- Spain Ireland and Norway to formally announce move today.
- Israel’s army continues to pound Rafah, the attacks coming one night after Israeli forces bombed a tent camp housing displaced Palestinians in a designated safe zone in Rafah, killing 45 people.
- Israeli military confirmed it carried out the attack on the camp, saying it targeted Hamas fighters.
- Kuwait Specialty Hospital, one of Rafah’s two remaining hospitals, has shut down due to Israeli attacks.
- At least 36,050 Palestinians killed and 81,026 wounded in Israel’s war on Gaza since October 7. The revised death toll in Israel from Hamas’s attack on that date stands at 1,139, with dozens still held captive.
- Dabke dance troupe brings relief to Gaza’s war-weary childrenA dance crew is teaching displaced children in Gaza a traditional Palestinian dance form called dabke, with hopes of providing some psychological reprieve to Gaza’s youth in the midst of Israel’s brutal war.
- 12m ago (07:50 GMT)Sanchez says Palestine recognition a ‘decision for peace’Reporting from MadridIt’s a momentous and symbolic day. The symbolism is not lost on the Israelis, who have reacted with great unhappiness at the way that Spain, Norway and Ireland have announced their recognition of a Palestinian state.In his speech, Spain’s PM Sanchez was absolutely adamant that the decision is aligned with UN resolutions, as adopted by EU member states. So the impression in some quarters that Spain, Ireland and Norway are somehow doing it alone is not borne out by the reality.Sanchez was also adamant that the decision is not “against anybody”. Israel has been complaining bitterly that this is an anti-Israel policy … Sanchez said that is absolutely not the case. He says this is a decision for peace and hopes it will push forward the idea of a ceasefire and release of captives.Sanchez condemned the October 7 attacks but said what Spain, Ireland and Norway are doing is, in his belief, the only way forward to get a two-state solution and make it survive.
- 22m ago (07:40 GMT)
Palestinians killed, wounded near Jabalia in northern GazaOur colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting strikes in the al-Faluja area, west of Jabalia camp, that have killed and wounded Palestinians.Al-Faluja has been repeatedly targeted in recent weeks as Israeli forces intensify ground and air attacks on the nearby Jabalia camp.We’ll bring you more information on the latest casualties as we have it. - Three Hamas battalions defending Jabalia refugee camp: War monitorsThree Hamas battalions are fighting to defend the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza and not just one battalion that Israel’s military planners had believed was operating in the area, war monitors report.US-based think tanks the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and the Critical Threats Project (CTP) said Israeli forces now realise that three battalions are participating in the defence of Jabalia some two weeks into Israel’s current “re-clearing” operation in the north of Gaza, which began in mid-May.Members of Israel’s war cabinet had previously declared “repeatedly” that all of Hamas’s 12 battalions in Gaza City and the north of the territory had been “dismantled”, the latest ISW/CTP joint battlefield report notes.That Israel’s military now needs to “re-dismantle” Hamas battalions that have reconstituted their forces in Jabalia underscores the lack of a thought-out “sustainable political and military end state in the Gaza Strip”, the war monitors add.Israel’s chief of staff Herzi Halevi has previously described such re-clearing operations as a “Sisyphean task”, the ISW/CTP add.
- Israeli tanks push through the narrow streets of Jabalia in northern Gaza, on May 19, 2024 [Handout via AFP]
- More Palestinians arrested in Bethlehem; father and son stabbed by settlersThe number of people arrested by the Israeli military in Bethlehem has risen to eight.Earlier, we reported that three people, one woman and two men, were arrested in the occupied West Bank city.Other recent incidents in the West Bank include:
- Israeli settlers stabbed a father and son near the town of Beit Einun, northeast of Hebron.Israeli forces demolished a house under construction, south of the city of Jericho.Jewish Israelis have entered Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem to perform prayers.
- Ending his remarks, Spanish PM Sanchez outlined three immediate steps the country wants to bring about a strong Palestinian state:
- An urgent end to the war in Gaza, including a “permanent ceasefire”, the entry of humanitarian aid, and the release of captives.A Palestinian Authority-led reform process.An international peace conference to implement a two-state solution.
- Spain envisions unified Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as capitalContinuing his remarks, Spain’s PM Sanchez emphasised the country’s vision for a unified and geographically connected Palestine.“The state of Palestine must be viable, with the West Bank and Gaza connected by a corridor and with East Jerusalem as its capital,” said Sanchez. “It must be unified under the legitimate government of the Palestine national authority.”He added that Spain’s recognition of Palestine should not compromise its relationship with Israel, which it considers a “friendly nation” and wants to “foster the strongest possible relationship”.He also said Spain continues to reject Hamas, which it deems a “terrorist organisation”.
Israel’s war on Gaza live: More European countries recognise Palestine
