Documentation of the Israeli abuse of power, mistreatment of humanity, and perpetration of the genocidal war on the Palestinian people in the  Gaza Strip.

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On Day 456 of US-Backed Israeli Genocidal War on Gaza Strip, 4 Massacres, 59 Palestinians Killed, 273 Injured, in the Past 24 Hours, with a Death Toll of  45,717 and 108,856 Injuries

by January 4, 2025

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Editor's Notes:  

Here are some initial (not final) statistics, which show the Israeli war crimes against humanity, during the current Israeli genocidal war on Gaza Strip, based on the reliable data reported by the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza:

By January 4, 2025, the initial death toll of Palestinians who have been killed by the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza Strip is 55,717+.   

This includes the accounted for deaths (45,717), those who are still missing under the rubble (an estimate of at least 10,000+). 

By January 4, 2025, the documented injuries exceeded 108,856.

By January 4, 2025, 841 Palestinians who were killed, 6,622 who were injured, and 10,726*, who were abducted by Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank, since October 7, 2023, including 310 women and 640 children (Some of the detainees have been released).

* The number of the Palestinians detainees who remain in the Israeli occupation prisons has been updated today (December 5, 2024), by Wafa, to be 10,300.

***

On Day 456 of the Israeli genocidal war on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, the death toll rose to 45,717 and the injuries to 108,856, by January 4, 2025.	59 Palestinians were killed, 273 were injured by the Israeli genocidal air strikes on the Gaza Strip, in the past 24 hours, January 4, 2025.
At least 534 Palestinians, including 80 children, were killed in the West Bank and Al-Quds by the Israeli occupation forces and the illegal settlers' attacks, during 2024, January 4, 2025.	A silent war is being waged by the Israeli occupation regime and its settler groups on Al-Quds, Jerusalem, and its people, by displacement, banishment, and Judaization, January 4, 2025.
18-year-old Palestinian Mu'hammed 'Aamir was killed by the Israeli occupation forces, in Balata refugee camp, and several were wounded, on January 4, 2025.	Grieving the Palestinian martyrs who were massacred by the Israeli genocidal air strikes on Khan Younus, January 4, 2025.
Four Palestinians were killed by an Israeli genocidal air strike on their vehicle, in Dair El-Bala'h, central Gaza Strip, January 4, 2025.	Carrying Palestinians who were killed and injured by the Israeli genocidal air strikes, to the Nasir hospital, in Khan Younus, January 4, 2025.

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بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَـٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

"مِنْ أَجْلِ ذَٰلِكَ كَتَبْنَا عَلَىٰ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَنَّهُ مَنْ قَتَلَ نَفْسًا بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ أَوْ فَسَادٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَكَأَنَّمَا قَتَلَ النَّاسَ جَمِيعًا"  (الْمَائِدَةُ ، 5: 32).

"وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِنًا مُّتَعَمِّدًا فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ خَالِدًا فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَابًا عَظِيمًا" (النِّسَاءُ ، 4: 93).

"إِنْ أَحْسَنتُمْ أَحْسَنتُمْ لِأَنفُسِكُمْ ۖ وَإِنْ أَسَأْتُمْ فَلَهَا ۚ " (الإسْرَاءُ ، 17: 7). 

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

"Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul, unless for a soul, or for corruption in the land, it is as if he had killed humankind entirely" (The Holy Quran, Al-Ma-ida, 5: 32).

"And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, wherein he will abide eternally, and Allah has become angry with him, and has cursed him, and has prepared for him a great torment" (Al-Nisa, 4: 93).

"If you do good, you do good for yourselves; and if you do evil, (you do it) to yourselves" (Al-Isra, 17: 7). 

***

While brutal force has been used to create Zionist Israel and sustain it thus far, Zionist claims to Palestine are false. Actually, from the five thousand years of known written human history, there has been a continuous Palestinian-Canaanite presence in the Holy Land. Despite the Zionist false claims, the ancient Israelites ruled part of the land for only 85 years (during the reign of Prophets David and Solomon , peace be upon them, and Solomon's son).

 After that, the Egyptians conquered Palestine-Canaan in 925 BC, followed by Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans, before the Arab Muslim rule, starting from 636 AD.

By the Time Jesus, peace be upon him, started his mission, the three population groups of Canaanites, Palestinians, and Israelites were melted together in religion and language. Most of them became Christians when Constantine converted in 313 AD. Then, most of them became Muslims in the 7th and 8th centuries AD.

So, Palestinian Muslims, Christians, and Jews are the ones who have the right to claim descent from ancient Israelites, Palestinians, and Canaanites, not Zionists from other continents.

No matter what the Zionists and their supporters do, they cannot change the will of God, Who promised the Holy Land to Abraham and his descendants, basically the Palestinian Muslims and Christians.

No matter how much persecution and aggression the Zionists and their supporters inflict upon the Palestinian people, they will never be able to force them out of the Holy Land, which Allah, praise to Him, promised for them, and kept His promise ever since.

This is a necessary brief background to understand the US-Backed Zionist Israeli continuous wars against the Arab nation generally, and the Palestinian people in particular, which included the wars of 1948, 1956, 1967, 1978, 1982, the brutal crushing of the two Uprisings (1987-1993 and 2000-2004), 2009, 2012, 2014, 2021, and the current genocidal war on Gaza (Since October 7, 2023), which has culminated a blockade of Gaza since 2007. In addition, the Israeli occupation and apartheid regime launched so many covert operations, raids, and air strikes on many Arab states since 1948.

The following news stories are just examples, not a systematic record, of the Israeli occupation government abuse, mistreatment, and violations of Palestinian human rights, on daily basis.

Killing and Injuring of Palestinians in Ghazza (Gaza) by Israeli Occupation Regime Forces

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Gaza: Death toll surges to 45,717 martyrs

Saturday 4-January-2025

GAZA, (PIC)

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Saturday that the Israeli occupation army committed four massacres in different areas of the Gaza Strip during the past 24 hours, and killed and injured at least 332 civilians, while a large number of victims are still under the rubble of bombed buildings or lying on roads.

In a statement, the Ministry of Health explained that the Israeli occupation army killed and injured a large number of civilians in different areas of Gaza during the past 24 hours, but at least 59 martyrs and 273 wounded citizens arrived at hospitals.

The health ministry added that the death toll from the ongoing Israeli bombardments and shooting attacks climbed to 45,717 martyrs and the number of the wounded surged to 108,856 people.

The Gaza Strip has been under brutal bombardment since a cross-border operation was launched by Hamas’s armed wing, al-Qassam Brigades, on October 7, 2023.

Besides the large number of casualties and the huge displacement of people, basic food, fuel, water and medical supplies have run out for the 2.3 million residents in Gaza due to the tight Israeli blockade and the massive destruction of infrastructure and facilities.

Note: These figures only include the dead and injured Palestinians who have  been accounted for by the Palestinian hospitals. The victims who are not carried to the hospitals are not accounted for.

***

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Israeli genocidal war on Gaza enters Day 456

Saturday 4-January-2025

GAZA, (PIC)

In the midst of catastrophic humanitarian suffering for more than two million Palestinians — half of them children, the Israeli occupation army continued, for the 456th consecutive day, to pound and target different areas and massacre more civilians in the Gaza Strip, especially in the northern areas.

Reporters for the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) said on Saturday that the Israeli occupation army carried out attacks on several homes, civilian targets and shelter centers in different areas of Gaza during the past 24 hours, killing and injuring dozens of citizens.

The Israeli army’s large-scale genocidal campaign in northern Gaza, especially in Jabalya and Bait Lahya, has entered day 92, where its forces continue to intensively bomb homes and shelters and attack civilians while imposing a tight siege on the entire area.

Deliberate Israeli attacks on ambulance and civil defense workers already deprived northern Gaza of any rescue services.

Local sources said that the Israeli army bombed a gathering of civilians in Jabalya Al-Nazla area in northern Gaza, killing one of them and injuring others.

A number of civilians, including children, were injured in an Israeli attack near the Sabra Girls School in the south of Gaza City.

Other citizens were injured when the Israeli army bombed a house in Abu Iskandar area in Al-Shaikh Radhwan neighborhood, north of Gaza City.

An Israeli airstrike on a house belonging to the family of Samara in Al-Shuja’iyya neighborhood in the east of Gaza City claimed the lives of 11 civilians and injured others.

Two other people were martyred in an Israeli strike on the 'Ariba area in the north of Rafa'h, south of Gaza.

Another airstrike on a house belonging to the family of ash-Sharif in Al-Mawasi area in the west of Khan Younus, south of Gaza, killed a child and injured 10 others, while three are still missing.

More casualties were reported in other areas of Gaza following Israeli aerial, artillery and shooting attacks last night and today.

Meanwhile, medical sources in Gaza said that over 200 civilians had been martyred in two days as a result of a violent wave of airstrikes that targeted citizens, homes, cars and tents across Gaza.

Gaza’s health ministry also voiced concern that a scenario similar to what previously happened at the hands of Israeli forces at the hospitals of Al-Shifa and Kamal 'Udwan could be repeated at the Indonesian and Al-'Awda hospitals.

In a related context, the health ministry said on Saturday that the Israeli army committed four massacres in different areas of the Gaza Strip during the past 24 hours, and killed and injured at least 332 civilians, while a large number of victims are still under the rubble of bombed buildings or lying on roads.

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Four killed, dozens injured in Israeli genocidal airstrikes on Gaza City and Al-Buraij refugee camp

GAZA, January 4, 2025 (WAFA) –

Four Palestinian civilians were killed and dozens more were injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Al-Buraij refugee camp and Gaza City on Saturday evening, according to local sources.

WAFA  correspondent reported that the fatalities and injuries occurred when Israeli warplanes targeted a tent sheltering displaced people at the Abu 'Helou School in Al-Buraij refugee camp, in the central Gaza Strip.

In addition, multiple individuals were wounded after Israeli fighter jets struck two homes in Al-Shaikh Radhwan and in the Abu Iskander, both in the northern part of Gaza City.

Israeli warplanes also targeted agricultural land near the 'Halawa School, which is sheltering displaced people in the Jabalya area, north of the Gaza Strip. 

Meanwhile, Israeli military vehicles opened fire on the Sudanese area in the northwest of Gaza City.

The ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza since October 2023 has so far resulted in at least 45,717 documented Palestinian fatalities, with over 108,856 others injured.

Thousands of victims are feared trapped under rubble, inaccessible to emergency and civil defense teams due to Israeli attacks.

Israel's genocidal attacks continue unabated despite calls from the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire and directives from the International Court of Justice urging measures to prevent genocide and alleviate the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

M.N.

***

Relentless Israeli genocidal airstrikes on Gaza cause dozens of casualties

GAZA, January 4, 2025 (WAFA) –

A number of civilians were killed and injured on Saturday afternoon in ongoing Israeli airstrikes targeting various areas across the Gaza Strip.

According to local sources, five Palestinians lost their lives and several others were injured when Israeli artillery shelled a gathering of people in Jabalya town, in northern Gaza.

In another attack on Al-Tuffa'h neighborhood, east of Gaza City, four more people were killed, with additional injuries reported. Meanwhile, one person was killed and others injured in Israeli strikes near the Palestine Stadium west of Gaza City.

In Rafah, a young man was killed in an Israeli strike on the 'Ariba area north of the city, while rescue teams retrieved another body near the Firdous area in western Rafa'h.

Israeli warplanes also targeted homes on Al-Yarmouk Street in Al-Shaikh Radhwan neighborhood and in the Al-Shati refugee camp in western Gaza City. Additionally, a drone strike hit a group of civilians near Al-Barbari Station on Al-Jalaa Street in central Gaza.

Medical sources reported that 41 people have been killed in Israeli airstrikes on various areas of the Gaza Strip since early Saturday, including 27 in the northern regions of the enclave.

The ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza since October 2023 has so far resulted in at least 45,717 documented Palestinian fatalities, with over 108,856 others injured.

Thousands of victims are feared trapped under rubble, inaccessible to emergency and civil defense teams due to Israeli attacks.

Israel's genocidal attacks continue unabated despite calls from the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire and directives from the International Court of Justice urging measures to prevent genocide and alleviate the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

M.N.

***

Five civilians killed in Israeli airstrikes on northern and central Gaza Strip

GAZA, January, 4, 2024 (WAFA) – 

Five civilians were killed and others were injured Saturday afternoon in the Israeli occupation's bombing of the town of Jabalya, north of the Gaza Strip, and the city of Dair Al-Bala'h, central Gaza Strip.

Medical sources reported that one citizen was killed and others were injured when the occupation fighter jets bombed a group of citizens at the 'Halabi roundabout in Jabalya al-Balad

Meantime, another citizen was killed and dozens of others were injured when Israeli warplanes targeted a group of citizens in the vicinity of 'Haleema Al-Sa'diya School in Jabalya Al-Nazla, north of the Strip.

Three citizens were also killed and others were injured in the occupation's bombing of a civilian vehicle on Salah al-Din Street, east of Dair Al-Bala'h, while a number of citizens were injured in the shelling launched by the occupation's artillery on the vicinity of al-Sabra Girls' School, south of Gaza City.

The occupation's drones fired on the A'hmed Yaseen Street area, west of Gaza City.

The Israeli occupation continues its aggression on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, which resulted in the killing of 45,717 civilians, the majority of whom are women and children, and the injury of 108,856 others.

Y.S.

***

Israeli genocidal airstrikes on Gaza claim dozens of lives as Israel's aggression continues

GAZA, January, 4, 2024 (WAFA) – 

Dozens of citizens were killed and injured last night and at dawn due to the ongoing Israeli occupation genocidal shelling of various areas in the Gaza Strip.

WAFA correspondent reported that two citizens were killed and others were injured when the occupation targeted a tent housing displaced people near Jalal Street in the city center of Khan Yunis governorate, south of the Gaza Strip.

He added that six people were killed in an occupation forces bombing that targeted a vehicle on Salahuddeen Street in the eastern Satar area in Khan Younus city.

A citizen and a child were also killed when the occupation bombed two houses belonging to the Al-Majayda and al-Sharif families in Mawasi Khan Younus.

Rescue teams were able to retrieve the bodies of three slain Palestinians from under the rubble of a house targeted by the occupation forces on Al-Sa'haba Street in Al-Daraj neighborhood, west of Gaza City.

Meanwhile, several civilians were injured when the occupation bombed a house for the al-Ghoul family in al-Shuja'iyya neighborhood, east of Gaza City, and the search is still ongoing for missing persons under the rubble.

The occupation forces continued to blow up residential buildings in Jabalya refugee camp and its surroundings, north of the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli occupation continues its aggression on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, which resulted in the killing of 45,658 citizens, the majority of whom are women and children, and the injury of 108,553 others, in an incomplete toll, as thousands of victims are still under the rubble and in the streets, and ambulance and rescue crews cannot reach them.

Y.S. 

***

At least 11 civilians killed, dozens wounded by the Israeli genocidal airstrikes on Al-Shuja'iyya neighborhood, in Gaza

GAZA, January, 4, 2024 (WAFA) –

 At least 11 civilians were killed  on Saturday in the Israeli occupation forces bombing of a house in Al-Shuja'iyya neighborhood, east of Gaza City.

Medical sources reported that the occupation's warplanes bombed a house for the Samara family in Al-Shuja'iyya neighborhood, east of Gaza, resulting in the killing of 11 civilians and the injury of others.

They added that the number of Palestinian who were killed from the occupation's bombing of a house in the Mawasi area, west of Khan Yunis, south of the Strip, rose to 3.

Two citizens were killed in an occupation raid on the north of Rafa'h.

Meanwhile, the occupation warplanes fired heavy fire towards the west of Jabalya, north of the Strip, in conjunction with the occupation's vehicles firing heavily towards the homes of citizens in the Saftawi and Al-Tawam areas, north of the Strip.

The Israeli occupation continues its aggression on the Gaza Strip, by land, sea and air, since October 7, 2023, which resulted in the killing of 45,658 citizens, the majority of whom are women and children, and the injury of 108,553 others.

Y.S.

***

‎***

Killing, Injuring, and Abduction of Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli Occupation Regime Forces 

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Palestinian killed, others injured in and IOFs raid in eastern Nablus

Saturday 4-January-2025

WEST BANK, (PIC)

One young man was martyred and nine others were injured on Friday evening when the Israeli occupation forces (IOFs) stormed Balata refugee camp in eastern Nablus, north of the West Bank, and opened fire at local residents.

The Palestinian health ministry said that 18-year-old Mu'hammed 'Aamir was killed by the IOFs gunfire in Balata camp, adding that several wounded citizens were rushed to hospitals, including four in serious condition.

Local sources said that Israeli forces stormed the eastern area of Nablus City and spread at the northern entrance of Balata camp, with snipers on rooftops of tall buildings and drones overflying the area.

The Red Crescent said that the IOFs obstructed the work of its ambulance crews during its raid in the camp.

Meanwhile, resistance fighters reportedly opened fire at Israeli forces and their vehicles and detonated some explosive devices at them in eastern Nablus.

In a separate incident, a horde of extremist settlers assaulted local farmers and residents in Al-Buwaib village, east of Yatta City in southern al-Khalil.

Local activist Osama Makhamra said that several armed settlers stormed the village, fired live ammunition and assaulted a number of local farmers and residents, injuring a number of them.

Makhamra added that Israeli soldiers rushed to the area to help the settlers and detained four villagers, including a father and his son, after they were assaulted and injured by the settlers.

In Ramallah, seven Palestinian citizens suffered injuries when a group of extremist settlers hurled stones at them and beat them with sticks in Al-Nasbiya area near Silwad town.

The same settlers also torched five Palestinian cars, one tractor and a number of olive trees in the area under military protection.

Silwad mayor Ra-id 'Hamid said that local residents from the town went in the evening to check on their swaths of agricultural land in the area, where there was an illegal settler outpost about 25 days ago, when a horde of  the illegal Israeli settlers showed up and attacked them.

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Including 80 children, 534 Palestinian martyred in the West Bank and Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem), in 2024

Saturday 4-January-2025

WEST BANK, (PIC)

At least 534 Palestinians, including 80 children, were killed in the West Bank and Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) by the Israeli occupation forces (IOFs) and the illegal settlers' attacks during 2024.

The Palestine Information Center (MUTA) indicated that among the martyrs were 21 women and 23 elderly, due to the escalating Israeli crimes against the Palestinians and their property.

On the other hand, the year 2024 witnessed a remarkable escalation in resistance operations, resulting in the death of 48 Israelis and the injury of more than 386 others, according to MUTA.

***

Palestinian girl sustains injury in an Israeli occupation army raid in southern West Bank town

Bait La'hm (Bethlehem), January 4, 2025 (WAFA) –

A Palestinian girl Friday evening sustained an injury in the course of an Israeli occupation army raid in Tuqua‘ town, south of the occupied West Bank city of Bait La'hm (Bethlehem), according to security sources.

They said that the occupation forces raided the town, simultaneously while firing live ammunition, tear gas and concussion bombs towards the residents’ houses.

They added that the shrapnel of live rounds penetrated the window of a house, injuring a girl in her eye.

The casualty was rushed to a nearby hospital.

Israeli occupation forces frequently raid Palestinian houses almost daily across the West Bank on the pretext of searching for "wanted" Palestinians, triggering clashes with residents.

These raids, which also take place in areas under the full control of the Palestinian Authority, are conducted with no need for a search warrant, whenever and wherever the military chooses in keeping with its sweeping arbitrary powers.

Under Israeli military law army commanders have full executive, legislative and judicial authority over 3 million Palestinians living in the West Bank. Palestinians have no say in how this authority is exercised.

K.F.

***

'Hamas: A silent war is being waged on Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) and its people

Saturday 4-January-2025

Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem), (PIC)

Senior 'Hamas official Majid Abu Qutaish has warned against a silent war being waged by the Israeli occupation regime and its settler groups on Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) and its people, by displacement, banishment and Judaization practices.

In a statement on Saturday, Abu Qutaish said that the latest Palestinian statistics about the Israeli violations that happened in Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) last year confirmed that “the city is seeing a raging war on the Palestinian presence and its Islamic holy sites.”

“The Israeli aggression against Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) is no less dangerous than the war in which planes and cannons are used as there are escalating demolition operations in the city as well as growing displacement, banishment and Judaization practices,” Abu Qutaish added.

The 'Hamas official stressed the need for the Palestinian people from all spectra to rise up against the Israeli schemes targeting Al-Aqsa Mosque and Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem). 

***

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Aggression and Attacks by Illegal Israeli Settlers and Soldiers

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Note: Despite the Biden administration total support for the Israeli genocidal war on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, the U.S. official policy is still considering the Israeli settlement activities in the Palestinian territories as illegal.

***

Illegal Israeli Jewish settlers destroy trees and fence in western Bait La'hm (Bethlehem)

Saturday 4-January-2025

Bait La'hm (Bethlehem), (PIC)

A horde of the illegal Israeli extremist Jewish settlers destroyed on Saturday morning a number of fruitful trees in Batteer town, west of Bait La'hm (Bethlehem)m in the occupied West Bank.

A local resident said that a group of settlers infiltrated into his grove in Al-Khamar area and chopped down six olive trees and one apple tree after destroying the fence around his land.

He added that it was the third time those settlers attacked his grove, adding that the settlers recently set up an outpost near his land.

Backed by their government and army, armed illegal Isreli Jewish settlers have used the war on Gaza to escalate their violence against Palestinian villagers and farmers in the West Bank, especially during the olive harvest season.

***

Illegal Israeli settlers attack village near Ramallah, burning agricultural structures

RAMALLAH, January 4, 2025 (WAFA) –

A horde of the illegal Israeli settlers launched an attack this evening on the outskirts of the village of Al-Mughayir, northeast of Ramallah according to local sources.

Ameen Abu 'Aliya, the head of Al-Mughayir Village Council, reported that colonists targeted the western edge of Al-Mughayir, setting fire to agricultural rooms belonging to residents of the nearby village of Abu Fala'h and the town of Turmus 'Ayya.

Abu 'Aliya further stated that Israeli occupation forces were deployed at the eastern entrance of the village to provide protection for the colonists during the attack.

This incident is part of almost daily colonist violence in the occupied West Bank, with colonists often targeting Palestinian properties and lands, while the Israeli military continues to provide security for the colonists in such attacks.

M.N.

***

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News Related to the Israeli Genocidal War on the Palestinian People

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'Hamas: Indirect ceasefire talks restarted in Doha

Saturday 4-January-2025

Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem), (PIC)

The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, 'Hamas, said that the indirect ceasefire talks over Gaza resumed on Friday in the Qatari capital, Doha, reiterating its keenness on reaching an agreement ending the Israeli aggression and protecting the Palestinians against genocide and ethnic cleansing.

In a statement on Friday, Hamas said that this round of talks would focus on negotiating an agreement that leads to a complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, and the safe and prompt return of the displaced to their homes.

'Hamas called on the media to necessarily refrain from dealing with information and leaks in this regard from unknown sources.

In another context, Hamas highlighted that it was making contacts with different parties to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza and provide them with their needs, especially during the current winter.

'Hamas also condemned the Israeli occupation army’s persistence in its crimes against the health system in Gaza, its destruction of hospitals, medical centers and ambulances, and its killing of medical personnel, accusing the US administration of providing the Israeli regime with political, diplomatic and media support and cover to persist in its war crimes.

***

UNRWA warns of imminent Israeli ban on its services in Palestine

Saturday 4-January-2025

NEW YORK, (PIC)

UNRWA has issued an urgent warning about an impending Israeli ban that could cripple its ability to deliver essential services to millions of Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and east Jerusalem.

UNRWA director of communications Juliette Touma told Ireland’s RTE on Friday that time is running out, as the ban is expected to take effect by the end of January following a decision by the Israeli parliament (Knesset) last October.

“The clock is ticking for a possible ban on UNRWA to deliver essential services for millions of Palestine refugees,” Touma said, affirming that the UN has no plans to replace the agency in the occupied Palestinian territories.

“What needs to happen is for the Israeli parliament to retract the decision,” she added.

Touma called such an Israeli measure as unprecedented in the UN history. “It has never happened in the history of the United Nations that a member state decides to ban a UN agency, in the middle of a war, from doing its work.”

In November, the Knesset adopted two bills banning UNRWA from operating in territories under Israeli control.

The Israeli government justified the step, which received widespread international condemnation, by claiming that some UNRWA employees were involved in the cross-border attacks on October 7, 2023, a charge the agency has repeatedly denied.

If enforced, the ban would lead to the shutdown of UNRWA offices and the freezing of its financial accounts in Israel, effectively halting its operations.

Established after the 1948 Nakba (catastrophe), the UNRWA has been a vital lifeline for Palestinian refugees, currently providing services to nearly 5.9 million individuals across Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon.

Since October 2023, Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has claimed the lives of over 45,700 civilians, mostly women and children, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding Israel to stop its military campaign against Gaza.

In November, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu and former war minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its ongoing war crimes and atrocities in Gaza.

***

UN rights chief: ‘A human rights catastrophe continues to unfold in Gaza’

Saturday 4-January-2025

GAZA, (PIC)

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Friday expressed concern over ongoing Israeli attacks on healthcare facilities in the Gaza Strip.

“A human rights catastrophe continues to unfold in Gaza before the eyes of the world,” Turk told a Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East.

Israel’s means and methods of warfare have killed tens of thousands of people, inflicted vast displacement and laid waste to the territory, he added.

“The destruction of hospitals across Gaza goes beyond depriving Palestinians of their right to access adequate health care. Those hospitals provided sanctuary for thousands of people with nowhere else to go,” Turk stressed.

Underlining that the UN repeatedly warned that Israel’s military operations in North Gaza place the entire Palestinian population at risk through death and displacement, Turk said Israeli military operations in and around hospitals and associated combat have had a “terrible impact” precisely at a time of massive demands on health care due to the ongoing conflict.

Turk also called for “independent, thorough and transparent” investigations into all Israeli attacks on hospitals, healthcare infrastructure and medical personnel, as well as the alleged misuse of such facilities.

“I once more, warn in the strongest terms about the risk of atrocity crimes being committed in the occupied Palestinian territory. I urge all those with influence to take action accordingly and to protect civilians as a matter of absolute priority. It is essential that there is full accountability for all violations of international humanitarian and human rights,” he added.

The rights chief called on Israel to ensure and facilitate access to live-in humanitarian aid, including adequate health care for the Palestinian population, urging Israel to end its continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory “as rapidly as possible.”

Israel has killed more than 45,550 citizens, mostly women and children, in Gaza since the start of the Israeli genocidal war on Oct. 7, 2023.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Army Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

***

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Editorial Notes about terms & names of people and places:

1. Names of people and places have been standardized to match standard Arabic grammatical rules.

2. Underlined letters and letters preceded by an apostrophe are references to Arabic letter sounds, which does not exist in the English alphabet.

3. The English letter i is equivalent to the Arabic short vowel known as kasra, as in Ibraheem and Qasim as well as in the English words sit and bit. So, it is incorrect to use it as a long vowel for such Arabic names as Jameel and Jibreel.

4. The English letter e is equivalent to the Arabi short vowel known as fat'ha, as in A'hmed and Mu'hammed.

5. It is more accurate to refer to the land-grabbing Israelis, who establish illegal settlements in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank, as illegal Israeli settlers, than referring to them as colonists.

The term colony is a reference to a large entity or a country, such as American states before independence. It was also a reference to Egypt, and India, when they were British colonies.

In addition, the term "colony" represents a positive nostalgic theme, in the minds of native speakers of English, particularly in America and Britain.

6. It is more accurate to use the verbs "abduct" and "kidnap" than the verbs "detain" and "arrest," in reference to taking Palestinian citizens by force to prisons and interrogation centers, by Israeli occupation regime soldiers. This is because the presence of the Israeli occupation regime forces is illegal in the Palestinian territories, and they have no jurisdiction over the Palestinian people.

Click here for more about using the apostrophe and the underlining of letters in the transliteration of Arabic names. 

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Names of some of the Palestinian cities, as pronounced in standard Arabic, and their foreign names in parentheses: 

Al-Khaleel (Hebron)

Al-Nusayrat

Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem)

Aree'ha (Jericho)

Al-Zaytoun (al-Zeitoun)

Bait (Beit)

Bait La'hm (Bethlehem)

Dair El-Bala'h

Jineen (Jenin)

Khan Younus (Khan Younis)

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Person's names as pronounced in standard Arabic:

A'hmed, 'Hasan, Mu'hammed, Younus, Yousuf,  

'Hasan Mulai'hat,

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Conflict terminology

The Israeli occupation apartheid regime (the Israeli government)

Illegal Israeli settlers (instead of settlers, colonists)

A group of the illegal Israeli settlers

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