Live Updates: Israel attacks Jenin, killing several Palestinians in West Bank

Thursday, December 14, 2023

04:52 GMT - Israel targets Gaza houses, kills dozens of Palestinians

Tragedy unfolds in Gaza as Israeli occupation aircraft unleash a deadly dawn bombing, killing at least 27 Palestinians and leaving a trail of destruction in the city of Rafah.

Local sources reported that Israeli strikes extend to northern and southern Gaza, with casualties reported in Khan Younis.

Homes belonging to the Ashour and Abu Dabaa families become targets — where at least 27 Palestinians were killed — amplifying the toll on civilian lives.

03:48 GMT - UK envoy rules out two-state solution

Israel's ambassador to the UK has ruled out the possibility of a two-state solution to the conflict arising from decades-old Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands, in an interview with Sky News.

"I think it's about time for the world to realise the Oslo paradigm failed on October 7 and we need to build a new one," Tzipi Hotovely said, referring to the day the Palestinian resistance group Hamas launched a cross-fence blitz against Israel.

"Israel knows today and the world should know now that the reason the Oslo accords failed was because the Palestinians never wanted to have a state next to Israel, they want to have a state from the river to the sea," she added. Hotovely asked the interviewer, Mark Austin, why he was "obsessed" with the two-state solution after he asked her whether it was dead.

03:20 GMT - Meeting legitimate aspirations of Palestinians panacea for peace - US

The US has said there can be no lasting peace and security in the Gaza region without meeting the legitimate aspirations of Palestinians, even as US President Biden's administration continues to arm Israel.

"We believe that is not just in the interest of the Palestinian people but in the long-term security interests of the Israeli people," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

The remarks came in response to a question by Anadolu Agency about disagreements between the Biden administration and the Netanyahu regime on post-war Gaza.

02:47 GMT - Jordanian hackers target Israeli military website

Jordanian hackers took over the English page of the official website of the Israeli military, publishing a message in solidarity with the people of Gaza. Access to the website was disrupted following the cyberattack.

''Your arrogance and oppression against our people in Gaza will bring you nothing but fear, death and war—be it in the air, on the ground, or in cyberspace," the message said.

Referring to the hacking of the site, it said ''this is a response to your killing of our innocent people in Gaza, your ugly barbarism, and your dirty actions.''

02:30 GMT - Egypt to increase fuel supply to Gaza

Egypt announced Wednesday that it will increase the volume of fuel sent daily to the Gaza Strip from 129,000 liters to 189,000 liters in accordance with an agreement with Israel.

Egypt is continuing intensive efforts to ensure the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, Diaa Rashwan, the head of Egypt’s State Information Service, said in a statement.

Since Tuesday, relief aid trucks began crossing the Rafah border terminal to the Karem Abu Salem crossing in implementation of an agreement with the Israeli side, he added.

02:12 GMT - Gaza war hits neighbouring Arab economies, could cut GDP 2.3%

The economic cost of Israel's war in besieged Gaza on Arab neighbours Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan could rise to at least $10 billion this year and push more than 230,000 people into poverty, according to a UN study.

Israel's relentless attacks have come as the three Arab countries face a struggle with fiscal pressures, slow growth and steep unemployment, and it has deterred much-needed investment as well as hitting consumption and trade.

The study, commissioned by the United Nations Development Programme, said the cost of the war for the three states in terms of loss of GDP might amount to $10.3 billion or 2.3 percent, and could double if it lasts another six months.

02:00 GMT -Colonel among 10 Israeli soldiers killed in Hamas ambush in Gaza

Israeli media have said that 10 soldiers were killed in an ambush in Gaza City.

The dead include Colonel Itzhak Ben Basat, 44, the most senior officer to have been killed since the ground invasion in Gaza began in late October, and Lieutenant Colonel Tomer Grinberg, commander of the Golani Brigade's 13th Battalion.

Army Radio said troops who were searching a cluster of buildings lost communication with four soldiers who had come under fire, sparking fears of a possible abduction by Hamas fighters.

For our live updates from Wednesday, December 13, click here.