UNICEF vehicle targeted, Hamas leader’s family members assassinated – Day 187

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UNICEF vehicle targeted, Hamas leader’s family members assassinated – Day 187
A displaced man makes tea on a street on the first day of Eid al-Fitr (photo)

UNICEF says its vehicle hit by live fire while waiting to enter northern Gaza; Israeli airstrike kills 3 sons, 4 grandchildren of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ top political leader; 13,000 Palestinians reportedly missing in the Gaza Strip; Israel’s dubious plan to ‘flood Gaza with aid’; Israel allows Gaza authorities to restore water pipeline that Israel damaged; Senior U.S. general to visit Israel to coordinate on Iran attack threat

By IAK staff, from reports

UNICEF says its vehicle hit by live fire while waiting to enter northern Gaza

Al Jazeera reports: The UN’s children’s agency (UNICEF) has said one of its vehicles was hit by “live ammunition” as it was waiting to enter northern Gaza on Wednesday.

Gunfire from the direction of the Israeli checkpoint hit the convoy of 3 armored vehicles containing UNICEF and UNRWA workers.

UNICEF has raised the incident with the Israeli authorities.

“Sadly, humanitarian workers continue to face risks in delivering life-saving aid,” the agency wrote on X. “Unless aid workers are protected, in accordance with IHL [international human rights law], humanitarian aid cannot reach people in need.

Israeli airstrike in Gaza kills 3 sons, 4 grandchildren of Hamas’ top leader

Associated Press reports: Israeli aircraft killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate cease-fire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed.

Ismail Haniyeh ’s sons are among the highest-profile figures to be killed in the war so far. Israel said they were Hamas operatives, and Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.”

The deaths threatened to strain the internationally mediated cease-fire talks, which appeared to gain steam in recent days even as the sides remain far apart on key issues.

Hamas said in a statement that Hazem, Amir, Mohammad, and their children, Mona, Amal, Khaled and Razan, were killed following “a treacherous and cowardly Zionist raid that targeted them in Shati camp on the first day of the blessed Eid Al-Fitr”.

Ismail Haniyeh said the attack on his family is evidence of Israel’s “failure”, adding that it will not change the group’s position in ongoing indirect ceasefire talks.

He stressed that Hamas would not withdraw its demands, which include a permanent ceasefire and a return of displaced Palestinians to their homes, saying that Israel would not be able to achieve its aims through politics and talks.

“If they think that targeting my children at the peak of these talks before the movement’s [Hamas’s] response is submitted will cause Hamas to change its positions, they are delusional,” Haniyeh said, referring to Israel.

“The blood of my children is not more valuable than the blood of the children of the Palestinian people … All the martyrs of Palestine are my children.”

“Through the blood of the martyrs and the pain of the injured, we create hope, we create the future, we create independence and freedom for our people and our nation,” the Hamas leader said.

Ha’aretz adds: The Israeli army took responsibility for the killing, alleging they were “on their way to carry out an act of terror,” and that one of them was involved in holding Israeli hostages.

Israel’s security agencies did not update the government before the attack and did not get clearance for it. Likewise, the head of the IDF’s Southern Command was not notified of the strike and it was authorized by a colonel.

IDF and Shin Bet officials say that it has been common for operational decisions to be made without government authorization since the beginning of hostilities on October 7. But other military officials say that there is a difference between a strike against a mid-level operative and a strike against family members of one of Hamas’ top officials, who is directly involved in hostage release negotiations. An Israeli source told Haaretz that the assassination might hinder any such deal.

Ismail Haniyeh and his three sons, who were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza on April 10, 2024. Haniyeh is a senior political leader of Hamas, the current chairman of Hamas’s political bureau, and resides in Qatar. Haniyeh was born in the Al-Shati refugee camp in the Gaza Strip in 1962.
Ismail Haniyeh and his three sons, who were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza on April 10, 2024. Haniyeh is a senior political leader of Hamas, the current chairman of Hamas’s political bureau, and resides in Qatar. Haniyeh was born in the Al-Shati refugee camp in the Gaza Strip in 1962. (photo)
The car in which three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh were reportedly killed in an Israeli air strike is pictured in the Shati camp, west of Gaza City
The car in which three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh were reportedly killed in an Israeli air strike is pictured in the Shati camp, west of Gaza City (photo)

13,000 Palestinians reportedly missing in the Gaza Strip

Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor estimates that over 13,000 Palestinians are either missing under debris, buried in indiscriminate mass graves, or forcibly disappeared in Israeli prisons and detention facilities, where some have even been killed. 

This estimate is based on initial reports of missing people, and the true number is likely higher. Given the ongoing military attacks and siege by the Israeli government, as well as the illegal practices of the Israeli army that have scattered Palestinian families—particularly by forcing them to repeatedly evacuate without safe passages, separating family members and forcing them to move to different areas, arresting and forcibly disappearing some of them, and cutting off communication between families—it is not possible to confirm the precise number of missing people at this time.

Most of the recovered bodies had decomposed significantly, and some had been clearly mauled by cats and dogs after Israeli forces impeded the bodies’ retrieval for the past few months. This violates the victims’ and their families’ rights to a dignified burial, in accordance with their religious customs, which call for the dead to be buried separately in cemeteries with visible markings so that they can always be identified.

The missing people in Gaza are divided into four categories:

1. The dead who have perished under rubble or when fired on by Israeli forces.

2. Dead people buried in haphazard individual or collective graves, buried by health authorities, loved ones, or local residents.

3. Those whose whereabouts remain unknown following their disappearance, as a result of Israeli incursions or arrest; there is information indicating that many of these victims were subjected to arbitrary execution and torture, ultimately leading to their deaths without the disclosure of their identities.

4. Dead bodies that the Israeli army exhumed from mass graves in hospitals and surrounding areas. It is thought that Israel’s army is still holding dozens of these bodies in custody, even though dozens of them have also been returned.

Palestinians mourn relatives killed in Israeli raid at the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip
Palestinians mourn relatives killed in Israeli raid at the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip (photo)

Israel’s dubious plan to ‘flood Gaza with aid’

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced that, instead of the Erez crossing Israel promised to start using last week, a new crossing point would be created on the northern part of the Gaza border to shorten the time it would take for trucks to get from the Ashdod port to Gaza. He did not specify how long it would take to build this crossing.

He said that the new Northern Crossing is expected to handle at least 50 aid trucks per day.

The crossing would “have a direct impact on the flow of aid — we plan to flood Gaza with aid,” he said, saying that Israel has a goal of at least 500 trucks a day. “It will also streamline security checks and strengthen our work with international partners.”

Boys sit with empty pots in Rafah on Saturday as displaced Palestinians line up for meals provided by a charity organization ahead of the fast-breaking iftar meal during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan
Boys sit with empty pots in Rafah on Saturday as displaced Palestinians line up for meals provided by a charity organization ahead of the fast-breaking iftar meal during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan (photo)

Before Israel’s war on Gaza, an average of 500 aid trucks entered the strip each day – a supplement to Gaza’s own food production. Today much of Gaza’s agricultural land, livestock, and food production factories are in ruins.

Israeli Army Radio reported earlier that the establishment of the new crossing is aimed in part at making it more difficult for Israeli activists to stage protests aimed at blocking the entry of aid, which some have been doing for several months. Notably, Israeli forces have done little to stop the protests.

NOTE: Thousands of aid trucks are reportedly waiting at the southern border of Gaza, where Israel has made it extremely difficult to pass, employing complicated and arbitrary procedures; when aid has gotten into Gaza, the people have many times been shot at as they tried to obtain food. Israeli forces have targeted trucks themselves and humanitarian aid staff.

RELATED: Middle East Eye reports: Israel has not made any preparations for humanitarian aid deliveries to be received at Ashdod port, according to an Israeli media report.

US President Joe Biden claimed that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to allow aid to arrive at Ashdod after a tense phone call last week.

But the Israeli military, the coordinator of government activities in the territories, and the Ashdod Port authorities have not received any instructions to prepare the port, according to the Hebrew language Channel 12’s political correspondent, Yaron Avraham.

Israel allows Gaza authorities to restore water pipeline that Israel damaged

Ha’aretz reports: Israel has agreed to the request of the Gaza Water Authority to restore the water line to the south of the Gaza Strip. The pipeline, that carries water to the south of the Gaza Strip, to the cities of Khan Yunis and Bani Suheila, has been severely damaged by the bombs during the war, and about 1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles) of it were put out of use.

The Palestinian Water Authority began work on the pipeline’s restoration a few days before IDF forces left the southern Gaza Strip, and they are expected to be completed in the coming days. When they are, Israel will return to pumping water through the pipeline.

Senior officials in Israel’s security have said that the government approved the restoration of the pipeline, and that the issue’s coordination was moderated by the UN.

A young boy carries empty water cannisters in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday
A young boy carries empty water cannisters in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday (photo)

21 years ago today, Tom Hurndall was shot in the head by Israeli forces

Tom Hurndall, a British 21-year-old student photographer, and volunteer for the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), who wished “to make a difference,” went to Gaza in 2003.

On April 11, he watched as children playing nearby suddenly came under Israeli rifle fire. Most of the children fled, but three, aged four to seven, froze with fear. Tom rushed one to safety. When he returned for two little girls, an Israeli sniper shot him in the head.

Despite the seriousness of his injury, Israeli officials delayed his transport to specialized medical care for over two and a half hours. Tom remained in a vegetative state until his death 9 months later.

See video of UK news report about it. Additional info here.

Tom Hurndall (27 November 1981 – 13 January 2004)

Tom Hurndall (photo)
To learn about other foreign volunteers shot by Israel: Instead of Taylor Force Act, Congress should consider Rachel Corrie Act, Orwah Hammad Act

Ireland will move to recognize Palestinian statehood: Minister

Al Arabiya News reports: Ireland will move to recognize a Palestinian state in the coming weeks, Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin said Tuesday in Dublin.

Martin said he will bring a formal proposal on recognition of a Palestinian state to the government “in the next couple of weeks,” when “wider international discussions” are complete.

“Be in no doubt, recognition of a Palestinian state will happen,” he told the Irish parliament during a speech. Delaying recognition “is not credible or tenable any longer,” he said.

He said that for the past six months he has been in discussions about recognition with other countries involved in peace initiatives.

Last month the leaders of Spain, Ireland, Slovakia and Malta said in a joint statement that they stand ready to recognize Palestinian statehood.

Senior U.S. general to visit Israel to coordinate on Iran attack threat

Axios reports: The senior U.S. military commander in charge of the Middle East is expected to go to Israel Thursday to coordinate around a possible attack on Israel by Iran and its proxies, two Israeli officials said. Gen. Erik Kurilla, commander of the U.S. Central Command, is expected to meet Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and senior Israel Defense Forces officials.

Iranian officials have publicly threatened to retaliate against Israel for an attack in Syria last week that killed a top Iranian general. An attack on Israel or its bases could lead to another regional escalation.

Israeli officials say they are preparing for a possible unprecedented direct attack from Iranian soil using ballistic missiles, drones and cruise missiles against Israeli targets.

In such a scenario, Israel will retaliate with a direct attack against Iran, the officials said.

A senior U.S. official has said that the U.S. is not ruling out the possibility of launching a joint attack on Iran with Israel – if the Islamic Republic responds to the assassination of a senior IRGC general earlier this month by attacking Israel. The official also said that, “if Israel comes under attack by missiles or drones, we will not rule out the possibility of helping the Israelis intercept them.”

A man pushes a bicycle along as he walks amid building rubble in the devastated area around Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital on Wednesday
A man pushes a bicycle along as he walks amid building rubble in the devastated area around Gaza’s Al-Shifa hospital on Wednesday (photo)

Bipartisan bill would create dedicated White House antisemitism coordinator

Jewish Insider reports: With incidents of antisemitism [allegedly] running at historic levels in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, a bipartisan bill introduced on Wednesday would, for the first time, create an official administration position dedicated specifically to combating antisemitism at home, as well as new structures and procedures at various federal agencies.

“We need, at the highest levels of our government, to have people who are dedicated to monitoring and combating antisemitism,” Rep. Kathy Manning (D-NC), one of the sponsors of the Combat Antisemitism Act (CAA), told Jewish Insider on Wednesday. “If this responsibility doesn’t fall on top-level people in the administration, then it’s easy for the problems to move to the bottom of somebody’s to-do list and we do not want that to happen.”

NOTE: Actual antisemitism is not as prevalent as Israel partisans (including Kathy Manning) would like us to think. A large portion of what they call antisemitism is simply criticism of Israel, the self-proclaimed “Jewish State.” Most of the animosity Israel experiences is opposition to Zionism. Zionism is not a benign philosophy, but a racist ideology – the ideology under which Israel dispossessed 750,000 Palestinian people and exiled them to Gaza and other locations. The so-called “demonization” of Israel is in most cases a legitimate criticism of Israel’s policies of occupation, apartheid, and genocide, and other illegal practices.
Pro-Israel organizations consistently work to silence Palestine advocacy on campus – a free speech violation. One strategy they use is to pressure universities to officially adopt the IHRA “definition” of antisemitism, which defines legitimate criticism of Israel as antisemitic. Other strategies include blocking prestigious appointments of and events with supporters of Palestinian rights, threatening to withhold major donations, and more. But supporters of Palestine on campus are fighting back.
Further reading: A wave of new post-Oct 7th “antisemitism” bills completely miss the point

Electronic Intifada: EU signs huge number of science grants for Israel amid Gaza genocide

Electronic Intifada: The desperate scrabble for food in northern Gaza
Middle East Monitor: Israel shuts down a town in the occupied West Bank, cancelling Eid for Palestinians
Middle East Eye: Who’s afraid of Francesca Albanese?
Al Jazeera: As Gaza is pummeled, is Serbia secretly sending weapons to Israel?
Al Jazeera: As Palestine applies for full UN membership, what’s in the way?
Al Jazeera: What do Texan red heifers have to do with Al-Aqsa and a Jewish temple?
IMEMC News Reports

STATISTICS OCTOBER 7 – APRIL 10:

Palestinian death toll from October 7 – April 10: at least 34,113* (33,644 in Gaza* (14,500 children, 9,560 women), and at least 469 in the West Bank (117 children). This does not include an estimated 7,000 more still buried under rubble (4,900 women and children). Euro-Med Monitor reports 40,042 Palestinian deaths.

At least 42 Palestinians have died in Israeli prisons (27 from Gaza, 14 from West Bank)

At least 31 Palestinian children and several adults have died due to malnutrition**

About 1.7 million, or 75% of Gaza’s population are currently displaced.

About 2.2 million (out of total population of 2.3 million) are facing Crisis, Emergency, or Catastrophic levels of food insecurity.

Palestinian injuries from October 7 – April 10: at least 80,933 (including at least 75,933 in Gaza and 5,000 in the West Bank).

It remains unknown how many Americans are among the casualties in Gaza.

Reported Israeli death toll from October 7 – April 10: ~1,407 (~1,139 on October 7, 2023, of which ~574 were civilians, 373 or 337 were security and/or military forces, ~32 were Americans, and ~36 were children); 259 military forces since the ground invasion began in Gaza;, 16 in the West Bank) and~8,730 injured.

Times of Israel reports: The IDF also listed 41 soldiers killed due to friendly fire in Gaza and other military-related accidents – nearly 16%.

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

*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.

**Euro-Med Monitor reports that Gaza’s elderly are dying at an alarmingly high rate. The majority die at home and are buried either close to their residences or in makeshift graves dispersed across the Strip. There are currently more than 140 such cemeteries. Additionally, according to Euromed, thousands have died from starvation, malnourishment, and inadequate medical care; these are considered indirect victims as they were not registered in hospitals. 

Find previous daily casualty figures and daily news updates here.

For more news, go here and here. Broadcast news from the region is here.

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

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