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Israeli Forces Strike Gaza, Killing Journalists and Civilians Near Hospitals
Welcome to live updates on the evolving situation in the Middle East, particularly focusing on the ongoing conflict in Gaza involving Israel.
Overnight, Israeli military actions targeted tents situated near prominent hospitals within the Gaza Strip. Palestinian medical personnel reported that these strikes resulted in at least two fatalities, including a local news reporter, and left nine others wounded, among them six journalists.
Reporter Among Those Killed in Khan Younis
Reports indicate that one of the Israeli airstrikes impacted a media tent located outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. The ensuing fire caused the death of Yousef al-Faqawi, a journalist working for Palestine Today TV, and another individual. Among the six reporters injured in this incident, two are said to be in critical condition, one with extensive burns and another with a serious head injury, according to sources.
Concerns over Journalist Safety and International Law
International humanitarian law stipulates that journalists are considered protected civilians and should not be the target of attacks during armed conflicts. However, the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate states that over 200 journalists and media professionals have been killed by Israeli forces since October 2023, raising serious concerns about the safety of press workers in the region.
Further Casualties Reported at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital
In a separate incident, tents near al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza were also hit. Hospital authorities reported that two people were killed and three others sustained injuries when an Israeli airstrike struck a residence in Deir al-Balah, situated in the central Gaza Strip.
Other Developments in the Region:
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Al Jazeera Arabic reported that Israeli attacks in the Zeitoun district of Gaza City resulted in at least three deaths.
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Sana’a was targeted by US airstrikes yesterday, causing at least four deaths and injuring over 20, including women and children, according to health officials and local news.
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Hamas claimed responsibility for rocket launches towards southern Israeli cities, citing retaliation for Israeli “massacres” against Gaza civilians. Israel’s military stated that approximately ten projectiles were launched, with the majority being intercepted. Emergency services in Israel treated one individual for injuries from shrapnel.
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A prominent UK human rights lawyer is preparing to submit a war crimes complaint to the Met police concerning 10 British individuals who served in the Israeli military in Gaza.
As previously mentioned, a war crimes complaint concerning ten Britons accused of offenses while serving with Israeli forces in Gaza is being prepared. More details on this story from the Guardian’s legal affairs correspondent Haroon Siddique:
Michael Mansfield KC, among a group of lawyers, will submit a 240-page dossier to Scotland Yard’s war crimes unit on Monday. The dossier alleges targeted killings of civilians and aid workers, including incidents involving sniper fire, as well as indiscriminate attacks on civilian zones, such as hospitals.
The report, compiled by UK lawyers and researchers in The Hague, also alleges coordinated attacks on protected sites, including historic and religious monuments, and the forced transfer and displacement of civilian populations.
For legal reasons, the names of suspects, including officers, and the full report remain confidential…
Submitted on behalf of the Gaza-based Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) and the UK-based Public Interest Law Centre (PILC), the report covers alleged offenses in the territory from October 2023 to May 2024 and took six months to produce.
The report asserts that each crime attributed to the 10 suspects, some holding dual nationality, constitutes a war crime or crime against humanity.
A witness at a medical facility recounted seeing corpses “scattered on the ground, particularly in the hospital courtyard, where many bodies were interred in a mass grave.” The witness described a “horrific and heart-wrenching scene” where a bulldozer “ran over a dead body, desecrating the deceased.”