International
A reputed surgeon from Gaza’s Al Shifa hospital dies in an Israeli prison
Adnan al Barash, a reputed 50-year-old surgeon from the Al Shifa hospital in Gaza City, has died this Thursday in an Israeli prison, bringing the deaths of the enclave’s health sector to 496 since October 7, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health in a statement.
“The murder of Dr. al Barash will not be the last crime to come to light and also the way they treat prisoners in prisons, especially those arrested in the Gaza Strip,” they denounce in the press release.
This Palestinian doctor, who was head of the Orthopedics department of the Al Shifa medical complex, now inoperative after the siege of Israeli troops, was arrested last December, while treating patients in another hospital in northern Gaza.
Hamas, in a statement, also wanted to denounce the death of this doctor who was “punished simply for fulfilling his humanitarian obligations” and adds that his loss confirms “the continuous war crimes perpetrated against the Palestinian people” by the Israeli Army.
“I am extremely alarmed by the information of Dr. Adnan’s death. How many more lives will have to be eliminated before UN member states, especially those that demonstrate genuine concern for human rights worldwide, act to protect the Palestinians?” The UN rapporteur for the Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese, lamented in her X account.
Precisely on Thursday, the Israeli authorities refused to return the body of another prisoner, Palestinian intellectual Walid Daqqa, who died of cancer on April 7 after 38 years in prison, according to the official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, reported today.
The Gazaz Ministry also asked the international community and health agencies to protect prisoners from the mistreatment they suffer in Israeli prisons. And especially, the Palestinians who are being arrested in Gaza.
It is estimated that there are at least 9,300 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, including 3,600 in “administrative detention” without charges or trial, according to data from the human rights group Adalah.
Hamas hopes to send a delegation to Cairo “as soon as possible” to resume negotiations for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, according to a statement from the Palestinian Islamist group.
The head of the political bureau of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, held a call on Thursday with the head of Egyptian Intelligence, Abás Kamel, in which he thanked him for the role of the North African country as a mediator between the Palestinian group and Israel.
“The head of the movement thanked Egypt for the role and emphasized the positive spirit of the movement to study the ceasefire proposal,” the statement reads.
Haniyeh confirmed that a negotiating delegation will soon travel to the Egyptian capital to “complete the current discussions with the aim of maturing an agreement that meets the demands of our people and that stops the aggression.”
The political leader of Hamas then held a similar call with the Qatari Prime Minister, Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, in which he thanked him for the mediating role of the Arab country, and pledged to reach an agreement under the auspices of Qatar and Egypt.
More than a dozen Palestinians died this morning in Israeli artillery and air strikes in northern and southern areas of the Gaza Strip, with intense bombings in the Nuseirat refugee camp, 209 days of war.
At least six Gazats died last night in an Israeli bombing of the city of Al Zahraa, north of the Nuseirat camp in the center of the Gaza Strip, while rescue teams found three other lifeless bodies after bombings in the northwest of the camp, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported on Thursday.
In the southern area of Jan Yunis, a Gazan died and an undetermined number of injuries were recorded in an Israeli bombing in the area of Qaa al Qurain, southeast of this devastated city after four months of Israeli land attacks.
“The areas of Bani Suhaila, Abasan and Khuzaa, to the east of the city, also suffered intense bombing by Israeli fighter planes,” Wafa said, without specifying victims.
The latest attacks increased the death toll to 34,596 after 209 days of war.
“The Israeli occupation committed 3 massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, causing 28 martyrs and 51 injured during the last 24 hours,” the Gaza Ministry of Health of the Government of Hamas reported on Thursday, referring to the victims recorded in hospitals.
The Ministry also said that the total number of injured reached 77,816 people, and that “several victims are still under the rubble and on the roads, (but that) the ambulance and civil defense teams cannot reach them.”
On Thursday, the Israeli Army recovered the remains of another of the missiles from Iran’s attack on April 13, which was intercepted in the area of Nahal Ye’elim, near the southern city of Arad, according to a military statement.
“The debris was cleaned of hazardous materials and evacuated by means of a crane by the troops, along with the firefighters and rescue teams,” the Army explained.
Israel has only been able to recover so far some of the almost 120 ballistic missiles that Tehran launched on the night of Saturday, April 13. Most of these projectiles were intercepted in their neighboring countries, such as Jordan.
International
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Wednesday that the death toll from recent rains and floods across several central states has risen to 66, while the federal government has activated air bridges and prioritized assistance in 191 isolated communities.
“Unfortunately, 66 people have died, and 75 remain missing,” the president said during her morning press conference. She added that the official death toll will be updated later in a new report.
As of Tuesday, authorities had reported 64 fatalities. Sheinbaum also announced the creation of a public information center to centralize official data on the deceased, missing persons, damaged homes, and cut-off communities.
According to the president, the number of missing persons has decreased thanks to coordination with state authorities.
“Through calls to phone line 079, 103 people who had been reported missing have now been located,” she explained.
Priority Municipalities
The president noted that the federal government has classified 191 communities as ‘priority’, a designation based mainly on the percentage of homes affected.
International
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Ecuadorian authorities are investigating two explosions that occurred early Wednesday, one on a road in the southern part of the country and another under a bridge in Guayas province. These incidents follow the car bomb explosion in the coastal city of Guayaquil, also in Guayas, which occurred the day before and left one person dead and 30 injured.
Press reports indicate that one person was injured and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion on the Cuenca-Girón-Pasaje road in the south.
“Besides yesterday’s explosion in Guayaquil, we have received reports of explosives placed on bridges along the Guayaquil-Machala and Machala-Cuenca routes to disrupt traffic,” said Roberto Luque, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT).
On his X social media account, Luque reported that authorities have been deployed to the sites to assess the damage and determine the current condition of the structures.
“What they haven’t achieved with their call for a strike, some are trying to achieve through terrorism,” he stated, referring to the 24 days of protests organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) against rising diesel prices and other demands.
The protests, called at a national level, have Imbabura province as their epicenter. Roadblocks have also been reported in the northern part of Pichincha province, whose capital is Quito, while activities in the rest of the country continue normally.
International
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Ecuador’s Armed Forces carried out an operation on Monday — including airstrikes — against illegal mining in the town of Buenos Aires, in the country’s north, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo reported.
The mountainous, gold-rich area has been a hotspot for illegal mining since 2017, located in the Andean province of Imbabura.
In 2019, former president Lenín Moreno deployed around 2,400 soldiers to the region in an attempt to curb the illegal activity. “The operation began with mortar fire, followed by gunfire and bombing runs by Supertucano aircraft,” Loffredo said in a video released by the Defense Ministry.
He added that the operation would continue on Tuesday with patrols across the area to locate possible members of “irregular armed groups that may have crossed from the Colombian border.”
The Armed Forces stated on X that the intervention focused on the “complete elimination of multiple illegal mining tunnels” in the areas known as Mina Nueva and Mina Vieja.
The operation coincided with the deployment of a military and police convoy into Imbabura, which has been the epicenter of protests against President Daniel Noboa since September 22, following his decision to scrap the diesel subsidy.
Mexican government prioritizes 191 communities after deadly floods
New road and bridge explosions raise alarm amid indigenous protests in Ecuador
Armed forces target illegal mines in Northern Ecuador with bombing raids
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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