Israel-Palestine live: US vice president calls for ‘immediate’ six-week ceasefire

At least 29,954 people have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza since 7 October, the Palestinian health ministry said in its daily update on Wednesday.

In addition, 70,325 people have been wounded.

The toll includes at least 76 deaths in the past 24 hours. 

At least five Palestinian civilians were killed by Israeli air strikes in the Abou Houli area south of Deir al-Balah, according to Al Jazeera Arabic. 

This comes after six Palestinians were killed near Gaza City earlier on Wednesday, including people who were waiting for food aid delivery. 

In all the furore that accompanied the House of Commons vote calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the substance of the debate has been completely forgotten.

The Scottish National Party (SNP) motion calling for an immediate ceasefire would have embarrassed a Labour leadership that has spent the last five months of homicidal bombing of Gaza avoiding saying just that.

The SNP motion was clear, unequivocal and totally in line with public opinion in the British Isles.

The SNP called for an immediate ceasefire without conditions. The Labour motion handed the Israeli government a right of veto, by insisting that Hamas release its hostages as a precondition for the ceasefire to start.

Labour's call for "an immediate humanitarian ceasefire" was no such thing, as it allowed Israel to carry on fighting.

Read more: Neoconservatives and Islamophobes, not Muslims, are the real threat to British democracy

A coalition of Palestinian organisations has called for a "total energy embargo" on Israel until it halts its war on the Gaza Strip.

Launched on Monday, the Global Energy Embargo has called for organisations, workers and environmental activists to stop all energy exports to Israel until it puts an end to "the genocide and its regime of apartheid and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian people". 

The campaign is working with a team of researchers to analyse energy flows to Israel and identify choke points in its supply chain.

In addition to halting fuel imports, the coalition is also demanding an end to Israeli gas exports to Europe.

Citing Israel's "continuing impunity" following the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) ruling to proceed with South Africa’s case charging the country with genocide, a coalition spokesperson told Middle East Eye: "We’re currently at a time where it takes more than just an ICJ ruling to actually enforce the kind of measures we need."

Read more: Palestinian coalition calls for 'total energy embargo' on Israel

Three Palestinians, who were waiting for aid near Gaza City, were killed after being shelled by Israeli artillery fire Palestinian news agency Wafa reported on Wednesday. 

In addition to the Palestinians killed while waiting for food, Wafa reported that Israeli shelling has killed another three people and wounded six others in the Sheikh Ijlin neighbourhood in southern Gaza City.

The international community “must stand against” the “deliberate starvation” of Palestinian people by Israel said Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday.

Majed al-Ansari, spokesman for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also emphasised that aid currently entering Gaza is a “very small part” of what’s needed on the ground.

“So far, we have not seen any real pressure from the international community to allow full and unconditional entry of aid,” he said. “Aid should be freely provided without restrictions.”

Abdullah Hammoud, the mayor of Dearborn, a Detroit suburb known as the “Capital of Arab America” has welcomed the significant number of people who voted “uncommitted” in the US presidential primaries in Michigan.

“Today, thousands said, ‘Enough.’ As American citizens and Michigan voters, we have made our voices heard at the ballot box,” Hammoud wrote in a social media post.

“Now, it is up to President Biden to listen to Michigan and do the right thing.”

The Israeli military announced that two soldiers were killed on Tuesday in northern Gaza, raising the death toll since ground operations started to 242.

The army said on Wednesday that another seven soldiers of the Tzabar Battalion were seriously wounded in the same incident.

Good morning Middle East Eye readers, 

Here are the latest developments on day 145 of Israel's war on Gaza: 

• One in six children under two in northern Gaza is suffering from acute malnutrition and wasting the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs tells the UN Security Council
• The Israeli military, supported by bulldozers, has stormed the city of Jenin and the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank and destroyed infrastructure, including roads
• Early figures show that about 15% of US Democrats have voted “uncommitted” in the Michigan presidential primary in protest to Joe Biden’s pro-Israel policies
• The US military’s Central Command has said that it has shot down five “Houthi one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicles” launched from Yemen at vessels in the Red Sea

Hello MEE readers.

US President Joe Biden said that he expected a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas to be achieved by early next week. However, Israel, Hamas, and Qatari mediators all expressed caution about progress over a potential deal.

Hamas is currently weighing a proposal that was agreed by Israel at talks in Paris last week. That deal would see a 40-day ceasefire. The two sides have delegations dealing with the details in Qatar.

Meanwhile, the UN is continuing to warn about the worsening humanitarian situation in the enclave, with a senior UN official warning that one quarter of Gaza's population are only a step away from famine.

Here's what you need to know about the war in Gaza from today:

• A new poll released on Tuesday found that 67 percent of US voters support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

• Michigan voters headed to the polls on Tuesday for the presidential primary, which has turned into a litmus test for how many voters will sign on to the "uncommitted" campaign to not vote for Biden over his support for Israel's war in Gaza.

• Biden said that Israel had "made a commitment to me" that they have "the ability to evacuate significant portions of Rafah before they go and take out the remainder of Hamas". The comments appeared to indicate US approval of an Israeli operation on Rafah.

• The US announced that Israel has agreed to restart the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, which will be used to support essential services and strengthen the economy of the occupied West Bank.

• A second Palestinian died from starvation in northern Gaza.

• Egypt conducted their first air drop of humanitarian aid to the enclave on Tuesday.

The Biden administration came under fire from lawmakers on Tuesday over the lack of congressional approval to conduct military strikes against Yemen’s Houthis and defend foreign ships in the Red Sea.

“There is no existing law that would permit military action against the Houthis,” Democratic Senator Chris Murphy said at Tuesday’s Senate hearing in Washington DC.

“For the military campaign to continue, I believe that a tailored, time-bound congressional authorisation isn’t just nice to have. It is required,” he said.

To read the full story, click below.

US officials grilled over lack of congressional approval for Houthi strikes

A new poll released on Tuesday found that 67 percent of US voters support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, which the Biden administration has continuously rejected in favour of temporary pauses in fighting.

The poll, conducted by Data for Progress, found that the number was even higher among Democratic voters, with 77 percent of them supporting a permanent ceasefire.

"Around two-thirds of voters (67 percent) - including majorities of Democrats (77 percent), Independents (69 percent), and Republicans (56 percent) - support the US calling for a permanent ceasefire and a de-escalation of violence in Gaza," the group said.

Israel has agreed to restart the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority (PA) which will be used to support essential services and strengthen the economy of the occupied West Bank, the US announced on Tuesday.

Under interim peace accords reached in the 1990s, Israel's finance ministry collects taxes on behalf of the Palestinians and makes monthly transfers to the PA. But no payments have taken place since November, following the start of Israel's war on Gaza.

Read the full story by clicking below.

Israel resumes tax revenue transfers to Palestinian Authority, US announces

Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that Israel detected 20 rockets that crossed into the country from Lebanon, adding that an anti-tank missile was detected crossing into Israeli territory towards the Meron area.

Hagari said that a number of the rockets were intercepted by Israel, but added that there was damage detected at an airbase in Meron.

Hagari's statement added that the military is now attacking Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon.