19- October-2023- Aljazeera”
- At least seven Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank as bombardment of Gaza intensifies.
- PM Rishi Sunak reiterates Britainâs support for Israel during visit.
- Four hospitals out of commission in the besieged Gaza Strip, health officials say.
- At least 3,785 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza since Hamasâs October 7 attack inside Israel, which killed more than 1,400 people.
Gazaâs infrastructure severely damaged by Israeli attacks: UN report
In its latest report, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reveals that 25 percent of the enclaveâs residential buildings, or more than 98,000 housing units, have been destroyed in Israeli air strikes on the Strip.
The report also says that the World Health Organisation (WHO) documented 59 attacks on healthcare facilities, including 17 hospitals and 23 ambulances. The attacks have killed at least 491 people, including 16 on duty healthcare workers.
Israeli strikes also targeted 170 educational facilities and severely damaged the Gaza Stripâs water and sanitation facilities.
Gazaâs infrastructure severely damaged by Israeli attacks: UN report
In its latest report, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reveals that 25 percent of the enclaveâs residential buildings, or more than 98,000 housing units, have been destroyed in Israeli air strikes on the Strip.
The report also says that the World Health Organisation (WHO) documented 59 attacks on healthcare facilities, including 17 hospitals and 23 ambulances. The attacks have killed at least 491 people, including 16 on duty healthcare workers.
Israeli strikes also targeted 170 educational facilities and severely damaged the Gaza Stripâs water and sanitation facilities.
Collective punishmentâ: Egyptâs president meets Jordanâs king
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi has met King Abdullah II of Jordan for a closed-door discussion about the escalating conflict and deteriorating humanitarian situation.
The two leaders condemned Israelâs policy of âcollective punishmentâ against Palestinians in Gaza and its efforts to displace âPalestinians from their lands to Egypt or Jordanâ, Egyptâs presidential office said in a statement.
The two countries â which flank Israel on opposite sides â are close allies. Botï»żçć©ćŁ« h leaders have expressed fear about a permanent expulsion of Palestinians into their countries, concerned it could nullify Palestiniansâ demand for a future state.
The two warned that prolonging the Gaza war risked dragging the region into a âcatastropheâ.
With world attention turned to Gaza, whatâs happening in the occupied West Bank?
As the worldâs attention has been fixed on Israelâs brutal bombardment of the Gaza Strip for the past two weeks, dozens of Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces over the same period in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli army raids into Palestinian cities and villages have also sharply increased, along with confrontations and protests against the bombing of Gaza, which has killed at least 1,000 children.
For all you need to know about the situation in the West Bank, click here.
Russiaâs Lavrov warns Israel-Gaza war could spark regional crisis
Foreign minister says efforts to blame Iran for the conflict are provocations.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that the conflict in Gaza risks spilling into a regional crisis, saying efforts to pin blame on Iran were adding fuel to the fire, according to Russiaâs Interfax news agency.
The remarks by Russiaâs top diplomat on Thursday came days after President Vladimir Putin said he believed no major actors wanted the war between Israel and Hamas to escalate
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov [File: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters
This week, Russia proposed amendments to a draft UN resolution that would have called for an âimmediate fullâ ceasefire and ending attacks on civilians, but it was rejected by the Security Council. The final draft, which called only for humanitarian pauses, was vetoed by the United States, with Russia abstaining.
Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said the draft had âno clear call for a ceasefireâ and would ânot help to stop the bloodshedâ.
Russia has so far taken a careful approach to the latest escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that erupted on October 7, when Hamas fighters launched an unprecedented attack inside Israel that has killed some 1,400 people. Since the attack, about 3,500 Palestinians have been killed in Israelâs bombardment of the Gaza Strip.
Moscow offered a delayed statement affirming Israelâs right to defend itself after Hamasâs attack, which also killed at least 16 Russian citizens, but denounced Israel for responding with âcruel methodsâ.
âIn my view it is unacceptable,â said Putin of Israelâs air campaign in Gaza. âMore than 2 million people live there [in Gaza]. Far from all of them support Hamas by the way, far from all. But all of them have to suffer, including women and children.â
Russia, which supports an independent Palestinian state with occupied East Jerusalem as its capital, has not labelled Hamas a âterroristâ group like many Western states.
On Thursday, Russia announced it had sent 27 tonnes of humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza
This conflict is a boon for Russia because it diverts a huge amount of attention of the United States and the West,â Alexander Gabuev, director of Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, told the AFP news agency.
On Thursday, Russia announced it had sent 27 tonnes of humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza to be transported via Egypt following an explosion at a hospital on Tuesday that killed hundreds of people. Putin called the âstrike on the hospitalâ a âcatastropheâ and pressed for urgent negotiations.