Israel war updates: UN warns civilians in Gaza face ‘immediate possibility of starvation’
The UN has shared a dire update about the fate of Palestinian civilians as Israel’s PM shed more light on operations in Gaza’s largest hospital amid global outrage. Follow updates. Warning: Graphic
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The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that the Gaza Strip now faces a “massive” food gap and widespread hunger while nearly the entire population of the Palestinian enclave is in “desperate” need of food assistance.
WFP executive director Cindy McCain said in a statement that food and water supplies are “practically non-existent” in Gaza, and “only a fraction” of aid that is needed is reaching the territory through the borders.
“With winter fast approaching, unsafe and overcrowded shelters, and the lack of clean water, civilians are facing the immediate possibility of starvation,” Ms McCain said.
“There is no way to meet current hunger needs with one operational border crossing. The only hope is opening another, safe passage for humanitarian access to bring lifesaving food into Gaza.”
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Earlier this week WFP said the last bakery in Gaza closed due to the lack of fuel.
At least 11,470 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the Israel-Hamas war broke out six weeks ago, according to figures by the Palestinian health authorities.
The ministry said 4707 of the dead were children and minors and that 3155 were women. The vast majority have been killed in Israeli air strikes.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a CBS interview that Israel had “strong indications” that at least some of the hostages were held in Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital, the largest hospital in the war-torn city.
However, no hostages were found and he said “the less I say about it the better.”
The director of Al-Shifa Hospital Dr Mohammad Abu Salmiya described a grim picture of the unfolding humanitarian crisis within the medical complex, including 650 wounded people, 36 premature babies, 45 kidney patients and 5000 displaced people.
He reported the death of a kidney patient, with four others on the brink of death due to critical conditions and the absence of dialysis for days.
“The children are starving – and here I mean the displaced children because they need milk and there is no water to make milk for them,” he said.
ISRAEL’S INVASION OF GAZA HAS SET ‘THE WHOLE REGION ON FIRE’
Israel’s invasion of Gaza has destroyed decades of work to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and set “the whole region on fire,” Jordan’s foreign minister told CNN.
“Israel is not producing security for itself by the killing of innocent Palestinians,” Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said.
“It’s putting the whole region on fire again, and it has destroyed the hard work that many had made over the decades to make sure that we come to a peaceful conclusion to this conflict.”
Israel had “killed any embrace of peace in the region” and its war against Hamas had pushed regional relations back more than 30 years, Mr Safadi said.
He said the Jordanian government had been in talks with Israel about exchanging solar power for energy but these discussions have now stopped because people “don’t see any value” in dealing with Israel as its ground offensive in Gaza continues.
Mr Safadi said he thought the evidence Israel had offered to back its claim that Hamas had a “command node” under the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City was “just ridiculous” and an “insult to intelligence.”
‘QUITE STRESSFUL’: SOCCEROOS COACH SAYS AHEAD OF GAME
Socceroos coach Graham Arnold said they’re resisting being drawn into the sensitivities around the Israel-Hamas war ahead of their World Cup qualifier against Palestine on Tuesday.
The team will fly out to Kuwait on Saturday, after their World Cup qualifier against Palestine was only last week moved to a new venue due to safety concerns with the ongoing conflict in the region. The fixture was originally scheduled to be played in Ramallah in the West Bank.
“With everything that’s going on in the Middle East at the moment it’s been quite stressful for me and just making sure that everything (preparation) is great,” Arnold said.
He called the conflict “horrific” but said his team must focus on football. “What we do have control over is our performance and playing against Palestine and going out and getting the job done for Australia,” he said.
“Obviously we are very sympathetic for everyone with what’s going on, but again, it’s a game of football and that brings a lot of joy to everybody.”
The last time Palestine played at home was against Saudi Arabia in 2019.
ISRAELI TANKS SURROUND AL-AHLI BAPTIST HOSPITAL
The Palestine Red Crescent Society has announced that Israeli tanks are besieging Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in the Gaza City, and its ambulance teams are unable to reach the injured people due to the intense clashes.
“Tanks are surrounding Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, and there are intense clashes,” they posted.
“Red Crescent ambulance teams are unable to move to reach the injured and wounded. PRCS emergency medical services teams are still trapped in Al-Ahli Hospital hearing explosions in the area, along with intense gunfire.
“There are several casualties in the hospital courtyard about 30 meters away from our teams but they are unable to reach.”
PREMATURE BABIES DYING IN GAZA HOSPITAL
Premature babies are tragically dying in Gaza due to a lack of basic equipment needed to save their lives.
Services including water desalination plants, sewage treatment facilities and hospitals are grinding to a halt in the Gaza Strip due to the chronic lack of fuel, with many already forced to shut down.
In Rafah, close to the border with Egypt, three sewage pumps and 10 water pumps stopped working yesterday.
According to the director of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), it resulted in sewage flowing through the streets.
Due to the lack of fuel, 22 of the 35 hospitals in the territory are no longer functioning.
The head of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department at Al-Awda Hospital, one of the biggest in Gaza, said many babies have lost their lives as medical staff does not have the equipment needed to save them.
Dr Adnan said women who suffer from post-partum bleeding and bleeding after operations are also suffering because doctors cannot perform blood transfusions.
“In the last [few] days, we have become the only hospital in the entire Gaza Strip and the north who receive obstetrics, cesarean sections and gynaecology services,” Dr Adnan said.
“Because all hospitals in Gaza and the north, after the siege, lost any services for women and obstetrics.
“Yesterday, we performed 16 caesarean sections under exceptional circumstances. There were cases of very severe bleeding and placental abruption as a result of difficulty in access, strikes.”
TOTAL COMMUNICATION BLACKOUT IN GAZA
The head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said he feared for civil order in the Gaza Strip after it was hit with a new communications blackout on Thursday.
“Gaza is again in a total communication blackout, and … it is because there is no fuel,” UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini told a press conference in Geneva.
The Palestinian telecom company Paltel confirmed the blackout, saying on X, formerly Twitter: “We regret to announce that all telecom services in Gaza Strip have gone out of service as all energy sources sustaining the network have been depleted, and fuel was not allowed in.”
Mr Lazzarini said he was worried that a communications blackout could heighten panic in the Gaza Strip and erode the last traces of public order.
The day after a previous communication blackout, “there were groups of hundreds of people who basically went into our warehouse and took whatever was available,” he said.
“These are signs of a situation when you have a blackout and you cannot communicate with anyone anymore … that triggers and fuels even more the anxiety and the panic.
“This can provoke or accelerate the last remaining civil order that we have in the Gaza Strip. And if this completely breaks down, we will have difficulties to operate in an environment where you do not have a minimum of order.”
UK GUARDIAN REMOVES VIRAL OSAMA BIN LADEN LETTER
British newspaper The Guardian has removed from its website a 21-year-old message written by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, after it was shared several million times on social media.
Bin Laden’s “Letter to America” began being shared on TikTok on Tuesday, sparking a fierce debate about US backing for Israel in its current war against Hamas.
The transcript includes bin Laden’s assertion that the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001 due to its support of Israel.
Links to the original were replaced on the Guardian website with a statement saying it had been shared “without the full context”.
“This page previously displayed a document containing, in translation, the full text of Osama bin Laden’s ‘letter to the American people’, which was reported on in the Observer on Sunday 24 November 2002,” it wrote.
Bin Laden’s message, released a year after 9/11, outlined his objections to Western activities in Muslim nations, condemning the United States for its backing of Israel and its approach towards the Palestinian regions.
It also denounces what he described as Western “lies, immorality and debauchery” and argued that attacks against civilians and the United States were justified as a result.
“They threw hundreds of thousands of soldiers against us and have formed an alliance with the Israelis to oppress us and occupy our land – that was the reason for our response on the eleventh,” it said.
ISRAEL SAYS BODY OF HOSTAGE FOUND; HAMAS TERRORIST KILLED
The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) claims it has found the body of a hostage seized by Hamas following the October 7 attack.
The body of Yehudit Weiss “was extracted by IDF (army) troops from a structure adjacent to al-Shifa hospital”, an army statement said.
The IDF said the 65-year-old’s body had been identified by forensic examiners and the family has been informed.
Hamas has repeatedly accused Israel of being responsible for the deaths of scores of hostages through its intensive bombardment of the Gaza Strip.
It comes as Israel said they have killed one of the Hamas members who murdered tattoo artist Shani Louk.
The 22-year-old’s mother Ricarda allegedly revealed to TV host Rabbi Shmuley that IDF forces had tracked down and killed the man.
Rabbi Shmuley is a US author and TV host, who has been dubbed “America’s most famous rabbi”.
His claims have not yet been officially confirmed.
ARREST IN JEWISH MAN’S DEATH
A man has been arrested in connection with the death of a Jewish protester in Los Angeles.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said a 50-year-old will be booked as part of its investigation into involuntary manslaughter, with district attorney to decide whether to formally charge the suspect.
Paul Kessler, 69, died early November 6 at a hospital following a November 5 confrontation with a pro-Palestinian demonstrator in Thousand Oaks, a suburb northwest of Los Angeles.
Sheriff Jim Fryhoff said Kessler had fallen backward and struck his head on the ground.
ISRAEL MILITARY CLAIM THEY FOUND HAMAS CELL
Israel’s military claims to have found Hamas rockets hidden underneath a child’s bed, with a video posted to social media showing soldiers discovering the weapons in Khan Yunis.
Eight rockets were discovered in the room which had “baby girl” written on the wall, according to the IDF.
“In the entire house we also found more ammunition and more weapons, explosive devices, explosive belts, activation systems, short weapons, cellular, piles of weaponry,” says the unidentified soldier filming the video.
IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said the rockets and other weapons were destroyed soon afterwards.
“Rockets were found inside a bed in the children’s bedroom inside the house of a Hamas terrorist during operational activity carried out by the troops of the 551st Brigade. The terrorist was a part of a Hamas terrorist cell in Beit Hanoun,” Hagari said in a statement.
“During the operational activity, the troops uncovered a significant amount of weapons including rockets, explosive devices, and dozens of kilos of explosives. The weapons were subsequently destroyed by the forces,” he added.
ISRAEL SEARCHES GAZA HOSPITAL
Israeli forces were searching building to building at Gaza’s main hospital as Hamas said the military had “destroyed” parts of the compound where deep concern has mounted for the up to thousands of Palestinians trapped inside.
“The soldiers are proceeding one building at a time, searching each floor, all while hundreds of patients and medical staff remain in the complex,” an Israeli army official said.
FRANCE WARNS IRAN AGAINST ESCALATION
France said it had warned Iran against “any escalation or widening” of the Middle East conflict, notably in Lebanon.
Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told her Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, “with firmness” that Tehran had a “heavy responsibility” in the matter, according to a foreign ministry statement.
The October 7 attack by Hamas militants on Israel needed to be condemned “by everybody with the greatest firmness”, Colonna told Amir-Abdollahian during their meeting in Geneva Thursday.
“There can be no ambiguity on this topic,” she said.
25 THAI HOSTAGES HELD ‘SAFE’
Thailand’s government has been given assurances by Hamas that 25 of its nationals held hostage by the Palestinian armed group are “safe”, a member of the kingdom’s hostage release negotiating team said.
Thai politician Lepong Syed said the hostages could be released in days if a ceasefire is agreed between Israel and Hamas.
“The Thai nationals in captivity are safe,” he said, adding that they could be released only if a ceasefire was announced.
“I hope that it will be less than 10 days, or even a few days.”
Thailand’s negotiating team — mostly consisting of Thai Muslims — had been in hourly contact with the armed group, he said.
“We have pushed for the Thais to be released soon, and Hamas has assured us,” said Lepong, president of the Thai-Iran alumni association.
WATCH: ISRAEL BOMB HAMAS LEADER’S HOME
The home of senior Hamas member, Ismail Haniyeh, who was the head of group’s political bureau, was hit by an Israeli air strike, the IDF claims.
The IDF said the house was “used as terrorist infrastructure and often served as a meeting point for Hamas’s senior leaders”.
Mr Haniyeh had lived in Qatar for several years.
It comes after Israeli soldiers withdrew from Gaza’s main hospital after seizing guns, ammunition and flak jackets but failing to find the Hamas command centre and squad of militants it suspected were operating from there.
The sprawling Al-Shifa medical complex has been a focal point of Israel’s 40-day war on terror group Hamas as it seeks to hunt down those behind the atrocities of October 7 including the murder of 1200 people, mostly civilians.
Overnight, IDF fighter jets struck the residence of Ismail Haniyeh, the Head of Hamas’ Political Bureau.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) November 16, 2023
The residence was used as terrorist infrastructure and a meeting point for Hamas’ senior leaders to direct terrorist attacks against Israel. pic.twitter.com/kljYYN6O0U
IDF FIND ‘PROOF’ HAMAS FIGHTERS HAD BEEN IN HOSPITAL
Israel Defence Force troops from the specialist Shaldag unit backed by tanks entered the site and moved through the basement, wards and out buildings of the hospital for 18 hours on Thursday.
In an annex used for MRI scans they confirmed they found “combat equipment” including AK-47 rifles, ammunition, a laptop, a uniform and bulletproof vests in three duffel “grab bags”.
They declared the find “unequivocal proof” Hamas fighters had been there.
Troops have yet to find the command centre intelligence had pointed to or the entrance to the tunnels suspected to be below the hospital from where some of the 240 hostages were believed to have been moved.
However, Israel has offered no evidence yet of the vast tunnel network it claimed was used by Hamas.
Israel said it would present more evidence to support its claims of a Hamas command centre, according to an adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Al-Shifa hospital has run out of fuel and is no longer considered operational amid intense fighting.
Military bulldozers have now begun excavations in the southern end of the compound to find a suspected entrance with the IDF saying it would not stop until it was found.
Gaza Health ministry director Munir al-Bursh questioned the veracity of the weapons find – despite the IDF posting a seven-minute video purportedly uncovering the cache.
The IDF said it also delivered much needed medical goods including baby food, water, medicines and incubators for patients unable to be moved including newborn babies.
“The troops continue to search the hospital in a precise, intelligence-based manner,” army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said at a press briefing.
“We will continue to do so, in order to gather further information, to discover additional assets, and to expose the terror activities within the hospital.”
GAZA DOCTOR CELEBRATES ‘END POINT’ TO ATTACKS
A surgeon inside Gaza’s largest hospital, Dr Ahmed El Mohallalati, on Thursday said there was still fighting outside the facility and gunfire could be heard.
But he said after five days of repeated Israeli attack, it was a relief to at least have reached an “end point with troops now inside the grounds instead of outside shooting in”.
Hamas denied using the hospital as a base.
“The occupation forces are still lying … as they brought some weapons, clothes and tools and placed them in the hospital in a scandalous manner,” Qatar-based Hamas senior member Ezzat El Rashq said.
“We have repeatedly called for a committee from the United Nations, the World Health Organisation and the Red Cross to verify the lies of the occupation.”
UN’S FRESH CALL FOR PAUSES IN CONFLICT
The UN Security Council called for urgent and extended humanitarian pauses in fighting for a “sufficient number of days” to allow aid access.
The 15-member council adopted a resolution on Thursday that also calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas.
The US, Russia and Britain abstained from the vote.
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Originally published as Israel war updates: UN warns civilians in Gaza face ‘immediate possibility of starvation’
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