Death toll in Gaza rises to 119, 31 children, 830 wounded.. US still gives Israel Impunity

Israel pounds Gaza with air raids, shelling

Death toll in Gaza rises to 119, as threat of a ground assault looms after Israel amasses tanks and troops near besieged enclave.

Palestinian civil defense teams take part in rescue works in the rubble of a building belonging to a Palestinian family after Israeli fighter jets conducted airstrikes in Beit Lahia, Gaza [Mustafa Hassona/Anadolu Agency]

late news: IDF announces Israeli GROUND TROOPS now ‘attacking’ Gaza Strip amid fears of imminent invasion

By Virginia Pietromarchi14 May 2021

Israel continued on Friday to bombard the Gaza Strip with air raids and artillery shells as it stepped up the deployment of troops and tanks near the besieged Palestinian enclave.

At least 119 Palestinians, including 31 children, have been killed and more than 830 wounded since hostilities flared up on Monday. Hundreds of Palestinian families have taken shelter in UN-run schools in northern Gaza to escape Israeli artillery fire.

Comment: ‘Israel’s hubris knows no bounds, it has total impunity with a continuing ‘blank check’ from the USA and now it’s legally a Jewish State any opposition is legally anti-semitic’.

• Israelis take Palestinian homes.. sparking new War “If I don’t steal your home, someone else will steal it,”
• Gaza’s death toll soars as Israel kills senior Hamas commanders
• Rising attacks in religiously ‘mixed’ Israel towns amid Gaza

Despite international calls for an immediate halt of all hostilities, including from United Nations chief Antonio Guterres, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged the offensive will continue “as needed to restore calm in the state of Israel”.

Hamas fired another barrage of rockets towards Israel, hitting the city of Ashkelon in the early hours on Friday.

At least six Israelis and one Indian national have also been killed. The Israeli army said hundreds of rockets have been fired from Gaza towards various locations in Israel and they have added reinforcements near the enclave’s eastern lands.

Meanwhile, violence is brewing between Israeli settlers and Palestinian citizens in the West Bank as well as in Israel. In another potential escalation, at least three rockets were fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel.

Here are the latest updates: 10 mins ago (07:33 GMT)

‘Palestinians aren’t going anywhere’

United States Representative Rashida Tlaib struggles to hold back tears in Congress as she questioned the US government’s “unconditional support” for Israel. Other Democrats gave their “unwavering” backing to Israel.

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PODCAST: The Take – In Sheikh Jarrah, Palestinians confront a city’s future

What started out as protests against forced expulsions in a Palestinian neighbourhood has turned into an Israeli crackdown that has engulfed much of occupied East Jerusalem, including holy sites like Al-Aqsa Mosque.

But Sheikh Jarrah is just one neighbourhood, and displacements are unfolding across the occupied territories.

As the reverberations in Sheikh Jarrah spread beyond, how will it affect the future of Palestinians in Jerusalem?

Listen to Al Jazeera’s podcast The Take, with our host, Malika Bilal. https://art19.com/shows/the-take/episodes/aa51140a-d0de-4651-9a9c-e1c90a8a8f2f/embed?theme=light-orange

دمار كبير في منازل المواطنين الفلسطينيين في شمال قطاع غزة، جرّاء الغارات الجوية العنيفة التي نفذتها طائرات الاحتلال الحربية منتصف الليل. pic.twitter.com/b8lbjgd3ni

— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) May 14, 2021

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Hamas leader calls for demonstrations

Ismail Haniya has urged Palestinians across the occupied territories and in Israel to go out and demonstrate on Friday, the second day of Eid al-Fitr.

The Hamas chief called for the marches in protest of the latest Israeli police crackdown of Muslim worshippers at Al-Aqsa Mosque compound as well as the continuing bombardment of Gaza.

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More Israeli shelling reported in Gaza towns

Local media are reporting more Israeli shelling and aerial bombardments in Gaza.

In the last few minutes, “violent” artillery shelling hit east of Deir al-Balah governorate just south of Gaza City.

Artillery fired also reportedly hit the homes of civilians east of Maghazi, also in Deir al-Balah area.

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Israeli settlers attack Palestinian homes in West Bank

A video posted on social media by New Press publication showed several alleged Israeli settlers attacking Palestinian homes in the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank early on Friday.

مستوطنون يهاجمون منازل الفلسطنيين الان في الخليل pic.twitter.com/cOY444jGLH

— Newpress | نيو برس (@NewpressPs) May 14, 2021

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US continues ‘Carte Blanche’ support to Israel, blocking the UN

”Attempts to condemn Israel for its excesses have been thwarted by successive US administrations, which have exercised the veto power in the Security Council to protect a client state whose survival has depended largely on billions of dollars in US economic and military aid, state-of-the-art weapons systems and outright military grants doled out gratis”..

”The US has vetoed no less than 45 resolutions critical of Israel, “thereby rendering the Security Council effectively impotent”.

”The State Department spokesperson defended the Israeli air strikes in a crowded urban area in the Gaza Strip on the grounds that every state has a right to self-defense. However, when pressed, he was unwilling to acknowledge–even theoretically–that Palestinians also have a right to self-defense”.

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