A first delivery of fuel arrived in the Gaza Strip after Israel’s green light to restart the electricity generators of hospitals and telecommunications networks in the besieged territory, where a strike left 26 dead on the night of Friday to Saturday, according to the director of a local hospital.
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Essential information:
► Israel accepts that two fuel trucks supply Gaza every day, despite the opposition of part of the political caste within the Hebrew state. A delivery of 17,000 liters was made on Friday November 17, allowing the partial restoration of telecommunications services.
► During the night from Friday to Saturday, a strike against three buildings in Khan Younes left 26 dead and 23 seriously injured, according to the director of Nasser Hospital in this town in the center of the Gaza Strip. Since Tuesday evening, the Israeli army has been carrying out an operation targeted ” In al-Chifa hospital, the largest hospital in Gaza, where she claims to have discovered weapons.
► The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) warns of the “ immediate risk of starvation » in the Gaza Strip. “ We don’t ask for the moon. We demand basic measures necessary to meet the essential needs of the civilian population and stem the course of this crisis. », protested the head of UN humanitarian operations Martin Griffiths.
► The Hamas Ministry of Health announced Friday, November 17 that the results of Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip had reached 12,000 dead since the start of the war on October 7, including 5,000 children. Since that date, more than 1 200 Israelis were killed, after a downward assessment on Friday, November 10. The death toll from the attack on the site of a music festival, however, has been revised upwards and now stands at 364 dead, compared to 270 deaths previously. The Israeli army reports 239 people held hostage by Hamas.
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06:50: A first delivery of fuel was able to enter the Gaza Strip
Some 17,000 liters of fuel entered the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing on Friday, according to Palestinian sources. But from today, more than three times as many people will be able to use this terminal south of the Palestinian enclave on a daily basis, explains our permanent correspondent in Jerusalem, Michael Paul.
The Israeli war cabinet gave the green light last night for the supply of 60,000 liters per day. Immediate results: the gradual restoration of communications, internet and telephony in Gaza. They are necessary for the delivery of humanitarian aid.
A senior Israeli official explains that the decision was taken to avoid the risk of an epidemic. But he adds that Israel will ensure by all means at its disposal that this fuel only reaches humanitarian organizations and does not fall into the hands of Hamas.
It is indicated here that Israel actually gave in to American pressure. Washington also publicly welcomed the Israeli decision while demanding greater quantities of fuel for Gaza.
It is also a decision which causes a division within the Israeli government; the right wing of Benyamin Netanyahu’s coalition is very angry, as our correspondent recounts in This item.
06:30: 26 people killed in a strike in Khan Younes, announces a hospital director
The director of Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, in the central Gaza Strip, announced on Saturday that 26 people had been killed in a strike on three residential buildings in the town. This airstrike, which took place in the Hamad district, also left 23 seriously injured, he told Agence France-presse (AFP).