GAZA LIVE BLOG: Confusion at Rafah Crossing | Israeli Bombardment Continues | Humanitarian Crisis Swells | Iran Warns of ‘Graveyard’ | Biden: Don’t Occupy Gaza – DAY 10

October 16, 2023 Blog, News
The scene at the emergency room at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. (Photo: Ministry of Heatlh)

By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

Hundreds of Gazans rushed to the Rafah crossing with Egypt, hoping to gain entry, while Israeli bombs fell all around the besieged Gaza Strip. The Israeli strikes on Palestinian civilians are relentless, but the Palestinian resistance remains unwavering.

This blog has been discontinued. Click here for the new blog.

Click below for previous blogs: DAY ONE, DAY TWO, DAY THREE, DAY FOUR, DAY FIVE, DAY SIX, DAY SEVEN, DAY EIGHT, DAY NINE.

Palestinian Ministry of Health: The number of Palestinians killed and wounded in the Israeli war on Gaza rose to 2,808 killed. 10,859 wounded. In the West Bank, 58 were killed and more than 1,250 wounded.

LATEST UPDATES BELOW:

Tuesday, October 17, 8:47 am (GMT +3)

EGYPTIAN RED CRESCENT: Trucks carrying aid to the Gaza Strip begin moving towards the Rafah crossing.

ALJAZEERA: Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said on Tuesday at a press conference that Japan will provide $10 million in aid to civilians in Gaza.

ISRAELI MILITARY: The Israeli occupation army said that last night it attacked more than 200 military sites belonging to the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas throughout the Gaza Strip.

Hezbollah Publishes Video Showing Israeli Tank Hit by Guided Missiles – VIDEO

PALESTINIAN MINISTRY OF HEALTH: 71 Palestinians were killed, and hundreds were injured – including women and children – at dawn on Tuesday as a result of Israeli raids targeting a number of homes in the cities of Rafah and Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.

REUTERS: General Michael Eric Corella, who oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East, flew to Israel on an unannounced visit on Tuesday.

Tuesday, October 17, 5:10 am (GMT +3)

UNITED STATES: The UN Security Council has failed to adopt a Russian draft resolution calling for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Russia, China, Gabon, Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates voted in favor of the resolution, while the United States, Britain, France and Japan voted against, while the rest of the countries Brazil, Malta, Albania, Switzerland, Ecuador and Ghana abstained.

UN Security Council Fails to Adopt Draft Resolution for Gaza Ceasefire

Tuesday, October 17, 3:48 am (GMT +3)

PALESTINIAN MINISTRY OF HEALTH: 254 Palestinians killed and 562 wounded in Israeli strikes in the last 24 hours.

ANTONY BLINKEN: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that US President Joe Biden will visit Israel next Wednesday, noting that the US and Israel have agreed on a plan that allows aid to reach civilians in Gaza.

Tuesday, October 17, 2:40 am (GMT +3)

The Pentagon says Secretary Lloyd Austin has agreed with Jordan’s King Abdullah II on the importance of ensuring humanitarian aid reaches civilians in Gaza.

Tuesday, October 17, 2:40 am (GMT +3)

ISRAELI ARMY: The Israeli army announced at dawn on Tuesday new attacks against Hezbollah military targets in Lebanon.

Tuesday, October 17, 2:10 am (GMT +3)

ISRAELI GOVERNMENT: Putin told Netanyahu on Monday of Moscow’s desire to help prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. The Kremlin said Putin had expressed Russia’s willingness to work to “end the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation and achieve a peaceful settlement through political and diplomatic means.”

Tuesday, October 17, 1:45 am (GMT +3)

ALJAZEERA: The spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza said that the situation is on the edge of the abyss in all sectors, calling for allowing aid to enter without linking it to any other issue.

Tuesday, October 17, 1:30 am (GMT +3)

ALJAZEERA: EU High Commissioner for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said he had spoken with Iranian Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian about the situation in Gaza, and that the EU’s position was clear on condemning ‘terrorism’, as he described.

Monday, October 16, 9:30 pm (GMT +3)

COLOMBIA’S NEWS AGENCY: Colombian FM called on the Israeli ambassador to leave the country due to the war on Gaza.

US STATE DEPARTMENT: Blinken, Netanyahu entered shelter after sirens sounded in Tel Aviv.

JERUSALEM POST: About 78,000 Israelis were displaced as a result of the war.

UNRWA: The Director of Communications at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) announced the displacement of one million Palestinians.

Monday, October 16, 8:30 pm (GMT +3)

ISRAELI CHANNEL 13: Hamas sent pictures to the family of one of the prisoners, informing them that he had been killed by Israeli aircraft bombing Gaza.

AXIOS: Russian President Vladimir Putin held phone discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the war in Gaza.

PALESTINIAN HEALTH MINISTRY: A Palestinian was killed by occupation bullets near the Salem military checkpoint in Jenin, in the northern West Bank.

Monday, October 16, 7:30 pm (GMT +3)

EUROPEAN UNION: Fuel, water, food and medicine must reach those trapped in Gaza immediately.

AL-QASSAM: The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of the Hamas movement, said that it bombed the Muftahim complex with missile launches, in response to the targeting of civilians in Gaza.

KREMLIN: There is a possibility that the conflict in Palestine will turn into a regional war.

SHIN BET CHIEF: The head of the Israeli Internal Security Agency (Shin Bet), Ronen Bar, said that he personally bears responsibility for the Hamas attack on the Gaza Strip.

Monday, October 16, 6:30 pm (GMT +3)

AJA: Renewed intense Israeli bombing on the outskirts of the Shujaiya neighborhood.

WSJ: The Wall Street Journal quoted US defense officials as saying that the Pentagon has allocated 2,000 soldiers to support any Israeli ground incursion into Gaza.

The newspaper added that the designated forces will provide advice and other services, which will not include a combat role.

EGYPTIAN PRESIDENCY: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi discussed in a phone call with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, the latest developments in the escalation in Gaza.

AJA: Israeli army renewed bombing of Rafah crossing between Egypt, Gaza Strip.

AJA: Israeli aircraft bombed Palestinian police headquarters in Nuseirat refugee camp, in the Central Gaza Strip.

HEZBOLLAH: The Lebanese Resistance group Hezbollah said that it targeted 5 Israeli military sites with direct weapons, and achieved confirmed casualties.

Monday, October 16, 5:30 pm (GMT +3)

GAZA HEALTH MINISTRY: the number of Palestinians killed and wounded in the Israeli war on Gaza rose to 2,808. 10,859 were wounded.

WHO: WHO warned that the shortage of water, electricity and fuel in the besieged Gaza Strip would turn into a “real disaster” within the next 24 hours.

Monday, October 16, 5:o0 pm (GMT +3)

AJA: Sirens sounded in Jerusalem coinciding with the Knesset session, prompting the Israeli Prime Minister and MPs to head to the shelter.

AJA: Israeli occupation army bombed with artillery the vicinity of the town of Al-Dhahira in southern Lebanon.

US STATE DEPARTMENT: Anthony Blinken discussed ways to deliver humanitarian aid in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

AJA: Palestinian Resistance launched new batch of missiles toward several Israeli cities.

HAMAS SPOKESMAN: Netanyahu wants to liquidate the Palestinian cause and eliminate the aspirations of our people. No occupier can end the existence of our Palestinian people.

LAPID: “We will eliminate Hamas and return the kidnapped people”.

NETANYAHU: In a speech before the Knesset, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel’s goal is victory and the elimination of Hamas. “We must crush Hamas. I say to Iran and Hezbollah, beware.”

Monday, October 16, 4:o0 pm (GMT +3)

PALESTINIAN RED CRESCENT: The Rafah crossing has not yet been opened, and medical and humanitarian aid remains stuck at the border.

TASS: The Kremlin calls for an immediate ceasefire and the start of a political settlement process in the Middle East.

GAZA MINISTRY OF INTERIOR: 5 Palestinians were killed and 15 others were wounded in an Israeli bombing that targeted a house without warning in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.

Monday, October 16, 3:00 pm (GMT +3)

AJA: Sirens sound in the settlements of the Gaza envelope.

ISRAELI BROADCASTING COMPANY (quoting Netanyahu’s office): We are in a state of war and we will continue with all our might until victory.

TURKISH PRESIDENCY: Erdogan informed the Iranian President that Turkey is working to bring aid into Gaza.

JORDAN: King Abdullah stresses the importance of international action to stop the war on Gaza and prevent its expansion into the West Bank and the region.

AJA: Israeli artillery is violently bombarding areas north of Gaza.

EURO-MEDITERRANEAN HUMAN RIGHTS MONITOR: Israel dropped the equivalent of a quarter of a nuclear bomb on Gaza.

LEBANON: Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that Lebanon is in the eye of the storm, the region is in a difficult situation, and no one can predict what might happen.

Monday, October 16, 2:00 pm (GMT +3)

AL-QASSAM: We bombed Bir Seb’a (Beersheba) with a missile attack in response to targeting civilians

PALESTINIAN MEDIA FORUM: 13 journalists were killed and media headquarters and journalists’ homes were destroyed as a result of the aggression on Gaza.

AL-QASSAM: We bombed Ashdod with a missile barrage in response to targeting civilians.

ISRAELI MEDIA: Warning of possible infiltration by armed elements in the town of Metula, near the border with Lebanon.

UN: The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator heads to the Middle East on Tuesday to support negotiations on delivering aid to Gaza.

EU FOREIGN POLICY COMMISSIONER BORRELL: Unhindered UN access to Gaza must be granted. Human suffering cannot be a bargaining chip.

Monday, October 16, 1:00 pm (GMT +3)

RED CROSS: What we currently provide is a very small portion of what the people of Gaza need.

ISRAELI CHANNEL 13: Israeli Channel 13 reported that a strong explosion was heard in Tel Aviv a short while ago.

AJA: Israeli raids were renewed a short while ago on various areas of the Gaza Strip, including Beit Lahia, the Al-Tuffah neighborhood, and the Shujaiya neighborhood.

EGYPT: Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry stressed his country’s rejection of the displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

ISRAELI MEDIA: Israel to receive US President Joe Biden on Wednesday, Thursday.

RED CROSS: Hisham Muhanna, spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Gaza, said that there is a disaster in Gaza in light of the ongoing Israeli bombing.

ISRAELI ARMY: The Israeli military spokesman said on Monday that the army has strengthened its forces on the northern border, and will respond firmly and forcefully to every operation against it,

Monday, October 16, 12:00 pm (GMT +3)

REUTERS: Several UN-flagged trucks were leaving the southern Gaza Strip on Monday in the direction of a meeting point of the Palestinian enclave’s borders with Israel and Egypt, a Reuters TV staffer said.

The trucks initially appeared to be en route to the Rafah crossing on the Gaza-Egypt border but their course later appeared to take them in the direction of Kerem Shalom, an Israeli border crossing close to the Egyptian frontier.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESS: The US Secretary of State will return to Israel on Monday after a tour that included Jordan, the Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and Egypt.

AL-QASSAM BRIGADES: The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), announced that it bombed Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv with a missile salvo on Monday morning.

ISRAELI ARMY: The Israeli military spokesman denied reports that a temporary ceasefire agreement had been reached in southern Gaza, which could take effect today, Monday, and allow the Rafah crossing to be opened temporarily to enable foreigners to leave and bring aid into the Strip.

AJA: sirens sounded shortly before noon on Monday, in the Modi’in area between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

IRAN: The Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Monday that continued Israeli behavior will drag the region into a crisis and threaten security.

AJA: Israeli occupation aircraft launched a series of violent raids on various areas in Gaza City.

Monday, October 16, 11:00 am (GMT +3)

UNRWA: There are more than one million displaced people in the Gaza Strip.

The UN agency continued that there is unprecedented destruction in Gaza.

ISRAELI MEDIA: German Chancellor Olaf Schulz will arrive in Israel tomorrow, Tuesday.

GAZA MINISTRY OF HEALTH: The number of Palestinians killed in the Israeli aggression has risen to 2,750 and the number of wounded to 9,700.

Monday, October 16, 10:00 am (GMT +3)

BRITISH DEFENSE MINISTER: Israel is preparing itself to destroy Hamas, adding that the operation will depend on the best intelligence information.

ISRAELI ARMY: The Israeli army announced – Monday morning – that a plan had been activated to evacuate residents of the north who live up to two kilometers from the Lebanese border.

The announcement of the plan’s activation comes at a time when confrontations are escalating between the Israeli army and Lebanese resistance group Hezbollah.

REUTERS: Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said that his country will not accept Western pressure to denounce Hamas .

Ibrahim added that Malaysia has a relationship with Hamas and that this policy will continue.

Monday, October 16, 9:00 am (GMT +3)

REUTERS: Reuters news agency quoted two Egyptian security sources as saying that an Egyptian-Israeli-American agreement had been reached on a temporary ceasefire in southern Gaza , starting at nine o’clock this morning, local time.

However, Reuters quoted the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as saying that there is no agreement currently on a truce or the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza in exchange for the removal of foreigners.

AJA: Seven killed in Israeli strike on civil defense office in Gaza.

AJA: 17 Palestinians were killed on Monday morning, in an Israeli bombing that targeted the home of the Zqamat family in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip.

The reporter also reported that 4 Palestinians – including 3 children – were killed in an Israeli bombing that targeted a house in the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip.

(The Palestine Chronicle)

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