New drama in Gaza. The al-Chifa hospital, in the Palestinian enclave, reported Thursday, February 29, at least 50 deaths after Israeli fire towards Palestinians who were rushing towards humanitarian aid trucks, in the north of this territory threatened with famine. “There are at least 50 martyrs and more than 120 injured, including women and children”, said the emergency director of al-Chifa hospital, Amjad Aliwa. Contacted by AFP, the Israeli army did not immediately comment on this information. Follow our live stream.
More than 30,000 dead in Gaza. The Hamas Ministry of Health announced Thursday that the death toll in the Gaza Strip was “more than 30,000” since the start of the conflict with Israel, which began on October 7. Around 1.7 million Palestinians out of the 2.4 million inhabitants have fled their homes. On the Israeli side, the terrorist attack of October 7 caused the death of at least 1,160 people, the majority civilians, according to an AFP count based on official data.
Escalation in cross-border clashes. Israeli strikes killed two people in southern Lebanon on Wednesday evening. “Enemy aircraft attacked the towns of Siddiqin and Kafra, killing two residents of the town of Kafra and injuring 14 others”, said the Lebanese News Agency (NNA). Lebanese Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, has exchanged fire almost daily with the Israeli army since the war broke out. On Wednesday morning, the Hamas armed group in Lebanon, the al-Qassam Brigades, claimed to have launched two volleys of Grad rockets at two military sites in northern Israel.
New Zealand designates entire Hamas “terrorist entity”. The country thus follows Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and the European Union, which had already designated the armed but also political wing of Hamas as “terrorist”. New Zealand has considered the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, a terrorist entity since 2010.
France ready to work for peace with Saudi Arabia. Emmanuel Macron spoke on Wednesday with the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, announced the Elysée. “France is ready to work alongside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (..) to stem the spread of the conflict in the region and work on the conditions for lasting peace in the Middle East”, underlined the Elysée. The two leaders reiterated “the urgency of reaching an agreement on a ceasefire in Gaza”assured the French presidency.