Is Israel Deploying a ‘Surrender or Starve’ Strategy in Gaza?, The Washington Post
Aid workers described a catastrophic scene. “It is like hell to be honest,” Fares Afana, the head of ambulance services in northern Gaza, told The Washington Post in a voice note on Sunday […] The intensifying siege will “continue as long as required in order to achieve its objectives,” the IDF said in a statement. It comes alongside an apparent blockade. Israel steadily thinned the aid reaching northern Gaza from August to September. No food trucks have entered at all in October.
Israeli Defense Officials: Gov’t Pushing Aside Hostage Deal, Eyeing Gaza Annexation, Haaretz
In addition, they say, Israel’s political leaders have not held any discussions with the various security branches about the condition of the hostages. Army commanders in the field who spoke with Haaretz say the recent decision to launch operations in northern Gaza was taken without any in-depth discussion.
Netanyahu Tells US That Israel Will Strike Iranian Military, Not Nuclear or Oil, Targets, Officials Say, The Washington Post
The Israeli strike on Iran would be carried out before the U.S. elections on Nov. 5, the official familiar with the matter said, because a lack of action could be interpreted by Iran as a sign of weakness. “It will be one in a series of responses,” she said.
65 Doctors, Nurses and Paramedics: What We Saw in Gaza, The New York Times
I worked as a trauma surgeon in Gaza from March 25 to April 8. I’ve volunteered in Ukraine and Haiti, and I grew up in Flint, Mich. I’ve seen violence and worked in conflict zones. But of the many things that stood out about working in a hospital in Gaza, one got to me: Nearly every day I was there, I saw a new young child who had been shot in the head or the chest, virtually all of whom went on to die. Thirteen in total.
UN Accuses Israel of Tank Raid on Peacekeepers in Lebanon, The Financial Times
The UN accused Israel of a “flagrant violation” of international law on Sunday after Israeli tanks broke into a position stationed by peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, hours before Benjamin Netanyahu told international forces to withdraw from combat areas.
US Protests to Israel Over Strike on Hospital That Sparked ‘Horrifying’ Fire in Gaza Tent Camp, The Times of Israel
The White House says it has protested to Israel over last night’s IDF strike on a hospital compound in central Gaza that led to “horrifying” images of displaced Palestinians being burned alive when their nearby tent camp caught fire. “The images and video of what appear to be displaced civilians burning alive following an Israeli airstrike are deeply disturbing, and we have made our concerns clear to the Israeli government,” a White House National Security spokesperson tells The Times of Israel.
‘They will vote against Harris’: Arab Americans in Michigan desert Democrats over Gaza, The Guardian
Harris has maintained her stance on Israel’s right to defend itself and has largely ignored the conditions laid out by the uncommitted movement, which declined to endorse her (but has forcefully come out against Trump). A poll by the Arab American Institute has Harris 18 points below Biden’s 2020 level of support among Arab Americans.
Israeli Strikes on Northern Gaza Kill at Least 20, Aid Workers Say, The New York Times
The humanitarian crisis in the northern Gaza Strip deepened on Saturday as an Israeli bombardment killed at least 20 people, trapped thousands more and prompted one of the area’s last functioning hospitals to issue desperate pleas for assistance.
Israeli Rights Groups Warn IDF Might Be Implementing Controversial Plan to Besiege Northern Gaza, The Times of Israel
Israel has ordered the entire remaining population of the northern third of Gaza, estimated at around 400,000 people, to evacuate to the south and has reportedly blocked aid entering the area since the start of the month… A statement, signed by B’Tselem, Gisha, Yesh Din and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel, warns that states “have an obligation to prevent the crimes of starvation and forcible transfer.”
US to Send Anti-Missile System and Troops to Israel, Pentagon Says, Reuters
The United States said on Sunday it will send U.S. troops to Israel along with an advanced U.S. anti-missile system, in a highly unusual deployment meant to bolster the country’s air defenses following missile attacks by Iran.
UN Security Council Voices ‘Strong Concern’ for UN Peacekeepers After Israeli Attacks, AP
The U.N. Security Council expressed “strong concern” Monday as Israel has fired on and wounded U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon during intensified fighting, reiterating its support for their role in supporting security in the region.
Why Hezbollah Drone Attack Has Caused Such Alarm in Israel, Sky News
The Hezbollah drone attack on an Israeli base over the weekend, which killed four soldiers and injured more than 60, has caused considerable alarm within the IDF.
Dozens of Pro-Palestinian Protesters Arrested Outside New York Stock Exchange, Reuters
Police arrested more than 200 pro-Palestinian demonstrators who had staged a sit-in outside the New York Stock Exchange on Monday to demand an end to U.S. support for Israel’s war in Gaza, authorities said.
‘I Say Bye to My Kids, in Case We Don’t Wake Up’ – Two Gazans Film Year Under Israeli Attack [Video], BBC
Within days of Israel launching its war in Gaza last October, two Palestinians began filming their daily lives for the BBC. Aya fled to the south of the territory to find safety, Khalid chose to stay in the north. Between them, they document explosions, multiple evacuations, deaths and the trauma experienced by children caught up in the conflict.
Harris and Trump Vie for Jewish Voters Unsettled by Israel-Gaza Conflict, The Washington Post
Michelle Boorstein writes, “Some Jewish voters are stuck between the two candidates, seeing no good options. Rabbi Rachel Kipnes, 32, of West Philadelphia, considers herself ‘anti-Zionist’ and has signed the pledge by a group called ‘No Ceasefire No Vote’ to refuse to support Harris unless a cease-fire is achieved. She believes the United States could end the fighting if it stopped providing Israel with weapons. Harris has said she doesn’t support an arms embargo.”
Iran Is at a Strategic Crossroads, Carnegie Endowment
Nicole Grajewski argues, “Iran’s possible strategy to reestablish deterrence, or even to make Israel recalculate its options going forward, may have backfired. Merely launching missiles does not automatically create an effective deterrent. Instead, Israel’s anticipated retaliation is expected to be far more severe than its surgical response in April, when U.S. President Joe Biden urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ‘take the win.’ Israel is now likely to launch a forceful counterattack that could inflict significant damage on Iranian targets.”
Ta-Nehisi Coates on Complexity, Clarity, and Truth, Vox
Ta-Nehisi Coates says, “I am of the mind that discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion is never acceptable. There is nothing in this world that will make separate and unequal okay, and there’s nothing — and I’ll use this word — that makes apartheid okay. That’s not complex for me. It’s like the death penalty is not really complex for me, because you cannot guarantee to me that the state will not execute an innocent person. You just can’t. So I’m against it, period. There aren’t any exceptions to that.”
Israel’s Hidden War: The Battle Between Ideologues and Generals That Will Define the Country’s Future, Foreign Affairs
Mairav Zonszein writes, “It’s a clash over the security of the Israeli state, which for many Israelis is a battle over its identity. Israel could heed the warnings of security officials such as Bar or it could continue to be guided by the imperatives of the far right. The latter course will cause more bloodshed, ultimately hurt Israel’s standing and support in the West, and lead to further international isolation and even pariah status.”