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The Jewish settlement of Efrat in the occupied West Bank [File: Mahmoud Illean/AP]
By Joseph Stepansky
Published On 19 Jul 2024

This live page is now closed. You can continue to follow our coverage of the war in Gaza here.

20 Jul 2024 - 00:00
 (00:00 GMT)

Thanks for joining us

This live page is now closed. For our live coverage of the Israel-Gaza war, please follow along on our new page, here.

For more context on the conflict, read more about illegal Israeli settlement expansion amid the war, here.

Or read more about the implications of the Yemen-based Houthis first strike on Tel Aviv, Israel, here.

 

 

19 Jul 2024 - 23:55
 (23:55 GMT)

Here’s what happened today

This live page will soon be closing. Here are today’s top updates:

  • The ICJ has ruled that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank is in violation of international law, calling for the withdrawal of settlers and reparations for those affected.
  • Palestinian officials, as well as several Arab and Western countries, have hailed the ruling as the clearest declaration yet of the illegality of Israel’s actions, while Israeli officials have roundly rejected the non-binding ruling.
  • At least 50 people were killed in the latest Israeli attacks across Gaza, as concerns mount over the discovery of poliovirus in sewage in the enclave.
  • Independent experts have warned the killing of six-year-old Hind Rajab, her family and two paramedics in Gaza City in February may amount to a war crime, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has said.
  • The UK has said it will renew funding for UNRWA after a months-long pause.
19 Jul 2024 - 23:45
 (23:45 GMT)

Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia welcome ICJ ruling

The foreign ministries of Iraq, Jordan and Saudi Arabia have welcomed the ICJ’s advisory opinion that found Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories to be illegal, saying the landmark ruling guarantees the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

“It is a clear ruling on the side of Palestinian people’s right to justice, freedom [and] statehood,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi wrote in a post on X. “The end of occupation is the only path to peace that will guarantee the rights and security of all.”

Iraq’s Foreign Ministry stressed that it will “enhance efforts aimed at restoring stability in the Palestinian territories and the Middle Eastern region”.

Saudi Arabia stressed the need to take practical and credible steps to reach a fair solution to the Palestinian question.

19 Jul 2024 - 23:30
 (23:30 GMT)

At least 50 killed across Gaza over last day

As the world responded to a landmark ICJ ruling declaring Israel’s occupation of the West Bank in violation of international law, Israeli forces continued attacks across Gaza.

At least 24 people were killed in attacks in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, according to local authorities.

Other killings included three people in an Israeli raid on a house south of Khan Younis and another Palestinian killed north of Nuseirat. Attacks were also reported in Deir el-Balah.

19 Jul 2024 - 23:15
 (23:15 GMT)

20-year-old critically injured during clashes in Beit Ummar

A 20-year-old man has been critically injured during clashes with the Israeli military in the occupied West Bank town of Beit Ummar, the Palestinian Wafa news agency has reported.

The Israeli army fired live bullets, stun grenades and tear gas as it stormed the town north of Hebron.

The man, who was not identified, suffered a bullet injury to the head that paramedics deemed serious, the agency reported.

19 Jul 2024 - 23:00
 (23:00 GMT)

ICJ ruling latest blow to Israel’s world standing

By Hamdah Salhut

Reporting from Doha, Qatar

Al Jazeera is reporting from outside Israel because it has been banned by the Israeli government.

You have people who’ve been taken to the streets across the world against Israel’s war on Gaza.

In the last couple of months as well, you’ve had countries who’ve recognised a Palestinian state, some who’ve downgraded their ties with Israel, and some – even allies of Israel like the United States and several European countries – who have imposed sanctions on violent Israeli settlers.

But instead of taking a step back and saying, let’s re-create this policy, Israel is saying that nothing they are doing is wrong.

You have a new generation of people who are watching this war on Gaza, the slaughter of the Palestinian people, nearly 40,000 people who have been killed. They’re watching it on their phone. They’re watching it live-streamed.

These are people who are speaking up, voting in new leadership, and there are governments all over the world that are going to have to decide how they’re going to deal with Israel.

19 Jul 2024 - 22:45
 (22:45 GMT)

Pentagon chief re-pledges ‘ironclad’ commitment to Israel after Houthi attack

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has held a call with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant in the wake of the Houthi drone attack on Tel Aviv.

The attack, which killed one person, occurred about a block away from a US embassy office.

“The Secretary expressed his condolences for the Israeli citizen killed and others wounded in the attack and reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s security and Israel’s right to self-defence,” the Pentagon said in a statement.

The US, Israel’s top ally, has yet to respond to today’s ICJ ruling or say what implications it may have for future support.

19 Jul 2024 - 22:30
 (22:30 GMT)

Adidas drops Bella Hadid from campaign referencing 1972 Munich Olympics

Adidas has dropped vocal pro-Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid from an advertising campaign that drew criticism from Israel over its reference to the 1972 Munich Olympics.

The campaign was for the retro SL72 shoe, inspired by a design from the 1972 event, where the Palestinian Black September group took Israeli athletes hostage.

Hadid, whose father is Palestinian, said on X that she was not afraid to lose modelling jobs and “will continue to speak up on Palestine”.

“Adidas you will not silence Bella or the supporters of Palestine,” she added.

Read our story here.

19 Jul 2024 - 22:15
 (22:15 GMT)

B’Tselem says international community can no longer evade duty to protect Palestinians

Jerusalem-based nonprofit organisation B’Tselem has said the ICJ’s advisory opinion means the international community has “no more excuses” and “must force Israel to end the occupation”.

“The international community has evaded its duty to protect the Palestinians using various excuses, including the supposed temporary nature of the occupation and the claim that a diplomatic solution designed to resolve the conflict is being negotiated,” the organisation said in a statement.

“The release of the ICJ’s advisory opinion puts an end to these justifications, and now the international community must use every tool – criminal, diplomatic and economic – to force Israeli decision-makers to end the occupation.”

19 Jul 2024 - 22:00
 (22:00 GMT)

US rights group calls on Biden to change course following ICJ ruling

Sarah Leah Whitson, the executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), says the ICJ ruling “should be a turning point in Washington, where too many of our leaders still refuse to acknowledge that there is an occupation at all”.

Meanwhile, Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man, the group’s director of research for Israel-Palestine, said the ruling makes it “impossible to deny the undemocratic one-state, apartheid reality in Israel-Palestine, where half the population lives under a quasi-democracy and the other under a military dictatorship”.

19 Jul 2024 - 21:45
 (21:45 GMT)

Israel’s killing of Hind Rajab may amount to war crime, experts find

The killing of six-year-old Hind Rajab, her family and two paramedics in Gaza City in February may amount to a war crime, independent experts have warned, urging the Israeli government to allow access to human rights monitoring bodies.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said in a statement that Israel’s claims that its troops were not in the area at the time were “unacceptable”.

The international body said forensic analysis of the crime scene offered “compelling evidence about the location of the family’s car stranded in the line of sight of an Israeli tank and how it was shot at from very close range using a type of weapon that can only be attributed to the Israeli forces”.

It added that the absence of proper investigation and accountability five months on was “deeply troubling and may in itself amount to a violation of the right to life”.

19 Jul 2024 - 21:30
 (21:30 GMT)

ICJ opinion confirms Israel is committing ‘crime of apartheid’: Oxfam

Reacting to the ICJ advisory opinion on the policies and practices of Israel’s occupation, Oxfam said the ruling confirmed that Israel “is committing the crime of apartheid in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which is one of the most serious international crimes”.

“There must now be an end to the occupation, the dismantling of settlements, and complete self-determination for Palestinians,” Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Regional Director for the Middle East, said in a statement.

“The international community cannot continue to ignore legal rulings regarding Israel’s illegal policies and inhumane practices. The UN Security Council must act now and finally put an end to the impunity that Israel has enjoyed for decades.”

19 Jul 2024 - 21:15
 (21:15 GMT)
Analysis

How Israeli settlements are taking over the West Bank as Gaza war rages

By Mat Nashed

The Israeli army and settlers have displaced 1,285 Palestinians and destroyed 641 structures since October 7, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

At least 15 Palestinian farming communities have been completely cleared while civilians from several other communities have been displaced by settler attacks. Many of these farmers have been forced to take temporary refuge in nearby West Bank towns.

Read our story here.

19 Jul 2024 - 21:01
 (21:01 GMT)
Houthi

Injuries reported as Israel strikes Deir el-Balah

Our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic are reporting an Israeli strike on a building near the al-Baraka roundabout in Deir el-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip.

Several people have been wounded, our correspondent said.

We will bring you more information on this as we get it.

19 Jul 2024 - 21:00
 (21:00 GMT)

If you’re just joining us

Here are the latest updates:

  • Countries across the world have reacted to the ICJ’s ruling saying Israel’s occupation of the West Bank is in violation of international law and calling for the removal of settlers.
  • Israeli officials have rejected the non-binding ruling, while Israeli settlers launched a wave of attacks in the occupied West Bank.
  • A WHO official has warned that the detection of the polio virus in sewage in Gaza means that displaced Palestinians are already infected and the virus is circulating.
  • Rights groups have welcomed the UK’s decision to restore funding to UNRWA, saying the move will save lives.
  • The Yemen-based Houthis have claimed an attack on Tel Aviv, the first time the group is known to have successfully targeted the city. Israel has said the successful attack was due to a human error.
19 Jul 2024 - 20:45
 (20:45 GMT)

WATCH: A simple guide to Israeli occupation, as ICJ rules presence ‘unlawful’

The International Court of Justice has ruled Israel’s ongoing occupation of the West Bank is illegal.

The non-binding ruling could pave the way for Israeli leaders to be prosecuted at the ICJ.

Soraya Lennie explains the issue at the centre of the case.

19 Jul 2024 - 20:35
 (20:35 GMT)

Israel claims attacks on Hezbollah arms depots in southern Lebanon

The Israeli military has claimed attacks on Hezbollah weapon depots in Tayr Harfa and Blida, according to footage posted on X.

Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that the raid in Tayr Harfa caused a fire to break out in a building.

NNA also reported strikes on the southern town of Mays al-Jabal and on the outskirts of the town of Wazzani.

19 Jul 2024 - 20:25
 (20:25 GMT)

Photos: Jordanians stage protest in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza

Demonstrators take part in a protest in support of Gaza in Amman, Jordan [Jehad Shelbak/Reuters]
Jordan has reaffirmed its commitment to securing an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip [Jehad Shelbak/Reuters]
Activists in Jordan have repeatedly staged protests in support of Palestinians in Gaza [Jehad Shelbak/Reuters]

19 Jul 2024 - 20:15
 (20:15 GMT)

Video shows strike near Civil Defence, journalists in az-Zawayda

The video, which has been verified by Al Jazeera’s Sanad unit, shows a man wearing a “press” vest standing next to a member of the Civil Defence with a fire hose over his shoulder in the central Gaza area.

An Israeli strike then hits just metres (yards) away as the men dive for cover.

In a post on Instagram, the man who took the video, activist Saleh Aljafarawi, said the Israeli attack “deliberately targets the place where the ambulance crews, Civil Defence and press crews are located”.

Gaza’s Government Media Office said on Wednesday that 160 journalists and 79 members of the Civil Defence have been killed since the war began.

19 Jul 2024 - 20:05
 (20:05 GMT)

Israel and Hezbollah claim cross-border attacks

Israel’s military says it has targeted “ammunition depots” in Tayr Harfa and Beyda in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has also claimed a string of attacks on northern Israel, including targeting Israeli barracks in Safed.

Both sides have exchanged near-daily attacks since Hezbollah began attacking Israel in support of Gaza on October 8.