Israel Kills Sports Journalist in Jabalia

The Israeli army has killed Palestinian sports journalist Khaled Abu Zar, Friday, in his Jabalia home in north Gaza with trending news.

His death, the result of relentless Israel strikes on the camp was confirmed by the Government Media Office in Gaza. 

He is the latest to be assassinated by the Israeli army bringing the total number of journalists killed in Gaza since 7 October, 2023, to 184.

“Really sad to hear about the killing of a fellow sports journalist in an Israeli airstrike on northern Gaza today,” wrote Leyla Hamad.

Al Zar was a member of the Palestine Sports Media Federation and reported for Sawt Al Aqsa Radio.  

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‘…Definition of Indiscriminate Warfare…

This is the very definition of indiscriminate warfare. The Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest hospital in Gaza, utterly destroyed. A clear violation of humanitarian law.

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Knesset Turns Raucous Over Katz Appointment

Members of the Israeli opposition and the ruling right-wing coalition government exchanged insults and curses, Thursday, during the swearing-in ceremony of Yisrael Katz as Minister of Defense, succeeding Yoav Galant, who was dismissed by the occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Knesset approved new government appointments in a rare session as Yisrael Katz was appointed Minister of Defense, and Gideon Sa’ar as Foreign Minister. This is in addition to the appointment of Ze’ev Elkin as a minister.

According to the English Jerusalem Post, the session witnessed the exchange of insults and attacks between Knesset members from all parties.

Ultimately, opposition members left the Knesset hall in protest of Galant’s dismissal, which was met with severe criticism and protests in Israel.

During Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi’s speech against the opposition, opposition leader Yair Lapid shouted at him, describing him as “poison, and a draft evader.”

While Likud MK Tali Gottlieb attacked Galant on social media after news of his dismissal broke out, she supported Netanyahu’s choice.

In total, 58 MKs supported the new appointments without protest, while the opposition walked out of the session in protest at Galant’s dismissal.

Netanyahu justified Galant’s dismissal, Tuesday, by citing a breakdown in trust, while his statements were said to be shaky and weak.

Galant has repeatedly called for a diplomatic solution to secure the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and has also called for the conscription of ultra-Orthodox men into military service.

This has angered Netanyahu’s ultra-Orthodox and far-right coalition partners, on whom he relies.

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Israeli Army Turns to Teachers to Plug Shortage

The Israeli media reported the occupation army is resorting to summoning hundreds of school teachers in Israel to serve in its army to address its manpower crisis in light of the acute shortage in the number of soldiers after thousands of them were killed and wounded in the Gaza and Lebanese battles.

The Hebrew Ynet website showed in recent months, the army recruited hundreds of teachers in schools to serve in its ranks and pushed in  repeated rounds of fighting in Gaza and Lebanon.

It added this measure has “put schools in Israel in great distress, leading to the cancellation of classes with schools appearing empty and students not finding anyone to help them.”

It pointed out in an attempt to fill the classes, invitations and appeals have been sent to retired teachers, parents and graduates – to enter the classrooms.

 “A large number of our best teachers have been called up for reserve service, and we are trying to help administrators in their distress, which is why we have turned to retired teachers, parents and school graduates who are willing to dedicate a few hours to replace teachers on the front lines,” Rabbi Rafi Maimon, director of the Amit school network, told Ynet.

“We are facing a major challenge here, and in my opinion, the army must take into account the situation and understand that teachers have a vital role. For more than a year, students have been studying in a shaky reality,” he added.

He pointed out the war on the Lebanese and Gaza fronts exacerbated the IDF’s crisis, due to the severe shortage of manpower and following the heavy losses it suffered in soldiers and officers in the ground battles, which requires the immediate recruitment of thousands of soldiers.

To avoid this predicament, the now-dismissed Defense Minister Yoav Galant had announced the recruitment of 7,000 ultra-Orthodox Jews, starting next week, which threatened to dismantle Benjamin Netanyahu’s government coalition, who was quick to sack him. Galant was replaced by Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz, who has no military background.

The Israeli occupation army, supported by the United States and Europe, continues its aggression on the Gaza Strip for the second year, where its warplanes bomb hospitals, buildings, towers and homes of Palestinian civilians and destroy them over the heads of their residents, and prevent the entry of water, food, medicine and fuel.

The Israeli aggression left about 146,000 Palestinian martyrs and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 10,000 missing, amid massive destruction and famine that killed dozens of children and elderly people, in one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world according to Jordan24.

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