’s eyes”.

Fidan said Israel’s aggressive policies extended beyond Gaza and threatened to engulf the region in conflict. “Israel’s reckless attacks on Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, Syria and Iran are the clearest sign of a terrorist state mentality defying international order,” he said.

Foreign ministers of six European countries condemn Gaza offensive

The foreign ministers of Spain, Norway, Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland and Luxembourg have released a joint statement strongly condemning the latest offensive in Gaza, as Israel’s military said it had begun the initial stages of the attack on Gaza City.

The statement said that the intensification of military operations would “lead to the intolerable deaths of innocent Palestinian civilians, including women, children and elderly people”, as well as endangering the lives of Israeli captives held by Hamas.

The statement said the ministers were “horrified” by last week’s confirmation of famine in Gaza, and denounced the forced displacement of Palestinians, “which represents a flagrant violation of international law”.

“We urge the Israeli government to immediately reconsider its decision and cease operations. This spiral of violence must end,” it said.

Signs of famine everywhere in Gaza City

I visited a supported nutrition centre in the heart of a displacement area in the western part of Gaza City, along with UNICEF staff. These tents are set up to support families bringing in their children to be checked and treated for malnutrition.

We saw mothers carrying children with clear signs of malnutrition. We saw many cases showing signs of starvation and dehydration. And we saw the supplements available in these centres were not enough to address the need.

One child was transferred to al-Shifa Hospital because the centre did not have sufficient resources to treat the child.

Famine is no longer looming on the horizon. It’s a visible reality. Signs of it are everywhere.

‘Time is running out’: Families of captives urge Israeli government to join ceasefire talks

Israel’s Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which has organised large-scale protests demanding a ceasefire to return the captives in Gaza, mourned the loss of Ilan Weiss, whose body was recovered by the Israeli army today.

“Our hearts are with the family today. Alongside the grief and pain, his return provides some comfort to the family after 692 days of waiting in the nightmare of uncertainty,” they said in a statement on X.

“We call on the Israeli government to enter negotiations and stay at the table until every last hostage comes home. Time is running out for the hostages. Time is running out for the people of Israel who carry this burden.”

The hostage families embrace the family of Ilan Weiss during this difficult time.

Ilan's return fulfills the State of Israel's fundamental duty to its citizens.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum:

"Our hearts are with the family today. Alongside the grief and pain, his… pic.twitter.com/E8EdtG3KB5

— Bring Them Home Now (@bringhomenow) August 29, 2025

Gaza City offensive could forcibly displace 1M refugees: UNRWA

UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, has warned that the intensified assault on Gaza City recently launched by the Israeli military could put 1 million Palestinians at risk of being forcibly displaced again.

In a post on social media platform X, the agency said that, with famine confirmed in the area last week, “any further escalation would deepen suffering and push more people toward catastrophe.”

An intensified military operation in #Gaza City would put around 1 million people at risk of being forcibly displaced again.

With #famine already confirmed in the area, any further escalation would deepen suffering and push more people toward catastrophe.#CeasefireNow pic.twitter.com/7DyUEu3oAP

— UNRWA (@UNRWA) August 29, 2025

Palestinians mourn loved ones killed in Israeli attack on Gaza City

_{The bodies of Palestinians are taken to al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City for funeral procedures by their relatives following Israeli attacks on a tent in Gaza City, Gaza}

Israeli forced evacuation orders ‘recipe for further disaster’: UN

A spokesperson for UN chief Antonio Guterres says the world body is “concerned that the ongoing Israeli offensive on Gaza City could have an even more horrific impact on people across the Strip if it intensifies further”.

Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York that the UN has noted Israel’s announcement that it is suspending so-called “tactical pauses” in military operations in Gaza City.

“That suspension will further threaten people’s lives and aid workers’ ability to support people,” Dujarric said during a news briefing.

“Moreover, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to move further south is a recipe for further disaster and could amount to forcible transfer.”

US revokes visas of PA, PLO officials ahead of UN General Assembly

The Trump administration has revoked visas for Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization officials ahead of the high-level meetings at UN headquarters in New York next month.

The State Department criticised the PA for carrying out what it dubbed “lawfare campaigns”, including appeals to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC), and calls for countries to recognise a Palestinian state.

Those steps “materially contributed to Hamas’s refusal to release its hostages, and to the breakdown of the Gaza ceasefire talks”, the department said in a statement, which did not specify which officials had their visas revoked.

Washington has repeatedly hit out at the ICJ and ICC for the courts’ recent decisions related to Israel, with the Trump administration levying a series of sanctions against ICC judges and prosecutors in recent months.

The ICJ ruled last year that Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territory was unlawful and should come to an end as soon as possible.

The ICC also issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli PM Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, for alleged war crimes committed in the Gaza Strip.

More lies and complicity. The breakdown of Gaza ceasefire talks are all because of Trump, Witkoff and Netanyahu adding more impossible demands. They're not negotiations. 

USA needs to be sanctioned. (Although Trump is already doing a good job sanctioning the US with tarifs...)

It is rare for the US to cancel visas of officials before a UN General Assembly meeting

It is rare for the US to cancel the visas of officials attending official events, such as the UN General Assembly, which takes place late in September every year in New York.

There have been instances where Iranian officials have not been able to go, but there have not been any efforts to target the top leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA).

In this case, the US says that because of the PA’s and PLO’s ongoing efforts to try to bring about the recognition of a Palestinian state through organisations such as the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Courts of Justice (ICJ), the US objects to these efforts to bring about a final round of direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations for a two-state solution.

And they also say that the reason for the cancellation of these visas is that the PA and PLO have not condemned Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attacks.

PA urges Trump admin to reconsider visa revocations

The Palestinian Authority presidency has expressed “deep regret and astonishment” at Washington’s decision to revoke visas for Palestinian officials set to take part in high-level UN General Assembly meetings next month.

“The Presidency stressed that this decision stands in clear contradiction to international law and the UN Headquarters Agreement, particularly since the State of Palestine is an observer member of the United Nations,” it said in a statement carried by the Wafa news agency

“It called on the US administration to reconsider and reverse its decision, reaffirming Palestine’s full commitment to international law, UN resolutions, and obligations toward peace.”

US justification for visa revocations ‘obviously absurd’

Matt Duss, executive vice president at the Center for International Policy, says the Trump administration is “clearly violating diplomatic protocol” in its decision to revoke visas for PA and PLO officials.

Washington justified its move by accusing the Palestinian bodies of failing to “repudiate terrorism”, among other reasons.

But Duss told Al Jazeera that the US government is “simply being dishonest”, noting that PA President Abbas has condemned “terrorism” for many years. “Israeli officials themselves repeatedly affirm that the Palestinian Authority works with them to oppose ‘terrorism’ in the West Bank,” he explained.

“What’s going on here is clearly ideologically driven: There are people inside the Trump administration who are working closely with the right-wing Israeli government and their goal is to simply remove the Palestinian liberation movement from the international agenda,” Duss said.

“They do not recognise the Palestinian peoples’ right to state, and they’re both trying to prevent that on the ground in Palestine and now they’re trying to remove them from the international agenda in New York.”

What does UN headquarters agreement stipulate?

Article 11 states that the “federal, state or local authorities of the United States shall not impose any impediments to transit to or from the headquarters” for representatives of UN members or officials.

“Other persons invited to the headquarters district by the United Nations or by such specialized agency on official business” also shall not be impeded from accessing the UN headquarters district, it says.

Article 12 also stipulates that “the provisions of Section 11 shall be applicable irrespective of the relations existing between the Governments of the persons referred to in that section and the Government of the United States”.

‘If we can’t get justice for American citizens, God help us’

US Senator Chris Van Hollen has called for justice for Palestinian Americans killed by Israeli settlers and troops in an uptick in violence across the occupied West Bank.

In a video posted on X, the Democratic lawmaker said he and fellow Senator Jeff Merkley met with the families of slain US citizens during a visit to the Palestinian territory.

“We want to get justice and accountability for those families. If we can’t get justice and accountability for American citizens, God help us,” Van Hollen said.

“Our government says that we prioritise the protection of American citizens and yet here you have American citizens who’ve been murdered on the West Bank.”

He added: “We need justice not just for them, but we need to end the settler violence on the West Bank … Right now, settlers are engaging in violence with absolute impunity; in fact, with the complicity – the complicity – of the Netanyahu government.”

As the humanitarian disaster in Gaza continues, we cannot look away from rising Israeli settler violence in the West Bank.@SenJeffMerkley and I met families of Americans killed there and visited a town subjected to attacks. Illegal settlements and violence MUST end. pic.twitter.com/yvteNTLAos

— Senator Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) August 29, 2025

Protesters rally against Israel’s war on Gaza in the occupied West bank, East Jerusalem


_{Palestinian and Israeli activists gather near Beit Jala in Bethlehem Governorate, occupied West Bank, to hold a silent demonstration protesting against Israel’s war on Gaza}

Israeli forces raid Ramallah-area towns

Palestinian news agency Wafa is reporting that the Israeli military has conducted raids in Beit Liqya and el-Bireh, near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Citing local sources, Wafa said Israeli troops fired tear gas at Palestinian youth who tried to stop the army’s incursion into Beit Liqya. In el-Bireh, Israeli forces fired live ammunition after they stormed the city from the illegal Israeli settlement of Psagot.

Palestinians in the West Bank have faced a wave of intensified Israeli soldier and settler violence for months in the shadow of Israel’s war on Gaza.

CPJ condemns Israeli army attack on DW crew in Ramallah

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has condemned an Israeli military attack on journalists with German broadcaster Deutsche Welle in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Sara Qudah, CPJ’s regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said the journalists were “threatened at gunpoint and fired on with tear gas by Israeli soldiers, despite clearly identifying as press”.

“Targeting journalists is unacceptable and must be thoroughly investigated,” Qudah added.

Deutsche Welle said its senior international correspondent, Fanny Facsar, a DW cameraman and a local colleague were in Ramallah to report on the risks journalists face when Israeli soldiers pointed their weapons at them.

“All three wore protective gear clearly marked ‘PRESS.’ Nevertheless, the soldiers fired tear gas, hitting the group, but no one was injured,” the broadcaster said. The incident took place during a massive Israeli raid in Ramallah this week that left dozens of Palestinians injured.

🚨 "CPJ condemns the attack on the DW crew in the West Bank, where journalists were threatened at gunpoint and fired on with tear gas by Israeli soldiers, despite clearly identifying as press. Targeting journalists is unacceptable and must be thoroughly investigated." -- Sara… https://t.co/RRfFBBQqYG pic.twitter.com/eI74FIHmoS

— Committee to Protect Journalists (@pressfreedom) August 29, 2025

The US has never had a PA, PLO leaderships more ‘willing to play’ under their terms

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) leaderships “have been playing everything by the book when it comes to the US”, Xavier Abu Eid, former communications director for the PLO, tells Al Jazeera.

He said the US’s decision to deny and revoke visas for members of the PLO and PA before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September shows “no matter what Palestinians do, whether they support armed struggle or diplomacy or negotiations or civil society campaigns or anything, they are going to be undermined by the US policy”.

“I think that’s the main issue now, whether the Palestinian leadership are going to take a tougher position. … What I know is that back in 1988 when the US negated a visa for [late PA President] Yasser Arafat, it was a UN resolution at the UN General Assembly that only had two votes against – the US and Israel – that moved the whole assembly from New York to Geneva”, he said.

Main events on August 29th

• The death toll in the Gaza Strip has surpassed 63,000 people since Israel began its war on the enclave, the Palestinian Health Ministry has reported. That figure includes at least 322 Palestinians who have died of starvation.
• The UN agency for Palestinian refugees has warned that Israel’s push to seize control of Gaza City could forcibly displace as many as one million Palestinians, as the Israeli military declared the major urban centre a “combat zone”.
• US President Trump’s administration says it has refused and revoked visas for PA and PLO officials ahead of next month’s UN General Assembly, drawing criticism from Palestinian leaders.
• Turkiye says it will sever economic and trade ties with Israel, as well as close its airspace to Israeli aircraft, in response to the country’s deadly war on Gaza.

"A Dark Path": Ex-State Dept. Official Blasts Trump's Plans for Postwar Gaza

As Israel pushes deeper into Gaza City, President Donald Trump met Wednesday to discuss plans for a postwar Gaza with his son-in-law and former Middle East envoy, Jared Kushner, and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. This comes as Israeli business leaders are reportedly involved in developing a postwar Gaza plan that includes the creation of a "Trump Riviera" and a manufacturing zone named after Elon Musk, using financial models developed by the U.S. firm Boston Consulting Group.

Former State Department official Josh Paul says the Trump administration, alongside the Israeli government, is attempting to "transition from Israeli colonialism to corporate" colonialism. The move would "exploit incredible suffering for economic gain," he adds.

Paul was director in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs in the State Department and resigned in protest of the push to increase arms sales to Israel amid its assault on Gaza. He's now a director at A New Policy, the lobbying organization he co-founded with fellow resignee Tariq Habash to press for a change in U.S. policy on Palestine and Israel. Paul also worked with Tony Blair when Blair was Quartet special envoy for Middle East peace and Paul was an adviser for the U.S. security coordinator.

New footage shows Israel struck Gaza's Nasser Hospital four times

Israel struck Nasser Hospital at least four times during its deadly attack in southern Gaza on Monday, an analysis of new video footage by BBC Verify has found. The attack, which has attracted international condemnation and widespread anger, reportedly killed at least 20 people, including five journalists.

Initial reports from Gaza said that Israel had struck the hospital twice, with the first blast followed nine minutes later by another which hit first responders and journalists who arrived at the scene. But new analysis suggests the hospital was struck four times in total.

One Israeli soldier killed, 11 injured in Gaza City

Israeli offensive increases chances of capturing more soldiers: Qassam Brigades

Abu Obeida, the spokesman of Hamas’s military wing, said Israel’s plans to occupy Gaza will be a “disaster for its political and military leadership”. “This will increase the chances of capturing new soldiers. Our fighters are in a state of alert, preparedness and high morale,” he said.

On the fate of Israeli captives held in Gaza, Abu Obeida said they will safeguard them “as much as we can”.

“They will be with our fighters in places of confrontation, in the same conditions of danger and living. We will announce every captive killed by the acts of aggression, providing their name, photo and proof of their death.”

Israeli army losses in Gaza City a ‘significant tactical setback’

The ambush on Israeli forces in Gaza City that killed one soldier and left four missing is a “significant tactical setback” for the Israeli army, which undermines the Israeli government’s messaging about the strength of Hamas, says a Middle East security expert.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Rodger Shanahan said the fighting in Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighbourhood, in which 11 Israeli soldiers were also seriously injured, showed clearly that Hamas’s capabilities had not been destroyed, which was a stated aim of the Netanyahu government.

“Areas like that favour the defender,” he said, adding that the clashes showed “just how difficult it is to conduct urban warfare. “Capturing Israeli soldiers appears to be one of the tactical aims of Palestinian fighters at the moment.”

He said the fallout from any setback in the military campaign would have political ramifications for Netanyahu and his cabinet, given that the Israeli military had voiced opposition to the Gaza City campaign.

Ambush of Israeli soldiers a ‘strategic headache’

Military and political analyst Elijah Magnier says the latest ambush by Palestinian fighters in Gaza City highlights both the tactical and political challenges facing Israel in its offensive.

“The ambush shows that the battle for Gaza City will not only be measured in territorial gain by the Israelis, but in more political pressure and the delicate balance between military objectives and human costs, including the Israeli soldiers that are attacking, but above all, the Palestinians,” he told Al Jazeera.

“This ambush is going to cause a strategic headache. The Israeli army chief warned that this is something that can happen, and he wanted to make sure that the responsibility falls on the decision-makers.”

Magnier said the Gaza City offensive will have “psychological consequences” for the Israeli army itself, and is likely to “divide Israeli society further”.

Seven Israeli soldiers injured in IED attack

Israeli media is reporting that at least seven soldiers have been injured, three in serious condition, in recent attacks in Gaza, one of which involved an IED blast targeting an armoured personnel carrier.

Israeli attacks rage across Gaza

According to sources and witnesses in Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighbourhood, there is very heavy artillery shelling and the bombardment has not stopped since the early hours. But the intense attacks are occurring in other parts of Gaza as well.

In the central part, at least five people, including two children, were killed in an Israeli attack on a house in the Nuseirat refugee camp. At least 15 people are believed to be trapped under the rubble, with civil defence teams working to rescue them.

And in the south, a woman was killed in a strike on a tent near Khan Younis.

Israeli army carrying out attacks across Gaza City

Israeli forces have launched attacks in the Sabra neighbourhood, south of Gaza City. Israeli forces also attacked the vicinity of the Abu Iskandar area with artillery shelling.

On Friday, the Israeli army said it has started the “initial stages” of its planned takeover of Gaza City, as it declared the largest urban centre in the besieged territory a “combat zone”.

Five killed in Israeli shelling of a house in central Gaza

At least five people, including children, have been killed and many trapped under the rubble after an Israeli shelling of a house in Nuseirat camp.

Palestinian woman killed in Gaza City

The woman was killed in the az-Zarqa area northeast of Gaza City by Israeli artillery attack.

At least 18 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since dawn.

Eleven killed in Israeli air strike on Gaza City

Eleven people have been killed in an Israeli air strike in the Nassr neighbourhood in the west of Gaza City.

Gaza killings in numbers