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Gaza, West Bank, and Regional Developments: Daily Brief

Israeli military operations in Gaza continued on Thursday, with Palestinian media reporting that Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian man east of Khan Younis. According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, at least 27 Palestinians were killed and 18 injured in Israeli attacks over the past 24 hours.

Since the start of Israel’s assault on October 7, 2023, the recorded death toll in Gaza has risen to 71,851, with 171,626 people injured. Health officials report that since October 11, the first full day of a declared ceasefire, Israeli forces have killed at least 574 Palestinians and wounded more than 1,500 others. An additional 717 bodies have been recovered from beneath the rubble during this period.

Among the latest casualties was a four-day-old baby killed by shrapnel from an Israeli airstrike on Gaza City’s Al-Tuffah neighborhood. The strike also killed the infant’s parents, grandmother, and a five-month-old cousin, highlighting the continued impact of the conflict on women and children.

Movement through Gaza’s Rafah crossing remains heavily restricted. While the crossing partially reopened this week, only limited numbers of Palestinians have been allowed to travel. Twenty-five people returned to Gaza overnight after prolonged delays and reported harsh treatment at Israeli security checkpoints. Meanwhile, just 13 patients were evacuated for urgent medical care abroad, far below the agreed target of 50 daily evacuations. Gaza health authorities estimate that around 20,000 patients require treatment outside the territory.

Israeli authorities also returned dozens of bodies and human remains to Gaza this week. Al-Shifa Medical Complex received 54 bodies and 66 boxes of remains through the International Committee of the Red Cross, bringing the total number of bodies returned since the ceasefire to more than 400, most of them unidentified.

In eastern Gaza City, Israeli forces bulldozed large sections of the historic Gaza War Cemetery, damaging graves of Allied soldiers from World War I and World War II. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission described the destruction as deeply troubling, while Israel claimed the site was located in an active combat zone.

International concerns continue to grow over Gaza’s future reconstruction. Potential donors remain hesitant to fund a U.S.-backed rebuilding plan amid fears that unresolved disputes over Hamas’s disarmament could trigger renewed large-scale fighting.

Meanwhile, tensions remain high across the region. Israeli drone activity and chemical spraying in southern Lebanon have drawn condemnation from Lebanese officials and the United Nations. Elsewhere, conflicts intensified in Sudan and South Sudan, while the United States carried out new airstrikes targeting ISIS positions in Syria.

In Washington, talks between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear program are expected to begin in Oman, even as disagreements persist over the scope of negotiations. Domestically, U.S. political disputes have stalled healthcare legislation, while courts continue to challenge aggressive immigration enforcement practices.

Source: Dropsite