Gaza City is now a dangerous combat zone, Israel says, adding that it is in the “initial stages” of a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation. Israel also said it had recovered the body of a hostage and the remains of another, and vowed its military offensive would return more.
Israel’s military said it suspended midday pauses to fighting, which had allowed food and aid supplies to enter from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in Gaza’s largest city. The shift comes weeks after Israel first announced plans to widen its offensive in Gaza City, where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering and enduring famine.
Many Palestinians in Gaza City say they’re exhausted after multiple displacements and question leaving when nowhere in Gaza is safe and any journey is costly. Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 63,000 people, the territory’s Health Ministry said Friday.
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US revokes visas of Palestinian officials ahead of UN summit
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revoked the visas of a number of Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization officials ahead of next month’s U.N. General Assembly session at which the two groups had been previously represented.
In a statement, the State Department said Friday that Rubio had also ordered that some new Palestinian official visa applications be denied. The statement did not specify how many visa had been revoked or how many applications had been denied.
“Before the PLO and PA can be considered partners for peace, they must consistently repudiate terrorism — including the October 7 massacre — and end incitement to terrorism in education, as required by U.S. law and as promised by the PLO,” it said.
Palestinian representatives assigned to the Palestinian Authority mission at the United Nations will be granted waivers so they can continue their New York-based operations, it added.
Hundreds of Palestinians flee Gaza City ahead of Israel’s offensive
Since early Friday morning, hundreds of Gaza City residents have begun the journey south, piling their few remaining possessions such as mattresses onto pickup trucks or donkey carts.
Residents complained about the latest displacement after many were forced to leave their homes more than once during the 22-month conflict.
“We cannot find any place in the west nor in the south. Conditions are difficult. Where are we going? We don’t know,” said Saddam Yazigi as he prepared to leave Gaza City.
“My daughter told me, ‘I don’t want to see tanks like last time,’” he added.
Raeda Auda said she is being forcibly displaced again. “I can’t express the feeling of pain that I’m going through.”
Gaza Health Ministry reports 5 more deaths due to starvation and malnutrition
The Health Ministry in Gaza said five people have died from starvation and malnutrition over the past 24 hours.
That raises the total number of deaths from such causes to 322, including 121 children.
The Health Ministry said that 44 people – included six children – have died since Aug. 22 when the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification declared a famine in Gaza.
Gaza war death toll passes 63,000 people, including over 2,000 killed while gathering aid
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Friday that the death toll has risen to 63,025 people in the 22-month war between Israel and Hamas. Another 159,490 have been wounded.
As Palestinians face the start of Israel’s latest offensive in Gaza City, the ministry said 59 people were killed in Israeli strikes and another 244 wounded over the past 24 hours. Some 23 of the dead were killed trying to gather humanitarian aid.
The number of dead since Israel resumed its offensive in March reached 11,178. Another 47,449 were wounded. The overall number of people killed trying to gather aid reached 2,203 while 16,228 were wounded.
The Health Ministry’s count does not distinguish between fighters and civilians. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals.
The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.
Father of hostage calls recovery operation a ‘bittersweet moment’
Israel’s recovery of more hostages Friday felt like a “stab in the stomach” for Rubi Chen, who believes his son is still in captivity in Gaza.
Israel said it had returned the body of one captive and the remains of another from Gaza Friday. It identified one as Ilan Weiss, a man killed in the initial Hamas attack.
“It’s a bittersweet moment that the Weiss family is reunited with their loved one, even though he’s coming back not as they would have wanted,” said Chen. “But at least they have closure … there are still 49 families waiting to have that closure.”
Chen said his family has received intelligence that his son did not survive the Oct. 7 attack but Hamas has not provided any information about his son’s whereabouts.
