Israel-Hamas War HIGHLIGHTS: 'Growing Hunger And Desperation', Says UN World Food Programme On Warehouse Break-Ins
Israel-Hamas War HIGHLIGHTS: Follow this space for all the live and latest updates on the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
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Israel-Hamas War HIGHLIGHTS: Hello and welcome to the live blog on the Israel-Hamas War. Follow this space for all the live and latest updates.
The war between Israel and Hamas entered its 22nd day on Saturday. Gaza braces for further intense actions as the Israeli military prepares to "expand its operations" in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian Health Ministry has released the names of more than 6,000 "documented deaths" in the enclave since Israel launched its offensive, reported CNN. It said 7,028 Palestinians were killed, including 2,913 children. Here are the top developments in the conflict.
The heaviest bombardments on Gaza since October 7 Hamas's attack has ripped apart the region, reported BBC. The Overnight visuals show the Gaza skyline with air strikes as Israel "expands ground operation". The Israeli military on Friday again asked the Gaza residents to move south after announcing the expansion of its operations.
Amid the escalation of Israeli actions, its military told news organisations that it cannot guarantee the safety of journalists reporting from Gaza, according to Reuters.
The Gaza Strip is down with all kinds of communications with UN and WHO staff losing contact with volunteers there and the Hamas-controlled enclave facing a 'total or near total' internet blackout. The internet monitoring service Netblocks said on X that there had been a "collapse in connectivity".
"Live network data show a collapse in connectivity in the #Gaza Strip with high impact to Paltel, amid reports of heavy bombardment; the company is the last remaining major operator to supply service as connectivity declines amid ongoing fighting with Israel," it added.
It is the biggest communication and internet blockage in the region since the onset of war earlier this month. According to BBC, the Palestinian Red Crescent said it could not speak to its teams in Gaza.
"We are deeply concerned about the ability of our teams to continue providing their emergency medical services, especially since this disruption affects the central emergency number '101'," they wrote on X.
Several United Nations agencies stated they have lost contact with their local staff in Gaza. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X that the UN body has lost touch with its "staff, health facilities, health workers and the rest of our humanitarian partners on the ground."
'Growing Hunger And Desperation', Says UN World Food Programme On Warehouse Break-Ins
In a news release issued Sunday, the United Nations World Food Programme reported that some of its food supplies had been plundered in Gaza and warned of "growing hunger and desperation."
UNSC To Hold Emergency Meeting On Monday To Discuss Israel-Hamas Conflict
According to diplomatic sources, the United Nations Security Council will conduct an emergency meeting Monday to discuss Israel's ground assault of Gaza, CNN reported.
Fighter Jets Hit Hezbollah Military Infrastructure, Says IDF
The Israeli military claimed Sunday that its fighter planes attacked Hezbollah facilities in southern Lebanon in response to fire into northern Israel by a "terrorist cell," CNN reported.
The strike occurred in the Har Dov neighbourhood, and Israeli aircraft destroyed weaponry that may have been utilised for additional shelling, according to the Israel Defence Forces via Telegram.
The Israeli military claimed it intercepted two of the three missiles from that region in southern Lebanon, while the third fell in an open area.
Thousands In Gaza Break Into UNRWA Warehouse, Take Wheat And Basic Items
Thousands of people broke into several UNRWA warehouses and distribution centres in the middle and southern areas of the Gaza Strip, taking wheat flour and other basic survival items like hygiene supplies, according to UNRWA News Release.
One of the warehouses, in Deir al-Balah, is where UNRWA stores supplies from the humanitarian convoys coming from Egypt.
“This is a worrying sign that civil order is starting to break down after three weeks of war and a tight siege on Gaza. People are scared, frustrated and desperate.
Tensions and fear are made worse by the cuts in the phones and internet communication lines. They feel that they are on their own, cut off from their families inside Gaza and the rest of the world,” said Thomas White, Director of UNRWA Affairs in the Gaza Strip.
Massive displacement of people from the north of the Gaza Strip southward has placed enormous pressure on those communities, adding further burden on crumbling public services. Some families received up to 50 relatives taking shelter in one household.
“Supplies on the market are running out while the humanitarian aid coming into the Gaza Strip on trucks from Egypt is insufficient. The needs of the communities are immense, if only for basic survival, while the aid we receive is meager and inconsistent,” added White.
To date, just over 80 trucks of aid crossed into Gaza in one week.
On Saturday, 28 October, there was no convoy due to the blackout in communications. UNRWA - the main actor for the reception and storage of aid in the Gaza Strip - was not able to communicate with the different parties to coordinate the passage of the convoy.
“The current system of convoys is geared to fail. Very few trucks, slow processes, strict inspections, supplies that do not match the requirements of UNRWA and the other aid organizations, and mostly the ongoing ban on fuel, are all a recipe for a failed system.
We call for a regular and steady flow line of humanitarian supplies into the Gaza Strip to respond to the needs especially as tensions and frustrations grow,” concluded White.
Meanwhile, UNRWA teams in Gaza have reported that internet services and connections were restored.
They will reassess the situation with the aim of resuming convoys and distribution of assistance this morning.
Israeli Forces Advanced Over Two Miles Into Northern Gaza, Says Report
According to a CNN analysis of video supplied by an Israeli media site, Israeli forces appear to have moved nearly two kilometres inside Gaza.
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