Israel-Hamas LIVE: Terror group claims enemies are ‘close to reaching truce deal’ as IDF units close in around another hospital

A Qatar-mediated agreement between Israel and Hamas is in its ‘final stages’ and is ‘closer than it has ever been,’ a source briefed on the talks has told Reuters.

The deal is for a multi-day pause in hostilities, the release of around 50 civilian hostages by Hamas and the release of Palestinian women and children from Israeli custody, the source briefed on the talks said.

You can read our full story on the potential deal here:

The Pan-Arab Al-Mayadeen TV – politically allied with the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah – has accused Israel of directly targeting two of its journalists who it says were killed in a strike today.

Earlier, the station identified the journalists as correspondent Farah Omar and cameraman Rabih Maamari.

It said they were ‘martyred by treacherous Israeli targeting’ in an air strike.

‘It was direct targeting. It was not a coincidence,’ said Ghassan bin Jiddo, director of the TV channel, holding back his tears in a live broadcast.

They join ‘the martyrs of Gaza’, he said.

Two premature babies being cared for at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza died before the evacuation of 31 others, the UN said Tuesday, adding that most of those who reached Egypt were ‘unaccompanied’.

The WHO helped evacuate 31 premature babies from the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on Sunday, lamenting that the hospital had become ‘a death zone’.

• Twenty-eight of those babies arrived in Egypt on Monday.
• The World Health Organisation warned that they were all ‘fighting serious infections and continue needing health care’.
• The other three babies moved from Al-Shifa in the north of the Gaza Strip are now in a hospital in southern Gaza and have their families with them.

A World Health Organization spokesperson has said three hospitals in Israeli-besieged Gaza have requested help with evacuating patients.

Plans to evacuate them are underway, the WHO said.

WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier said that the three hospitals were Al Shifa, from which a group of babies has already been rescued, Indonesian Hospital and Al Ahli Hospital. He said such an event was a last resort.

‘It’s robbing the entire population of the north of the means to seek health (care),’ he told a Geneva press briefing.

A protest to draw attention to the number of children killed in Gaza has taken place in Turkey today.

Children’s shoes have been placed in Istanbul’s Üsküdar Square, along with pictures of children who have been killed in Israel’s on-going bombardment.

Health officials, including those from Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry as well as UNICEF, have said more than 5,000 children have died in the conflict so far.

In Germany, authorities have raided the homes of 17 people in the state of Bavaria accused of spreading antisemitic hate speech and threats targeting Jews online.

• According to the police, the suspects were 15 men and two women, aged between 18 and 62, German news agency dpa reported.
• Police questioned the suspects and confiscated evidence from their homes, including cell phones and laptops, the agency said.
• The suspects were said to have celebrated the attacks by Hamas on Israel and were accused of spreading hate speech against Jewish people on social media, using symbols of banned terrorist organizations, dpa reported.
• The police operation focused on Bavaria’s capital city of Munich where nine of the accused resided.
• Further searches were carried out in the Bavarian towns of Fuessen and Kaufbeuren as well as in the counties of Passau, Fuerstenfeldbruck, Berchtesgadener Land, Coburg, Aschaffenburg and Hassberge.

Israeli police confirmed Tuesday they had arrested two Gazans, one a Hamas militant, found hiding in southern Israel after infiltrating the area during the October 7 attacks.

• The detentions, in early November, were first reported by Israeli media with the details confirmed to AFP by a spokesman for the border police.
• He said the pair were arrested in Rahat, a town in southern Israel mostly populated by Bedouin Arabs, following an operation by an undercover border police unit. The town lies about 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the Gaza border.
• Both were unarmed and found in an empty house.
• One was a Hamas militant while the other was a Gaza resident. Both were taken for investigation.

We now have more details about the two journalists who were reportedly killed near Lebanon’s border with Israel (see update at 10:06).

The pair were working for Lebanon-based TV channel Al Mayadeen TV, the Lebanese state news agency reported. The agency said the incident took place near the town of Tir Harfa, about a mile from the Israeli frontier.

Al Mayadeen TV accused Israel of carrying out the attack and deliberately targeted the journalists. It said its ‘correspondent Farah Omar and cameraman Rabih Maamari were killed by an Israeli attack’.

Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters news agency, which said it had reached out.

Violence across the border has escalated, raising Western fears of a widening war in the Middle East that could draw in both the United States and Iran.

A hip-hop war anthem has topped the music charts in Israel in the wake of Hamas’s October 7 attack and the subsequent IDF operation into Gaza.

‘Charbu Darbu,’ which into English translates as ‘Swords and Strikes’ is described by The Times of Israel as ‘an angry anthem’ from the duo ‘Ness Ve Stilla,’ real names Nesia Levy and Dor Soroker.

The song is militaristic while also evoking scenes from the Hebrew bible.

At one point, Stilla raps: ‘Left, right, left, how is it that the whole country is in uniform from Galilee to Eilat… We’ve brought the entire army against you and we swear there won’t be forgiveness, sons of Amalek.’

The chorus then references some of the IDF’s combat units, saying: ‘Golani, Givati, Air Force, Navy, Commandos!’ and ends with the line: ‘All the IDF units are coming to ‘Charbu Darbu’ on your heads, oy oy.’

‘Lyrically […] the piece encapsulates a feeling of righteous fury that has been prevalent in Israel since the October 7 atrocities,’ the Times of Israel writes.

Since its release around a week ago, it has become the number-one song in Israel on YouTube, Spotify and other streaming platforms.

You can listen to the song and watch the music video on YouTube:

The UN has also warned today that fuel shortages and the worsening sanitation situation in the Gaza Strip is shaping up to be the perfect storm for tragedy through the spread of disease.

‘Without enough fuel, we will see the collapse of sanitation services,’ UNICEF spokesman James Elder told a press briefing in Geneva.

‘So we have then, on top of the mortars and the bombs, a perfect storm for the spread of disease. It’s a perfect storm for tragedy.’

The World Health Organization warned yesterday that health services in Gaza had suffered ‘catastrophic’ damage, with most hospitals no longer functioning.

‘We now have 1.7 million people displaced so we have twice or three times the population (in the south of Gaza), using one third of the hospital beds in less than a third of the hospitals available,’ Michael Ryan, executive director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, said at a UN briefing.

Ryan said medical services in the territory were already unable to provide care for more complex cases – including most cancer and kidney dialysis patients – and would likely be overwhelmed by some 5,500 births expected in the next month.

Plans by the Israeli military to push further south would worsen health conditions even further, he said.

‘The hospital situation – the primary health care system situation – in Gaza is catastrophic and it is the worst you can imagine (in the) north,’ Ryan said.

Reuters has sent a brief snap over the wires saying that two journalists have been killed near the Israel-Lebanon border, along with a third person.

The report cites Lebanon’s state news agency, which said the incident took place near the town of Tir Harfa, about a mile from the Israeli frontier.

It gave no further details.

At 09:35, we reported a statement from the IDF saying there had been clashes across Israel’s northern border, with the Israeli military saying in its update: ‘IDF fighter jets struck a number of Hezbollah terror targets.’

We will bring you more information when we can.

The war between Israel and Hamas has already produced the deadliest month for journalists since records began three decades ago, The Guardian reports.

According to Reporters Without Borders, 41 journalists – more than one every day – were killed in first month of the Israel-Palestine war.

Last night, we reported that horrifying new footage captured during the Nova festival massacre has demonstrated how Hamas terrorists gunned down two women as they tried to flee, during the horrific assault on October 7.

The footage was captured from security cameras at Kibbutz Alumim, which is located just to the east of where the festival was held.

To read our full story, follow the link below:

An award-winning Palestinian poet in Gaza has been arrested by Israeli troops and his whereabouts are unknown, his brother has said.

Mosab Abu Toha has been contributing pieces to Western media since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, painting a dire image of its toll on civilians.

His brother, Hamza Abu Toha, posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday that Mosab was arrested while evacuating to southern Gaza, following IDF orders.

Hamza said his brother’s wife and children were allowed to continue south, but ‘the military detained my brother.’

Mosab Abu Toha last posted on X on November 15, writing ‘Alive. Thanks for your prayers.’ His last tweet is shared below.

The literary and free expression organization PEN said it was concerned about the arrest and demanded to know Abu Toha’s whereabouts and the reason for his arrest.

The New Yorker magazine, to which Abu Toha has contributed multiple articles, called for his safe return.

The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports.

Israeli politicians clashed with the families of hostages trapped in Gaza last night in a fierce debate over proposals to expand the death penalty for October 7 perpetrators.

Hen Avigdori, whose wife and daughter were among some 240 kidnapped by Hamas last month, urged lawmakers during a National Security Committee meeting to ‘stop talking about killing Arabs and start talking about saving Jews.’

The families have concerns that the implementation of the death penalty could have repercussions for their relatives still in Gaza.

Follow the link below to read the full story:

The UN’s World Food Programme has made an urgent plea for food to be sent to Gaza, warning that the strip’s food systems are collapsing.

Under the deal that is reportedly being discussed between Israel, Hamas and Qatari mediators, part of the agreement would allow for up to 300 trucks of food and medical aid to enter Gaza.

Aid groups say a bare minimum of 100 trucks need to be entering Gaza every day in order to sustain the population. Far fewer than that have been entering the territory on average since the start of the conflict.

The IDF has reported more clashes across Israel’s border with Lebanon in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.

Since the start of the conflict, Israeli forces have clashed with militants fighting for the Hezbollah terror group, who support Hamas and are backed by Iran.

‘A short while ago, IDF aircraft identified and struck three armed terrorist cells in the area of the border with Lebanon,’ the statement said.

‘In addition, IDF fighter jets struck a number of Hezbollah terror targets, including military infrastructure and structures used for directing terrorist activity.

‘A short while ago, terrorists fired mortar shells at an IDF post in northern Israel. No injuries were reported. IDF artillery is currently striking the source of the fire.’

Pictures across the border today showed smoke rising in the hills, thus appearing to confirm that fighting has taken place in the region.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin will discuss the Palestinian-Israeli conflict with the leaders of the BRICS bloc in a video conference today, the Kremlin says.

The group is then expected to issue a joint statement.

The voice of the BRICS (an intergovernmental organisation comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) needed to be heard in the world, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

The Russian president has called for the conflict in Gaza to end on a number of occasions since the fighting broke out, without acknowledging the death and destruction his invasion of Ukraine in Feb. 2022 has caused.

The oil market is ‘on edge’ over the latest crisis in the Middle East, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Fatih Birol has told an energy conference in Norway today.

The war in Gaza between Israel and militant Palestinian group Hamas has not currently had a significantly effect on market prices, he added.

However, ‘if one or more of the oil producing countries in the region is directly involved in the conflict, we may see the implications of that,’ Birol said.

Almost 50 percent of all buildings in north Gaza have been damaged in Israeli airstrikes, according to Evan Hill, a reporter at the Washington Post.

He cites a report from the publication that has mapped the damage to the northern region of Gaza, with the damage largely centred around Gaza City.

The report says satellite imagery shows ‘places of worship, hospitals, schools and residential areas have also been damaged or destroyed.’

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu last night vowed there would be no letup in the army’s offensive in Gaza, again pledging to crush Hamas and ensure the hostages are released. His comments came before the new reports of a potential truce.

‘We will not stop fighting until we bring our hostages home,’ Netanyahu declared on Monday after meeting relatives of those abducted.

But families expressed frustration after the meeting.

‘We wanted to hear about a deal and that return of the abductees is a priority among the war objectives. We didn’t hear that,’ said Udi Goren, whose cousin Tal Haimi is among the roughly 240 hostages being held inside Gaza.

Here are some of the latest pictures sent to us over the wires showing the situation on the ground today and yesterday.

Smoke continues to rise over Gaza today amid talks of a truce deal being close.

Meanwhile, pictures released by the IDF show Israeli tanks and troops operating inside the Gaza Strip as they continue with their mission to eliminate Hamas

Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has issued a statement warning against the hostage deal that is reportedly set to take place.

‘I’m very concerned because there is talk of some deal… we are being kept out [of the details], and we’re not being told the truth,’ the far-right hardliner said, according to the Times of Israel.

‘The rumors are that Israel is again going to make a major mistake in similar vein to the [2011] Shalit deal.’

He expressed his concerns that ‘a deal might bring disaster’, citing the possibility of releasing Palestinian protesters and allowing fuel into Gaza.

Israel has recalled its ambassador to South Africa, Eliav Belotserkovsky, back to Jerusalem ‘for consultations’ ahead of a parliamentary vote in the African country to decide the fate of the Israeli embassy today.

‘Following the latest South African statements, the Ambassador of Israel to Pretoria has been recalled to Jerusalem for consultations,’ Israel’s ministry of foreign affairs posted late last night on X, formerly Twitter.

This came ahead of a vote in South Africa’s parliament on a motion to shut down the Israeli embassy and cut all ties with Israel until a cease-fire is implemented.

The motion tabled by the leftist opposition party Economic Freedom Fighters has the backing of the ruling African National Congress and other smaller parties.

• The two countries’ diplomatic relations have recently witnessed a rise in tensions over the Israeli war on Gaza.
• South African President Cyril Ramaphosa previously said his country believes Israel is committing war crimes and genocide in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinians have been killed.
• South Africa announced last week that it had referred what it called Israel’s ‘genocide’ in Gaza to the International Criminal Court for an investigation.
• Its cabinet called on the ICC Monday to issue an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Below, pro-Palestinian supporters are seen demonstrating outside the entrance to the Israeli embassy in South Africa.

Israeli troops battled Palestinian militants in a dense, urban refugee camp on Tuesday as the army expanded operations across northern Gaza.

In its daily update on the conflict on Monday, the US-based Institute for the Study of War said Israeli forced had advanced to the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahiya.

The hospital borders the densely populated Jabalia refugee camp. The ISW said the IDF clashed with Palestinian terrorists on the camp’s western border.

Clashes were also reported in the middle of the Gaza strip, where the think tank said ‘Palestinian militia fighters attacked the IDF behind the Israeli forward line of advance in the Zaytoun area.’ It said this was consistent with clearing operations.

The organisation also reported fighting in the West Bank, where it said Palestinian fighters clashed with Israeli forces in eight places.

Catherine Russell, UNICEF’s Executive Director, has said that the reported number of children in Gaza has risen past 5,000.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), she called for the conflict to end.

Russell visited the Gaza Strip last week, saying: ‘The parties to the conflict are committing grave violations against children; these include killing, maiming, abductions, attacks on schools and hospitals, and the denial of humanitarian access – all of which UNICEF condemns.’

More than 13,000 people have since been killed in Israel’s aerial bombardment and ground operations in the Gaza Strip, the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry says.

Yesterday, we brought you the news that 28 premature babies were evacuated from Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital.

The tiny newborns, with bright blue woolly hats placed on their small heads, were carefully placed on stretchers before being put in an ambulance heading away from the bombs and carnage of Gaza.

You can read the story below:

The IDF have released footage on social media of Israeli soldiers advancing through Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp.

The Israeli military said its Division 162 – also known as the Steel Formation – ‘completed the encirclement of Jabalia tonight’.

Before the war, Jabalia had a population of more than 170,000. It has been the target of multiple Israeli air strikes since the outbreak of the conflict.

In Scotland, First Minister Humza Yousaf will lead a debate on a ceasefire in Gaza today, amid mounting pressure in the UK on officials over the war.

Mr Yousaf tabled a motion on Monday which will be debated in Holyrood, calling for an ‘immediate ceasefire’ in the conflict.

It will also condemn the ‘barbaric and unjustifiable’ Hamas attacks of October 7 and demand the release of all hostages taken.

Here is our main story this morning, that brings you the news that Hamas has claimed it is close to agreeing a truce with Israel.

Ismail Haniyeh said in a statement issued this morning that the terror gorup has delivered its response to Qatari mediators.

Qatar is understood to be working on the agreement.

Click the link below to read the full report:

Good morning and welcome to MailOnline’s liveblog covering the 45th day of the on-going war between Israel and Hamas.

The war was sparked on October 7 when Hamas gunmen killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in shocking cross-border raids into Israel.

Since then, the Hamas-run health ministry says more than 13,000 people have been killed inside Gaza by Israel’s relentless bombardment and siege.

Amid reports that the two enemies are nearing a truce agreement that could see hostages released, and as IDF troops close in around another hospital, here’s what you need to know about the conflict on November 21, 2023:

• Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said this morning that a truce agreement with Israel was in sight, raising hopes that dozens of people taken hostage in the October 7 attacks could be released.
• There was no immediate response from Israel on the status of negotiation efforts to secure the release of the estimated 240 hostages seized on Oct. 7.
• Speaking to AFP news agency on condition of anonymity, sources from Hamas and Islamic Jihad – which also participated in the attacks – confirmed that their groups had agreed to the terms of a truce deal.
• The tentative deal includes a five-day truce, comprised of a ceasefire on the ground and limits to Israeli air operations over southern Gaza.
• Under the agreement, between 50 and 100 Israeli civilian and foreign hostages would be released, but no military personnel. In exchange, some 300 Palestinians would be released from Israeli jails.
• In Gaza, medics and patients were again caught on the front line on Tuesday, as Israel expanded its operation across the north of the territory.
• Officials in the Hamas-run health ministry said Israel struck the Indonesian Hospital on Monday, killing 12 people, before moving in ground forces.
• The hospital is said to be surrounded by IDF tanks and other heavy armour.
• Twenty-eight premature babies were evacuated from Al-Shifa to Egypt on Monday. (Click here to read MailOnline’s full story).
• Israel says Hamas uses medical facilities to hide fighters and as the base for operations, making them legitimate military objectives – while insisting it does everything possible to limit harm to civilians.
• International criticism of Israel’s conduct of the war has grown in recent weeks, with protests erupting across the world, international agencies laying allegations of war crimes, and some governments breaking diplomatic ties.
• The World Health Organisation said it was ‘appalled’ by Monday’s strike on the Indonesian Hospital and reported it was just one of 164 documented attacks on health facilities and workers since the war began.

Update includes reporting from AFP news agency