Latest news with #civildefence
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Islamic State group behind deadly Damascus church attack, Syria's interior minister says
A suicide bomber who blew himself up at the Mar Elias Church on the outskirts of Damascus on Sunday was a member of the Islamic State group, Syria's interior minister said. Early reports from the country's civil defence said the attack killed at least 15 people. A member of the Islamic State group was behind a deadly suicide bombing in a church in Damascus, Syria's interior minister said. The country's civil defence said the attack had killed at least 15 people. "A suicide attacker affiliated with the Daesh (IS) terrorist group entered the Saint Elias church ... opened fire then blew himself up with an explosive belt," the ministry said in a statement. The Syrian civil defence said in a statement that the attack killed "more than 15 people and a number of wounded, according to a preliminary toll". The explosion in Dweil'a in the outskirts of Damascus took place as people were praying inside the church. Read morePost-Assad Syria: Sectarian divides and the struggle for unity The attack was the first of its kind in Syria in years, and comes as Damascus under its de facto Islamist rule is trying to win the support of minorities. (FRANCE 24 with AP and AFP) Read more on FRANCE 24 EnglishRead also:There is no accountability for atrocities against Syrian minorities, analyst saysPost-Assad Syria: Sectarian divides and the struggle for unity
BBC News
4 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
At least 12 Palestinians killed waiting for aid in Gaza, say medics
At least 12 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces while waiting for aid in central Gaza, according to rescuers and say the group was killed by gunfire near an aid distribution site run by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) on GHF denied there were any incidents near its site. The Israeli military told Reuters that "suspects" had attempted to approach forces in the area of Netzarim, and that soldiers had fired warning shots. It said it was unaware of any incident is the latest in almost daily shootings near such aid sites in Gaza. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed since late May, when the GHF took over aid distribution in Gaza in an attempt by Israel to bypass the UN as the main supplier of all the casualties in Gaza in recent days have been linked to incidents around the delivery of aid, rather than Israeli strikes on Hamas health ministry said on Thursday that since midnight 12 people had been killed while seeking aid, without giving further Hamas-run civil defence agency - Gaza's main emergency service - told AFP news agency that a group was killed by Israeli gunfire near the Netzarim corridor, where thousands of people have been gathering daily seeking defence official Mohammad al-Mughayyir said 15 people were killed and 60 injured in the incident. Israel does not allow international news organisations, including the BBC, into Gaza, making it difficult to verify said it had spoken to witness Bassam Abu Shaar, who said thousands of people had gathered overnight at the GHF-backed distribution site, and that Israeli forces opened fire at about 01:00 (22:00 GMT).He said the size of the crowd had made it impossible for people to escape the gunfire, adding: "We couldn't help them or even escape ourselves." The GHF however told the BBC: "There were no incidents anywhere near our site today.""This is yet again another example of false and misleading reporting by the GHM [Gaza health ministry]."The BBC has contacted the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for a to Reuters, the Israeli military said people had approached its forces in a threatening manner. In a Telegram statement on Wednesday, Hamas called for the UN and its humanitarian agencies to be the sole distributors of aid in Gaza. The UN and other aid groups refuse to co-operate with the new aid system led by the GHF. The UN says the system contravenes the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality, and also warn that Gaza's population faces catastrophic levels of hunger after an 11-week total Israeli blockade that was partially eased a month US and Israel say GHF's system will prevent aid being stolen by Hamas, which the group denies on Thursday, civil defence teams recovered dozens of bodies from various parts of the Gaza Strip following reports of Israeli people were reportedly killed when a tent sheltering displaced civilians was hit in Jabalia refugee camp in northern and relatives of the victims told the BBC that those killed were a couple and their five children from the Asaliya Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken least 55,637 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
The National
12-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Gaza offline after fibre optic link severed amid Israeli bombardment
Gaza plunged into a complete internet blackout on Thursday after the last main fibre optic cable connecting the enclave was severed during Israeli bombardment. The territory's Telecommunications Regulatory Authority said all of Gaza's internet and landline communications were cut off after attacks on vital infrastructure networks, official Palestinian media reported. Internet watchdog NetBlocks said its data showed disruption to internet connectivity across Gaza, which was likely to affect search, rescue and aid efforts. The regulatory authority blamed "the systematic targeting of communications infrastructure, despite numerous previous attempts to repair several severed links", the official Wafa news agency said. Gaza city and the northern Gaza Strip had been struggling with internet cuts for two days but the latest blackout has isolated the entire enclave, preventing Palestinians from accessing essential services, Wafa added. The regulatory authority called on the international community to intervene to ensure access for technical crews to safely carry out infrastructure repairs. It said Israel was preventing such teams from fixing cables and was obstructing access to back-up and alternative network routes. Repeated efforts over several months to reach and repair network connections have been consistently blocked by Israel, the authority said. On Wednesday, civil defence authorities in northern Gaza said internet blackouts were hindering efforts to identify and reach sites bombed by the Israeli military. 'We are facing extreme difficulty in locating bombing sites due to signal outages and the inability of residents to contact us,' they said. Several media organisations have apologised for an inability to cover the news in the territory, citing the lack of internet access and difficulty in making phone calls. Some citizens have been relying on eSIM connections but these can require great effort to secure a signal such as by climbing to higher ground or moving closer to the eastern border of Gaza near Israel. Since the start of the war, telecoms and internet networks in the enclave have suffered continuous disruption due to Israeli attacks or depletion of fuel used to operate electricity generators.
Khaleej Times
11-06-2025
- Climate
- Khaleej Times
Sharjah: Fire breaks out in industrial area, police cordon off road
A fire broke out in Sharjah Industrial Area 6 on Wednesday morning, sending thick plumes of smoke into the sky that was visible from a distance. According to residents, the blaze erupted around 9.45am. Fire brigades were seen rushing to the spot shortly after, at around 10am. Police have cordoned off the road leading to the site as civil defence teams continue firefighting operations. A worker at a nearby garage said he first noticed a burning smell before seeing the smoke rise. 'We had just opened our garage and were settling down when we smelled something burning. When I came out, I saw thick black smoke coming from a nearby place just a few blocks away. That was around 9.45am,' he said. 'We knew something big had caught fire. Within minutes, fire engines were seen rushing to the area.' A plastic trader who runs a business a few shops away from the site said the smoke was intense. 'Since morning, many of our clients have wanted to come, but they found that road leading to the area is blocked. We heard that it's probably an aluminium factory that caught fire. The road was sealed off quickly, and the police asked everyone to move away," he said.
Free Malaysia Today
28-05-2025
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
Rescuers say 8 killed in Israeli strike on northern Gaza
At least 3,822 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18. (EPA Images pic) GAZA CITY : Gaza rescuers said eight people were killed today in an Israeli strike in the north of the besieged Palestinian territory. 'Eight dead (were) transported as a result of an Israeli airstrike' on the home of a local journalist in the Al-Saftawi area north of Gaza City at around 2am, civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP. Israel has stepped up its offensive in Gaza this month, aiming for 'the defeat of Hamas', more than 18 months after the group's October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war. Some 1,218 people were killed in that attack, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Gunmen also took 251 hostages, 57 of whom remain in Gaza, including 34 who the Israeli military says are dead. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Monday that at least 3,822 people had been killed in the territory since Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 53,977, mostly civilians.
