- Israel’s military chief Herzi Halevi has told soldiers that Iran’s attack on the country “will be met with a response”.
- “We do not seek to expand the war, but we will cut off every hand that attacks our country,” says an Iranian army spokesperson.
- Ten bodies have been recovered so far from a mass grave at Gaza City’s al-Shifa Hospital, says a Gaza health official at the site.
- Israeli settlers are continuing their deadly rampage in the occupied West Bank as more Israeli troops have been called in.
- At least 33,797 Palestinians have been killed and 76,465 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attacks stands at 1,139 with dozens of people still held captive.
- US fighter jet squadrons played key role in Israel’s defenceThe Pentagon says air force fighter jet squadrons in the region as well as navy ships in the Mediterranean Sea participated in the effort to take out Iranian missiles and drones.The USS Carney and the USS Arleigh Burke, both navy destroyers, shot down missiles from the sea. The US military took down about 80 Iranian projectiles out of 300 launched.Major-General Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, says additional fighter squadrons were moved into the region before the weekend and they remain there. He would not identify the countries where they were based.
- The guided-missile destroyer USS Carney [File: Bill Dodge/US Navy via AP]
- UN’s atomic agency pulls monitors from Iran nuclear sitesInternational Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi says UN inspectors monitoring Iranian nuclear sites have been ordered out because of the threat of Israeli attacks on Tehran’s atomic facilities.“I decided to not let the inspectors return until we see that the situation is completely calm. We are going to resume tomorrow,” said Grossi, calling for “extreme restraint” after Iran’s strikes on Israel.“What I can tell you is that our inspectors in Iran were informed by the Iranian government that … all the nuclear facilities we are inspecting every day would remain closed on security considerations.”Israel has carried out operations against nuclear sites in the region before. In 1981, it bombed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq despite opposition from the US. And in 2018, it admitted to having launched a top-secret air raid against a reactor in Syria 11 years prior.
- A technician at the uranium conversion facility in Isfahan, Iran [File: Caren Firouz/Reuters]
- UN rights experts condemn Israel’s use of AI in Gaza ‘domicide’Five UN human rights experts have issued a statement decrying “shocking revelations” the Israeli military is reportedly using AI systems in its destruction of Gaza.The experts were responding to reports Israel is using AI systems known as the “Gospel”, “Lavender” and “Where’s Daddy?” to aid in the “systematic and widespread destruction of housing, services and civilian infrastructure”, a crime they described as domicide.“Six months into the current military offensive, more housing and civilian infrastructure has now been destroyed in Gaza as a percentage, compared to any conflict in memory,” the experts said in the statement.They also expressed concerns that the Israeli military’s use of AI was combined with “lowered human due diligence to avoid or minimise civilian casualties”.Click here to share on social media
- Israel army chief pledges Iran response as Western countries urge restraintIsrael’s military chief Herzi Halevi has told soldiers at a military base lightly damaged in Iran’s attack that Iran’s actions “will be met with a response”.Halevi also thanked the coalition that came together to repel Iran’s attacks, although he did not specifically mention them all by name.“You can read between the lines but we also know Jordan was involved and also reports of Saudi Arabia,” says Al Jazeera’s Stefanie Dekker reporting from occupied East Jerusalem.
Source: https://aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/4/16/israels-war-on-gaza-live-israel-vows-response-to-iran
