- More than 3,500 children below the age of five in Gaza face “imminent death by starvation”, and about 290,000 others are “on the brink of death” as Israel continues to prevent the entry of baby formula, nutritional supplements, and all forms of humanitarian aid, according to Gaza’s Government Media Office.
- Mahmoud Alsaqqa, Oxfam’s food security lead in the Gaza Strip, tells Al Jazeera that “the whole world, unfortunately, is contributing to or participating in starving the children in Gaza” by not taking any action against the blockade that started more than two months ago.
- At least 40 Palestinians have been killed and 125 wounded in Israeli attacks across Gaza in the past 24 hours, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.
- A missile launched from Yemen towards Israel has hit the perimeter of Ben Gurion airport; footage shared on social media shows a plume of smoke visible from a passenger terminal.
- Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 52,535 Palestinians and wounded 118,491, 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.
Houthis manage to hit Israel despite US bombardment of Yemen
Just last night and into the early hours of today, the US continued its aerial bombardment of Yemen. They have hit different provinces – including Saada, al-Jawf and Marib – in the country’s northwest and the centre.
In Saada alone, there were eight air strikes targeting Takhya region in the Majaz district. We also have Sahar district, the province on the western coast, that was hit with two air strikes with additional strikes targeting Kamaran island and also the as-Salif district.
Marib alone was hit with 10 air strikes, particularly targeting the Major district, and another six aerial bombardments have hit Madgal. In al-Jawf province, the US hit al-Hazm district with 10 air strikes.
Yet despite last night’s heavy bombardment as well as over a month and a half of continuous strikes, Houthi fighters continue to launch ballistic missiles deep into Israel.
An example is the confirmed bombardment of Ben Gurion airport in what the Houthis claim is an attempt to render the international airport unsafe for international flights.
Another prisoner dies in Israeli custody: Prisoners’ group
Mohey al-Din Fahmi Saeed Nijim, a native of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, has died in Israeli custody, according to the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society (PPS).
Nijim, a 60-year-old father of six, was arrested in August 2023 and held in the Negev prison, where he did not receive adequate health treatment as his condition deteriorated, Wafa reported, citing the group.
“He was held behind bars without any trial or charges under ‘administrative detention’ for close to two years, before he was martyred today,” PPS said. “He is one of hundreds of sick prisoners subjected to systematic slow killings in Israeli prisons.
His death brings the total number of Palestinian prisoners who have died in Israeli custody during the Gaza war to at least 66, according to PPS.
Israeli court orders short jail terms for Ben-Gvir assassination attempt: Reports
Three men convicted of plotting attacks in Israel, including to assassinate National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, have been sentenced to three and a half to five years in prison under a plea deal, according to Israeli media.
Two of the convicted men were from the Bedouin city of Rahat in Israel’s northern Negev and one from the occupied West Bank, the reports said.
The sentencing by the Beersheba District Court comes after the defendants’ charges were downgraded from “conspiracy to aid the enemy” to the lesser offence of “disclosure of a decision of betrayal”, as part of the agreement, the reports said.
Ben-Gvir reacted angrily to the relatively short sentences in a post on X, saying they put his and other government ministers’ lives in danger.
“Such a deal sends an encouraging message to terrorists: keep trying to carry out assassinations and harm symbols of government – and you’ll get off lightly,” he wrote.
Several international airlines cancel flights to Israel after Houthi attack
Lufthansa, Air Europa, Air France, Austrian and Swiss Airlines have decided not to operate flights today to and from Tel Aviv after a ballistic missile from Yemen struck an area at the country’s main Ben Gurion airport, according to The Times of Israel.
Hungarian low-cost airline giant Wizz Air announced the cancellation of its flights to Israel for the next 48 hours, the daily reported.
The cancellations come despite the reopening of the airport an hour after the attack.
Israeli soldiers, settlers raid home of Hebron activist featured in BBC film The Settlers
Palestinian activist Issa Amro says Israeli soldiers and settlers have raided his home in Hebron after he took part in the BBC documentary The Settlers. It features Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which are illegal under international law.
In a post on X, Amro shared footage showing a group of settlers harassing him and trying to push their way into his property. He said they stole items and assaulted one person. According to Amro, Israeli soldiers who arrived at the scene threatened him against filing a complaint about the settlers’ actions.
He said the soldiers were seeking “revenge” for his role in the BBC film, which has received critical acclaim for its portrayal of the Israeli settler movement.
Gaza’s hospitals to run out of fuel in three days: Health Ministry
Gaza’s Health Ministry has issued an urgent appeal for fuel, warning that hospitals are on the brink of running out.
While some fuel is stored at designated sites, the ministry says aid groups are unable to access or transport it because Israel has declared those areas off-limits.
If no new fuel arrives, hospitals will run out within three days and may be forced to shut down, the ministry added.
Gaza death toll rises
At least 40 Palestinians have been killed and 125 wounded in Israeli attacks across Gaza in the past 24 hours, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed 52,535 people and wounded 118,491 others since October 7, 2023, it said.
Since Israel ended the ceasefire unilaterally on March 18, it has killed at least 2,436 people in Gaza and wounded 6,450 others, the statement added.
Israeli military claims dozens of weekend attacks across Gaza
The air force struck more than 100 “terror targets throughout the Gaza Strip” over the past weekend, the Israeli military has claimed in a report.
The targets included tunnels, underground infrastructure sites, and military structures, it said, adding that Israeli troops operating in northern Gaza have “located and dismantled” infrastructure belonging to Hamas both above and below ground.
“In southern Gaza, the troops continue operational activity in Rafah and along the ‘Morag’ corridor,” the report says.
The military has also said, during their activity, the troops “located and dismantled” Hamas weapons, and “struck infrastructure from both the air and ground”.
As we have reported, residential buildings and tents for displaced people are the main targets of Israeli attacks across Gaza. In Khan Younis alone, three children were among 11 killed civilians after Israel bombed the al-Bayram family home overnight on Saturday.
Israel killed 13 Palestinians in Gaza since dawn: Report
Israeli attacks have killed 13 people, mostly women and children, across Gaza today, Wafa reports, citing medical sources.
The majority of the victims were killed in an attack on a tent camp in al-Mawasi, near the southern city of Khan Younis, the report said.
Other deadly attacks took place in Khan Younis, Nuseirat and Beit Hanoon, Wafa said.
Israel’s Katz promises to respond to Houthi missile attack sevenfold
Defence Minister Israel Katz has pledged to fiercely respond to the missile attack on the Ben Gurion airport complex.
“Anyone who hits us, we will hit them seven times stronger,” he said in a statement.
Whole world ‘complicit’ in starvation of children in Gaza: Oxfam
Mahmoud Alsaqqa, Oxfam’s food security lead inside the Gaza Strip, says humanitarian organisations are in “desperate need” for unrestricted flows of aid in Gaza.
“We have a lot of supplies that are stuck in Egypt and Jordan, and we cannot reach them,” he said, adding that he expects the humanitarian situation to “deteriorate” even further.
“We have repeatedly sounded the alarm and warned that this stage will lead to catastrophic and potentially irreversible consequences, especially for the vulnerable groups, the children, the elderly people and the women,” Alsaqqa said.
“The whole world, unfortunately, is contributing to or participating in starving the children in the Gaza Strip. Without taking any action, they are all, unfortunately, complicit,” Alsaqqa said.
“They have a choice: either to continue simply watching the horror, the pictures and the images coming from Gaza or to take action,” he said.
Missile attack on Ben Gurion ’embarrassing’ for Israeli defence establishment
Ori Goldberg, a Tel Aviv-based political commentator, says the missile attack on the Ben Gurion airport complex is “very embarrassing” for Israel given how much stock it has placed in its strategic defences.
“Israel has been trumpeting the achievements of its Iron Dome system and its more advanced strategic missile defence systems to the world,” Goldberg told Al Jazeera. “This was supposed to be the one area of military activity where Israel could claim success. So this is very embarrassing.”
He also brought up the implications of the attack’s resounding impact on Israeli life.
“You have one missile being shot from Yemen – it could do a lot of damage, but it’s still one missile,” he said. “And one missile is enough to rock Israel to its core. This should give you an indication of how weak the structural foundations of Israeli society and of Israeli institutions like the military are at the moment.”
Yemen’s Houthi rebels claim missile attack on Israel’s Ben Gurion airport
In a statement on Telegram, Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree says the group carried out a “hypersonic ballistic missile” strike targeting Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv this morning.
The statement claimed the strike “successfully hit its target” and urged international airlines to avoid the “unsafe” airport.
The Houthis carried out the assault “in support of the oppressed Palestinian people” and to counter Israel’s “crime of genocide” in Gaza, according to the statement.
More than 3,500 children under 5 ‘face imminent death by starvation’ in Gaza: Media Office
Gaza’s Government Media Office says more than 70,000 children are being hospitalised in the enclave due to severe malnutrition as Israel prevents the entry of baby formula, nutritional supplements and all forms of humanitarian aid.
“Under this systematic blockade, more than 3,500 children under the age of five face imminent death by starvation, while approximately 290,000 children are on the brink of death,” the statement published on Telegram said.
“At a time when 1.1 million children daily lack the minimum nutritional requirements for survival, this crime is being perpetrated by the ‘Israeli’ occupation using starvation as a weapon, amid shameful international silence,” it added.
Israel’s Gantz calls for ‘harsh response’ to Iran after missile attack
Israeli MP and former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz has blamed Iran for being behind the missile attack launched from Yemen, without offering any evidence.
“This isn’t Yemen – it’s Iran,” said Gantz in a post on X, urging a “harsh response”.
“It is Iran that is firing ballistic missiles at the State of Israel, and it must be held accountable,” he said. “The Israeli government must wake up and not return to the days of ‘drip’ attacks.”
Israel’s Ben Gurion airport resumes operations: Reports
The Times of Israel, citing the Israel Airports Authority, reports that the Ben Gurion airport has reopened after an hourlong closure following a missile attack from Yemen.
“Takeoffs and landings have returned to normal,” it reported.
Train service to the airport has also resumed, reports Israel’s Channel 12.
Israel turned Gaza into a testing lab for enforced starvation and dehydration
One of the displaced people we spoke to in Gaza City told us that it seemed like Israel turned Gaza into a testing lab. It not only keeps dropping bombs on civilians and displaced people, but it is also testing how far it can push people when it comes to starvation and dehydration.
The fact that we haven’t seen for the past 62 days any food, water or medicine allowed into Gaza is an indication that the Strip has for real turned into a testing lab for enforced starvation and dehydration.
Due to the Israeli blockade, 3,000 aid trucks are stuck at the border, just a 30-minute drive away from where I am standing right now.
On the right side of me, there is a displacement camp. Its coordinator has received news from a local community kitchen that provided them meals in the past days. The kitchen said it would be very difficult to provide them with any meals as of today. Many of these people here, if not all of them, are going to go through today without any food.
This is the story across Gaza, where many of the community kitchens are shutting down.
Six injured in missile attack on Ben Gurion airport: Report
The Times of Israel newspaper, citing the national emergency service, says six people have been wounded in the missile attack on Ben Gurion airport.
Those hurt include an elderly man who was hit by debris flung from the impact site and another man suffering from limb trauma. There are also several women lightly injured from shockwave effects, said the media report.
Houthi attack reminds Israelis ‘they are vulnerable’
This is the fourth Houthi missile attack on Israel in the last few days.
The idea that Houthis can fire a missile from 2,000km (more than 1,240 miles) away and attack Israel after weeks of very intense US air strikes on Yemen is extraordinary.
They have been hammering the armed group, and yet the Houthis can still do this – hit a target in one of the most heavily defended countries on earth.
Israel’s defence system is extremely advanced and is getting better with each wave of conflict.
The attack reminds the Israelis that they are vulnerable.