Israel’s war on Gaza updates: Ceasefire hopes ‘drowned out by bombs’
Israel ignores UN resolution demanding an immediate truce, with dozens of Palestinians killed in ongoing bombardment.
The live page is now closed. You can continue to follow our coverage of the war in Gaza here.
The live page is now closed. You can continue to follow our coverage of the war in Gaza here.
- Hezbollah has launched dozens of rockets at an Israeli border town in response to strikes on southern Lebanon that killed seven people. In retaliation for the rocket attack, Israel bombed two Lebanese towns, killing at least nine.
- At least 18 Palestinians have died trying to recover airdropped aid into Gaza, with six more bodies recovered from the sea.
- The United States says it continues to press Israel to adhere to a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during Ramadan.
- At least 32,490 Palestinians have been killed and 74,889 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The death toll in Israel from Hamas’s October 7 attack stands at 1,139 with dozens still held captive.
That’s a wrap from us
Here’s what happened today
We will be closing this live page soon. Here is a recap of today’s events:
- Hezbollah has said it launched dozens of rockets at Kiryat Shmona, an Israeli border town, in response to Israeli strikes on Lebanon’s southern village of al-Habbariyeh that killed seven people.
- In response to the rocket attack, Israel bombed two Lebanese towns, killing at least nine.
- At least 18 Palestinians have died trying to recover airdropped aid into Gaza, with six more bodies recovered from the sea.
- Al Jazeera is reporting several people have been killed and injured in an Israeli attack that targeted the tribal committees responsible for securing aid south of Gaza City.
- Israel has asked to reschedule a meeting with US officials to discuss its military plans in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abruptly scrapped the planned talks.
Israeli forces raid occupied West bank town
A video clip shared online by local Palestinian media outlets and verified by Al Jazeera’s fact-checking unit, Sanad, shows Israeli forces storming the town of Deir Ballut, west of Salfit.
Israeli raids on the West Bank have intensified since the war in Gaza began in October. More than 7,800 people have been detained since then.
Israel says 274 aid trucks entered Gaza today
Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) office says in its daily report on X that 164 of those trucks carried food.
It also said that it coordinated the delivery of 25 food aid trucks to northern Gaza overnight between yesterday and today and that 156 aid packages, weighing one tonne each, were also dropped over the north.
Despite the delivery of this aid, the UN’s World Food Programme says that one in three children in north Gaza are currently experiencing acute malnutrition. Earlier today, the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that enough food to feed the north is currently stockpiled in trucks waiting to enter the Gaza Strip.
On March 18, Oxfam accused Israel of using bureaucracy to “deliberately” hinder aid supplies headed into Gaza, with trucks waiting an average of 20 days before they are cleared to enter.
UN expert says she faces threats after Israel-Gaza genocide report
A United Nations expert who published a report saying there were reasonable grounds to believe Israel has committed genocide in its war on Gaza says she has received threats throughout her mandate.
Francesca Albanese, the special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, presented a report titled “Anatomy of a Genocide” to the UN Human Rights Council, which Israel said it “utterly rejects”.
It’s been a difficult time,” she said. “I’ve always been attacked since the very beginning of my mandate.”
Read the full story here.
Palestinian girls held at Israeli checkpoint in occupied West Bank
Israeli forces apprehended the two children at a military checkpoint in central Hebron, Wafa news agency reports.
Activist Yasser Abu Markhiya told the Palestinian news agency that Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint, near the Jabal al-Rahma Mosque in Tal Rumeida, held his daughters Zainab and Jana, aged 8 and 10, respectively.
It was unclear from the report when or if the girls had been released.
Netanyahu cancelling scheduled US meeting ‘foolish’
Earlier, we reported that Israel has asked to reschedule a meeting with US officials to discuss its military plans in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abruptly scrapped the planned talks.
“It was foolish, stupid, and shortsighted on his part,” Al Jazeera’s Senior Political Analyst Marwan Bishara said of the Israeli Prime Minister’s decision to cancel the meeting in the first place.
“In fact, some of his own coalition partners, like [Benny] Gantz called him out on it. He said this was wrong what you’ve done.”
Bishara said Netanyahu has for a long time thought of the US as “stupid”.
“He thinks the US is stupid, and he tells the Israeli public openly that only I can handle America. In fact, the US did act countless times stupidly when it comes to Israel,” he added.
“But these past five months into an unravelling genocide … the Biden administration decided that it’s time to wind down the war. So they actually abstained from a United Nations resolution [calling for an ‘immediate ceasefire’ in Gaza during Ramadan],” Bishara noted.
“Netanyahu was angry at that because he thinks Biden takes orders from him. He thinks America takes orders from Israel.”
WATCH: What’s in new UN report describing Israeli genocide in Gaza?
A report by a UN special rapporteur accuses Israel of “genocidal acts” in Gaza.
The entire area has been classified as a military objective, making all Palestinians their potential targets.
So, how does the report reflect the reality on the ground?
More on shooting of two men in Gaza by Israeli forces
Earlier, we reported on exclusive footage obtained by Al Jazeera that shows Israeli soldiers shooting dead two Palestinian men waving white flags of surrender.
Al Jazeera’s correspondent reports that the men were attempting to return to northern Gaza, travelling along al-Rashid Street.
Near the Nablusi roundabout southwest of Gaza City, the men, waving white flags, are met by a deployment of Israeli forces and killed, before their bodies are buried among rubbish and rubble by Israeli army bulldozers.
In a statement, Hamas condemns the killings, saying the events captured in the footage are “further evidence of the scale of fascism and criminality that governs Zionist behaviour, in the context of the brutal war of extermination against our people in the Gaza Strip”.
The statement called on the International Criminal Court to take “necessary measures” to hold Israel accountable for “the crimes they commit against children and defenceless civilians”.
US official’s resignation a ‘courageous and principled stance’
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) praised a State Department staffer who resigned to protest US government support for Israel in its war on Gaza.
Annelle Sheline quit as a foreign affairs officer in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. She told CNN, “Whatever credibility the United States had as an advocate for human rights has almost entirely vanished since the war began”.
“We thank Ms Sheline for her courageous and principled stance in defence of human rights for all people, including Palestinians,” said CAIR’s national executive director, Nihad Awad.
“It is the decades-long denial of the humanity of the Palestinians that has resulted in this tragic situation in which our nation is complicit in genocide, ethnic cleansing, and forced starvation of entire populations.”
‘The US is trying to force the Israeli government’s collapse’
The US decision to abstain from a UN Security Council resolution calling for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza, which allowed the resolution to pass, may be part of its plan to force Netanyahu’s government to collapse, says Middle East analyst Trita Parsi.
Watch below:
Death toll climbs in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon.
At least nine people were killed on Wednesday night in two separate Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon, the country’s state-run National News Agency says.
Among those killed were four paramedics who work for a local civil defence organisation affiliated with Hezbollah.
Hezbollah has also this evening announced the deaths of three of its fighters via its Telegram channel, without saying, as per usual, how or where the men died.
Earlier, we reported that the Israeli army bombed the southern Lebanese villages of Naqoura and Tayr Harfa, which the Israeli army said were in retaliation for a Hezbollah rocket barrage directed at the Israeli city of Kiryat Shmona. The attack on Kiryat Shmona, Hezbollah said, was in retaliation for an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon that killed seven paramedics.
These deaths make today the deadliest for Lebanon since Hezbollah began exchanging fire with the Israeli army on October 8.
‘They scream in hunger’ – How Israel is starving Gaza
Maysoon al-Nabahin squeezes out the last bit of cartoned cheese onto a freshly baked piece of bread, knowing it will be the only thing her family of eight will eat that day.
Umm Muhammed, as she’s known, fled from a school in Bureij where she, together with her husband and six children, were sheltering after Israeli forces destroyed their home in east Bureij in central Gaza.
The 45-year-old now lives in the crowd of tents around Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah further south. She’s a petite woman, her face etched with worry, looking older than her years.
Al Jazeera followed three families to find out how they are making due in the face of extreme hunger.
Read more of their story here.
Several killed, wounded in Israeli bombing of aid workers
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic report several people were killed and injured in an Israeli attack that targeted the tribal committees responsible for securing aid south of Gaza City.
Earlier this month, Israeli air strikes targeted tribal aid distribution workers in Gaza City’s Kuwait roundabout, killing at least 23 people.
On February 29, Israeli forces opened fire on hundreds of Palestinians as they gathered south of Gaza City waiting to receive humanitarian aid in what is known as the “flour massacre”, leaving 118 dead and 760 wounded.
WATCH: Will UNRWA collapse without US support?
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, provides humanitarian support to millions of Palestinian refugees.
Israel’s war on Gaza has made its work even more vital. But the agency is under pressure.
The United States has suspended its funding to the agency after Israel said some UNRWA employees were involved in the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7.
The agency has launched an investigation into the allegations. The loss of US support could prove devastating for the agency. Can UNRWA continue its work without its biggest donor?
Exclusive: Footage shows Israeli forces targeting Palestinians
Al Jazeera Arabic aired video showing Israeli soldiers shooting dead two Palestinians while they walked in an open area along the coast, apparently trying to return to northern Gaza.
One of the men repeatedly waves what looks to be a white towel. The footage also shows Israeli soldiers burying the two with a bulldozer after they were killed.
The footage is graphic and may not be advisable for some viewers.
Israeli protesters demand release of captives
Watchdog demands answers from Israel on disappeared Palestinian journalist
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has demanded that the Israeli army shed light on the whereabouts of Gaza journalist Bayan Abusultan.
RSF says Abusultan was last seen on March 19, “among those sequestered in the raid on al-Shifa hospital in Gaza.”
Abusultan has been offline since reporting witnessing her own brother being shot by Israeli forces.
Israeli forces just murdered my only brother in front of my eyes.
أخويا شهيد.— Bayan 𓂆 (@BayanPalestine) March 19, 2024
US raises issue of incarcerated Palestinian leader with Israel: Report
The US highlighted the mistreatment of Marwan Barghouti, one of the most prominent Palestinian political figures imprisoned by Israel, with the Israeli government, the Washington Post reports.
This comes after Barghouti’s family and prisoners’ rights groups alleged he’s been physically and psychologically abused since October 7.
Barghouti, 64, received five life sentences for his role in the second Intifada and is being incarcerated in Megiddo, a maximum-security prison.
According to Barghouti’s son, Arab, who was interviewed by the Post, Barghouti “was physically assaulted, placed in solitary confinement in darkness for 12 days, and the Israeli national anthem was pumped into his cell ‘at a very high volume from around 5am until midnight, for many days'”.
LISTEN: Why is a UN special rapporteur accusing Israel of ‘genocidal acts’?
A report by a UN special rapporteur accuses Israel of “genocidal acts” in Gaza.
The entire area has been classified as a military objective, making all the Palestinians there potential targets. So, how does the report reflect the reality on the ground?
Deaths reported in two Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon
Earlier, we reported that casualties resulted from an Israeli attack on the southern Lebanese village of Naquora. This attack has reportedly killed at least four people, according to local media.
A separate Israeli attack on a house in the village of Tayr Harfa has left at least one dead, the head of the local municipal council told Lebanese media. He said that a search is currently underway for survivors, who could be trapped under rubble.
Reuters news service, citing unnamed “security sources”, reports that at least five people were killed between these two attacks, including members of Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.
Israeli Army Radio is also reporting that these raids are in retaliation for an earlier Hezbollah rocket attack on the city of Kiryat Shmona in Israel.
We will continue to update you on the exchanges of fire between the Israeli army and Hezbollah.
‘A nightmare’: MSF warns against looming Israeli operation in Rafah
Leo Kanz, head of the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) mission in Gaza, says “any attack on Rafah would be catastrophic, inhumane and would lead to mass human casualties”.
“If the attack occurs in Rafah, we just don’t know where to put the patients. There is no place for the patients to go,” he added in a video posted on X.
“The situation in the Gaza Strip as a whole is a nightmare, to say the least.”
“If there is an attack on Rafah, we just don't know where to put the patients. There is no place for the patients to go.”
Léo Cans, our head of mission in #Gaza, says any attack on Rafah would be catastrophic and describes the conditions for people in the southern Gaza town. pic.twitter.com/V0t11pXm3D
— MSF International (@MSF) March 27, 2024
Prominent US senator demands ‘time and space’ for Israel in Gaza
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham wants the Biden administration and US Congress to allow Israel to militarily defeat all remaining Hamas fighters in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
The invasion plan has drawn controversy because the area is overflowing with 1.5 million displaced civilians. Israel says there are thousands of Hamas fighters there.
Defeating Hamas in Rafah is “non-negotiable”, Graham told reporters in West Jerusalem.
“I urge the Biden administration, the Congress to make sure that Israel has the time and space to achieve victory over Hamas militarily.”
EU’s Borrell: Airdrops help, but are no replacement for trucks
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, says that allowing “urgent and safe” humanitarian access to Gaza is Israel’s legal duty.
Citing the World Food Programme, Borrell wrote in an X post that “enough food for the people starving in Gaza is stockpiled and waiting to enter through land routes”.
Gaza’s Civil Defence said earlier today that 18 total Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in incidents related to aid airdrops.
According to @WFPChief McCain, enough food for the people starving in #Gaza is stockpiled & waiting to enter through land routes. Airdrops help, but cannot replace hundreds of trucks. #EUCO & #UNSC asked for increased urgent & safe humanitarian access. Allowing it is a legal duty
— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) March 27, 2024
Ceasefire hopes fade after non-stop Israeli attacks: UNICEF
James Elder says the hopes of people in Gaza have been dashed over the past two nights as Israel continues its attacks despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire.
“There was so much hope in Gaza after Monday’s call for a ceasefire. That hope, night after night, is being drowned out by bombs,” he said in a video posted on Instagram.
Pointing his camera towards a wounded boy in a hospital bed, Elder said, “This is a seven-year-old Mohammed and this is the face and result of the ceasefire in Gaza.”
The UN resolution passed on Monday called for an immediate truce for the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ends in two weeks, and demands the release of all captives seized in the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel in October.