Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the army’s “action plans” for an offensive in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip, according to a press release sent to the press this Friday, March 15.
“The Israeli army is ready for the operational side and for the evacuation of the population,” according to the press release which gives no further details on this long-announced operation, against which the United States and the UN continue to oppose. to warn.
Information to remember
⇒ Spanish humanitarian aid boat arrives in Gaza
⇒ Deadly shots on a crowd waiting for humanitarian aid
⇒ Olaf Scholz visiting Jordan then Israel this weekend
Mediator countries working hard to ‘bridge remaining gap,’ says Blinken
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared this Friday, March 15, that the mediating countries were working “hard to bridge the remaining gap” with a view to an agreement on the hostages and a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
“Yes, there is a counter-proposal that has been put forward by Hamas. Obviously I can’t go into detail, but what I can tell you is that we are working hard with Israel, Qatar, Egypt, to bridge the remaining gap and try to reach an agreement,” Antony Blinken said at a press conference in Vienna, Austria. He said Israel had “returned negotiators to continue the process.” “I think it reflects the sense of possibility and urgency to get an agreement, a ceasefire, to recover the hostages and to deliver even more humanitarian aid,” he added.
Shortly before, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu indicated in a statement that Israel would “send a delegation to Doha, Qatar, as part of negotiations around an exchange of hostages held in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners “. The Palestinian Islamist movement, which has so far demanded a definitive ceasefire from Israel before any agreement on the release of hostages held in Gaza, has said it is ready for a six-week truce associated with an exchange hostages against Palestinian prisoners.
Humanitarian aid arriving by boat in Gaza begins to be unloaded
The first boat bringing humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip via a maritime corridor opened from Cyprus began unloading its cargo of 200 tonnes of food on the coast of the Palestinian territory on Friday, the spokesperson told AFP of the NGO in charge of the operation.
World Central Kitchen is “unloading the barge which is now connected to the temporary jetty” built southwest of Gaza City, after being towed from Cyprus by another NGO’s ship, Linda Roth said.
Olaf Scholz visits Jordan then Israel this weekend
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will visit Jordan and then Israel this weekend, his second visit to the region since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, his spokesperson announced on Friday.
Olaf Scholz will meet King Abdullah II of Jordan on Saturday, before going to Israel on Sunday where talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Head of State Isaac Herzog are planned, detailed Steffen Hebestreit during a press conference in Berlin.
Deadly shots on a crowd waiting for humanitarian aid
At least 20 people were killed overnight by gunfire at a flour distribution point in the north of the Gaza Strip, the Hamas Ministry of Health announced this Friday, March 15. The Palestinian Islamist movement accused the Israeli army of carrying out the shooting from “tanks and helicopters”.
For its part, the Israeli army indicated on Friday that “armed Palestinians” had fired on a crowd waiting for a distribution of food aid in Gaza City on Thursday evening, rejecting Hamas’s accusations.
Red Sea: British ship hit by Houthi missile
A commercial ship was hit by a missile off the coast of Yemen, where Yemeni Houthi rebels are increasing attacks on merchant shipping. “The ship suffered some damage. The crew is safe and sound,” the British maritime safety agency (UKMTO) said on Friday. The attack, which was also reported by maritime security company Ambrey, occurred 76 nautical miles west of the city of Hodeidah and was not immediately claimed.
Earlier in the night, American forces announced that they had destroyed nine anti-ship ballistic missiles and two Houthi drones after shots by Yemeni rebels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden caused “no damage or injuries.
Australia resumes funding from UNRWA
Australia announced this Friday that it would resume its funding of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), after more than a month of suspension. The organization has been at the center of controversy since, in late January, Israel accused 12 of its employees of involvement in the deadly October 7 attack perpetrated by the Palestinian movement Hamas.
“The nature of these allegations warranted an immediate and appropriate response,” said Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, whose country funds UNRWA to the tune of some 3.7 million euros.
He continued: “the current view of Australian government agencies and lawyers is that UNRWA is not a terrorist organization […]. After review by the national security committee this week, Australia is resuming its contribution to the organization, the minister announced.
Like Australia, around fifteen countries, notably the United States, Great Britain, Germany and Japan, had suspended their funding at the end of January for a total of 450 million dollars – the equivalent of more than half of the funds received in 2023. At the beginning of March, Canada and Sweden had already announced the resumption of their financing of the association.
Mohammad Mustafa named new Palestinian Prime Minister
Economist Mohammad Mustafa, close to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, was named new Prime Minister. Aged 69, he was head of the Palestine Investment Fund (PIF) and was among President Abbas’ former economic advisors. He also held senior positions at the World Bank in Washington for 15 years.
At the end of February, Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh presented the resignation of his government, arguing for the need for a new policy taking into account “the new reality in the Gaza Strip” and the “urgent need for an inter-Palestinian consensus”.