Strong words from UNRWA; Gaza running out of ambulances; disabled Israeli soldiers; Netanyahu: “No one will stop us”; US federal employees to protest Biden’s Gaza policy Tuesday; Houthi news
Statement from UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini:
The massive death, destruction, displacement, hunger, loss, and grief of the last 100 days are staining our shared humanity.
It’s been 100 days since the devastating war started, killing and displacing people in Gaza, following the horrific attacks that Hamas and other groups carried out against people in Israel. It’s been 100 days of ordeal and anxiety for hostages and their families.
In the past 100 days, sustained bombardment across the Gaza Strip caused the mass displacement of a population that is in a state of flux – constantly uprooted and forced to leave overnight, only to move to places which are just as unsafe. This has been the largest displacement of the Palestinian people since 1948.
(Read the full statement here.)
An important new website, Oct 7 Fact Check, is a project of Tech4Palestine (more info here). According to the website:
This site was created as a resource for those seeking to understand the facts concerning the events of October 7 and its aftermath. Atrocity propaganda refers to the spread of deliberately fabricated or exaggerated information about crimes committed against civilians, especially during times of war or conflict. Its purpose is to vilify an opposing group or nation, influence public opinion, or justify military or political actions.
The complex nature of such propaganda makes discerning the truth a challenging yet vital endeavor.
Our aim is to provide a comprehensive collection of events, allegations, and their sources in as objective manner as possible. While our team may offer conclusions based on our research, it is not our goal. Rather, we hope to facilitate the dissemination of information and organize it in a way that makes it accessible to anyone seeking to decide for themselves the truth of the matter.
Palestine Chronicle reports: The Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Saturday that there are only six ambulances left suitable for use in the Strip at the moment. Israel is still systematically targeting the health system in the war-torn Strip, by bombing medical crews and detaining health personnel.
In a press conference in front of Al-Shifa Medical Complex, in the northern Gaza Strip, the ministry revealed that that it is difficult to operate some basic services, including intensive care units and child nurseries.
Before Wednesday’s ambulance strike, the health ministry said more than 120 ambulances had been destroyed and at least 326 healthcare workers killed since the start of the conflict.
RECOMMENDED READING (Gideon Levy): ‘I Have Land – but I Don’t’: West Bank Olive Harvest Is Yet Another Casualty of the Gaza War
Anadolu Agency reports: Hebrew news site, Walla, said late Friday that 4,000 Israeli soldiers have become disabled since the beginning of the war against the Gaza Strip in October, with estimations suggesting that the number could rise to 30,000. “The country is preparing to receive a large number of disabled Israeli soldiers, and after 100 days of the war, around 4,000 soldiers have already been acknowledged as having disabilities,” it said.
“Thanks to the devoted and high-quality care provided by rescue teams and medical teams, those with severe injuries survive,” it said. The site added that the Israeli army “does not provide all data about the wounded to the public, for fear that it will lower people’s morale.”
“Currently, about 4,000 soldiers (with disabilities) have been recognized according to classification 3, meaning they are entitled to all treatments and rights enjoyed by a disabled person in the Israeli army without being officially recognized in this way,” said Walla.
Associated Press reports: Israel will pursue its war against Hamas until victory and will not be stopped by anyone, including the world court, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a defiant speech Saturday, as the fighting in Gaza approached the 100-day mark.
Netanyahu spoke after the International Court of Justice at The Hague held two days of hearings on South Africa’s allegations that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians, a charge Israel has rejected as libelous and hypocritical. South Africa asked the court to order Israel to halt its blistering air and ground offensive in an interim step.
“No one will stop us, not The Hague, not the axis of evil and not anyone else,” Netanyahu said in televised remarks Saturday evening, referring to Iran and its allied militias.
Al-Monitor reports: US federal employees across nearly two dozen agencies plan to walk off the job Tuesday to protest the Biden administration’s handling of the Gaza war, according to organizers of the dissent effort who spoke to Al-Monitor.
The group — calling itself Feds United for Peace — consists of dozens of government employees who will be observing a “Day of Mourning” to mark 100 days of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. The organizers, who are choosing to remain anonymous, say they expect “easily hundreds” of others to join in their walkout after securing commitments from individuals at 22 federal agencies.
According to a list obtained by Al-Monitor, those include the Executive Office of the President, the National Security Agency, the Departments of State, Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs as well as US Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Naval Research Laboratory. Others expected to join in the protest work for agencies including the Food and Drug Administration, the National Park Service, the Federal Aviation Administration and Environmental Protection Agency.
One of the walkout organizers told Al-Monitor their initiative “grew out of a collective desire to do what we could to influence the Biden administration’s policy on this issue.”
View this post on Instagram
Latest on Houthi front
The US military has confirmed that it carried out a missile attack on a Houthi radar site in Yemen at 03:45am local time [00:45 GMT] on Saturday morning, the second attack in recent days. US Central Command [CENTCOM], which is responsible for US forces in the Middle East, said Tomahawk missiles were fired from the US Navy’s US Carney at the radar site.
In a post on social media, CENTCOM described the attack as a “follow-on action” from the joint US-UK missile barrages late on Thursday night, which the US said had targeted Houthi military sites across Yemen.
Six Houthis were killed on the second day of US-UK strikes, the Yemeni group says.
Have the Houthi Red Sea attacks hurt Israel’s economy? Traffic through the Red Sea is down by more than 40 percent disrupting global supply chains. Some of the world’s largest shipping operators have redirected their vessels around the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa, delaying delivery times and adding a further 3,000-3,500 nautical miles (6,000km) to their route.
So far, at least 26 vessels have been attacked by Houthis since they seized the Israeli-linked Galaxy Leader vessel in November.
The Red Sea connects Asia to Europe and the Mediterranean, via the Suez Canal. Currently, around 12 percent of the world’s shipping passes through the Red Sea, averaging around 50 ships a day, carrying between $3bn to $9bn worth of cargo. In total, the value of goods passing through the route is estimated at more than one trillion dollars per year.
As of mid-December, Israel’s only Red Sea Port, at Eilat, reported an 85 percent drop in activity since the attacks began.
(Read the full article here.)
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates// Israel underestimates the convening of the International Court of Justice and international consensus on protecting civilians, and continues to commit more #massacres.
The Ministry condemns the crime of #executing the #martyr Khaled… pic.twitter.com/g9VhuRw36W
— State of Palestine – MFA 🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@pmofa) January 13, 2024
The Palestine Red Crescent continues to provide medical services to patients and displaced individuals in the southern #Gaza Strip. 📍This is done through the PRCS's clinic in Al-Mawasi in Rafah in addition to two mobile clinics in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Yunis, reaching… pic.twitter.com/nuE1SnN5Ja
— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) January 13, 2024
STATISTICS OCTOBER 7 – JANUARY 12:
Palestinian death toll since October 7: at least 24,187* (~23,843 in Gaza* (over 10,000 children), and at least 344 in the West Bank, about 77 of them children). This does not include an estimated 7,000 more still buried under rubble (4,900 women and children). Euro-Med Monitor reports 30,676 Palestinian deaths.
*Previously, IAK did not include 471 Gazans killed in the Al Ahli hospital blast since the source of the projectile was being disputed. However, given that much evidence points to Israel as the culprit, Israel had previously bombed the hospital and has attacked many others, Israel is prohibiting outside experts from investigating the scene, and since the UN and other agencies are including the deaths from the attack in their cumulative totals, if Americans knew is now also doing so.
About 1.9 million people have been displaced (about 85% of the population).
Palestinian injuries since October 7: at least 63,264** (including at least 60,050 in Gaza** and 4,176 in the West Bank). **NOTE: it is impossible to provide an accurate number of injuries in Gaza due to the ongoing bombardment and communication disruption.
It remains unknown how many Americans are among the casualties in Gaza**.
Reported Israeli death toll since October 7: ~1,139 (8 killed in West Bank, 187 in Gaza), including 32 Americans, and 8,730 injured, approximately 36 children).
NOTE: It is unknown at this time how many of the deaths and injuries in Israel may have been caused by Israeli soldiers; additionally, since Israel has a policy of universal conscription, it is unknown how many of those attending the outdoor rave a few miles from Gaza on stolen Palestinian land were Israeli soldiers.
Find previous daily casualty figures and daily news updates here.
For more news, go here and here. Broadcast news from the region is here
Source: IsraelPalestineTimeline.org
- 12 Essential Facts for Understanding the Current Israel-Gaza Violence
- Israel’s torture and humiliation of female and male Gazan prisoners
- 2023 in review: 12 months of blood on Israeli and American hands
- Coverage of Gaza War in NYTimes & other major papers heavily favored Israel, analysis shows
- Two reports debunk New York Times ‘investigative report’ of mass rape on October 7th
- John Mearsheimer: Genocide in Gaza
- Flashback: Israeli Journalist said Israel is pushing US into war with Iran
- Israel’s Assault on Gaza Is Unlike Any War in Recent Memory
- US poised to give Israel $18 billion in aid this year
- Gaza Civilians, Under Israeli Barrage, Are Being Killed at Historic Pace
- Essential facts and stats about the Hamas-Gaza-Israel war
- What media reports fail to tell you about October 7
