Summary of the day so far
It’s 5:07am in Gaza and Tel Aviv and this blog is now closing.
But first – here is a summary of the day so far:
Hamas has warned that no hostages will leave Gaza alive unless its demands for prisoner releases are met. In a televised statement on Sunday, a Hamas spokesperson said Israel will not receive “their prisoners alive without an exchange and negotiation and meeting the demands of the resistance.” Israel says there are still 137 hostages in Gaza, while activists say about 7,000 Palestinians are in Israeli jails.
Israel has indicated it was prepared to fight for months or longer to defeat Hamas in Gaza. According to Associated Press, Israel’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, told the country’s Channel 12 TV that the US has set no deadline for Israel to achieve its goals. “The evaluation that this can’t be measured in weeks is correct, and I’m not sure it can be measured in months”
The UN general assembly, which comprises 193 member states, is likely to vote on a draft resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the ongoing Israel-Gaza war on Tuesday, Reuters reports diplomats saying on Sunday. The potential vote will follow the US’s veto of a UAE-led UN security council resolution that called for a ceasefire in Gaza on Friday.
The US secretary of state Antony Blinken has urged Israel to do more to protect Palestinian civilians in its war with Hamas. Two days after the United States vetoed a proposed United Nations demand for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, Blinken told CNN Israel needs to put “a premium” on protecting Gaza civilians and making sure humanitarian assistance can reach those who need it.
In his interview with CNN on Sunday, US secretary of state Antony Blinken also said: “We’re not going to have durable security for Israel unless and until Palestinian political aspirations are met.” Blinken added: “When the major military operation is over … we have to make sure that we’re on a path to a durable and sustainable peace. From our perspective, I think from the perspective of many around the world, that has to lead to a Palestinian state.”
Mediation efforts are continuing to secure a new Gaza ceasefire and free more hostages held by Hamas despite the ongoing Israeli bombardment that is “narrowing the window” for a successful outcome, Qatar’s prime minister said Sunday. “Our efforts as the state of Qatar along with our partners are continuing. We are not going to give up,” sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told the Doha Forum, adding that “the continuation of the bombardment is just narrowing this window for us”.
European Union foreign ministers on Monday are considering a crackdown on Hamas’s finances and travel bans for Israeli settlers responsible for violence in the West Bank, Reuters is reporting. Ministers will be considering a discussion paper from the EU’s diplomatic service that outlines a broad range of possible next steps. Hamas is already listed by the European Union as a terrorist organisation, meaning any funds or assets that it has in the EU should be frozen.
“Gaza’s health system is on its knees and collapsing,” said World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, with only 14 of 36 hospitals functioning at any capacity. Ghebreyesus also said that the WHO and its partners in Gaza managed to deliver essential trauma and surgical supplies to Gaza’s al-Ahli hospital to cover the needs of 1,500 people, as well as transfer 19 critical patients.
The World Health Organization’s executive board on Sunday adopted a resolution on tackling the worsening health situation in the Gaza Strip, calling for immediate and unimpeded humanitarian access. The 34 countries on the WHO’s executive board adopted by consensus a resolution calling for the ‘immediate, sustained and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief’ into Gaza, Agence France-Presse reports.
Benjamin Netanyahu called on Hamas to lay down their arms and “surrender now.” In an address on Sunday reported by Agence France-Presse, the Israeli prime minister said: “The war is still ongoing but it is the beginning of the end of Hamas. I say to the Hamas terrorists: It’s over. Don’t die for [Yahya] Sinwar. Surrender now,” referring to the chief of Hamas in Gaza.
Hezbollah launched explosive drones and powerful missiles at Israeli positions and Israeli airstrikes rocked several towns and villages in south Lebanon, Reuters reports. An Israeli airstrike on the town of Aitaroun destroyed five homes and damaged many more, Ali Hijazi, a local official, said. The Israeli army did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But the Israeli army earlier said “suspicious aerial targets” had crossed from Lebanon and two were intercepted. Israeli fighter jets carried out “an extensive series of strikes on Hezbollah terror targets in Lebanese territory”, it said. Sirens sounded in Israel at several locations at the border.
Israel has carried out airstrikes near Syria’s capital Damascus late on Sunday, Syrian state news agency SANA said. The Israeli army declined to comment on the incident, but said separately that shots had been fired from Lebanon towards northern Israel on Sunday evening.
There have also been demonstrations against antisemitism, including in Brussels where European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen helped light a huge Hanukkah menorah candelabrum on Sunday.
