Israeli operations in northern Gaza, including Beit Lahia and Jabalia, have intensified over recent weeks, with the IDF citing efforts to prevent Hamas from regrouping.
At least 93 people are reported dead or missing following an Israeli air strike on the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
The United States has expressed deep concern, describing the incident as “horrifying” and highlighting that initial reports indicate significant civilian casualties, including children.
The US said it has reached out to Israel demanding an explanation after the strike, citing reports that over 20 children among the dozens reported killed.
Social media footage shows bodies under blankets near the site, and rescue teams report a five-story residential building was destroyed in the strike.
Israel’s Defence Forces (IDF) acknowledged awareness of civilian casualties in Beit Lahia and noted that they are investigating the incident.
Israeli operations in northern Gaza, including Beit Lahia and Jabalia, have intensified over recent weeks, with the IDF citing efforts to prevent Hamas from regrouping and claiming that the organisation uses civilian areas as cover—a charge Hamas denies.
Local medical facilities are struggling, with Kamal Adwan Hospital in Jabalia severely understaffed and lacking medical supplies.
The hospital’s director, Hussam Abu Safia, stated that most staff have left, and only essential first aid supplies remain. The IDF previously raided this hospital, alleging it was being used by Hamas fighters.
US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller voiced concern over civilian deaths and echoed calls for an end to the war, stressing the toll on civilians.
Meanwhile, UN rights chief Volker Türk criticized the scale of Israeli military actions in Gaza, describing it as endangering the civilian population.
He also condemned reports of Palestinian armed groups operating in civilian areas, including shelters for displaced people, placing civilians at additional risk.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire, with hundreds of thousands affected by restricted access to essential resources and increasing displacement across the region.
“The humanitarian operation in Gaza, if that is unravelled, that is a disaster within a series of disasters and just doesn’t bear thinking about,” said UNRWA spokesperson John Fowler.
He said other UN agencies and international organisations distributing aid in Gaza rely on its logistics and thousands of workers.
Naim Qassem new Hezbollah chief
Hezbollah has announced that one of its founding members, 71-year-old Naim Qassem, who has served as Deputy Secretary General of the Lebanese group since 1991, will be its new chief.
A veteran figure in the group, Qassem succeeds Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed more than a month ago in an Israeli bombing.
On October 22, Israel confirmed that it had also eliminated Hashem Safieddine, the apparent successor of the former leader, in Beirut three weeks ago.
Qassem, one of the founders of Hezbollah in 1982, was elected Secretary General following a meeting of the Shura Council, the group’s central decision-making body of seven members, on Monday.
The council, while announcing its decision, maintained that Hezbollah will stand by its principles, goals and path to keep the flame of resistance alive and its banner held high until “final victory”.
Born in southern Lebanon in 1953, Qassem became the movement’s Deputy Secretary General in 1991 and continued to serve as Hezbollah’s second-in-command since then.
Ever since Nasrallah’s death, he has appeared in three televised speeches, assuring followers that Hezbollah will fight back even as it has been hit by a severe leadership crisis in the past few weeks.
“I am confident that these enemy aggressions will not weaken the nation of resistance and we will definitely win,” remarked Qassem last month in what was the first speech from a senior Hezbollah official after the assassination of Nasrallah in Israeli Air Force’s strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut.
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