Protests in Morocco against Israel’s war on Gaza

Cities in southern Morocco, including Ouarzazate, Agadir and Guelmim, saw protests yesterday to denounce Israel’s war on Gaza.

In a march organised on Saturday evening in Fez, participants raised slogans denouncing Israel’s ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people and demanding an end to the bombing, burning and starvation of the population of the Gaza Strip.

Participants held up banners demanding protection and support for the international flotilla to lift the blockade on Gaza, to prosecute Israeli leaders and to halt Arab normalisation with Israel.

Morocco’s recognition of Israel came at the end of 2020 when it signed the Abraham Accords, a US strategy from 2020 that saw the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan also normalise relations with Israel in return for various concessions.


_{Morocco saw protests earlier in the year as well}

Nearly 900 arrested at London protest in support of Palestine Action

UK police say they arrested 890 people at a large demonstration in support of the banned group Palestine Action in central London on Saturday.

In a statement, police said there were 857 arrests for supporting the group, while more than 30 people were arrested for other offences, including 17 for assaults on police officers, “after the protest turned violent”.

Expressing support for Palestine Action, a direct action pro-Palestinian group, has been illegal since it was banned as a “terrorist organisation” in July.

_{Police take away a protester supporting the proscribed group Palestine Action in London}

Israel’s opposition leader slams government for delay in agreeing to captives deal

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid says the government would rather destroy towers in Gaza than try to work towards a return of the captives.

He added that the deal on the table, agreed to by Hamas last month, should be implemented either partially or in full.

Air raid sirens sound in Israel

The Israeli army says air raid sirens sounded after a “hostile aircraft infiltration” in Nitzana village.

According to Israeli media, three drones were launched from Yemen.

Israel says 3 drones launched from Yemen intercepted

In a post on Telegram, the army says the air force intercepted three UAVs launched from Yemen.

“Two aerial vehicles were intercepted prior to crossing into Israeli territory,” the army said, adding that air raid sirens were sounded due to the infiltration. The army did not elaborate on the status of the third UAV.

Israeli airspace above Ramon airport closed to traffic

Israeli airspace above Ramon airport has been closed to traffic. The Israel Airport Authority did not provide an immediate reason for the closure.

The Israeli military said, according to a Ynet report, it was investigating a report of a drone crash at the airport.

Earlier, the Israeli army said the air force intercepted three UAVs launched from Yemen. It said two were “intercepted prior to crossing into Israeli territory”, but did not elaborate on the status of the third UAV.

Drone launched from Yemen hits Israeli airport

A drone launched from Yemen has hit Israel’s southern airport, forcing the airspace closure and flight suspension, the Israeli military said.

Israel said the Houthis launched multiple drones, some of which were intercepted outside Israel. At least one hit the passenger hall of Ramon airport near the southern Israeli city of Eilat, according to the Israel Airports Authority.

Israel’s Channel 12 reported that four drones were launched from Yemen, but the army was able to detect and intercept only three of them.

Two people were wounded in the attack.

Israeli army issues threat against Gaza City’s Al-Ruya building

The Israeli army has issued a statement saying that the bombing of the Al-Ruya building in Gaza City is imminent, ordering people in “the adjacent tents, located at the Beirut Junction and Arab League Street” to flee.

It said the military would “attack the building soon”, claiming the presence of Hamas fighters. It added that Palestinians in the area were required to head south towards the so-called humanitarian zone in al-Mawasi, ​​Khan Younis.

Israeli air strike targets shelter in Gaza City

An Israeli air strike has targeted the Al Jazeera Club in central Gaza City, where displaced Palestinians have been seeking shelter, our correspondent on the ground has reported.

The attack comes shortly after the Israeli army’s Arabic language spokesperson issued a forced evacuation order for residents of the Al-Ruya building and the surrounding makeshift tents in Gaza City, telling them to leave immediately.

_{Smoke and flames rise as an Israeli air strike hits a house in Gaza City}

Israeli air strikes target two homes in Khan Younis

Two Israeli air strikes targeted two houses in the Batn as-Sameen and Jourat al-Aqqad areas of Khan Younis, southern Gaza.

Since dawn, Israeli attacks across Gaza have killed at least 31 people.

Two killed in air strike targeting Gaza City’s az-Zarqa area

At least two Palestinians have been killed and several injured in Israeli air strikes on a house in the az-Zarqa area of Gaza City, sources at the al-Ahli Arab Hospital tell Al Jazeera.

_{A Palestinian man carries a wounded child after an Israeli air strike on a house in Gaza City, September 7}

Huge explosion as Israeli warplane bombs Gaza City’s Daraj neighbourhood

Footage circulating on social media shows the devastating impact of an Israeli air strike on houses in Gaza City’s Daraj neighbourhood.

The clip, posted on Instagram and verified by Al Jazeera, shows the strike hitting buildings in the street.

As we reported earlier, local sources said two people had been killed and others injured in an Israeli air strike targeting a family home in Daraj. It’s not clear whether this was the strike captured in the footage.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOTTPGwjMEZ

Six killed in Israeli raid on Gaza City’s al-Shanti area

The Israeli military is continuing its bombardment of Gaza City as it seeks to seize the urban hub and displace around one million Palestinians.

Sources in Gaza’s emergency services have told Al Jazeera that at least six people were killed and several were injured in an Israeli air raid on the al-Shanti area, in the northwestern part of Gaza City.


_{Smoke rises as a residential building collapses after an Israeli air strike, in Gaza City}

Israeli army hits high-rise building in Gaza City

The Israeli army has claimed an air strike on Gaza City’s Al-Ruya Tower, after issuing a direct threat against it a short while ago.

It ordered residents of the building and the surrounding makeshift tents to flee for their lives ahead of the strike, a move it has repeated in other places several times this week.

Panic among Palestinians in Gaza City after high-rise hit

Amjad Shawa, the head of the Palestinian NGOs Network, has spoken to Al Jazeera from Gaza City, a few streets from Israel’s latest strike on a high-rise building sheltering displaced families.

“The situation is scary, there is panic among the people,” he said shortly after the Al-Ruya Tower was levelled. The strike followed an earlier attack on the Al Jazeera Club in central Gaza City, the site of another tented encampment.

“Today, hundreds of families lost their shelters,” Shawa said. “Israel [is] aiming to force Palestinians to the southern areas using these explosions, but everyone knows that there is no safe place in the south or any humanitarian zone.”

Video shows latest Israeli attack on Gaza City high-rise

As we just reported, the Israeli army has followed through on its threat to bomb the Al-Ruya building in Gaza City, as it continues its campaign of destruction on the remaining civilian infrastructure there.

Footage circulating on social media, which was verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking unit, shows the strike:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOTm3MyDSJD

Civil Defence says Israel destroys at least 50 buildings in Gaza City

At least 50 buildings in Gaza City have been razed to the ground by Israeli strikes and another 100 have been damaged, Gaza’s Civil Defence says in a statement.

It also estimated that more than 200 tents have been destroyed in Israeli raids on the city.

_{Palestinians inspect the site of a collapsed residential building, shortly after it was hit in an Israeli air strike, in Gaza City}

Tens of thousands march in Brussels, calling for end to Gaza war

There’s a massive crowd here in central Brussels. Tens of thousands of people have gathered to protest against the situation in Gaza.

Most of these protesters are wearing red jackets, to send a strong message to the international community that a red line has been crossed, that the war has to come to an end.

They are angry, frustrated and they say the EU has not done what it should have to end the war. That’s why this march will continue to the headquarters of the European Commission, where people will gather and hold up red cards condemning the international community for its failure to help innocent civilians.

I’ve been asking people whether the decision by the Belgian government to conditionally recognise Palestine as a state has answered some of their own demands. They said no – it was a morally flawed decision by the government to say it would recognise Palestine under certain conditions.

They will continue their rally today, hoping to build pressure on the Belgian government to impose sanctions on Israeli entities and officials, and to hold the Israeli government accountable for the genocide taking place.

Yemen’s Houthis vow to escalate attacks against Israel

A spokesperson for Yemen’s Houthis has called on airlines to leave Israeli airports, saying the group plans to escalate attacks, hours after its drones hit the passenger hall of Ramon airport near the southern city of Eilat.

“Air carriers must leave the airports of occupied Palestine because they have become unsafe,” the statement said. “We affirm the escalation of our operations and will not back down from our support for Gaza, regardless of the consequences.”

Referring to its earlier attack, the group claimed that one drone had directly hit the Ramon airport, two others struck two military targets in the Negev desert, while a fourth hit a target in the southern city of Ashkelon.

Loss of children in Gaza is ‘absolutely shocking and preventable’

Rachel Cummings, humanitarian director for Save the Children in Gaza, says the number of children killed in the enclave is “shocking”.

“This is a preventable death within Gaza. It is absolutely shocking. … The impact is not only on the population of Gaza with 2 percent of all children being killed since the beginning of the war, but the personal impact on mothers, fathers and families is unfathomable,” Cummings told Al Jazeera from Deir el-Balah.

“Women and mothers are sharing with us how painful it is every day to keep going. They keep going for the remainder of their children and for their families.

“But the loss of a child in such a brutal way, … they had no opportunity to say goodbye. They had no opportunity to share one last hug or to tell them one last time that they loved them,” Cummings said.

Her comments come after Save the Children reported that one child has been killed every hour during the 23 months of the war on Gaza. At least 1,000 of them were babies.

Israeli opposition leader: Ceasefire must be implemented

Israeli politician Yair Lapid says that there is a ceasefire deal on the table that must be accepted and implemented.

He said that the Israeli negotiating team and the army chief of staff agree with this position, adding that Hamas has expressed readiness for either a full or partial deal to return the Israeli captives still held in Gaza and end the war.

“The government is not trying to return the abductees and would rather destroy the Gaza towers than return our children,” Lapid said.

Negotiations have been stalled for months as reports indicate that Israel had not even responded to the latest ceasefire proposal presented by mediators, opting instead to pursue its campaign of genocide in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli court extends administrative detention for journalist Ali al-Samoudi

An Israeli court has extended administrative detention for Palestinian journalist Ali al-Samoudi, who was scheduled for release last Thursday.

Al-Samoudi was arrested from his home in the northern West Bank city of Jenin on April 29. His family told Al Jazeera that the court will hold a second hearing to confirm the verdict in 12 days.

The journalist, a regular contributor for Al-Quds newspaper who also worked extensively with Al Jazeera, was working with Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh when she was shot and killed by the Israeli army in the Jenin refugee camp. Al-Samoudi was also wounded at the same time as Abu Akleh, though he survived being shot.

The International Federation of Journalists and other watchdog groups have condemned his arrest. The administrative detention system is used by the Israeli army to prolong detention without trial or charges.

Gaza’s Ministry of Interior says Israel’s claims of humanitarian zone ‘deceitful’

The ministry has issued a statement warning Palestinians in Gaza City not to trust Israel’s claim that it set up a humanitarian zone in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis.

“We call on citizens in Gaza City to beware of the occupation’s deceitful claims about the existence of a humanitarian safe zone in the south of the Strip,” it said in a statement.

Al-Mawasi, adjacent to the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, was designated a “humanitarian zone” by the Israeli army early on in its campaign against Gaza. Since then, it has been bombed many times. Since the war started, the area has never been safe for Palestinians. Here’s a brief look at what the area and its inhabitants have endured since October 7, 2023.

Netanyahu says 100,000 Palestinians have fled Gaza City

Israel’s prime minister has claimed that about 100,000 Palestinians have so far left Gaza City, according to Israeli media reports, as the military pushes forward with plans to seize the city.

Benjamin Netanyahu also said the army was “eliminating terrorist infrastructure and nefarious terrorist high-rises.”

Israel has not provided evidence to corroborate its claim that Hamas is using residential towers to its military advantage. Its attacks on residential buildings in the city have displaced thousands since its latest campaign began.

Evacuation warnings a ‘tool of psychological warfare’

The issuing of warnings by the Israeli military shortly before striking Gaza City’s residential towers is “not a humanitarian gesture,” according to journalist and military and political analyst Elijah Magnier.

Rather, “it’s a tool of psychological warfare and forced population movement”, he said.

Netanyahu’s estimate that about 100,000 Palestinians have so far fled Gaza City means only 10 percent of its population, estimated at around one million.

“That creates a real burden and a huge worry for the Israeli forces to move in” with a ground operation, the analyst said. “If he wants to continue bombing, it will take many weeks to get half or three-quarters of the population out – if he manages.”

US Holocaust museum removes anti-genocide post amid Gaza atrocities

A Holocaust museum in Los Angeles is facing backlash after deleting an Instagram post that suggested the phrase “never again” should apply to all people – not just Jews.

The post, shared with Holocaust Museum LA’s 24,200 Instagram followers, read: “Never again can’t only mean never again for Jews.” The slogan “never again”, long associated with Holocaust remembrance, is also invoked more broadly as a pledge to prevent future genocides.

The Instagram message was initially praised online and interpreted by some as an acknowledgment of Palestinian suffering amid Israel’s war on Gaza, which numerous United Nations experts, scholars and rights groups have described as a genocide.

It was later deleted and replaced with a statement on Saturday saying the post had been misinterpreted.


_{Progressive Jewish activists raise signs that say ‘never again for everyone’ at the Cannon House Building on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, the US, July 23, 2024}

Israeli president urges establishment of October 7 commission of inquiry

Isaac Herzog says Israel “must establish a state commission of inquiry” into what led to the October 7 attack, which the government has been resisting for nearly two years.

“This is the right course of action, and it must be done as soon as possible,” Herzog said in comments carried by The Times of Israel. He was speaking at the October Council, a group representing family members of captives and those killed in the Hamas-led assault in 2023.

“We must study the failure and the disaster in depth, this entire catastrophe, in order to understand, learn, and draw lessons. We must establish a state commission of inquiry,” the president said.

What do we know about the latest US ceasefire proposal?

This is what Axios has reported, citing two unnamed sources with “direct knowledge” of the matter: