Israel-Hamas war live updates: Gaza hospital on brink of shutting down
These were the updates on the Israel-Hamas war for Monday, November 6.
This live page is now closed. You can find Monday’s updates here.
This live page is now closed. You can find Monday’s updates here.
- Palestine Red Crescent warns fuel reserves at al-Quds Hospital to run out in 48 hours as medical services across Gaza are on the brink of collapse.
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says Rafah crossing with Egypt alone cannot get enough aid into Gaza, calls for humanitarian ceasefire to end “nightmare”.
- At least 10,022 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza, 152 killed in occupied West Bank since October 7. More than 1,400 people killed in Hamas’s attack on Israel.
- As heavy Israeli bombardment continues, 18 UN and other humanitarian organisations issue statement calling for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire”.
- Jordan says its air force parachuted urgent medical aid to the Jordanian field hospital in Gaza.
Thanks for joining us
This live page is now closed. For the latest live coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, follow along here.
Read about what the conflict has meant to Gaza’s olive farmers here.
And for more context on the conflict, read our explainer on Israel-Iran tensions here, and our explainer on Israeli settlers living in the occupied Palestinian territories here.
Here’s what happened today
We’ll soon be closing this live page. Here’s a recap of today’s main events.
- The death toll in Gaza hit a grim milestone, with more than 10,000 people killed – including 4,104 children and 2,641 women – since October 7, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Gaza.
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said Gaza is “becoming a graveyard for children” and reiterated his call for a ceasefire. Guterres also said the Rafah crossing with Egypt was not sufficient to get much-needed aid into the Palestinian enclave.
- The Palestine Red Crescent warned fuel will run out in 48 hours at Al-Quds Hospital and officials at Al-Awda Hospital said it is facing a looming shutdown.
- Meanwhile, Israel has denied it was responsible for a strike on Al-Shifa Hospital’s solar panel system.
- The UAE has said it will build a large-scale field hospital in Gaza, although it did not elaborate on any agreements reached on that plan.
- Four Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in a raid in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem.
- Fighting has continued along the Israel-Lebanon border a day after four civilians were killed in an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon.
- The US has said bases housing its personnel in Iraq and Syria have been attacked 38 times since October 17.
- Speaking to foreign ambassadors, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought to frame the war in Gaza as a “global battle” against an “axis of terror” led by Iran.
- South Africa joined the list of countries that have recalled their ambassadors from Israel in light of their actions in Gaza.
US VP Harris joins diplomatic efforts
It’s been revealed that US Vice President Kamala Harris has been in touch with the United Arab Emirates. This is the first time she’s entered the diplomatic process.
The readout of her conversation with those leaders once again focuses on humanitarian needs, but also very importantly, the fact that civilian life has got to be protected.
The increase in civilian death and injury in Gaza is creating the beginning of major political problems for the Biden administration in the US.
Clearly, in these days, they have been trying to focus on firstly the humanitarian aspect of what is happening to those civilians and secondly, their ongoing protection.
So, this is a very important element of this administration’s strategy in regards to Gaza and Israel’s role.
Biden is being very careful to point out in his calls with Netanyahu that the civilians in Gaza, their protection, is the duty of Israel.
Watch: Four children of Gaza cameraman killed in Israeli attack
In Tunisia, pro-Palestinian fervour used to push for anti-NGO law
The war on Gaza has granted Tunisia a rare moment of political unity, driving public appetite for new legislation that risks fracturing civil society groups and potentially isolating the country on the international stage.
Since his July 2021 power grab, decried by the opposition as a coup, President Kais Saied has faced simmering discontent from supporters of the former parliament and a powerful trade union, the Union Generale Tunisienne du Travail, or Tunisian General Labour Union.
For much of Tunisia’s predominantly young and progressive civil society groups, Saied’s presidency has provided a focal point of dissent, but many are divided between resentment of his authoritarian rule and what most see as an absence of any alternative.
However, Israel’s relentless bombing of the Gaza Strip after the October 7 surprise attack by Hamas has tugged at deep historical threads within Tunisia, drawing society together in a way that nothing else has, including the 2011 revolution.
Read Simon Speakman-Cordall’s dispatch from Tunisia here.
‘Let that sink in,’ UN expert comments on soaring Gaza death toll
Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, has commented on the more than 10,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since October 7.
“That is 1 in every 200 people, in Gaza alone,” she said. “In 1 month. Let that sink in.”
In 1 month Israel has killed more than 10,000 Palestinians in Gaza, incl more than 4,000 children.
That is 1 in every 200 people, in Gaza alone. In 1 month.
Let that sink in. https://t.co/XKd8DN6qqm— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) November 6, 2023
Another Palestinian dies while in detention in Ofer prison
Another Palestinian from Gaza has died while in detention in Israel’s Ofer Prison in the occupied West Bank.
Majed Ahmed Zaqoul, 32, was among a group of Palestinian workers in Israel who were detained without charge by Israel in a sweep after the October 7 Hamas attack, a joint statement from the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) and the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs (CDA) said.
The statement accused Israeli authorities of concealing the circumstances behind the death of Zaqoul, who moved from Gaza to the occupied West Bank three years ago and was suffering from cancer.
It also accused Israeli authorities of subjecting Palestinian detainees to “torture and abuse”, especially workers from Gaza, who were detained after October 7.
Zaqoul was the 240th Palestinian to die while in detention since 1967, the PPS and CDA said.
Watch: How Western leaders reacted after attacks on civilians in Gaza, Ukraine
Here’s how these Western leaders reacted after attacks on civilians in Gaza vs. Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/uNTuK7ybE1
— AJ+ (@ajplus) November 6, 2023
US Muslim advocacy group urges Biden to pressure Israel to release Ahed Tamimi
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called on Washington to pressure the Israeli government to release the prominent 22-year-old Palestinian activist.
Tamimi was arrested overnight on Monday and her father, Bassem, also was detained last week as part of Israel’s wide-reaching arrest campaign in the occupied West Bank since the war in Gaza began.
“If prominent Palestinian figures like Ahed Tamimi and her father are not safe from the Israeli government’s escalating attacks in the West Bank, no Palestinian is safe,” CAIR’s deputy director, Edward Ahmed Mitchell, said in a statement.
“Benjamin Netanyahu’s openly racist, far-right ministers are completely out of control. The Biden administration must call for the immediate release of Ahed Tamimi and demand an end to the Israeli government’s escalating attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank.”
Israeli forces just arrested Ahed Tamimi in the village of Nabi Saleh in the occupied West Bank.
Over a week ago they arrested her father, Bassem Tamimi while he was trying to make his way to Jordan.
The family still has no idea where he’s being held.— Dena Takruri (@Dena) November 6, 2023
Palestinians in Gaza asked to choose between ‘human cleansing and genocide’: PRCS head
Dr Younis Al-Khatib appealed to the international community in a video posted on X.
The Palestine Red Crescent president said that Gaza “is facing a catastrophic situation”.
“[Gaza] has been asked to choose between human cleansing and genocide, either to leave or to die,” he said.
“#Gaza is facing a catastrophic situation. #Gaza has been asked to choose between human cleansing and genocide, either to leave or to die”
A message from the PRCS President Dr. Younis Al-Khatib to the international community.#GazaGenocide #humanity #IHL pic.twitter.com/47c7txYxAf
— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 6, 2023
Update from our correspondent in Gaza
We’ve just received an update from our correspondent Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
He says the fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinian fighters has intensified over the past hour in the territory, particularly in the coastal areas of Zuwaida and the al-Nuseirat refugee camp.
“We are talking about the coastal line of both towns and the coastline of the Gaza Strip, as Israel is trying to make a complete split between governorates,” Abu Azzoum said.
Ceasefire remains sticking point as Security Council meets for sixth time
This is the sixth meeting that the UN Security Council has had since the October 7 attacks. They are working on their fifth resolution to deal with the situation in Gaza.
They are getting a briefing from the humanitarian chief and the Middle East coordinator for the UN, who have all called for an immediate ceasefire and the release of captives held in Gaza.
But the term “ceasefire” is still controversial and a sticking point for the Security Council as they attempt to put into words their take on the situation.
The US is against a blanket ceasefire in Gaza, saying this will give Hamas a chance to regroup and attack Israel. However, the US has changed its language somewhat.
It talks about the need for humanitarian pauses to get aid in for civilians in Gaza, though it initially vetoed a resolution that called for a humanitarian pause.
Gaza’s Al-Awda Hospital faces shutdown due to fuel shortage: Director
Ahmed Muhanna, the director of Al-Awda Hospital, has warned that the facility could completely shut down by Wednesday night due to the fuel shortage.
“We are doing the impossible to continue working in the hospital, but we have no choice after the fuel runs out,” Muhanna told Al Jazeera.
Al-Awda is one of the largest medical facilities in Gaza.
“We have 60 patients residing in the hospital, some of whom are in serious condition and others in moderate condition,” he said, adding that the medical team has not left for 30 days due to the number of people needing medical attention.
Muhanna said 80 percent of the patients in the hospital were women and children.
More from Palestinian UN envoy
In an interview with Al Jazeera, Mansour described the US as the “elephant in the Security Council”, which has so far failed to pass a resolution on the situation in Gaza.
“It is the last hurdle before us and before the international community,” the UN envoy said, stressing that the US – which holds veto power on the Security Council – can push Israel “to stop these crimes that are taking place” in Gaza.
“It is difficult, but still we are staying the course, and we are compounding our efforts and pressure,” said Mansour, including a push to have the International Criminal Court investigate.
He added that countries can also take steps at the national level to pressure Israel.
“Killing children and killing [a] large number of civilians … and destroying 50 percent of the buildings in the Gaza Strip, and starving – in a[n act of] collective punishment – an entire population, destroying hospitals … are all crimes against humanity,” he said.
“Whoever commits these crimes should face accountability and face the punishment that they deserve for committing such crimes.”
10,000 dead in Gaza: International calls for ceasefire grow
The tragic death toll in Gaza has intensified calls for a ceasefire from around the world.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has reiterated his demand for a ceasefire, in the face of Israeli criticism.
“The unfolding catastrophe makes the need for a humanitarian ceasefire more urgent with every passing hour,” Guterres said today.
The heads of 18 UN agencies and NGOs have also backed Guterres’ demand.
In a social media post shared on Sunday, Pope Francis said: “I beg you to stop: cease using weapons!”
I continue to think about the serious situation in Palestine and in Israel where many, many people have lost their lives. In God’s name, I beg you to stop: cease using weapons! I hope that avenues will be pursued so that an escalation of the conflict might be absolutely avoided.
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) November 5, 2023
Calls for a ceasefire in the US are growing, despite the Biden administration refusing to back down from its support for Israel. Dick Durbin became the first senator to call for a ceasefire last week, when he responded to a question asking him whether one was needed. “I think it is,” he said.
Arab states have been vocal in supporting a ceasefire, including when the foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday.
And outside the political world, in addition to the mass protests that have taken place across the world calling for a ceasefire, celebrities have continued to attach their names to an open letter to US President Biden supporting a ceasefire. Some of the names include Drake, Ben Affleck, Dua Lipa, Joaquin Phoenix, Jennifer Lopez, and Mahershala Ali.
Palestinian UN envoy welcomes Guterres’s comments
Riyad Mansour urged the UN Security Council to listen to the secretary general’s renewed calls for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Palestinian envoy said he understands there is growing support for a ceasefire internationally, adding however that he hoped those who do not support such a move will change their minds.
“The situation is very dire. There is a catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip and the international community has to elevate itself to the requirement of what is needed – and the secretary general is leading that charge,” Mansour said.
Israel decries ‘inflammatory statements’ from Jordan
Israeli foreign finistry spokesman Haiat, in a post on X, said that “Israel’s relations with Jordan are of strategic importance to both countries and we regret the inflammatory statements from Jordan’s leadership”.
The statement comes as Jordanian officials have increasingly condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza, with Jordan’s King Abdullah II denouncing what he called “Israeli war crimes”.
Last week, Jordan’s foreign ministry announced it had recalled its ambassador to Israel.
Jordan and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1994, making it the second Arab country to establish relations with Israel after Egypt.
Palestine Red Crescent says two rockets hit near Al-Quds Hospital
The medical organisation said the Israeli rockets hit about 50 metres (164 ft) from the Gaza City hospital’s gate.
Gaza health officials have said the area around the hospital has been repeatedly struck in recent days.
🚨🏥 A short while ago, the IOF aircraft targeted the vicinity of the Al-Quds Hospital with two rockets, approximately 50 meters from the hospital's gate.#Gaza_under_attack #AlQudsHospital #NotATarget
— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 6, 2023
Red Crescent calls for help, says fuel at Al-Quds Hospital to run out in 48 hours
The Palestine Red Crescent has made an appeal to international health and relief organisations to supply Gaza Strip hospitals with essential supplies, warning that fuel reserves at Al-Quds Hospital will run out in 48 hours.
“Life-saving equipment, neonatal incubators, and intensive care units will cease to function,” it said in a statement.
The Red Crescent added that the vicinity of the hospital was shelled, leading to at least 60 injuries and causing infrastructural damage.
🚨📢 The @PalestineRCS urgently appeals to international health and humanitarian organizations to swiftly provide vital assistance and essential supplies to the #Gaza governorate and the northern region.
🔴The fuel reserves for Al_Quds Hospital's power generator are anticipated… pic.twitter.com/LVrI7EYY40
— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) November 6, 2023
Palestinian representative in Canada says five family members killed in Gaza
Mona Abuamara, chief representative of the Palestinian delegation to Canada, says five members of her family have been killed after fleeing their home near al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
“In Gaza, no place is safe & no family evades the pain of loss!” she wrote on X.
Canada has failed to join growing calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, instead urging “humanitarian pauses” to the fighting. That is in line with the position advocated by its ally Washington.
Alexandre Boulerice, a Canadian Parliament member with the left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP), sent condolences to Abuamara and said the NDP would “continue to call for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid and protection of civilians”.
A few hours ago, 5 members of my family were blown into pieces by an Israeli bomb that ravaged the diner they ran to for cover after fleeing their home, which is located next to #AlShifaHospital.
In Gaza, no place is safe & no family evades the pain of loss!
Mercy to the martyrs.— Mona Abuamara منى أبو عمارة StandWith🇵🇸 (@MonaAbuamara) November 6, 2023
Bahraini parliament wants end to normalisation with Israel: Deputy speaker
The deputy speaker of Bahrain’s National Assembly, Abdul Nabi Salman, says members of the body are pressing to reverse the normalisation of relations between the Gulf state and Israel.
Salman told the Sputnik news outlet that lawmakers were demanding an end to diplomatic relations with Israel, three years after Bahrain signed on to the US-brokered Abraham Accords.
“The demands of the Bahraini MPs are a reflection of the aspirations of the [Bahraini] people,” Salman was quoted as saying. “The most important demand is represented by the full cancellation of normalisation and cutting all ties, which would mean the cancellation of the Abraham Accords.”
Ultimately any decision on Bahraini-Israeli ties is taken by Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and his government.
The government has shown few signs that it is considering such a move although Bahrain recalled its ambassador to Israel last week.
‘Victory for Hamas’: Israel responds to South Africa recalling ambassador
Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Lior Haiat’s statement comes after South Africa earlier today announced it was joining a growing list of countries who have recalled their ambassadors to Israel.
South Africa said the move was meant to “signal” its concern over the situation in Gaza and “the continued killing of children and innocent civilians”, accusing Israel of carrying out “collective punishment”.
Haiat responded: “Israel expects South Africa to condemn Hamas, which is worse than ISIS, and to respect Israel’s right to defend itself against an attack by a horrific terrorist organization that has engraved on its flag a call for the destruction of the State of Israel.”
If you’re just joining us
It’s 10:30pm (20:30 GMT) in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel. Here’s a recap of the developments in the last few hours:
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tells reporters Gaza is “becoming a graveyard for children” as the overall death toll in the besieged enclave surpasses 10,000.
- Four Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem in what local officials describe as targeted “assassinations”.
- The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says five of its workers have been killed in strikes in various areas of Gaza over the past 24 hours.
- Human Rights Watch calls for a weapons embargo on Israel and Palestinian armed groups, warning states that they could contribute to war crimes.
- Israel denies striking Al-Shifa Hospital’s solar panel system.
Red Cross says al-Shifa medical convoy reached Rafah crossing today
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said four ambulances carrying patients from Gaza’s largest hospital reached the crossing with Egypt.
“It is an immense relief to know that these patients are safe and will receive urgent medical care,” William Schomburg, the head of the ICRC’s office in Gaza, said in a statement.
“I can’t emphasize enough how crucial it is that hospitals, medical personnel, and patients are protected amid this violence. There are thousands of critically injured people in Gaza. It is an obligation under international humanitarian law to spare them from harm.”
News of the convoy’s arrival at Rafah comes just days after Israel attacked a medical convoy after it departed Al-Shifa Hospital on Friday, killing 15 people and injuring dozens more.
Israel accused Hamas of using an ambulance in that convoy, a claim rejected by the Palestine Red Crescent Society and the Palestinian health ministry in Gaza.
A convoy of 4 ambulances transporting patients from Al Shifa hospital arrived at the Rafah crossing today.
“It is an immense relief to know that these patients are safe and will receive urgent medical care".
Newsrelease 👇https://t.co/avKeuJ9Ivq
— ICRC (@ICRC) November 6, 2023
UAE says it will set up field hospital in Gaza
State news agency WAM has reported that a “comprehensive Emirati field hospital is to be established in the Gaza Strip to deliver essential medical support to Palestinians”.
It said the hospital would be set up as part of a wider humanitarian mission ordered by United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
It was not immediately clear if an agreement had been reached with Egypt and Israel to allow access to the mission or if it would be able to proceed.
WAM said that five aircraft had departed for Egypt “carrying the necessary equipment and supplies for the field hospital”.
“The cargo is set to be unloaded at El-Arish Airport in Egypt before being transferred to the Gaza Strip,” it said.
The news was released as hospitals in Gaza have reached a breaking point due to Israel’s ongoing bombardment and a shortage of critical supplies and fuel. WAM said the field hospital would eventually have 150 beds and an array of specialised departments.