Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Liveupdated1728812396

Israel-Lebanon live: Family of 8 killed in Gaza refugee camp strike as 40 countries condemn peacekeeper attack

An Israeli tank fired on UN headquarters in southern Lebanon on Thursday, the organisation said

Holly Evans
Sunday 13 October 2024 10:39
Israeli hostages’ families march to Netanyahu’s home on October 7 anniversary

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

An Israeli strike on the central Gaza Strip has killed a family of eight in the Nuseirat refugee camp, Palestinian medical officials said.

It killed the parents and their six children, who ranged in age from eight to 23, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in nearby Deir al-Balah, where the bodies were taken.

It comes as 40 nations, including the UK, “strongly” condemning attacks on United Nations peacekeepers in Lebanon.

On Saturday, at least 19 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes in the Jabalia city and refugee camp in northern Gaza, the Hamas-run civil defence agency told the AFP news agency.

A spokesperson said that a strike occurred before 9:40pm local time and had left “12 dead, including women and children”, adding that 14 people were still missing and likely trapped under the rubble

In southern Lebanon, children are among eight people killed in villages as Israel intensifies airstrikes in its fight against militant groupHezbollah.

According to the Lebanese Health Ministry, a strike on Baysarieh, a village in Sidon province, killed three people, including a 2-year-old and a 16-year-old, while another strike in the Bekaa Valley killed five more people.

1728812396

Paramedics searching for casualties after Israeli strikes in Lebanon

The Lebanese Red Cross said paramedics were searching for casualties in the wreckage of a house destroyed by an Israeli air strike in southern Lebanon on Sunday when a second strike left four paramedics with concussion and damaged two ambulances.

It said the rescue operation had been co-ordinated with UN peacekeepers, who informed the Israeli side.

Israeli forces have repeatedly fired upon first responders and UN peacekeepers since the start of the ground operation.

The military has accused Hezbollah of using ambulances to ferry fighters and weapons, without providing evidence. Lebanon’s Health Ministry denies the allegations.

Hezbollah rescue workers search for victims amid the rubble of destroyed buildings
Hezbollah rescue workers search for victims amid the rubble of destroyed buildings (AP)
Holly Evans13 October 2024 10:39
1728811038

Ground invasions in Gaza has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians

Israel’s bombardment and ground invasions of Gaza have killed more than 42,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and left much of the territory in ruins.

Palestinian medical officials do not say whether those killed by Israeli forces are militants or civilians, but say women and children make up more than half the fatalities.

Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.

Holly Evans13 October 2024 10:17
1728809865

Israeli forces target Jabaliya refugee camp

In northern Gaza, Israeli air and ground forces have been attacking Jabaliya, where the military says militants have regrouped. Over the past year, Israeli forces have repeatedly returned to the built-up refugee camp.

Israel has ordered the full evacuation of northern Gaza, including Gaza City. An estimated 400,000 people remain in the north after a mass evacuation ordered in the opening weeks of the war.

The Palestinians fear Israel intends to permanently depopulate the north to establish military bases or Jewish settlements.

The military confirmed on Saturday that hospitals were included in the evacuation orders but said it had not set a specific timetable.

A boy rides a bike as displaced Palestinians take shelter in a stadium
A boy rides a bike as displaced Palestinians take shelter in a stadium (REUTERS)
Holly Evans13 October 2024 09:57
1728808098

Families forced to leave homes in Gaza City

Israeli forces widened their raid into northern Gaza, and tanks reached the north edge of Gaza City, pounding some districts of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, residents said, forcing many families to leave their homes.

Residents said Israeli forces have effectively isolated Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, and Beit Lahiya in the far north of the enclave from Gaza City, blocking access between the two areas except upon their permission for families willing to leave the three towns, heeding evacuation orders.

Gaza’s health ministry said the eight-day-old Israeli incursions in the north have so far killed dozens of Palestinians, with dozens of others feared dead on roads and under rubble of their houses, beyond the reach of medical teams.

Many Jabalia residents posted on social media platforms: “We will not leave, we die, and we don’t leave.”

Holly Evans13 October 2024 09:28
1728805002

Israeli strike kills family of eight in Gaza

An Israeli strike on the central Gaza Strip has killed a family of eight, Palestinian medical officials said.

The strike came as Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants and pushed for the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people from the north of the territory.

Israel is also waging an air and ground campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and is expected to strike Iran in retaliation for a missile attack earlier this month, though it has not said how or when.

The strike in Gaza late Saturday hit a home in the Nuseirat refugee camp, killing parents and their six children, who ranged in age from eight to 23, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in nearby Deir al-Balah, where the bodies were taken.

It said another seven people were wounded, including two women and a child in critical condition. An Associated Press reporter counted the bodies and filmed funeral prayers held at the hospital.

Ambulances, carrying patients from Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahya in northern Gaza Strip
Ambulances, carrying patients from Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahya in northern Gaza Strip (Anadolu via Getty Images)
Holly Evans13 October 2024 08:36
1728803232

UK among 40 nations ‘strongly’ condemning attacks on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon

The UK is among 40 nations “strongly” condemning attacks on United Nations peacekeepers in Lebanon.

Earlier this week, Israeli troops fired on UN headquarters in southern Lebanon, injuring two peacekeepers for the second time in as many days.

On Saturday, it was reported by the United Nations that another peacekeeper was injured by gunfire in the country’s south.

A joint statement, co-signed by the UK and posted to the X account of the Polish UN mission on Saturday, said attacks on peacekeepers “must stop immediately”.

The statement said: “As the countries contributors to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) we reaffirm our full support for Unifil’s mission and activities, whose principal aim is to bring stabilisation and lasting peace in South Lebanon as well as in the Middle East, in line with relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council.

“We consider Unifil’s role as particularly crucial in light of the escalating situation in the region.

“We therefore strongly condemn recent attacks on the Unifil peacekeepers. Such actions must stop immediately and should be adequately investigated.”

The statement continued: “We urge the parties of the conflict to respect Unifil’s presence, which entails the obligation to guarantee the safety and security of its personnel at all times so that they can continue to implement its mandate and continue their work of mediation and support for peace and stability in Lebanon and the entire region.

“We reiterate our commitment to multilateral cooperation with the UN at its core. We call for respect for the international law, in particular the Charter of the United Nations as well as the relevant resolutions of the Security Council.”

Holly Evans13 October 2024 08:07
1728800897

Israeli forces and Hezbollah clash in southern Lebanon

Hezbollah said on Sunday it was fighting Israeli forces trying to infiltrate Ramya village in southern Lebanon, as a third UN peacekeeper was wounded in Israel’s escalating conflict with the Iran-backed Lebanese group.

Israeli strikes have shook the peacekeepers’ main base in southern Lebanon, prompting UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Western countries to condemn the attacks. The UNIFIL force called it a “serious development” and said the security of UN personnel and property must be guaranteed.

France summoned Israel’s ambassador and issued a statement with Italy and Spain calling such attacks “unjustifiable”. US President Joe Biden said he was asking Israel not to hit the UNIFIL forces. Russia said it was “outraged” and demanded Israel refrain from “hostile actions” against peacekeepers.

Lebanese army soldiers walk by destroyed cars at the site where an Israeli airstrike hit a building, in Barja village, south of Beirut (Mohammed Zaatari/AP)
Lebanese army soldiers walk by destroyed cars at the site where an Israeli airstrike hit a building, in Barja village, south of Beirut (Mohammed Zaatari/AP) (AP)
Holly Evans13 October 2024 07:28
1728799200

As Hezbollah and Israel battle on the border, Lebanon's army watches from the sidelines

Since Israel launched its ground invasion of Lebanon, Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants have clashed along the border while the Lebanese army has largely stood on the sidelines.

It’s not the first time the national army has found itself watching war at home from the discomfiting position of bystander.

Lebanon’s widely beloved army is one of the few institutions that bridge the country’s sectarian and political divides. Several army commanders have become president, and the current commander, Gen. Joseph Aoun, is widely regarded as one of the front-runners to step in when the deadlocked parliament fills a two-year vacuum and names a president.

Read the full article here:

As Hezbollah and Israel battle on the border, Lebanon's army watches from the sidelines

Since Israel launched its ground invasion of Lebanon, Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants have clashed along the border while the Lebanese army has largely stood on the sidelines

Holly Evans13 October 2024 07:00
1728795600

The Trump Organization wants to open a luxury hotel in the heart of Israel

Donald Trump’s family business tried to open a luxury hotel in Jerusalem, Israel, according to a report.

The Trump Organization sought a deal last year to open a Trump-branded hotel on the former site of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The New York Times reported.

The former president’s company also looked into transforming a developing skyscraper — near the Israel Defense Forces headquarters — in Tel Aviv into another hotel. Once completed, that building will house the most hotel rooms in the country, the outlet noted.

Read the full article here:

The Trump Organization wants to open a luxury hotel in the heart of Israel

The Trumps reportedly planned to start with the Jerusalem project before possibly expanding to Tel Aviv

Holly Evans13 October 2024 06:00
1728792000

The UN says that aid entering Gaza is at its lowest level in months

UN humanitarian officials say aid entering Gaza is at its lowest level in months and warn that critical lifelines in the territory’s north, where Israel has renewed its military offensive, have been cut off.

UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq delivered the grim news Friday, saying the main crossings into northern Gaza have been closed and no food or other essential supplies have entered since Oct. 1. More than 400,000 people who remain in the north are under increasing pressure to move south, he said.

“The situation is terrible” across northern Gaza, Haq said, adding that the entire territory faces insecurity.

Read the full article here:

The UN says that aid entering Gaza is at its lowest level in months

U.N. humanitarian officials say aid entering Gaza is at its lowest level in months and warn that critical lifelines in the territory’s north have been cut off

Holly Evans13 October 2024 05:00

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in