US Secretary of State Antony Blinken boards an aircraft as he departs Israel from Tel Aviv en route to Jordan, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Nov 3, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
GAZA/JERUSALEM -- Israeli warplanes on Friday struck an ambulance convoy outside a Gaza hospital, killing 6 Palestinians as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken embarked on his fourth visit to Israel since the conflict broke out.
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The Hamas-run health ministry said the ambulances carrying patients were on their way to the Rafah border crossing to exit Gaza for treatment, adding that "a large number" of people were also injured.
The attack took place in front of the main gate of the Shifa Medical Complex, the largest hospital in Gaza, according to the health ministry.
This image grab taken from an AFPTV video footage shows victims lying near an ambulance damaged in a reported Israeli strike in front of Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City on Nov 3, 2023. (PHOTO / AFPTV VIA AFP)
The Israeli military said the ambulance was being used by the Hamas fighters to transport militants and weapons, adding that several Hamas fighters were killed in the operation.
World Health Organisation Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a social media post that he was "utterly shocked by reports of attacks on ambulances evacuating patients," adding that patients, health workers, and medical facilities must be protected.
After meeting with Blinken, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that his country would not accept a temporary ceasefire unless it included the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza
Israel has been accusing Hamas of using the Shifa hospital to conceal command centers and tunnel entrances, a claim refuted by both Hamas and Shifa hospital authorities.
Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continued their military operations in Gaza, launching attacks on Hamas sites from various fronts, including land, sea, and air.
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The IDF claims that their operations resulted in the death of several Hamas militants, including Mustafa Dalloul, commander of Hamas's Sabra-Tel al-Hawa battalion, who played a "key role" role in the ongoing conflict.
The IDF also reported that six Israeli soldiers and officers were killed during the Gaza operation on Thursday and Friday, bringing the total Israeli forces' death toll to 25 since the start of the ground offensive against Hamas.
In the West Bank, clashes between Israeli forces and gunmen took place in multiple cities. According to WAFA, the official Palestinian news agency, at least 10 individuals were killed in the West Bank since Thursday night.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken disembarks his plane in Amman during his visit to Jordan amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Nov 3, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
Also on Friday, Blinken made his fourth visit to Israel since the conflict began. During the visit, he expressed support for Israel while underscoring the importance of protecting civilians in Gaza.
He was shown an Israeli army video that purportedly documented part of the killing of Israeli civilians by Hamas on the first day of the conflict, according to a statement from Netanyahu's office.
This photograph shows an installation consisting of balloons and pictures of Israeli hostages abducted by Palestinian militants during the October 7 attack and currently held in the Gaza Strip, attached to auditorium seats at the Jerusalem Convention Centre on Nov 2, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
Blinken said at a news conference that there were "important steps" that needed to be taken, the first of which was to prevent the conflict from escalating and spreading to other areas.
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He also urged the Israeli side to protect Palestinian civilians, who have borne the brunt of the Israeli airstrikes and shelling, and to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The top US diplomat is also expected to meet foreign ministers of Jordan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt in Amman, the capital of Jordan, on Saturday.
An Israeli air force attack helicopter fires a missile while flying on a sortie near the border with the Gaza Strip in southern Israel on Nov 3, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. (PHOTO / AFP)
After meeting with Blinken, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that his country would not accept a temporary ceasefire unless it included the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
ALSO READ: Death toll of Israel-Hamas conflict surpasses 10,000
Netanyahu also said Israel would not allow any fuel or funds to reach Gaza, which has been under a crippling Israeli blockade for more than a decade.
Additionally, he issued a stern warning to what he referred to as the "enemy in the north," namely the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. He cautioned against any escalation of the conflict along the Israel-Lebanon border, emphasizing that the consequences would be "unimaginable" for Hezbollah.
Shells that appear to be white phosphorus from Israeli artillery explode over Dahaira, a Lebanese border village with Israel, south Lebanon, on Oct 16, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
In his first public speech since Oct 7, Hezbollah Leader Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday that the daily exchanges of fire between his group and Israel have reached an intensity not seen since 1948.
He warned of an expansion of the confrontations with Israel if the conflict in Gaza continues.
READ MORE: Jordan recalls ambassador from Israel over conflict in Gaza
According to the Israeli Foreign Ministry, around 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, mostly civilians who were slain in the initial Oct 7 Hamas surprise attack that triggered the conflict. A total of 241 hostages were kidnapped from Israel into Gaza, said IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari on Friday, adding that the number does not include four released hostages and an Israeli soldier who was rescued by Israeli forces.
The death toll in Gaza surpassed 9,200 on Friday, while over 32,500 were injured, according to health ministry in Gaza.
This image grab taken from an AFPTV video footage shows Palestinian rescuers carrying an injured youth at a hospital after a strike at the Osama bin Zaid school, which shelters displaced people in the Saftawi area, north of Gaza City on Nov 3, 2023. (PHOTO / AFPTV VIA AFP)
Israeli raid on Gaza school
Israeli warplanes bombed a school in northern Gaza City, leading to dozens of deaths and injuries, the Hamas-run health ministry said Friday.
The ministry said that Israel bombed the Osama Bin Zaid School in the Al-Saftawi neighborhood, north of Gaza City, which houses displaced Palestinians.
7 Palestinians killed in West Bank
At least seven Palestinians were killed on Friday in various clashes with the Israeli army in the West Bank, the Ramallah-based Health Ministry said.
Among the seven dead, two were killed in a bombing by an Israeli reconnaissance plane in the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, two by Israeli gunfire in the city of Jenin, and two in clashes in the Al-Fawwar camp, south of Hebron city, while another was shot dead during the Israeli forces' storming of the Qalandiya refugee camp, north of East Jerusalem, according to the ministry and an official of Al-Fawwar camp.
Palestinians carry the body of a man killed during an overnight incursion and clashes with the Israeli army in the Jenin refugee camp, near the city of Jenin, in the northern Israeli-occupied West Bank, during his funeral on Nov 3, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)
In addition, more than 14 others were wounded in clashes with Israeli forces in various places.
On Friday, the Jenin refugee camp witnessed a massive raid by dozens of Israeli military vehicles and bulldozers, which continued operations for more than ten continuous hours.
Israeli reconnaissance aircraft bombed several sites in the camp, including a citizen's house, while Israeli forces occupied several houses to deploy snipers.
Hezbollah fighters stand guard on a building roof top to protect their supporters during a protest to show their solidarity with the Palestinians, in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Oct 13, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)
7 Hezbollah fighters killed in border
Seven Hezbollah fighters were killed and four civilians were wounded at Friday dawn during violent confrontations with Israeli forces on the border, according to the Shiite military group and Lebanese security sources.
Sources from Lebanese Internal Security Forces and medical sources told Xinhua that three Lebanese citizens and a Syrian refugee were wounded from artillery shelling and Israeli air strikes on several areas in southern Lebanon, adding that the Lebanese Red Cross had transferred them to hospitals.
According to Lebanese military sources, the casualties on Friday raised the death toll on the Lebanese side to 73 since Oct. 8, including 57 Hezbollah fighters, nine Hamas members, and seven civilians, including a journalist.
The sources added that the borderline witnessed a series of confrontations in the early morning hours, with Israeli warplanes and drones carrying out three air strikes on the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab and Halta villages and Labouneh region in southern Lebanon.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah announced that its fighters attacked 19 Israeli military sites with missiles in several areas.
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah greets his supporters via a video link, during a rally to commemorate Hezbollah fighters who were killed in South Lebanon last few weeks while fighting against the Israeli forces, in Beirut, Lebanon, Nov 3, 2023. Nasrallah's speech had been widely anticipated throughout the region as a sign of whether the Israel-Hamas conflict would spiral into a regional war. (PHOTO / AP)
Hezbollah leader warns of expanded confrontations
Hezbollah Leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah warned on Friday that confrontations with Israel on Lebanon's southern border will extend beyond current clashes.
In his first televised speech since the Israel-Hamas conflict and Israel-Hezbollah confrontation erupted weeks ago, Nasrallah told his audience that "the war escalation and evolution on the Lebanese front hinge on two fundamental factors -- the unfolding events in Gaza and the conduct of Israel towards Lebanon."
He threatened, "All options are open on our southern front. We can resort to these options at any time."
Nasrallah added that "the Islamic Resistance has two goals -- a cease-fire in Gaza and a victory for Hamas," explaining that a humanitarian truce in Gaza is "a must" while Hamas' victory is "in the interest of the Palestinians and all the Arab countries."
