Investigation urged after Israeli strike on Gaza school kills 37

New Zealand has announced that it will start its annual payment of $1 million to UNRWA in the next "coming days".

This comes after Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said his country will halt any payments until the Israeli accusations were settled.

"This follows careful consideration of the UN’s response – including through external & internal investigations – to serious allegations against certain UNRWA staff being involved in the 7 October terrorist attacks on Israel," Winston Peters, New Zealand’s foreign minister, said on X.

"It also reflects assurances received from the UN Secretary-General about remedial work underway to enhance UNRWA’s neutrality."

New Zealand will be making its annual payment of $1 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) on schedule and in coming days. This follows careful consideration of the UN’s response - including through external & internal investigations - to serious…

— Winston Peters (@NewZealandMFA) June 6, 2024

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) says that the operation of its Al Quds Field Hospital has started after its relocation from the Al Mawasi Rafah area to the Al Mawasi Khan Younis area in southern Gaza.

The preparation and operation of the PRCS Al-Quds Field Hospital have begun following its relocation from the Mawasi Rafah area to the Mawasi Khan Yunis area, to continue providing health services to patients and the injured. pic.twitter.com/ck6odJqdSa

— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) June 7, 2024

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has said it is “deeply concerned” by a report issued by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network that demonstrates famine being "likely underway" in northern Gaza.

"The fact that the conflict and humanitarian access constraints have impeded collection of the data required for an official classification is emblematic of the nearly impossible constraints that aid agencies are operating under," the IRC said on X.

"We know from experience around the world, that once famine is declared, it is too late for too many. We need unimpeded access to fully assess and meet humanitarian need, and a permanent ceasefire to prevent further loss of life and enable the release of all hostages."

The IRC is deeply concerned by this week’s FEWS NET report indicating that famine is likely underway in northern Gaza. As the report states: children are already dying from hunger-related causes. https://t.co/bRwBJbcKhy

— International Rescue Committee - UK (@RESCUE_UK) June 7, 2024

The United States on Friday reestablished a temporary pier to boost aid deliveries into Gaza after the structure suffered storm damage and underwent repairs in a nearby port, the country's military said.

"US Central Command (CENTCOM) successfully reestablished the temporary pier in Gaza, enabling the continued delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza," the military command responsible for the Middle East said in a social media post.

Jun 7, 2024 at 16:09
At approximately 2:15 p.m. (local Gaza time) on June 7, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) successfully reestablished the temporary pier in Gaza, enabling the continued delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. In coming days, CENTCOM will… pic.twitter.com/YMJiCVGvwP

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 7, 2024

Al-Masirah TV, the main television news outlet run by Yemen's Houthi movement, said on Friday that U.S. and British forces had carried out four airstrikes on the airport of Hodeidah and the seaport of Salif, to the north. 

Israeli far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the ban of fuel entry and reduction of humanitarian aid reaching the Gaza Strip.

"Israel should withhold fuel from Gaza and reduce the humanitarian aid that enters the strip," Ben-Gvir said on X.

"Israel should only declare humanity in exchange for humanity, but we will not agree to a deal that would jeopardize the future of the State of Israel," he said.

US news broadcaster CNN reported earlier that Qatar has threatened to expel Hamas leaders if the group does not reach an agreement with Israel for a ceasefire and hostage deal- which has been pushed by the US.

A Hamas official responded to the report by stating that an explusion was not advocated for but the US has continually pressured the group to agree to the deal.

"The difference is that we want an agreement that safeguards the Palestinian people's national interests," the official told CNN.

According to the official, the choice to either accept or reject a proposal has been given for the Hamas leaders to decide. 

The source said that expelling the Hamas leadership will have "no effect, and may only harden Hamas' position."

He also notes that the US might lose influence if the leadership moves to Turkey, Lebanon, or possibly Iran.

Israeli news publication Haaretz reports that a source affliated with the Israeli military said that Israeli settler extremists set fire to olive trees owned by Palestinians in the Ramallah town of Burqa in northern West Bank.

US news outlet Axios reports that Israel said it is has ruled out the Palestinian Authority from taking control in the Rafah border crossing.

Citing four US and Israeli officials, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his security cabinet that he was not prepared for the Palestinian Authority to run the border crossing.

The report indicated that his remarks contradicted a recently approved war cabinet policy, which agreed that any Palestinian governing body other than Hamas could manage the border crossing’s daily operations.

The crossing at the Rafah border has stayed shut since Israeli forces seized the Palestinian side last month, with Egypt refusing to reopen it until Palestinians regain control, to avoid appearing complicit with Israel's military activities in Gaza's southern city.

Despite US pressure leading to a tentative agreement last week to reopen the crossing for humanitarian aid, there has reportedly been little actual progress toward achieving this goal.

The health ministry in Gaza said Friday that at least 36,731 people have been killed in the territory during eight months of war.

The toll includes at least 77 deaths in the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that 83,530 people have been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began.

A spokesperson for the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza's Deir el-Balah says that 54 Palestinians were killed, while dozens of others have been injured in Israeli attacks that targeted areas across the central Gaza Strip.

According to hospital spokesperson Khalil al-Dakran, the number of bodies and wounded patients that arrived at the hospital were within one day.

Israel’s war cabinet member Benny Gantz is expected to step down from the government on Saturday as the deadline he set last month for creating a definitive plan "to achieve victory" in Gaza lapses.

Israel’s public broadcaster Kan reports that Gantz plans to resign because the proposed plan was not finalised.

Families of Israeli hostages in Gaza have also pleaded with Gantz to delay his resignation until a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas is reached.

Netanyahu’s office has arranged an extended ministerial meeting for Sunday, right after Gantz’s deadline, according to the broadcaster.

The US-built pier off the coast of Gaza is set to resume aid deliveries later today, according to Israeli broadcaster Kan, after it was forcibly shut down due to bad weather conditions in May.

US President Joe Biden says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had listened to his warnings to avoid major military action in Gaza's southern area of Rafah, in an interview with US news outlet ABC News.

When probed on whether he believed Netanyahu is listening to him, Biden replied, "I think he’s listening to me."

"They were going to go into Rafah full bore — invade all of Rafah, go into the city, take it out, move with full force. They haven’t done that," Biden says.

Asked if he believes Netanyahu will uphold the hostage deal proposal Israel presented last week, Biden said, "He’s publicly said he is. Our European friends are in on it. We have to get a ceasefire."

"What [Israel has] done is they’ve agreed to a significant agreement that if in fact Hamas accepts it…"

Biden said the offer has been also supported by many Arab countries. 

"We’ll see. This is a very difficult time," Biden says.

President Biden tried to still sound hopeful in his ABC News interview when asked “Is Benjamin Netanyahu fully on board with what you proposed ?” He responded “He has publicly said he is.” but can he trust Netanyahu to keep his word? pic.twitter.com/LZpktwy8MR

— Philip (@rulesbasedworld) June 7, 2024

According to Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to visit Israel early next week.

Blinken's trip comes as negotiations to reach an agreement for the release of Israeli captives and the end of the war on Gaza.

Unemployment in the Gaza Strip has reached nearly 80% since the war with Israel erupted last October, the United Nations labour agency said on Friday, bringing the average unemployment rate across Palestinian territories to more than 50%.

Unemployment in the Gaza Strip has reached 79.1%, while the West Bank has seen joblessness hit nearly 32%, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said in its fourth assessment of the impact of the war on employment. The figures give a combined unemployment rate of 50.8%.

"This excludes Palestinians who have given up on finding a job," said Ruba Jaradat, ILO Regional Director for Arab States.

"The situation is much worse."

"Imagine with this very high level of unemployment, people will not be able to secure food for themselves and for their families," Jaradat said.

"This is also impacting their health.... Even if they have money, there are no hospitals that can accommodate the catastrophic situation there."

In terms of the economy, the real gross domestic product (GDP) has contracted by nearly 33% in the Palestinian territories since the start of the war, with an estimated contraction of 83.5% in the Gaza Strip and by 22.7% in the West Bank, according to data published by ILO.

"In the occupied Palestinian territory and particularly in the West Bank, the reduction in incomes has pushed many families into severe poverty," Jaradat said. 

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called Thursday for an end to hostilities along the demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel, warning of the risk of a broader conflict.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, visiting the northern border area after eight months of war that has devastated Gaza, warned Wednesday that Israel was "prepared for a very intense operation" along the border.

Daily exchanges of artillery fire between Hezbollah and Israel have intensified in recent days as Israel wages war in the Gaza Strip. Both groups are backed by Iran and allies of each other.

"As the exchanges of fire across the Blue Line continue, the Secretary-General renews his calls to the parties to urgently cease fire," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement, referring to the demarcation line between Israel and Lebanon.

"These exchanges of fire could trigger a broader conflict with devastating consequences for the region," he added.

A Gaza hospital said at least 37 people were killed in an Israeli strike on a UN-run school on Thursday, that the Israeli military alleged housed a "Hamas compound".

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al-Balah, near Nuseirat, said it had received the bodies of at least "37 martyrs" from the strike.

The United States has called on Israel to be "fully" transparent about the strike.

"The government of Israel has said that they are going to release more information about this strike, including the names of those who died in it. We expect them to be fully transparent in making that information public," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

UN chief Antonio Guterres called the strike "just another horrific example of the price that civilians are paying".

"There will need to be accountability for everything that has happened in Gaza," his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called for the strike to be "independently investigated".

Russia and China, which hold veto powers in the UN Security Council, raised concerns on Thursday with a US draft resolution that would back a proposal - outlined by President Joe Biden - for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas.

The council's only Arab member, Algeria, also signaled it was not ready to back the text, diplomats said. A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the US, France, Britain, China or Russia to pass.

Biden laid out a three-phase ceasefire plan for the Gaza Strip a week ago that he described as an Israeli initiative.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he will "present the truth" about the war in Gaza when he addresses the US Congress on July 24 during a visit to Washington, Republican leaders said on Thursday.

Netanyahu will speak to a joint session of the House of Representatives and the Senate, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement.

"I am very moved to have the privilege of representing Israel before both Houses of Congress and to present the truth about our just war against those who seek to destroy us to the representatives of the American people and the entire world," Netanyahu said in the statement.

Netanyahu's visit comes amid tensions between him and US President Joe Biden, who has supported Israel's campaign in Gaza but has recently been more critical of its tactics and withheld shipment of some bombs.

It was not immediately clear if Netanyahu would meet with Biden during his US visit.