SPECIAL REPORTS PALESTINE

Click here for actual updates
and earlier news untill April 22, 2024     
with special thanks to citizen-reporter 'Biba' (Algeria)

 May week2 part2 --  May week2 -- May week1 part2 -- May week 1 -- April week4 part4 -- Click here for an overview by week in 2024

May 8 - 6, 2024 <<Israel-Gaza latest: Israel launches another Rafah operation - as US looks to send message with bomb shipment move... and <<Dozens detained as Paris police clear Gaza war protest at Sorbonne university... and more news about student-protests worldwide... and <<Gaza: Doctors see <acute malnutrition for the first time in 36 years... and <<Live: South Gaza hospitals have only three days of fuel left, WHO says... and <<'Tens of thousands of people have been forcibly displaced in Rafah'... and <<Gaza latest: 'Terror and confusion' in Rafah, as charity says no humanitarian aid getting in - but IDF says key crossing is open... and <<Hopes for ceasefire 'literally blown up': Relentless bombardments in Rafah, like 'lying in a coffin'... and more news but most with a 'give way or go away' yell!

May 6 - 4, 2024 <<The adultification of children has consequences from Palestine to the US... and <<Peace in Gaza looks as distant as ever after Israel refuses to accept ceasefire terms... and <<Gaza latest: Families flee eastern Rafah after IDF orders 100,000 to evacuate; students at Oxford and Cambridge set up protest camps... and A poem "On the road of ... and <<'Despite risks & dangers', journalists in Gaza have a sense of 'duty to show world' what's happening... and <<Antisemitism rising dramatically across the world - report... and <<Israel to stop local broadcasting of Al Jazeera TV... and <<Israel's war on Gaza live: Hamas says Netanyahu 'hindering' truce efforts... and more news but most with a 'give way or go away' yell!

May 3 - 1 - April 30 - 23,2024 Overview social-media posts edited by citizen-reporter 'Biba' Click here to go throughout April and earler, 2024

 When one hurts or kills a women
one hurts or kills hummanity and is an antrocitie.
Gino d'Artali
and: My mother (1931-1997) always said to me <Mi figlio, non esistono notizie <vecchie> perche puoi imparare qualcosa da qualsiasi notizia.> Translated: <My son, there is no such thing as so called 'old' news because you can learn something from any news.>
Gianna d'Artali.

Sky News - May 8, 2024
<<Israel-Gaza latest: Israel launches another Rafah operation - as US looks to send message with bomb shipment move
.....
Rafah's main maternity hospital halts admissions
The main maternity hospital in Gaza's Rafah has stopped admitting patients, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The Emirati maternity hospital only has five delivery beds, Dominic Allen, the UNFPA's top official said, and became overcrowded after airstrikes in the north of Gaza forced a mass influx of people into the southernmost city.
Before an escalation in tensions, the hospital had been handling 85 of the 150 daily births in Gaza.
Other hospitals in the city, like Abu Youssef al Najjar Hospital, have been admitting war wounded and directing women in labour to Emirati for months.
It is not clear where pregnant women in Rafah will now be directed to give birth.
The UNFPA said: <Humanitarian partners, in coordination with the ministry of health, have set up alternative health facilities that can provide different levels of care.>
No decision made on how to proceed with paused shipment of US aid
The US defence secretary has said Washington has been "very clear" on its stance over a possible offensive in Rafah after a shipment of weapons was paused from heading to Israel. Lloyd Austin said the decision to hold the delivery of <high payload ammunitions> came after the US assessed the likelihood of Israel launching an attack without <accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace>. When asked what the next steps will be, Mr Austin said the government has not made a final decision on how to proceed with the shipment. The shipment is thought to have contained 1,800 2,000-pound (900kg) bombs and 1,700 500-pound (225kg) bombs, according to a senior administration official.
.....
Pro-Palestinian protesters build barricades as Amsterdam university
Barricades have been erected by pro-Palestinian protesters at the University of Amsterdam today, with desks and railings being used to block off the canalside entrance in the heart of the city. Those involved in the protest vowed to stay put until the institution severs all ties with Israel.
Riot police used a bulldozer to knock down barricades at another UvA site yesterday and detained 169 people, but said the university had not yet asked for similar intervention on today. The students in the Dutch capital are joining a wave of sit-ins and other actions at universities throughout Europe against Israel's war in Gaza, following larger-scale disturbances at US universities. UvA management are hoping talks on today will bring an end to the protests, but the students were digging in, pulling up bricks from the streets and pavements near to the 19th century campus and forming human chains to send them to the barricade. The protesters say the Israeli institutions the university works with profit from the oppression of Palestinians.
<We will remain until UvA, VU and AUC DISCLOSE, BOYCOTT, AND DIVEST!,> the organisers, amsterdam.encampment, said on Instagram overnight. They were referring to two other institutions in the city, although all the protests are at UvA. The university said on Monday it had exchange programmes with three universities in Israel, which have been halted because of security concerns, and was cooperating with Israeli scientists or companies in eight different European research projects. It said none of these cooperations were in support of military goals.
UvA said in a statement that it wanted to find a solution with the students, who have been protesting since Monday, adding that they have <caused considerable damage> to its buildings. It comes after police dispersed protests at the Swiss University of Zurich and at the courtyard of the Freie Universitaet Berlin yesterday. Last week, police took similar action at the Sorbonne University in Paris, while the Brussels University said it would file a police complaint against students who were involved in a violent protest. In a response to protesters, Ireland's Trinity College Dublin (TCD) said this week that it would pull investments from Israeli companies that the United Nations link to settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, following a student protest over the war in Gaza.
Israel has 'nothing to add' to US halting some weapons
Israel has nothing to add to the decision by the US to halt the supply of some munitions, a government spokesperson has said. The spokesperson went on to say he had heard the reports but added: <I personally and the Israeli government do not have anything to add on these reports".
Earlier, it emerged the Biden administration had paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns Israel would imminently attack the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
'Continued bombardments' near Rafah crossing area
Following on from our post earlier in which we reported the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) had said no aid had crossed into Gaza yet via the Kerem Shalom crossing (see post at 1.04pm), we have some additional comments from the organisation's director in the region. Scott Anderson said the Rafah crossing area had <ongoing military operations> and that there had been <continued bombardments in this area throughout the day>. He described the situation as <disastrous for the humanitarian response>.
Key hospital in Rafah evacuated
Fighting has forced the evacuation of a hospital in southern Gaza.
Abu Youssef al-Najjar Hospital was one of the main medical centres receiving people wounded in airstrikes on Rafah in recent weeks. It is not immediately clear how many patients have been moved to other facilities.
Israeli official insists key crossing is open and calls out UN
We have just been hearing from an Israeli government spokesperson about the situation in Gaza...
Sky News asked Avi Hyman about the situation at the Kerem Shalom crossing.
Israel insists the border crossing, which allows aid into Gaza, reopened earlier today, but the UN has said deliveries have still not been allowed through. Mr Hyman said the route was <directly shut> by a Hamas attack and claimed it was open. He added that <specifics> about deliveries should be discussed with COGAT, which is the Israeli authority responsible for implementing the government's policy in the area.
He also appeared to blame the UN, saying it should be asked why <day in and day out> there is <so much surplus> that is not being delivered.>>
Read more here:
https://news.sky.com/story/israel-hamas-gaza-latest-ceasefire-rafah-sky-news-live-blog-12978800

France 24 - May 8, 2024 - Video by FRANCE 24 - By NEWS WIRES
<<Dozens detained as Paris police clear Gaza war protest at Sorbonne university
French police detained 86 people following an operation to remove students staging a pro-Palestinian occupation at the Sorbonne university in Paris, prosecutors said Wednesday. Those arrested in the police operation on Tuesday night were being held for a variety of public order offences, said the statement. They include wilful damage, rebellion, violence against a person holding public authority, intrusion into an education establishment and holding a meeting designed to disrupt order. Some are also being held for participation in a group with a view to preparing violence or damage to property. They can be held for an initial 24 hours, which can then be extended another 24 hours. The day before police moved in, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said there would never be a right to disrupt France's universities with such protests. Police acted after about 100 students had been occupying a lecture theatre for two hours in <solidarity> with the people of Gaza, an AFP journalist on site noted. Tuesday night's police operation at the Sorbonne - and at another university on Paris's Left Bank, Science Po university - followed interventions to end similar protests at the end of April. Students at universities in several European countries have followed the actions on US campuses where demonstrators have occupied halls and facilities to demand an end to partnerships with Israeli institutions because of Israel's punishing assault on Gaza. Police have also intervened to clear campuses in the United States, Netherlands and Switzerland.
Palestinian militant group Hamas on October 7 attacked southern Israel, resulting in the deaths of about 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel estimates that 129 hostages seized on October 7, out of the 253 taken, are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the military says are dead. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,789 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run besieged Palestinian territory.
(AFP)>>
Read and watch more here:
https://www.france24.com/en/france/20240508-dozens-detained-as-paris-police-clear-gaza-war-protest-at-sorbonne-university

France 24 - May 8, 2024 - Video by Haxie MEYERS-BELKIN
<<Gaza: Doctors see <acute malnutrition for the first time in 36 years>
The Israeli military said Wednesday that it has reopened its Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza after days of closure, but the U.N. said no humanitarian aid has yet entered and there is no one to receive it on the Palestinian side after workers fled during Israel's military incursion in the area. For more information, FRANCE 24 news anchors Haxie Meyers-Belkin interviews Michel-Olivier Lacharite, Head of Emergency Operations, Doctors Without Borders.>>
Read and watch more here:
https://www.france24.com/en/video/20240508-gaza-in-36-years-it-is-the-first-time-that-we-see-acute-malnutrition

France 24 - May 8, 2024 - Video by FRANCE 24
<<Live: South Gaza hospitals have only three days of fuel left, WHO says
Hospitals in the southern Gaza Strip have only three days of fuel left due to the closure of border crossings, the head of the World Health Organization said Wednesday, warning that health services <may soon come to a halt>. Earlier, Israel said it had reopened the Kerem Shalom border crossing to humanitarian aid for the war-ravaged territory, four days after closing it in response to a rocket attack claimed by Hamas that killed four soldiers. Read our liveblog for all the latest developments on Israel's war on Gaza.
Summary:
Israel said on Wednesday that it had reopened the Kerem Shalom border crossing to humanitarian aid for Gaza.
Hospitals in the southern Gaza Strip have only three days of fuel left, due to the closure of border crossings, the head of the World Health Organization warned on Wednesday.
The Israeli military appeared on Wednesday to play down an arms shipment hold-up by the US, whose administration expressed disapproval of this week's operation in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, saying the allies resolve any disagreements <behind closed doors>.
In separate statements, Qatar and the African Union condemned Israel's incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Wednesday and called on the international community to stop a <deadly escalation> of the war and prevent a <genocide>.
At least 34,844 Palestinians have been killed and an estimated 78,404 have been wounded in Israel's military offensive in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Some 1,170 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks and 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli figures, with 132 still missing.>>
Read and watch more here:
https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20240508-%F0%9F%94%B4-live-us-pauses-bomb-shipment-to-israel-over-rafah-concerns


France 24 - May 8, 2024 - By NEWS WIRES | Video by Tom CANETTI
<<Students at various European universities, inspired by ongoing demonstrations at US campuses, have been occupying halls and facilities, demanding an end to partnerships with Israeli institutions because of Israel's punishing assault on Gaza. Several hundred protesters resumed a demonstration around the University of Amsterdam campus, where police the previous night were filmed baton-charging them and smashing up their tents after they refused to leave the grounds. As protests resumed on Tuesday night, demonstrators erected barriers to access routes watched over by a heavy police deployment. Police said in a statement that a total of 169 people had been arrested when officers broke up Monday night's protests. All had been released apart from two still in custody on suspicion of public disorder offences. Violence had briefly erupted Monday when a small group of counter-protesters wielding flares stormed the main protest. Around 50 demonstrators were also protesting Tuesday outside the library in Utrecht University and a few dozen at the Technical University of Delft, according to local news agency ANP.
Protests in Germany
In the eastern German city of Leipzig, the university said in a statement that 50 to 60 people occupied a lecture hall on Tuesday, waving banners that read: <University occupation against genocide>. Protesters barricaded the lecture hall doors from the inside and erected tents in the courtyard, according to the university. The institution called in the police in the afternoon, and filed a criminal complaint. A pro-Israeli counter-protest also took place in the area, involving about 40 people, police said. Criminal proceedings have been initiated against 13 people who were in the lecture hall on suspicion of trespassing. No arrests have been made so far. Earlier, at Berlin's Free University, police cleared a demonstration after up to 80 people erected a protest camp in a courtyard of the campus. The protesters, some of whom wore the keffiyeh scarf that has long been a symbol of the Palestinian cause, sat in front of tents and waved banners. They later tried to enter rooms and lecture halls and occupy them, according to the university, which said it then called in police to clear the protest. The university said property was damaged while classes in some buildings were suspended for the day. Berlin police said they made some arrests for incitement to hatred and trespassing.
France, Switzerland, Austria
In Paris, police twice intervened at the prestigious Sciences Po university to disperse about 20 students who had barricaded themselves in the main hall. Security forces moved in to allow other students to take their exams and made two arrests, according to Paris prosecutors. The university said exams proceeded without incident. Police have intervened several times over the past week at Sciences Po, where protesters are demanding the university reveal its partnerships with Israeli institutions. Some 13 students are on a hunger strike, according to the university. At the nearby Sorbonne university building, police late Tuesday moved to eject about 100 students who had occupied an amphitheatre and made 88 arrests, police sources said.
In Switzerland, protests spread to three universities in Lausanne, Geneva and Zurich.
The University of Lausanne said in a statement it <considers that there is no reason to cease these relations> with Israeli universities as protesters demand. In Austria, dozens of protesters have been camped on the campus of Vienna University, pitching tents and stringing up banners since late Thursday.
The war in the Gaza Strip was sparked by an unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel launched a retaliatory offensive that has killed at least 34,789 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.
(AFP)>>
Source:
https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20240508-europe-student-gaza-protests-spread-sparking-clashes-and-dozens-of-arrests


RAFAH now
Jinha - Womens News Agency - May 8, 2024
<<'Tens of thousands of people have been forcibly displaced in Rafah'
<In just a matter of days, tens of thousands of people have been forcibly displaced yet again,> UN Humanitarian Chief Martin Griffiths said in a statement regarding the evacuation order in Rafah.
News Center- Israel has been attacking the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023. At least 34,789 Palestinians, including 14,944 children and 9,849 women, have been killed in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestinian health authorities. After Hamas accepted the Egyptian-Qatari ceasefire proposal, Israel's War Cabinet decided to continue the Rafah operation. On May 6, the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of some neighborhoods of Rafah, which hosts more than 1 million displaced Palestinians and then launched a military operation on the city Rafah, seizing operational control of the border crossing that is a major route for humanitarian aid.
'Tens of thousands of people have been forcibly displaced'
Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) posted a statement on X. <In just a matter of days, tens of thousands of people have been forcibly displaced yet again. The closing of the Rafah crossing severs access to fuel and shuts off the movement of aid and staff to and from Gaza,> Martin Griffiths said in the statement. <Civilians must be protected and have their basic needs met, whether they move or stay. Those who evacuate must have enough time to do so, as well as a safe route and a safe place to go,> he added.
UN teams are still in Rafah, where well over 1 million people remain, including 600,000 children, he said.
<We are also extending our presence northwards to assist the families who have moved there. We remain committed to providing aid to people regardless of where they are. The decisions that are made today and their consequences in human suffering will be remembered by the generation that follows us. Let us be ready for their reproaches,> the statement said.
'Rafah is a city of children'
<Rafah is a city of children,> UNICEF spokesperson James Elder said in a Palais des Nations briefing in Geneva on May 7. <If we define safety - as international humanitarian law says we must - as freedom from bombardment, as well as access to safe water, sufficient food, shelter and medicine - then there is nowhere safe on the Gaza strip to go to.> >>
https://jinhaagency.com/en/actual/tens-of-thousands-of-people-have-been-forcibly-displaced-in-rafah-35019

Sky News - May 7, 2024
<<Gaza latest: 'Terror and confusion' in Rafah, as charity says no humanitarian aid getting in - but IDF says key crossing is open
No aid is getting into Gaza after 48 hours of <chaos>, a British charity says. However, the IDF insists a key crossing is open. Earlier, Israel captured the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing, in a military operation which comes after Hamas accepted an Egypt-Qatar-led ceasefire deal.
.....
Israeli hostage dies from injuries after shelling, Hamas says
An Israeli hostage has died after succumbing to injuries sustained in Israeli shelling, a Hamas spokesperson has said. Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for Hamas's armed wing al Qassam Brigades, said in a statement that the hostage was a 70-year-old. They did not identify the victim.
Sunak 'deeply concerned' about Israel's Rafah operation
The British prime minister has said he is <deeply concerned> about Israel's military activity in Rafah. <I've urged all parties to continue talking, negotiating and getting around the table, which they are doing,> Rishi Sunak said. <We need to give them the space to conclude these negotiations.
We've been consistent in saying we want to see an immediate humanitarian pause so we can crucially get more aid in and release the hostages, and then use that pause to build a more lasting ceasefire. That's been the efforts of all our diplomatic engagement.>
.....
Israeli minister opposes more Hamas talks
Our Middle East correspondent Alistair Bunkall has noted some posts on X from Israel's finance minister - who's been addressing the ongoing ceasefire talks. Bezalel Smotrich is part of a group of far-right Israeli politicians piling pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu to continue the war in Gaza...
Read more and watch videos here:
https://news.sky.com/story/israel-hamas-gaza-latest-ceasefire-rafah-sky-news-live-blog-12978800 

Sky News - May 7, 2024 - By NEWS WIRES
<<Pulitzer Prizes honor Gaza coverage and jailed Putin critic Kara-Murza
The war in Gaza featured prominently in Monday's Pulitzer Prizes, which included a special citation for journalists covering the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The New York Times won a Pulitzer in international reporting for its <wide-ranging and revelatory coverage of Hamas's lethal attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7,> as well as reporting on <the Israeli military's sweeping, deadly response.> Reuters meanwhile won the award for breaking news photography for its <raw and urgent> coverage of the October 7 attack and Israeli response, while a special citation recognized <journalists and media workers covering the war in Gaza.> <This war has also claimed the lives of poets and writers,> the committee said. <As the Pulitzer Prizes honor categories of journalism, arts and letters, we mark the loss of invaluable records of the human experience.> >>
Read more here:
https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20240507-pulitzer-prizes-honor-gaza-war-coverage-and-jailed-putin-critic-kara-murza

France 24 - May 7, 2024
<<Live: Israeli operation in Rafah has 'choked off' Gaza aid, UN says
An Israeli brigade seized control Tuesday of the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, <choking off> a key aid delivery route, UN officials said. Hamas on Monday accepted an Egyptian-Qatari truce proposal but Israel said the deal did not meet its core demands, with negotiators from all sides returning to Cairo. Read our liveblog for all the latest developments.
Summary:
The Israeli army said early Tuesday that its forces had taken control of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing after launching air strikes that killed at least 27 people, according to hospitals. UN officials said the seizure had rendered the second of Gaza's two main aid delivery routes unusable. <The two main arteries for getting aid into Gaza are currently choked off,> a UN spokesperson said. A Qatari delegation is expected in Cairo on Tuesday to mediate talks on finalising a truce deal between Israel and Hamas. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said the proposal fell short of Israel's demands but agreed to send negotiators to Egypt. Hamas on Monday accepted an Egyptian-Qatari proposal for a ceasefire, with an official telling Al Jazeera the deal involved a three-phase truce: a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the return of displaced Palestinians and a hostage-prisoner exchange, with the goal of a permanent ceasefire.
At least 34,789 Palestinians have been killed and an estimated 78,204 have been wounded in Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Some 1,170 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks and 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli figures, with 132 still missing.>>
Read more here:
https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20240506-%F0%9F%94%B4live-israel-strikes-rafah-qatar-delegation-cairo-secure-truce

France 24 - May 7, 2024
<<Hopes for ceasefire 'literally blown up': Relentless bombardments in Rafah, like 'lying in a coffin'
UNICEF warned that around 600,000 children packed into Rafah face <further catastrophe>. Soon after the war started, Israel told Palestinians in northern Gaza to move south to <safe zones> -- including Rafah. But Rafah has been repeatedly bombed and Palestinians say nowhere in Gaza is safe. As Hamas accepts a Gaza ceasefire proposal, and Israel urges Rafah evacuation ahead of an all-out military assault, FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee is joined by UNICEF Global Spokesperson James Elder.>>
Watch video here:
https://www.france24.com/en/video/20240506-hopes-for-ceasefire-literally-blown-up-relentless-bombardments-in-rafah-like-lying-in-a-coffin v

France 24 - May 6, 2024 - By Shamaan Freeman-Powell, news correspondent
<<Gaza latest: Hamas accepts ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar; explosions in Rafah after IDF orders 100,000 to evacuate
Hamas has accepted a ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar. Initial reports suggest Israel does not accept the same proposal. Earlier today, the IDF told 100,000 people to evacuate Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah, before an expected offensive.
Ceasefire proposal includes 'return of the displaced' and 'prisoner swap deal'
The ceasefire proposal Hamas agreed to entails a ceasefire, reconstruction of Gaza, return of the displaced and a prisoner swap deal, Hamas official Taher Al-Nono has told Reuters.
.....
Eyewitness: Demands of Oxford students reflect those in the US, despite very different conditions
Inspired by encampments across US universities, the tent city set up on the lawn of an Oxford museum has a very different vibe.
The <liberated zone encampment> consists of tents erected on sodden ground, with dozens of protesters slushing through mud for teachings on Palestine and <wellbeing circles>.
<Come rain or shine, we will free Palestine,> they chant.
There's a food tent serving hot meals, a medical site for emergencies and workshops for arts and crafts. It feels very different compared to scenes coming out of the US, but the demands are similar. They want to see the university disclose and divest from its <financial and professional support> of the war in Gaza. Until this happens, they will remain, they say. Israelis are not directly at the table at the moment. Discussions are taking place but <it doesn't mean Israel are directly involved in them>, our international correspondent John Sparks says. He says <things are moving very quickly> and the <Israelis are not directly at the table at the moment>. <Discussions and negotiations are taking place without them at it - that was the case in Cairo over the weekend,> he says. <Hamas sent a delegation. We don't believe Israel sent a delegation directly to be involved in those negotiations. There are talks taking place but it doesn't mean Israel are directly involved in them.> Sparks goes on to say what was thought originally was that there was <some agreement between the two sides in the short-term over a temporary truce>. <It will be very interesting to see what happens,> he adds.
Ceasefire deal accepted by Hamas 'not acceptable' to Israel - reports
Israel says Hamas has accepted a <softened> version of a ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt, which is <not acceptable> to Israeli decision makers, according to reports. Reuters reports that an Israeli official says the Hamas announcement appears to be a <ruse> intended to cast Israel as the side not willing to accept a deal.
All of this is moving very quickly
It is still unclear what Hamas has agreed to, our US correspondent Mark Stone says.
Stone says a readout he has of a call Joe Biden had with Benjamin Netanyahu, which took place a couple of hours ago, shows <very little> to indicate any agreement between Israel and Hamas. However, he notes <perhaps there has been a private breakthrough being made public by the Hamas side>. <We don't know quite what Hamas has said it will agree to and crucially we don't know what the Israelis will make of this>, he says.
<All of this is moving very quickly.> >>
Read more here:
https://news.sky.com/story/middle-east-latest-un-nuclear-watchdog-concerned-israel-could-target-iranian-nuclear-facilities-in-revenge-attack-12978800

Sky News - May 6, 2024 - by Alix Culbertson Political reporter
<<Rishi Sunak 'deeply concerned' about potential Israeli offensive in Rafah after Palestinians told to evacuate
The Israeli army has ordered more than a million people sheltering in Rafah to move out as it plans to strike the city it says is Hamas's last stronghold. Rishi Sunak is <deeply concerned> about a potential Israeli offensive in the city of Rafah in the south of Gaza. It comes after Israel's military told Palestinians to leave parts of the city, with the announcement appearing to signal a long-threatened Israeli ground invasion is imminent.
Speaking on Monday, Mr Sunak said: <I've been very consistent that we are deeply concerned about the prospect of a military incursion into Rafah, given the number of civilians that are sheltering there and the importance of that crossing for aid. I've made those points repeatedly to Prime Minister Netanyahu. The priority right now should be on all parties, but particularly Hamas, to agree to a deal to release hostages and allow more aid to go in as part of a temporary pause, which will allow us to build a sustainable ceasefire. That's the best way to end the suffering. And that's what I continue to call on all parties to do.>
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said an Israeli offensive <must not go ahead>, while shadow foreign secretary David Lammy called for an <immediate ceasefire> and said an Israeli offensive in Rafah <would be catastrophic>. Israel says Rafah is the last significant Hamas stronghold but had previously paused plans to attack the city in southern Gaza so hostage release negotiations could take place. However, Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant claimed on Sunday that Hamas was not serious about a deal and the army was preparing <a powerful operation in the very near future in Rafah>. On Sunday, Hamas set off rockets from Rafah towards Kerem Shalom, Israel's main crossing point for delivering aid, killing three Israeli soldiers.
Overnight, Israeli strikes killed at least 19 people, including a baby, according to Palestinian health officials.
Israel's army has told about 100,000 people to evacuate eastern Rafah to a humanitarian zone designated by Israel on the Mediterranean coast.
Rafah, Gaza's most southern city, on the Egyptian border, is where more than a million people - more than half of Gaza's population - have taken refuge during the war that began last October. Joining other Western nations and humanitarian organisations in urging Israel not to strike Rafah, Sir Keir said on social media: <With more than a million Palestinian civilians sheltering in Rafah, an Israeli offensive must not go ahead. There must be an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages, and unimpeded aid into Gaza that can be delivered regularly, quickly and safely.>
Mr Lammy wrote: <An Israeli offensive in Rafah would be catastrophic. It must not go ahead. We need an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of hostages, and immediate unimpeded aid to Gaza.> UK Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron earlier said the UK is <very concerned> about the situation in Rafah and called for Israel to <stop and think seriously> before taking further action. Charity ActionAid said forcing Palestinians from Rafah <without a safe destination is not only unlawful but would lead to catastrophic consequences>. They said <there are no safe zones in Gaza> and aid workers have seen some of the <most severe conditions in recent memory> with widespread disease, starvation and chaos.
People in eastern Rafah were told to move to Muwasi, an Israeli-declared humanitarian area near the coast
Madeleine McGovern, from Care International UK, said ministers need to urgently suspend licences for arms sales to Israel to prevent an expansion of military operations in Rafah. <It would be unconscionable for British-made weapons to be used in an assault on Rafah,> she said. Islamic Relief warned the area where Palestinians have been ordered to move, al Mawasi, is not safe and that forcing more people there will make the humanitarian crisis worse.>>
Source:
https://news.sky.com/story/rishi-sunak-deeply-concerned-about-potential-israeli-offensive-in-rafah-after-palestinians-told-to-evacuate-13130633

Sky News - May 6, 2024 - by John Sparks International correspondent
<<Israel-Hamas war: Rafah offensive would test the very limits of West's support for Israel
The long-anticipated incursion into Rafah has moved a step closer after the IDF urged people in southeastern Gaza to head north with a promise of <hospitals, tents, food, water and medical supplies> - claims greeted with scepticism by the UN. Senior Israeli officials have been threatening a major military operation into the city of Rafah and surrounding areas in southern Gaza for weeks. On Sunday, Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant warned it could take place <imminently> as talks on a ceasefire with Hamas fizzled-out in Cairo.
Now, they have taken a major step towards it.
On Monday morning, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) released a statement instructing people in southeastern Gaza to advance towards an <expanded humanitarian area> to the north, centred around the city of Khan Younis, and a coastal community called Al-Mawasi. The IDF said it <includes field hospitals, tents and increased amounts of food, water, medication and additional supplies>. The claim will be greeted with scepticism by international aid agencies that have argued the Israelis have failed to do enough to facilitate such aid.>>
Source:
https://news.sky.com/story/israel-hamas-war-rafah-offensive-would-test-the-very-limits-of-wests-support-for-israel-13130480

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