Israel-Palestine live: Israel and Palestinians agree to truce, hostage deal

Ashraf al-Qudra, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, has given an update on the situation at the al-Shifa Hospital. 

The hospital is the largest medical complex in the Palestinian territory and was raided by Israeli troops early on Wednesday. 

As of Friday afternoon, journalists inside the hospital say there is live fire and bulldozers have destroyed some hospital buildings. 

Ashraf al-Qudra, speaking live to Al Jazeera Arabic, gave the following updates:

- “No water has entered al-Shifa Hospital,” he says, and the only thing there is "occupation, killing, and death"

- People have no access to personal hygiene items and infection is spreading

- There is widespread hunger in the hospital, where over 7,000 civilians are trapped

- Israeli soldiers are destroying equipment, tools, and medical facilities

- He reiterated his calls for a humanitarian corridor into Egypt.

The death toll in Gaza since the start of the war reached 11,500 on Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Health.

However, the ministry has not been able to update the figure since then due to ongoing Israeli bombardment and communication blackouts.

The exact number is expected to be much higher. 
 

The Palestinian Red Crescent said that their emergency medical teams remain besieged at Gaza’s al-Ahli Baptist Hospital on Thursday. 

The organisation added that Israeli tanks are stationed in the hospital’s vicinity and there is “heavy gunfire by Israeli soldiers".
 

In his latest column for Middle East Eye, researcher Emile Badarin argues that ethnic cleansing in Palestine "is inseparable from the racialised structures of Zionism"

He writes: "Ethnic cleansing and genocide are not spontaneous events; they are preceded by deliberate racial branding, alongside spatial and military planning.

The racialised branding that laid the groundwork for the dispossession of Palestinians in 1948, forcing hundreds of thousands into exile while destroying their towns and villages, endures to this day. The Zionist narrative regards all Palestinians as a demographic threat to the state of Israel.

This branding has been intricately linked with meticulous spatial planning, aiming to concentrate the Palestinian population into encircled and non-contiguous enclaves in the occupied West Bank, Gaza and bounded neighbourhoods within Israel."

You can read the full opinion piece below. 

Column: 'This is not about Hamas. It's a 75-year colonial war'

Local shepherds in south Lebanon are bearing the brunt of the hostilities at the Lebanon-Israel border, according to Reuters.

"All of us shepherds take our herds to [the border areas of] Mays al-Jabal, Houla... but with the shelling, you can't get anywhere near there," Ali Beber, with a flock of 350 sheep, told the news agency.

"The hay I have left can feed them for another two or three days, then I'm going to have to go into debt to get them food,” he added.

Many living in the area have now been displaced, as fighting has intensified.

Burned olive trees and torched agricultural land across southern Lebanon have also affected peoples’ livelihoods, particularly as farmers were already badly hit by a four-year economic meltdown. 

Israel's war cabinet has agreed to allow "minimal" fuel into Gaza, sparking outrage among far-right Israeli ministers. 

The cabinet approved allowing two trucks a day into the besieged enclave to help meet UN needs, an Israeli official told Reuters. The decision came after a request by the United States. 

The fuel will give "minimal" support for water, sewage and sanitary systems in Gaza to prevent pandemics, the official added. 

Following the decision, far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called on the Israeli prime minister to "stop this scandal immediately and prevent the introduction of fuel". 

He also demanded that Benjamin Netanyahu change the composition of the war cabinet to include the heads of all coalition partners in the government. 

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Miri Regev called for Israel's security cabinet to be immediately convened, as she believed the war cabinet did not have the authority to approve fuel entry into Gaza. 

Ben-Gvir also blasted the decision, stating: "So long as our hostages don’t even get a visit from the Red Cross, there is no sense in giving the enemy humanitarian gifts." 

After weeks of Israeli bombardment of Gaza and an ongoing ground invasion, the unwavering support for the state amongst its western allies may remain firm, but cracks are beginning to emerge.

The US, UK, and Germany may still fully support Israel's actions in Gaza, despite the large civilian death toll. But elsewhere, attitudes have changed.

French President Emmanuel Macron, for example, has floated the benefits of a ceasefire. While Canadian leader Justin Trudeau has called on Israel to "stop killing babies".

This week, Belize suspended diplomatic relations with Israel, joining Bolivia and several other Latin American countries that have recalled their ambassadors from the country.

Outside of Latin America, Turkey, Jordan, Chad, and Bahrain have all reportedly withdrawn their ambassadors.

Additionally, South Africa’s ruling African National Congress said on Thursday it would back a motion to close the Israeli embassy in the country.

While these moves are significant, human rights activist Ameer Makhoul says that the power these countries hold is limited.

“Because the world is based on power, not ethics and values, they do not have the strongest point of power to influence,” he added. “They give a push, movement, to the solidarity movement.”

Nevertheless, fissures among some of Israel’s strongest backers are starting to show.

Read more: Is the pressure on the Israeli government to end the assault on Gaza increasing?

Iran told the US it does not want the war in Gaza to spread elsewhere, Tehran's top diplomat has said, according to the Financial Times.

Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said in an interview messages have been exchanged between Iran and the US since the war started through back channels.

“In response to the US, we said that Iran does not want the war to spread, but due to the approach adopted by the US and Israel in the region, if the crimes against the people of Gaza and the West Bank are not stopped, any possibility could be considered, and a wider conflict could prove inevitable,” Amir-Abdollahian said. 

Ahmad Mikhallalati, the head of plastic surgery at al-Shifa hospital, has been speaking to Al-Jazeera about the situation at Gaza's largest medical facility. 

The hospital was raided by Israeli troops two days ago, and bulldozers have since razed sections of the complex. 

Here are some key things Mikhallalati said on Friday: 

• Israeli forces had taken a number of bodies from inside the hospital complex
• Most intensive care patients who were on ventilators have now died due to lack of oxygen and fuel
• A "large number" of premature babies have died due to the Israeli siege on the hospital (he didn't specify how many)
• Children are suffering from severe intestinal infections due to the lack of clean water 
• Israeli forces stormed two buildings in the complex, and tanks and snipers are still present in the vicinity.

The families of Israeli hostages held in Gaza wrote a letter to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan asking for help to secure the release of their loved ones. 

In a letter dated 3 November, revealed on Friday by CNN Turk, representatives of the families appeal to the Turkish leader. 

"As the leader of one of the region's great powers, with vast influence in the Middle East, in the Muslim world and beyond, we believe that you are in a unique position to be of immeasurable assistance," the letter states. 

"We are in terrible torment and as you are undoubtedly aware, time is of the essence for we fear that with every hour that passes the situation of the hostages deteriorates," it adds. 

"We therefore appeal to you on the deepest humanitarian level to do all in your power to obtain a sign of life from the hostages, to facilitate the supply to them of all their medical needs without delay and to bring about their immediate release."

It is signed by parents of two of the captives, on behalf of the "Hostages and Missing Families Forum". 

The World Health Organisation has expressed concerns about the spread of disease in Gaza after weeks of Israeli bombardments have forced the population into makeshift shelters with little food and clean water.

"We are extremely concerned about the spread of the disease when the winter season arrives," said Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative in Palestine.

He said that over 70,000 cases of acute respiratory infections and over 44,000 cases of diarrhoea had been recorded in the besieged enclave.

Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinians who had allegedly attempted to open fire on them in Hebron, according to the Israeli army. 

The army said in a statement on Friday that one of the men got out of a vehicle in the occupied West Bank city and "opened fire on the [Israeli] forces present", while the other drove the vehicle.

No Israeli soldiers were wounded, the statement added. 

It comes after 36 people were arrested overnight in the West Bank, during mass raids carried out by Israeli forces. 

In Jenin, Israel's military stormed the city from multiple sides with soldiers, vehicles, and bulldozers, and demanded that Ibn Sina Hospital be evacuated. At least three Palestinians were killed and nine others wounded.

The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) has issued a notice of intention to seek prosecution of Canadian government officials for "aiding and abetting war crimes in Gaza". 

The notice was sent to several members of the government, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly, amongst others. 

"Israel’s alleged international crimes include the withholding of humanitarian aide and safe passage, indiscriminately bombing civilians, and ethnic cleansing through a campaign of forced displacement of 1.5 million people," the ICJP said in a statement. 

"Despite this, the Canadian government has continued to pledge its steadfast support for Israel," it added.

"It has also refused to halt arms exports, refused to take action to prevent the illegal recruitment of Canadian volunteers to assist Israel’s military, and refused to stop millions of dollars from being unlawfully sent by some Canadian organisations with charitable status to benefit Israel’s military."

The ICJP's Legal Working Group for Canadian Accountability said it would gather evidence on the conduct of Canadian officials and submit them to "appropriate legal forums", including the International Criminal Court.