Palestine Financial News

Canada, Australia and New Zealand on Thursday called for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, according to a joint statement released in response to reports about Israel's planned military operation in Rafah. «We are gravely concerned by indications that Israel is planning a ground offensive into Rafah. A military operation into Rafah would be catastrophic,» the statement by the Prime Ministers of the three countries said.

World Health Organization on Wednesday warned that an Israeli military offensive against Rafah in southern Gaza would cause an «unfathomable catastrophe» and push the enclave's health system closer to the brink of collapse. «Military activities in this area, this densely populated area, would be, of course, an unfathomable catastrophe… and would even further expand the humanitarian disaster beyond imagination,» said Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative for Gaza and the West Bank.

Israeli ground invasion of Rafah in the Gaza Strip, saying an offensive could «lead to a slaughter» in the southern region of the Palestinian enclave where more than 1 million people are sheltering. Israel says it wants to flush out Hamas militants from hideouts in Rafah and free Israeli hostages being held there, and is making plans to evacuate trapped Palestinian civilians. «Military operations in Rafah could lead to a slaughter in Gaza. They could also leave an already fragile humanitarian operation at death's door,» said U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths. «We lack the safety guarantees, the aid supplies and the staff capacity to keep this operation afloat.

Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza has also wreaked havoc on the Palestinian economy in the West Bank

Investing.com-- Oil prices moved little in Asian trade on Tuesday as traders turned cautious ahead of key U.S. inflation data that is expected to factor into the path of interest rates, while an OPEC monthly report was also in focus. 

Houthis fired two missiles on Monday at an Iran-bound cargo ship in the Red Sea, causing minor damage to the vessel but no injuries, U.S. military officials said. The early morning strikes appeared to be the first time the Houthis have targeted an Iran-bound vessel since starting attacks on international shipping in solidarity with Palestinians over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, shipping sources said. «Iranian-backed Houthi militants fired two missiles from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward the Bab al-Mandeb,» U.S Central Command said on the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter.

Israeli forces rescued two hostages early Monday, storming a heavily guarded apartment in a densely packed town in the Gaza Strip as airstrikes carried out to cover the raid killed more than 60 Palestinians, including women and children. The rescue in Rafah briefly lifted the spirits of Israelis shaken by the plight of the dozens of hostages held by Hamas. The nation is still reeling from the militant group's cross-border raid last year that started the war. The overnight bombardment brought devastation in Rafah, which is packed with some 1.4 million people, most of whom fled their homes elsewhere in Gaza to escape fighting. Associated Press footage showed a large area of flattened houses, tattered tents and lines of bloodied bodies brought into nearby hospitals.

By Stephanie Kelly

By Richard Cowan and Patricia Zengerle

Dutch government on Monday to halt the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel, citing a clear risk of violations of international law. A trio of human rights organizations brought a civil suit against the Netherlands in December, arguing authorities needed to reevaluate the export license in light of Israeli military action in the Gaza Strip. «It is undeniable that there is a clear risk that the exported F-35 parts are used in serious violations of international humanitarian law,» Judge Bas Boele said in reading out the ruling, eliciting cheers from several people in the courtroom. The exports must cease within seven days.

markets. Brent crude futures were down 54 cents, or about 0.7%, at $81.65 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures slipped 32 cents, also about 0.4%, to $76.52 a barrel at 1426 GMT.

IMF and World Bank warned on Monday that the Gaza war and the related attacks on shipping though the Red Sea pose threats to the global economy. The Israel-Hamas war raging since October has already hit the Middle East and North Africa region's economy, said the International Monetary Fund's managing director Kristalina Georgieva.

By Sudarshan Varadhan

Gaza hospital officials told AP. Notably, Israel managed to rescue only two of the claimed 136 Hamas hostages in this airstrike. The Israeli raid took place in Rafah, the city on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled to escape fighting elsewhere in the Israel-Hamas war.

There was a big controversy in the science-fiction community last month when it emerged that the 2023 Hugo Awards, decided in October at the world convention in Chengdu, China, had inexplicably disqualified a few prominent entries from the list of nominations.Those quietly dropped included R.F. Kuang’s bestselling Babel and Xiran Jay Zhao’s Iron Widow, prompting suspicion that they might have triggered Beijing’s censorship filters. Even an entry by the legendary Neil Gaiman was disqualified.

Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Monday after Israel said it had «concluded» a series of strikes in southern Gaza, slightly easing concerns about supply from the Middle East. Brent crude futures were down 43 cents, or 0.5%, at $81.76 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were 46 cents, or 0.6% lower, at $76.38 a barrel at 0135 GMT.

Biden told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday that Israel should not proceed with a military operation in Rafah without a plan to ensure the safety of the roughly 1 million people sheltering there, the White House said. Biden's call with Netanyahu happened days after the U.S. leader told reporters that Israel's military response in the Gaza Strip was «over the top,» reflecting growing concern and frustration over the rising death toll of civilians in the Palestinian enclave. The U.S. president reaffirmed the shared goal of seeing Hamas defeated and ensuring the long-term security of Israel, but also called for «urgent and specific steps» to increase the throughput and consistency of humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians trapped in Gaza, the White House said in a statement.

By Dylan Martinez

imaginable permutation of land swaps and security arrangements. All failed. And yet something changed after October 7th.

Iran marked Sunday the 45th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution amid tensions gripping the wider Middle East over Israel's continued war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Thousands of Iranians marched through major streets and squares decorated with flags, balloons and banners with revolutionary and religious slogans. In Tehran, crowds waved Iranian flags, chanted slogans, and carried placards with the traditional «Death to America» and «Death to Israel» written on them. Some burned US and Israeli flags, a common practice in pro-government rallies. Processions started out from several points, converging at Azadi Square. State TV showed crowds in many cities and towns, claiming that «millions participated in the rallies» across the country.

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 44 Palestinians — including more than a dozen children — in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Saturday, hours after Israel's prime minister said he had asked the military to plan for the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people there ahead of a ground invasion. Benjamin Netanyahu did not provide details or a timeline, but the announcement set off panic and warnings from diplomats. More than half of Gaza's 2.3 million people are packed into Rafah, many after following Israeli evacuation orders that now cover two-thirds of the territory. It's not clear where they could run next.