A delegation composed of 25 ambassadors and diplomatic representatives from European, Arab, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, and other countries, on an official visit to the Jenin refugee camp, was targeted at a checkpoint by Israeli soldiers’ fire.
The soldiers fired into the air, causing panic and forcing the group to take cover. As the convoy, which also included the Italian Deputy Consul Alessandro Tutino, approached the eastern gate of the camp, the IDF fired shots into the air, surprising the diplomatic delegation.
The IDF confirmed the incident, apologizing for what it called “an inconvenience,” explaining that the group had deviated from the planned route, arriving “in an area where it was not authorized to be.”
The Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, after receiving reassurances from Deputy Consul Tutino about his return to the consulate, expressed his strong condemnation, demanding immediate explanations from the Israeli government and calling the threats against diplomats “unacceptable.”
“I have just instructed the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to summon the Ambassador of Israel to Rome to obtain official clarifications on what happened in Jenin,” Tajani wrote on X.
Meanwhile, thousands of Palestinians are leaving Khan Younis, the second-largest city in the Gaza Strip, after Israel ordered its evacuation.
Five Israeli military divisions simultaneously attacked the Gaza Strip in various areas, in the north in Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun, and in the south in Rafah and near Khan Younis, in the campaign called “Gideon’s Chariots.” Israel has intensified its operations with a large-scale ground offensive, supported by the air force, in a context already marked by heavy bombardments, especially in Deir el-Balah, which have caused at least 500 victims in three days, 135 in a single day.
The Israeli army spokesman Avi Deveren stated that the assault teams aim to hit and destroy Hamas’ command and control system. According to various sources, Muhammad Sinwar, brother of former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who was killed in October 2024, as well as many members of his family, were reportedly killed today.
In the evening, the Israeli occupation army attacked the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahia. An Al Jazeera correspondent reported that Israeli vehicles positioned themselves near the northern entrance, firing directly at the hospital, and then reported the loss of contact with medical personnel and the wounded inside the hospital. Chaos reigned all around.
The Director-General of Gaza’s hospitals, Dr. Muhammad Zaqout, vehemently denounced the systematic Israeli actions against healthcare facilities, which are making it impossible to provide medical assistance. The accusations include the deliberate killing of hospitalized wounded, the prevention of access to hospitals, and the targeting of medical personnel and patients, as has recently happened with the attack on the intensive care unit of the Indonesian Hospital, the bombing of the Al-Awda Hospital, and the firing of 14 rockets against the European Hospital, which have compromised the functionality of healthcare facilities.
The attack on the Indonesian Hospital occurs in the context of an unprecedented intensification of air strikes and ground incursions in the Gaza Strip, despite ongoing negotiations in Doha aimed at reaching a ceasefire and an agreement on the exchange of prisoners.
Faced with this escalation, Egypt, with President al-Sisi at the forefront, has launched an urgent appeal for an immediate ceasefire and the opening of humanitarian corridors, finding resonance in the collaboration for mediation with the United States and Qatar.
Netanyahu’s office states that Israeli negotiators in Qatar are ‘working to exhaust every possibility of an agreement,’ and that the agreement must include the release of all Israeli prisoners, the disarmament of Hamas, and its exile. US envoy Steve Witkoff also calls for the release of hostages as a condition for stopping the bombings of Gaza. In these hours, it seems that Netanyahu, under international pressure, has finally agreed to allow humanitarian aid to enter, and that about a hundred trucks are entering to distribute food.
The very serious humanitarian crisis in Gaza has also mobilized Italian and European politicians, who have gone to the Rafah crossing to strongly demand access for aid and an end to hostilities, denouncing the ongoing “massacre” and urging an arms embargo on Israel, together with the cessation of trade with the settlements. The group, including 11 Italian parliamentarians, three MEPs, and representatives of NGOs, displayed signs reading “Stop Genocide Now,” “End the Illegal Occupation,” and “Stop Arming Israel,” according to the agency.
The UN and the World Food Programme (WFP) have issued a new alarm about the imminent risk of famine in Gaza, where over half a million people are at risk of disease and death, emphasizing the need for immediate action to avert a humanitarian catastrophe. “We are in a race against time to avoid famine,” the WFP said in a post on X. “If we wait until famine is confirmed, it will be too late for too many people.” UNICEF has also denounced the “daily suffering and killing” of children in Gaza, exacerbated by the blockade of emergency aid, reiterating the urgency of a ceasefire and the entry of aid.
This long night of Gaza is now before the eyes of the entire international community, and while the most appropriate definition is debated – war or conflict, hunger or famine, genocide or not – Israel is perpetrating brutal crimes against the Palestinian people in Gaza with absolute impunity.
“Hell is empty, and all the devils are here.” (William Shakespeare – The Tempest)
