Israeli PM Netanyahu ordered to take stand in corruption trial

Ending a long series of delays and postponements, a court in Israel has ordered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take the stand next Tuesday in his lengthy corruption trial.

In the ruling announced on Tuesday, judges in the Jerusalem district court said that following a security assessment, Netanyahu’s testimony will be moved to the Tel Aviv district court where Israeli media said the session would take place in an underground chamber.

The Associated Press news agency reports that Netanyahu’s lawyers had filed multiple requests to put off the testimony, arguing first that Israel’s war on Gaza prevented him from properly preparing for his day in court. He also argued that his security could not be guaranteed in the court chamber.

The Israeli leader is charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in three separate scandals involving powerful media moguls and wealthy associates. He has denied wrongdoing.

Netanyahu’s testimony, which began in 2020, is expected to begin on December 10 and to last at least several weeks, AP reports.

UNGA passes resolution to host two-state solution peace conference next year

Some 157 member states voted in favour of the resolution, which called for a high-level peace conference to be held to achieve a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on Wednesday.

The draft resolution, submitted by Senegal and co-sponsored by several countries, was opposed by eight members – including Israel, the US, and Argentina – while seven abstained.

The resolution called for a “High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution”.

“The Conference will be held from 2 to 4 June 2025 in New York, preceded by a preparatory meeting, to be held in May 2025,” it said, adding that a declaration outlining a roadmap for a peaceful resolution to the conflict shall be adopted at the end of the conference.

The resolution also demanded that Israel “bring an end to its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible, to cease immediately all new settlement activities and to evacuate all settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory”.

NOW: The UN General Assembly adopts resolution deciding that the High-Level International Conference on the peaceful settlement of the Question of #Palestine and the implementation of the Two-State solution will take place at #UNHQ in New York in June 2025. The conference will be… https://t.co/FnaiVcblbv pic.twitter.com/3IdMt8HVUg

— Rami Ayari (@Raminho) December 3, 2024

Lebanese flee from south Lebanon again as Israel violates ceasefire

Dozens of Lebanese families who returned to their homes in south Lebanon after the truce was announced last week between Israel and Hezbollah have fled Israeli attacks once again.

“I packed my stuff and children up after we came last week to our home near Tyre in southern Lebanon and returned to the house I was renting in Mount Lebanon,” Haj Abu Mohammed told the German news agency DPA.

“We survived the war, but I do not want to lose my children. They were terrified last night when they heard the bombing again,” Abu Mohammed said.

Israel launched a series of air strikes on southern Lebanon on Monday night which killed nine people. Attacks were also reported on Tuesday, with about a dozen people reported killed. Israeli drones have also been heard flying over the capital city, Beirut.

“We do not care who started the violations. We care about living in peace with our families,” Fatima, who also returned to the north of Lebanon from the south of the country, told DPA.

_{Israeli armour moves between destroyed houses in the south Lebanon village of Meiss el-Jabal, on December 2}

Lebanon ceasefire ‘designed to make Hezbollah cease fire but not Israel’

Things are not looking promising the way the ceasefire in Lebanon has been progressing, Mohamad Elmasry, a professor at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, has told Al Jazeera.

He explained that a comparison of the original text of the agreement with what US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said immediately after signing – along with a side letter between US and Israel – shows it was “designed to make Hezbollah cease fire but not Israel”.

This is while France has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire 50 times, with the UN citing more than 100 violations. Israel has been citing its right to self-defence.

“If you listen to the State Department press briefing from yesterday, the US has certainly been falling in line with that Israeli narrative that Israel is just defending itself,” Elmasry said.

This doesn't bode well for any ceasefire in Gaza. The USA continues to show itself as a most dishonest broker of 'peace'. Which is one of the sticking points for a Gaza ceasefire, who is going to enforce it.

Death toll rises in Israel’s war on Lebanon

Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed 4,047 people and wounded 16,638 others, Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad said in a televised address.

Blinken says ‘ceasefire is holding’ in Lebanon

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the ceasefire in Lebanon was “holding” despite a series of accusations by Hezbollah that Israel had violated the terms of the deal.

“The ceasefire is holding, and we’re using the mechanism that was established when any concerns have arisen about any alleged or purported violations,” Blinken told journalists on the sidelines of a NATO meeting in Brussels.

Hamas, Fatah near agreement on governance of post-war Gaza: Report

Rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas are closing in on an agreement that would see a committee of politically independent experts appointed to administer Gaza after the war, the Associated Press (AP) reports, citing Palestinian officials.

An unnamed Palestinian Authority officials confirmed on Tuesday that a preliminary agreement had been reached following weeks of negotiations between the two groups in the Egyptian capital Cairo.

The committee would have 12 to 15 members, most of them would be from Gaza, the officials said, in a deal that could effectively end Hamas’s governing of Gaza and could help advance ceasefire talks with Israel.

The proposed body would report to the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority, headquartered in the occupied West Bank, and work with local and international parties on humanitarian assistance and reconstruction.

Details around the terms of the agreement are still being hashed out between Fatah and Hamas, officials told AP, and the deal will be announced after another meeting of the groups in Cairo.

Fatah and Hamas have made several failed attempts to reconcile since Hamas seized power in Gaza in 2007. No timeline for the announcement has been given. Israel has yet to comment, but it has previously ruled out any post-war role in Gaza for either Hamas or the Palestinian Authority.

US opposes construction of permanent Israeli military bases in Gaza

Washington has expressed opposition to any permanent Israeli military bases being established in Gaza, after The New York Times claimed Israel has fortified military structures and demolished Palestinian buildings around the Netzarim Corridor.

Quoting Israeli officials and using satellite images of the Netzarim Corridor, which bisects the enclave north from south, The Times suggests Israeli forces “may be preparing to exert long-term control over the area”.

“Over the past three months, soldiers have demolished more than 600 buildings around the road in an apparent attempt to create a buffer zone. They have also rapidly expanded a network of outposts equipped with communications towers and defensive fortifications,” the report said.

In response, US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said on Tuesday that if the reporting is accurate, the Israeli military’s actions “certainly would be inconsistent” with US policy regarding the “day after” in Gaza.

The Biden administration opposes any reduction in Gaza’s territory, the forced displacement of Palestinians, and any long-term Israeli occupation of the coastal enclave.

Netanyahu is banking on Trump giving the green light to colonize Gaza :/

Israeli army advises soldiers to avoid foreign travel for fear of arrest: Report

The Israeli military has reportedly advised its soldiers who invaded the Gaza Strip to avoid travelling abroad for fear of arrest in the aftermath of court orders issued by the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice.

The army has identified about 30 cases where complaints were filed or even criminal proceedings were initiated against officers and soldiers who participated in the war on Gaza and were warned against travelling abroad, according to Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth.

At least eight soldiers, who were already abroad in Cyprus, Slovenia and the Netherlands, were told to leave those countries immediately due to risks of arrest. All soldiers have been reportedly told to delete any documents of their participation in destruction and killings in Gaza from their social media accounts.

According to the report, pro-Palestinian activists have created lists of offending soldiers in order to begin legal proceedings against them in the event they travel abroad.

Recap of Oct 9th

Historic ICC War Crimes Complaint Names 1,000 Israeli Soldiers

https://www.commondreams.org/news/icc-israel-war-crimes

"This complaint is not only the largest ever submitted to the ICC, but it is also a milestone in documenting Israeli war crimes for future generations."

A Belgium-based advocacy group on Tuesday announced it "filed an unprecedented and historic complaint with the International Criminal Court against 1,000 Israeli occupation forces soldiers for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Gaza," where more than 150,000 Palestinians have been killed or wounded and millions more displaced, starved, and sickened by Israel's yearlong onslaught.

The Hind Rajab Foundation—named after the 6-year-old Palestinian girl who was killed in January along with half a dozen relatives and rescue workers by Israeli troops invading Gaza in retaliation for the October 2023 Hamas-led attack—said that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) personnel identified by name in the International Criminal Court (ICC) complaint "are accused of participating in systematic attacks against civilians during the ongoing genocide in Gaza."

"This complaint, supported by over 8,000 pieces of verifiable evidence—including videos, audio recordings, forensic reports, and social media documentation—demonstrates the soldiers' direct involvement in these atrocities," the group explained. "All of the named soldiers were located in Gaza during the genocidal assault, and the evidence reveals their participation in violations of international law."

...

The IDF soldiers identified in the complaint include at least 12 American, 12 French, four Canadian, three British, and two Dutch nationals.

How Israeli soldiers are livestreaming war crimes | The Take

Humanitarian aid to Gaza ‘outrageously’ blocked: UN’s Guterres

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the humanitarian “nightmare” in Gaza is “not a crisis of logistics”.

“Aid is outrageously being blocked,” he said in a post on social media. “It’s a crisis of political will and of respect for fundamental principles of international humanitarian law,” he said.

The UN chief’s brief comments follow the recent killing of more aid workers in Gaza by Israeli forces and a brutal siege on northern Gaza by Israel’s military that has now lasted 60 days and prevented local residents from accessing water, food and medicine.

Israel has been accused of imposing starvation on Gaza and using hunger as a weapon against the local Palestinian population.

Amid the gigantic humanitarian needs in Gaza, aid is outrageously being blocked.

The nightmare is not a crisis of logistics.

It’s a crisis of political will and of respect for fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.

— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) December 3, 2024

 
‘Our warehouses are empty’ of humanitarian aid, says NGO official

Amjad Shawa, director of the Palestinian NGOs Network, says the humanitarian situation in Gaza is worsening as winter approaches with only a trickle of aid coming in.

“The winter makes things very complicated for tens of thousands of families, many of whom are living in approximately 100,000 tents all over the Gaza Strip,” he told Al Jazeera from Deir el-Balah, in central Gaza.

“I cannot even describe these tents as real tents. They are pieces of plastic and cloth which cover small spaces, under which live the elderly, children and the sick,” he said. “At times, we have 10 to 15 people staying inside.”

Shawa said thousands of tents have already been flooded and damaged, and many families spent the night in the cold, with nothing to protect their hunger-weakened bodies.

“We still warn of more catastrophes in the Gaza Strip, the repercussions will be unprecedented, especially for the children. We cannot provide them with anything. As NGOs and aid centres, our warehouses are empty of aid.”

Palestinian rescuers tell international peers about ‘repeated Israeli assaults’

Representatives of the Palestinian Red Cresent Society (PRCS) have met with the head of the Geneva-based International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS) to discuss how Israeli attacks have hindered rescue operations since the start of the war on Gaza.

Palestinian first responders offered a view of the current state of the organisation’s humanitarian operations and also briefed the visiting delegation to Nablus in the occupied West Bank about challenges, “including repeated assaults and restrictions by Israeli forces, obstructing access to the wounded and patients”.

The Israeli military has systematically attacked the health system in Gaza since the start of the war and killed record numbers of paramedics and humanitarian workers.

Israeli military bombs school housing displaced people in central Gaza

More than 15 tents have caught fire after the Israeli military bombed the Abu Hamisa school, which shelters displaced Palestinians in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, according to the Palestinian Information Center and the Quds News Network.

Only injuries have been reported so far in the attack on the shelter, which is run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).

At least 10 bodies recovered from rubble in southern Gaza’s Rafah city

We are getting reports that the civil defence workers managed to recover 10 bodies this morning from different locations in Rafah. They were killed in previous Israeli attacks, but today the rescue workers managed to get access to that area which is a very active military zone.

It shows a very significant display of resilience by the civil defence workers who continue to put their lives on the line while lacking basic equipment.

‘We’re left with nothing at all’: Displaced woman recounts Israeli attack on shelter in Bureij

As reported earlier, the Israeli army struck a UN-run school-turned-shelter in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Hady Abu Hasira was there when the attack took place.

“We came here, where it is alleged to be a safe zone. However, the Israeli warplanes pounded this shelter in Bureij,” she said. “We woke up to explosions, destruction and blaze. We rushed with our bare hands to put out fires and help each other,” Abu Hasira said.

“A friend of mine was killed in the attack; and I suffered burns. More than 60 tents within the courtyard were totally ruined; we are left with nothing to protect us from this cold winter weather. We are left with nothing at all.”


_{About 15 makeshift tents burned down after an Israeli attack targeted the courtyard of the Abu Hmayseh school sheltering hundreds of displaced families in central Gaza’s Bureij refugee camp.}

Four children among five killed in Israeli drone strike in central Gaza’s Nuseirat

At least five people, including four children, have been killed in an Israeli drone attack on a food distribution point and a house in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, according to our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic.

Videos verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking agency Sanad showed the arrival of the children’s bodies to al-Awda Hospital in nearby Jabalia. We are not sharing the videos as they are extremely distressing.

The Israeli attack that killed several children and injured many others happened on a street in Nuseirat that has a community kitchen, and a lot of people were waiting for this kitchen to start delivering food.

Norway wealth fund divests from Israeli telecom firm over services to settlements

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund says it has divested from Israeli telecom firm Bezeq because it provides services to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

The move comes after the Norwegian fund, the world’s largest, said it had adopted a new, tougher interpretation of its ethics standards for businesses aiding Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territory.

The fund has sold all its stock in the company, which is Israel’s largest telecom group.

Israeli settlers attack, set fire to Palestinian home in occupied West Bank

Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic report that an attack by Israeli settlers has taken place in the town of Beit Furik, which is located about 9 km (5.6 miles) northeast of Nablus in the West Bank.

According to initial reports, a home has been set on fire as well as a vehicle. There were no initial reports of casualties.

United Nations monitors warned last week of spiralling violence, including killings, perpetrated by Israeli settlers against Palestinian communities in the occupied territory.

Clashes break out after Israeli military storms Qalqilya

Armed clashes have broken out between Israeli forces and Palestinian fighters in Qalqilya after the Israeli military stormed the occupied West Bank city, raided homes and arrested several people, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.

Israeli military raids have been reported in other locations in the occupied West Bank in recent hours, including:

Israeli settlers injured 2 soldiers in occupied West Bank: Army

The Israeli army says it carried out “enforcement activities” for illegal construction in the occupied West Bank, which led to the injury of two Israeli soldiers in settlers’ attacks.

The army also said there were violent incidents of settlers setting fire to property in the village of Beit Furik and in the Huwara area. It did not say whether its soldiers intervened. The Israeli Broadcasting Authority said that six people were detained.

Human rights groups and witnesses who spoke to Al Jazeera have repeatedly reported how the Israeli army acts in complicity with settlers, standing by them or joining the attacks. As a result, the level of violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank is at an all-time high since the start of the war in Gaza.

Throughout the year, Israeli settlers have seized 23.7 square kilometres (9.15 square miles) of Palestinian land, making 2024 the peak year for Israeli land seizures, according to Peace Now, a nonprofit organisation that monitors illegal land confiscation in the occupied territory.