- More than 376,000 Palestinians have returned to decimated northern Gaza since Monday, according to the UN’s humanitarian agency OCHA.
- Entire areas of north Gaza are “unrecognisable” to returning residents after months of Israeli bombing, according to Al Jazeera’s team on the ground.
- UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini has said an Israeli ban on the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, due to start on Thursday, will affect millions and place Gaza’s ceasefire in “jeopardy”.
- Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati has said an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon that injured at least 24 people on Tuesday is “a blatant breach of the ceasefire arrangement”.
- Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 47,354 Palestinians and wounded 111,563 since October 7, 2023. At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day and more than 200 were taken captive.
- Some people return back to central Gaza after finding ‘nothing but debris’ in the northReporting from Salah al-Din Road, GazaCivilians who made the journey successfully back to the north of the Gaza Strip are facing a drastic humanitarian reality. They have returned back to assess the destruction left behind the Israeli military operations in all border towns and villages and what they have found is nothing but debris. They have expressed their deep concerns about the ability to reconstruct Gaza again, which will take years.They are struggling to have access to water sources, while Gaza’s Government Media Office has reiterated many times that there are not enough shelters for families still expected to return back to the north of the Strip. We are talking about hundreds of thousands of families.This means that there is going to be extra pressure on civil infrastructure that had been widely destroyed during the Israeli military operation in northern Gaza, especially in refugee camps. It means that there’s going to be a new chapter of misery and struggling.Some people, meanwhile, have started to return back to central Gaza, saying that they did not find any sort of life in the north and that it’s quite miserable and difficult for children and elderly people to cope with. In central areas of the Gaza Strip, they have at least the minimum level of essential services like access to food, water, and even municipal services.The Israeli ban of UNWRA will have further serious ramifications on civilians in Gaza, as the UN agency for Palestinians plays a very significant role in providing humanitarian aid assistance to people in the enclave.
- An aerial view of the destruction in Beit Hanoon on January 28, 2025. [Hasan Eslayeh/Anadolu]
- Ex-Israeli envoy calls on Netanyahu to lobby against UN in talks with TrumpGilad Erdan, the former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, has told Israeli Army Radio that the top international organisation “represents a threat no less than Iran” for his country.“The biased political composition in the United Nations has turned the Hague Court and the Human Rights Council into tools against Israel,” he added.
- Death toll in Israeli violence in occupied West Bank since Gaza war reaches 884The latest death comes in the suburb of Irtah, south of Tulkarem, where Ayman Naji, 23, was killed yesterday by Israeli forces during a raid, according to our team on the ground.Also in Tulkarem, Israeli forces demolished the home of a Palestinian suspect killed in an attack in which an Israeli was shot dead in November 2023. Another home belonging to a Palestinian Israel said it wanted was blown up in the Tulkarem refugee camp.For a second week now, Israeli troops have been conducting a major operation in Jenin which was expanded to Tulkarem three days ago. More families have been pushed outside their homes, as Israeli raids in the city continue, with local officials estimating the number of those displaced at more than 1,000 Palestinians.Since Israel’s war on Gaza erupted on October 7, 2023, 884 people have been killed in the occupied West Bank, 7,370 others have been wounded, and at least 14,400 more have been detained, according to our team on the ground.
- Fragile truce in Lebanon violated by Israel once againReporting from Beirut, LebanonThe ceasefire which went into effect in late November has generally been holding, but it is fragile. Now, there is growing concern about its continued stability.On Tuesday night, Israeli drones carried out two attacks in Nabatieh, a city in southern Lebanon. The Israeli military said it hit vehicles belonging to Hezbollah that were transporting weapons.There has been no independent confirmation of that claim but Israel does not believe it is a violation of the truce. The Israeli military says it is enforcing the agreement because there is no other force on the ground able to do so.
- Lebanon sees it differently. They believe that Israel has violated the truce, they have appealed to the international committee monitoring the ceasefire that has led the United States “to take a firm stance to stop these violations”.
- Germany preparing to send border experts to Rafah Crossing with Egypt: ReportPlans are under way to send German border management experts to Gaza’s southern Rafah Crossing with Egypt.Germany’s DPA news agency reports that the government plans to amend a 2005 cabinet decision that previously allowed only unarmed German personnel to be deployed.According to government sources, the amendment would permit the deployment of Germany’s armed forces, as the current security situation in Gaza is deemed too dangerous for unarmed border guards.The deployment could be part of the European Union Border Assistance Mission for the Rafah Crossing Point (EUBAM Rafah), which is set to resume operations after a years-long suspension, the DPA reports.Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Monday said that Italy, Spain and France are the first three EU countries to send personnel to help manage the Rafah Crossing, which is expected to open shortly.
LIVE: Israel’s bombing leaves north Gaza ‘unrecognisable’ to Palestinians
