Israel-Hamas conflict as it happened: Netanyahu foreshadows indefinite control of Gaza as war enters one month

• Gaza’s Interior Ministry said 900,000 Palestinians were still sheltering in northern Gaza including Gaza City. A UN agency said the pace of civilians fleeing south had intensified.
• US Police are investigating the death of a Jewish man who fell backwards and hit his head during an altercation between pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protesters in California.

• An Australian family of three left war-torn Gaza through the Rafah crossing. Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the family left overnight and was receiving support in Egypt.

At home:

• At Sydney University, a student meeting was banned and staff and students were warned support for Hamas would result in disciplinary action.
• A meeting of over 200 ABC staff has heard complaints from across the newsroom about the way the public broadcaster has covered Israel’s war against Hamas.

I’m Lucy Cormack. Thank you for joining us. Good night.

The group says it plans another rally to “block the boat” at Port Botany in Sydney on Saturday. It says the protest is an extension to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel.

Victoria Police said around 500 people attended the planned protest and there were no arrests or injuries.

In Melbourne’s inner north, around 100 protesters gathered outside the Merri-bek council’s headquarters this evening ahead of a meeting where a vote on a controversial motion was scheduled.

The motion called on the federal government to advocate for a ceasefire in Gaza, for the Palestinian flag to be flown at council chambers and for a council boycott of any companies linked to Israel.

The demonstrations came a day after police arrested at least four people at a pro-Palestine rally outside Flemington Racecourse before the running of the Melbourne Cup.

Updated: The Merri-bek council motion calling on the federal government to support a Gaza ceasefire passed 6-4 at about 8.30pm.

During an August poll, only 32 per cent of Americans described Israel as an ally that shares US interests and values. But that figure increased to 44 per cent in the latest survey, which was conducted after the October 7 attacks by Hamas that killed 1400 Israelis.

Only 36 per cent said it’s extremely or very important to provide aid to Israel’s military to fight Hamas, while 40 per cent said Israel’s military response in the Gaza Strip has gone too far.

Overall, 38 per cent of Americans said Israel’s response has been about right, and 18 per cent said it has not gone far enough.

AP

These figures have been released by OCHA, as the Associated Press reports thousands of Palestinians are fleeing south on foot after running out of food and water in the north.

About 15,000 people fled northern Gaza on Tuesday, which was triple the number that left on Monday. Those civilians have used Gaza’s main north-south highway during a daily four-hour window announced by Israel.

Gaza’s health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra on Monday described Israeli offers of safe passage as “nothing but death corridors”. More than 70 per cent of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million have fled their homes since the fighting began.

with AP

Before the war, around 20,000 patients per year sought permits from Israel to leave the Gaza Strip for healthcare, many of them requiring repeat trips across the border. Almost a third are children. Israel approved about 63 per cent of these medical exit applications in 2022, according to the WHO.

Osama Qadoumi, the supervisor at Makassed Hospital in east Jerusalem, said: “In previous wars, the crossing would close for a day or two, but then the patients were able to return.

“This is the first time there is such a comprehensive ban on movement and Gaza patients can’t make it out.

“The longer we wait, the worse some patients will get. Many people will die merely because they have no access to treatment.”

The concern is not just about the most complex cases. United Nations figures show there are 350,000 patients with chronic conditions in Gaza, including cancer and diabetes, and 50,000 pregnant women.

Previously, the majority could get medical care in Gaza, but now the UN says the territory’s fragile health system is close to collapse, battered by airstrikes, a surge in the number of trauma patients, and rapidly diminishing supplies of medicines and fuel. A trickle of aid has been allowed in, while about 80 patients were allowed out.

About 1000 patients in Gaza need kidney dialysis to stay alive, but 80 per cent of the machines are in local hospitals under evacuation orders, the WHO said. Gaza’s only cancer hospital is no longer functioning.

While the fighting rages, some 400 patients and their companions who left Gaza for treatment before the war have been stranded in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, the WHO said. Many struggle to contact their relatives, with scant telephone services and electricity in Gaza.

Reuters

“We continue to call for humanitarian pauses on hostilities to allow for the urgent delivery of essential assistance.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has so far helped 28 people leave the Gaza Strip via Rafah, but says at least 76 remain.

AAP