Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is calling for an international conference to resolve the Mideast conflict. He said Wednesday that the Palestinians are ready to work with the international community on a “serious political process” that leads to an independent state in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, territories Israel seized in the 1967 Mideast war.
Quick Read
- International Conference Proposed by Abbas: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas calls for an international conference to resolve the Mideast conflict, aiming for an independent state in the West Bank, Gaza, and east Jerusalem.
- Israeli Hostage Situation: Approximately 161 hostages remain in Gaza, including 146 Israelis and 15 foreigners. The Israeli government is committed to ensuring no hostages are left behind.
- WHO Warning on Gaza: WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warns that disease outbreaks in Gaza could cause more deaths than bombings, emphasizing the critical need for sustained cease-fire.
- Palestinian Concerns Over War Resumption: Palestinians in Gaza express fear over the potential resumption of the Israel-Hamas war and its catastrophic implications.
- Erdogan’s Accusations Against Netanyahu: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accuses Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of committing atrocities in Gaza, referring to him as the “butcher of Gaza.”
- Hostage Release and Child’s Hospital Discharge: Four-year-old Abigail Edan, a hostage in Gaza, is discharged from the hospital. She was among the hostages released under the cease-fire.
- Philippines Welcomes Hostage Release: The Philippine president welcomes the release of Noralin Babadilla, a Filipino-Israeli woman held hostage in Gaza.
- G7 Statement on Hostages and Foreign Nationals: The G7 foreign ministers call for the unconditional release of all hostages in Gaza and facilitated departure of foreign nationals.
- US Aid Airlift to Gaza: The US has airlifted over 54,000 pounds of medical items and food aid to Gaza, with more airlifts planned.
- Blinken’s Visit and Focus on Governance: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken aims to discuss short-term logistics and long-term governance of Gaza during his Middle East visit.
- Israel’s Stance on Resuming Military Operations: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to resume military operations after the current cease-fire, aiming to prevent future attacks like Hamas’ Oct. 7 assault.
The Associated Press has the story:
Palestinian President calls for international conference to resolve Mideast conflict
Newslooks- RAMALLAH, West Bank
He said Wednesday that the Palestinians are ready to work with the international community on a “serious political process” that leads to an independent state in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, territories Israel seized in the 1967 Mideast war.
He also again called for a halt to the war in Gaza.
Abbas’ Palestinian Authority administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Hamas drove his forces out of Gaza when it seized power there in 2007.
Abbas is extremely unpopular among Palestinians, many of whom view the Palestinian Authority as an accomplice to the Israeli occupation because it coordinates with Israel on security matters.
The U.S. has said a “revitalized” Palestinian Authority should govern Gaza and the West Bank as part of an eventual two-state solution to the decades-old conflict.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected that idea, and his government is strongly opposed to Palestinian statehood.
The last serious Israeli-Palestinian peace talks broke down more than a decade ago.
ISRAEL SAYS 161 HOSTAGES, INCLUDING FOUR CHILDREN, REMAIN IN CAPTIVITY
TEL AVIV — There are approximately 161 hostages still in captivity in Gaza, Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy said Wednesday. That includes 146 Israelis and 15 foreigners, of whom 126 are men and 35 are women. There are still four children under the age of 18, and 10 people aged 75 and older. It is unclear how many of the hostages are soldiers, he said.
“We want to get all of the hostages home, we’re committed to that pledge, there will be no one left behind,” Levy said at a news conference.
“The current framework allows for a few more days of hostage relief pause, and as long as there is a serious offer on the table to release the remaining hostages as we are demanding, we will of course consider every serious proposal because we’re committed to doing everything to bring them back,” he said.
WHO WARNS THAT MORE PEOPLE COULD DIE FROM DISEASE THAN FROM BOMBING IN GAZA
CAIRO — The head of the World Health Organization warned on Wednesday that more people in the Gaza Strip could die from disease than from bombing.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director-general, said there is a heightened risk of disease outbreaks because of overcrowded shelters and a lack of food, water, sanitation and medication.
He said 111,000 people are suffering from respiratory infections and 75,000 others from diarrhea, more than half of them under age 5.
“Given the living conditions and lack of health care, more people could die from disease than bombings,” he said, calling for a sustained cease-fire. “It’s a matter of life or death for civilians.”
The war, which was trigged by an attack by Hamas on southern Israel on Oct. 7, has displaced up to 1.8 million people, or about 80% of Gaza’s population, according to U.N. figures.
PALESTINIANS IN GAZA FEAR RESUMPTION OF WAR
CAIRO — Palestinians in Gaza fear a resumption of the Israel-Hamas war, which has brought unprecedented levels of death, destruction and displacement in the impoverished coastal strip.
“We are fed up,” said Omar al-Darawi, who works at the overwhelmed Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in the central town of Deir al-Balah. “We want this war to stop.”
Ihab Abu Auf, a father of three staying with another family in southern Gaza, said he tried twice to return to his home in the north but was turned back by Israeli troops.
The two men spoke Wednesday as international mediators worked to extend the cease-fire that has paused the fighting for nearly a week. Both said it would be catastrophic if Israel resumes its offensive and sends troops south, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have sought refuge.
“Where will we go then with our women and children?” Abu Auf said. “They want another Nakba,” or catastrophe, he said, referring to the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation.
Egypt has refused to accept Palestinian refugees and Israel has sealed its border since start of the war, which was triggered by Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 cross-border attack.
TURKISH PRESIDENT ACCUSES NETANYAHU OF ATROCITIES IN GAZA
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of committing “one of the worst atrocities” of the century and said he would go down in history as the “butcher of Gaza.”
Erdogan, an outspoken critic of Israel’s military actions in Gaza, also said his government would ensure that Israel is held accountable for its actions before international courts.
In his bi-weekly address to governing party legislators, Erdogan maintained that Israel’s actions were fueling antisemitism while Western leaders were stoking hatred toward Islam.
“With the murders he committed in Gaza, Netanyahu is firing up antisemitism and endangering the security of the people of Israel and of all Jewish people,” Erdogan said. “Immigrants living in (Western) countries are paying the price for the irresponsible rhetoric of Western leaders that demonize Palestinians.”
4-YEAR-OLD DISCHARGED FROM HOSPITAL AFTER 50 DAYS AS HOSTAGE
TEL AVIV — Four-year-old Abigail Edan was discharged from the hospital late Tuesday night, following her release after more than 50 days as a hostage in Gaza, a spokesperson for Schneider Children’s Medical Center in Petah Tikvah said.
The Israeli-American dual citizen was the first U.S. hostage to be released under the cease-fire. Abigail marked her fourth birthday in captivity.
Both of her parents were killed in the Hamas attack that started the war on Oct. 7. During the rampage, she ran to a neighbor’s home for shelter, and the Brodutch family took her in before militants took the family to Gaza.
Hagar Brodutch and her three children were also released on Sunday. President Joe Biden celebrated her release, telling reporters, “I wish I were there to hold her.”
MANILA WELCOMES RELEASE OF SECOND FILIPINO HOSTAGE
MANILA, Philippines — A Filipino-Israeli woman arrived in Israel after being released by Hamas on Tuesday night as part of a group of 12 hostages, the Philippine president announced on social media early Wednesday.
Noralin Babadilla was the second of two Filipinos released from captivity in Gaza during the truce in the Israel-Hamas war. With her release, “all Filipinos affected by the war have been accounted for,” President Ferdinand Marcos said.
Babadilla, who lived in Israel and worked as a caregiver, was visiting friends in Kibbutz Nirim with her husband during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, the Israeli Embassy in Manila said in a statement. Her husband, Gideon Babani, was killed during the attack and Babadilla was taken hostage.
Marcos thanked Israel for facilitating Babadilla’s release and thanked Egypt and Qatar, which helped mediate the cease-fire, “for their crucial role in this process over the past several weeks.”
G7 URGES RELEASE OF ALL HOSTAGES AND FACILITATED DEPARTURE OF FOREIGN NATIONALS
WASHINGTON — The Group of Seven foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain and the U.S. as well as the high representative of the European Union are calling for the unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and the facilitated departure of foreign nationals from Gaza, according to a statement released by the U.S. State Department.
The G7 also said it supports the further extension of the current pause in fighting.
“We remain steadfast in our commitment to work with all partners in the region to prevent the conflict from escalating further,” the statement said.
SEVERAL TONS OF MEDICAL ITEMS AND FOOD FOR GAZA FLOWN INTO EGYPT
WASHINGTON — White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Tuesday that the U.S. has airlifted over 54,000 pounds of Gaza-bound medical items and food aid to a staging area in Egypt.
Two more airlifts are planned in the coming days, Sullivan said. Since Oct. 21, more than 2,000 trucks have delivered aid to Gaza, he said.
