A picture taken from Rafah shows smoke billowing over Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on December 19, 2023. (Photo by Said Khatib / AFP)
Doha, Qatar: UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths has said that impunity is so prevalent in the Gaza Strip war, there may be a need to establish a special tribunal for accountability.
Meanwhile atleast 29 were killed, including a baby, as three residential buildings were bombed in Rafah, with many more feared to be trapped under rubble.
Apart from this, there were reports of deaths from the central part of the Gaza Strip, including in Deir el-Balah, Maghazi and Bureij refugee camps, where residential buildings were also targeted.
Watch this page for more live updates:
[11:10 pm Doha Time] Qatar's Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani received a phone call from the Secretary-General of the United Nations HE Antonio Guterres. During the call, they discussed the latest developments in the situation in the Gaza Strip and the occupied Palestinian territories, de-escalation, and ceasefire. Read more.
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[8:42 pm Doha Time] Infectious diseases soar in Gaza
Since mid-October, there has been a rapid spread of disease among the people of Gaza, who are living in crowded spaces with little access to water. The number of cases is rising due to the resulting poor hygiene and unsanitary conditions.
• Upper respiratory infections - 54,866
• Diarrhoea - 33,551
• Skin rashes - 12,635
• Scabies and lice - 8,994
Children at a camp housing Palestinians, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on December 18, 2023. (Photo by Mahmud Hams / AFP)
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[8:16 pm Doha Time] Al Jazeera’s correspondent reports that Israeli warplanes have bombed the UN refugee agency’s headquarters in the industrial zone in northern Gaza. This is a developing story.
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[7:38 pm Doha Time] Israel's air and ground war on Gaza has demolished much of the Strip and displaced some 1.9 million people. UNRWA said that more than 60% of the infrastructure in Gaza has been destroyed or damaged, and over 90% of the population in Gaza have been displaced. "This is a staggering and unprecedented level of destruction," it said.
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[7:20 pm Doha Time] As part of his regional visit, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III is currently in Qatar meeting with the country's officials to discuss the continued US-Qatar partnership on peace and security issues.
During a meeting with Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, the US Secretary of Defense emphasized the importance of the US-Qatar defense relationship in addressing shared security challenges. Austin also praised Qatar for playing a key role as a mediator to secure release of hostages. Read more.
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[5:00 pm Doha Time] Israel maintained its bombardment and ground combat on Tuesday in the third month of war on Gaza, which has now killed nearly 20,000 Palestinians.
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[4:28 pm Doha Time] UNICEF spokesperson 'furious' over situation in Gaza
Gaza is "the most dangerous place in the world" for a child, the UN children's agency spokesperson said Tuesday, expressing his rage at the situation there after returning from the Palestinian territory.
"I'm furious that those with power shrug at the humanitarian nightmares unleashed on a million children," UNICEF spokesperson James Elder told a press briefing after spending nearly two weeks in Gaza.
He spoke of children having undergone amputations and who were then "killed in those hospitals" as the Israeli army bombardment of the Gaza Strip continues.
[4:05 pm Doha time] Gaza hospital out of action after Israeli army assault: director
One of the last remaining hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip stopped operating on Tuesday after being stormed by the Israeli army, its director said.
Fadel Naim told AFP Israeli troops had attacked the Al-Ahli hospital and arrested doctors, medical staff and patients, destroying part of the building's grounds. Read more
[3:51 pm Doha Time] UNICEF urges truce as disease threatens to kill more children in Gaza
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 7,700 children, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.
UNICEF’s spokesperson James Elder said on X, “Without sufficient safe water, food and sanitation that only a humanitarian ceasefire can bring – child deaths due to disease could surpass those killed in bombardments.”
Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP
[3:30 pm Doha time] Radio sets make a comeback in war-torn Gaza
To keep up with news, Gazans are now opting for battery-powered radio.
"We had a full stock but we've been completely out of them since the first week" of the war, Daoudi said.
A Palestinian woman listens to radio in her house in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on December 19, 2023. Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP
With the phone and internet cuts, "radio is the only way to find out what's going on," he said.
The long battery life is another plus, he said from his store in Rafah, at the southern end of the territory. Read more
[1:44 pm Doha Time] Gaza’s Health Ministry ‘surprised’ by international community’s ‘silence’
The Health Ministry in Gaza says it is “surprised” at what it called the “silence” of the international community amid the ongoing attacks by Israeli forces in the north.
Spokesperson Ashraf al-Qudra said “massacres” in the area were taking place in the absence of health services due to the “destruction of hospitals” by the Israeli army.
“It means the (Israeli) occupation insists on the genocide of the population,” he added.
[12:35 pm Doha time] Journalist in southern Gaza killed amid Israeli attack
Women tend to the sister (C) of Palestinian journalist Adel Zorob, who was killed overnight during Israeli bombardment on December 19, 2023 . (Photo by Mohammed Abed / AFP)
Adel Zoroub was killed following an Israeli air raid on his family’s home in Rafah, the Government Media Office in Gaza has said on its Telegram channel.
A man bids farewell to the body of Palestinian journalist Adel Zorob, as it lies at a hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on December 19, 2023. (Photo by Mohammed Abed / AFP)
[11:45am Doha time] Israeli forces detain hundreds in Al-Awda Hospital: Health Ministry
Ashraf al-Qudra, the spokesman for the Ministry of Health in Gaza, provided an update on the situation at al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza.
His translated comments are:
- Israeli forces have turned the hospital into a military barrack.
- They have detained 240 people, including 80 medical staff, 40 patients, and 120 displaced persons inside the hospital.
- Israeli forces have arrested six hospital staff, including the director of the facility, Ahmed Muhanna.
[10am Doha time] UN official stresses need for special court for accountability in 'Gaza War'
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths said that impunity is so prevalent in the Gaza Strip war, there may be a need to establish a special tribunal for accountability.
There are no indications that the Israeli attack in the south of the Gaza Strip is more precise than in the north, which is disappointing, he added.
Griffiths explained that the occupation promised to avoid bombing civilians, adding that: "The truth of the matter is we have not seen it at all in the south. On the contrary, weve seen it grow more".
He reconfirmed the need to establish a special court for accountability.
Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli occupation has been waging a devastating war against Gaza, leaving more than 19,000 martyrs and over 52,000 wounded, 70% of whom are women and children, in addition to massive infrastructure destruction and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.
[9:30am Doha time] UNRWA: Israeli occupation forced largest displacement of Palestinians since 1948
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said that since the Israeli occupation began its aggression against Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, the occupation authorities have forcibly moved 1.9 million residents from their homes.
"Since the beginning of the war, the Israeli Authorities haveforcibly moved up to 1.9 million Gazans from their homes, in the largest forced displacement of Palestinians since 1948," the UN agency said in a post on X.
[8:30am Doha time] QRCS to deploy humanitarian aid ship for Gaza
The Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) announced its plan to deploy a relief aid ship, equal to the capacity of some 30 aircraft, to deliver as much Qatari aid as possible to the people of the Gaza Strip affected by the Israeli aggression. Read more
[8am Doha time] RACA campaign raises over QR200m for Gaza
The Regulatory Authority for Charitable Activities (RACA)-organized fundraising campaign ‘Palestine Duty Relief’ amassed over QR200m (QR200,048,750) for those affected by the aggression on the Gaza Strip.
Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, donated QR100m to the ‘Palestine Duty’ campaign. Read more
