WORLD BRIEFING: October 31, 2023
U.S. President Joe Biden salutes trick or treaters at the White House on the Halloween holiday. Credit: Doug Mills/NYT
Israel - Gaza War
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that his country will not agree to a cease-fire. "Just as the United States would not agree to a cease-fire after Pearl Harbor or after the terrorist attack of 9/11, Israel will not agree to a cessation of hostilities with Hamas after the horrific attacks of October 7," Netanyahu said, speaking in a press conference with foreign reporters - NPR
On Monday, Hamas released a video of three Israeli hostages and called on Netanyahu to make a deal to set free some 6,000 Israeli-held Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the hostages' release. It was not clear if the hostages had spoken under duress. Hamas has publicly stated it would accept such a deal.
The number of hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza is up to 240, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said at a press conference Tuesday. Hagari also said 315 IDF soldiers have died since Hamas' attack in Israel on October 7 - CNN
In a sign of growing divisions between the U.S. and some key Allie’s over the war in Gaza, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly is calling for humanitarian “pauses” in Gaza after Israel sent more forces into the region over the weekend and concern mounts over the fate of Palestinian civilians. Joly said “time is running out” and urged all parties to agree to a “truce” to evacuate foreign nationals, release all hostages and allow food, fuel and water into the region - CTV News
Lisa Doughten, from the UN’s humanitarian agency OCHA, said people are becoming increasingly desperate in Gaza as they search for food, water and shelter “amid a relentless bombing campaign that is wiping out whole families and entire neighbourhoods”. Director Doughten wants another entry point into Gaza opened at Kerem Shalom, between Israel and Gaza, the only crossing apparently equipped to process a large number of trucks. Director Doughten also detailed how the health care system is in tatters with patients on the floors and surgeons operating without anaesthesia. There are 1,000 patients dependent on dialysis and 130 premature babies in incubators, whose lives “hang by a thread as hospital backup generators run on fumes”. She said OCHA was deeply concerned by allegations of military installations in the close vicinity of hospitals and the request by Israeli authorities for hospitals to be evacuated. She said there is nowhere safe for patients to go, and moving those on life support and babies in incubators would almost certainly be a death sentence - BBC
Elsewhere
The United States has condemned a violent anti-Semitic event at an airport in Russia's predominantly Muslim region of Daghestan in which a mob overran the airport and threatened an aircraft arriving from Tel Aviv. U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Washington condemned the incident, adding at a briefing with reporters on October 30 that the storming of the airport "looked like a pogrom to me" in videos of the incident that he had viewed. "We call on Russian authorities to publicly condemn these violent protests, to hold anyone involved accountable, and to ensure the safety of Israelis and Jews in Russia," Miller said. The violence occurred on October 29 when dozens of protesters, angry over the situation surrounding the current war between Israel and Hamas militants, broke through doors and barriers at Makhachkala airport, with many of them chanting "Allahu akbar" (God is great) as they stormed the runway after the aircraft arrived. Riot police and reinforcements, including National Guard units, were subsequently sent to "ensure the safety” of arriving passengers, according to the Baza Telegram channel. Officials said more than 20 people were injured -- two critically -- in the unrest, with 10 of those injured needing hospitalization, while Baza said six police officers were among the casualties - RFE/RL
The Israeli Foreign Ministry demanded that Russia protect Israelis and Jews and to apprehend anyone threatening them. “Israel expects the Russian authorities to protect all Israeli citizens and all Jews, and to act decisively against the rioters and against incitement to violence against Jews and Israelis," a statement said.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin blamed the unrest on "outside interference," and without showing any evidence accused Ukraine of involvement. Ukraine rejected the accusation, saying that the Russian Foreign Ministry was attempting to "shift responsibility from a sick person to a healthy one." Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko added on Facebook that the events in Makhachkala "reflect deep-rooted anti-Semitism of Russian elites and society." The United States also rejected the Russian accusation about Ukrainian involvement. "I've seen their comments about blaming Ukraine. They are absurd," Miller said. - RFE/RL
On the morning of Oct. 30, explosions sounded in Odesa during an air raid in the south of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Air Force reports on Telegram. The Russian forces targeted a shipyard with ballistic missiles. The strike caused a fire, which was quickly extinguished by rescuers. The administrative building and equipment of the enterprise were damaged. Two people were injured.
Ethiopian Airlines CEO Mesfin Tasew says his team has met with the ambassadors of Nigeria, Ghana and six other African countries with a view to finding amicable solutions to the reported delays and detention of some African passengers at its hub airport. Tasew spoke against the backdrop of the recent reports alleging maltreatment of Nigerians by Ethiopian police and immigration officials. While denying the allegations that Nigerians travelling through the Bole airport hub are maltreated unjustly and subjected to unfair police and immigration detention, he pointed out that only passengers who fail to comply with the required international security standards are delayed or sometimes detained for normal police and immigration processes. The Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said over 270 Nigerian are serving various prison terms in Ethiopia, adding most were imprisoned for drug-related offences - Punch