Around ten countries have so far supported the US initiative for greater protection of maritime traffic in the Red Sea. The EU is still discussing. The overview:
Amid an increasing number of attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, the US military is increasing its cooperation with militaries of other countries in the region. The number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip has risen to 19,667 since the start of the war, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority. After his return from the Gaza Strip, spokesman for the UN children’s fund Unicef, James Elder, described the conditions there as catastrophic. The Islamist Hamas fired rockets from the Gaza Strip at Israeli towns again.
Multinational protection fleet for merchant ships
According to the US Department of Defense in Washington, several countries are taking part in the new security initiative called “Operation Prosperity Guardian”, including the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles and Spain. The stronger cooperation is intended to improve the protection of merchant ships.
According to the US military, there were renewed attacks by Houthi rebels on two ships in the southern Red Sea. The Houthi rebels in Yemen are attacking ships to prevent them from passing through to Israel.
UN Security Council postpones vote on Gaza resolution again
The UN Security Council has again postponed a vote on a new Gaza resolution at the request of the United States. The vote is now scheduled for Wednesday (5 p.m. CET), several diplomats told the German Press Agency. The paper presented by the United Arab Emirates calls, among other things, for a suspension of violence in the Gaza Strip in order to enable more humanitarian aid deliveries.
A council member diplomat said when asked that the extended deadline appeared to be intended to persuade US President Joe Biden not to use the American veto right. An abstention by Israel’s ally the United States would almost certainly mean the resolution would be adopted. A vote was originally scheduled for Monday, but has since been postponed several times. The discussions are primarily about whether formulations can be found that the USA can also agree to.
Authority: 52,586 injured in the Gaza Strip
According to the health authority, 52,586 people have been injured in the Gaza Strip so far. The numbers cannot currently be verified, but the UN and other observers point out that they have proven to be overall credible in the past.
The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel’s history, carried out by terrorists from the Islamist Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7th in Israel near the border with Gaza. On the Israeli side, more than 1,200 people were killed. Israel responded with massive air strikes and a ground offensive.
UN: Children don’t have enough to eat
A spokeswoman for the World Health Organization (WHO) described it as unconscionable that the world continues to allow such devastating conditions. Four out of five minors do not have enough to eat, said Unicef spokesman Elder in Geneva. Diarrheal illnesses were spreading among the youngest children. Elder said he was angry that injured children were dying and that parents of seriously ill children only had “hope and dirty water.” Israeli forces promised to spare civilians, but the reality is different. “I’m angry that hypocrisy is crushing empathy.” According to the WHO, only eight of what were once 36 hospitals are still functioning properly.
Another 180 trucks with aid arrived in the Gaza Strip
According to the UN, around 180 more trucks carrying aid supplies arrived in the Gaza Strip. Around 100 of them, as well as four tank trucks with diesel, entered Gaza via the Egyptian Rafah border crossing, said the UN emergency relief office OCHA. Around 80 more trucks came through the Kerem Shalom crossing in southeast Gaza, which Israel recently opened for aid deliveries. Before the war began, an average of around 500 trucks entered the Gaza Strip every day.
Before the war began, around 2.2 million people lived in the Gaza Strip. According to UNRWA, more than 90 percent of them were displaced by fighting, many of them multiple times. On average, around 12,400 people are staying in each of the approximately 150 UN emergency shelters in the coastal area, which is four times their respective capacity.
EU discussion on securing shipping in the Red Sea
There are discussions in the EU about supporting the US initiative to secure shipping in the Red Sea. The Houthi attacks on merchant ships in recent weeks are an unacceptable violation of international law, said a spokesman for the EU Commission in Brussels. One option in the EU is to expand the mandate of the EU anti-piracy operation Atalanta to take part in the protection of merchant ships in the Red Sea. Their current mission is to help deter pirates and armed robberies off the coast of Somalia.
Reports: Israel wants to expand its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip
Israel Defense Minister Joav Galant reportedly wants to expand Israel’s ground offensive to include more areas in the Gaza Strip. According to Israeli media on Tuesday, Galant did not say exactly which places he meant. The Times of Israel speculated that he could mean the center of the Gaza Strip or the city of Rafah in the south of the coastal area, where the border crossing with Egypt is also located. Khan Yunis in the south of the Gaza Strip has become the “new capital of terror,” Galant said, according to the reports.
Israel attacks targets in Lebanon
According to its own statements, the Israeli army attacked targets in neighboring Lebanon after rocket fire. The military announced on Tuesday that the point of origin of the launch had been hit. Fighter jets attacked “terrorist infrastructure”, military facilities, a weapons depot and rocket launchers in Lebanon.
Army destroys terrorist’s house
Israel’s army destroyed the home of a Palestinian attacker in the West Bank on Tuesday. The Israeli military confirmed the operation this morning. According to reports, the Palestinian shot two Israelis, a father and his son, in a car wash in the Palestinian town of Huwara in August.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
