Men dressed as clowns perform for children participating in an activity aimed to support their mental health, amid continuing battles between Israel and the militant group Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 18, 2023. (Credit: Said Khatib/AFP)
Strong words from abroad
Britain is the latest major country to criticize Israel for the brutality of its military operations in Gaza. Today, the death toll as reported by the Gaza Health Ministry, reached 19,667, with countless people thought to still be buried under the rubble.
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said the country wants Israel to “recognize that they have to minimize civilian casualties, they have to obey international humanitarian law at all times," and to use "a much more surgical, clinical and targeted approach when it comes to dealing with Hamas.”
Colleagues and family members mourn over the body of Al Jazeera cameraman Samer Abu Daqa, who was killed during Israeli bombardment, during his funeral in Khan Yunis on the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 16, 2023. (Credit: Mahmud Hams/AFP)
Renewed negotiations on the horizon
It appears as though both sides of the conflict are edging closer and closer to joining renewed mediation talks. Diplomatic sources signaled that the meeting on Sunday in Warsaw between the Qatari prime minister and US and Israeli intelligence officials went well.
This morning, Hamas released a statement saying the group rejects any kind of negotiations regarding prisoner exchanges “under the continuing Israeli genocidal war,” but by the evening, reports came that Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is due to visit Egypt tomorrow (Wednesday) to hold talks with Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel, among others. The discussions will focus "on stopping the aggression and the war, preparing an agreement on the release of prisoners, and ending the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip," according to a source from within the group who spoke to AFP.
Ruaa Hassouna plays music for Palestinian children on her Oud (Ud, or oriental lute) as Palestinian children participate in an activity aimed to support their mental health, amid continuing battles between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 18, 2023. (Credit: Said Khatib/AFP)
Two more hospitals attacked by Israel
The Israeli army continues to surround, attack, and raid hospitals in the Gaza Strip. A week ago, the World Health Organization announced that only 11 of Gaza's 36 hospitals were functioning, even just partially — one in the north and 10 in the south of the enclave. Today, the director of al-Ahli Hospital said the facility, supposedly the last in the north, was stormed by the Israeli army. Fadel Naim said Israel's attack — during which they arrested doctors, medical staff, and patients — has "put the hospital out of action … We can't receive any patients.”
A medic from al-Ahli, who was detained and then released by the Israeli army alleges that “troops tortured whoever they wanted.”
“They put blindfolds on our eyes and tied us ... We were tied up for more than nine hours in the cold,” said Mohammad Araj. "We used to hear screams while we were blindfolded."
People gather to inspect the rubble of a building destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 19, 2023 amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (Credit Mohammed Abed/AFP)
Technically, hospitals are protected under international law. The Israeli army has repeatedly accused Hamas of using several hospitals as military bases, though none of the evidence they claim to have found to support these accusations has been verified by a third party.
In its second attack on a health facility in one day, the Israeli army took control of al-Awda Hospital complex in Jabalia, according to Gaza Health Ministry spokesperson Dr. Ashraf al-Qudra.
Qudra said the army has denied food and water to approximately 240 people trapped within the complex, including 80 staff members, 40 hospitalized patients, and 120 refugees at the hospital.
Excavators dig through the rubble of a building destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 19, 2023. (Credit: Mohammed Abed/AFP)
A civilian death in Lebanon
In southern Lebanon, a civilian named Hussein Barakat, 35 years old, was killed in Rab al-Thalathine, Marjeyoun district. Hussein was a delivery driver and was delivering a package to a house when it was struck by an Israeli shell. This brings the total number of civilians killed since the conflict began to 18, according to our count.