Live blog: Palestine calls on UNSC to uphold redline set for Rafah

Wednesday, May 29, 2024

1907 GMT — The Palestinian envoy at the UN has emphasised the grim situation in Gaza, as he called on the Security Council to uphold its duty to protect the redline set for Gaza.

"If we decide to hold a funeral every single day for each Palestinian killed in the last eight months, it will take us 100 years to honour them all," said Majed Bamya, the deputy permanent representative of Palestine to the UN at a Security Council session on Palestine.

Stressing that there is barely anything left standing in Gaza, Bamya said: "Israel has destroyed everything."

"But there is everything left still in Gaza; 2.3 million people who have been in a constant battle with death for the last eight months. They are the victims. But they are also heroes because they refuse to surrender to death," he added.

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1905 GMT — Israel using tunnel claims to 'justify' Rafah offensive: Egypt media

Israel is using claims of tunnels under Egypt's border with Gaza as cover for its Rafah offensive, the state-linked Al-Qahera News has reported, citing a "high-level Egyptian source".

"There is no truth to Israeli media reports of the existence of tunnels on the Egyptian border with Gaza," the source told Al-Qahera, which is linked to state intelligence.

"Israel is using these allegations to justify continuing the operation on the Palestinian city of Rafah and prolonging the war for political purposes."

1901 GMT — US reiterates call for Israel to seek alternative to 'operation' in Rafah

The US has reiterated its call for Israel to find an alternative to its operation in the southern Gazan city of Rafah.

"We continue to believe there are alternatives to a major operation that would better advance Israel’s goal of the enduring defeat of Hamas, and also protect innocent Palestinians," US Deputy Permanent Representative to UN Robert Wood said at a UN Security Council session on Palestine.

Noting the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) latest ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt operation in Rafah, Wood said the ruling "echoes the US position that Israel must avoid a major attack in the heart of Rafah that would put huge numbers of civilians at risk."

1821 GMT — Flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza dropped by 67% since May 7: UN

The UN has reported that aid deliveries to Gaza have decreased by 67 percent since the closure of the Rafah crossing on May 7.

"Our colleagues in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) tell us that widespread Israeli bombardments continue to be reported. Ground incursions and heavy fighting are also affecting northern, central and southern Gaza," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters at a news conference.

Saying that "the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza has dropped by 67 percent since the seventh of May," Dujarric attributed this primarily to the closure of the Rafah border crossing.

Dujarric also stated that health and service facilities are shutting down one by one and that displacement due to the attacks is also affecting the distribution of resources.

1722 GMT — 'Systematic postponement' of a two-state solution should end: Macron

France's President Emmanuel Macron has said there should be an end to the "systematic postponement" both of the implementing of a two-state solution in Israel-Palestine conflict and the setting up of a Palestinian state.

"(Macron) asserted France's commitment to work, with its European and Arab partners, on a shared vision of peace that offers security guarantees to Palestinians and Israelis," the French presidential palace said in a statement in the wake of a phone exchange between the French president and his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas.

This process should entail "a perspective of recognising the Palestinian State in a useful dynamic," the Elysee added.

1708 GMT — Houthis downed MQ-9 drone in Yemen's Maareb: official

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis downed a MQ-9 drone in Yemen's southeastern province of Maareb, the group's military spokesperson Yahya Sarea has said in a televised speech.

1658 GMT — Netanyahu 'sowing false illusions' over Rafah offensive: Israeli minister

Israeli War Cabinet Minister Gadi Eisenkot has accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sowing false illusions about the ongoing military offensive in Rafah in southern Gaza.

During the annual Meir Dagan conference at the Netanya Academic College, Eisenkot attacked Netanyahu "for creating and pushing the concept of 'total victory' against Hamas."

"Anyone who says that we’ll disband a few battalions in Rafah and then bring back the hostages is sowing a false illusion," he added in statements cited by The Times of Israel newspaper.

1646 GMT — WFP warns its ability to help in Gaza 'deteriorating'

The World Food Program (WFP) has called for an "urgent" ceasefire in Gaza and warned that its ability to help the people of the besieged Palestinian enclave is "deteriorating."

"People and children displaced in Rafah and across Gaza are beyond exhausted. And our ability to help them is deteriorating with every passing hour, every passing day," WFP said on X.


"We need an urgent ceasefire NOW," it said, adding that Rafah is "burning."

1635 GMT — Israel claims its forces have seized control of Gaza's entire border with Egypt

Israel's military has claimed it has seized control of a strategic corridor that runs along the length of Gaza’s border with Egypt. The military had no further immediate details.

Known as the Philadelphi Corridor, the narrow strip is about 100 metres (yards) wide in parts and runs the 14-kilometre (8.6-mile) length of the Gaza side of the border with Egypt. It includes the Rafah crossing into Egypt.

1626 GMT — New UN draft on Gaza war will not help anything: US

The United States is wary of a new UN resolution on the war in Gaza, its deputy ambassador has said as a draft seeks an immediate ceasefire and a halt to Israel's offensive in Rafah.

Algeria called an urgent UN Security Council meeting after an Israeli strike killed 45 people at a tent camp in Rafah for displaced people on Sunday, drawing international condemnation.

"We've said from the beginning that any kind of additional product on the situation right now probably is not going to be helpful," deputy US envoy Robert Wood told reporters, referring to a text from the council.

"It's not going to change the situation on the ground."

1625 GMT — Israel needs post-war plan 'as quickly as possible': Blinken

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that Israel needed a post-war plan as soon as possible after a senior Israeli official predicted that fighting in Gaza would last until the end of the year.

"In the absence of a plan for the day after, there won't be a day after. And this is where we need to go, and (what) we need to get, as quickly as possible," Blinken told reporters on a visit to Moldova.

Such a plan would ensure that Israel is not in control of Gaza's security in the long term, he said.

"If it is, it will simply have an enduring insurgency on his hands for as far as one can see into the future," Blinken said.

1621 GMT — Unprecedented surge in conscription refusals amid Gaza war: Israeli group

An Israeli left-wing movement has reported an unprecedented rise in the number of Israelis refusing to serve in the military amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

The Israeli military imposes imprisonment on those who refuse conscription.

The Yesh Gvul (There is a Limit) group shared a statement on X featuring testimony from Sophia Or, one of the Israelis refusing military service.

"I am ready to continue paying the price and sit in prison if it prevents the dehumanization from going on in complete silence. I must read, even from prison: they are human! (Palestinians)," said Or, who has served a prison sentence for refusing military service.

"There is a huge difference between an army that carries out justified missions…and an army (the Israeli military) whose entire activity is full of injustices," she added.

1601 GMT — 'There is no time to waste’: UN Mideast envoy calls for immediate truce

The UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process has sounded the alarm on Gaza, saying there is no time to lose while urging for an immediate ceasefire and the release of hostages.

"There is no time to waste. We must reach an agreement to release the hostages and put in place an immediate cease-fire," Tor Wennesland told a UN Security Council session on Palestine.

Noting that the UN maintains its regular contact with everyone involved in the Gaza conflict, Wennesland said: "A sustained ceasefire will be critical to a full-scale humanitarian and early recovery response to meet the immense needs in Gaza."

1533 GMT — Israel advances bill to revoke immunities, privileges of UN refugee agency

The Knesset (Israel’s parliament) has passed a preliminary reading of a bill to revoke the immunities and privileges granted to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).

The bill, which requires three additional readings to become law, is part of what Palestinian, UN, and international entities describe as an Israeli campaign to dismantle the UN agency and liquidate the refugee issue.

1448 GMT — Norway condemns Israeli attack on Rafah, urges Tel Aviv to respect ICJ ruling

Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide has condemned Israel’s attack on Rafah, in southern Gaza, calling the situation “catastrophic and unacceptable” and calling on the UN Security Council to act swiftly.

"The development in Rafah is catastrophic and unacceptable. We have warned in the strongest possible terms against the consequences of an attack for the people of Rafah," Eide said in a statement.

“The situation is unbearable, the war must end,” he added.

1446 GMT — US tells UN: Israel undermines goals with civilian harm in Gaza

Israel must do more to protect innocent Palestinians in Gaza and more must be done to ensure humanitarian aid gets into the enclave and can be safely distributed, US Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood has said.

"The continued pattern of significant civilian harm resulting from incidents like Sunday's air strikes undermines Israel's strategic goals in Gaza," Wood told the UN Security Council.

1441 GMT — US-manufactured munition employed in lethal Rafah strike: Report

An analysis of video footage and a review by explosive weapons experts have revealed that munitions manufactured in the US were used in a deadly Israeli air strike Sunday on a displacement camp in Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah.

Videos that show tents engulfed in flames following the strike on the "Kuwait Peace Camp 1" were geolocated.

In one video on social media, which was confirmed to be the same location by matching details such as the camp's entrance sign and ground tiles, the tail of a US-made GBU-39 small-diameter bomb (SDB) is visible, according to four experts who reviewed the footage.

1412 GMT — Türkiye expects Italy to recognise Palestinian statehood

The Turkish president has expressed hope that Italy would take a "fair stance" like Spain, Ireland and Norway, and recognise Palestinian statehood.

In a phone call, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that he wishes Rome to be “on the right side of history,” Türkiye’s Communications Directorate said on X.

"Pressure should be increased to stop Israel's brutal attacks against Palestine and to force the Israeli administration to comply with international law," the directorate quoted Erdogan as saying.

1404 GMT — World Central Kitchen suspends main operations in Gaza

World Central Kitchen has said that "ongoing attacks" in the Israeli offensive on Rafah had forced it to suspend operation of its main kitchen there.

The group also is having to move many of its smaller kitchens farther north in Gaza, away from the offensive, it said in a post on X.

1358 GMT — Three children, one woman killed in Israeli air strike on Rafah shelter

Three children and a woman were killed in an Israeli air strike on a shelter for displaced people in northern Rafah in southern Gaza, according to witnesses.

Bodies of the victims were transported to the European Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, while civil defence teams were searching the rubble for survivors, witnesses said.

The attack came shortly after at least 20 people were injured in Israeli shelling of a group of civilians near humanitarian aid warehouses in eastern Rafah.

1337 GMT — Yemen's Houthis target six ships in three seas

Yemen's Houthis have targeted six ships in three different seas, including the Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier Laax which was damaged after reporting a Houthi missile attack off the coast of Yemen, the Iran-backed group has said.

The Laax was attacked on Tuesday. The Houthis also launched attacks against the Morea and Sealady vessels in the Red Sea, the Alba and Maersk Hartford in the Arabian Sea and the Minvera Antonia in the Mediterranean, military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised speech.

They promised to attack any ships sailing towards Israeli ports, even in the Mediterranean.

1310 GMT — Israel's war on Gaza to continue until early 2025: Tel Aviv

The Gaza war will not end this year and will continue until early 2025, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's national security adviser has said.

Tzachi Hanegbi told the Israeli public broadcaster KAN that the war is expected to continue for another seven months.

Israel expanded its ground offensive in Rafah on Tuesday, with its tanks reaching the centre of the city.

1305 GMT — Brazil recalls ambassador to Israel: diplomatic source

Brazil has recalled its ambassador to Israel and will not immediately appoint a replacement, a diplomatic source has said, ratcheting up tensions between the two countries over Israel's war on Gaza.

Frederico Meyer was initially recalled for consultations with his government after Brazil and Israel exchanged harsh statements in February over the conflict. "There were no conditions for him to return" to Israel, the source said.

1213 GMT — Xi reiterates China's call for 'urgent' ceasefire in Gaza

Expressing "deep sadness" over the "dire situation in Gaza", China's President Xi Jinping has reiterated a call for an "urgent" ceasefire in the besieged Palestinian enclave.

"The ongoing conflict has caused massive casualties among innocent civilians in Palestine and the humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire," Xi told his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El Sisi, whom he was hosting for bilateral talks at the Great Hall of People in Beijing.

"China is deeply saddened," he added. "What is urgent now is to realize ceasefire as early as possible, prevent the spillovers from undermining regional peace and stability, and forestall a more serious humanitarian crisis," said the Chinese president.

1212 GMT — Amnesty International calls for ceasefire in Gaza

Amnesty International has urged an immediate and sustained ceasefire in Gaza.

"There is nowhere safe in Gaza," the organisation stated on X. "An immediate and sustained ceasefire by all parties is the only effective way to put an end to all this suffering and loss."

The organisation stressed that civilians, aid workers, hospitals, and schools should not be targeted.

1136 GMT — No indication from Israel that Rafah crossing could open soon: minister

The Palestinian health minister has said there was no indication from Israel that the Rafah crossing, used to bring in essential humanitarian and medical supplies, could be opened soon.

"Since it was closed, we have no indication that the Israelis would like it to be opened any time soon," the minister, Majed Abu Ramadan, told reporters on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva.

Rafah was a major entry point for humanitarian relief before Israel stepped up its military offensive on the Gaza side of the border earlier this month and seized control of the crossing from the Palestinian side.

1038 GMT — 25 more Palestinians detained by Israeli forces

The Israeli army has detained 25 more Palestinians in military raids across the occupied West Bank, according to the prisoners’ affairs groups.

The arrests took place in the cities of Hebron, Jenin, Tulkarem, Qalqilya and East Jerusalem, the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoner Society said in a joint statement.

Those arrested included a journalist and two women, the statement added.

The new arrests brought to 8,935 Palestinians detained by the Israeli army in the West Bank since last October, according to Palestinian figures.

1036 GMT — Gaza death toll reaches 36,171 amid relentless Israeli attacks

The Palestinian death toll from Israel's military offensive on Gaza has surged to 36,171 since last October, the Health Ministry in the besieged enclave has said.

At least 81,420 people have also been injured in the assault, the ministry added in a statement.

"Israeli attacks killed 75 people and injured 384 others in the last 24 hours," the ministry said. "Many people are still trapped under rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them," it added.

1035 GMT — 'Spirit of United Nations dead in Gaza': Türkiye's Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has hit out at the United Nations and called on the "Islamic world" to react after the latest deadly Israeli strikes in Gaza.

"The UN cannot even protect its own staff. What are you waiting for to act? The spirit of the United Nations is dead in Gaza," Erdogan told lawmakers from his AK party.

"Israel is not just a threat to Gaza but to all of humanity," he added.

"No state is safe as long as Israel does not follow international law and does not feel bound by international law," Erdogan added, repeating an accusation that Israel is committing "genocide" in Gaza.

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1014 GMT — Israel in control of 75% of buffer zone along Gaza-Egypt border, official says

Israel's military was in control of 75 percent of the Phildelphi corridor, a buffer zone between Gaza and Egypt, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi has said.

"Inside Gaza, the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) is now in control of 75% of the Philadelphi corridor and I believe it will be in control of it all with time. Together with the Egyptians, we must ensure weapon smuggling is prevented," he told Israel's public broadcaster Kan.

Hanegbi added that he expected fighting in Gaza to continue throughout 2024 at least.

0914 GMT — WHO delivers aid to north of Gaza for 1st time in 2 weeks, says Tedros

A World Health Organization mission reached the north of Gaza for the first time in more than two weeks, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

The mission delivered fuel, hospital beds, medicines and other medical supplies to Al Ahli hospital, Tedros announced on X.

"Amid ongoing intense hostilities, @WHO and partners still managed to reach Al-Ahli Hospital in #Gaza city. First mission to the north of the Strip since 13 May," said Tedros.

He said the supplies were enough to cover the needs of 1,500 people but insisted that much more was needed.

0909 GMT — 'Enough is enough': F1 icon Lewis Hamilton says Israel's attacks on Gaza 'must stop'

Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton has called for a halt to Israel's attacks on Gaza that have continued since more than seven months and caused a humanitarian catastrophe.

"Enough is enough. We cannot continue to watch this tragedy unfold and not speak up. The trauma and terror so many, but particularly innocent children, are experiencing is horrifying. This must stop - for the children, for their families, and for their lives," the 39-year-old Mercedes driver from UK wrote in an Instagram story.

Hamilton also shared a Reels video on children living in Rafah, the southern Gaza city Israel invaded despite a ruling of the International Court of Justice against it.

0901 GMT — Illegal settlers storm Al Aqsa Mosque, perform Talmudic rituals

Dozens of illegal Israeli settlers stormed into the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem amid restrictions on Palestinians' entry into the mosque.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa quoted eyewitnesses who said the settlers stormed the holy mosque from its western Al-Mugharbah Gate area, the gate which is used by the settlers to storm into the mosque.

The settlers, under the Israeli forces' protection, did provocative tours inside the mosque and performed Talmudic rituals inside.

It added that the Israeli forces intensified their restrictions in Jerusalem's Old City area and gates leading to the mosque.

0734 GMT — Saudi Arabia condemns Israel's 'continuous genocidal massacres' against Palestinians in Rafah

Saudi Arabia strongly condemned what it described as Israel's "continuous genocidal massacres" against displaced Palestinians in Rafah, southern Gaza.

At least 21 people were killed on Tuesday in Israeli shelling of a refugee tent encampment in al Mawasi area west of Rafah, the Rafah Emergency Committee said.

It came after at least 45 civilians were killed and dozens injured in an Israeli strike on a tent encampment in Tel al Sultan on Sunday.

In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said the Israeli massacres against Palestinians continue "without deterrence by continuing to target the tents of defenseless Palestinian refugees in Rafah."

0420 GMT — World's largest humanitarian network calls for Gaza ceasefire

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) called for a ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza, where millions of people face worsening hunger.

"We desperately need a political solution that will allow us to have a ceasefire to get aid in," IFRC President Kate Forbes told Reuters in an interview in the capital, Manila.

"We're ready to make a difference. We have to have access, and to have access there has to have a ceasefire," said Forbes, who in December became the second woman to ever hold the top job at the world's largest humanitarian network.

0410 GMT — Hundreds gather in front of White House to protest Israel's attacks on Rafah

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the White House in the US capital to protest Israel’s attack over the weekend on a tent camp in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, calling on the US government to end funding of Israel's war on Gaza.

The protest was supported by several pro-Palestine groups including the Palestinian Youth Movement, the Party for Socialism and Liberation and Maryland for Palestine.

The protesters carried banners saying "Free Palestine," "End All US Funding of Israeli Apartheid," "All Eyes on Rafah" and "Stop This Slaughter.”

The protestors chanted "Stop bombing Rafah now" and "End the occupation now."

0336 GMT — Israel pounds Gaza as UNSC meets over deadly strike

Israel carried out fresh strikes in the southern Gaza city of Rafah after the UN Security Council met to discuss a deadly attack that sparked global outcry.

AFP journalists in Rafah reported new strikes early Wednesday, hours after witnesses and a Palestinian security source said Israeli tanks had penetrated the heart of the city.

"People are currently inside their homes because anyone who moves is being shot at by Israeli drones," resident Abdel Khatib said.

US President Joe Biden has warned Israel against launching a major military offensive in Rafah, but his administration insisted that Israel had not yet crossed its red lines.

"We have not seen them smash into Rafah," said the US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.

0200 GMT — Nikki Haley writes 'finish them' on Israeli shell: lawmaker

Former US presidential hopeful Nikki Haley has been photographed writing "Finish Them" on an Israeli shell as she toured sites near the northern border with Lebanon.

The photograph was posted on X on Tuesday by Danny Danon, a member of the Israeli parliament and former ambassador to the United Nations, who was accompanying Haley on her visit.

"'Finish Them'. This is what my friend the former ambassador Nikki Haley wrote," Danon said in his post that showed a kneeling Haley writing on a shell with a purple marker pen.

Haley was a hawkish UN envoy under Donald Trump, and her term overlapped with Danon.

2300 GMT — Algeria proposes UNSC resolution calling for truce in Gaza

Algeria has circulated a proposed UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and ordering Israel to halt its military invasion in the southern city of Rafah immediately.

The draft resolution, obtained by The Associated Press, also demands that the ceasefire be respected by all parties. It also calls for the immediate release of all hostages taken during Hamas' blitz in southern Israel's military and settlements on October 7.

The draft demands compliance with previous council resolutions that call for the opening of all border crossings and humanitarian access to Gaza's 2.4 million people who desperately need food and other aid.

The proposed resolution says that "the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip constitutes a threat to regional and international peace and security."

The draft says Israel "shall immediately halt its military offensive, and any other action in Rafah."

2130 GMT — California academic workers strike in support of pro-Palestine protests

Discord from last month's violent mob attack on pro-Palestine students and activists encamped at the University of California, Los Angeles, has flared again as academic workers staged a protest strike on campus protesting UCLA's response to the incident.

Unionised academic researchers, graduate teaching assistants and post-doctoral scholars at UCLA walked off the job over what they regard as unfair labor practices in the university's handling of pro-Palestine demonstrations in recent weeks, organisers said.

They were joined by fellow academic workers at two other University of California campuses — UC Davis near Sacramento, and UC Santa Cruz, where the protest strike began on May 20.

The strike was organised by the United Auto Workers union Local 4811, which represents some 48,000 non-tenured academic employees total across 10 University of California campuses and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

2100 GMT — Mexico seeks to join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel

Mexico has formally requested to intervene in the case filed by South Africa accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has announced.

"Mexico, invoking Article 63 of the Statute of the Court, filed in the Registry of the Court a declaration of intervention in the case concerning 'Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip' (South Africa v. Israel)," said the ICJ in a statement.

Article 63 entitles any state party to a convention to participate in it, which is the case with Mexico.

In its petition, Mexico argues that "genocidal intent" encompasses mass killings and the pervasive destruction of culture, which could be understood as "cultural cleansing" and "cultural warfare," and a "clear conduct intended to severely harm the targeted group as a part of a policy aimed at the eradication of said culture."

For our live updates from Tuesday, May 28, 2024, click here.