Israeli occupation forces suppress worshipers in Al-Quds (Jerusalem), block access to Al-Aqsa Mosque

JERUSALEM, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) –

The Israeli occupation regime forces clamped down today on Palestinian Muslim worshipers in the Wadi Al-Joaz neighborhood of Al-Quds (Jerusalem), preventing them from reaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque for the weekly Friday prayer, according to witnesses.

They reported that Israeli occupation forces fired rubber-coated steel bullets and toxic tear gas canisters on the worshipers, pursuing and physically assaulting some of them in the aftermath.

Only a few managed to reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform the Friday prayers, as Israeli occupation authorities prevented hundreds from entering the holy site and imposed strict military measures around the Old City.

This marks the seventh consecutive Friday in which worshipers have been denied access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. This ongoing restriction has forced them to perform their prayers in the streets of the adjacent Wadi Al-Joaz neighborhood, which is close to the Old City where the mosque is situated.

M.N.

4-day humanitarian pause takes effect in Gaza after 48 days of Israeli genocide

GAZA, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) -

A humanitarian pause came into effect in the Gaza Strip at 7 am local time this morning. This follows an Israeli genocidal war that persisted since October 7, resulting in the tragic murder of over 15,000 Palestinians, including 6,150 children, more than 4,000 women, and over 36,000 injured individuals.

The 4-day humanitarian pause, subject to extension, will include the release of as many as 150 female and child detainees from Israeli occupation regime prisons. It also involves the delivery of badly needed humanitarian aid and fuel supplies into the besieged Ghazza (Gaza) Strip.

In the hours leading up to the ceasefire, the Israeli occupation forces intensified their airstrikes in the northern, central, and southern regions of Gaza. These strikes targeted schools housing displaced civilians, hospitals, and homes, resulting in dozens of casualties.

Throughout the ceasefire period, hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza will not be able to return to their homes in northern Gaza to assess the damage to their homes and properties. The Israeli occupation forces, which invaded the northern regions of Gaza with tanks and armored personnel carriers, have threatened to target returning civilians.

Emergency and rescue teams will work to retrieve the bodies of victims from under the rubble. The number of missing individuals is estimated to be around 7,000, including over 4,700 children and women, revealing more atrocities committed by the Israeli occupation forces over the 48-day period.

M.N.

Cuban leader leads pro-Palestine march outside US embassy in Havana

HAVANA, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) –

Thousands of Cubans led by President Miguel Díaz-Canel marched yesterday outside the US embassy in Havana in a show of solidarity with the Palestinian people and demanding an end to the Israeli aggression on Gaza.

Wearing a black-and-white Palestinian keffiyya, Díaz-Canel was accompanied by Cuba’s main leaders, including Prime Minister Manuel Marrero and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez.

The marchers walked for two kilometers, passing in front of the US Embassy. As they passed the embassy on the seaside avenue, some yelled “fascist Yankees, you are terrorists.”

“Today we are supporting the Palestinian people, supporting all those people who feel the pain of having lost a family member, a loved one due to this massacre,” said Yanquiel Cardoso, as quoted by the Washington Post. “We are asking for a ceasefire… and for Palestine to be free.”

Many people waved posters with the phrase “Free Palestine” with photographs of children killed or injured by Israeli bombs or flags identifying both Cubans and Palestinians.

Others chanted “free, free Palestine, Israel is genocide” and “up with Palestinian freedom,” Reuters reported.

“This march means a lot to us,” said Sami Sabala, a 26-year-old Palestinian medical student in Havana. “It raises feelings … And it makes people feel that Palestine is not alone.”

This is the second time that Cuba’s top leaders have participated in solidarity rallies since the Israeli aggression began. Last week, the Palestinian flag was projected on the monument to José Martí, the most iconic in the Caribbean capital.

Cuba has been a longtime supporter of the Palestinian cause and hasn’t had diplomatic ties with Israel since 1973.

M.N.

The Israeli occupation forces bomb the power generators of the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza

GAZA, Thursday, November 23, 2023 (WAFA) –

The Israeli genocidal airstrikes and artillery bombardment tonight targeted the entrances and the power generators of the Indonesian Hospital in the Jabalya refugee camp, northern Gaza, resulting in severe damage and a complete power outage across the hospital.

According to reports from WAFA correspondents on the ground, Israeli warplanes and artillery units directly struck the main power generators of the hospital – which is the second largest hospital in the enclave – resulting in a complete power outage across all its departments.  

In addition to the attack on the hospital's last remaining power source, Israeli tanks positioned around the medical facility shelled its surroundings, including the main entrances, exacerbating the challenges faced by medical staff and patients in accessing the hospital.

The Indonesian Hospital has been under Israeli military siege for over four days now, with tanks deployed immediately outside the hospital. The targeting of its infrastructure by Israel is a grave violation of international humanitarian law, which prohibits attacks on civilian institutions, including hospitals and medical facilities.

Gaza's main and largest hospital, the Al-Shifa Medical Complex, has been forcibly evacuated at several stages by the Israeli occupation army after two weeks of direct military siege. It is now used a closed military zone by the occupation forces.

M.N.

IOF breaks into Indonesian Hospital in Gaza prior to the truce

November 24, 2023, GAZA, (PIC) +-

Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, killing a wounded woman and seriously injuring three persons just a few hours before the truce took effect.  

Director General of Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, Muneer Al-Bursh, said, “The Israeli army stormed, in tanks, the Indonesian Hospital amid heavy shooting and firing of smoke and tear gas grenades. 

Al-Bursh stressed that the IOF storming of the hospital is a war crime that is more hideous than the crime it had committed in Al-Shifa Hospital. The IOF arrested three medical personnel while spreading panic among the wounded and displaced. 

He affirmed that the hospital hosts 200 of the wounded and 25 of medical staff.

The hospital had been completely surrounded by the IOF for several days, and before that it was directly bombarded by the IOF, killing 12 persons of the patients and their companions, and injuring a number of the medical staff. 

As a result of the bombardment, 700 of the wounded and the patients were evicted and transferred to other hospitals in southern Gaza, in coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO). 

The IOF escalated its attacks across the Gaza Strip just a few hours before the temporary humanitarian truce took effect in Gaza. Intense bombardment and heavy shelling were reported in each of Jabalya refugee camp, north of Gaza, Nusayrat in Central Gaza, and Khan Younus and Rafa'h in southern Gaza, resulting in dozens of martyrs and wounded, in addition to targeting several hospitals.  

Israeli occupation forces withdraw from Al-Shifa after destroying all vital facilities

November 24, 2023 GAZA, (PIC) +-

The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) withdrew on Friday from Al-Shifa Medical Complex in the city of Gaza after about 10 days of storming, raiding and destroying large parts of it.

Local sources reported that the Israeli occupation forces withdrew from Al-Shifa Medical Complex after bombing several hospital facilities, after failing to prove its allegation about the presence of tunnels and Hamas offices in the hospital. The bombing was intended to bury any evidence of the occupation's criminality and lies.

The sources explained that the IOF blew up the hospital's power generators and medical equipment, including X-ray machines, in addition to oxygen pumps, before withdrawing from it.

A medical source in the complex told Anadolu Agency that about 180 patients and 7 medical staff members are still present in Al-Shifa Hospital.

He said that "the patients and the wounded are unable to move due to their serious injuries and need to be transported by special ambulances."

The source pointed out that "about 19 of the wounded and patients are at risk of losing their lives due to the severity of their health conditions."

He said that "the wounded and medical staff in the hospital have no food and only limited amounts of water," appealing to the relevant authorities to "quickly work on evacuating them from Al-Shifa Hospital as soon as possible."

On November 15, the IOF stormed Al-Shifa Complex after besieging it for several days, during which the hospital was repeatedly shelled.

After several days, the IOF demanded those present in the hospital to evacuate on foot, but some of the wounded and patients were unable to leave due to their conditions, and some doctors and hospital staff members had to stay with them.

During the past few days, the IOF carried out extensive digging, searching, and violent combing operations inside the hospital's sections, buildings, gardens, and parking lot, resulting in the martyrdom of a number of displaced persons and wounded inside, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.

The withdrawal operation comes hours after the temporary humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian factions went into effect at 07:00 AM local time today.

The humanitarian ceasefire agreement includes the release of 50 Israeli prisoners from Gaza in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinians from Israeli prisons, as well as the entry of hundreds of trucks loaded with humanitarian, relief, medical, and fuel aid into the Gaza Strip.

108 UNRWA staff killed since the beginning of Israeli hostilities

November 24, 2023, GAZA, (PIC) +-

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) stated that 108 of its staff have been killed since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on Gaza on October 7. 

This is the highest number of United Nations aid workers killed in a conflict in the history of the United Nations, UNRWA said, noting that at least 40 percent of them have been killed south of Wadi Gaza.

The UN agency pointed out that over 1.7 million people (or nearly 80 percent of the population) have been displaced across the Gaza Strip since 7 October.

On average, there is one shower unit for every 4,500 people in UNRWA shelters and on average, around 220 people sheltering in UNRWA schools share a single toilet.

According to UNRWA, as of 23 November, over 14,532 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since 7 October; 74 percent of them are reportedly children and women.  

November 24, 2023, GAZA, (PIC) +-

The humanitarian ceasefire went into effect in the Gaza Strip at seven o'clock (local time) this morning, Friday, after a night of intense Israeli genocidal bombardment throughout the Gaza Strip, preceded by the Israeli forces' raid on the Indonesian hospital.

Our correspondent reported that there was an active movement among the citizens in the cities of the Gaza Strip, and that thousands had started leaving the shelters and heading to their homes in the eastern areas of the Strip, especially in the south and the Wadi Gaza area.

Thousands were seen in the streets of Rafa'h, Khan Younus, Dair El-Bala'h, and the camps of the central governorate, with no sounds of explosions and the absence, so far, of Israeli aircraft flying over.

Citizens expressed their happiness at the beginning of the ceasefire and expressed their hope that it would be the start of a comprehensive cessation of aggression.

A citizen, on her way to her home in the eastern part of Dair El-Bala'h, said: "We will return to our homes, check on them, and thank God for everyone who survived. We pray to God to stop the aggression and to protect our people and resistance."

Another citizen said: "No matter how many they kill and how much they destroy, we will remain steadfast and victorious. We will return to our homes and one day return to our occupied lands and cities."

Citizens expressed their bitterness at the scenes of massive destruction in many areas and neighborhoods, but they emphasized that all of that would be rebuilt, God willing, and stressed the need to intensify efforts to stop the aggression completely.

While things seem calmer after the ceasefire in southern of Wadi Gaza, the situation appears more difficult and challenging in Gaza City and its northern areas, where Israeli forces have been infiltrating many neighborhoods in the two districts.

Local sources reported that Israeli tanks are stationed on Al-Nasr Street (Bahlool Station) in Gaza City, preventing residents from accessing their homes in the areas infiltrated by those forces.

According to the sources, Israeli tanks are firing along Al-Nasr Street and around Al-Ranteesi Hospital, preventing citizens from reaching their homes in the northwest areas of Gaza.

Some citizens challenged the presence of occupying forces and insisted on returning to their homes and inspecting them in that area.

Video clips showed citizens returning to their homes in Bait 'Hanoun to inspect them.

Video clips also showed heavy movement of citizens in Jabalya and its camp, who insisted on resilience and refused forced displacement.

Furthermore, citizens started moving on Sala'huddeen Road, which connects the Gaza districts, with the aim of returning to their homes in Gaza City and its northern areas. However, Israeli forces stationed on the road in southern Gaza launched gas bombs in an attempt to disperse them.

Local sources reported that citizens were injured by Israeli sniper fire while attempting to return through side roads near Al-Nour Resort in southern Gaza.

It is worth noting that hundreds of thousands of citizens have been forcibly displaced from Gaza and its northern areas to the southern part of the Strip due to Israeli shelling and threats. They are suffering greatly due to the lack of suitable accommodation, and some of them are looking to return to their homes and resettle there or inspect their homes and reunite with their families.

The Israeli occupation forces have stated that Palestinians are not allowed to return to the northern Gaza Valley during the ceasefire, while people from that area would be allowed to come to the south without undergoing inspection.

Our correspondent reported that the Israeli forces occasionally open fire towards the eastern outskirts of Dair El-Bala'h and Rafa'h.

In the operational framework, diesel and gas trucks began to enter from the Egyptian side towards Mas'ouf Gate on the Palestinian side of the crossing. 

Dozens of trucks carrying aid are preparing to enter to alleviate the burdens of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip after 48 days of aggression and the suffocating blockade.

Details of the agreement

Developments of the aggression in Day 49 of the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza

The Israeli occupation forces continued their bloody holocaust in the Gaza Strip for the 49th consecutive day. They anticipated the start of the humanitarian ceasefire by storming the Indonesian hospital and escalating the bombing of homes with their residents inside, carrying out air raids, using incendiary devices, and committing crimes of genocide, along with incursions from several axes amid steadfast resistance.

Prior to the ceasefire, sirens sounded in the settlements near the Gaza Strip, indicating a rocket barrage through which the resistance affirmed its ability to manage the confrontation with the occupation.

Our correspondent reported that the Israeli warplanes intensified their violent airstrikes unprecedentedly throughout the night and until the early morning hours before the commencement of the humanitarian ceasefire.

Occupation forces stormed the Indonesian Hospital in Bait Lahya, north of the Gaza Strip, with tanks at dawn today, killing a woman among the wounded and injuring 3 others, just a few hours before the ceasefire took effect.

The Director-General of Health in Gaza, Muneer Al-Bursh, said, "The occupation forces stormed the Indonesian Hospital with tanks and unleashed heavy gunfire, smoke bombs, and gas."

Al-Bursh affirmed that what the occupation is carrying out at the Indonesian Hospital is a heinous war crime worse and more brutal than its crime in Al-Shifa Complex. Moreover, 3 hospital employees were arrested, causing panic among the wounded and displaced.

According to Al-Bursh, the Indonesian Hospital has about 200 injured people and 25 medical staff members.

The Israeli occupation forces escalated their targeting of various parts of the Strip just a few hours before the temporary ceasefire began in the Gaza Strip.

Media sources confirmed that Jabalya camp in the northern part of the Strip, Al-Nusayrat in the central part, and Dair El-Bala'h and Rafa'h in the south witnessed intense shelling that resulted in dozens of martyrs and injuries.

The Israeli warplanes targeted a densely populated residential building in Al-Nusayrat, "Camp 2," in the middle of the Gaza Strip, starting fire in it.

The occupation forces renewed artillery shelling in the eastern area of Al-Qarara and targeted a house belonging to the Abu 'Olba family near the Abu Qamar station in northern Gaza.

Fierce clashes broke out between the resistance and occupation forces in the vicinity of Jabalya, which witnessed intense shelling. There was intense Israeli artillery fire on Jabalia market.

The Israeli aircraft launched an airstrike on Al-Zawayida, as well as on the Maghazi refugee camp, coinciding with intense artillery shelling in the middle of the Strip.

Journalist Amal Zuhd, along with her family, was martyred in a shelling that targeted her house in Gaza City a few days ago, raising the number of martyred journalists since the beginning of the aggression to 66.

The occupation forces continued their ground incursions in several axes of the Gaza Strip, especially in the northern Gaza Governorate and Gaza City, before start of the ceasefire. They were met with fierce and heroic resistance that continues in all the axes of incursion. During these confrontations, the Al-Qassam Brigades managed to destroy more than 335 military vehicles, either completely or partially.

Palestinian youth dies of injuries from Israeli bombardment in Tulkarm

TULKARM, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) –

A 27-year-old Palestinian youth identified as 'Amir Nizar Khairallah succumbed this morning to critical injuries sustained from Israeli fire earlier this month in Tulkarm, north of the occupied West Bank, according to medical sources.

The youth was injured when a drone bombed him during an Israeli incursion into the Tulkarm refugee camp on the 17th of this month. During that incursion, at least six Palestinians were killed by the Israeli drone strike in the refugee camp.

With the death of Khairallah, the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli occupation forces in the Tulkarm governorate since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7 has risen to 43.

M.N.

Israeli occupation forces murder a young Palestinian in Jericho

JERICHO, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) –

A young Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli occupation forces this morning during an Israeli military incursion into the 'Aqabat Jabr refugee camp, located south of Jericho in the occupied West Bank, according to medical sources.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a statement that 22-year-old Mu'hammed 'Hinnawi was shot and critically injured by Israeli occupation soldiers during their raid of Aqabat Jabr refugee camp. He was pronounced dead of his wounds a short time later.

The Israeli occupation forces also stole a private vehicle during their raid of the refugee camp, according to local sources.

M.N.

Israeli occupation soldiers murder a 12-year-old boy in Baita

NABLUS, Thursday, November 23, 2023 (WAFA) -

A 12-year-old Palestinian boy identified as Mu'hammed Ibraheem Edeli was shot dead by Israeli occupation forces tonight during confrontations in the town of Baita, located south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, according to local sources.

The sources reported that the Israeli occupation forces fired live ammunition towards local residents during the confrontations in the town, resulting in the murder of the young child. 

Ahmed Jibril, the director of the Emergency and Ambulance Center at the Red Crescent in Nablus, confirmed that the child sustained a gunshot wound to the chest and was promptly transported to a nearby hospital, where he was announced dead of his wounds.

M.N. 

Three Palestinians injured by Israeli gunfire in Bait La'hm (Bethlehem)

RAMALLAH, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) –

Three Palestinians sustained injuries today during confrontations with the Israeli occupation forces in the town of Tuqu, in the occupied West Bank governorate of Bait La'hm (Bethlehem), according to medical sources.

WAFA correspondent said that confrontations erupted in the vicinity of Tuqu Municipality near the western entrance of the town. Israeli occupation forces used live ammunition during the confrontations, resulting in the injuries to the three Palestinians.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that three individuals were shot with live ammunition during the confrontations—one in the back, another in the pelvis, and the third in the leg. They were subsequently transported to hospital, with their conditions described as stable.

In addition to the injuries, the occupation forces also abducted three young men from the town in the aftermath of the confrontations.

M.N

Youth injured, two others abducted in an Israeli raid into Nablus

NABLUS, Friday, November 24, 2023 (WAFA) –

A Palestinian young man was injured and two others were abducted last night in an Israeli occupation army raid into the Old City of Nablus, north of the occupied West Bank, according to local and medical sources.

The sources reported that a young man sustained a gunshot wound to his leg during the confrontations with Israeli occupation forces that erupted in the vicinity of the Old City in Nablus.

WAFA correspondent said that Israeli occupation forces raided several homes in the Old City. In the course of the Israeli raid, two vehicles were set on fire by soldiers, causing the flames to spread to a nearby commercial establishment.

The incursion into the Old City also saw the arrest of two Palestinian citizens by Israeli occupation forces, adding to the already heightened tensions in the area.

M.N.

Palestinian youth injured by Israeli gunfire in Qalqilya

QALQILIA, Thursday, November 23, 2023 (WAFA) –

A young Palestinian man sustained injuries and another was apprehended this evening during confrontations with Israeli occupation forces in the town of 'Hablah, in the occupied West Bank province of Qalqilya, according to local sources.

The Israeli occupation forces stormed the town, the sources said, leading to the outbreak of confrontations, during which Israeli soldiers shot and injured a young man in the head with a rubber-coated metal bullet. The man is in a stable condition.

Also during the incursion, Israeli occupation forces raided several homes, resulting in the arrest of a young man whose identity remains unknown at this time.

Simultaneously, Israeli occupation forces sealed off the entrance to the nearby village of Nabi Elias using a military checkpoint, obstructing the movement of citizens and causing a severe traffic jam.

M.N.