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SvennoJ on 04 November 2024

Pro-Palestinian supporters stage protest at French football federation

A protest at the French football federation demanded the cancellation of a Nations League game between France and Israel this month.

Video footage posted on social media showed protesters inside the federation’s headquarters in Paris lying on the floor or holding placards with political slogans and Palestinian flags.

Some demonstrators also chanted: “No, no, no to the France-Israel game at the Stade de France.”

Carrefour closes Jordan branches; boycott Israel movement celebrates

The Carrefour retail chain announced via its Facebook account that it will close all its branches in Jordan starting today.

This comes at a time when the global movement to boycott Israel, BDS, attributed this decision to the boycott against Carrefour, which started with the war on Gaza because of its alleged support for Israel.

In a statement, Carrefour Jordan said: “As of November 4, 2024, Carrefour will cease all its operations in Jordan and will not continue to operate within the kingdom. We thank our customers for their support and apologise for any inconvenience this decision may cause.”

The boycott movement in Jordan said on its Instagram account that Carrefour’s decision was a “victory for the Jordanian people”.



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SvennoJ on 04 November 2024

Hamas holds Gaza war discussions with Fatah in Egypt

Hamas says it held talks with rival Palestinian faction Fatah in Cairo to discuss the Israeli war on Gaza and potential moves towards a national consensus.

“A meeting was held with the brothers in the Fatah movement at a generous Egyptian invitation. They discussed various national issues, especially the war on Gaza and pathways for national action,” senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said in a video message.

The two major Palestinian factions remain divided. Fatah controls most of the occupied West Bank via the Palestinian Authority (PA) – an entity born out of the 1993 Oslo Accords, in which Fatah was promised Palestinian statehood in exchange for renouncing violence and recognising Israel.

In contrast, Hamas has remained committed to an armed struggle and has controlled Gaza since expelling Fatah in a brief civil war in 2007.



Gallant approves 7,000 call-up orders for ultra-Orthodox

Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant approved the Israeli army’s “recommendation to issue an additional 7,000 orders for screening and evaluation processes for ultra-Orthodox draft-eligible individuals”.

The order comes after a first round of 3,000 draft orders were sent out in July, sparking protests from the ultra-Orthodox community.

“The defence minister concluded that the war and the challenges we face underscore the [Israeli army’s] need for additional soldiers. This is a tangible operational need that requires broad national mobilisation from all parts of society,” the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

Under a rule adopted at Israel’s creation in 1948, when it applied to only 400 people, the ultra-Orthodox have historically been exempt from military service if they dedicate themselves to the study of sacred Jewish texts.

The orders come at a time when Israel struggles to bolster troop numbers as it fights a multi-front war, with ground forces deployed to fight Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.



SvennoJ on 04 November 2024

UN still waiting to see Israel’s evidence against UNRWA

Earlier, we reported that Israel officially notified the United Nations it’s cancelling the agreement that regulated its relations with the UN relief organisation for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) since 1967.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz ordered his ministry to notify the UN of the cancellation. Katz said the UN “was presented with countless pieces of evidence that Hamas operatives are employed by UNRWA and about the use of UNRWA facilities for terrorist purposes – yet nothing was done about this”.

In response, UNRWA director of communications Juliette Touma said in addition to a UN oversight office’s investigation, UNRWA received one formal accusation directly from Israeli authorities, alleging 100 of its staff were members of Palestinian armed groups.

When UNRWA asked to see the evidence and sought more information and cooperation from Israel about the allegations, it received no response, she said.

WHO chief says UNRWA ban ‘will not make Israel safer’

The chief of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has denounced Israel’s decision to cut ties with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.

“Let me be clear: There is simply no alternative to UNRWA,” Tedros said.

“This ban will not make Israel safer. It will only deepen the suffering of the people of Gaza and increase the risk of disease outbreaks.”

Tedros’s comments came after Israel said it formally notified the UN of its decision to sever ties with UNRWA after Israeli lawmakers backed the move last week.


UN lawyers ‘taking a closer look’ at Israel’s move to block UNRWA

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has responded to Israel’s announcement that it is terminating the agreement facilitating the work of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees – the main aid provider in Gaza.

Guterres stressed that UNRWA was essential and there was no alternative, his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Israel sent a letter notifying the UN General Assembly it was ending its agreement for UNRWA to operate in the occupied Palestinian territory, which has been in effect since the end of the 1967 Middle East war.

If it’s impossible for UNRWA to operate, Israel will be responsible for providing Palestinians in occupied territory with humanitarian goods and services, as well as education and healthcare, Dujarric said.

“Obviously, our lawyers and UNRWA’s lawyers are also taking a closer look at the letter.”



SvennoJ on 04 November 2024

Israeli drone attack on school kills 2 in Gaza City

Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic report two people were killed in an Israeli drone attack on Aaidiya Street in northern Gaza City. A number of people were also injured when bombs dropped by an Israeli drone at the Arafat School for the Gifted detonated.


At least 20 killed in Israeli attack on northern Gaza

Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic report that 20 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli attack that hit a house in Beit Lahiya.


Bodies being pulled from debris after Israeli air strike in north Gaza

Earlier, we reported that at least 20 people were killed in an attack on homes in besieged northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya – the scene of repeated mass-casualty attacks in recent weeks.

A video shows residents recovering the bodies of those killed, including a child, from under the rubble of the targeted house. Medics said the same town was hit earlier in the day, killing at least seven people after an attack on two houses.

Israel deployed tanks into Jabalia, Beit Hanoon and Beit Lahiya on October 5 and ordered hundreds of thousands of Palestinian residents to flee to the south of the Strip.

Palestinians say the new Israeli offensive and orders for people to leave are aimed at emptying northern Gaza to create buffer zones.


‘Appalling that hospitals in Gaza continue to be attacked’: WHO

An Israeli attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital resulted in six children being injured, the World Health Organization (WHO) says.

“Shortly after the WHO-led mission to Kamal Adwan Hospital yesterday, the facility’s third floor was reportedly hit again, injuring six children who are patients there,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

“It is appalling that hospitals in Gaza continue to be attacked, patients continue to be harmed, and health workers and humanitarians continue to work under life-threatening conditions.”



SvennoJ on 04 November 2024

Main points on November 4th

  • The Israeli army’s assault and forced evacuation of Palestinians from north Gaza continues, with at least 20 people killed in attacks on homes in Beit Lahiya on Monday.
  • Israeli soldiers also “continue to bomb and destroy” north Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital, Gaza’s Health Ministry says, suggesting that Israel’s plan is to “execute” medical workers who refuse to leave.
  • Israel has notified the UN General Assembly that it’s ending its agreement – in effect since the end of the 1967 war – for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) to operate in the occupied Palestinian territory.
  • UNRWA has said that Israel’s ban on its operations will lead to the “collapse” of aid in Gaza. UN chief Antonio Guterres says UN lawyers are reviewing the move.
  • The US State Department says Israel is failing to turn around Gaza’s humanitarian situation, calling the results “not good enough”, as a US-set deadline to get more aid in approaches.
  • Israel’s attacks in Lebanon have killed at least 16 people and wounded 90 more over the past 24 hours, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health. At least 3,002 people have died there since October 2023.



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SvennoJ on 05 November 2024

One killed as Israeli forces continue to pound Lebanon

The Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) is reporting that an Israeli drone attack killed one person in the southern town of Haris overnight, while fighter jets also bombed its mosque.

The NNA also reported Israeli attacks on the town of Khiam as well as three waves of raids on the outskirts of the town of Deir El Zahrani. Israeli fighter jets also bombed the towns of Srifa and Deir Kifa near the city of Tyre.


A man shouts slogans as he holds a picture depicting Imam Ali at the site of an Israeli air strike in Dahiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, November 1


Israeli soldier seriously injured in southern Lebanon

The Israeli military said the soldier with the 932nd Battalion in the Nahal Brigade was wounded in battle in southern Lebanon on Monday. It did not name the soldier but said he had been taken to hospital for treatment.


Sirens in Israel’s Haifa, 20 other towns after ‘launches’ from Lebanon

The Israeli Air Force said the alerts were activated in northern Israel after fighter jets intercepted “two launches” that crossed from Lebanon. It also said it had intercepted an “unmanned aircraft” that crossed into Israel from the direction of Syria.


Israeli attacks have killed 151 emergency workers in Lebanon

The World Health Organization (WHO) says emergency medical services in Lebanon have reported 201 attacks over the past year following the hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

The attacks have resulted in 151 deaths and 212 injuries, it said. The violence “is hindering the rescue and relief efforts, and ultimately contributing to high death rates,” it added.

Medics in Lebanon have accused Israel of directly targeting them in attacks that rights experts say amount to war crimes.


Israel bombs three villages in southern Lebanon

Israeli artillery has bombed the villages of Bint Jbeil, Maroun al-Ras and at-Tiri in southern Lebanon, according to our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic. The Israeli army announced it killed two Hezbollah fighters with dual Asian nationalities who infiltrated Israel during the war, without giving further details.


Hezbollah claims to have bombed Israeli barracks in northern Israel

The Lebanese armed group says its fighters targeted Israeli soldiers in their barracks in the illegal Dovev settlement in northern Israel’s upper Galilee area with “a rocket salvo”.

The attack came this morning after another rocket attack was claimed by Hezbollah just after midnight against Israeli forces on the southwestern outskirts of the Lebanese town of Maroun al-Ras.



SvennoJ on 05 November 2024

Israeli attacks wiped out 37 towns in southern Lebanon: Report

Intense Israeli attacks have completely wiped out 37 towns in southern Lebanon, destroying more than 40,000 housing units, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA).

The report said the destruction is concentrated in the area from the city of Naqoura to the outskirts of Khiam town, 3km (2 miles) deep into Lebanese territory from the border with Israel.

Israeli soldiers have at times filmed themselves detonating explosives and celebrating the destruction. The Israeli army claims its targets are Hezbollah infrastructure.


Israeli army withdraws several brigades from southern Lebanon: Report

Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth reports that the Israeli army has withdrawn several brigades from southern Lebanon amid progress in efforts to reach a deal. Citing informed sources, it said officials involved in negotiations assess a deal to be reached with Hezbollah within a week and a half to two weeks.

There has been progress in the talks, mainly in regards to the drafting of a document that will guarantee Israel’s military freedom of operation in southern Lebanon in case the ceasefire enforcement fails.

In the meantime, Israeli forces are waiting for a decision from the political echelon in Jerusalem, the newspaper said.


Israeli forces demolish buildings in Meiss el-Jabal, southern Lebanon

Videos have been posted on X, showing Israeli forces demolishing residential buildings in the town of Meiss el-Jabal in southern Lebanon. The scenes show a massive explosion in the area.

The footage has been verified by Sanad, Al Jazeera’s fact-checking agency.


Israeli air raid targets site west of Syria: State media

Syria’s official SANA news agency reports that Israeli fighter jets launched an aerial attack targeting civilian buildings surrounding an industrial area in al-Qusayr, south of Homs.



SvennoJ on 05 November 2024

Islamic Resistance in Iraq claims three drone attacks on Haifa

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a collection of Iran-backed militias, have claimed three drone attacks on the Israeli port city of Haifa in recent hours. It said it had attacked a “vital target”, without offering more details. It’s not clear if there are casualties, injuries or damage. Israeli authorities are yet to comment on the attacks.

The group has released footage allegedly showing the launching of one of the drones towards Israel.


Islamic Resistance of Iraq claims responsibility for drone attack on southern Israel

The coalition of armed groups has claimed responsibility for a drone attack against a “vital target” in southern Israel. The group said its fighters had carried out a “drone attack on a vital target in the south” of Israel, claiming it was the sixth such attack today.

The Israeli military said earlier it had intercepted a drone approaching from the east.


Hundreds of Lebanese refugees arriving in Iraq every day, UN says

The UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR) says an average of 400-600 refugees from Lebanon have been arriving in Iraq every day over the past week. Altogether, at least 28,350 refugees from Lebanon have arrived in the country since the escalation between Israel and Hezbollah in September, it said.

Most of the refugees are Lebanese, but there has also been an uptick in the arrival of Syrians and Palestinians, the agency said. The majority of the refugees are being hosted in Najaf and Karbala, it added.

The agency on Monday reported that an estimated 472,000 people from Lebanon have crossed into Syria in recent weeks.

Israel’s attacks on Lebanon have also displaced hundreds of thousands of people within the country. The Lebanese government said 1.2 million people are affected, while the International Organization for Migration said at least 842,648 people have been forced to flee their homes.



SvennoJ on 05 November 2024

Malaysia working on resolution to expel Israel from UN

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Anwar said his country is part of a core group drafting a resolution proposing Israel’s expulsion from the UN if it is found to have violated international laws in Palestine.

Anwar told the Malaysian parliament on Monday that the draft resolution, which is to be submitted to the UN General Assembly, calls for an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice over Israel’s obligations to allow the UN to operate in occupied Palestinian territory.

“The draft resolution is in the negotiation process and we will study if Israel can be removed as a member of [the] UN if there is violation of international laws,” he said. “Malaysia will ensure that the agenda is heard and given attention so that the atrocities of the Israeli regime can be stopped, besides allowing critical aid to reach the Palestinian people at a time when the massacre continues to worsen,” he added.

The move comes as international condemnation grows over Israel’s decision to ban UNRWA from Israeli-controlled territory.


Syria condemns Israel’s attack on Damascus, calls for UN action

The Syrian Foreign Ministry is calling on UN member states to take “urgent action” to stop “Israel’s aggression” against the country after Israeli forces bombed its capital, Damascus.

The assault, at 5:18pm local time (14:18 GMT) on Monday, targeted “civilian areas south of Damascus, causing significant material damage”, the ministry said in a statement published by the official SANA news agency.

“Syria stresses that the aggressive and criminal practices of the Israeli occupation entity and its continued targeting of civilian areas are the result of the failure to take any serious action to curb this entity and stop its serious violations against the peoples and countries of the region,” the ministry added.

Israel has ramped up strikes on Syria since the escalation of the conflict with Hezbollah in September. These include air raids on military sites in central and southern Syria on October 26, and attacks that killed one soldier and wounded seven in Damascus and the western city of Homs on October 24.


US soldier injured during Gaza humanitarian aid pier operation dies

An American soldier who has been in critical condition after suffering severe noncombat injuries while working on an aid pier off the coast of Gaza has died, the US military announced on Monday.

Sergeant Quandarius Davon Stanley was seriously injured in May while supporting sea operations for the US-built pier, which was designed to increase the flow of aid into Gaza to circumvent Israel’s blockade.

The US Army confirmed Stanley’s death, though it did not specify when he passed.

“Stanley was an instrumental and well-respected first-line leader in the 7th Transportation Brigade Expeditionary, especially during the mission to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza,” said Colonel John “Eddie” Gray, commander of the unit.

The pier, which cost nearly $230m to build, was beset by setbacks from the start and delivered only a fraction of the promised aid before it was closed in July.



SvennoJ on 05 November 2024

French politicians, activists slam bill to outlaw criticism of Israel

The proposal of a member of the French National Assembly, Caroline Yadan, to criminalise all criticism of Israel has drawn a strong backlash from activists, intellectuals and politicians in France.

They say the bill, which would ban expressions like “from the river to the sea”, constitutes a suppression of free speech.

“Caroline Yadan seeks to suppress the freedom of thought, criticism, and writing, to prevent condemnation of the genocide committed by Israel in Gaza,” poet Jean-Philippe Cazier wrote on his X account. “She wants us all to become partners in this genocide.”

European MP Rima Hassan also responded via her account, saying: “If there is one state that deserves criticism, it is Israel, the state that has violated all United Nations resolutions for decades and commits the most heinous international crimes.”

 

Pro-Palestine activists storm French Football Federation HQ in Paris

Pro-Palestine activists have stormed the headquarters of the French Football Federation in Paris, demanding the cancellation of the upcoming UEFA Nations League match between the French and Israeli teams.

Social media videos, verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking agency, Sanad, showed activists staging a protest in the lobby, where they waved Palestinian flags and held banners condemning Israel.

According to the French daily Le Figaro, the French Football Federation agreed to meet with the protesters to discuss their demands.

The match is scheduled for November 14.




Palestinian prisoners suffer worsening medical neglect in Israel: Report

The Palestinian Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs has reported a worsening policy of deliberate medical negligence towards injured and sick inmates in Israeli prisons since the Gaza war began last year, according to the Wafa news agency.

The commission’s lawyers who visited various Israeli prisons to assess the conditions of sick Palestinians there have reported that significant medical neglect, malnutrition, and physical violence had led to severe weight loss and overall deterioration in the health of the inmates, Wafa said.