13 Palestinians killed in occupied West Bank
At least 13 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli raid led to clashes in the Nur Shams refugee camp.
Among the killed Palestinians are seven children whereas one Israeli officer also died.
Israel-Lebanon border
Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah alongside Palestinian armed groups are still at odds as cross-border attacks continue.
Al Jazeera reports that the attacks are limited to areas only a few kilometres on each side of the border, adding that Hezbollah is trying to stop Israeli potential operation into Gaza.
‘Fuel will not enter Gaza’: Israeli army spokesperson
Daniel Hagari says the 20 trucks carrying aid into Gaza from Egypt will go to the southern part of the besieged enclave.
But he stated that “fuel will not enter Gaza”.
At a news conference after the opening of the Rafah crossing earlier, Hagari told reporters that only food, water and medical aid will be allowed to enter the enclave.
Israeli air raids kill 46 in Gaza
Air raids through the night have reportedly killed at least 46 people.
Preparations for ‘next phase of war’
Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has disclosed that the war will be carried through three phases and that preparations are underway “for the next phase of the war” which is said to be a ground operation.
The first phase is under way which, as he explained, aims to destroy the military infrastructure of Hamas military. The second phase will be “lower intensity” operations to “destroy pockets of resistance”.
“The third phase will require the removal of Israel’s responsibility for life in the Gaza strip, and the establishment of a new security reality for the citizens of Israel,” as highlighted in his statement.
800 EU officials condemn chief’s support of Israeli attacks on Gaza
In the light of the recent incessant Israeli attacks on Gaza, more than 800 EU officials have written to European Union’s chief, Ursula von der Leyen, condemning her “uncontrolled” support of Israel.
Al Jazeera has reported seing the letter whereas the signatories of the letter say they “hardly recognise the values of the EU” and that there has been a “seeming indifference demonstrated over the past few days by our institution towards the ongoing massacre of civilians in the Gaza Strip, in disregard for human rights and international humanitarian law”.
The signatories are also upset by the Commission’s “double standards” as on one hand, the Russian blockade of Ukraine is deemed as an act of terror, while Israel’s blockade of Gaza is “completely ignored”.
“If Israel does not stop immediately, the whole Gaza Strip and its inhabitants will be erased from the planet,” the letter read.
“We urge you [von der Leyen] to call, together with the leaders of the whole Union, for a ceasefire and for the protection of civilian life. This is at the core of the EU existence,” they said, warning “the EU risks losing all credibility”.
The letter brings to light the conflict within the EU on the Israel-Gaza war.
The letter also read that the European Commission’s “recent unfortunate actions or positions seem to give a free hand to the acceleration and the legitimacy of a war crime in the Gaza Strip”.
“We would have been proud if the European Union … had called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and indiscriminate violence against civilians,” the letter read.
UN update on casualties in Gaza, West Bank
Death toll in the Palestinian enclave has risen up to 4,137 which includes 70 percent of children and women.
Additionally, more than 1,000 people are said to be missing and are presumably under the buildings attacked by Israel.
1.4 million people are internally displaced in Gaza while at least 30 percent of residency has been destroyed or damaged in Gaza.
80 per cent of Gaza burns victims are children
Ghassan Abu Sitta has said that medical workers no longer have dressings for burns victims.
“We have more than 70 wounded with burns covering more than 40 per cent of their body surface. 80 per cent are children,” Abu Sitta said on X (formerly Twitter).
We have run out of burns dressings. We have more than 70 wounded with burns covering more than 40% of their body surface. 80% are children
— Ghassan Abu Sitta (@GhassanAbuSitt1) October 21, 2023
10,000 Palestinians imprisoned in two weeks
There were already about 5,200 Palestinians in Israeli prisons before the attacks of October 7. Following the incident, 4,000 Gazan labourers in Israel have reportedly been arrested while other 1,070 have been taken in in army raids in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Cairo Peace Summit to address war on Gaza
More than a dozen countries participated in a conference in Cairo, Egypt to discuss ways to “de-escalate” the Israel-Palestine escalation while there is also a fear of the conflict rippling throughout the Middle East.
The Cairo Summit for Peace was attended by Jordan, France, Germany, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, the United States, Qatar, South Africa and other countries alongside the United Nations and European Union.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi urged all the leaders to collectively carve out a way to end the “humanitarian catastrophe” in the Gaza Strip and establish peace between the two sides.
He also asserted the need to deliver aid to Gaza and call for a ceasefire as well as attainment of the two-state solution.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also attended the summit and appealed for the opening of the humanitarian corridors.
“We will remain on our land.”, he added, saying that Palestinians will not leave.
