Israel-Palestine News Highlights: Israel and Hamas agreed to a cease-fire, halting a deadly 11-day war that led to widespread destruction in the Gaza Strip, brought life in much of Israel to a standstill and claimed over 200 lives. The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement which controls the Gaza Strip, came into force early today. Each side said it stood ready to retaliate for any truce violations by the other. The truce brokered by Egypt, which also included Gaza's second-most powerful armed group, Islamic Jihad, was agreed upon following mounting international pressure to stem the bloodshed which erupted on May 10. At 2 a.m. local time, just as the cease-fire took effect, frenzy life returned to the streets of Gaza. People went out of their homes, some shouting “Allahu Akbar" or whistling from balconies. Many fired in the air, celebrating the truce. A statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the security cabinet had "unanimously accepted the recommendation of all of the security officials ... to accept the Egyptian initiative for a mutual ceasefire without pre-conditions". Hamas and Islamic Jihad also confirmed the ceasefire in statements. "This is the euphoria of victory," said Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas figure, in front of a crowd of thousands of Palestinians who had gathered in the streets to celebrate.
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Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Hamas has been hit hard, ground realty to determine whether ceasefire holds: Israeli diplomat
Israel has hit Palestinian militant group Hamas "very hard" in the Gaza Strip as it successfully struck hundreds of targets including military and intelligence infrastructure and underground tunnels of the outfit in the last few days, a senior Israeli diplomat said in New Delhi on Friday.
Rony Yedidia Clein, the Deputy Chief of the Israeli embassy, said the US and several other countries provided full support to Israeli''s action while India had an understanding of it.
"We spoke with our Indian counterparts. We have found an understanding from them although they did not go for public expression of support as other countries did. We did have an understanding from the Indian government officials we spoke with about the Israeli actions," she said.
Both Israel and Hamas agreed on a ceasefire that has come into effect on Friday after 11 days of intense fighting in which around 230 people were killed in Gaza and 12 in Israel.
PTI
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Israelis readjust after truce stops rockets raining down - for now
Tidying up her building's bomb shelter after 11 days of conflict when Palestinian militant rockets rained down, Israeli mother Tammy Zamir felt relief mixed with worry that a truce to this round of fighting did not mean an end to the violence. "I am happy that it's over but on the other side I'm certain there will be another escalation and we will be scared once again and have to go down to the shelter," she said, speaking in the Israeli city of Ashkelon.
Looking on, after alerts had rung out night and day, Zamir's son Osher said: "Im scared of the rocket sirens and the rockets falling." Friday's ceasefire means Israelis in Ashkelon and other cities in rocket range can now start to resume normal routines that were put on hold during what the military said was one of the heaviest barrages Israel has ever faced.
Israel, in turn, launched round-the-clock airstrikes on Gaza, in its latest flare-up with Hamas, the Islamist rulers of the enclave which has 2 million people, many of them refugees, some of them families originally from Ashkelon. About 4,400 rockets were fired at Israel, with about 600 falling inside Gaza and many others stopped by Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system. But rockets still got through, slamming into homes, synagogues and other buildings.
"We would have liked Hamas to have been eliminated but we knew it would not happen," Tomer Glam, mayor of Ashkelon, told Israeli broadcaster Kan on Friday. "The biggest damage has been its toll sadly on our people."
Israel says 13 people have been killed in the conflict, the fourth between Israel and Hamas since the group took control of Gaza in 2007. Palestinians, who put their death toll at 243, were also emerging to view flattened buildings and other damage in the narrow strip of land surrounded by Israel, the Mediterranean Sea and small stretch of border with Egypt.
Reuters
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | What was the outcome of the latest Gaza war?
As with the last three wars, the fighting was ended by an informal cease-fire brokered by Egypt and other mediators, the exact terms of which were not made public.
Hamas claimed that Israel agreed to halt police actions at the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem and the threatened eviction of Palestinian families from the nearby Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. Both had sparked Palestinian protests and clashes with police that eventually ignited the war. But there was no confirmation from Israel or mediators.
Previous cease-fires have stopped major fighting but proved shaky. Israel and Hamas have fought four wars and exchanged fire countless times since the Islamic militant group seized control of Gaza from forces loyal to the Palestinian Authority in 2007. Scattered clashes at Al-Aqsa after Friday prayers were an early test of the truce's durability.
No cease-fire has addressed the underlying issues fueling the decades-old conflict, including Israel's occupation of lands the Palestinians want for a future state and Hamas' refusal to recognize Israel's right to exist. Israel and the Palestinians have not held substantive peace talks in more than a decade. (AP)
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Israeli President praises 'generosity, kindheartedness' of Indian caregiver killed in violence
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin has praised the "generosity and kindheartedness" of the Indian caregiver who was killed on May 11 in a rocket attack by Palestinian militants from Gaza. Soumya Santosh, 30, who hailed from Kerala's Idukki district, worked as a caregiver attending to an old woman at a house in the southern Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon. She was talking to her husband Santhosh over a video call in the evening on May 11 when a rocket fired from Gaza directly hit the house where she was working. (PTI)
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Palestinians see victory in Gaza truce as Israel warns Hamas
Palestinians rallied by the thousands early Friday after a cease-fire took effect in the latest Gaza war, with many viewing it as costly but clear victory for the Islamic militant group Hamas. Israel vowed to respond with a new level of force to any further hostilities. (AP)
Israel-Palestince Conflict LIVE Updates | Palestinian protesters, Israeli police clash in Jerusalem hours after Gaza truce
Scattered clashes between Palestinian protesters, Israeli police at flashpoint Jerusalem site hours after Gaza truce, news agency AP reported. More details were awaited.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Bomb blast kills 6 people at pro-Palestinian rally in southwest Pakistan
A bomb blast on Friday killed six people at a pro-Palestinian rally in Southwest Pakistan, police said. The bomb, which was attached to a motorcycle, targeted the vehicle of the leader of the hardline religious party that had organised the event, local police chief Jafar Khan told Reuters by phone. It exploded as people were dispersing at the end of the rally in Chaman city near the Afghan border, he said.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Pope hails Mideast ceasefire, urges global prayers for peace
Pope Francis on Friday hailed theIsrael-Palestinian ceasefire and urged the entire Catholic Church to pray for peace. "I thank God for the decision to halt the armed conflicts and acts of violence, and I pray for the pursuit of paths of dialogue and peace," he told ambassadors to the Holy See.
"Tomorrow evening, the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, together with their faithful, will gather to celebrate the Vigil of Pentecost in Saint Stephen’s Church in Jerusalem and to implore the gift of peace."I take this occasion to ask all the pastors and faithful of the Catholic Church to unite themselves spiritually with this prayer.
"May every community pray to the Holy Spirit 'that Israelis and Palestinians may find the path of dialogue and forgiveness, be patient builders of peace and justice, and be open, step by step, to a common hope, to coexistence among brothers and sisters'." (AFP)
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates |
Amidst a pandemic, if there is something which could force global news media eyeballs off it, it would be news about some good old fashioned West Asian conflict. The explanation for the enduring conflict between Israel and the Palestinians differs based on who you talk to and what timeline one uses.
Much of the blame should go to the West, which allowed a foreign State to be created in 1948. Unfortunately, despite the claims of being “a land without a people for a people without a land”, this land was populated with Palestinians who obviously did not want to leave their land for other people. Since 1948, Israel has been expanding its boundaries far beyond what was originally envisaged. This lies at the root of this intractable conflict.
Read:Israel-Palestine Conflict | The world reacts with predictable indifference
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates |
5 bodies found, about 10 survivors rescued in Gaza tunnel: officialsEmergency workers on Friday recovered five bodies and rescued around 10 survivors from the rubble of what appeared to be a tunnel in Gaza hit by Israeli bombardment, medics and witnesses said.Raed al-Dahshan, deputy head of Gaza's civil defence, said they were still sifting through the rubble to find more bodies, hours after a ceasefire ended 11 days of Israeli air strikes on the besieged coastal enclave run by Islamist movement Hamas. AFP
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | France welcomes Mideast ceasefire, urges relaunch of peace process
France on Friday welcomed a ceasefire brokered betweenIsraeland Hamas after 11 days of fighting, but said the violence underscored the need for a relaunch of the peace process between the Jewish state and Palestinians.
"I welcome the ceasefire, which puts an end to a cycle of violence with a heavy civilian toll," Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement, hailing the "fundamental role" played by Egypt as a mediator.He said that the violence had "underscored the need for a relaunch of a genuine political process between the parties," adding that without this "cycles of violence will be repeated." (AFP)
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EU welcomes Gaza ceasefire, urges 'political solution'The European Union on Friday welcomed a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, and vowed to increase efforts for a long-term "political solution" to resolve the crisis."The European Union welcomes the announced ceasefire bringing to an end the violence in and around Gaza. We commend Egypt, Qatar, United Nations, United States and others who have played a facilitating role in this," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.
"We are appalled and regret the loss of life over these past 11 days. As the EU has consistently reiterated, the situation in the Gaza Strip has long been unsustainable." The statement insisted that "only a political solution will bring sustainable peace and end once for all the Palestinian-Israeli conflict".
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Mideast ceasefire 'good' but conflict causes must be addressed: Germany
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Friday welcomed a ceasefire brokered between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement which controls the Gaza Strip, after 11 days of deadly fighting. "Good that there is now a ceasefire," Maas tweeted, a day after he visited Israel and Ramallah for talks. "Now we have to deal with the causes, rebuild trust and find a solution to the Middle East conflict," he said.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Lebanon's Hezbollah hails 'historic victory' for Palestinians
Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement hailed a "historic victory" for the Palestinians after a ceasefire took effect Friday betweenIsraeland Gaza militants following 11 days of fighting."Hezbollah congratulates the heroic Palestinian people and its valiant resistance on the historic victory achieved... against the Zionist enemy,"the Shiite militant group said in a statement.
Hezbollah, which fought its own devastating war withIsraelin 2006 but remains a powerful force in Lebanese politics, has close relations with Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Palestinians claim victory as Gaza truce faces early test
Palestinians rallied by the thousands early Friday after a cease-fire took effect in the latest Gaza war, with many viewing it as costly but clear victory for the Islamic militant group Hamas over a far more powerful Israel. The 11-day war left more than 200 dead — the vast majority Palestinians — and brought widespread devastation to the already impoverished Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. But the rocket barrages that brought life to a standstill in much of Israel were seen by many Palestinians as a bold response to perceived Israeli abuses in Jerusalem, the emotional heart of the conflict.
The truce faces an early test on Friday, when tens of thousands of Palestinians attend weekly prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, a flashpoint holy site revered by Jews and Muslims. Celebratory protests could spark confrontations with Israeli police, setting in motion another cycle of escalation like the one that led to the war. Thousands took to the streets of Gaza as the cease-fire took hold at 2 a.m. Young men waved Palestinian and Hamas flags, passed out sweets, honked horns and set off fireworks. Spontaneous celebrations also broke out in east Jerusalem and across the occupied West Bank.
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Palestinian envoy accuses Israel of 'genocide'The top Palestinian diplomat is accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinian families and urging the international community to protect the Palestinian people until their freedom is assured.Foreign Minister Riad Al-Malki told Thursday's emergency meeting of the U.N. General Assembly on the conflict between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers that every country in the world has a responsibility to ensure that peace, justice and freedom prevail.
He urged the assembly ensure that Israel is held accountable for killing innocent Palestinians and is not provided with arms. He said the presence of a dozen ministers, almost all from Arab and Islamic countries, sends a clear message: Stop the violence. The Palestinian minister responded to Israel's claims of acting in self-defense by saying: How can an occupying power have the right to defend itself when a whole people under occupation is deprived of the very same rights?
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Pakistan welcomes ceasefire, to hold rallies in solidarity with Palestine
Pakistan has welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire and a series of demonstrations are planned across the country to mark a day of solidarity with the Palestinian people, reported Al Jazeera. As per the report, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi welcomed the ceasefire, describing it as “the power of collective, unified action; this is the effort of every person and every nation, together for a just cause”.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Cleric held in UP for pro-Palestine appeal
Police in Uttar Pradesh have arrested a Muslim cleric who allegedly appealed to his community to put up the flag of Palestine on their houses and vehicles after the Friday namaaz, in order to show solidarity with Palestinians in the wake of the violence in the Gaza Strip. The cleric, Maulana Yasir Akhtar, was arrested on Thursday after he was booked under Section 505 (2) (statements conducing to public mischief) of the IPC.
Azamgarh SP Sudhir Kumar Singh said: "It came to our notice that Yasir, a resident of North Churihar Kasba in Saraimir area, made an appeal on his Facebook page, Azamgarh Express, displaying the Palestinian flag and asking the community members to the such flags atop their houses and vehicles after Friday namaaz. "An FIR was lodged against him at Saraimir police station, and he was arrested with the help of the surveillance cell. Further legal action against him is underway." (Ians)
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | UN chief welcomes cease-fire, urges negotiations
The United Nations chief is urging Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers to observe their cease-fire, and he says the international community must develop a reconstruction package “that supports the Palestinian people and strengthens their institutions.”Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters after Thursday’s announcement of an end to 11 days of deadly clashes that “Israeli and Palestinian leaders have a responsibility beyond the restoration of calm to start a serious dialogue to address the root causes of the conflict.”
Guterres says the U.N. is ready to work with Israel, the Palestinians, and international and regional partners to return to “meaningful negotiations” on a two-state settlement based on territorial lines before the 1967 war. He says Hamas-controlled “Gaza is an integral part of the future Palestinian state and no effort should be spared to bring about real national reconciliation that ends the division” with the rival Fatah-led Palestinian Authority that governs the West Bank.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | Palestinian minister: Cease-fire in Gaza is `not enough'
The Palestinians' top diplomat said a cease-fire in Gaza will enable 2 million Palestinians to sleep Thursday night but it’s “not enough at all” and the world must now tackle the difficult issues of Jerusalem's future and achieving an independent Palestinian state.
Riad Al-Malki told reporters on the sidelines of an emergency meeting of the U.N. General Assembly on the conflict between Israel and Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers that while a cease-fire is good it doesn’t address “the core issue” that started the violence.
He said that is Jerusalem, citing the “desecration” by Israeli soldiers and settlers of the Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third holiest site, and the Israeli policy of evicting Palestinians from their homes in the city’s different neighborhoods including Sheikh Jarra.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to travel to Middle East 'in the coming days'
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to the Middle East "in the coming days," the State Department said Thursday after Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire halting 11 days of fighting.Blinken spoke with his Israeli counterpart Gabi Ashkenazi, who "welcomed Secretary Blinken's planned travel to the region," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.
The top US diplomat "will meet with Israeli,Palestinian and regional counterparts in the coming days todiscuss recovery efforts andworking together to build better futures for Israelis and Palestinians," Price said. The announcement came after Blinken spoke twice Thursday with Ashkenazi ahead of implementation of the ceasefire, which was brokered by Egypt and followed mounting international pressure to stem the bloodshed.
"Both leaders expressed their appreciation for Egypt's mediation efforts, and the secretary noted that he would continue to remain in close touch with his Egyptian counterpart and other regional stakeholders," Price said. (AFP)
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates | UN envoy welcomes cease-fire in Gaza fighting
The top United Nations envoy to Israel and the Palestinian territories is welcoming the cease-fire in the latest war between Israel and the Hamas- militant group that rules Gaza.Tor Wennesland said early Friday on Twitter that he extends his deepest condolences to the victims of the violence & their loved ones.
He also thanks Egypt and Qatar for their work with the UN in brokering the deal that ended 11 days of fighting. He adds that now the work of building #Palestine can start.
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates |
Hamas to keep finger on trigger after ceasefire, says officialA Hamas official said that Israel must end its violations in Jerusalem and address damages from the bombardment of Gaza following a ceasefire that began on Friday, warning the group still had its "hands on the trigger". "It is true the battle ends today but (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and the whole world should know that our hands are on the trigger and we will continue to grow the capabilities of this resistance," said Ezzat El-Reshiq, a member of the Hamas political bureau.
He told Reuters in Doha that the movement's demands also include protecting Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem and ending the eviction of several Palestinians from their home in East Jerusalem which Reshiq described as "a red line".
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates |
Joe Biden hails ceasefire, vows USwill help Gaza with humanitarian aidPresident Joe Biden on Thursday pledged humanitarian and reconstruction aid for Gaza as he hailed a deal to end 11 days of fighting between Israel and Hamas in which he was criticized by fellow Democrats for not speaking out more forcefully against Israeli actions. Biden, appearing briefly at the White House after news of the ceasefire agreement, also promised to replenish Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system.
"We remain committed to work with the United Nations and other international stakeholders to provide rapid humanitarian assistance and to marshal international support for the people in Gaza and in the Gaza reconstruction efforts," Biden said. Biden said reconstruction aid for Gaza would be provided in partnership with the Palestinian Authority and not Hamas, which the United States labels a terrorist organization.
But the Palestinian Authority, which is run by moderate PresidentMahmoudAbbas, governs only part of the occupied West Bank, while Hamas holds sway in the Gaza Strip. Biden also used his remarks to defend his approach to handling the crisis after many Democratic lawmakers urged him to adjust his stance defending Israel's right to self-defense and voiced displeasure with what they viewed as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's disproportionate response to Hamas rocket attacks. Reuters
Israel-Palestine Conflict LIVE Updates |
Israel-Palestinian ceasefire comes into forceA ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement which controls the Gaza Strip, came into force early Friday after 11 days of deadly fighting that pounded the Palestinian enclave and forced countless Israelis to seek shelter from rockets.
Celebrations were heard on Gaza streets in the minutes after the truce began as cars honked their horns and some guns were fired in the air, AFP journalists said, while in the occupied West Bank, joyful crowds also took to the streets.With no alerts sounding in Israel to warn of incoming Hamas rockets, the ceasefire appeared to be holding in the early hours of Friday. Continue reading...
Hello and welcome to Moneycontrol’s LIVE coverage of the latest round of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Israel and Hamas have agreed to a cease-fire. Stay tuned to this LIVE blog for latest updates
