Al Mayadeen – January 3, 2024
Day 455 of Israeli genocide in Gaza: 45,658 killed, 108,583 injured
The Israeli occupation forces continue perpetrating war crimes in Gaza, claiming the lives of dozens within a single day.
The Israeli occupation forces have killed 45,658 Palestinians, while another 108,583 have been injured since October 7, 2023, the Ministry of Health in Gaza reported on the 455th day of the ongoing Israeli genocide.
The Israeli occupation committed eight massacres across the Gaza Strip in the past 24 hours, killing 77 Palestinians and injuring 145 others.
According to the Ministry, there are still numerous victims trapped under the rubble and in the streets, unable to be reached by ambulance and civil defense teams.
Rainstorms submerge 1,500 tents in Gaza
Over the past two days, heavy rainfall has flooded 1,542 tents housing forcibly displaced families in camps and shelters across the Gaza Strip.
The General Directorate of Civil Defense reported that rescue teams found hundreds of tents submerged in over 30 cm of water, causing significant damage to the belongings of displaced residents.
The hardest-hit areas included the camps at Yarmouk Stadium and Gaza Municipality Park, where 242 tents were flooded. In the Saraya complex, 185 tents were affected, and 70 tents in the Shujaiya parking lot were submerged.
In Rafah, 170 tents along Al-Baher Street and near the Fash Fesh rest area were inundated. In Khan Younis, over 665 tents were damaged, while 210 tents in the central governorate, particularly in Deir al-Balah, al-Bassa, and Wadi al-Salqa, were also severely impacted.
Meanwhile, rescue teams are continuing efforts to provide assistance and assess the full extent of the damage despite the challenges.
Polluted drinking water in Gaza Strip reaches alarming levels: UN
A report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that the pollution of drinking water in the Gaza Strip has reached alarming levels that are alarming the health of the population.
In a post on X, the United Nations wrote on Wednesday that recent monitoring of water quality in the Gaza Strip reveals alarming rates of pollution.
It explained that there is a UN mission in the displacement sites in Gaza City, which very poor conditions in terms of drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene.
The United Nations indicated that Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, exhausted by over 15 months of ongoing aggression and repeated displacement, are facing a severe and persistent water shortage.
Israeli Army detects two rockets launched from Gaza amid Resistance operations
The Israeli occupation forces detected two rockets launched from Gaza as the Resistance factions engage in fierce confrontations in the blockaded strip.
The military wing of Hamas, the al-Qassam Brigades, announced that it successfully collaborated with the al-Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, in launching a surface-to-air missile at an Israeli Apache helicopter east of al-Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, the Martyr Omar al-Qassem Forces, the military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, declared that they had targeted a grouping of Israeli soldiers at the Civil Administration site east of Jabalia camp in northern Gaza with mortar shells.
A spokesperson for the Israeli occupation forces confirmed that the IOF detected two rockets launched from northern Gaza. According to the statement, one rocket landed near Kibbutz Nir Am, while the other allegedly struck an open area.
Media outlets noted that alarms sounded across Gaza's border areas, marking the eighth consecutive day of rocket fire from the Strip.
Gaza talks showing progress
An Israeli delegation headed to Qatar on Friday morning to resume negotiations, Israeli media reported, in yet another attempt to reach a prisoner exchange deal and a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
According to Israeli Channel 12, sources familiar with the talks stated that progress has been made, but significant gaps remain unresolved and no breakthrough has been established for a deal.
Meanwhile, a Palestinian leader told Al Mayadeen on Thursday that Gaza ceasefire negotiations "are witnessing real development, as there are signs that a ceasefire agreement may be reached," clarifying that the round that will be held in Doha on Friday, "is important and crucial in the negotiations."
The Palestinian leader noted there were some main issues in need of further discussions, such as the Israeli captives, the Philadelphi Axis, the return of displaced Palestinians, and the resolution of the issue of Palestinian captives.
In the same context, "Israel's" Walla news website reported Israeli officials as saying that the sending of a team to Doha is a last-minute attempt at advancing in the ceasefire talks.
Yemeni Armed Forces attacked two targets in occupied Yafa
The Yemeni Armed Forces announce two operations that targeted Israeli military targets in occupied Yafa as they pledged Sanaa's readiness to respond to any aggression.
The Yemeni Armed Forces announced on Friday the execution of two military operations targeting Israeli occupation sites in the occupied city of Yafa, also known as Tel Aviv.
In a statement, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, detailed the operations, "The first operation targeted an Israeli occupation power station east of Yafa with a Palestine 2 hypersonic ballistic missile, which struck its target with precision."
The second operation, Saree added, involved a Yafa drone targeting a military site belonging to the Israeli occupation in the same area.
Reaffirming Yemen's readiness, Saree stated, "We stand fully prepared to confront any reckless aggression by American and Israeli forces or their allies." He emphasized Yemen's capability to "defend the nation, its sovereignty, and its legitimate rights with God's help."
Saree also called on "the free people of our nation to take decisive action to halt Israeli massacres against our brothers in Gaza."
The announcement coincided with massive rallies held across Yemen, including a million-man march in the capital of Sanaa at al-Sabeen Square, as well as in over 600 other central and local sites in various cities and districts. These rallies were organized in solidarity with Gaza and in support of the Yemeni Armed Forces.
In a statement issued during the rallies, participants declared that the "American-British aggression against our country has failed after a year of perseverance, with God granting us victory and defeating our enemies."
The rallies also reaffirmed their commitment to the promised victory and sacred struggle, vowing, "We will not abandon the banner, vacate the arenas, or retreat from our steadfast positions of faith."
'Eye for an eye'
Yemen will never stop supporting Gaza, a senior Yemeni military source reaffirmed to Al Mayadeen on Tuesday, while detailing Yemen's advanced military capabilities in the face of any aggression and hostility.
According to the source, the technological and multifaceted advancement does not solely entail strategic weaponry, but also Yemen's intelligence and plans to thwart the enemy's plots, noting that the armed forces' latest naval operations and attacks targeting deep occupied territories were achieved using several military tactics.
Regarding missile operations, the Yemeni source stressed that several missiles are capable of reaching occupied Yafa (Tel Aviv) without being intercepted, including the hypersonic ballistic missile, the Zulfiqar ballistic missile, as well as other weapons from the country's arsenal.
He also emphasized that the Yemeni army is preparing "surprises", demanding the end of the aggression on Gaza given that Yemen's support for the territory will not cease.
"Yemen possesses a myriad of military choices, and the American and British enemies failed in deciphering Yemen's technical codes," the source noted, adding that the armed forces own advanced and precise weapons designed to defeat and penetrate all air defenses.
Given the aggression on both Gaza and Yemen, the Yemeni army has decided to establish a new military equation: Power grid for power grid and airport for airport. However, the solution to that would be the end of the aggression on the Gaza Strip.
Yemenis rally nationwide in 700+ demos in solidarity with Palestinians
Yemenis have staged more than 700 rallies in the capital Sana’a and 14 other provinces across the country to reiterate their support for the Palestinians subjected to Israel’s campaign of genocide in Gaza.
In Sana’a, people gathered at the Sabeen Square, the largest square in the capital, on Friday, chanting slogans against the Israeli war on Gaza.
Similar rallies were held in Sa’ada, Hudaydah, al- Mahwit, Raymah, Dhamar, Hajjah, and Dhale.
Ibb, ʽAmran, Jawf, Ta’izz, al-Bayda, Ma’rib, and Lahij were among the provinces in which people also staged pro-Gaza demonstrations.
A statement issued by the protests’ organizers stressed the demonstrators’ support for the Palestinians “without fear or retreat”.
They expressed their readiness to face the challenges and make sacrifices in this regard.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/01/03/740253/Yemen-rallies-solidarity-Palestinians
Afghan, Pakistani troops exchange cross-border fire
Pakistani and Afghan armed forces trade fire along the shared border amid escalating tensions.
On Friday, Pakistani and Afghan armed forces traded fire along the shared border, media reported citing regional authorities in Afghanistan.
A spokesperson for the governor of the Afghan province of Khost, Mustaghfir Gurbaz, accused Pakistani troops of firing mortars at three settlements, TOLO News reported. He said Afghan forces fired back.
No casualties were reported.
Tensions on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border escalated after Pakistan fired airstrikes at the western Afghan province of Paktika in late December, killing over 50 people and injuring 40 others.
In response, Afghanistan's Ministry of Defense condemned the strikes, calling them "barbaric" and a "clear aggression".
"The Islamic Emirate will not leave this cowardly act unanswered, but rather considers the defense of its territory and sovereignty to be its inalienable right," the statement stressed, using the Taliban authorities' name for the government.
A resident, Maleel, told AFP that the air strikes killed 18 members of one family, with the bombs hitting two or three houses.
Another strike killed three people in a different house and wounded several others, who were taken to a hospital, he added.
A flashback
The deadly air strikes follow earlier incidents in March when Pakistan's military airstrikes reportedly killed eight Afghan civilians, which led to skirmishes along the border.
Tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban government have escalated since the Taliban took power in 2021. Pakistan has accused the Taliban of sheltering militants who carry out attacks in Pakistan, although Kabul denies these allegations.
The air strike comes after a raid by the Pakistani Taliban, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), last week on a Pakistani army outpost near the Afghan border, which Pakistani officials say killed 16 soldiers.
On an almost a weekly basis, Yemenis have been staging mass protests across the country to decry the Israeli atrocities in Gaza, and to reiterate their support for their country’s retaliatory operations.
Israel has massacred nearly 45,600 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured at least 108,400 in Gaza since October 7, 2023. Thousands are also missing and presumed dead under rubble.
Since the onset of Israel’s campaign in the Gaza Strip, Yemeni forces have carried out scores of operations in support of the war-hit Gazans, striking targets throughout the occupied Palestinian territories, in addition to targeting Israeli ships or vessels heading towards ports in the occupied territories.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/01/03/740253/Yemen-rallies-solidarity-Palestinians
