Live blog: UN aid chief urges immediate ceasefire, unhindered aid for Gaza

Friday, March 22, 2024

1726 GMT — United Nations aid chief Martin Griffiths called for an immediate ceasefire and said Israel needs to lift all impediments to aid distribution to Gazans.

"Limits to aid distribution within Gaza are set by those who block the movements of convoys meant to feed tens of thousands of critically hungry people," Griffiths said in a post on social media platform X.

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1641 — UNSC to vote Saturday on call for immediate Gaza ceasefire: sources

The Security Council will vote on a new draft resolution that seeks an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, diplomats said, but the United States has indicated it may veto it.

The vote will come a day after the United States put forward a text on the need for a ceasefire that was vetoed by Russia and China and opposed by Arab states, which said it was not explicit enough in pressuring Israel.

The vote on the resolution, led in part by Algeria, the Arab nation currently on the 15-member Security Council, is expected at 10 am (1400 GMT), three diplomats said.

1640 GMT — Full-scale Rafah operation risks 'further isolating Israel': Blinken

A full-scale ground offensive against Gaza's Rafah would further isolate Israel internationally, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

"We share Israel's goal of defeating Hamas... A major military ground operation in Rafah is not the way to do it," he told reporters in Israel. "It risks further isolating Israel around the world."

1606 GMT — Russia, China 'cynically vetoed' Gaza ceasefire resolution: Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said Russia and China "cynically vetoed" a US-led draft resolution at the UN Security Council on a ceasefire in Gaza.

"On the resolution, which got very strong support, but then was cynically vetoed by Russia and China, I think we were trying to show the international community a sense of urgency about getting a ceasefire," Blinken told reporters in Israel.

1600 GMT — Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Malta agree to recognise Palestinian state

The leaders of Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, and Malta released a joint statement on Friday announcing that they will recognise a Palestinian state.

The statement said the countries’ leaders agreed that “the only way to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region is through implementation of a two-state solution, with Israeli and Palestinian States living side-by-side, in peace and security.”

The statement said the four leaders discussed their “readiness” to recognise an independent Palestine.

It added that they will do so “when it can make a positive contribution and the circumstances are right.”

1557 GMT — Death toll from Israeli onslaught on Gaza tops 32,000

The Health Ministry Gaza has said that at least 32,070 people have been killed in more than five months of the Israeli war on the besieged enclave.

The toll includes at least 82 deaths over the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that 74,298 people have been wounded in Gaza since the onslaught began in October last year.

1444 GMT — There is no safe exit for civilians from Rafah: US

US Vice President Kamala Harris said there was no way for civilians to escape the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to send troops as Washington presses for more humanitarian aid.

"There is nowhere for these people to go and be safe,” Harris told reporters as she departed for a trip to Puerto Rico and Florida.

1442 GMT — Israel opening new aid routes into Gaza: military

Israel's military said it had opened a new entry point for aid to enter Gaza and was allowing unlimited supplies into the enclave after a UN-backed report said there was an imminent risk of famine in the north and that it would spread.

After closing off access to Gaza following the attack on Oct. 7, Israel has since allowed in aid convoys amid growing international pressure to boost the amount of supplies to feed Gaza's 2.3 million people.

"As much as we know, by our analysis, there is no starvation in Gaza. There is a sufficient amount of food entering Gaza every day," Colonel Moshe Tetro, head of Israel's Coordination and Liasion Administration for Gaza, told reporters at Gate 96, a new entry point for delivering supplies to the northern area.

1355 GMT — Israel will go into Rafah even without US support: Netanyahu

Israel plans to launch a ground offensive in Gaza's Rafah with or without the support of its close ally the United States, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

"We have no way to defeat Hamas without getting into Rafah and eliminating the battalions that are left there. I told him (Blinken) that I hope to do that with the support of the United States, but if we need to, we will do it alone," Netanyahu said after meeting Blinken in Tel Aviv.

1354 GMT — France to work on new UN Gaza ceasefire resolution: Macron

France will work on a new United Nations resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza following the Russian and Chinese veto against a resolution proposed by the United States, French President Emmanuel Macron said.

"Following Russia's and China's veto a few minutes ago, we are going to resume work on the basis of the French draft resolution in the Security Council and work with our American, European and Arab partners to reach an agreement," Macron said at end of a European Union leaders' summit in Brussels.

France's Foreign Ministry said it had started drafting a resolution with diplomats, saying they would put a draft forward if the U.S. resolution did not pass

1330 GMT — UNSC fails to adopt US-backed resolution on Gaza truce

Russia and China vetoed a US-backed draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council on a ceasefire in Gaza, with Moscow accusing Washington of a "hypocritical spectacle" that does not pressure Israel.

Russia and China both exercised their veto against the resolution, which called for an "immediate and sustained ceasefire" lasting roughly six weeks that would protect civilians and allow for the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, said it was exceedingly politicised and contained an effective green light for Israel to mount an offensive in Rafah.

1251 GMT — Global community 'eagerly' waits for Israeli officials to be brought to justice: Türkiye

The global community “eagerly” waits for the Israeli officials "to be brought to justice” for their crimes in Gaza, the Turkish Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson said.

"For the first time in history, the entire world public is eagerly awaiting the day when the Israeli officials who committed these crimes will be brought to justice," Oncu Keceli said in a statement.

The statement noted that Israeli officials attempted to conceal their crimes against Palestinians and shield themselves from accountability, adding: “They have targeted President Erdogan for speaking the entire truth.”

1217 GMT — Thousands defy Israeli restrictions, pray at Al Aqsa Mosque

At least 120,000 Palestinian worshipers performed the second Friday prayer of the holy month of Ramadan at Al Aqsa Mosque in the occupied city of Jerusalem, despite Israeli restrictions.

Around 120,000 Muslims performed the Friday prayer today at Al Aqsa Mosque, Sheikh Azzam al Khatib, the director-general of the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem, told Anadolu.

This number is considered lower than usual for this time of Ramadan, as the Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem estimated the number of worshippers to be around 250,000 on the same day last year.

1120 GMT — US top diplomat Blinken arrives in Israel on 3rd leg of Mideast tour

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel from Egypt on the third leg of his fresh Middle East tour.

Blinken is scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials during his visit.

The visit is dominated by efforts to reach an agreement on a hostage swap deal between Israel and the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, to establish a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, and discuss the risks of Israeli army's ground assault in Rafah, in southern Gaza.

1106 GMT — Israel says seized 800 hectares of West Bank land

Israel announced the seizure of 800 hectares (1,977 acres) of land in the occupied West Bank, which activists called the largest such seizure in decades.

Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the area in the northern Jordan Valley was declared "state lands" as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel for Gaza truce talks.

1004 GMT — US tells Qatar to threaten Hamas with expulsion amid cease-fire talks impasse

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on Qatar to threaten Hamas with deportation from the capital Doha, home to senior Hamas members, in case the group does not agree on a ceasefire and prisoner swap deal to end the Israeli war in Gaza, CNN has reported.

Citing two US officials, the report revealed that Blinken conveyed this message to Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of Qatar, in a meeting held on March 5 in Washington.

The officials said that Qatar comprehended the message and showed no major rebuff.

1003 GMT — Finland announces to resume funding for UN agency for Palestinian refugees

Finland will lift a freeze on aid to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), the foreign trade and development minister has announced.

Following the unproven Israeli accusation that some UNRWA staffers were involved in the Oct. 7 attacks, many countries, including Finland, suspended payments to the aid agency in late January, pe nding an investigation.

"UNRWA improving its risk management, that is, preventing and initiating close monitoring for misconduct, provides sufficient guarantees for us at this point in time to continue our support," Foreign Trade and Development Minister Ville Tavio said at a press conference in Helsinki.

The Finish decision came after the European Commission announced earlier this month that it would release €50 million (approximately $54.7 million) in UNRWA funding.

0922 GMT — UN rapporteur urges accountability in Gaza for Israeli crimes

The UN special rapporteur on Palestine has said that accountability is "more needed than ever," in Gaza amid ongoing committed crimes by Israel.

"The colossal amount of evidence concerning international crimes committed by Israel in Gaza just over the past six months could keep the International Criminal Court busy for the next five decades, especially at the pace of the current proceedings," Francesca Albanese said on X.

Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Palestinian enclave, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

The war has pushed 85 percent of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while most of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

0820 GMT — Video shows Israeli drone following, killing 4 Palestinian civilians in Khan Younis

An Israeli military drone targeted and killed four Palestinian civilians with missiles in Al Sekka area in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, Al Jazeera channel showed in a video aired on Thursday evening.

The scenes were captured from an Israeli drone in Khan Younis in February, showing the pursuit of the four Palestinian youth and their targeting with several missiles.

Two of them were killed with the first missile, then the third and fourth were killed with two more missiles.

0815 GMT — Israel restricts Palestinians’ access to Al Aqsa Mosque for 2nd Friday of Muslim holy month

Israeli authorities barred Palestinians from the occupied West Bank from entering the Al Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem for the second consecutive Friday of the Muslims’ holy month of Ramadan.

A large number of Israeli soldiers and police are deployed throughout the city to restrict Muslim faithful access to the mosque, witnesses told Anadolu Agency.

An Anadolu correspondent pointed out that several men and women were refused entry by Israeli forces, claiming they did not obtain the necessary permits.

Palestinian Abdullah Hamayel, 63, told Anadolu Agency that Israeli authorities denied him entry to Jerusalem, claiming that he did not obtain a permit, even though he was carrying his American passport.

0813 GMT — China says supports UN Security Council taking 'meaningful' action on Gaza war

China said it supported steps by the UN Security Council to end fighting in Gaza, while not saying whether Beijing, a permanent council member with veto power, would support a US draft resolution on the need for an immediate ceasefire.

"China supports the Security Council in taking further responsible and meaningful actions as soon as possible to make unremitting efforts to end the fighting in Gaza at an early date," Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian said.

The United States, which has repeatedly blocked calls for a truce in Gaza, will submit for a vote on Friday a draft to the Security Council on the need for "an immediate ceasefire".

0811 GMT — Israel claims of killing 150 Palestinians near Al Shifa hospital

The number of Palestinian deaths in the Al Shifa Hospital area in western Gaza rose to 150, the Israeli army has said.

“The Israeli army and Shin Bet forces continue fighting in the area of Shifa Hospital,” the Israeli army said on X.

Israeli soldiers killed about 150 Palestinians and arrested hundreds of “suspects,” the army said.

It also claimed finding weapons in the area.

Meanwhile, Palestinian sources said the killings and arrests included displaced civilians sheltering in the hospital.

0800 GMT — Israeli military claims capturing hundreds of Gaza fighters

Israeli forces have detained hundreds of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters including a number of security officials and military commanders during its extended raid into Gaza's main hospital, the military's main spokesperson has claimed.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said Israeli troops have killed hundreds of fighters and detained over 500 suspects, including 358 members of the Palestinian resistance groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the largest number since the beginning of the war nearly six months ago.

0537 GMT — UK, Australia call for 'immediate cessation of fighting' in Gaza

Britain and Australia have declared the need for an "immediate cessation of fighting" in Gaza, as diplomatic pressure built on Israel to ditch a planned ground assault on the southern city of Rafah.

After a meeting of Australian and UK foreign and defence ministers in Adelaide, the allies issued a statement that stressed the "urgency of an immediate cessation of fighting in Gaza to allow aid to flow and hostages to be released".

0346 GMT — Blinken to press Israel for 'immediate' truce in Gaza war

Secretary of State Antony Blinken heads to Israel to press for a truce in Gaza, ahead of a key UN Security Council vote on a US draft resolution calling for an "immediate" ceasefire.

Israel's main backer the United States announced it would submit for a vote on Friday a draft to the Security Council on the need for an "immediate ceasefire as part of a hostage deal", after repeatedly using its veto power to block other similarly worded resolutions.

After talks in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, Blinken flies to Israel, his sixth trip to the region since the war began on October 7.

Israel said its spy chief would also head back to Qatar on Friday for more truce talks with US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators who are trying to negotiate a six-week pause.

0241 GMT — There is no moral argument that justifies arms sales to Israel: UN rapporteur

Providing weapons to Israel that kill more Palestinian civilians is a "war on human rights" and nothing justifies continuing arms sales, according to the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders.

In an op-ed published by the British daily The Guardian, Mary Lawlor evaluated the continued arms sales to Israel in the face of the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza.

"There exist no moral arguments that can justify the continued sale of weapons to Israel by states that respect the principle of the universality of human rights," said the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders.

Saying that Israel has demonstrated over time that it will use such weapons "indiscriminately against Palestinians," Lawlor noted that any claims by Israel of self-defence in reaction to the October 7 attacks by Hamas have long since been "invalidated" by the disproportionality of the response.

0137 GMT — Footage of French-Israeli soldier mocking Palestinian torture victims ‘shocking and disgusting’

Video footage circulating on social media of a French-Israeli soldier insulting Palestinians that his unit tortured is “shocking and disgusting,” French Foreign Ministry spokesman Christophe Lemoine has said.

“This footage is shocking and disgusting. As I initially stated regarding potential legal consequences: the competent authority to address crimes committed by French citizens in foreign countries is the French judiciary.

“In accordance with the constitutional principle of separation of powers, this authority is exercised independently,” he added.

2046 GMT — EU seeks 'humanitarian pause' in Gaza as UN awaits US resolution

EU leaders have called for an "immediate humanitarian pause" in Gaza, urging measures to prevent population displacement amid ongoing Israeli aggression in the besieged Palestinian enclave.

"The EU calls for an immediate humanitarian pause leading to a sustainable ceasefire. Full & safe humanitarian access into Gaza is essential to provide the civilian population with life-saving assistance in a catastrophic situation in Gaza," European Council President Charles Michel said as a joint text agreed upon by EU’s 27 heads of state and government was released.

"The European Council calls for an immediate humanitarian pause leading to a sustainable ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and the provision of humanitarian assistance," the bloc said in the text published by the council.

0241 GMT — No moral argument that justifies arms sales to Israel: UN rapporteur

Providing weapons to Israel that kill more Palestinian civilians is a "war on human rights" and nothing justifies continuing arms sales, according to the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders.

In an op-ed published by the British daily The Guardian, Mary Lawlor evaluated the continued arms sales to Israel in the face of the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza, where nearly 32,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 7 last year.

"There exist no moral arguments that can justify the continued sale of weapons to Israel by states that respect the principle of the universality of human rights," said the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders.

Saying that Israel has demonstrated over time that it will use such weapons "indiscriminately against Palestinians," Lawlor noted that any claims by Israel of self-defence have long since been "invalidated" by the disproportionality of the response.

2038 GMT — US to bring resolution calling for ceasefire in Gaza for vote in UN

The United States will bring a UN draft resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an Israel-Hamas hostage deal to a Security Council vote on Friday morning, a US spokesperson said.

The latest version of the draft resolution, seen by Reuters news agency, says an "immediate and sustained ceasefire" lasting roughly six weeks would protect civilians and allow for the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

The resolution "unequivocally supports ongoing international diplomatic efforts to secure such a ceasefire in connection with the release of all remaining hostages," it reads, referring to ongoing talks brokered by the United States, Egypt and Qatar.

To pass, a resolution needs at least nine votes and no vetoes by the US, France, Britain, Russia or China.

During the five-month-long war, Washington has vetoed three draft resolutions, two which would have demanded an immediate ceasefire. Most recently, the US justified its veto by saying such council action could jeopardise efforts by the US, Egypt and Qatar to broker a pause in the war and release of hostages.

The US traditionally shields Israel at the United Nations, but it has also abstained twice, allowing the council to adopt resolutions that aimed to boost aid to Gaza and called for extended pauses in fighting.

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1958 GMT — Expulsion out of Rafah would take 'weeks': CENTCOM chief

The head of US Central Command (CENTCOM) has said that expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza's southern city of Rafah would take "weeks."

That was Michael "Erik" Kurilla's response to being asked by a lawmaker on the Senate House Armed Services Committee if 1.3 million residents could be moved from Rafah for a possible Israel invasion "in two weeks."

He said he could not give a timeframe "without seeing their [Israel's] definitive plan."

Kurilla was asked if there is a place in Gaza that is set up to receive 1.3 million people if they are expelled from Rafah, to which he responded: "I don't know of a place right now.”

Israel announced plans to invade Rafah following the forced displacement of Palestinians to the west of the city.

Kurilla said he talks to the Israeli defence chief "on a routine basis," adding: "I do not advise them on the actual day-to-day operations."

He said Israeli military officials told him that "they are not going to take action until they have the ability to protect the civilians and move them out of the area."

For our live updates from Thursday, March 21, click here.