Saturday, 16 December 2023

PROTESTS IN TEL AVIV AFTER ISRAEL MISTAKENLY KILLS THREE OF THEIR OWN HOSTAGES

  Demonstrations have taken place in Tel Aviv with calls for the Israeli government to do more to bring home hostages from Gaza. The protests were sparked by the Israeli military mistakenly killing three hostages in Gaza - Yotam Haim, Samer Talalka and Alon Shamriz - after misidentifying them as a "threat"

  1. Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, described the deaths as an "unbearable tragedy"
  2. The Israeli offensive has continued in Gaza - with residents reporting fighting in northern, central and southern Gaza
  3. Hamas broke through Israel's heavily guarded perimeter on 7 October, killing 1,200 people and taking 240 hostages - some of whom were released during a brief truce
  4. The health ministry in Gaza, which is run by Hamas, says more than 18,700 people have been killed and 50,000 injured in the enclave since the start of the Gaza war.
  5. Hostage deaths add pressure on Netanyahu to bring remaining Israelis home

    Hugo Bachega

    Middle East correspondent, reporting from Tel Aviv

    People gathering outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art in what is now known as Hostages Square

    People are gathering outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art in what is now known as Hostages Square, following the deaths of three captives who were shot dead by mistake by the Israeli military.

    The square has become a symbol of the agonising wait for the families. More than 100 people remain in captivity in Gaza.

    Posters with the faces of the hostages, kidnapped 70 days ago, have been glued to lampposts and walls, together with the message: “Bring them home now.”

    Since the end of a temporary ceasefire that allowed the release of around 100 captives, the families have urged the government to reach a new deal with Hamas for at least some of the remaining hostages to be freed.

    The Israeli authorities, however, say that military pressure is the only way to bring them home. The incident - described as “tragic” by the Israeli military - will add pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as the war in Gaza continues.

  6. IDF raids schools and apartments 'hiding Hamas fighters' in Gaza

    Israeli soldier setting up in rubble of building in Gaza

    The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has given an update on its operations in Gaza, posting footage on social media of what they say are raids on schools in Gaza City that are hiding Hamas members.

    The footage shows soldiers shooting from behind the rubble of destroyed buildings of what it says is the Rimal neighbourhood close to the centre of the city.

    The IDF said they had "eliminated" Hamas operatives in the fighting and that others they found in the schools, "surrendered and were arrested by the forces".

    The IDF added that they had directed an aircraft to destroy a building in the Jabaliya area, where they say they had detected "the movement of a number of Hamas terrorists on the roof". They said shots were fired at them before they attacked the building.

    In addition to the raids in Gaza City, the IDF gave details of operations in Khan Yunis, to the south of the Strip.

    They said fighters had found "many weapons and underground infrastructure" following raids on apartments in the area.

  7. Egypt shoots down suspected drone off Red Sea coast

    A flying object, suspected to be a drone, has been shot down by Egypt's air defence, near the Red Sea coastal town of Dahab.

    Witnesses in the resort, which is located on the eastern Sinai coast, said that they saw an object fall into the water and another come down in a nearby mountainous area.

    In recent months, two Red Sea towns were subject to explosions caused by drones which Israel said were sent by Houthi rebels in Yemen, who declared their support for what they called "their brothers in Gaza" and have fired missiles and drones towards targets in Israel since the war began in October.

  8. FULL REPORT AND EVEN MORE UPDATES AT: Israel-Gaza latest news: Protests in Tel Aviv after Israel mistakenly kills hostages in Gaza - BBC News

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