Skip next section ICRC: Supply of essential medical supplies ‘critically short’November 1, 2023
ICRC: Supply of essential medical supplies ‘critically short’International Committee of the Red Cross spokesperson Alyona Synenko told DW that the aid group’s main priority was “delivering humanitarian assistance to hospitals in Gaza” that she said were running “critically short on the essential medical supplies.”
“What we have seen after we have visited hospitals around Gaza in different areas was horrifying,” Synenko said. “We have seen medical professionals who have now been working for weeks in a row without any pause.”
The ICRC spokesperson added: “Many of them are also in very distressed psychological states, because they don’t know if their own family members are safe, and sometimes they find their own family members among the victims.”
Aid received thus far, Synenko said, was “infinitely small compared to the massive scale of the needs we are seeing.”
On the topic of Wednesday’s communications blackout, Synenko said that until Tuesday there had still been communications with staff, however, as of Wednesday morning she was unable to contact team members.
Gaza’s largest telecommunications provider, Paltel, has reported a “complete disruption” of phone and internet services in the strip.
“We are, of course, extremely worried,” Synenko said, adding that “it’s impossible to put up a large humanitarian response without the functioning telecommunication lines, but also, just for civilians, people need information about how to reach safety.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGr1Skip next section Foreign passport holders leave Gaza for Egypt from Rafah CrossingNovember 1, 2023
Foreign passport holders leave Gaza for Egypt from Rafah Crossing A first group of foreign nationals entered the Rafah border crossing from Gaza. It is the first group to leave Gaza since the Israel-Hamas war began over three weeks ago.
The AP and AFP news agencies reported seeing people with foreign passports allowed into the crossing between Egypt and Gaza on Wednesday.
Reuters reported that an agreement to allow limited evacuations from Gaza was brokered between Egypt, Israel and Hamas by Qatar, in coordination with the United States.
The deal allows foreign passport holders and some critically injured people to leave, Reuters reported citing a source. It added that there is no timeline for how long the border will remain open for evacuation
AFP reported that hundreds of wounded Gaza residents and foreign nationals had gathered at the crossing on Wednesday, looking to flee the war-torn enclave.
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGuKSkip next section Israel says Bolivia aligning itself with HamasNovember 1, 2023
Israel says Bolivia aligning itself with HamasIsrael accused Bolivia of “capitulation to terrorism and to the Ayatollah’s regime in Iran” after the South American country recalled its ambassador in protest of the civilian casualties from the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
“By taking this step, the Bolivian government is aligning itself with the Hamas terrorist organization,” Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lior Haiat said in a statement.
Israel had downplayed Bolivia’s move to cut ties by saying, “Relations between the countries had been devoid of content anyway.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGpKSkip next section Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli strike on Gaza campNovember 1, 2023
Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli strike on Gaza campSaudi Arabia on Wednesday slammed Israel’s airstrike at the densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp in Gaza, with the kingdom’s Foreign Ministry issuing a statement expressing itself on the matter.
“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia condemns in the strongest terms possible the inhumane targeting by the Israeli occupation forces of the Jabaliya refugee camp in the besieged Gaza Strip, which caused the death and injury of a large number of innocent civilians,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
The ministry went on to say that it “totally rejects the repeated targeting by the Israeli occupation forces of densely populated civilian areas” and accused Israel of violating both international law and international humanitarian law.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said the “dire humanitarian situation stemming from the ongoing escalation cannot be justified” and called for an end to hostilities.
It warned of “a humanitarian disaster” and said that ultimately it would be Israel and the international community who would be responsible.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said over 50 people were killed and 150 were wounded in a strike on the Jabalia refugee camp.
On Tuesday, the Israel Defense Forces said fighter jets killed a Hamas commander who it said was responsible for sending Islamist militants into Israel on October 7 to conduct a terror attack.
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGkxSkip next section IDF confirms strike on Jabaliya refugee campNovember 1, 2023
IDF confirms strike on Jabaliya refugee campThe Israeli military said its fighters, on Tuesday, identified several Hamas terrorists who were entrenched in a multi-story building in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza. This building was located near a school, a medical center and government offices, it said in a post on X.
“The fighters directed air forces that attacked the terrorists,” the military said.
Jabaliya is the largest refugee camp in northern Gaza.
On Tuesday, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said over 50 people were killed and 150 were wounded. However, it added that dozens more were likely buried under the rubble. The ministry denounced the attack, calling it “a heinous Israeli massacre” at the camp, the AFP news agency reported.
In an earlier post on Tuesday, the IDF confirmed that it had targeted and “killed Ebrahim Biari, the commander of the Jabalia center battalion of the Hamas terrorist organization, who was one of the leaders of the murderous terrorist attack on October 7.”
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem denied that any senior commander was in the camp and called the claim an Israeli pretext for killing civilians, Reuters reported.
The Gaza health ministry has said over 8,525 people have been killed in Hamas-controlled territory in the last three weeks. Of the dead, the United Nations reported that 3,450, or 40%, were children.
The Israeli strikes came after Hamas militants conducted wide-scale terrorist attacks on Israel on October 7. Hamas fighters killed some 1,400 people in Israel and took 200 people hostage. Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by Israel, Germany, the European Union, the United States and other countries.
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGkjSkip next section IDF says it attacked over 11,000 terrorist targets since fighting beganNovember 1, 2023
IDF says it attacked over 11,000 terrorist targets since fighting beganThe Israeli military has attacked over 11,000 targets of “terrorist organizations” since the fighting started, the Israel Defense Forces said in a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
This continued overnight as well. “Combined forces of the IDF attacked many terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip during the night, including operational headquarters and squads of Hamas terrorists,” the post read.
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGkESkip next section Internet cut off in Gaza, Palestinian telecommunications agency saysNovember 1, 2023
Internet cut off in Gaza, Palestinian telecommunications agency saysInternet and communication services have been completely cut off in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian telecommunications agency said.
“We are sorry to announce that communications and internet services have been completely cut off in Gaza,” the Palestine Telecommunications Company (Paltel) said on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
The company owed the blackout to international access being disconnected once again.
Paltel is Gaza’s largest telecommunications provider.
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGgdSkip next section Chile, Colombia recall envoys in Israel over Gaza operationsNovember 1, 2023
Chile, Colombia recall envoys in Israel over Gaza operationsThe leftist presidents of Chile and Colombia have both recalled their ambassadors to Israel for consultations, as the pair condemned Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip, ongoing since the bloody Hamas attacks of October 7.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric said the summoning was due to the “unacceptable violations of international humanitarian law.”
He stressed the country’s condemnation of the Israeli military operations, saying they “entail collective punishment of the Palestinian civilian population in Gaza.”
He cited the Hamas health authorities’ death toll of over 8,000, saying they were mostly women and children.
Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, also said he was recalling Bogota’s ambassador to Israel, saying he could not remain in the country “if Israel does not stop the massacre of the Palestinian people.”
On Monday, Bolivia’s leftist government announced the severing ties with Israel over “the aggressive and disproportionate Israeli military offensive” in Gaza.
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGbbSkip next section US President Biden and Jordan’s King Abdullah discuss protecting Gaza civiliansNovember 1, 2023
US President Biden and Jordan’s King Abdullah discuss protecting Gaza civiliansUS President Joe Biden discussed with Jordan’s King Abdullah II the importance of protecting civilians’ lives in Gaza and ensuring that “Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside of Gaza.”
In a phone call, the two heads of state stressed their shared commitment to increasing aid to civilians in Gaza, the White House said.
They discussed “urgent mechanisms to stem violence, calm rhetoric, and reduce regional tensions.”
Biden confirmed “unwavering US support for Jordan and His Majesty’s leadership.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4YGfZ
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