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- Israeli forces kill 84 people in Gaza as the military orders Palestinians in the southern city of Khan Younis to flee ahead of an “unprecedented attack”.
- The leaders of Canada, France and the UK threaten to take “concrete action” against Israel if it does not end its renewed offensive in Gaza, while 22 countries urge Israel to let aid into the besieged enclave.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses the calls and pledges to press on with the offensive, which includes plans for Israel to take control of the whole of Gaza.
- Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 53,339 Palestinians and wounded 121,034, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The Government Media Office updated the death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of people missing under the rubble are presumed dead.
- An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, and more than 200 were taken captive.
Australian senator slams government’s inaction on Israeli war, blockade
Mehreen Faruqi of the Greens Party says Australia should have signed onto the statement from the United Kingdom, Canada, and France threatening sanctions against Israel.
“At the very least, the Prime Minister could join the statement of our allies,” Faruqi said in a post on Instagram.
Australia joined a separate statement, signed by 22 countries, asking Israel to “allow a full resumption of aid into Gaza immediately”.
However, Faruqi said, “Calling on Israel to allow aid through, without backing it with real action, is meaningless.”
“What is needed are sanctions and an end to the arms trade – not empty statements and diplomatic cowardice that this genocidal regime has made clear it will simply ignore,” she added.
Amnesty lambasts Israel’s allies over siege on Gaza
The prominent human rights group says “it is outrageous and morally reprehensible” that it took the world nearly 80 days of starvation in Gaza to exert enough pressure on Israel to let some aid in.
And still, “letting in a handful of aid trucks – a drop in the ocean, while simultaneously intensifying military operations […] is a cynical attempt to sugarcoat Israel’s ongoing genocide,” the group said in a post on X.
“World leaders must not be fooled,” it added.
“Nothing short of a full lifting of Israel’s siege on the occupied Gaza Strip and an immediate, enduring ceasefire will help to alleviate the catastrophic suffering Palestinians in Gaza are being forced to endure under the watch of Israel’s allies.”
Statement by 22 countries marks a shift in Europe’s stance on Gaza
This statement, which demands that Israel allow “full resumption” of aid into Gaza, was signed by 22 nations, including European ministers, but also Canada, Australia and some Baltic states.
They are rejecting outright this so-called new model that Israel has introduced to distribute aid into Gaza through what it says will be points controlled by the Israeli military in Israeli-occupied territory.
The foreign ministers say this is completely unacceptable because humanitarian aid should never be politicised and should be equal and accessible for everyone.
So these ministers are demanding that Israel enable aid to go into Gaza and allow humanitarian agencies to work independently and impartially.
This is coming ahead of a very important foreign ministers’ meeting in Brussels, where the EU will discuss its position on Gaza.
What we are seeing is a shift after one and a half years of ongoing bombardment on Gaza, with this blockade on food leading to a public outcry.
Palestinian envoy outlines actions UK, Canada and France can take against Israel
We’ve been speaking to Husam Zumlot, the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, on the statement from Britain, France and Canada that warned Israel of sanctions if it continues with its Gaza offensive.
The “number one” thing these countries can do is impose an arms embargo, Zomlot told Al Jazeera from London.
“The UK has taken some measures to suspend some arms exports. It’s not enough. It has got to be full and comprehensive,” Zomlot said.
“This is not a demand. This is not a call. It’s a legal obligation,” he added.
In addition, the envoy said the Western countries could expand their sanctions beyond “individual settlers” in the occupied West Bank to the “entire ecosystem of the illegal settlements”, including the State of Israel.
Zumlot also said the states should also act to ensure that “war criminals” are “held accountable”.
“They must absolutely support our efforts at the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice,” he said.
“These criminals, including Netanyahu, must be behind bars.”
Death toll in Gaza rises
Medical sources say Israeli attacks since midnight have killed at least 43 people in Gaza.
We’ll bring you more when we have it.
Freed Georgetown scholar hopes Mahmoud Khalil will be released soon
Badar Khan Suri, who was released from immigration detention on May 14 after being held for activism in support of Palestine, has expressed hope that other detained students, including Mahmoud Khalil, will be freed soon, too.
In a statement, the researcher at Georgetown University said he found his life again when he saw his children, after two months “of sorrow, loss and pain”.
“I forgot every suffering after hugging them… I hope very soon Mahmoud will be holding his son, and all other students still in detention will reunite with their loved ones,” he said.
Mahmoud Khalil, a permanent resident of the US and a graduate student at Columbia University, was among the first people the Trump administration arrested and sought to deport amid its crackdown on pro-Palestine activism on campuses. He has been held in immigration detention in Louisiana since his arrest on March 8 and was unable to attend the birth of his son in New York.
Khan Suri’s wife, Said Maphaz Saleh, promised to continue efforts to free Khalil and others.
“Our joy is not complete. We cannot truly celebrate while Mahmoud Khalil remains behind bars, unable to hold his newborn baby or stand beside his wife, who is no doubt carrying an unbearable burden in his absence… We will not rest until Mahmoud and every innocent soul behind those walls is free.”
UK, France, Canada threaten sanctions on Israel if Gaza war goes on
As we’ve been reporting, the leaders of Canada, France and the UK have warned Israel that their countries would take action if it does not stop a renewed military offensive in Gaza and lift aid restrictions.
“The Israeli Government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable and risks breaching International Humanitarian Law,” a joint statement released by the UK government said.
“We oppose any attempt to expand settlements in the West Bank… We will not hesitate to take further action, including targeted sanctions.”
Death toll from Monday rises to 126
Medical sources say the death toll from Israeli attacks on Gaza on Monday has risen from 84 to 126.
Death toll in Gaza soars
Medical sources say Israeli forces have killed at least 38 Palestinians in Gaza since midnight local time.
The report came as the death toll from the Israeli attack on the Musa Bin Nusair School rose to 12.
Another 15 were killed in the Nuseirat refugee camp and 12 more were killed in Deir el-Balah.
We’ll bring you more soon.
‘Doomsday’ in Gaza amid unprecedented attacks on hospitals
Powerful explosions were heard in Khan Younis on Monday morning as Israeli warplanes filled the skies, with drones and assault helicopters raining down bombs on civilian neighbourhoods.
The besieged and starving people of Khan Younis say it feels like doomsday.
Loads of dead and wounded people, including women and children, were rushed to the city’s barely functioning medical centres.
They include the Nasser Medical Complex, which suffered some of the fierce bombing over recent days. The attacks caused widespread destruction across the hospital’s different facilities, including oxygen lines, the pharmaceutical laboratory and the warehouse storing medical supplies.
Another strike hit a school in Nuseirat refugee camp in the centre of the Strip, where dozens of people were sheltering.
In northern Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital is under siege by the Israeli military, with patients unable to enter or get out.
The war on hospitals has been ongoing since the beginning, but has reached unprecedented levels.
Aside from the Nasser and Indonesian hospitals, two other major hospitals in Gaza, the European and al-Awda, have been bombed and largely put out of service.
The hospitals are flooding with people. There’s little space to walk inside Al-Aqsa Hospital. Some are seeking treatment after being injured by Israeli bombardment. Others are seeking help with chronic diseases or looking for shelter.
As the Israeli army expands its ground offensive, Israeli leaders say they will allow limited amounts of humanitarian aid into the Strip.
But those in charge of relief say it’s too little and too late.
For the people of Gaza, a little food or a temporary ceasefire isn’t enough to lift their suffering – what they want is an end to the genocide.
Israel bombs school-turned-shelter in Gaza, kills 10
We have more on the continuing attacks on Gaza.
Al Jazeera Arabic is reporting that Israeli forces have bombed the Musa Bin Nusair School, where displaced Palestinians were sheltering, in Gaza City, killing at least 10 people.
Death toll rises in Nuseirat refugee camp
The death toll from the Israeli attack on a petrol station in the Nuseirat refugee camp has now risen to 15, our correspondent in Gaza is reporting.
Children were among those killed.
Israel dismisses warnings from UK, France and Canada
The UK, France and Canada have released a joint statement saying that they would take actions against Israel if they did not lift the blockade on humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory.
They’re also saying that Israel needs to completely stop the expansion of the military offensive in the Gaza Strip and stop expanding illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, saying that these countries would be looking to impose sanctions as a result.
They also slammed the comments from ministers in Israel about opposing humanitarian aid, saying that those comments and remarks are abhorrent.
Netanyahu said that Israel is now allowing a very basic amount of food into the Palestinian territory, something these countries say is wholly inadequate.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office also condemned the statement by these three countries, and several other statements that also came out earlier on Monday, saying Israel needs to resume humanitarian aid.
The Israeli prime minister says that Israel is going to continue fighting this war until an “absolute victory”, saying this is a “war of civilisation against barbarism”, and despite all of the international pressure that Israel has been receiving, they say that the expanding military ground offensive is the only way for them to move forward.
Israeli forces kill 19 Palestinians in central Gaza
The carnage in Gaza is continuing.
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting that 12 people have been killed and several others are missing after Israeli forces bombed a house in Deir el-Balah.
Seven people, including children, were also killed in another attack on a petrol station in the Nuseirat refugee camp.
We’ll bring you more soon.
A recap of recent developments
- The death toll from Israeli attacks on Gaza on Monday rises to 84 as the Israeli military warns residents of the southern city of Khan Younis to evacuate immediately ahead of an “unprecedented attack”.
- The leaders of Canada, France and the United Kingdom threaten sanctions against Israel if it does not end its renewed military offensive in Gaza and lift restrictions on aid.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has announced plans to take control of the whole of Gaza, slams the threat and promises to continue the war until “total victory” is achieved.
- Israel allows five aid trucks into Gaza, a move the United Nations says constitutes a “drop in the ocean”, as 22 countries demand the unfettered entry of aid into the enclave.
- Yemen’s Houthis announce a “maritime blockade” on Israel’s Haifa port, warning all companies with ships in the port that they have been “included in the list of targets”.
- The UN says nearly 100,000 Palestinians have been displaced in Gaza in the last four days as Israel expands its ground invasion of the Strip.
Welcome to our live coverage
Hello, and thank you for joining our live coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza, as well as its attacks on the occupied West Bank and the wider region.
Follow this page for round-the-clock updates and analysis on the latest developments.
You can read about the key events from Monday, May 19, here.
