By The Associated Press
Israel’s protection minister has ordered a “complete siege” on the Gaza Strip following an unprecedented incursion into Israel by Hamas fighters.
Israel formally declared conflict on Sunday and gave the inexperienced mild for “significant military steps” to retaliate towards Hamas for Saturday’s shock assault. More than 1,100 folks have been killed and 1000’s wounded on either side.
The protection minister’s announcement on Monday got here as Israel’s army scoured the nation’s south for Hamas fighters and guarded breaches in its border fence with tanks whereas pounding Gaza from the air.
A spokesperson mentioned the Israeli army regained management of border communities taken by Hamas fighters throughout the assault. But Palestinian militants continued firing barrages of rockets, setting off air raid sirens in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Dozens of scholars held a rally in help of the Palestinian folks Monday on the prestigious American University in Egypt’s capital.
The college students rallied throughout the college campus in Cairo’s upscale fifth Settlement neighborhood.
Students have been seen waving Palestinian flags and holding banners with slogans reminiscent of “Free Palestine.”
The rally got here as preventing raged for a 3rd day between Israel and Palestinian militant teams following Hamas’ unprecedented Saturday assault on southern Israel.
The U.N. Palestinian refugee company, UNRWA, says it’s close to most capability in accommodating internally displaced folks in Gaza.
The company’s director of exterior communications, Tamara Alrifai, mentioned Monday that just about 137,000 folks have sheltered to date in over 70 U.N. faculties round Gaza. Alrifai mentioned the company can host as much as 150,000 folks at as much as 79 faculties across the territory.
She added there’s gas in Gaza that would final for as much as 10 days.
Families in a number of border cities in southern Lebanon have began fleeing north as Israeli shelling continues within the space.
An Associated Press crew noticed a number of vehicles full of folks and belongings departing Monday. “We tried to flee Aita el-Shaab to Rmeish, but they told us everyone has to stay in their area,” a person mentioned as he and his household tried to flee.
Israeli shelling intensified after 4 militants crossed over the border and clashed with Israeli Defense Forces troops on Monday. Several rockets have been fired from close to the Lebanese border earlier. A Hezbollah spokesperson denied the militant group’s involvement within the operation.
The Vatican secretary of state and Rome’s chief rabbi have presided over a second of silence in honor of the victims of the Hamas incursion in Israel.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin launched a historic convention on the recently-opened archives of the World War II-era Pope Pius XII by expressing solidarity with the Israeli victims and “to those who are missing and kidnapped and now in grave danger.”
He mentioned the Vatican was following the preventing with grave concern and famous that many Palestinians in Gaza have been additionally dropping their lives.
Parolin and Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni then led the convention on the Pontifical Gregorian University in a minute of silence in honor of the victims.
Arab international ministers plan to convene Wednesday in Cairo for a gathering on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant teams in Gaza.
Arab League Assistant Secretary-General Hossam Zaki mentioned the ministers would focus on Arab efforts to “stop the Israeli aggression” on Gaza.
The assembly was referred to as by the Palestinians.
Scotland’s chief says his Palestinian in-laws are among the many civilians caught up within the preventing between Israel and Hamas.
Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf informed reporters Monday that the dad and mom of his spouse, Nadia El-Nakla, lately traveled from Scotland to Gaza to go to relations and have been there when Hamas launched its assault on Israel and Israel retaliated.
He mentioned his mother-in-law and father-in-law have been informed by Israeli authorities to depart as a result of “Gaza will effectively be obliterated” — however that they’re unable to take action and successfully trapped.
“Despite the best efforts of the British Foreign Office, nobody, nobody can guarantee them safe passage anywhere,” Yousaf mentioned.
Two French residents have been confirmed lifeless within the preventing, the French Foreign Ministry mentioned Monday, with out elaborating. Several others (or twin residents) are unaccounted for believed lacking or held hostage.
European Union Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi mentioned Monday that the bloc is suspending “all payments immediately” to the Palestinians due to what he referred to as he referred to as the “scale of terror and brutality” throughout the assaults of Hamas towards Israel.
The shock announcement by Varhelyi got here simply hours after EU officers burdened that no EU cash had been going to Hamas and that contacts had been frozen for 16 years. The EU considers Hamas a terror group.
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Schumer says he’s grateful for a strengthened assertion from China condemning the killing and kidnapping of Israeli and international civilians by Hamas.
During a bipartisan congressional go to to Beijing, Schumer had mentioned earlier Monday that he was very upset by China’s failure to strongly condemn the militant group’s assault on Israel or to specific sympathy for the nation and its folks.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning mentioned Monday that China is “deeply saddened by the civilian casualties caused by the conflict between Palestine and Israel.”
The U.S. State Department mentioned Monday that not less than 9 American residents have been killed within the weekend Hamas assaults on Israel, elevating the toll from 4.
The State Department says an undetermined variety of American residents stay lacking and unaccounted for. It isn’t clear whether or not the lacking had been taken hostage, have been killed or are in hiding.
The State Department is in contact with households “and providing all appropriate consular assistance,” spokesman Matthew Miller mentioned.
Israeli troops shot and killed a number of gunmen who crossed into the nation from Lebanon, the Israeli Defense Forces mentioned with out specifying the variety of folks killed nor their alleged affiliation.
Local media quoted Hezbollah officers on Monday as denying their involvement within the border incident. Iran-backed Hezbollah has praised key ally Hamas for its unprecedented weekend incursion into Israel however not mentioned if it might try to hitch forces.
According to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency, 4 gunmen crossed Lebanon’s southern border into Israeli territory from the border city of Dahaira earlier than coming throughout an IDF place.
Israeli and Lebanese troops deployed in massive numbers over the weekend alongside the U.N-demarcated Blue Line that separates the 2 nations.
Hezbollah fired rockets Sunday at Israeli positions in disputed territory in southern Lebanon. Senior Hezbollah official Hashim Safieddine later mentioned the volley was supposed to “send a message.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit met Monday in Moscow however didn’t announce any rapid steps in response to the violence in Israel and Gaza.
“As for mediation efforts, first of all the parties themselves must stop hostilities. Everything else can be decided later in a normal, non-military situation,” Lavrov mentioned following the assembly.
Before talking with Russia’s high diplomat, Aboul Gheit mentioned: “We completely reject violence from both sides. … We demand the creation of political perspectives and fair solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”
Major U.S. airways have suspended flights to Israel after the nation declared conflict following an enormous assault by Hamas.
American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines suspended service because the U.S. State Department issued journey advisories for the area, citing potential for terrorism and civil unrest.
EgyptAir, Egypt’s nationwide provider, suspended its flights to Israel till additional discover, Cairo airport officers mentioned. EgyptAir usually operates a every day flight between Cairo International Airport and Ben Gurion International Airport, simply outdoors Tel Aviv.
Germany’s Lufthansa and its subsidiaries additionally suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv till Saturday as preventing between Israel and Hamas continued.
An open-air digital music competition will go down in Israeli historical past as the positioning of the nation’s worst civilian bloodbath after paramedics recovered not less than 260 our bodies from a discipline close to the border with Gaza.
The Tribe of Nova competition introduced collectively 1000’s of younger folks to bop and revel within the swirl of bass-heavy beats. Dozens of Hamas militants who had blown by means of Israel’s closely fortified separation fence and crossed into the nation from Gaza opened fireplace on the Israelis.
“We were hiding and running, hiding and running, in an open field, the worst place you could possibly be in that situation,” mentioned Arik Nani from Tel Aviv, who had gone to the occasion to have fun his twenty sixth birthday. “For a country where everyone in these circles knows everyone, this is a trauma like I could never imagine.”
Egypt has engaged in negotiations with Israel and Palestinian militant teams to launch Palestinian girls in Israel’s prisons in trade for Israeli girls captured by Hamas militants, the state-owned Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram reported Monday.
The every day paper quoted an unnamed supply as saying that the negotiations have been aimed toward finalizing an settlement on the commerce.
“The Egyptian government is presently awaiting responses from both parties regarding the proposed prisoners exchange and a temporary cease-fire,” Al-Ahram mentioned.
Palestinian militant teams have claimed to be holding over 130 individuals who have been captured in Israel up to now two days. Hamas spokesman Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua informed The Associated Press by telephone that the group’s fighters had captured extra Israelis as lately as Monday morning.
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati mentioned Monday that the tiny nation’s precedence is to keep up stability alongside its southern border with Israel following an trade of assaults between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants over the weekend.
Hezbollah claimed accountability for firing rockets at three Israeli positions Sunday in a disputed territory alongside the border of the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights, earlier than Israel returned fireplace.
Mikati referred to as on the worldwide group to “take responsibility” in pressuring Israel to return to peace talks below the Arab Peace Initiative. “Anything other than that is a further spiraling of violence that will not benefit anyone,” he mentioned.
Governments and airways in Europe are conducting emergency and common flights from Israel to convey again European residents who have been within the nation when Hamas fighters attacked.
Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says almost 600 Romanian residents, together with two teams of pilgrims, have been repatriated from Israel on business flights over the weekend.
A spokesman for Greece’s authorities, Pavlos Marinakis, says 81 of the 149 Greeks registered as having been in Israel over the weekend returned to Athens on Sunday evening.
Two Hungarian air pressure planes carrying 215 folks from Israel arrived in Budapest early Monday, based on posts by Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto on Facebook.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares mentioned he anticipated all Spaniards wishing to depart Israel can have been introduced again by later Monday.
The Kremlin is “extremely concerned” by the “spiral of violence” in Israel, spokesman Dmitry Peskov informed reporters on Monday.
“We believe that this situation needs to be put onto a peaceful track as soon as possible. And the continuation of such a spiral of violence, of course, is fraught with further escalation and expansion of this conflict. This is a great danger for the region, so we are extremely concerned,” Peskov mentioned.
The Kremlin spokesman added that Russian authorities weren’t conscious of any Russian nationals injured within the battle.
The European Union is convening an emergency assembly of its international ministers to evaluate the creating violence in Israel, whereas stressing that the nation had each proper to defend itself towards the unprecedented incursion by Hamas fighters.
The ministers will set up the Tuesday assembly in Oman, the place EU international coverage chief Josep Borrell and a few EU delegations are attending an EU-Gulf Cooperation Council joint assembly. Others will be a part of by video convention.
“The priority right now is for the aggression by Hamas to stop. The hostages need to be released and we need to see the overall deescalation of the situation,” EU spokesman Peter Stano mentioned.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has drawn a parallel between Russia’s invasion of his nation and the Hamas militant group’s incursion into Israel, saying solely “rules (and) international law” can guarantee peace all over the world.
“The same evil, and the only difference is that there is a terrorist organization that attacked Israel, and here is a terrorist state that attacked Ukraine,” Zelenskyy mentioned in a video handle Monday to a NATO parliamentary meeting in Copenhagen.
“Our unity must and can stop the evil,” Zelenskyy mentioned. “Let everyone who sponsors terror feel the power of our wrath. And let everyone who needs help defending themselves against terror feel the power of our solidarity.”
The high U.S. envoy to the Human Rights Council has led a second of silence to honor the victims of Hamas’ assaults towards Israeli civilians and the folks killed in an earthquake in Afghanistan over the weekend.
Ambassador Michele Taylor spoke Monday with a “heavy heart,” she mentioned, following the “horrific attacks carried out by Hamas terrorists on Israeli civilians” beginning on Saturday.
“The United States unequivocally condemns these heinous acts of terrorism. We extend our deepest condolences to the families affected and express our solidarity with the people and government of Israel in these trying times,” she informed the council, the U.N.’s high human rights physique.
Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters have gathered on the Sydney Opera House and police are advising the Jewish group to remain away.
Around 1,000 protesters on Monday marched 3 kilometers (2 miles) from Sydney Town Hall to the harborside landmark chanting: “Free, free Palestine!” They have been surrounded by a heavy police presence. One protester on the city corridor rally briefly waved an Israeli flag earlier than fleeing.
The opera home is amongst a number of public buildings in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra that have been to be illuminated in blue and white — the colours of Israel’s flag — on Monday evening in solidarity with the Israelis.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant mentioned authorities would minimize electrical energy to Gaza and block the entry of meals and gas there as a part of a “complete siege” he ordered.
The announcement on Monday got here as Israel’s army scoured the nation’s south for Hamas fighters and guarded breaches in its border fence with tanks, whereas it pounded the Gaza Strip from the air.
Israel and Egypt have imposed varied ranges of blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized energy from rival Palestinian forces in 2007.
The leaders of Egypt and the United Arab Emirates on Monday mentioned the battle between Israel and Palestinian militants.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan agreed on “the importance of … advancing diplomatic efforts that aim to de-escalate violence, protect civilians, spare blood,” a press release from the Egyptian president’s workplace mentioned. Such efforts ought to embody establishing “a comprehensive, just and permanent peace,” it added.
Egypt was the primary Arab nation to ascertain diplomatic ties with Israel within the Seventies, and shares borders with each Gaza and Israel. The UAE normalized ties with Tel Aviv as a part of the U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords in 2020. The Arab Gulf nation has frayed ties with Hamas.
Twelve Thai nationals have died in Israel following Hamas’ assault, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Kanchana Patarachoke mentioned Monday. Eleven others have been taken hostage and eight have been injured. The numbers, primarily based on reviews from employees and employers within the space, have been nonetheless awaiting affirmation from Israeli authorities, Kanchana mentioned.
Around 5,000 Thai employees are within the areas across the Gaza Strip, and a few have been evacuated to safer areas, the spokesperson mentioned, including that Thailand’s air pressure is getting ready planes for an evacuation each time the scenario permits. Many Thais work on farms in Israel.
Israel’s central financial institution says it’s going to promote as much as $30 billion in international trade to prop up the nation’s shekel forex following market uncertainty within the wake of Hamas’ incursion from the Gaza Strip.
The central financial institution issued a press release Monday morning asserting the plan, saying it “will operate in the market during the coming period in order to moderate volatility in the shekel exchange rate and to provide the necessary liquidity for the continued proper functioning of the markets.”
It added it might present extra liquidity of as much as $15 billion available in the market as effectively.
The shekel has fallen to a close to eight-year low towards the U.S. greenback in early buying and selling Monday.
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele, who has Palestinian ancestry, decried Hamas on Sunday after its assault on Israel.
“The best thing that could happen to the Palestinian people is for Hamas to completely disappear. Those savage beasts do not represent the Palestinians,” Bukele mentioned on the social community X, beforehand often called Twitter. “Anyone who supports the Palestinian cause would make a great mistake siding with those criminals.”
He additionally in contrast Hamas to the MS-13 gang, which has terrorized El Salvador for years.
Ten Nepali nationals have been killed in preventing in Israel and not less than yet another is lacking, Nepal’s Foreign Ministry mentioned. An unknown variety of others have been wounded within the violence, it added. Efforts have been being made to return the our bodies to Nepal and embassy officers have been additionally attempting to assist residents who need to depart the nation.
One of Israel’s objectives because it battles Hamas fighters is to take away the militant group from energy within the Gaza Strip, a army spokesperson mentioned Monday.
Jonathan Conricus made the assertion in a put up on X, previously often called Twitter. His phrases appeared to go additional than these of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu mentioned Sunday that his safety cupboard had made the choice to destroy Hamas’ capacity to control in a method that posed a menace to Israeli civilians.
A thousand Hamas militants took half within the preliminary, unprecedented assault on Israel on Saturday, Conricus mentioned.
“It is by far the worst day in Israeli history,” Conricus mentioned.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”