‘Operation al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 264
37,718 killed and at least 86,337 wounded in the Gaza Strip
37,718 killed and at least 86,337 wounded in the Gaza Strip. These include 7,800 children, 5466 women, and 2418 elderly. In addition, around 10,000 more are estimated to be under the rubble.*
553+ Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. These include 135 children.
665 Israeli soldiers have been killed since October 7.**
Israeli attacks across enclave kill 60 people
By Usaid Siddiqui
- Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed 60 Palestinians and injured 140 in the latest 24-hour reporting period, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
- Gaza’s Civil Defense says the level of destruction left behind after Israel’s bombardment of the Beit Lahiya city in northern Gaza “defies imagination”.
- At least 15 people have been killed in the city after the bombardment of the Abu Awad family home sheltering about 40 people, as well as civil infrastructure and nearby houses, Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum reports.
- People in Gaza are “enduring subhuman conditions” with a third of the population picking through rubbish to survive in the oppressive summer heat, says the Mercy Corps aid group.
- The US is “urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement” to end the violent conflict on the Israel-Lebanon border, US Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin says.
- At least 37,718 people killed and 86,377 wounded in Israelﾒs war on Gaza since October 7. The revised death toll in Israel from the Hamas-led attacks stands at 1,139, with dozens of people still held captive in Gaza.
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/6/26/israel-war-on-gaza-live-subhuman-conditions-in-camps-attacked-by-israel
Iraqi Resistance strikes 'vital' Israeli target in Eilat
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq carries out a drone strike targeting a vital Israeli military target in the occupied city of Eilat, also known as Umm al-Rashrash.
In the early hours of Wednesday, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced that it had carried out a drone strike targeting a "vital Israeli target" in the occupied Palestinian city of Umm al-Rashrash, known as Eilat.
In a brief statement, the Islamic Resistance declared that this operation was conducted in solidarity with the Gaza Strip and in response to the massacres being committed by the Israeli occupation against Palestinians, including children, women, and the elderly. The group vowed to continue striking the Israeli occupation's strongholds.
Israeli media outlets had reported prior to the release of the Islamic Resistance's statement that a drone had successfully reached its target in Eilat, evading interception. Additionally, sirens were reportedly heard in the Israeli settlement.
The Resistance had also attacked a vital target in Umm al-Rashrash on Sunday, declaring that it was in support of the people and Resistance of Gaza, as well.
Moreover, the Iraqi support front underlined that it would not only stand in solidarity with Gaza but would also support Lebanon in the case of a full-blown war in the north.
A statement released by the Iraqi Resistance explained that the group will continue to attack enemy sites, stressing that its operations are in support of the Palestinian people.
The Iraqi Resistance is comprised of a flurry of Resistance factions in the country that coordinate their military activities under the banner of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq.
In the context of the continued Israeli war on the Gaza Strip and Israeli war threats against Lebanon, the leader of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq party Sheikh Qais Khazali issued a daring statement on Monday.
Sheikh Khazali leads a prominent Iraqi party, which is also a member of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq.
After noting this, the Iraqi politician warned the United States against aiding the Israeli occupation, saying that if "Israel" attacks Lebanon and Hezbollah, that would jeopardize American interests in Iraq and the region.
The Iraqi Resistance had launched dozens of attacks on American sites across the region after the Israeli war on Gaza was launched. It took promises of the negotiation of withdrawal of American forces from Iraq to halt operations, which had put under fire various bases including the strategic Ain al-Assad Air Base.
Yemen unveils new ballistic missile in operation on Israeli ship
The spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, reveals a new ballistic missile, used in a new operation targeting an Israeli ship in the Arabian Sea.
The spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, confirmed the execution of a special military operation that targeted the Israeli ship 'MSC SARAH V' in the Arabian Sea.
Saree revealed on Tuesday evening that the operation was carried out using a new ballistic missile, which entered service after successfully completing experimental operations, noting that the hit was precise and direct on the ship.
Saree also provided details about the new missile's features, stating that it has the capability to hit targets accurately at long distances, as "this operation has proven."
Moreover, the spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces emphasized the continuation of "developing military capabilities," explaining that this comes "in the context of enhancing our Resistance role in supporting the Palestinian Resistance militarily as well as defending Yemen against the American-British aggression."
Saree said that the targeting of the Israeli ship was in support of the Palestinian people and their fighters, and a response to the massacres by the occupation in the Gaza Strip, reaffirming that the operations of the Yemeni Armed Forces will not stop until the aggression is halted and the siege on the Gaza Strip is lifted.
YAF target 2 ships in Red Sea, Indian Ocean with USV, cruise missiles
Earlier, on Sunday, the naval forces of the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) carried out a second operation targeting the vessel Transworld Navigator in the Red Sea using an unmanned surface vehicle, resulting in a direct hit on the ship, announced the YAF spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree.
In a televised statement, Saree mentioned that the YAF's rocket force also targeted the vessel STOLT SEQUOIA in the Indian Ocean with several cruise missiles, affirming that the operations achieved its objectives.
According to the spokesperson, the operations came after the owning companies of the two ships violated the ban imposed by the YAF on entry to the ports of occupied Palestine.
India exports rockets, explosives to Israel amid Gaza war
By Federica Marsi
In the early morning hours of May 15, the cargo vessel Borkum stopped off the Spanish coast, lingering in the waters a short distance from Cartagena. At the port, protesters waved Palestinian flags and called on authorities to inspect the ship based on suspicions that it carried weapons bound for Israel.
Leftist members of the European Parliament sent a letter to Spanish President Pedro Sánchez requesting that the ship be prevented from docking. “Allowing a ship loaded with weapons destined for Israel is to allow the transit of arms to a country currently under investigation for genocide against the Palestinian people,” the group of nine MEPs warned.
Before the Spanish government could take a stand, the Borkum cancelled its planned stopover and continued to the Slovenian port of Koper. “We were right,” Inigo Errejon, the spokesperson for the hard-left Sumar party wrote on X, arguing that the Borkum’s decision to skip Cartagena confirmed the suspicions.
But missed in the debate over whether the ship ought to be allowed to dock in Spain were the unlikely origins of the Borkum’s cargo.
According to documents seen by Al Jazeera, the ship contained explosives loaded in India and was en route to Israel’s port of Ashdod, some 30km (18 miles) from the Gaza Strip. Marine tracking sites show it departed Chennai in southeast India on April 2 and circumnavigated Africa to avoid transiting through the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Houthis have been attacking vessels in reprisal for Israel’s war.
The identification codes specified in the documentation, obtained unofficially by the Solidarity Network Against the Palestinian Occupation (RESCOP), suggest the Borkum contained 20 tonnes of rocket engines, 12.5 tonnes of rockets with explosive charges, 1,500kg (3,300 pounds) of explosive substances and 740kg (1,630 pounds) of charges and propellants for cannons.
A paragraph on confidentiality specified that all employees, consultants or other relevant parties were mandated that “under no circumstances” were they to name IMI Systems or Israel. IMI Systems, a defence firm, was bought by Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest weapons manufacturer, in 2018.
The commercial manager of the ship, the German company MLB Manfred Lauterjung Befrachtung, told Al Jazeera in a statement that “the vessel did not load any weapons or any other cargo for the destination Israel”.
A second cargo ship that had departed India was denied entry on May 21 to the port of Cartagena. Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that the Marianne Danica left from India’s port of Chennai and was en route to Israel’s port of Haifa with a cargo of 27 tonnes of explosives. Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares confirmed in a news conference that the vessel was denied entry on the grounds that it was shipping military cargo to Israel.
These incidents add to mounting evidence that weapon parts from India, a country that has long advocated dialogue over military action in resolving conflicts, are quietly making their way to Israel, including during the ongoing months-long war in Gaza. A lack of transparency on India’s transfers helps them slip under the radar, say analysts.
Assange declared a free man, boards plane headed to Australia
A US judge has sentenced WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to time served, with no supervised release, following his guilty plea to a charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified information related to the national defense of the United States.
Assange has been imprisoned in the high-security Belmarsh prison in London since April 2019 after British police were allowed to raid the Ecuadorian Embassy where he had secured asylum since 2012.
"You will be able to walk out of this courtroom a free man," the judge declared to Assange, marking the end of a high-profile legal battle.
The United States has sought to put Assange on trial for publishing US military secrets and evidence of war crimes in the American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is accused of publishing some 700,000 confidential documents relating to US military and diplomatic activities, starting in 2010.
US authorities have accused Assange under the 1917 Espionage Act, which experts warn means he could be sentenced to 175 years in prison.
Following the court's decision, a federal prosecutor announced that US barristers in the United Kingdom are withdrawing their extradition request for Assange. Additionally, the United States will take immediate steps to overturn the remaining charges against Assange in the Eastern District of Virginia.
The proceedings took place in a federal courtroom in the Northern Mariana Islands, where Assange reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors.
Barry Pollack, Assange's criminal defense lawyer, emphasized that WikiLeaks' work would continue and praised Assange's enduring commitment to freedom of speech and transparency. "WikiLeaks' work will continue, and Mr. Assange, I have no doubt, will be a continuing force for freedom of speech and transparency in government. He has a powerful voice that cannot and should not be silenced," Pollack told journalists.
Pollack also noted that the court determined no harm was caused by Assange's publications.
Jennifer Robinson, another legal counselor for Assange, hailed the day as historic, signaling the end of 14 years of legal battles.
Assange left the courtroom to applause and cheering, as captured in a live broadcast. He did not make any statements to the press.
The US has been pushing to extradite Assange from London to the United States, which has raised alarms among activists, law experts, and fellow journalists.
Assange's case garnered backing from human rights and journalism organizations like Amnesty International and the Committee to Protect Journalists. These organizations and others were concerned that prosecuting Assange under the Espionage Act, especially if handed a heavy sentence, could establish a dangerous precedent for charging journalists with national security offenses.
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The Journal of America Team:
Editor in chief:
Abdus Sattar Ghazali
Senior Editor:
Prof. Arthur Scott
Special Correspondent
Maryam Turab
