Jews must be able to "defend" themselves because no one will protect them, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today, while more and more voices are being raised against Israel's war in the Gaza Strip.
"If we have to defend ourselves, we will defend ourselves. If it is possible to mobilize 'non-Jews', that is good. But if we do not protect ourselves, no one will," Netanyahu said.
The prime minister said this at the reception of survivors of the Nazi genocide who will participate in the Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at the Yad Vashem memorial center on Sunday.
The devastating war launched by Israel in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the October 7 attack by the Palestinian movement Hamas in Israel is drawing increasing criticism around the world.
Referring to a student movement in solidarity with Palestinians in American college towns, Netanyahu said he condemned the "terrible demonstrations by anti-Semitic hordes calling for the destruction of Israel and attacking Jewish students and professors."
Netanyahu also faces open international opposition to his intention to launch a major offensive on the town of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip.
Rafah is a refuge for one and a half million Palestinians, the vast majority of whom have been displaced by the war, while Israeli authorities consider the city to be the last stronghold of Hamas fighters.
(BETA)
In the Gaza Strip, more people could die from disease than from bombing, if the health system does not recover, said the spokeswoman of the World Health Organization (WHO) Margaret Harris.
She warned about the increase in infectious diseases and diarrhea among children.
Health officials in Gaza, who are trusted by the United Nations, say that more than 15.000 people have been killed in the Israeli bombardment, about 40 percent of them children, and many more are feared dead under the rubble, reports Reuters.
"In the end, we will have more deaths from diseases than from bombings, if we do not manage to patch the holes in this health system," Harris said at a press conference at the UN in Geneva, reports N1.
She added that there are no medicines, vaccines, access to clean water or hygiene, and no food.
She called the destruction of the Al Shifa hospital in northern Gaza a "tragedy" and expressed concern about some of the medical staff detained by Israeli forces.
Hamas is "in a positive spirit" studying the proposal for a truce, which was reached through the mediation of Egypt, the leader of the Palestinian movement, Ismail Haniyeh, said today.
He said in a telephone conversation with Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel that Hamas negotiators would return "as soon as possible" to Egypt to conclude ongoing ceasefire talks.
The Palestinian movement's response to the cease-fire proposal, which envisages a truce in Israeli military operations, is awaited, followed by the exchange of hostages kidnapped during a Hamas attack on Israeli soil on October 7, for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
The Israeli government, for its part, today accused Hamas of obstructing the deal by refusing to make concessions.
"The only thing preventing an agreement is Hamas. Hamas is only tightening its terms and hiding behind unreasonable demands," Israeli government spokeswoman Rachel Karamson told reporters.
She reiterated that Israel continues to prepare for a major offensive on Rafah, a town located in the far south of the Gaza Strip, despite opposition from the international community.
(BETA)
The killing of a Palestinian boy in the West Bank appears to be a war crime by the Israeli army, a UN expert has claimed, after seeing evidence gathered by the BBC.
Organizers of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, which is due to take place next Sunday in Sweden, announced today that they are prepared to remove all Palestinian flags and symbols with political connotations during the popular contest.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone about the conflict between Israel and Hamas, including a possible ceasefire, the German government said.
The two officials discussed efforts to free all hostages held by Hamas and a ceasefire, the statement said, as reported by Reuters.
During the talks, further improvements were also discussed when it comes to humanitarian aid to people in the Gaza Strip, the government spokesman said in a statement.
Members of the Palestinian security forces killed an armed man in the occupied West Bank, reports Reuters.
Security spokesman Talak Dweikat said that the forces, which were sent to patrol Tulkarm during the night, were fired upon and that they returned fire and hit the attacker.
The attacker died of his wounds in the hospital.
The Tulkarm and Nour Shams brigades claim that the murdered Ahmed Abu el Ful belonged to the Islamic Jihad group.
"El Ful was treacherously shot in his car. There were no provocations on his part," they stated in the statement.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned today the "terrifying resurgence of anti-Semitism" in the world, especially in the United States of America (USA), where "universities are contaminated with hatred and anti-Semitism."
"Reputable universities, centers of history, culture and education are contaminated with hatred and anti-Semitism," Herzog said.
On American university campuses, "we see with horror how the crimes against Israel since October 7" last year are celebrated and justified, the Israeli president added.
He expressed support for "brothers and sisters, friends on campuses and in Jewish communities in the US and around the world."
(BETA)
The Health Ministry of Hamas announced today that 34.596 people have died in Gaza since the beginning of the war between the Palestinian Islamist movement and Israel.
In the last 24 hours, 28 people died.
Since the beginning of the war on October 7 last year, 77.816 people have been wounded.
(Beta)
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