Gaza health facilities struggle with daily mass casualties as Israeli attacks ongoing

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Said Khatib, a Palestinian photojournalist working for AFP, was awarded Spain's prestigious Mingote Prize on Thursday at a ceremony attended by King Felipe VI for a Gaza photograph taken in October 2023.

He was presented with the award by ABC newspaper, which runs Spain's vaunted journalism prize, for a picture of two children looking through the window of a car driving past rubble in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

The image was taken on October 12, just five days after Hamas militants stormed over the border into southern Israel in an unprecedented deadly attack that triggered the ongoing Gaza war.

The Mingote Prize, which is awarded annually by a jury of Spanish journalists, is one of the highest industry honours in Spain but rarely awarded to someone who is not from the Spanish-speaking world.

"The most recent of Khatib's photos to be published expose the suffering of the civilian population... They capture the difficulties faced by the most vulnerable in this conflict," said ABC in naming him the winner in May.

Khatib, who studied at Gaza's Al-Azhar University, has worked for Agence France-Presse (AFP) since 2003.

The Israeli military is checking whether an explosion in central Tel Aviv in the early hours of Friday was caused by a drone attack, the army said.

Ambulance services said at least two people were wounded slightly in the blast.

A drone has reportedly struck a building in the city of Tel Aviv and several people have been injured, Israeli media is reporting early on Friday.

An explosion had been heard and plumes of white smoke could been seen near the US Embassy Branch Office in the Israeli city, Al Jazeera said. It is not currently clear if the branch office itself was struck.

Israeli airstrikes have killed at least five Palestinians, including children after it targeted a home in the Block C area of the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, local media said and cited by Al Jazeera.

At least 15 more people have also been wounded in the strike on the house, which reportedly belonged to the Abu Shakyan family.

FIFA has postponed a decision on a Palestinian proposal to suspend Israel from international football due to human rights violations in the war-torn Gaza Strip.

The decision to postpone the vote, due to take place on Saturday, clears the way for the Israeli men's national team to play at the Paris Olympics.

Football's world governing body had been set to make a decision Saturday at an extraordinary council meeting after asking for an independent legal assessment of the Palestinian proposal two months ago. That decision would have come just four days before the start of the Olympic football tournament, where Israel has been drawn into a group with Japan, Mali and Paraguay.

However, FIFA said on Thursday that it had pushed back the timeline because "more time is needed to conclude this process with due care and completeness" — meaning a decision is now set to come after the Olympics have finished.

FIFA said both parties had made requests for extensions "to submit their respective positions" and that the independent assessment will now be shared with FIFA by August 31 at the latest.

The US army’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said that it destroyed two surface-to-air missiles and four uncrewed aerial vehicles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, in the past 24 hours.

"It was determined these weapons presented an imminent threat to US, coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region," it said.

The US and UK have carried out airstrikes against targets in Yemen in response to Houthi rebel attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, who in turn are carrying out attacks on Israel-linked ships in support of Gaza.

July 18 U.S. Central Command Update

In the past 24 hours, U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) forces successfully destroyed two surface-to-air missiles (SAM) and four uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAV) on the ground in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

It was determined these weapons… pic.twitter.com/Qq8ZyHJLPK

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 18, 2024

Polio has been detected in samples of sewage that is starting to take over Gaza in the grip of a devastating war, health authorities in the Hamas-run territory and Israel said Thursday.

The announcement came after a European activist group released a report saying the Gaza Strip is "drowning" in hundreds of thousands of tonnes of human waste and rubble from the Israel-Hamas war.

The Gaza ministry said thousands of people in crowded tent cities of war-displaced were now at risk of contracting the highly infectious disease, which can cause deformities and paralysis.

UN health agencies started a global campaign in 1980 to eradicate polio, most often spread through sewage and contaminated water, but there has been a resurgence in recent years in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The health ministry said tests carried out with the UN children's agency, UNICEF, "showed the presence of poliovirus" in the territory, which has been the target of a devastating Israeli military offensive since October 7.

The Israeli health ministry said poliovirus type 2 had been found in Gaza sewage samples tested in an Israeli laboratory.

Sewage now flows between the tents used by tens of thousands of displaced people across Gaza and the presence of poliovirus "marks a new health disaster," the ministry said.

The Israeli army has shelled a house in the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip and killed at least five people, Al Jazeera is reporting.

Several people have also been wounded in the attack, the Qatari broadcaster said.

Exclusive video obtained by Al Jazeera shows medical teams transporting those killed and wounded to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah.

A field commander in Hezbollah's elite Radwan forces was killed in an Israeli strike on south Lebanon, two security sources said on Thursday. 

Israeli forces on Thursday evening detained a Palestinian man at the Atara bridge, north of the West Bank city of Ramallah, according to local sources, as cited by Wafa.

The sources said the Israeli army stopped the man who was traveling in his own vehicle at a random checkpoint at the Atara bridge, before detaining him.

The 29-year-old young man was identified as a resident of the nearby town of Atara.

In the predawn and early morning hours today, Israeli soldiers rounded up at least 18 people, including two students and a minor, in multiple raids across the occupied West Bank.

The United States on Thursday reaffirmed its support for a two-state solution after Israeli lawmakers voted to oppose the creation of a Palestinian state as an "existential threat."

"I think the best way I can respond to that is to just reiterate our firm belief in the power and the promise of the two-state solution," said National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.

He declined to directly comment on key ally Israel's vote, which was swiftly criticized by Palestinian leaders and the international community, including the United Nations.

Kirby told reporters that "we're going to keep doing everything we can to try to achieve" a two-state solution.

State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel said: "I think it can be safely implied that a piece of legislation that is in opposition to the two-state solution is not something that we would be thrilled about."

At least two people were killed and more than a dozen were injured in an Israeli strike on a three-storey house in Jmaijmeh in south Lebanon, three security sources said on Thursday, adding the search for survivors in rubble was ongoing.

US Vice President Kamala Harris could meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his upcoming visit to the country, where he is due to meet President Joe Biden.

Biden, however, is isolating due to being infected with coronavirus.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited troops in Rafah, in the war-hit Gaza Strip, which the Israeli took control of in May amid an offensive.

Netanyahu's office did not publish any details on the visit, but said more information will follow.

The Prime Minister posted images and videos on X of him with Israeli soldiers. One of the posts read: "Today in Rafah, until victory".

היום עם לוחמינו ברפיח. רק הלחץ הצבאי עוזר לנו להחזיר את חטופינו. pic.twitter.com/6YQ9Q272pL

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) July 18, 2024

Turkey has condemned a recent provocation by far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir at Al-Aqsa Mosque on Thursday, as well as Israel's resolution rejecting Palestinian statehood, calling it "null and void".

"Israel should stop such actions, which further increase tensions in the region," it said.

"The establishment of an independent, sovereign and geographically continuous Palestinian State on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, is a requirement of international law."

"You can't vote away the two-state solution so the secretary-general is very disappointed by the decision of the Knesset," said spokesman Stephane Dujarric, calling such a blueprint the only viable path to sustainable peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Read more here.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is likely to meet with President Joe Biden on his visit to Washington next week, the White House said on Thursday.

It would be the first meeting with Netanyahu since the outbreak of war with Hamas and would be a major diplomatic win for the Israeli premier amid increasing concern over the number of Palestinians dying in Gaza.

This is a breaking new story, we will bring you more when we have it.

US Middle East envoy Brett McGurk was traveling to the Middle East on Thursday for consultations on the Gaza conflict, with stops planned in the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, a US official said.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, had no further details on his planned discussions at this time. The United States and its allies have been trying to negotiate a Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

 (Reuters)

The US has sanctioned individuals and entities connected to Yemen's Houthi group in response to the ongoing attacks on ships in the Red Sea, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller announced on Thursday.

"We are sanctioning an additional two individuals and five entities, and identifying five vessels as blocked property, that have played critical roles in financing the Houthis’ destabilizing activities," Miller wrote on X.

The Yemeni group is part of the Iran-aligned 'Axis of Resistance' which vowed support for Palestinians in the fight against the Israeli army in Gaza.

It has launched rocket and drone attacks against US, UK or Israeli-linked shipping vessels in the busy Red Sea shipping lane.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly will meet on Thursday evening with defence minister Yoav Gallant and other officials to discuss a hostage release deal, as Israelis have been demonstrating this week calling for their safe return.

US outlet Axios reporter Barak Ravid said in a post on X that the purpose of the meeting is "to confirm Israel's official and updated position" regarding the new demands proposed by Netanyahu.

"If the updated position is officially approved, it will be forwarded to the brokers," he said, citing Israeli officials.

A mediating team arrived in Doha this morning for a further round of talks with the two warring parties trading blame for the stalled talks.

International charity Oxfam said that Israel has been "weaponizing water" against Palestinians in Gaza throughout the nine-month brutal assault.

A new report from the NGO found that Israel has damaged "five water and sanitation infrastructure plants" every three days since October.

Israeli military attacks have damaged or destroyed five water and sanitation infrastructure sites every three days since the start of the war. 

Water availability has dropped to just 4.74 litres per person, equating to “less than a single toilet flush”.

The report said that Israeli forces have destroyed 70 percent of all sewage pumps and 100 percent of all wastewater treatment plants.

Oxfam is calling for urgent pressure to allow a full humanitarian response to Gaza and for Israel to "foot the bill for water and sanitation infrastructure".

🚨BREAKING: A new Oxfam report reveals how Israel's systematic weaponizing of water against Palestinians in #Gaza, has reduced the amount of water available in Gaza by 94% to 4.74 litres a day per person.

Read our release👉 https://t.co/BYn8GDKOil pic.twitter.com/bqd7AR35Xs

— Oxfam International Media Team (@newsfromoxfam) July 18, 2024

Ukraine said Thursday that it had sent flour to the Palestinian territories as part of an initiative to ship free agricultural supplies to poor countries and regions.

"Palestine received 1,000 tons of wheat flour," Ukraine's foreign ministry posted on X.

"The shipment is the first of three deliveries intended for Palestine... It will support over 101,000 Palestinian families for a month," it said.

Kyiv launched the "Grain for Ukraine" initiative in a bid to ensure Russia's invasion did not threaten its position as one of the world's largest agricultural exporters.

Ukraine did not say whether the flour was intended for Gaza, which is facing a humanitarian crisis and steep drops in the amount of aid that has reached the coastal strip during the war between Israel and Hamas.

Kyiv was a major grain exporter to the Palestinians before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, said on Thursday that only 10 out of 26 of its health facilities in Gaza were operation after multiple strikes have damaged centres and killed medics.

There have been over 1,000 attacks on healthcare facilities in Gaza documented by WHO since the war broke out in October.

Health officials have said there is a desperate lack of medicines, equipment and fuel to power generators as Israel continues to restrict items into the besieged territory.

There are more than 88,000 people with injuries in Gaza.

Over 1,000 attacks on healthcare facilities in occupied Palestinian territory have been documented by @WHO

In #Gaza only 10 out of 26 @UNRWA Health Centres are operational. Our teams continue to risk their lives every day to provide medical care to families but need a #Ceasefire pic.twitter.com/j55RznBjwq

— UNRWA (@UNRWA) July 18, 2024

Italy has sent food supplies and health equipment for the Gaza population aboard a humanitarian flight that landed in Jordan, a statement said on Thursday, as part of Rome's "Food for Gaza" initiative to help civilians there.

Aid includes over 60 tonnes of food, hygiene kits and sanitary equipment, along with 150 tents. The flight, which departed from the southern city of Brindisi, has landed in the Jordan capital of Amman from where the materials will be delivered to Gaza.

"With this operation we give a tangible demonstration of the attention that the Italian government is dedicating to the humanitarian situation in the Strip," Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said.

He added Italy was committed "to do everything possible to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian population in Gaza."

The Food for Gaza initiative is led by Italy together with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food programme (WFP) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

(Reuters)

A 60-bed Red Cross field hospital in southern Gaza's Rafah is almost completely full after "repeated mass casualty events", a medical NGO warned on Thursday.

This includes an Israeli attack on the so-called Al-Mawasi "safe zone", which killed dozens with 26 injured sent to the field hospital, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in a press release.

"The repeated mass casualty events resulting from the unrelenting hostilities have stretched to breaking point the response capacity of our hospital – and all health facilities in southern Gaza – to care for those with life-threatening injuries," ICRC Gaza sub-delegation chief William Schomburg said.

Read more here.

Israeli lawmakers on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to reject the establishment of a Palestinian state, backing a resolution co-sponsored by extreme right-wing groups from the governing coalition and the opposition by 68-9.

The motion was also backed by MKs from Benny Gantz's 'centrist' party, while lawmakers from opposition leader Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid bloc left the assembly to abstain from voting.

The resolution rejects the creation of a Palestinian state, even as part of a negotiated settlement - further cementing a de-facto position already held by many Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Read more here.

An Israeli delegation has arrived in Egypt to press ahead with cease-fire talks, as Israel and Hamas consider the latest proposal. That’s according to three Egyptian airport officials, who did not provide further details. International mediators are pushing Israel and Hamas toward a phased deal that would halt the fighting and free about 120 hostages held by the militant group in Gaza .

Talks were rattled over the weekend when Israel said it targeted the Hamas military commander in a massive strike. His status remains unclear.

(AP)

Israel’s parliament extended a temporary law which allows the country to shut down foreign media outlets they consider a threat to Israel’s security. In a marathon session that lasted until early Thursday morning, the parliament gave final approval to extend the emergency law until Nov. 30.

Israeli officials used the new law on May 5 to close Qatar-based Al Jazeera within Israel, confiscating its equipment, banning its broadcasts and blocking its websites.

Under the law, Israel’s Communications Ministry also briefly seized AP broadcasting equipment from southern Israel after accusing it of violating a new media law by providing images to Al Jazeera. The government returned the equipment to AP several hours later.

A bill that would make the emergency legislation permanent is currently making its way through the Israeli parliament. The draft said a permanent bill is needed because Israel "has faced serious security threats since its establishment and is expected to continue to face them in the future, possibly even more severely".

Critics say the measure passed earlier this year is undemocratic and a threat to press freedom.

The health ministry in Gaza said Thursday at least 38,848 people have been killed in the war between Israel and Palestinian militants.

The toll includes 54 deaths in 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that 89,459 people have been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began when Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territories Muhannad Hadi urged the international community "not to wait" until the West Bank becomes "another Gaza".

Speaking to The New Arab's sister Arabic language outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed's correspondent in New York during a press briefing on Wednesday, Hadi expressed concern over the increased settler violence.

"At a time when we see all eyes on Gaza, we should not wait until the West Bank becomes another Gaza," he said in response to questions about settler violence and UNRWA's work in the West Bank.

Hadi said he visited UNRWA schools in the West Bank and met students who fear Israeli forces and worry about their futures.

"The students spoke about their feelings and the fear they feel as a result of the (Israeli) army incursions into the camp and military operations, and they spoke about their concerns about the future and their education."

The mayor of Deir al-Balah has warned that serious diseases such as hepatitis and diarrhoea are spreading as sanitary conditions have collapsed from Israeli attacks.

In an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, The New Arab's sister outlet, Diab al-Jarou said thousands of Palestinians are suffering in the central Gaza city with it struggling to support some 700,000 people sheltering there.

Sewage and water systems have broken down and there is a great shortage of fuel to power the desalination plants.

He said there is "no empty plot of land" that people have set up shelters in.

Restrictions on goods and aid into the Strip by Israel means that people have been resorting to cook food over fires lit by waste materials, the mayor said. 

Al-Jarou said that the it is producing harmful emissions which is posing a risk to children and the elderly.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday that "the bloodshed in Gaza must stop now", adding that too many civilians in the Palestinian territory "have lost their lives as a result of Israel's response to Hamas brutal terror".

"The people of Gaza cannot bear any more, and humanity cannot bear any more," she told the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.

"We need an immediate and enduring ceasefire. We need the release of Israeli hostages, and we need to prepare for the day after."

An Israeli drone strike on a car in Lebanon killed a commander of Lebanese Sunni group Jamaa Islamiya on Thursday morning, local media reporter.

The strike hit Mohammad Jbara as he was travelling in the Western Bekaa region.

Jamaa Islamiya's military wing al-Fajr Forces have launched missiles into northern Israel as part of the border clashes led by Shia Muslim militia Hezbollah.

It is the first time a member of the group has been killed by an Israeli strike since the clashes began on 8 October.

Further strikes were reported last night including in Marjayoun near the Israeli border, according to local reports. No casualties were reported.

Read more about the group in The New Arab here.

#بالفيديو | مسيّرة إسرائيلية تستهدف سيارة على طريق عام بلدة #غزة في #البقاع_الغربي جنوبي شرقي لبنان.#الميادين_لبنان #لبنان pic.twitter.com/LkaTKAMfsS

— الميادين لبنان (@mayadeenlebanon) July 18, 2024

Israel’s far-right national security minister visited Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site on Thursday morning, threatening to disrupt Gaza cease-fire talks.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, an ultranationalist settler leader, said he had gone up to the contested Jerusalem hilltop compound of Al Aqsa Mosque to pray for the return of the hostages ″but without a reckless deal.”

Ben-Gvir said he was pressuring Netanyahu not to give in to international pressure and to continue with the military campaign in Gaza.

Palestinians consider the mosque a national symbol and view such visits as provocative, though Ben-Gvir has frequently visited the site , revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, during tense periods. Tensions over the compound have fuelled past rounds of violence.

In a statement on Thursday, the Israeli army said it killed two Islamic Jihad members including Anas Murad the commander of Islamic Jihad's naval forces in Gaza City.

It said it also killed a second IJ member Ahmad Almasri, who Israel claimed took part in the 7 October attacks.

The attacks were carried out by air force with the support of intelligence agencies.

Islamic Jihad is a small Palestinian faction in Gaza with a military wing known as Al-Quds which have been supporting Hamas’s Al-Qassam Brigades in battles with Israeli forces.