The Times of Israel is liveblogging Tuesday’s events as they happen.
WHO says staff residence, Deir al-Balah warehouse was attacked three times on Monday
The World Health Organization says that its staff residence and main warehouse in Gazan city of Deir al-Balah was attacked three times on Monday.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says the Israel Defense Forces entered the UN agency’s staff residence, forced women and children to evacuate on foot, and handcuffed, stripped and interrogated male staff at gunpoint.
Two WHO staff and two family members were detained, three of whom were later released while the other remains in detention, according to Tedros.
“WHO demands the immediate release of the detained staff and protection of all its staff,” he says.
Tedros also says “the latest evacuation order in Deir al-Balah has affected several WHO premises, compromising our ability to operate in Gaza and pushing the health system further towards collapse.”
“WHO’s main warehouse located in Deir al-Balah is within the evacuation zone, and was damaged yesterday when an attack caused explosions and a fire inside,” he adds.
IDF tanks pushed into southern and eastern districts of the Gazan city of Deir al-Balah for the first time on Monday, an area where Israeli sources said the military believes hostages may be held.
Iranian foreign minister says Tehran cannot give up on nuclear enrichment
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tells Fox News that Tehran cannot give up on its nuclear enrichment program, even as it was severely damaged during the recent Israel-Iran war in which Washington bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities.
“It is stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe. But obviously we cannot give up of enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists. And now, more than that, it is a question of national pride,” the foreign minister tells the Fox News show “Special Report with Bret Baier” in a clip aired today.
UN says IDF offensive in Deir al-Balah threatens to deprive Gazan’s of key water sources
The southern Gaza desalination plant and other vital water infrastructure are located within the Deir al-Balah areas from which the IDF has ordered Palestinians to evacuate, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric says during a press briefing.
The plant is a main source of drinking water for hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people in the coastal Mawasi zone, producing 660,430 gallons of water per day.
“The loss of this facility would be catastrophic for the people who depend on it for access to fresh water,” Dujarric says.
As of early July, 80 percent of water, sanitation and hygiene facilities fall within Israeli-militarized zones or in areas that have been placed under evacuation orders, says the UN spokesperson, adding that 93% of households in Gaza had no access to water as of last month.
Over 87% of Gaza is currently under Israeli evacuation order, which has squeezed about 2.1 million people into fragmented areas of the Strip where hardly any services are available, Dujarric says.
He says that UN humanitarian staff will remain in Deir al-Balah areas that the IDF has ordered to evacuate and has shared its coordinates with all parties of the conflict.
Many Gazans are living in tents that have a shorter life span due to the weather conditions.
UN agencies also tell us that about 1.35 million people in Gaza need shelter and household items. Nonetheless, no shelter supplies have been allowed into Gaza for the past 140 days, Dujarric says.
While Israel allowed a convoy of fuel tankers into Gaza earlier this month, the quantity was hardly sufficient, and the UN urges Israeli authorities to authorize the transfer of additional convoys, he adds.