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Hundreds of people including young children and babies line the corridors of a Gaza City hospital, which the Israeli authorities have ordered to evacuate, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS).

In footage released by the rescue service, youngsters as well as adults and elderly people are seen throughout the crowded building sat down or laying on mattresses, some with small piles of belongings or clothes hanging on doors.

There is no sign those sheltering inside al Quds hospital are following Israeli orders to evacuate, which were made in two calls on Sunday, according to the PRCS which said airstrikes have hit as close as 50 metres away.

Israel had first ordered the evacuation of the hospital more than a week ago, where the PCRS says some 14,000 people are seeking shelter, but along with other medical facilities it has refused saying it would mean death for patients on ventilators.

Inside Al Quds hospital. Pic: Palestinian Red Crescent Society
Image:
Inside al Quds hospital. Pic: Palestinian Red Crescent Society

A doctor from north London, who is working at al Shifa hospital, the largest medical complex in the Gaza Strip, also said there were no plans to evacuate.

“Nobody’s left Shifa, nobody’s leaving anywhere,” Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah told Sky News in a voice note.

“People have now realised with all the killing that’s happened in the southern part and nobody wants to move.”

He said medics are running out of basic supplies such as gauze and post-operation medications, including intravenous paracetamol.

Inside al Quds hospital. Pic: Palestinian Red Crescent Society
Image:
Inside al Quds hospital. Pic: Palestinian Red Crescent Society

“You keep thinking it’s not going to get worse but it does get worse,” he said following a communications blackout in the territory after bombing cut telephone and internet connections on Friday.

“We’re now at 19,000 wounded, two days of no communication just meant the most basic thing of trying to find somebody, of calling somebody, of asking someone to come to the operating room became a nightmare.

“The ambulances would just head in the general direction of the bombing to see if they can find any of the victims.”

Inside al Quds hospital. Pic: Palestinian Red Crescent Society
Image:
Inside al Quds hospital. Pic: Palestinian Red Crescent Society

Israel has accused Hamas of launching attacks from hospitals in Gaza, with a military spokesman claiming authorities have “concrete evidence” that hundreds of Hamas fighters who took part in the 7 October terrorist atrocity in southern Israel then “flooded” into al Shifa hospital.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari on Friday showed what he said was intelligence material proving that Hamas militants were commanding attacks against Israel from inside the hospital, although it has not been possible to independently verify the claims.

The Hamas led Gazan ministry of health said at least 3,195 children have been killed in Gaza since 7 October, which is more than the number of children killed across the world’s conflict zones since 2019, according to the Save the Children Charity.

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv – as commander ‘sacked for lying about war progress’

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Ukraine war: Russia launches drone strike on Kyiv - as commander 'sacked for lying about war progress'

Russia launched a large drone attack on Kyiv overnight, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy warning the attack shows his capital needs better air defences.

Ukraine’s air defence units shot down 50 of 73 Russian drones launched, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries as a result of the attacks.

Russia has used more than 800 guided aerial bombs and around 460 attack drones in the past week.

Warning that Ukraine needs to improve its air defences, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “An air alert has been sounded almost daily across Ukraine this week”.

“Ukraine is not a testing ground for weapons. Ukraine is a sovereign and independent state.

“But Russia still continues its efforts to kill our people, spread fear and panic, and weaken us.”

Russia did not comment on the attack.

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It comes as Russian media reported that Colonel General Gennady Anashkin, the commander of the country’s southern military district, had been removed from his role over allegedly providing misleading reports about his troops’ progress.

While Russian forces have advanced at the fastest rate in Ukraine since the start of the invasion, forces have been much slower around Siversk and the eastern region of Donetsk.

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Russian war bloggers have long complained that units there are poorly supported and thrown into deadly battles for little tactical gain.

Russia’s ministry of defence has not commented on the reports.

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Russian forces capture ‘former British soldier’ fighting for Ukraine – reports

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Russian forces capture 'former British soldier' fighting for Ukraine - reports

Russian forces have reportedly captured a British man while he was fighting for Ukraine.

In a widely circulated video posted on Sunday, the man says his name is James Scott Rhys Anderson, aged 22.

He says he is a former British Army soldier who signed up to fight for Ukraine’s International Legion after his job.

He is dressed in army fatigues and speaks with an English accent as he says to camera: “I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment.”

He tells the camera he was “just a private”, “a signalman” in “One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron”.

“When I left… got fired from my job, I applied on the International Legion webpage. I had just lost everything. I just lost my job,” he said.

“My dad was away in prison, I see it on the TV,” he added, shaking his head. “It was a stupid idea.”

In a second video, he is shown with his hands tied and at one point, with tape over his eyes.

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He describes how he had travelled to Ukraine from Britain, saying: “I flew to Krakow, Poland, from London Luton. Bus from there to Medyka in Poland, on the Ukraine border.”

Russian state news agency Tass reported that a military source said a “UK mercenary” had been “taken prisoner in the Kursk area” of Russia.

The UK Foreign Office said it was “supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention”.

The Ministry of Defence has declined to comment at this stage.

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Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE – as Israeli PM says he was murdered in ‘antisemitic terror incident’

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Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE - as Israeli PM says he was murdered in 'antisemitic terror incident'

The body of an Israeli-Moldovan rabbi who went missing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been found, Israel has said.

Zvi Kogan, the Chabad representative in the UAE, went missing on Thursday.

A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s office on Sunday said the 28-year-old rabbi was murdered, calling it a “heinous antisemitic terror incident”.

“The state of Israel will act with all means to seek justice with the criminals responsible for his death,” it said.

On Saturday, Israeli intelligence agency Mossad said it was investigating the disappearance as suspicions arose that he had been kidnapped.

The Emirati government gave no immediate acknowledgment that Mr Kogan had been found dead. Its interior ministry has described the rabbi as being “missing and out of contact”.

“Specialised authorities immediately began search and investigation operations upon receiving the report,” the interior ministry said.

Mr Kogan lived in the UAE with his wife Rivky, who is a US citizen. He ran a Kosher grocery store in Dubai, which has been the target of online protests by pro-Palestinian supporters.

The Chabad Lubavitch movement, a prominent and highly observant branch of Orthodox Judaism, said Mr Kogan was last seen in Dubai.

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Israeli authorities reissued their recommendation against all non-essential travel to the UAE and said visitors currently there should minimise movement and remain in secure areas.

The rabbi’s disappearance comes as Iran has threatened to retaliate against Israel after the two countries traded fire in October.

While the Israeli statement on Mr Kogan did not mention Iran, Iranian intelligence services have previously carried out kidnappings in the UAE.

The UAE diplomatically recognised Israel in 2020. Since then, synagogues and businesses catering to kosher diners have been set up for the burgeoning Jewish community but the unrest in the Middle East has sparked deep anger in the country.

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