EXPLAINER
Israel-Hamas war: List of key events, day 31
As the conflict between Israel and Gaza enters its 31st day, these are the main developments.
Published On 6 Nov 2023
Here is the situation on Monday, November 6, 2023:
Latest developments
- Israel’s Iron Dome system malfunctioned on Sunday. One of its missiles fell straight down onto the street and caused a small fire, according to Al Jazeera correspondent Hamdah Salhut. Israeli authorities said there were no casualties or damage to buildings.
- Intense Israeli bombardment was reported in the Gaza Strip, including around hospitals, on Sunday evening. Gaza also faced its third communications blackout since October 28.
- Israel’s Heritage Minister Amihai Eliyahu drew international backlash when he implied during a radio interview that dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza is an option.
- An Israeli air raid on southern Lebanon killed three children and their grandmother on Sunday.
Human impact and fighting
- Overnight air raids across Gaza have killed at least 27 people, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa. The targeted areas included neighbourhoods in Rafah, central Gaza, and the Jabalia refugee camp.
- This past month marked the deadliest ever conflict for the United Nations, with 88 UN Relief and Works Agency members being killed since October 7.
- On Saturday and Sunday, seven water facilities in the Gaza Strip were “directly hit and sustained major damage”, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The enclave has already been facing a water supply crisis while Gaza’s municipality has warned of the imminent risk of sewage flooding.
- On Monday, the Israeli military confirmed that one of their soldiers had been killed in a clash with Palestinian fighters. A total of 30 Israeli soldiers have been killed since Israel began its ground invasion of Gaza about a week ago.
- Since October 7, a total of 175 medical personnel and 34 civil defence workers have been killed in the Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian Health Minister Mai al-Kaila.
Diplomacy
- United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unannounced visit to Iraq on Sunday where he discussed the risks of the Israel-Hamas war escalating with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. Later in the day, Blinken arrived in Ankara to hold talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
- The UN Security Council is expected to hold a closed-door meeting on the Israel-Hamas war on Monday following a request from the United Arab Emirates and China.
- CIA Director William Burns is visiting Israel and other Middle East nations this week, according to US news website Axios.
- Eighteen heads of humanitarian organisations issued a rare joint statement calling for a ceasefire in Gaza on Sunday, according to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee.
Arrests and attacks in West Bank
- Israeli forces continued with their raids across the occupied West Bank. Palestinian fighters clashed with Israeli forces in Bethlehem, Qalqilya, Tubas and Jenin, according to Al Jazeera correspondent Zein Basravi.
- Prominent Palestinian leaders were arrested during raids in Anata, West Bank over the past day, reported Basravi. This included Marouf al-Rifai, the adviser to the Palestinian Authority governor of Jerusalem, and Fatah leader Rafat Alayan, who was taken by Israeli forces while he was giving a television interview.
Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies