Gaza, Colombia, Iran
Today's three stories you should know
Gaza
More than 1,000 people in Gaza have now been killed by Israel since it agreed an ostensible ceasefire with Hamas last October, the health ministry said, as the latest strike on Thursday killed three people travelling in a vehicle in Gaza City. The Israeli military did not immediately comment. Israeli troops still occupy at least 60 percent of the Palestinian enclave’s territory in areas where they have ordered residents to leave their homes and destroyed buildings. Almost the entire population of two million people now lives in makeshift tents and damaged buildings in a thin strip of coastal land still controlled by Hamas.
More from The New Arab here.
Episode 3 of The Proximities Podcast, a conversation with Ethiopian journalist Zecharias Zelalem, is now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Episode 2, on Iran, is on Apple Podcasts here, Spotify here and YouTube here.
Episode 1, on Sudan, is on Apple Podcasts here, Spotify here and YouTube here.
Coming this week: Taiwan.
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Colombia
Colombia's National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels are ready to agree peace with whoever wins a presidential runoff on Sunday, an ELN commander told Reuters in an exclusive interview at a base deep in the country’s northwest jungles. The leader, though, said he was confident the group could survive a renewed military offensive promised by the right-wing candidate, who is currently the frontrunner. Colombians are voting for a successor to President Gustavo Petro who has tried to sign peace deals with various armed groups. Leftist candidate Iván Cepeda has promised to continue that strategy but is currently trailing in the polls to conservative lawyer Abelardo de la Espriella, who has pledged a crackdown.
More from Reuters here.
Iran
U.S. President Donald Trump has said “nobody” deliberately attacked an Iranian girls’ school where about 175 people, most of them schoolchildren, were killed on the first day of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Trump, who initially blamed Iran for the bombing of the Minab school without providing evidence, said an investigation was underway. The U.S. military is widely believed to be behind the attack, with several reports indicating it may have acted on outdated intelligence. When asked by a journalist at the G7 summit in France if anyone would be held accountable, Trump said: "It's such a strange question to be asked at this date, because you're talking about a long time ago. Mistakes are made, war's nasty.”
More from Sky News here.
NB: In the aftermath of the Minab bombing, I wrote the below piece.
