The death toll in Gaza has surpassed 46,000 as the Israel-Hamas war continues with no resolution in sight, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, reports AP. The ministry reported on Thursday that 46,006 Palestinians have been killed, and 109,378 have been injured since the conflict began. It also noted that more than half of the fatalities are women and children, though it did not specify how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. Israeli airstrikes in Gaza kill 5, including 2 infants The Israeli military claims to have killed over 17,000 militants, though it has not provided evidence to support this figure. Israel maintains that it aims to avoid civilian casualties and holds Hamas responsible for civilian deaths, alleging that militants operate within residential areas. Israeli strikes have frequently targeted what it describes as militant positions in shelters and hospitals, resulting in the deaths of women and children. Hostages in Gaza endure another winter as their families plead for a ceasefire The conflict started on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants launched an attack on southern Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and abducting around 250. Of the 100 hostages still held in Gaza, about a third are believed to have died.

Israeli airstrikes in Gaza have killed at least five people, including two infants and a woman, according to Palestinian medics, reports AP. In the central city of Deir al-Balah, a strike targeted a home, killing two men and a woman, as reported by Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the victims. The hospital also reported the death of a 4-month-old boy in a strike on his family’s home in the Bureij refugee camp nearby. An Associated Press journalist confirmed seeing four bodies in the hospital morgue. In Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood, another airstrike hit a home, killing a 3-week-old baby, according to the Health Ministry’s emergency service. The Israeli military asserts it targets only militants, whom it accuses of hiding among civilians. The conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and abducting around 250. At least 100 hostages remain in Gaza, with a third believed to be deceased. Hostages in Gaza endure another winter as their families plead for a ceasefire Israel’s ongoing air and ground offensive has resulted in over 45,800 Palestinian deaths, as reported by the Gaza Health Ministry. While the ministry does not specify how many were combatants, it states that women and children comprise over half the fatalities. The Israeli military claims to have killed over 17,000 militants but has not provided evidence to support this figure. At least 30 people killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza on Friday

At least 30 people, including children, were killed in Gaza by Israeli strikes overnight and into Friday morning, hospital staff said, as sirens also sounded across Israel and stalled ceasefire talks were set to resume. Staff at the Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital said more than a dozen women and children were killed in strikes that hit various places in Central Gaza, including Nuseirat, Zawaida, Maghazi and Deir al Balah. Dozens of people were also killed across the enclave the previous day, bringing the total of people killed in the past 24 hours to 56. The Israeli army did not comment on the latest strikes. However, in a statement Friday, it said during the past day it had struck dozens of Hamas gathering points and command and control centers throughout Gaza, areas where Hamas had planned and executed attacks. The army said measures were taken to mitigate civilian harm, such as using precise munitions and aerial surveillance. Israeli strikes across Gaza kill 40, including several kids Strikes Thursday hit Hamas security officers and an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone. Among those killed early Friday was Omar al-Derawi, a freelance journalist. Associated Press reporters saw friends and colleagues mourning over his body at the hospital, with a press vest laid on top of his shroud. Israelis also woke up to attacks early Friday morning. Israel said missiles were fired into the country from Yemen, which set off air raid sirens in Jerusalem and central Israel and sent people scrambling to shelters. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, though a faint explosion, likely either from the missile or from interceptors, could be heard in Jerusalem. Israel's army said a missile was intercepted. As the attacks were underway, efforts at ceasefire negotiations were expected to resume Friday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he had authorized a delegation from the Mossad intelligence agency, the Shin Bet internal security agency and the military to continue negotiations in Qatar. The delegation is leaving for Qatar on Friday. The U.S.-led talks have repeatedly stalled during 15 months of war, which was sparked by Hamas-led militants’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack into Israel. The militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead. Syrians demand justice for disappeared activists, accountability from all factions Israel’s offensive in retaliation has killed over 45,500 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the territory's Health Ministry, which says women and children make up more than half the dead. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. Israel's military says it only targets militants and blames Hamas for civilian deaths because its fighters operate in dense residential areas. The army says it has killed 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The war has caused widespread destruction and displaced some 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, many of them multiple times.

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 40 people on Thursday across central and southern Gaza, including an attack on a sprawling tent camp that Israel has repeatedly bombed despite designating it a humanitarian safe zone. Israel said the strike targeted a righ-ranking police officer, and blames Hamas for civilian deaths. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Thursday he authorized a delegation from the country's intelligence services and military to continue negotiations in Qatar toward a ceasefire deal in Gaza. There was no immediate comment from Hamas. American, Qatari and Egyptian mediators have spent nearly a year trying to broker a ceasefire and hostage release, but their efforts have repeatedly stalled. The Israeli military also claimed responsibility Thursday for a commando raid in western Syria last September that destroyed what it said was an Iranian-led missile factory. Israel’s war in Gaza has killed over 45,500 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who say women and children make up more than half the fatalities. The officials do not distinguish between civilians and combatants in their tally. The war was sparked by Hamas-led militants' Oct. 7, 2023 attack into Israel. They killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250 that day. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. The Israeli military says a missile fired from Yemen has set off air raid sirens in Jerusalem and central Israel. The attack, at 4:30 a.m. Friday, woke millions of people and sent people scrambling to air raid shelters. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, though a faint explosion, likely either from the missile or from interceptors, could be heard in Jerusalem. The military said interceptors were launched toward the target and the results are under review. Yemen’s Houthi rebels have been launching missiles and drones at Israel nearly every day in recent weeks. Israel has carried out a number of long-range airstrikes in Yemen, some 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) away. But the strikes have failed to stop the attacks. The Houthis have pledged to continue striking Israel until the war in Gaza ends. Israeli strikes in the Maghazi and Nuseirat refugee camps in central Gaza killed at least 14 people late Thursday, including four women and five children. They were taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where an Associated Press journalist counted the bodies, bringing the death toll on Thursday to at least 40 people. The Israeli army did not immediately comment on the strikes, but says it only targets militants and blames Hamas for civilian deaths. Earlier Israeli strikes killed dozens more people throughout central and southern Gaza, including inside a sprawling tent camp that Israel designated a humanitarian safe zone but has repeatedly targeted. Israel's military said that strike killed a high-ranking police officer who was involved in gathering intelligence used by Hamas’ armed wing in attacks on Israeli forces. The head of the U.N. World Health Organization says Israel is still allowing only a trickle of sick and wounded people in the Gaza Strip to travel abroad for life-saving medical treatment. At least 5,383 patients have been evacuated with the WHO's help since the war broke out in October 2023, leaving more than 12,000 Palestinians still waiting to leave Gaza, said WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a statement Thursday. The rate of evacuations plunged when the Rafah border crossing shut down in May after Israeli troops took it over — since then, only 436 patients have left Gaza, Tedros said. “At this rate, it would take 5-10 years to evacuate all these critically ill patients, including thousands of children,” Tedros said. “In the meantime, their conditions get worse and some die.” He urged Israel to increase the approval rate for medical evacuations, including no denials of child patients, and to allow all possible corridors and border crossings to be used. Israel controls all the entry and exit points for Gaza. COGAT, the Israeli military agency in charge of humanitarian affairs for Palestinians, has said it does everything it can to approve medical evacuations, which are contingent upon a security check. It did not respond when asked for comment on the latest WHO figures. Israel's military said Thursday it struck rocket launchers used by Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon, a rare attack outside the border areas where Israeli forces conduct near-daily operations since a ceasefire went into effect last November, according to Lebanese state media. Under the ceasefire agreement, Israel has until Jan. 25 to withdraw its forces from Lebanon, while Hezbollah militants must relocate north of the Litani River. Read: Last functional hospital in Gaza torched Israel says it has the right to attack Hezbollah anywhere for alleged ceasefire violations, and that Thursday's strikes were in Nabatiyeh province, which straddles both sides of the Litani. Video circulated on social media of a strike in Jbaa, in the Iqlim al-Tuffah region, showing large flames and secondary explosions. No casualties were reported by Lebanon’s National News Agency. Hezbollah did not immediately comment on the attack. Israeli operations in Lebanon since the ceasefire have included gunfire, house demolitions, excavations, tank shelling and airstrikes. These actions have killed at least 27 people, wounded more than 30 and destroyed residential buildings. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office says he has authorized a delegation from the Mossad intelligence agency, the Shin Bet internal security agency and the military to continue negotiations in Qatar toward a ceasefire deal in Gaza. The statement had no further details, but Israeli media said the delegation would depart Friday. There was no immediate comment from the Hamas militant group. The U.S.-led talks have repeatedly stalled, and at one point last year Qatar suspended its mediation efforts, expressing frustration. Egypt also is a mediator. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 26 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip on Thursday as the 15-month war with Hamas dragged on. A strike killed five policemen in the southern city of Khan Younis and their bodies were taken to Nasser Hospital, medical officials there said. Three Palestinians were killed in a separate Israeli strike in central Gaza that hit a group of people walking in the street in the built-up Maghazi refugee camp, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. An earlier strike in nearby Deir al-Balah killed eight people who were helping secure humanitarian aid convoys, the hospital said. At least 10 people were also killed Thursday morning by an airstrike in southern Gaza's Muwasi area, inside an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone. The dead included three children and two senior police officers. Israel said that strike targeted a senior member of Hamas’ internal security apparatus. Israel has repeatedly targeted Gaza's police force, which was part of the Hamas-run government, contributing to a breakdown of law and order that has made it difficult for humanitarian groups to deliver aid. Israel accuses Hamas of hijacking aid for its own purposes. The Israeli military has claimed responsibility for a nighttime raid in Syria last September in which it says dozens of commandos destroyed a top-secret Iranian-led missile factory. Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said Thursday that Iran, working with its Syrian and the Hezbollah allies, planned to build hundreds of precision guided missiles per year at the factory that could be transferred to Lebanon. He said the facility was located in western Syria around the town of Masyaf near the Lebanese border. Read more: A new year dawns on a Middle East torn by conflict and change He said Israel had been monitoring the underground facility for several years, but decided to strike at a time when Israel was at war with Hezbollah and the factory was becoming operational. “This facility posed a clear threat to the state of Israel and this is why we had to take action,” he said. Shoshani said over 100 special force soldiers took part in the Sept. 8 raid, backed by dozens of aircraft. Calling it one of Israel’s most complex operations in years, he said soldiers arrived by helicopter and entered the facility, which he said was dug deep into the side of a mountain. In bodycam footage released by the Israeli military, special forces are seen moving through wide underground hallways and seizing documents, before a large explosion destroys the site. The video, which could not be independently verified, also showed images of what the army said was missile-manufacturing equipment. At the time, Syrian state media reported 18 deaths from a series of Israeli airstrikes in the area. Shoshani said there were no Israeli casualties, and that Israel also damaged another missile-production facility in Lebanon during the war. Israel and Hezbollah reached a cease-fire in late November, halting nearly 14 months of fighting. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was released from the hospital Thursday after recovering from prostate surgery Sunday. Doctors at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital said Netanyahu was recuperating satisfactorily, although he still has a period of recovery ahead. Medical follow-ups will continue as usual, according to a hospital statement. Despite doctor’s orders to remain hospitalized, the 75-year-old leader had briefly left the facility to participate in a vote in Israel’s parliament on Tuesday. Ukraine’s president says his country is poised to reestablish diplomatic ties with Syria after the fall of President Bashar Assad and sharply increase agricultural exports to Lebanon despite being engaged in an almost three-year war with Russia. The developments came after a recent visit to those countries by Ukraine’s top diplomat and its government minister for farming, according to a statement from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday. Ukraine is aiming to build up its security and trade relations in the Middle East, he said. Ukraine and Syria are assessing cooperation within international organizations, and Syria could this year become a “reliable partner” for Ukraine, Zelenskyy said. The Ukrainian officials met with Syria’s new de facto authorities led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. The insurgents had ousted Assad, a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, in early December. Ukrainian agricultural exports to Lebanon are around $400 million a year but Zelenskyy said he hopes to at least double that. Ukraine is a leading world producer of wheat, corn, barley, sunflower oil and other food products. The Israeli military says it targeted a senior member of Hamas’ internal security apparatus in a strike in the Gaza Strip that Palestinian officials say killed nine other people, including three children. The strike early Thursday hit a tent in an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone known as Muwasi, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering in tents during the cold and rainy winter. The military said Hossam Shahwan, a senior officer in the Hamas-run police force in Gaza, was involved in gathering intelligence used by Hamas’ armed wing in attacks on Israeli forces. Maj. Gen. Mahmoud Salah, another senior police official, was also killed in the strike. The military says Hamas militants hide among civilians and blames the group for their deaths in the nearly 15-month war, which was ignited by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack into Israel. The Hamas-run government had a police force numbering in the tens of thousands that maintained a high degree of public security before the war while also violently suppressing dissent. The police have largely vanished from the streets in many areas after being targeted by Israel, contributing to the breakdown of law and order that has hindered the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid. Read  more: Women and children among 12 killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza The forces together with armed vehicles were deployed in the city of Homs Thursday to look for the militants affiliated with ousted President Bashar Assad, state media reported. SANA, citing a military official, said that the new de facto authorities led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham had set up centers in Syria’s third-largest city for former soldiers and militants to hand over their weapons, similar to other parts of Syria. In early December, a lightning insurgency took out the decades-long rule of Assad in less than two weeks. HTS has since run much of war-torn Syria under the authority of its leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. Officials who were part of Assad's notorious web of intelligence and security apparatus have been arrested over the past few weeks. An Israeli strike has killed at least eight Palestinian men in the central Gaza Strip. The dead were members of local committees that help secure aid convoys, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies. An Associated Press reporter at the hospital confirmed the toll. Earlier on Thursday, an Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza killed at least 10 people, including three children and two senior officers in the Hamas-run police. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the strikes. Israel has repeatedly targeted the police, contributing to a breakdown of law and order in the territory that has made it difficult for humanitarian groups to deliver aid. Israel accuses Hamas of hijacking aid for its own purposes. Al Jazeera has condemned the Palestinian Authority’s decision to bar it from operating in the occupied West Bank, saying the decision was “in line” with similar actions taken by Israel. In a statement Thursday, the Qatar-based broadcaster accused the Western-backed authority of seeking to “hide the truth about events in the occupied territories, especially what is happening in Jenin and its camps.” The Palestinian Authority, which cooperates with Israel on security matters, launched a rare crackdown on anti-Israel militants in the urban Jenin refugee camp last month. The authority has international support but is unpopular among many Palestinians, with critics portraying it as a subcontractor of the Israeli occupation. The Palestinian Authority announced the suspension of Al Jazeera’s activities on Wednesday, accusing it of incitement and interfering in Palestinian internal affairs. The Palestinian Authority exercises limited autonomy in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israel banned Al Jazeera last year, accusing it of being a mouthpiece of Hamas. Israeli strikes have killed or wounded several Al Jazeera reporters in Gaza, and Israel has accused some of them of being militants. Israeli forces raided Al Jazeera’s West Bank headquarters last year, but the broadcaster has continued to operate in the territory. Al Jazeera denies the allegations and accuses Israel of trying to silence its coverage. Its 24-hour reporting from Gaza has focused on the deaths of Palestinian civilians. It has also broadcast Hamas and other militant videos in their entirety, showing attacks on Israeli forces and hostages speaking under duress.

At least 12 Palestinians, mostly women and children, were killed in Israeli airstrikes across Gaza as the war, now in its 15th month, persists into the new year, officials reported Wednesday. A strike in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza, heavily damaged by earlier military operations, killed seven people, including four children and a woman, and injured over a dozen others, Gaza’s Health Ministry stated. Another airstrike overnight hit the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, killing a woman and a child, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. A new year dawns on a Middle East torn by conflict and change In Khan Younis, a southern city, three more people died following another Israeli attack, reports from Nasser and European Hospitals confirmed. The Israeli military said the Bureij strike targeted militants launching rockets at Israel. They also issued evacuation orders for the area. The conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages. Israel’s military offensive has since killed over 45,000 Palestinians, including women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Israel claims 17,000 of those killed were militants, though evidence has not been provided. The war has displaced nearly 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, many forced to relocate multiple times. Thousands now live in tents along the coast, facing harsh winter conditions. At least seven people, including six infants, have reportedly died from hypothermia. With food aid limited and prices soaring, many rely on charity kitchens for survival. AP footage captured long lines of children waiting for meals, often just rice, at one such kitchen in Deir al-Balah. Last functional hospital in Gaza torched Efforts by American and Arab mediators to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage release have repeatedly failed. Hamas demands a permanent truce, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue fighting until achieving “total victory.” Meanwhile, Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics reported that 82,000 Israelis emigrated in 2024, while 33,000 immigrated and another 23,000 returned after long stays abroad. This marks a second consecutive year of net emigration, raising fears of a “brain drain” in sectors like medicine and technology. In a separate incident, Israel’s military acknowledged “operational burnout” and disciplinary lapses in the November deaths of a 70-year-old archaeologist and a soldier in southern Lebanon. Zeev Erlich, a prominent West Bank settler and Jewish history researcher, was killed while exploring an archaeological site in a combat zone. An investigation is underway into how he entered the area. Despite military restrictions, reports have surfaced of Israeli civilians entering Gaza and Lebanon in support of a permanent Israeli presence, adding further complexity to the situation.

One of the last operational hospitals in northern Gaza, Kamal Adwan in Beit Lahia, is under a severe siege, Gaza's Health Ministry reported on Friday. Israeli forces stormed the facility, forcibly evacuating patients, staff, and families while military vehicles encircled the premises. According to the ministry, the hospital's emergency units, surgical and operating departments, laboratory, and maintenance sections were completely burned, and the fire continued to spread through the buildings. Ambulances have been deployed to transfer the wounded to the Indonesian Hospital, as evacuations persist. US warns of a famine for north Gaza amid aid groups' concern The ministry warned that some patients are at risk of death due to worsening conditions. In response to NBC News, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated that the hospital was targeted based on intelligence indicating it was being used for terrorist activities. The IDF claimed it ensured the safe evacuation of civilians and medical workers before proceeding and asserted efforts to facilitate patient transfers to other facilities. NBC News reached out to Gaza’s Health Ministry for a reaction to Israel’s claims that the hospital harbored militants. Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, head of Kamal Adwan, reported via social media that Israeli forces set fire to the hospital’s operating rooms while staff were still inside, and some personnel had been detained. Communication with the hospital was later lost, leaving the fate of staff and patients unclear. Israeli announces new strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen's capital and ports The attack followed an Israeli airstrike on a nearby building Thursday, which killed around 50 people, including five healthcare workers, the Health Ministry said. Victims included pediatrician Dr. Ahmed Samour, laboratory technician Esraa, and maintenance worker Fares, who was struck while trying to assist others. Abu Safia condemned the strike as part of an ongoing series of attacks targeting the hospital and its personnel. Previous assaults killed multiple medics and patients, including ICU director Dr. Ahmed al-Kahlout. With Kamal Adwan, Beit Hanoun, and Indonesian hospitals now inoperable, northern Gaza’s healthcare system has collapsed, the Health Ministry stated. Winter is hitting Gaza and many Palestinians have little protection from the cold The conflict erupted after Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, killed 1,200 Israelis, according to Israeli authorities. In response, Israel’s offensive has killed over 45,000 Palestinians, devastated Gaza’s infrastructure, and crippled its health services, local officials report. An October U.N. report accused Israel of systematically dismantling Gaza’s healthcare facilities as part of broader attacks, committing war crimes and crimes against humanity. The U.N. warned that the destruction of medical facilities could have severe long-term consequences for Gaza’s civilian population. Source: NBC News 

An Israeli strike killed five Palestinian journalists outside a hospital in the Gaza Strip overnight, the Health Ministry said early Thursday. The Israeli military said it had targeted a group of militants. The strike hit a car outside the Al-Awda Hospital in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp in the central part of the territory. The journalists were working for the local Quds News Network, which also reported the strike. The military said it targeted a group of fighters from Islamic Jihad, a militant group allied with Hamas, whose Oct. 7, 2023 attack into southern Israel ignited the war. The Committee to Protect Journalists says over 130 Palestinian reporters have been killed since the start of the war. Israel has not allowed foreign reporters to enter Gaza except on military embeds. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed across the border in a surprise attack on nearby army bases and farming communities. They killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Read: Ex-Israeli spy agents describe attack using exploding electronic devices against Hezbollah Israel's air and ground offensive has killed over 45,000 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry. It says more than half the fatalities have been women and children but does not say how many of the dead were fighters. The offensive has caused widespread destruction and driven around 90% of the population of 2.3 million from their. homes. Hundreds of thousands are packed into squalid tent camps along the coast, with little protection from the cold, wet winter.

As winter sets in, nearly 2 million Palestinians displaced by 14 months of war in the Gaza Strip face severe hardships, struggling to shield themselves from the cold, rain, and wind. Aid workers and residents report that families lack sufficient blankets, warm clothing, and firewood. Many are living in worn-out tents and makeshift shelters that have deteriorated due to prolonged use. Shadia Aiyada, who fled Rafah for Muwasi, shares a fragile tent with her eight children, relying on a single blanket and a hot water bottle to keep warm. "We panic whenever we hear forecasts of rain and wind because our tents barely hold up," Aiyada said. "I worry my children will get sick without proper clothing." Having escaped with only summer attire, her family now depends on borrowed clothes to endure the cold. Night temperatures in Gaza often drop to the mid-to-high single digits Celsius (40s Fahrenheit), increasing the risk of illness, especially among children. Two US Navy pilots shot down over Red Sea in apparent 'friendly fire' incident The United Nations has highlighted the precarious conditions, warning that makeshift shelters may not survive the winter. According to the U.N., at least 945,000 people urgently need winterization supplies, which have become unaffordable in Gaza. Rising malnutrition and the threat of infectious diseases further compound the crisis. The U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has distributed 6,000 tents in northern Gaza over the past month but has been unable to deliver supplies to other areas due to ongoing hostilities. Essential items like 600,000 blankets and 33 truckloads of mattresses remain stuck in Jordan and Egypt, awaiting Israeli approval for transport. Many stored supplies have already been damaged by weather or looted. The International Rescue Committee is also facing obstacles in delivering children’s winter clothing, citing lengthy approval processes from authorities. Dionne Wong, the group’s deputy director, emphasized the limited ability of Palestinians to prepare for winter. Syrians celebrate during first Friday prayers since Assad’s ouster Israel's government claims to have collaborated with international organizations to deliver heaters, clothing, tents, and blankets. However, aid workers say the supplies are far from adequate. The war has killed over 45,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry states that more than half the casualties are women and children, though Israel claims to have killed over 17,000 militants. The war began after Hamas attacked southern Israel in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages. Negotiators are reportedly making progress toward a ceasefire that could increase aid flow, but for now, displaced families face harsh conditions. Most cannot afford winter clothes, which have become prohibitively expensive. Reda Abu Zarada, 50, displaced from northern Gaza, described nights spent huddling with her children to keep warm. She fears rats that roam their torn tent and dreads the possibility of finding her children frozen. Omar Shabet, displaced from Gaza City, avoids lighting fires to stay warm, fearing airstrikes. "We stay inside our tent after sunset because it gets unbearably cold," he said. "My 7-year-old daughter cries at night from the cold."

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on Thursday said it is crucial to move beyond humanitarian interventions and shift focus towards the reconstruction of Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon. "Let D-8 therefore kickstart a process, with an approximate estimation of the costs of reconstruction in Palestine and Lebanon," he said, adding that they can thereon press on formulation of international strategies for resource mobilization. The Chief Adviser made the remarks while delivering the speech during a special session on humanitarian crisis and reconstruction challenges in Gaza and Lebanon on the sidelines of the D-8 Summit. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi chaired the session. Prof Yunus urges focus on attitudes, ethics in skilling young workforce The United Nations has cautioned that removing the 40 million tonnes of rubble left in the wake of Israel’s bombardment could take at least 15 years, Dr Yunus said. "We understand that the rubble may contain over 10,000 bodies of the deceased. And this is also contaminated with asbestos," he said. Dr Yunus said Bangladesh commends the government of Egypt for convening this special session. "We gather at a time when Israeli aggression and the 14-month long brutal genocide against the Palestinian people continue unabated in the occupied Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Words should suffice little," he said. To say the least, Dr Yunus said, they are in utter dismay at Israel’s blatant disregard to long-held international norms, laws and conventions. "The ways the hostilities in Lebanon are spreading, there are heightened fears of further escalation. This can lend to dire and long-term consequences for peace and stability across the region, impacting global society and polity, not just economy," he said. Dr Yunus urges Pakistan to resolve 1971 issues for improved ties From Cairo, Dr Yunus said, they must voice their unity and unwavering commitment, in solidarity with their Palestinian brothers and sisters, at this existential time in their history. "Throughout our history, Bangladesh has stood firmly in support of the Palestinian cause. We consistently condemned the illegal occupation and the violent repression carried out by Israel," said the Chief Adviser. He said they remain steadfast in advocating a just and lasting solution, through a two-State solution to the crisis, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and harmony. "Palestine has to emerge as a fully independent and viable State based on the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital," Dr Yunus said. "This is what we also articulated in detail before the International Court of Justice this February as the Court finally called Israel's occupation illegal, in its Advisory Opinion," he added. Bangladeshis are profoundly concerned over the current state of affairs and Palestinians are no expendable people, Dr Yunus said. "Every Palestinian life matters." The Chief Adviser said it is not an issue that merely concerns the Muslims. "Rather, a universal cause where human dignity is tested. It is about universal pledge to protect the vulnerable. It is indeed our moral duty to stand by them, resolutely." There are around six million Bangladeshi migrant workers and expatriate professionals, across the region, including in Lebanon who have been making significant contributions to the development of the countries across the Middle East, Dr Yunus said. Dhaka seeks ‘comprehensive roadmap’ for Rohingya repatriation "Their safety and security are at risk. We call upon all actors and stakeholders, indeed beyond the region, to take decisive and collective actions to end the brutalities unleashed by the Israeli forces," he said. The massacres in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, are clear violations of international law, and constitute war crimes. "Those responsible must account. That is why, last November, Bangladesh stood up at the International Criminal Court asking for expeditious investigations into the heinous crimes against humanity," Dr Yunus said. Such actions on accountability can deter the perpetrators against further and future atrocities, he said. "Alongside, let us intensify our efforts on realisation of a viable two-State solution," Dr Yunus said.  

Israel said Sunday it will close its embassy in Ireland as relations deteriorated over the war in Gaza, where Palestinian medical officials said new Israeli airstrikes killed over 30 people including several children. The decision to close the embassy came in response to what Israel’s foreign minister has described as Ireland’s “extreme anti-Israel policies.” In May, Israel recalled its ambassador to Dublin after Ireland announced, along with Norway, Spain and Slovenia, it would recognize a Palestinian state. The Irish cabinet last week decided to formally intervene in South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, which accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Israel denies it. “We are concerned that a very narrow interpretation of what constitutes genocide leads to a culture of impunity in which the protection of civilians is minimized,” Ireland’s deputy premier and foreign affairs minister, Micheal Martin, said in a statement. Germany warns Assad supporters in Syria against trying to flee there Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar's statement on the embassy closure said that “Ireland has crossed every red line in its relations with Israel.” Ahead of Israel's announcement, Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris had called the decision to close the embassy “deeply regrettable.” He added on X: “I utterly reject the assertion that Ireland is anti-Israel. Ireland is pro-peace, pro-human rights and pro-international law.”   Israeli strikes hit Gaza Israeli forces continued Sunday to pound largely isolated northern Gaza, as the Palestinian death toll in the war approached 45,000. One airstrike hit the Khalil Aweida school in the town of Beit Hanoun and killed at least 15 people, according to nearby Kamal Adwan Hospital where casualties were taken. The dead included two parents and their daughter and a father and his son, the hospital said. In Gaza City, at least 17 people including six women and five children were killed in three airstrikes that hit houses sheltering displaced people, according to Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital. Israel's military in a statement said it struck a “terrorist cell” in Gaza City and a “terrorist meeting point” in the Beit Hanoun area. Another Israeli airstrike killed a Palestinian journalist working for Al Jazeera, Ahmed al-Lawh, in central Gaza, a hospital and the Qatari-based TV station said. The strike hit a point for Gaza’s civil defense agency in the urban Nuseirat refugee camp, Al-Awda Hospital said. The civil defense is the main rescue agency in Gaza and operates under the Hamas-run government. The war in Gaza began after Hamas and other militants from Gaza stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking well over 200 hostage. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed almost 45,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry’s count does not distinguish between combatants and civilians, but it says over half of the dead have been women and children.