Here’s what you need to know about the situation on Tuesday, November 28, 2023.
Armistice, release of prisoners of war and prisoners of war
- At least 11 Israeli prisoners held in Gaza were released on Monday, the Israeli military said. The releases welcomed by the Red Cross included six Argentinians, three French nationals and two German nationals.
- Qatari Foreign Ministry Spokesman Majed Al-Ansari announced on Monday that the ceasefire would be extended for two more days until Thursday morning. Qatari officials said this would mean the release of at least 20 more Israeli prisoners held in the Gaza Strip and 60 Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons.
- Hamas also announced an extension to the ceasefire, but there is no update yet from Israel. However, Israel had not resumed shelling of the Gaza Strip as of Tuesday morning.
- The Palestinian Committee for the Affairs of Detainees and Former Detainees on Tuesday morning released the names of three women and 30 children released by Israel from the military’s Ofer prison.
- The freed Palestinian prisoners arrived in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday night and were greeted by their families.
- Mohammad Nazar, a teenage Palestinian prisoner, told Al Jazeera that he was beaten by Israeli guards in prison last week, resulting in a broken hand and finger. He reported that no medical attention was given to his injuries until the Red Cross slung him after his release.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced X (formerly Twitter) reported that 50 more Palestinian women are eligible for release from Israeli prisons. This is in addition to a list of 300 prisoners scheduled for release released by Israel before the armistice was agreed.
- Israeli Army Radio announced that Hamas has released a new list of prisoners to be released. This is the first list created as a result of the extension of the ceasefire agreement. US-based news site Axios reported that the list included 10 names.
Israeli repression in the West Bank
- Four Palestinians were wounded by Israeli forces on Tuesday in clashes at Dishe camp south of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank. Six other people, including one woman, were detained in different areas of the province, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
- A young Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli forces early Tuesday morning, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
- Two young Palestinians were injured in a clash with Israeli occupation forces in the town of Yabad, west of Jenin in the occupied West Bank. Wafa said one person was shot in the leg and the other was hit in the head by shrapnel.
- According to Wafa, two young Palestinians were wounded by live ammunition during an Israeli attack on the Deir Ammar refugee camp west of Ramallah. Wafa reported that sources said Israeli forces had bombed an apartment building in the camp of Daoud Abdel Razak Daras, 41, a Palestinian who was reportedly shot dead on August 31.
End of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
- The families of three Palestinian students shot dead in the US state of Vermont say they were targeted because they are Palestinian.
- Jason J. Eaton, 48, an American man accused of shooting and killing three Palestinian students in Vermont, has been ordered held without bail. The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether the shooting was a hate crime.
- Police in Montreal, Canada, are investigating an incendiary bombing of a Jewish community center on Monday night.
Gaza hospitals and fuel shortages
- The Gaza Strip is under complete Israeli blockade and faces food, water and fuel shortages. Israeli shelling caused extensive damage to hospitals, schools, and residences. A ceasefire agreed to provide aid, including fuel.
- The UN humanitarian agency OCHA reported that small amounts of cooking gas (approximately 85 tonnes per day) had reached Gaza over the past four days.
- Palestinians rely on fires for cooking and keeping warm.
- Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya, director of pediatric intensive care at Kamal Adwan Hospital, appealed for emergency fuel supplies to the hospital, which is the only medical center still accepting patients in northern Gaza.
- Abu Safiya told Al Jazeera that if hospitals are not supplied with fuel within hours, they risk losing patients, including premature babies.
diplomacy
- The US State Department announced on Monday that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Israel, the occupied West Bank and the United Arab Emirates this week.
- US President Joe Biden reiterated his call for a “two-state solution”. post “We will never stop working toward that goal to ensure that Israelis and Palestinians can live with equal freedom and dignity,” Biden said.
- Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said world leaders must work “with vigor and urgency” to ensure the current ceasefire in Gaza becomes a “permanent ceasefire.” He said a two-state solution was the only path to peace in the region.
- U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin called Israeli Defense Minister Job Gallant. During the conversation, Mr. Austin reiterated the need to send more humanitarian aid to Gaza.
- EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Monday there would be no “peace or security for Israel” without the establishment of a Palestinian state.