Return to north Gaza includes delay, struggle

Forcibly displaced Palestinians head back north via Salah al-Din Street (Doaa Albaz/Anadolu Agency)

Compilation of news reports – IAK staff

More than 376,000 Palestinians displaced by the war between Israel and Hamas have returned to northern Gaza since Monday, the UN’s humanitarian body OCHA has said.

Hospitals in Gaza have received 48 bodies in the last 48 hours, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.

Journey home to north Gaza adds to Palestinians’ ‘long history of misery’

Tareq Abu Azzoum reports from Gaza: I have just come back from the military inspection point at the Netzarim Corridor. I saw really devastating scenes.

Families in the line [to pass through to northern Gaza] are struggling without food, water and sanitation. The inspection process is incredibly slow.

Thousands of cars are still waiting to make the journey back to the north. It will take days.

People are absolutely exhausted. Now their return to [northern Gaza], rather than being a time of relief and joy, has turned into another struggle, adding to a long history of misery.

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Tens of thousands of Palestinians forcibly displaced by the Israeli offensive continue to return to their lands from the south to the north via Salah al-Din Street (Hassan Jedi/Anadolu)

Gaza: No Safe Pregnancies During Israeli Assault

The Israeli government’s blockade of Gaza and attacks on healthcare facilities have created serious and sometimes life-threatening danger for women and girls during and after pregnancy and delivery since hostilities began in October 2023, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

The 50-page report, “‘Five Babies in One Incubator’: Violations of Pregnant Women’s Rights Amid Israel’s Assault on Gaza,” finds that Israeli forces’ unlawful blockade of the Gaza Strip, its severe restrictions on humanitarian aid, and attacks on medical facilities and healthcare personnel have directly harmed women and girls during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period.

The Israeli government, as the occupying power in Gaza, has violated the right to the highest attainable standard of health and other rights of pregnant women and girls, including the right to dignified, respectful health care throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum, as well as the right to newborn care (continue reading here).

Destruction at Gaza’s Shifa Hospital exceeds 95%: Health official

Destruction at the Al-Shifa Medical Complex, the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip, has exceeded 95% due to the Israeli genocide, a Palestinian health official said Tuesday.

The complex continues to provide partial services to residents in the 5% of its buildings that have been rehabilitated, said Munir al-Bursh, director general of the Ministry of Health in Gaza.

Palestinians inspect the damage at Gaza's al-Shifa hospital after the Israeli military withdrew from the complex housing the hospital on April 1, 2024. — Palestinians inspect the damage at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital after the Israeli military withdrew from the complex housing the hospital on April 1, 2024. (AFP/Getty)

Israeli gunfire hits ambulance near Rafah: Red Crescent

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) says one of its ambulances has been hit by Israeli sniper fire in the Tal as-Sultan area, west of Rafah in southern Gaza.

US stands alone in favor of UNRWA ban at UN Security Council

The US was left isolated Tuesday in support of Israel’s decision to ban UNRWA at the UN Security Council, while many member states voiced strong backing for the agency’s continued operations.

Dorothy Shea, US charge d’affairs ad interim for UN, told the Council that the US “supports the implementation” of Israeli Knesset’s decision to ban the UN agency for Palestinian refugees’ operations in areas under Israeli occupation.

While UNRWA was mandated by the UN General Assembly, Shea claimed that “it is Israel’s sovereign decision to close UNRWA offices in Jerusalem on January 30.”

“UNRWA exaggerating the effects of the laws and suggesting that they will force the entire humanitarian response to halt is irresponsible and dangerous. What is needed is a nuanced discussion about how we can ensure that there is no interruption in the delivery of humanitarian aid and essential services,” she said.

Ayman Fadi Qasem Naji, killed by Israeli forces, Jan. 28, 2025

West Bank: Israeli Soldiers Kill a Palestinian

On Tuesday, Israeli forces killed a Palestinian young man in the Irtah suburb, south of Tulkarem, and injured three others, including a child during their military incursion into Tulkarem city and the Tulkarem refugee camp, in the northwestern part of the occupied West Bank.

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian young man, on Tuesday night, after shooting and detaining him in the Irtah suburb, south of Tulkarem.

Media sources said that occupation forces shot the young man, Ayman Fadi Qasem Naji, 23, with live ammunition, and proceeded to abduct him, before he succumbed to his injuries in Israeli custody.

West Bank: Israeli troops leave a path of terror and destruction

Israeli troops continued military operations in Tulkarm and Jenin in the occupied West Bank for the eighth day. Already the Israeli assault has killed at least 16 Palestinians.

“Israeli forces forced several families to leave their homes in the Al-Mattar and Murabba’at Hannoun neighborhoods at gunpoint, notifying them that they would not be permitted to return for a period of one week,” WAFA news agency reported overnight.

Israeli troops also took over several buildings and homes in the camp and transformed them into military outposts; they reportedly also demolished the Hamza Mosque.

In a statement, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said, “These crimes and violations reflect the Israeli government’s systematic and deliberate replication of its crimes against Palestinians in Gaza, extending its brutal assaults to the West Bank in blatant violation of international law and the Geneva Conventions.”

Israeli raids and attacks on Jenin city and its refugee camp continue in Jenin, West Bank on January 28, 2025. (Issam Rimawi – Anadolu Agency)

IDF to remain in Jenin refugee camp even after current operation , Defense Minister Katz says

Israeli Defense Minister Katz visited the refugee camp in Jenin and said that the IDF will remain in the camp even after the operation is complete “to make sure that terrorism does not return.”

Katz held a discussion to assess the situation on the ground, and said that the operation, dubbed Iron Wall, will expand to additional “terrorist camps”.

Palestinian journalist Nagham Al-Zayt (MEMO)

West Bank: Israel shoots at Palestinian journalists covering Tulkarm raid

Journalist Nagham Al-Zayt sustained injuries from Israeli gunfire yesterday while reporting on the ongoing Israeli occupation army raid on the eastern neighborhood of Tulkarm, northwestern part of the West Bank.

Journalist Sohaib Abu Dayyak, who was with Al-Zayt and other reporters at the time, said Israeli occupation soldiers fired live rounds directly at them. As a result, Al-Zayt was injured in her right hand by shrapnel and received treatment at the Red Crescent medical centre in Tulkarm.

The Israeli occupation forces also obstructed journalists from covering the military assault on the city and its refugee camp. They chased reporters and fired sound grenades at them.

Netanyahu says Trump invited him to the White House

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that US President Donald Trump has invited Netanyahu to visit the White House on February 4.

Israeli Contractor Working in Gaza Accidentally Shot Dead by IDF Troops

An Israeli contractor working for the Defense Ministry who was conducting engineering work for the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza was mistakenly killed by IDF soldiers on Tuesday.

The IDF said that it has opened an investigation into the circumstances of the death of the contractor, who was named as Yaakov (Kobi) Avitan, 38 years old.

According to the IDF, Avitan, who approached Israeli troops and did not respond to calls to stop, was unarmed and dressed in civilian clothing, making it unclear why he was shot.

The Military Police have launched an investigation into the incident at the instruction of the IDF’s Advocate General. Avitan is the first Israeli fatality in the Gaza Strip in the past two weeks.

NOTE: While the Israeli public may be confused about why Yaakov Avitan was killed, Palestinians can fully understand. Palestinians are shot on a nearly daily basis, even if they are wearing civilian clothes and doing nothing threatening. Israeli soldiers do not seem inclined toward de-escalation, and often shoot to kill.

New Zealand requires Israelis to disclose military service when applying for visas: Report

New Zealand will now require Israelis applying for a visa to report details about their military service, and at least one person has been denied entry after doing so, according to the Times of Israel newspaper.

Israelis applying for a tourist visa will have to disclose whether they served in the military – as most Israelis do – or are active reservists, the outlet reported.

One of the questionnaires asks applicants if they “used or promoted violence or human rights abuses to further their aims”. Another question probes if the applicant has “been involved in war crimes, crimes against humanity, or human rights abuses”.

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Looking for a way to help get the word out about Palestine? Go here.

STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – JANUARY 28, 2025 (ongoing count):

At least 48,292 Palestinians killed, 118,571 injured – including:

at least 47,417 killed in Gaza (~20,600 children)
at least 875 killed in the West Bank (~177 children)
at least 111,571 injured in Gaza
at least 7,000 injured in the West Bank

WAR STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 (Hamas attack) – JANUARY 19, 2025 (Ceasefire):

Palestinian death toll from October 7, 2023 – January 19, 2025: at least 48,143 – including at least 47,283 in Gaza (~20,600 children), and 860 in the West Bank (~177 children). Palestinian injuries: at least 118,472 – including at least 111,472 in Gaza, and 7,000 in the West Bank.

Thousands of those killed in Gaza have yet to be identified, and an estimated 11,000 more are still buried under rubble.

Reported Israeli death toll from October 7, 2023 – January 19, 2025: ~1,616 (or 1,590) – including ~1,139 on October 7, 2023 (~36 children), 436 (or 405) military forces since the ground invasion began in Gaza, 46 military and civilians in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Israel.

NOTE: It is unknown at this time how many of the deaths and injuries of Israelis on October 7 were caused by Israeli soldiers.

Hover over each bar for exact numbers. Source: IsraelPalestineTimeline.org

Return to northern Gaza fraught with delay and struggle – Ceasefire Day 10