24 hours into the Al Shifa Hospital raid, Israeli forces are struggling to find the Hamas Starkiller Base: Israeli troops withdrew from Gaza’s main hospital yesterday after finding scant evidence of the “beating heart” of Hamas they had alleged was inside the facility.

Israel and its backers in Washington justified the siege on the hospital by claiming that Hamas had located a large command center underneath the complex. After raiding the premises for 24 hours, the IDF produced only images of a few guns and pieces of military equipment — items that Hamas accused Israel of planting at the scene. The armed Palestinian group and the hospital’s management have repeatedly denied that militants operate on the premises and have called for an international investigation.

Destruction and humiliation: Healthcare officials from inside the hospital have shared terrified accounts of the few hundred patients and thousands of refugees and medical workers who have been trapped inside without fuel and basic supplies for almost a week. Some 1k Palestinian men were stripped naked in the courtyard by Israeli soldiers and searched for explosives, while troops reportedly destroyed hospital equipment and bulldozers demolished part of the hospital entrance. Not a single bullet was fired from within the complex during the raid, general director of hospitals in Gaza, Mohamed Zaqout, said.

Security Council finally acts: The UN Security Council has passed a Malta-proposed resolution calling for “humanitarian pauses and the release of hostages.” Twelve of the 15 member countries voted in favor, while Russia, the UK, and the US abstained. The US had previously vetoed two resolutions calling for a ceasefire, calling for a humanitarian pause instead.

Israel has no intention of pausing: Israel’s ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan called the resolution “disconnected from reality and meaningless” and vowed to continue the operation until Hamas is “destroyed.”

HOSTAGES- Hamas has tentatively agreed to release at least 50 captive women and children in return for a three-day ceasefire, increased aid shipments to the strip, and the release of an unknown number of Palestinian women and children detained in Israeli prisons, an Arab diplomat reportedly told the Washington Post. Israel is yet to respond to the proposal, which Qatar is attempting to broker.

ON THE GROUND-

  • Around 70% of Gazans no longer have access to clean water;
  • Fuel has entered Gaza for the first time since 7 October. All of the 23k liters of diesel that entered will go to UN aid trucks;
  • Paltel: Fuel shortage to trigger complete communications blackout in coming hours.

DIPLOMACY-

  • ASEAN defense ministers called for an end to the war;
  • Iran’s foreign minister met with UN and Red Cross officials to discuss the situation in Gaza;
  • Erdogan: Israel is a “terrorist state”;
  • El Sisi received the French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu;
  • Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry held a presser with his Irish counterpart, Micheal Martin, at which they called for an immediate ceasefire.
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