Recent developments
As Israel’s military is “expanding” ground operations in the beleaguered area, Gaza is seeing the most severe barrage of Israeli attacks since the war’s beginning.
According to the Israeli army, on Saturday, Israeli airplanes blasted 150 underground targets in the northern Gaza Strip, including tunnels, underground combat zones, and additional underground infrastructure.
Late on Friday, Hamas reported that fighting was taking place between its members and Israeli troops in the central region of al-Bureij and the northeastern town of Beit Hanoon in Gaza.
All of Gaza, telecommunications services are unavailable. Paltel, a Palestinian telecom company, reported that late on Friday, the attack resulted in “complete disruption” of landline, cellular, and internet services. A few satellite phones were still functional.
Against the objections of the US and Israel, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza. 120 votes were cast in favor, 14 against, and 45 abstained.
As part of an “emergency sit-in” organized by the anti-war organization Jewish Voice for Peace, hundreds of activists demanding a ceasefire in Gaza caused Grand Central Station to close on Friday night.
Impact of humans and fighting:
More than 3,000 children were among the 7,326 individuals who died as a result of Israeli strikes, according to the health ministry in Gaza on Friday.
In light of the nearly total communications blackout, UN agencies say they are unable to get in touch with employees in Gaza and demand that people be safeguarded. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said on Friday that there had been 14 more UNRWA personnel deaths in the last 24 hours, for a total of 53 staff deaths.
Senior technology and human rights researcher Deborah Brown of Human Rights Watch stated: “This information blackout risks contributing to impunity for human rights violations and providing cover for mass atrocities.”
“It will be even more difficult to obtain critical information and evidence about human rights violations and war crimes being committed against Palestinian civilians in Gaza, and to hear directly from those experiencing the violations,” stated Amnesty International, about the lack of communication in Gaza.
Children would “bear the brunt” of Israel’s stepped-up attacks on the Gaza Strip, according to Save the Children. “More than one million children’s lives—nearly half of Gaza’s 2.3 million population—will be at stake in the event of a major ground incursion.”
Witnesses in the Gaza Strip told Al Jazeera that Israel has been bombing the area surrounding the hospitals in the besieged region, the Indonesian Hospital and al-Shifa Hospital. Thousands of Gazanian people who were forced to escape their homes due to Israel’s ongoing shelling have found refuge in hospitals, including al-Shifa.
Diplomacy:
The US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, wrote on social media following the US’s vote against the resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza, saying, “The lives of innocent Palestinians must be protected.” Journalists and humanitarian workers employed by the UN need to have their lives protected. We mourn the death of every innocent person during this calamity—everyone.
The resolution provides “a fairly accurate barometer of international diplomatic opinion and international public opinion” on the Gaza war, according to former UN special rapporteur Michael Lynk, even if it is non-binding.
According to the Biden administration, it is “not drawing red lines.”
Out of concern that the situation would get worse, the US embassy in Lebanon has advised US nationals to leave the nation “now.”
The incoming speaker of the US House, Republican Mike Johnson, stated on X that he had a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He stated in the post, “The House of Representatives stands with Israel and I reaffirmed our strong support.”
According to the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin “underscored the importance of protecting civilians” during military operations in Israel and focused on “the urgency of humanitarian aid delivery for civilians in Gaza” during his Friday conversation with his Israeli counterpart.
Escalation in the Occupied West Bank:
According to WAFA, the official Palestinian news agency, Israeli forces killed four Palestinians in the Occupied West Bank during raids.
With a bulldozer in tow, Israeli forces attacked the Jalazone refugee camp north of Ramallah, according to Nida Ibrahim of Al Jazeera, who was reporting from the West Bank.
Amid an Israeli military offensive against the enclave, thousands of Palestinians prayed in the streets of the West Bank early on Saturday.
On Friday, there were demonstrations in Hebron, in the West Bank, in support of the Gazan people.
In the last three weeks, the Palestinian health ministry said that at least 108 Palestinians have died in the occupied West Bank.
