The Israeli army claims, Monday March 18, to have “eliminated” 20 Palestinian fighters in the al-Chifa hospital in Gaza City, where it launched an operation calling on the population to evacuate the area. The IDF also specifies that “Dozens of arrested suspects are currently being questioned.” She had earlier declared that she had notably killed Fayq Al-Mabhouh, presented as a “responsible for coordinating Hamas terrorist activities in the Gaza Strip”. Follow our live stream.
Tanks and strikes in the neighborhood. The launch of this military operation required “hundreds of people, mostly children, women and the elderly [à] flee their home” towards other areas of Gaza City, noted an AFP journalist. This reporter also said he saw airstrikes against several buildings around the hospital. Residents of the neighborhood affirmed that “more than 45 Israeli tanks and armored personnel carriers” had entered the neighborhood.
Call between Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu for the first time in more than a month. The American president and the Israeli prime minister “discussed the latest ongoing events in Israel and Gaza, including the situation in Rafah and efforts to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza,” the White House said in a statement. The details of this interview will be revealed later, it is specified.
WHO ‘terribly concerned’ by fighting near Gaza’s main hospital.“Any fighting or militarization of the facility compromises health services, ambulance access and the delivery of life-saving supplies,” warned Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on X.
Al Jazeera says Israeli army arrested one of its journalists. “The occupying army severely beat Al Jazeera journalist Ismail Al-Ghoul before arresting him inside the al-Chifa hospital in Gaza City,” wrote the Qatari channel in a message published on X. Asked by AFP, the Tsahal did not respond immediately.