Live blog: Israeli strikes kill 3, including married couple, in Khan Younis

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

1830 GMT — At least three Palestinians, including a married couple, were killed and five others injured in Israeli air strikes on Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

Medical sources at the Gaza European Hospital confirmed receiving three bodies and treating five injured individuals. The strikes targeted a tent sheltering displaced residents and a gathering of civilians, according to the hospital and witnesses.

One of the air strikes hit a tent belonging to the Al-Amour family, killing a married couple and injuring three others, witnesses said.

In a separate incident, an Israeli drone reportedly fired a missile at a group of civilians in Al-Qarara, northeast of Khan Younis, killing one person and injuring two more.

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1735 GMT — Türkiye vows continued support for Lebanon's unity, peace

Türkiye's president reaffirmed his country's commitment to Lebanon's "unity and peace", vowing to oppose any attempts on its stability.

At a joint news conference with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati in the Turkish capital Ankara, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye will continue efforts to "support the unity and peace of the Lebanese people".

"We stand firmly against any attempt to undermine Lebanon's stability," the Turkish president said.

Erdogan urged the international community to continue pressing Israel to fully comply with the ceasefire it signed with Lebanon last month and compensate the damages it inflicted on the country.

1705 GMT — Far-right Israeli settlers enter southern Lebanon, erect outpost settlement

Far-right Israeli settlers sneaked into southern Lebanon and erected an outpost settlement before they were forced out by the army, the military said.

"Lebanon belongs to us," reads a banner carried by the settlers as shown by a photo published by them, according to an Anadolu reporter.

The army acknowledged that the settlers crossed the border into southern Lebanon, close to the town of Maroun al-Ras, before they were dispersed.

1544 GMT — Egyptian, Indonesian presidents discuss Gaza, Syria, Lebanon

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi and his Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto met in Cairo to discuss escalating tensions in Gaza, Syria and Lebanon, according to a statement from the Egyptian Presidency.

The leaders emphasised the importance of ongoing efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Palestine's Gaza, secure the release of hostages, and ensure unrestricted humanitarian aid delivery, according to the statement that did not specify the duration of Subianto's visit.

Both leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to Palestinian rights, including the establishment of an independent state based on international resolutions.

1239 GMT — Israel's aggressive actions in region must stop: Turkish parliament speaker

It is imperative to end Israel's aggressive actions in the region, Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus said.

Israel's offensives, which have spread beyond Gaza to Lebanon and expanded into Syrian territories, must end, Kurtulmus told a press conference at the Turkish parliament with his Azerbaijani counterpart Sahiba Gafarova.

Kurtulmus said the initial outcomes faced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court reflect the global public's demands for justice.

He added that the international community urgently expects peace to be established in Gaza and accountability for those responsible for this massive genocide.

1212 GMT — Israeli military orders another Gaza evacuation ahead of offensive

The Israeli military ordered another evacuation in central Gaza ahead of an offensive in the area.

"This is an advance warning ahead of an offensive," Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee posted on X. The order included four residential block areas in the urban refugee camp of Bureij. He asked the residents to move to a "humanitarian zone" in the Al Mawasi area.

The Israeli military have issued frequent evacuation orders for different parts of Gaza throughout the war, displacing more than 90 percent of the population, most of them multiple times.

1114 GMT — Palestinian death toll in Israel's war on Gaza reaches 45,097

At least 45,097 people have been killed during more than 14 months of Israel's war on the besieged Palestinian enclave, the Health Ministry in Gaza said.

The toll includes 38 deaths in the previous 24 hours, according to the ministry, which said 107,244 people have been wounded in Gaza since the beginning of the Israeli war on October 7, 2023.

0711 GMT — Israeli attacks disable northern Gaza's sole intensive care unit

Israeli military vehicles have advanced toward the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, opening fire and putting its intensive care unit out of service as it caught fire.

Hospital director Hussam Abu Safiya in a video message said the Israeli attack was preceded by "a frightening targeting" of the homes in its vicinity.

"The Israeli vehicles deliberately targeted the intensive care unit and were directly and clearly shooting towards it," Abu Safiya said, adding that the medical teams "miraculously" vacated the patients who were on respirators as fire erupted inside.

He said the facility's intensive care unit is the only specialised care department operating in northern Gaza.

0645 GMT — Lebanon counts 12 more Israeli violations of ceasefire

The Israeli army has committed at least 12 more violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon that took effect last month, state media reported.

According to the official Lebanese National News Agency, the violations concentrated in the districts of Tyre, Marjayoun and Hasbaiyya in southern Lebanon, and in the districts of Rachaiya and Western Bekaa in the country's east.

The violations included air strikes, drones and fighter jet flights, destruction of homes, bulldozing streets and artillery shelling.

2342 GMT — Legal experts in Spain call for arms embargo on Israel

A group of legal experts in Spain called on the government to impose an arms embargo on Israel over its carnage in besieged Gaza.

Jurists for Palestine, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) comprising Spanish judges, prosecutors and lawyers, submitted a petition with more than 1,200 signatures to parliament calling for sanctions, including an arms embargo.

Speaking outside parliament, Pilar Barrado, a judge and spokesperson for the NGO, said Israel's genocide in Gaza and violations of international law had reached an intolerable level.

"Human rights are universal. There can't be a world of masters and slaves who are allowed to be massacred," Barrado said.

2145 GMT — US says hoping Gaza ceasefire 'in coming weeks' is reached

The US remains hopeful that a Gaza ceasefire and hostage exchange deal can be reached "in the coming weeks" with ongoing efforts to bridge final differences, the State Department said.

Addressing reporters at the Foreign Press Center, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller underscored the urgency of reaching an agreement, expressing frustration at the repeated setbacks in negotiations.

"We believe that we are at the point where we ought to be able to get to an agreement. The differences between the two parties really have been narrowed such that all remaining differences ought to be bridgeable," Miller said.

However, he acknowledged the challenges, cautioning that previous negotiations had stalled despite appearing to be close to a resolution.

"That said, we have been here before and have not seen the parties come to an agreement," he said.

2022 GMT — Israel strikes northern Gaza, kills 8 Palestinians

Israel has killed eight Palestinians and wounded seven others in its strike on a house sheltering displaced families in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza.

A medical source told Anadolu Agency the victims were brought to the Kamal Adwan Hospital following the strike, which targeted a home belonging to the Battah family near the hospital building.

Israeli warplanes bombed the family's home, which was housing displaced people from the Ashkar and Swaiti families, mostly women and children.

In a separate incident in the same area, Israeli warplanes bombed areas near the Al-Nazlah School west of Jabaliya. Additionally, Israeli military vehicles fired intensively at the Tel al-Zaatar neighbourhood in the Jabaliya refugee camp, witnesses reported.

For our live updates from Tuesday, December 17, 2024, click here.