Live blog: Netanyahu refuses to end Gaza's sufferings, says war to continue

Saturday, December 9, 2023

1825 GMT — Israel will press on with its "just war to eliminate" Hamas in Palestinne's Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said, refusing to heed growing calls from the global community to end the sufferings of millions of Palestinians.

The premier's comments came a day after Israel's brutal and indiscriminate bombing of Gaza received a boost when the United States blocked the UN's bid for a ceasefire in the enclave.

"I very much appreciate the correct stance the US took at the United Nations Security Council... Therefore, Israel will continue our just war to eliminate Hamas and achieve the rest of the war's goals," Netanyahu said in a video statement.

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2117 GMT — UN, Security Council cannot effectively perform functions, says former Jordanian prime minister

Former Jordanian Prime Minister Awn Khasawneh said Saturday that the UN, including its main bodies like the Security Council, cannot effectively perform their functions.

Discussing the need for "reform" at the UN, Khasawneh said the international community is weary, and the success of any reform speech is unlikely, during the seventh TRT World Forum in Istanbul.

2106 GMT — Egyptian, Russian presidents agree to continue efforts to achieve ceasefire in Gaza

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, agreed Saturday to continue efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza.

It came during a telephone call from Putin, according to a statement from the Egyptian presidency, following the failure of the UN Security Council to pass a resolution Friday for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, due to opposition from Washington.

The two leaders discussed “the regional situation, particularly in Gaza and the Palestinian territories, in light of the politically and humanitarianly complex situation.”

Sisi reviewed “Egyptian efforts and communications to push for a ceasefire to protect civilians and to facilitate the entry of the necessary humanitarian aid for the sustenance and relief of the innocent civilians in Gaza.”

1958 GMT — Israeli army says 5 more soldiers killed, including 4 in Gaza battles

The Israeli army announced the death of four soldiers in fighting in the southern Gaza, with a fifth who died from injuries during a previous Hamas attack in the enclave on October 7.

The army said reserve soldiers Lyav Atia, 25, Omri Ben Shushar, 25, both fighters in the 6623 Battalion, were killed in battles.

“Soldier Jonathan Haim, 25, a fighter in the 603 Engineering Battalion, and Soldier Maor Cohen Eisenkot, 19, a fighter in the 12th Brigade of the Golan Division, also lost their lives in battles in the southern Gaza,” it said.

Cohen is the nephew of the former Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, according to the Israeli newspaper Maariv. Eisenkot's son, Gal, was killed Thursday in northern Gaza.

1955 GMT -- 'Occupation no more': Another huge pro-Palestine rally takes place in London

Another massive pro-Palestine demonstration took place in London with tens of thousands of protesters demanding a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.

The march commenced at midday from Bank Junction and aims to culminate at Parliament Square.

Organizers are the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Stop the War Coalition, Muslim Association of Britain, Palestinian Forum in Britain and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

An exclusion zone has been established to restrict protesters from assembling around the Israeli Embassy.

1749 GMT — Yemen rebels threaten Israel-bound Red Sea ships

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels have threatened to attack vessels heading to Israeli ports unless food and medicine are allowed into besieged Gaza.

In a statement posted on social media, the Houthis said they "will prevent the passage of ships heading to the Zionist entity" if humanitarian aid is not allowed into Gaza.

Regardless of which flagships sail under or the nationality of their owners or operators, Israel-bound vessels "will become a legitimate target for our armed forces", the statement said.

1628 GMT — Palestinian health ministry says Gaza death toll at 17,700

The Palestinian health ministry in Gaza has said the death toll in the Israel's war had risen to at least 17,700 in the Palestinian territory.

"The crimes and genocide against the people of Gaza are beyond any description... Ending Palestinian existence with American and European support is inhuman," ministry spokesman Ashraf al Qudra said, adding that 48,780 people had also been wounded in the war.

1237 GMT — Half-a-million Palestinians face hunger, thirst in besieged Gaza

Half a million Palestinians are at risk of hunger and thirst in cities where Israeli attacks continue, the Gaza Municipality has said, describing the humanitarian situation as "disastrous" as the Israeli army deliberately targeted food and water infrastructure.

“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is disastrous,” Municipality spokesman Hosni Muhanna told Anadolu.

“Fuel shortages disrupted the process of evacuating the injured and transporting bodies,” the spokesman said.

“Some construction equipment and vehicles became unusable as a result of Israel's targeting of the Gaza Municipality's garage,” Muhanna said, noting that “they had difficulties in opening the streets that were closed due to Israeli bombardment.”

"We cannot provide water to the Al Shifa Hospital," the Palestinian official said.

“The water and food crisis in shelter centres is increasing exponentially as the number of people coming to these centres exceeds the capacity,” he added.

The infrastructure is “deliberately targeted,” Muhanna said, adding that "it is not possible to clean the waste overflowing from the sewers due to a lack of fuel."

0414 GMT — Israel escalates Gaza offensive as US thwarts UN ceasefire bid

Israel pressed its offensive in Gaza after the United States blocked an extraordinary UN bid to call for a ceasefire in the two-month war.

Hamas and the Palestinian Authority swiftly condemned the US veto as the health ministry in Gaza put the latest death toll in Gaza at 17,487 people, mostly women and children.

An Israeli strike on the southern city of Khan Yunis killed six people, while five others died in a separate attack in Rafah, the ministry said on Saturday.

0723 GMT — 'US veto on Gaza ceasefire 'disappointing and regrettable': China

China has said the US vetoing a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza is "disappointing and regrettable."

"It's extremely disappointing and regrettable that a UN Security Council draft resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza was vetoed," Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, said on X.

The envoy said the draft had nearly 100 co-sponsors and China was one of them.

"Although the resolution was vetoed, the overwhelming view of the international community is clear: an immediate humanitarian ceasefire is the overriding priority," he said, adding: "We will not stop but continue to make our efforts to save lives, to uphold justice and to pursue peace."

0708 GMT — Israeli attempt to free hostage repelled: Hamas

The armed wing of Palestinian group Hamas has said that it had repelled an attempt by Israel's military to free a hostage, who was killed during the operation.

The announcement by the Al Qassam Brigades came in a video showing the Israeli hostage, who identified himself as Sa'ar Baruch and spoke about the place and date of his capture.

Baruch, 24, said he had been in captivity for 40 days at the time of the filming and wanted to return home.

A written statement that appeared in the video said a "Zionist force infiltrated at dawn (Friday) to the place where the captive was held using an ambulance, disguised under a humanitarian organization in a blatant violation to international law, but was discovered and repelled with fire."

Then showing traces of blood that it said were from the infiltrating Israeli force, the video concluded by showing a body that it said was Baruch's, adding that he was killed in the failed attempt.

The Israeli army had said earlier that two soldiers were seriously wounded "during an operation to rescue hostages held by Hamas."

The army admitted that "no hostages were rescued in this activity."

0430 GMT — US is now left alone on Gaza issue: Turkish foreign minister

The US is now left alone on the Gaza issue after it blocked the passage of a UN Security Council resolution demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, Türkiye’s foreign minister has said.

"Our friends once again expressed that America is now alone on this issue, especially in the voting held at the United Nations today," Fidan told Anadolu news agency and Turkish national broadcaster TRT in an exclusive interview in the US.

0304 GMT — UK 'complicit in the horror' after failing to vote for ceasefire in Gaza: Save the Children

UK-based charity Save the Children criticised the British government for failing to vote for a ceasefire in Gaza at the UN Security Council, accusing it of complicity in what Gazan children will face.

In a post on X, it said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his government chose to "turn their backs" on the children of Gaza yet again.

"By failing to vote for a #CeasefireNOW at the UN Security Council, the UK is complicit in the horror that children will endure in the coming hours, days, and weeks,” it said.

The UK abstained while the US vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution on Friday that demanded an immediate ceasefire to halt the ongoing bloodshed in Gaza.

0251 GMT — Belgian premier reiterates call for ceasefire in Gaza

During a joint news conference with Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib in Brussels, Alexander de Croo noted that stopping the killing of civilians should be a priority for everyone.

In response to a question on the idea of imposing sanctions on Israeli settlers involved in violence in the occupied West Bank, he recalled that Belgium has banned violent convicted settlers from entering the country.

"We now have also seen that (US Secretary of State Antony) Blinken has taken that position as well. We have reached out to our American colleagues to see how we can put that into practice and it's one of the topics I think that we should discuss," De Croo said.

0200 GMT — Russia says US issued 'death sentence to thousands'

Russia's deputy UN ambassador Dmitry Polyansky has called the failed UNSC vote "one of the darkest days in the history of the Middle East" and accused the United States of issuing "a death sentence to thousands, if not tens of thousands more civilians in Palestine and Israel, including women and children."

He said "history will judge Washington's actions" in the face of what he called a "merciless Israeli bloodbath."

2300 GMT — Washington's move"unethical and inhumane": Hamas

Hamas resistance group has strongly condemned the US veto that blocked a proposed United Nations Security Council demand for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, a senior Hamas official said in an official statement, saying that the group considers Washington's move"unethical and inhumane."

"The US obstruction of the issuance of a ceasefire resolution is a direct participation with the [Israeli] occupation in killing our people and committing more massacres and ethnic cleansing," Ezzat El-Reshiq, a member of the group's political bureau, said.

Decrying a "spiralling humanitarian nightmare", UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres declared that nowhere in Gaza was safe for civilians, hours before the US vetoed a Security Council demand for a humanitarian ceasefire.

The vote, including 13 members in favour and one abstaining, diplomatically isolated Washington as it shielded ally Israel. It marked the 47th time since 1945 that US has vetoed resolutions concerning Israel.

2200 GMT — Palestine's UN envoy calls US veto 'disastrous'

Palestine's UN envoy Riyad al Mansour has slammed UN Security Council's failure to adopt draft resolution seeking truce in Israel's war on Gaza, saying "war criminals [Israel] have been given more time to perpetuate their crimes".

"Instead of allowing this council to uphold its mandate by finally making a clear call, after two months, that atrocities must end, the war criminals are given more time to perpetuate their crimes. How can this be justified? How can anyone justify the slaughter of an entire people?" he said.

Mansour reiterated his call for a ceasefire, saying "every further day means lives lost, people killed at an unprecedented pace in modern history."

2000 GMT — Biden administration presses Congress to approve tank shells for Israel

The Biden administration has asked Congress to approve the sale of 45,000 shells for Israel's Merkava tanks for use in its offensive against Hamas in Gaza, according to a US official and a former US official.

The request is being made even as concerns grow about the use of US weapons in a war that has killed thousands of civilians in the Palestinian enclave since Israel's invasion.

The potential sale, worth more than $500M, is not part of President Joe Biden's $110.5B supplemental request that includes funding for Ukraine and Israel. It is under informal review by the Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees, which allows members the privilege to stall the sale, or have informal discussions with the administration about concerns.

But the US State Department is pushing the congressional committees to quickly approve the transaction, said a US official and Josh Paul, a former State Department spokesperson, amid objections from rights advocates over the use of US-made weapons in the conflict.

"This went to committees earlier this week and they are supposed to have 20 days to review Israel cases. State (Department) is pushing them to clear now," Paul told the Reuters news agency.

For our live updates from Friday (December 8, click here.