Live blog: US refuses to limit arms supplies to Israel

Tuesday, November 12, 2024

1856 GMT — The Biden administration claims Israel has made good but limited progress in increasing the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza and it will not limit arms transfers to Israel as it had threatened to a month ago if the situation had not improved.

State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said the progress to date must be supplemented and sustained but "we at this time have not made an assessment that the Israelis are in violation of US law."

It requires recipients of military assistance to adhere to international humanitarian law and not impede the provision of such aid.

"We are not giving Israel a pass," Patel said, adding that "we want to see the totality of the humanitarian situation improve, and we think some of these steps will allow the conditions for that to continue to progress."

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1855 GMT — Hezbollah targets Israeli military base

Hezbollah said that it targeted the HaHotrim military base in northern Israel, marking the first such attack since hostilities erupted over 13 months ago.

In a series of statements, the group announced that its fighters hit the base, a key Israeli Air Force facility, in the first such attack since Oct. 8, 2023.

The base, located 40 kilometres (24.8 miles) south of the city of Haifa, includes air transport and engine manufacturing units. "We targeted it with a salvo of advanced missiles," the group said. Hezbollah also reported launching a drone strike on a logistics base for Israel's 146th Brigade, east of the town of Nahariya.

1839 GMT — Two Palestinians killed in Israeli air strike on Khan Younis

Two Palestinians were killed and several others wounded in an Israeli air strike on the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.

The Israeli army targeted a roadside stall displaying goods in the southwestern Qizan Abu Rashwan area, killing two Palestinians and injuring several others, eyewitnesses told Anadolu.

1724 GMT — Israeli army guns down Palestinian teenager near Nablus

The Israeli army killed a Palestinian teenager near a military checkpoint in the occupied northern West Bank city of Nablus, claiming he was trying to stab soldiers.

According to Israeli Army Radio, the Palestinian was "neutralised" by gunfire near a military checkpoint at the Deir Sharaf junction northwest of Nablus after attempting to stab reserve soldiers.

The station did not provide any specific information about the Palestinian's fate, but other Israeli media outlets, including the Srugim and 0404 websites, reported that he was killed on the spot by gunfire.

1632 GMT — Israeli strikes kill 44 in Lebanon, death toll soars to 3,287

At least 44 people were killed in Israeli attacks across Lebanon, taking the overall death toll since October last year to 3,287, the Lebanese Health Ministry has said.

In a statement, the ministry added that 88 other people were wounded in the past day, raising the total number of injuries to 14,222 since October 2023.

1632 GMT — Yemen's Houthis launch attacks against US naval vessels

Yemen's Houthis said they conducted two military operations against United States naval vessels in the Red and Arabian seas which the group's military spokesperson said lasted for eight hours.

The first operation targeted a US aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea with several missiles and drones, while the second operation launched missiles and drones at two US destroyers in the Red Sea, Yahya Sarea said.

1632 GMT — Rocket fire from Lebanon kills two people in northern Israel

Two people were killed when a rocket launched from Lebanon struck a building in Nahariya in northern Israel, Israeli authorities said.

A military statement said 10 rockets were fired from Lebanon towards western Galilee in northern Israel.

The army said some of the projectiles were intercepted, while the rest landed in the area.

Israel’s national ambulance service Magen David Adom said two people died of their critical injuries after rocket fire in Nahariya. Two other people sustained minor injuries from the shrapnel of an interceptor missile in the Kabri area of western Galilee, according to Israel Hayom newspaper.

1628 GMT — Israeli army begins 2nd phase of ground operation against Hezbollah

The Israeli army has begun the second phase of its ground invasion in southern Lebanon, according to Maariv newspaper.

1409 GMT — Arab world decries Israeli minister’s call for West Bank annexation

A call by Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to illegally annex the occupied West Bank has drawn a wave of condemnations across the Arab world.

On Monday, Smotrich said he instructed Israel’s Settlement Division and Civil Administration to initiate the groundwork for infrastructure to "apply sovereignty" in the West Bank.

The Qatari Foreign Ministry called the Israeli minister’s call a "blatant violation of international law."

A ministry statement denounced the call as a "dangerous escalation that would hinder the chances of peace in the region, especially with the ongoing brutal war on the Gaza Strip and its horrific repercussions."

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry decried Smotrich’s call as a "flagrant violation of international law and international humanitarian law."

1408 GMT — Israeli air strike kills at least five in Beirut's Baalshmay

Lebanon's Health Ministry said an Israeli strike killed five people in the mountains east of Beirut after a security official said a house sheltering displaced people was hit.

"The Israeli enemy strike on Baalshmay killed five people," the ministry said in an initial report.

The security official, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the "Israeli strike targeted a house where displaced people lived, including women and children".

Today, Israel launched more than 10 air strikes on south Beirut, state media said, shortly after Israel's army warned people in several neighbourhoods to evacuate the Hezbollah stronghold.

1356 GMT — EU urges better civilian protection in Middle East conflict

EU foreign policy chief-designate Kaja Kallas reiterated the bloc’s stance on international humanitarian law in the Mideast conflict while underscoring the EU’s role as the largest donor to the Palestinian Authority.

"It is vital that civilian infrastructure and civilians are not targeted," Kallas said during her confirmation hearing at the European Parliament as she emphasized the importance of protecting civilians in conflict zones.

"The EU is calling for maximum restraint from all parties involved in this conflict," she said.

The designated High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy said the EU is actively working with humanitarian organisations to deliver aid to Palestinian territories and striving to provide relief to those affected by the violence.

1330 GMT — Lebanon's public schools reopen amid war and displacement

In the quiet seaside town of Amchit, 45 minutes north of Beirut, public schools are finally in session again, alongside tens of thousands of internally displaced people who have made some of them a makeshift shelter.

As the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah escalated in September, hundreds of schools in Lebanon were either destroyed or closed due to damage or security concerns, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Of around 1,250 public schools in Lebanon, 505 schools have also been turned into temporary shelters for some of the 840,000 people internally displaced by the conflict, according to the Lebanese education ministry.

1257 GMT — Death toll from Israel's brutal war on Gaza rises to 43,665

Israel's military offensive in Gaza has killed at least 43,665 Palestinians and wounded 103,076 since Oct. 7, 2023, the Palestinian enclave's Health Ministry said.

A total of 62 Palestinians have been killed and 147 wounded in the past 24 hours, the ministry said in a statement.

1124 GMT — Evidence shows Israel using hunger as weapon in Gaza: South Africa

South Africa said that the evidence it provided in the genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) shows how Tel Aviv is using starvation as a weapon of war, aiming to depopulate Gaza through mass killings and forced displacements.

‘"The evidence demonstrates unequivocally that Israel’s genocidal acts are of special intent to commit genocide in the Gaza Strip. Its failure to prevent genocide and incitement to genocide and its failure to punish those inciting and committing acts of genocide," Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola told reporters in the capital Pretoria.

Lamola highlighted that all countries have the responsibility to prevent and punish the crime of genocide.

1117 GMT — Seven children among 10 killed in fresh Israeli air strikes in Gaza

At least ten people, including seven children, were killed in fresh Israeli attacks in Gaza, according to medical sources.

Three children from the same family lost their lives when an Israeli warplane hit their home in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, one source said.

Six more people were killed, including four children, in another strike targeting a group of civilians west of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, the source added.

Another Palestinian was killed and 25 other people were injured when a drone shelled a gathering of civilians in the Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood in northwestern Gaza City, another medical source said.

1112 GMT — Turkish President Erdogan calls for accountability in Gaza war

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated: "We believe those responsible for the severe humanitarian and environmental disaster in Gaza should be held accountable in international court."

1112 GMT — Israel says opens Gaza aid crossing, ahead of US deadline

Israel's army announced the opening of an additional aid crossing into Gaza, on the eve of a US-imposed deadline to improve humanitarian conditions for Palestinians in the war-ravaged territory.

"As part of the effort and commitment to increase the volume and routes of aid to the Gaza Strip, the 'Kissufim' Crossing was opened today," the army said in a joint statement with COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry agency responsible for civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories.

"The operation...includes the delivery of food, water, medical supplies, and shelter equi pment to central and southern Gaza," they said, adding it involved the military, COGAT and defence ministry.

"The IDF (Israeli army), through COGAT, will continue to operate in accordance with international law to facilitate and ease the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip."

1102 GMT — Hamas demands Arab, Islamic action to stop Israeli genocide in Gaza

Palestinian resistance group Hamas called on Arab and Islamic countries to act to end Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza.

The call came one day after leaders of Arab and Islamic countries held an extraordinary summit in the Saudi capital Riyadh to discuss Israeli wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

In its final statement, the summit called for a binding UN Security Council resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza and immediate access to humanitarian aid in the enclave.

It also called for the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and an end to the ongoing Israeli attacks in Lebanon.

1032 GMT — Spain’s foreign minister: humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza must be addressed urgently

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said that nations must urgently address the “humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.”

In a post on X, Albares said he spoke with his Palestinian counterpart Mohammad Mustafa on Tuesday.

His call comes days after Qatar’s foreign ministry announced it would pause efforts to mediate a cease-fire deal until Israel and Hamas show “willingness and seriousness" to engage in talks.

0923 GMT — Israeli army orders new evacuations in southern Beirut

The Israeli army has ordered residents of three neighbourhoods in southern Beirut to leave their areas ahead of air strikes.

A military statement ordered residents to stay 500 metres away from several buildings in the neighbourhoods of Haret Hreik, Ghobeiry and Al-Leik in Beirut's southern suburb.

It attached a map of the targeted buildings, saying it would "act forcefully" against what it called Hezbollah assets and interests in the area.

The Israeli army has repeatedly issued evacuation orders for civilians in several areas across Lebanon since the start of its air raids on the country in late September.

0923 GMT — Israel fails to meet US aid demands to ease Gaza catastrophe, aid groups say

International aid groups said that Israel had failed to meet a series of US demands intended to improve the humanitarian crisis in Gaza by a Tuesday deadline.

The United States told its ally Israel in a letter on October 13 that it must take steps to improve the aid situation within 30 days. If not, it could face potential restrictions on US military aid.

"Israel not only failed to meet the US criteria that would indicate support to the humanitarian response, but concurrently took actions that dramatically worsened the situation on the ground, particularly in northern Gaza," a group of eight aid groups including Oxfam, Save the Children and the Norwegian Refugee Council said in a 19-page report.

0912 GMT — No repeat of East Jerusalem incident will be accepted, France says

A repeat of an incident in occupied East Jerusalem that saw armed Israeli security forces entering a property administered by France must never happen again, France's foreign minister said ahead of summoning Israel's envoy.

Two French security officials with diplomatic status were briefly detained on November 7 after Jean-Noel Barrot was due to visit the compound of The Church of the Pater Noster on the Mount of Olives.

The site, one of four administered by France in the occupied East Jerusalem, is under Paris' responsibility and it not the first time that problems have arisen over France's historic holdings in the city.

0844 GMT — Israel denied 85 percent of its attempts to coordinate aid convoys to Gaza: UN

The United Nations said 85 percent of its attempts to coordinate aid convoys and humanitarian visits to northern Gaza were denied or obstructed by Israeli authorities last month.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said it had submitted 98 requests to the Israeli authorities for permission to cross the checkpoint along the Gaza Valley, but only 15 were granted, according to UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

Dujarric said OCHA was "concerned about the fate of Palestinians remaining in northern Gaza as the blockade continues and urgently calls on Israel to open the area to humanitarian operations to the extent necessary given the massive needs".

He pointed out that "over the past three days, teams from OCHA, UN human rights agencies, demining and other humanitarian groups have visited nine locations in Gaza City to assess the needs of hundreds of displaced families, many of whom are returning to northern Gaza".

0821 GMT — Iranian capital builds 'defensive tunnel' after Israeli strikes

Iran is building a "defensive tunnel" in the capital Tehran, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, following strikes by Israel on targets in the country.

The tunnel, located near the city centre, will link a station on the Tehran metro to the Imam Khomeini hospital, thus allowing direct underground access to the medical facility.

"For the first time in the country, a tunnel with defensive applications is being built in Tehran," the head of transport for Tehran City Council told Tasnim.

0812 GMT — Israel continues to hit Lebanon; kills dozen in Gaza dawn strike

Israeli forces continued their bombardment of Gaza, resulting in the deaths of at least 14 Palestinians in the early morning attacks.

Displaced people in the so-called "safe zone" in Al Mawasi were still reeling from an attack on a tent cafe that killed at least 10 others.

Meanwhile, Israel’s military also continued its strikes across Lebanon, killing three people in the eastern Bekaa region, just hours after killing 14 in a strike on a northern town, well away from the Israel-Lebanon border.

0802 GMT — Hundreds forced to flee Beit Hanoun amid Israeli onslaught in northern Gaza

The Israeli army has forcibly displaced hundreds of Palestinian families from their shelter in the town of Beit Hanoon amid a major offensive in northern Gaza, witnesses said.

Israeli forces besieged some 130 families inside a shelter in Beit Hanoon and forced them to leave at gunpoint, the witnesses said.

The forced displacement came as the Israeli army expanded its offensive in the town as part of its ongoing military operations in northern Gaza.

0548 GMT — Four Israeli soldiers killed in northern Gaza: army

The Israeli army said that four of its soldiers have been killed in northern Gaza.

It said in a statement that all four "fell during combat in the northern Gaza Strip", bringing the total number of Israeli soldiers killed in the Palestinian territory since the start of ground invasion in October last year to 376.

0426 GMT — Israel met most US demands on Gaza aid as deadline looms

Israel said it had met most demands by the United States to improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza but was still discussing some items as a deadline looms to improve the situation or face potential restrictions on US military aid.

There are a number of things that remain under discussion and they touch on safety issues, an Israeli official told reporters. He said most issues had been addressed.

Among the US demands that Israel appears to have refused is allowing the entry of 50-100 commercial trucks a day.

0019 GMT — Protesters gather in San Francisco to demand end to US support for Israel’s war in Gaza

Pro-Palestinian protesters gathered in San Francisco, California to demand an end to US support for Israel’s war in Gaza.

Waving Palestinian flags, they chanted "Free, Free Palestine!"

They also held signs saying "Stop Arm$ for War Crime$", "Not Another Bomb", "Stop Arming Israel", "Veterans Demand Arms Embargo" and "End US Military Aid for Israel".

A group of demonstrators chained themselves outside the office of Senator Alex Padilla to demand an end US military aid for Israel.

2236 GMT — Palestine, Jordan condemn minister's call to impose Israeli sovereignty over occupied West Bank

Palestine and Jordan have condemned remarks by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that he would urge his government to engage with the incoming Trump administration in the US to gain its support for Israel's illegal extension of its sovereignty to the occupied West Bank in 2025.

The two countries warned that such plans could lead to a "total regional explosion" and exacerbate displacement and conflict.

Palestinian presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh and the Palestinian Foreign Ministry issued the statement, which was echoed by Hamas and the Jordanian Foreign Ministry.

Abu Rudeineh said Smotrich's statements reveal Israel's intent to "complete its control over the West Bank by 2025", according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.

He said the remarks openly defy a UN General Assembly resolution for implementing an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling, WAFA reported.

2034 GMT — Israel kills 10 people in designated 'safe zone' in Gaza

An Israeli air strike killed at least 10 Palestinians and injured several others in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, targeting a rest area near tents housing displaced civilians.

The Israeli military had previously designated the area, located in the Al Mawasi neighbourhood, as a "safe zone".

The strike hit a rest stop located outside the southern gate of Asdaa Resort, where many displaced families had sought shelter, a medical source told Anadolu.

Witnesses reported that the "Happy Time" rest area, situated on a main street north of Route 5 in Al Mawasi, is frequented by displaced residents for internet access.

1930 GMT — UN 'urgently calls on Israel to open up' North Gaza to humanitarian operations

The UN issued an urgent call to Israel to allow humanitarian access to North Gaza, highlighting the "massive needs".

Citing the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a news conference that "access to North Gaza governorate is still extremely limited. Over the weekend, the UN was unable to access the area".

Expressing worry over the "fate of Palestinians remaining in North Gaza", the spokesman reiterated that the UN "urgently calls on Israel to open up the area to humanitarian operations at the scale needed, given the massive needs".

1901 GMT — Death toll from Israeli strike in northern Lebanon rises

The death toll from an Israeli air strike on the village of Ain Yaaqoub in northern Lebanon has risen to 28.

Eyewitnesses and medical sources reported that the attack struck a building housing several displaced people.

Several individuals were trapped under the rubble, with ambulances arriving at the site, the same sources added.

Lebanon's official news agency, NNA, confirmed the initial toll, saying that the 28 people included Syrian nationals, displaced Lebanese, and residents of the village.

For our live updates from Monday, November 11, 2024, click here.