Gaza deaths are ‘vastly underestimated’: Intensive care doctor

Dr Tanya Haj-Hassan, a paediatric intensive care doctor working with Doctors Without Borders (MSF) who had been to Gaza both before and during the war, believes the death toll in the Gaza Strip is much higher than the 40,000 confirmed so far.

She told Al Jazeera that she personally knows Palestinians who have missing family members, who they hope are somewhere in the north or have been detained by Israeli forces. There are others who are under the rubble but cannot yet be recovered.

“The census mechanism for the Gaza Strip has been destroyed, so I’m not even sure how you could be able to estimate the number of true deaths under current circumstances. I know historically that the estimates from the Ministry of Health have been accurate, and if anything, they are underestimates,” Haj-Hassan said.

‘We rarely hear that there has been an attack without child casualties’: UNICEF

Salim Oweis, communication officer for the regional office of UNICEF who travelled across Gaza last week, says the horrific conditions there are challenging to describe.

“What I saw is beyond describing – even TV screens don’t do it justice,” he told Al Jazeera. “Not only are buildings destroyed, but whole neighbourhoods and streets in places like Khan Younis or Gaza City.”

He said living conditions in displacement camps and shelters are unbearable, and even spending a short time there was a struggle due to the heat, sand and the crowded nature.

“In Deir el-Balah, the amount of displaced people is horrific; it feels like everyone has been displaced. We’re talking about 90 percent of the population which has been displaced at least once,” Oweis said.

He added that during many of Israel’s attacks, children are among the victims.

“We rarely hear that there has been an attack without child casualties,” Oweis said. “Children are almost half the population of Gaza, which was densely crowded even before this war.”

‘Blood is on our hands,’ US peace group says as Gaza marks 40,000 deaths

The US-based peace organisation Fellowship of Reconciliation has criticised the Biden administration for paying “lip service” to ceasefire talks days after approving an additional $20bn in weapons sales to Israel as Gaza’s Health Ministry says more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in the besieged Palestinian territory.

“The blood is on all our hands around the world, but especially on ours here in the US, where we are supplying the tools of destruction and death,” Executive Director Ariel Gold told Al Jazeera from New Jersey.

“As much as this is Israel’s war and tragedy, this is America’s war and tragedy,” she added.

Gold expressed hope that a new US administration led by Vice President Kamala Harris after November’s election would break from Biden’s policy of unconditional support for Israel.

“We are seeing very large shifts in public opinion towards Palestinian rights. The question is whether those shifts are large enough and will come soon enough to save lives,” she said.

Fanatics in Israel not interested in ceasefire talks

Most parties in the Gaza conflict want a ceasefire, but fanatics in Israel are not interested in one because they want to annex whatever they can and kick out as many Palestinians as possible.

Since the beginning of this war, we said that Israel was going to use this conflict to change the reality on the ground, and that’s what it has done.

The US cannot be considered a mediator in the ongoing negotiations, it’s an ally and a partner of Israel. Israel keeps committing violations of international law and the US only expresses concern, but nothing changes.

International law has rules that need to be respected, but the US has refused to apply them to its ally and hence, we’re stuck.

Palestinians have endured ‘sheer hell’: US state department

The US State Department’s deputy spokesperson says all loss of civilian life is “heartbreaking” as the death toll from Israeli attacks on Gaza crossed 40,000.

“Any number above zero when it comes to the number of civilians who have lost their lives over the course of this conflict is saddening, troubling, and heartbreaking,” Vedant Patel said at a news conference.

“I think, as President Biden himself said earlier this month, Palestinian people have endured sheer hell. Since October 7, too many men, women, children, and civilians, who have had no role [in violence], have been impacted in the crossfire of Hamas’ making.

“We will continue to urge the Israelis to conduct their military operations in a way that limits civilian casualties.”

Patel added that the “fastest way” to create improved conditions on the ground was a deal that lead to an “immediate ceasefire, hostages released, and increased humanitarian aid and safe civilian return”.

“We really hope that with the process that restarted today, that is what is awaiting for us at the other side of the finish line,” he said.

No breakthrough expected today as Hamas absent from talks

Nobody is expecting a breakthrough today and ceasefire talks are expected to go on at least through Friday and possibly last for days.

While both sides have agreed to the outline proposed by US President Biden – that is a three-phase agreement – Hamas is not present at these talks as it says it’s not interested in talks that allow Israel to continue fighting.

What is discussed will be relayed to Hamas by Qatar and Egypt, but there’s not really a negotiation at this point. What is taking place at the moment is a one-sided conversation.

‘The world is complicit with Israel’: Gaza residents react as death toll tops 40,000

Israel’s war has now killed more than 40,000 Palestinians across Gaza, and the besieged territory’s Health Ministry says more than 16,456 of those deaths were children. The total number of victims is expected to be far higher as more than 10,000 people are still missing.

Several Gaza residents told Al Jazeera what they made of the passing of the grim milestone:

“If this happened in any European country, how would other countries react? How would the media respond? There would have been a reaction, condemnation and a stronger response,” Ismail Abu Karsh said. “We are at a stage where a person in Gaza has no value. They are just a number.”

Aseel Matar lambasted the international community for failing to stop the killings.

“Can you imagine what 40,000 means? It is a catastrophic number that the world cannot imagine,” she said. “Despite this, the world sees, is aware, hears and watches us every day, every minute, but remains silent, and we are powerless. We are exhausted. We have no energy left.”

Abu Mustafa said the world was complicit in Israel’s actions.

UN rapporteur says ‘shocking’ 40,000 deaths in Gaza were preventable

UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese says the “shocking” death toll in Gaza, which has reached a landmark 40,000 people, was predictable and avoidable as United Nations experts have long issued warnings and called for international action to stop the violence.

Albanese issued a report saying there were “reasonable grounds” to believe Israel has been committing genocide and the ICJ declared the accusation to be “plausible”. In spite of this, the UN Security Council and other international bodies have failed to stop the conflict.

“The moral abyss in which [Israel has] fallen is hard to comprehend,” Albanese told Al Jazeera, adding that the war in Gaza points to “an epic failure of the system of international law that was built after World War II to prevent and punish crimes such as this”.

The conflict also shed light on the “hypocrisy” in the legal system, where “a few countries have the power to determine to whom international law can be applied and to whom it cannot”.

Loss of life in Gaza ‘unimaginable’, aid group says

US-based humanitarian organisation Mercy Corps CEO says it is hard to “fully comprehend” the death toll from Israel’s war in Gaza, which has now crossed 40,000.

“These are not just numbers – each person killed was someone’s son, daughter, mother, father, or grandparent,” Tjada D’Oyen McKenna said in a statement.

“The scale of loss is unimaginable yet shows no sign of stopping while conflict, preventable hunger, malnutrition, disease, and illness continue to claim lives in Gaza every day. It is time for those with the power to end this carnage to take action.”

Following today's announcement by the local Health Ministry that more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, @mercycorps CEO @Tjada says:

"It is difficult to fully comprehend the death toll in Gaza. 40,000 lives and futures extinguished by bombs, bullets, and…

— Gabriel Elizondo (@elizondogabriel) August 15, 2024

40,000 killed in Gaza a ‘source of eternal global shame’: Islamic Relief

The killing of 40,000 people in Gaza should be “a source of eternal global shame,” Islamic Relief has said, adding that behind every number was a person.

“They include babies, children, mothers, fathers, farmers, shopkeepers, students, teachers, journalists, doctors, aid workers, artists, entrepreneurs, grandparents and much more,” it said in a statement.

“Gaza’s entire society is being killed as the world watches.”

It added that the deaths were “the inevitable consequence of allowing international law to be violated with impunity” and called on governments to suspend their support to Israel, including halting arms sales and trade agreements.

US urges both sides to ‘compromise’ over ceasefire

The United States has urged both Israel and Hamas to compromise during talks in Doha on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

“Both sides need to show compromise. Both sides need to show some leadership,” US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told broadcaster CNN.

The talks in the Qatari capital were “about the implementing details of the deal itself, the smaller gaps that we absolutely believe can be narrowed in terms of how the deal is executed” and not about the deal itself, Kirby said.

“Sometimes, you know, when you get to the end of a negotiation and you’re talking about those kinds of details, that’s when it gets the hardest and the most gritty,” he said, expressing the hope that there would be progress over the coming hours and days.

Kirby can keep claiming it's just a few details, however Netanyahu is not interested in a permanent ceasefire, Hamas is not interested in a temporary pause. That's not a minor detail...

The US just keeps buying Israel more time with these pretend negotiations.

Hamas says it will not negotiate new conditions for a ceasefire

As a new round of negotiations began, Hamas says it will not negotiate any new conditions for a ceasefire or the release of captives. “We do not see the need for a new agreement,” Osama Hamdan, a high-ranking Hamas official, told the German news agency dpa.

“More negotiations are no longer required, but rather an American decision to pressure Israel to accept” the proposal presented by US President Joe Biden a few months ago, he added.

A Hamas source earlier said that the group has made clear to mediators that it “will not accept more manoeuvring” by Israel, amid reports that Netanyahu’s government is attempting to secure the release of 33 captives in an initial phase.

Hamdan blamed the US for failing to pressure Israel to agree to a deal.

“Despite efforts by Qatar and Egypt, the US administration, while it made commitments and pledges, did not succeed – or perhaps did not want to – in pressuring the occupation [Israel] to abide by the initiatives it presented,” he said.

He also said Israel “has always obstructed the negotiation process” by sending delegations unauthorised to negotiate, setting new conditions, and refusing to withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor – a narrow stretch on the Gaza-Egypt border – or to withdraw from the Rafah crossing.

Too many ‘sticking points’ for Netanyahu amid ongoing truce talks

What we know is that Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu still has an incredibly hardened stance.

Previously, Israeli media had reported that he did soften it quite a bit in order to show that he was serious about this round of talks in Doha. But there are still incredibly difficult red lines and sticking points that Netanyahu says are non-negotiable.

And in fact, Israeli media has published a letter that was submitted to Netanyahu by the Israeli military representative on the negotiating team, detailing to the prime minister the list of conditions that Israeli captives in Gaza are currently under, their deteriorating conditions, and that every day that goes by is a threat to their lives.

In this letter, the military representative said … there should be serious considerations in terms of flexibility when it comes to these negotiations that the Israelis are conducting with mediators in Doha.

Some say that they are cautiously optimistic about Doha talks, but when it comes to those who are close to Netanyahu, Israeli media is saying that he is not budging.

Hezbollah attacks Israeli forces near border

The Lebanese armed group says its fighters have attacked the Israeli military site of Ruwaysat al-Alam in the Kfarchouba hills with “appropriate weapons and hit it directly”.

US, UK forces hit western Yemen, Houthi media reports

Houthi-affiliated media Al Masirah says UK and US jets have carried out a raid on the as-Salif district in Hodeidah province.

The US has led a coalition in attacks on Yemen’s Houthis over the group’s campaign to target shipping owned by Israel, or linked to Israeli ports, traversing the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The Houthis say the attacks on Israel-linked shipping will stop when Israel ends its war on Gaza.

Several civilians killed as Israeli attacks northern Gaza

An Israeli air raid has hit a residential apartment in the Jabalia refugee camp, resulting in the deaths of several Palestinian civilians and injuring many others.

Seven Palestinians, including children, were killed in the attack, the civil defence said on Telegram.

In what appears to the same attack, Wafa news agency – citing the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) – reported that at least six Palestinian civilians were killed in an Israeli strike on a residential building.

The PRCS said its emergency teams recovered the bodies of all six deceased, Wafa reported. The wounded were transported to the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahiya, it added.

Settlers attack occupied West Bank village

Footage posted online, and verified by Al Jazeera, shows Israeli settlers setting fire to a vehicle during an attack on the village of Jit, east of the occupied West Bank city of Qalqilya.

Meanwhile, according to Israel’s GLZ Radio, citing a security source, some 100 Israelis entered Jit, setting ablaze homes and vehicles, while also throwing stones and Molotov cocktails.

Israeli government planning to legalise 35 percent of West Bank outposts: Report

The Israeli government has been working to advance a plan to legalise 35 percent of the Israeli outposts in Area C in the occupied West Bank, a new report published by Israeli human rights organisation Bimkom has found.

Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has been spearheading the plan since February, which entails the regularisation of 70 of the 200 illegal outposts in fully-Israeli controlled Area C, the organisation said in a statement.

“As part of this process, Israel is working to connect these outposts immediately to water and electricity infrastructure, to establish public buildings in them, and to halt enforcement proceedings against them,” it said.

“The initiative exacerbates still further the planning discrimination against the Palestinian population.”

Mehdi Hasan REVEALS IDF Soldiers CELEBRATE War Crimes

Krystal and Ryan are joined by Mehdi Hasan to discuss his new documentary with Zeteo on the IDF.

https://zeteo.com/p/israel-documentary-social-media

US Hypocrisy on Gaza: Antony Blinken’s Double-Speak on Human Rights

This is a brief discussion of the two-faced stance of US government and Secretary Blinken on human rights as they apply to people of Gaza.

How Canada’s ‘off-the-record’ arms exports end up in Israel

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/8/15/how-canadas-off-the-record-arms-exports-end-up-in-israel

The United States has faced widespread condemnation this week for authorising the sale of more than $20bn in additional weapons to Israel as the top US ally wages war on the Gaza Strip.

But while the newly approved arms transfer has renewed global scrutiny of Washington’s unwavering support for Israel, in Canada, the announcement on Tuesday drew attention for a different reason.

That’s because more than $60m worth of munitions will be manufactured by a weapons company in Canada as part of that sale.

Canadian lawyers, rights advocates and other experts say this raises serious questions about the opaque nature of the country’s arms export regime.

War is a racket... F my government as well, actions speak louder than words.

Doctor says 80 percent of amputations he performed in Gaza were on children

A US-based vascular surgeon who recently visited Gaza says he has never had to do so many paediatric operations in his life.

“I am trained to save arms and legs. In the two weeks I spent in Gaza, I’ve done everything except save legs and arms. I was amputating legs and arms to save lives. And that by itself is really bad,” Bara Zuhaili told Al Jazeera.

“Even worse … 80 percent of the amputations I did were on kids. And when I say kids, I don’t mean kids under 18. I mean kids who are under the age of eight.”

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, more than more than 16,400 children have been killed since the war on Gaza began in October.

Footage shows attempts to extinguish fires set by settlers in West Bank village

Footage authenticated by Al Jazeera’s Sanad verification unit shows Palestinians attempting to put out fires started by Israeli settlers during a rampage in the occupied West Bank village of Jit, east of Qalqilya.

We previously reported that one person had been detained in connection with Thursday’s night-time attack on the Palestinian village, in which a local resident was killed.

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has repeatedly encouraged the establishment of settlements in the occupied West Bank, and which are illegal under international law, said the attacks were in “no way related to the settlement and the settlers”.

Smotrich called the perpetrators “criminals who should be dealt with by the law enforcement authorities with the full severity of the law”.

محاولة إخماد حرائق أشعلها مستوطنون بممتلكات فلسطينيين في بلدة جيت شرق قلقيلية #الجزيرة #فيديو pic.twitter.com/KgvVcC7P3l

— الجزيرة فلسطين (@AJA_Palestine) August 15, 2024

Israeli military investigating Palestinian killed in settler rampage in occupied West Bank

The Israeli military says they are investigating two separate attacks in the occupied West Bank by armed Israeli settlers. The first on the village of Jit and the second on the town of Huwara.

In the first attack on Jit, at least one Palestinian was killed. According to the Health Ministry, he is a 23-year-old Palestinian man and around a dozen others were injured. The Israeli army is looking into the death of the 23-year-old to see if he was shot by the Israeli military or by the settlers.

There has been reaction pouring in from across the Israeli political aisle. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement saying that those who participated in the attacks will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

The Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, echoed that sentiment.

But we also heard from Israel’s finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who called it “criminal, anarchist violence”, which is quite a change in tone from Smotrich, who is a known ultranationalist who lives in an illegal settlement himself and is often a defender of these armed groups.

Just last year, when a deadly attack on the town of Huwara took place, he responded by saying “Huwara should be wiped off the map”.

Israeli settler attacks often carried out ‘under the protection’ of Israeli army

Settler attacks on Palestinians are not a new phenomenon.

In fact, they have only increased since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza 10 months ago. The UN has documented at least 1,140 of these attacks that resulted in several deaths and injuries to Palestinians.

Oftentimes, these attacks are carried out under the protection of the Israeli military, and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are left defenceless against armed settlers who live in illegal settlements, and the Israeli military that protects them.


Is this virtue signalling, finding a scapegoat to divert attention to the systematic issue. Or had Biden had enough and is making real threats for Israel to clean up its act. Or did this group of settlers go behind the backs of the IDF. Confusing.