Israeli troops ‘divide Gaza in two’ as Brits barred from leaving horror scenes
The Gaza Strip has been split in two as Britons remain stranded after the Rafah border crossing was closed due to an impasse in diplomatic relations between Israel, Egypt and Hamas.
Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters “today there is north Gaza and south Gaza,” calling it a “significant stage” in Israel’s war against Hamas militants.
Mr Hagari said Israeli troops have been striking Hamas targets above ground and in the group’s underground tunnel network. Israeli media reported troops are expected to enter Gaza City within 48 hours.
Meanwhile,the key Rafah border post remained closed to foreign nationals on Sunday, having been shut on Saturday in an apparent row between Israel and the Palestinians over evacuating injured patients.
THIS IS A LIVE BLOG. FOLLOW BELOW FOR THE LATEST UPDATES.
READ MORE… Police attacked by mob throwing petrol bombs and fireworks as area locked down
Latest death toll
The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has surpassed 9,700 with more than 4,000 of them children and minors, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza.
In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.
More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the October 7 Hamas attack which started the fighting. A total of 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.
Roughly 1,100 people have left the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday under an apparent agreement among the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.
Gaza is ‘the biggest terror complex in the world’, Israeli ambassador
Michael Hertzog, the Israeli ambassador to the US, has said Gaza is “the biggest terror complex in the world”, with tens of thousands of fighters and rockets, among other weaponry — and 310 miles (500 kilometers) of underground tunnels.
Mr Hertzog told CBS: “This is what we’re up against. And we have to uproot it, because if we do not, they will strike again and again.”
He also said Israel was making every effort to distinguish between “terrorists and the civilian population” in its war with the Hamas militant group that rules Gaza.
UN calls for immediate ceasfire
The heads of 11 UN agencies and six humanitarian organisations have issued a joint plea for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza, the protection of civilians and the swift entry to Gaza of food, water, medicine and fuel.
In a statement issued overnight, they called Hamas’ surprise October 7 attacks in Israel “horrific”.
The heads of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee on the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory said: “However, the horrific killings of even more civilians in Gaza is an outrage, as is cutting off 2.2 million Palestinians from food, water, medicine, electricity and fuel.”
The UN and humanitarian organisations said more than 23,000 injured people need immediate treatment and hospitals are overstretched.
Israel strikes 450 targets in Gaza
Israel’s air force has said it struck 450 targets inside Gaza in the last 24 hours, killing a senior Hamas commander.
An Israeli Air Force statement read: “During the last day, air force fighter jets attacked about 450 targets of the terrorist organisation Hamas, including military compounds, observation posts, anti-aircraft positions, and more.”
Israel’s navy attacked headquarters, anti-tank missile launching positions and observation posts.
The statement revealed Israel Defence Forces forces took control of a Hamas outpost inside Gaza.
It added that a number of Hamas militants were killed in the operation to secure the outpost.
US sends nuclear-capable submarine to Middle East
The US military has sent a nuclear-capable submarine to the Middle East.
It provided no other details in its online statement Sunday, though it posted an image that appeared to show a submarine in Egypt’s Suez Canal near its Suez Canal Bridge.
Washington’s acknowledgment of an Ohio-class submarine’s location is incredibly rare as they represent part of America’s so-called “nuclear triad” of atomic weapons — which also includes land-based ballistic missiles and nuclear bombs aboard strategic bombers.
Several Ohio-class submarines instead carry cruise missiles and the capability to deploy with special operations forces, so it’s unclear if the submarine operating now in the Middle East carries nuclear ballistic missiles.
- Advert-free experience without interruptions.
- Rocket-fast speedy loading pages.
- Exclusive & Unlimited access to all our content.
Source: Read Full Article