The Times of Israel is liveblogging Thursday’s events as they happen.
Foreign Ministry slams Canadian announcement on Palestine recognition as ‘reward for Hamas’
Israel “rejects” Canada’s announcement that it will recognize a Palestinian state, says the Foreign Ministry.
“The change in the position of the Canadian government at this time is a reward for Hamas and harms the efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of the hostages,” says the ministry on X, shortly after Prime Minister Mark Carney said his country would make the move at the UN General Assembly in September.
Carney says Canada will recognize Palestinian state in September, joining France and UK
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney says his country will recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly in September.
He says the move is “predicated on the Palestinian Authority’s commitment to much-needed reforms” including elections, anti-corruption measures, and a demilitarized Palestinian state.
His announcement comes on the heels of recognition by fellow G7 states France and the UK.
Army denies IDF gunfire hit Palestinians in north Gaza: Warning shots fired toward threat, not crowd
The Israeli military denies that its gunfire hit Palestinians in an incident in the northern Gaza Strip today, after the Hamas’s government media office claimed 51 were killed and 648 were wounded while waiting to collect aid.
The IDF says that earlier today, it identified a crowd of thousands of Gazans near humanitarian aid trucks that entered northern Gaza from the Zikim Crossing, close to troops operating in the area.
“The forces fired warning shots in the area, not toward the crowd, but against the threat posed to them,” the IDF says.
The military says that according to a preliminary investigation, “there are no known injuries from IDF troops’ gunfire,” adding that the incident is under further investigation.
A military official says that the initial probe also found that “gunfire was heard from within the crowd and there were internal clashes among Gazans within the crowd, in addition to several incidents of people being run over by the aid trucks.”
Police confiscate gun from right-wing Arab Israeli influencer after road rage shooting
Police confiscate the handgun of right-wing Arab Israeli influencer Yoseph Haddad, after arresting him earlier today for firing the weapon during an altercation with a motorcyclist in Jaffa.
Hebrew outlets reported earlier today that police had arrested both Haddad and the motorcyclist. Without naming Haddad explicitly, law enforcement announces that the “suspect who carried out the shooting has been released to house arrest, and the weapon was confiscated by the police.”
“The incident stemmed from a dispute over road use in which the car driver, who claimed he felt threatened, drew his firearm, cocked it and fired from within his vehicle,” police add.
No injuries were reported, and police are not aware of any prior contact between the two men. The investigation is ongoing.