Qatar tries new ceasefire; Dozens of dead in Jabalia

British warship shoots down drone suspected in Red Sea attack

Lusa | 1 minute ago

A British warship shot down a suspected attack drone on Friday night that was allegedly targeting merchant ships in the Red Sea, UK Defense Minister Grant Shapps announced today.

“The recent wave of illegal attacks represents a direct threat to international trade and maritime security in the Red Sea,” said the British official on the social network X.

HMS Diamond has shot down a suspected attack drone targeting merchant shipping in the Red Sea – destroying the target with a Sea Viper missile. pic.twitter.com/x68zX4WtWi

— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) December 16, 2023

Hostages killed by Israel held improvised white flag

Daniela Filipe | 1 hour ago

The three hostages killed by mistake by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were holding an improvised white flag, according to an Israeli military official this Saturday, cited by Sky News.

The official pointed out that a preliminary investigation found that the victims were shot against Israel’s rules of engagement.

The hostages, all Israelis aged around 20, were killed during fighting with Hamas, after being wrongly identified as a threat.

Hurt by Hamas, Israel promises to take revenge in Gaza until the end

Lusa | 1 hour ago

A terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7 put Israel in a state of war, triggering a violent retaliation against the Palestinian Islamist movement in the Gaza Strip that the international community is unable to stop.

According to local authorities, around 19 thousand people, 70% of whom were women, teenagers and children, died as a result of Israeli bombings followed by a ground invasion in the enclave controlled by Hamas, in addition to thousands of missing people and around 1.9 of millions of displaced people, according to the UN, which reports a territory deprived of water, food, medicine, energy and communications and in collapse.

Read more here.

Israeli army attacks Lebanon in response to drone launches

Lusa | 2 hours ago

The Israeli army attacked several positions in southern Lebanon with artillery, after two ‘drones’ loaded with explosives crossed the border from the Arab country, which is experiencing the biggest spike in tension since 2006.

Following sirens that sounded in northern Israel due to the entry of a hostile drone into the territory, Israel’s air defense system intercepted the device that crossed the Lebanese border,” the army said in a statement. A second drone ‘ was identified and crashed in Margaliot, in northern Israel, he added.

On Friday, the Israeli army admitted to having attacked Hezbollah positions, after having identified several members of the group “operating” close to the border, in the Zarit area, and having launched leaflets warning in southern Lebanon for the first time the population not to collaborate with the Shiite group.

The Israeli army attacked several positions in southern Lebanon with artillery, after two ‘drones’ loaded with explosives crossed the border from the Arab country, which is experiencing the biggest spike in tension since 2006.

Lusa | 11:05 – 12/16/2023

Qatar confirms efforts for new ceasefire agreement

Hélio Carvalho | 2 hours ago

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, which helped mediate the ceasefire two weeks ago and allowed the release of Palestinian hostages and prisoners, confirmed that diplomatic efforts are underway to achieve a further pause in bombings and attacks in the Strip of Gaza.

In a statement, cited by Al Jazzera, Qatar “reaffirmed its ongoing diplomatic efforts to renew the humanitarian pause and expressed hopes to build on the progress achieved, to achieve a comprehensive and sustainable agreement that ends the war, halts the spill of blood of our Palestinian brothers and that leads to serious negotiations” on international peace resolutions in the region.

Dozens of dead and injured due to Israeli bombings in Gaza

Lusa | 4 hours ago

Dozens of people died or were injured in the early hours of today due to continued Israeli bombings over most of the Gaza Strip, which kept communications cut for the third consecutive day.

At least 14 people were killed in Jabalia, in the north of the Gaza Strip, and dozens were injured in a bombing of a house, while “a large number” of people were trapped under the rubble, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Dozens of people died or were injured in the early hours of today due to continued Israeli bombings over most of the Gaza Strip, which kept communications cut for the third consecutive day.

Lusa | 09:17 – 16/12/2023

Netanyahu offers condolences to families of hostages killed by mistake

Lusa | 6 hours ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today offered condolences to the families of three Israeli hostages that the army mistakenly killed in a hostage rescue operation in Shujaiya, a neighborhood on the outskirts of Gaza City.

“Together with the entire nation of Israel, I bow my head in deep sadness and mourn the fall of three of our beloved children who were abducted,” Netanyahu said in a statement released by the prime minister’s office.

Together with the entire nation of Israel, I bow my head in deep sorrow and mourn the fall of three of our dear sons who were kidnapped, among them Yotam Chaim and Samer Fuad al-Talalka.

This is an unbearable tragedy. The entire State of Israel will mourn this evening. My heart goes out to the grieving families in their difficult time.

I strengthen our brave warriors who penetrate the holy mission…

— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) December 15, 2023

Maersk suspends passage of its ships through strategic strait

Lusa | 6 hours ago

Danish shipping group Maersk announced today that it has ordered its ships to stop using a strategic strait for international trade in the Red Sea, following attacks by Yemen’s Huthi rebels.

“Following the incident against the Maersk Gibraltar yesterday (Thursday) and another attack on a container ship today, we have asked Maersk ships in the region due to pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to halt their voyage until further notice.” , says a company statement cited by AFP.

Al-Jazeera journalist killed in Gaza and another injured

Lusa with News at the Minute | 6 hours ago

A journalist from the television station Al-Jazeera was killed today and another was injured in an Israeli attack in the Gaza Strip, the media reported. “It is with a heavy heart that we share the devastating news of the loss of our dedicated Al-Jazeera cameraman Samer Abu Daqa,” wrote Mohamed Moawad, editor of the television channel, on the social network X (formerly Twitter).

Al-Jazeera had previously indicated that its head of delegation in Gaza, Wael Dahduh, and Abu Daqa had been injured in a school in Khan Yunes, in the south of that Palestinian territory, “following what is believed to have been an attack by a Israeli ‘drone’ (unmanned aircraft).

According to data from the international organization Committee to Protect Journalists, More than 90 journalists have been killed in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank in Israeli attacks.

“What appeared to be a drone belongs to the IDF targeted area. They were shot and Wael [Dahdouh] was wounded.”

Al Jazeera Arabic’s Wael Dahdouh has been wounded and cameraman Samer Abudaqa has been killed by Israeli missile, says managing editor of Al Jazeera, Mohamed Moawad. pic.twitter.com/kgL1kjzuSk

— Times Radio (@TimesRadio) December 15, 2023

Israel opens investigation into death of 2 Palestinians in West Bank

Lusa | 6 hours ago

Israeli authorities announced the opening of an investigation to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of two Palestinians in the West Bank, who are suspected of having been killed by Israeli troops.

The opening of this investigation comes after an Israeli human rights group published videos that appeared to show Israeli troops killing two men during a military attack on a refugee camp in the West Bank. The complaint came from the human rights group B’Tselem.

Security camera videos show two Israeli military vehicles chasing a group of Palestinians in the Faraa refugee camp, in the north of the West Bank. We warn that the violence of the images may harm the susceptibility of the most sensitive readers.

An original video from security cameras that reached Btselem documents two close-range executions of Palestinians in the Al-Farah refugee camp in the Jordan Valley on 8.12.23.
At the end of a chase after a group of Palestinians, soldiers shoot from a military vehicle at Rami Jondav, 25 years old, pic.twitter.com/qwZkX7CLeW

— B’Tselem B’Tselem (@btselem) December 15, 2023

Protesters in Tel Aviv demand a ceasefire and criticize the death of hostages

Lusa | 6 hours ago

Hundreds of protesters demanded an immediate agreement in Tel Aviv today to release the Israeli hostages still being held by the Islamist movement Hamas.

The protest, in which protesters held signs with the names and photos of many of the hostages held by Hamas, in front of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, after the army announced on Friday that it had killed three hostages for mistake.

Click here to read more and see the gallery.

© Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images

Start of coverage

Hélio Carvalho | 6 hours ago

Good morning. This morning we started new EVERY MINUTE coverage of the main events in Israel and Palestine, particularly in the Gaza Strip. You can check yesterday’s news here:

Follow here UP TO THE MINUTE all developments in the armed conflict between Israel and Hamas, particularly in the Gaza Strip.

News at the Minute | 07:32 – 12/15/2023