Residents in Gaza are facing ever-growing uncertainty after the territory’s only power plant ran out of fuel and shut down Wednesday. Israeli airstrikes further demolished entire neighborhoods and sent people scrambling to find safety. And hospitals in the Gaza Strip are struggling to treat the injured with dwindling medical supplies. The war, which has claimed more than 2,200 lives on both sides, is expected to escalate. The weekend attack that Hamas said was retribution for worsening conditions for Palestinians under Israeli occupation has inflamed Israel’s determination to crush the group’s hold in Gaza. The Israeli military said more than 1,200 people, including 155 soldiers, have died in Israel since Saturday’s incursion. In Gaza, the health ministry says more than 1,050 have been killed and over 5,100 injured. The United Nations Palestinian refugee agency says 250,000 people have been displaced in Gaza.
Here’s what’s happening on Day 5 of the latest Israel-Palestinian war, as reported by The Associated Press:
Live updates | Day 5 of the latest Israel-Palestinian war
Newslooks- (AP)
KING CHARLES III CONDEMNS ATTACKS IN ISRAEL
LONDON — King Charles III has condemned the “barbaric acts of terrorism in Israel,” and has asked officials to keep him updated on developments in the Middle East, a palace official said Wednesday.
In a briefing at Buckingham Palace on the king’s upcoming visit to Kenya, a spokesman said the king was extremely concerned about the situation.
‘’His thoughts and prayers are with all of those suffering, particularly those who have lost loved ones, but also those actively involved as we speak,’’ the spokesman said. “His Majesty is appalled by and condemns the barbaric acts of terrorism in Israel.’’
The spokesman made his comments on condition of anonymity in keeping with palace rules.
EGYPT’S PRESIDENT REITERATES CONCERNS ABOUT LATEST WAR IN GAZA
CAIRO — President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi of Egypt on Wednesday warned about “grave security and humanitarian repercussions” of the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian militant groups in Gaza.
He said his government, which mediated a cease-fire between Israel and Palestinian militants in previous bouts of violence, has intensified its efforts to “contain the situation,” according to the Egyptian leader’s office.
El-Sissi’s comments came in a meeting with Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani who was visiting Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials.
NETANYAHU AND OPPOSITION AGREE ON UNITY GOVERNMENT, WAR CABINET AFTER HAMAS ATTACK
A top opposition Israeli politician says he has reached an agreement to enter a wartime unity government with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Benny Gantz, a former defense minister and military chief of staff, released what he said was a joint statement with Netanyahu.
The statement said they would form a five-member “war-management” Cabinet. It will consist of Netanyahu, Gantz, current Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and two other top officials serving as “observer” members.
It said the government would not pass any legislation or decisions that are not connected to the war as long as the fighting continues. It was not immediately clear what would happen to Netanyahu’s existing government partners, a collection of far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties.
HEZBOLLAH SAYS US IS ‘RESPONSIBLE’ FOR ATTACKS IN ISRAEL
BEIRUT — Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group on Wednesday blasted the United States for its support of Israel, saying that sending an aircraft carrier to the region “will not scare our people or the resistance movements that are ready for the confrontation.”
Hezbollah said that the U.S. “is a full partner of the Zionist aggression and is responsible for the killings, crimes, siege, the destruction of homes and horrifying crimes against innocent civilians.”
The group added in a statement that sending an aircraft carrier to the region reveals the weakness of Israel’s military and its need for continuous foreign support.
Hezbollah criticized President Joe Biden’s “flagrant” support to Israel “killing machine.”
It called on Arab and Muslim nations to condemn the American intervention in the region.
PUTIN CRITICIZES US RESPONSE TO ISRAEL-PALE
STINIAN WAR
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that the latest Israel-Palestinian war is rooted in the failure to create a Palestinian state and the latest botched mediation efforts by the U.S.
Speaking at an international energy forum in Moscow, Putin charged that Washington has mostly focused on trying to create material incentives for the Palestinians while failing to help create a Palestinian state in line with U.N. resolutions.
Putin emphasized the need to quickly find a settlement — warning that the conflict could spiral out of control, resulting in “grave consequences.”
He also described the allegations of Iran’s involvement as baseless and argued that the U.S. response was only fueling the conflict, saying that he doesn’t understand why the U.S. has deployed an aircraft carrier to the region.
CZECH GOVERNMENT TO EVACUATE CZECH NATIONALS FROM ISRAEL ON WEDNESDAY
PRAGUE — A Czech government plane will fly to Israel on Wednesday to evacuate Czech nationals from the country which is at war with Hamas, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said.
Fiala said other flights will follow through the end of the week, but gave no further details.
The announcement came after a plane with Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky landed in Prague early Wednesday with 34 other Czechs onboard who returned from Israel with the minister.
Lipavsky was the first foreign minister to visit Israel after Saturday’s attacks, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on X, formerly known as Twitter, after their meeting.
There are still at least 181 Czechs in Israel, Lipavsky said Wednesday.
PROMINENT MOSQUE CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION INTO WAR CRIMES BY ISRAEL
CAIRO — Al-Azhar al-Sharif, the Sunni world’s foremost seat of religious learning, on Wednesday called for an international investigation into allegations of war crimes by Israel against civilian Palestinians in Gaza.
In a strong worded statement, the Cairo-based religious institution called for Arab and Islamic countries to take “a serious and unified position against the West’s inhuman rally” behind Israel’s attacks against “innocent Palestinian civilians.”
It said Israel’s “inhuman siege,” which included cutting off electricity and water, and preventing the delivery of food and humanitarian aid to the strip, is a “genocide and war crimes.”
The statement urged Arab and Islamic countries to quickly provide humanitarian aid and “ensure its crossing” to the Palestinians in Gaza.
BRITAIN’S FOREIGN SECRETARY ARRIVES IN ISRAEL, WILL MEET WITH SENIOR OFFICIALS
LONDON — Britain’s top diplomat has arrived in Israel to express “unwavering solidarity” with the country following the attacks by Hamas.
The government says Foreign Secretary James Cleverly will meet survivors and senior Israeli officials “to outline U.K. support for Israel’s right to defend itself.”
The U.K.’s Conservative government and the opposition Labour Party have both strongly backed Israel’s right to retaliate for the attacks that killed more than 1,200 Israelis.
The British government has said 10 or more U.K. citizens are dead or missing after the attacks on southern Israel.
AUSTRIA SAYS AUSTRIAN-ISRAELI CITIZEN DEAD, 2 OTHERS STILL MISSING
BERLIN — The Austrian government has confirmed that one of three Austrian-Israeli citizens who had been missing after Hamas’ attack on Israel, has been found dead.
The Austria foreign ministry said in a statement Wednesday that “he was a victim of the brutal large-scale attack on Israel by the terrorist organization Hamas. The family of the deceased informed us about this today.”
The Austrian government did not release the victim’s name and said that out of respect for the victims and their families, no further details would be released.
The ministry added that “we strongly condemn the barbaric terror of Hamas. Our deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends.”
GAZA’S SOLE POWER PLANT RUNS OUT OF FUEL
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s only power plant ran out of fuel Wednesday afternoon, forcing it to shut down after Israel cut off supplies, the Energy Ministry said. That leaves only generators to power the territory — but they also run on fuel that is in short supply.
1 SPANIARD DIES AFTER HAMAS ATTACKS, SPANISH GOVERNMENT SAYS
MADRID — Spain’s Foreign Ministry says one of two Spaniards affected by the Hamas attacks in Israel has died.
The ministry named the woman as Spanish-Israeli citizen Maya Villalobo Sinvany. The ministry condemned the attacks and expressed its condolences to her family. It gave no further details about the woman.
Spain’s state news agency Efe and other outlets have reported that Villalobo was on military service at an Israeli miliary base at the time of the attacks.
The ministry earlier this week reported that another Spaniard was also affected in the attacks but gave no other details. Efe said the person was a Spanish man who lived in a kibbutz near the Gaza Strip.
GERMAN PARLIAMENT HOLDS MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR ISRAELI VICTIMS
BERLIN — The German government held a minute of silence for the Israeli victims of the Hamas terror attacks in parliament.
The president of parliament, Baerbel Bas, vowed Wednesday that Germany will stand univocally on the side of Israel and support the country’s right to defend itself and protect its people.
“In these dark hours, our thoughts are with the families of all the victims, with the injured and with the abducted hostages who are being abused as human shields, and with the family members and friends who fear for them. Their anguish, unimaginable to us, cannot be put into words,” Bas said.
Bas stressed that Germany will not accept any kind of anti-Israeli or antisemitic protests in Germany.
The Israeli ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, who also attended the minute of silence in parliament, received long, standing ovations by Germany’s government ministers and lawmakers.
MEDIA REPORTS: 3 CIVILIANS INJURED AND 10 HOMES DAMAGED IN LEBANON BY ISRAELI SHELLING
BEIRUT — Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency says Israeli shelling of southern Lebanese villages has wounded three civilians and damaged about 10 homes.
The agency said the shelling hit the villages of Marwaheen and Duhaira.
The Israeli shelling came after the militant Hezbollah fired an anti-tank missile at an Israeli army position.
CONSERVATIVE MUSLIMS IN INDONESIA PROTEST US SUPPORT OF ISRAEL
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Hundreds of conservative Muslims marched to the heavily guarded U.S. Embassy in Indonesia’s capital on Wednesday to protest the U.S.’s staunch support of Israel and to demand an end to Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip.
More than 500 pro-Palestinian protesters, many wearing white Islamic robes, gathered along a major street in Jakarta that runs outside the embassy. They chanted “God is Great” and “Save Palestinians” as they marched. Their banners and placards slammed the airstrikes in Gaza and some protesters expressed their anger by burning the U.S. and Israeli flags.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday said in a televised comments that the occupation of the Palestinian territories by Israel must be resolved and urged an end to the war.
PALESTINIAN FACTIONS IN SYRIA EXPRESS SUPPORT FOR FIGHTERS IN GAZA
DAMASCUS, Syria — Top officials from Palestinian factions based in the Syrian capital have expressed their support to fighters in Gaza saying their aim is to liberate their land.
The officials did not comment on a rocket attack late Tuesday from southern Syria that hit the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
There have been concerns that the heightened escalation in Gaza and southern Lebanon could escalate into Syrian territories, sparking a regional war.
The officials from factions including the “Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command said Arab Foreign ministers meeting in Cairo later Wednesday should come out with a clear stance supporting the Palestinian people.
KING OF JORDAN CALLS AGAIN FOR ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN TALKS
BEIRUT — The King of Jordan renewed calls for Israeli-Palestinian talks as the ongoing war between Gaza and Israel continues, as it threatens regional security.
“There will be no security, no peace, no stability without just and total peace that comes through a two-state solution,” King Abdullah II said in an address to Jordanian parliament Wednesday, calling for a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital based along on its pre-1967 borders.
Abdullah II Tuesday called to dispatch medical and humanitarian aid to the blockaded Gaza Strip through Egypt.
FATE OF RUSSIAN CITIZENS AND OPEN DIALOGUE WITH BOTH SIDES ARE TOP PRIORITIES, KREMLIN SAYS
MOSCOW — The Kremlin said that Russia needs to maintain a dialogue with both sides amid the Israeli-Palestinian war.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that “it’s important for us to maintain a balanced approach and remain in contact with both parties to the conflict.”
He said that Russia has “long historic ties” with both Israel and the Palestinians, adding that millions of Russians have moved to live in Israel and Moscow is concerned about their security.
“The fate of Russian citizens is our No. 1 priority,” Peskov said. “We need to maintain an equal distance — only that will give us the right to participate in a settlement process.”
Peskov added that “acts that can only be described as terrorist must be undoubtedly condemned, but the roots of the situation mustn’t be forgotten.”
