Three babies die after Gaza’s largest hospital went ‘out of service’

Three babies died in the neonatal unit of Al-Shifa Hospital located in northern Gaza after the hospital went “out of service” amid continuous Israeli fire in the vicinity, CNN reported quoting the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health on Saturday.

It reported quoting Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, Director-General of the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health that the doctors in the neonatal ward are now being forced to carry out artificial respiration by hand on the 36 babies that they are treating in the hospital.

Bursh also said the hospital was “surrounded from all four directions,” estimating that 400 people were being treated at the hospital and around 20,000 displaced people seeking shelter in the hospital complex.

The spokesman for the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, Dr. Ashraf al-Qidra said he was trapped inside the al-Shifa complex. (ANI)

What Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said at the Islamic-Arab summit?

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said a lack of concrete punitive measures against Israel would render the summit toothless.

“If we do not have real tools for pressure, then any step we take or speech we give will have no meaning,” said Assad, who was welcomed back into the Arab fold this year after an extended rift over his country’s civil war.

He said no Middle Eastern country should engage in any “political process” with Israel, including developing economic relations, until a lasting ceasefire is reached. (AFP)

Thousands join pro-Palestine protest in London, huge crowd ‘storms the Cenotaph’

The social media is flooded with videos reportedly showing a huge crowd participating in the “National March for Palestine” in central London on Saturday. The march was organised after a two-minute silence was observed at The Cenotaph war memorial to remember Britain’s war dead on Armistice Day.

According to AFP, huge crowds of protesters waved black, red, white and green Palestinian flags and held aloft placards proclaiming “Stop Bombing Gaza”. As the march set off, protesters shouted “Free Palestine” and “ceasefire now”.

The march on Saturday generated concern because it coincided with Armistice Day. This day commemorates the end of fighting in World War I in 1918 — and political criticisms about the policing operation. Read the complete story here.

Iran asks Islamic countries to designate Israel army ‘terrorist group’, but UAE plans to maintain ties: Report

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi called on Islamic governments to designate Israel’s military as a “terrorist organisation”, news agency AFP reported. President Raisi cited Israel’s current operations in the Gaza Strip to urge nations, that have ties with Israel, to sever them. He called for greater support for Palestinians, the report said.

Ebrahim Raisi was speaking at a summit of Arab and Muslim leaders in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Saturday. He has arrived in Saudi Arabia to participate in the OIC summit, which aimed to discuss the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, The Times of Israel reported. Read the complete story here.

US accomplice in Israel ‘crimes’: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Saturday that the US government is the “main perpetrator” and “accomplice” of the confrontation between Israel and Hamas.

“US government is the main perpetrator and accomplice to this crime. Israel is the illegitimate child of America. It is America that has preferred support it over the sacred lives of thousands of oppressed Palestinian children. By immediately forming its security cabinet in the occupied territories, America encouraged the Zionist regime to carry out criminal operations against the helpless people of Gaza and called it legitimate defence,” he said. (ANI)

Palestinians facing a ‘genocidal war’, says Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Palestinians were facing a ‘genocidal war’ and urged the United States to end Israeli ‘aggression’. (Reuters)