World News | Updates | Israel-Hamas War

Jerusalem, Oct 28 (PTI) Here's what is happening in the latest Israel-Hamas war:

Also Read | Israel-Palestine War: Hamas Used Shifa Hospital in Gaza for Terror Activities, Says IDF.

ISRAEL'S SIEGE AND BOMBARDMENT OF GAZA AMOUNT TO WAR CRIMES: OMAN FOREIGN MINISTRY

Cairo: Oman's Foreign Ministry says Israel's siege and bombardment of Gaza amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Also Read | Kazakhstan Fire: 28 Killed, Dozens Missing After Massive Blaze Erupts at Coal Mine in Karaganda Region.

The Omani ministry said in a statement that a wide-scale Israeli ground invasion of Gaza would have “serious catastrophic consequences on the region and the world, and the prospects of achieving peace and stability.”

Oman has a long record of serving as a key broker between Iran and the West when regional tensions flare.

The ministry called for the international community to immediately intervene to stop the Israel-Hamas war and to speed humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.

HAMAS REPORTS FIRING ROCKETS AT ISRAELI CITY OF DIMONA

Beirut: A top Hamas official said Saturday that by shutting down most communications, Israel aims to prevent “the truth” about what is happening in the Gaza Strip from reaching the world.

Speaking to reporters in Beirut on Saturday, Ghazi Hamad alleged that Israel has made “baseless claims and lies” about Hamas militants hiding in tunnels under the Al Shifa hospital in Gaza "to justify the targeting of the hospital”.

He said Israel has forced Palestinians to move from northern parts of Gaza into the southern parts with plans to try to push them to move to Egypt.

“We strongly reject that and say that our Palestinians will stay in their land,” Hamad said.

But he called on the international community to allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza from Egypt, specifically medical equipment and fuel.

Meanwhile, Hamas' military arm, Qassam Brigades, said Saturday afternoon it fired a barrage of rockets on Dimona, a southern Israeli city on the edge of the Negev Desert.

TURKEY PREPARING TO DECLARE ISRAEL A WAR CRIMINAL, PRESIDENT SAYS

Istanbul: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a mass pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul on Saturday that his country was making preparations to proclaim Israel a “war criminal” for its actions in Gaza.

In his address to hundreds of thousands of people who joined the rally, Erdogan also held Western countries responsible for the deaths in Gaza for failing to stop Israel's attacks.

“Israel, we will proclaim you as a war criminal to the world,” Erdoga said. “We are making our preparations, and we will declare Israel to the world as a war criminal.”

Erdogan, whose government recently restored full diplomatic ties with Israel, has stepped up his criticism of the country. Earlier this week, he asserted that the Hamas militant group was not a terrorist organisation but a liberation group fighting for its lands and people.

Participants at the rally waved Turkish and Palestinian flags, chanting “God is great.” Yusuf Islam, the musician formerly known as Cat Stevens, took part in the rally.

UN CHIEF SURPRISED BY ISRAEL'S 'UNPRECEDENTED' BOMBARDMENT OF GAZA

Cairo: UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was surprised by Israel's massive overnight airstrikes on Gaza amid a communication blackout across the besieged strip.

Writing Saturday on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Guterres said he previously had felt encouraged by an apparent growing consensus on the need for a humanitarian cease-fire.

“Regrettably, instead I was surprised by an unprecedented escalation of bombardments, undermining humanitarian objectives. This situation must be reversed,” he said.

Guterres called President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi of Egypt on Saturday, and the two discussed ongoing diplomatic efforts to deescalate the war between Israel and Hamas, the Egyptian presidency said in a statement. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)