Tuesday, February 25, 2025
2148 GMT — Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that Israeli army is preparing to occupy besieged Gaza under the leadership of the newly appointed Chief of Staff, Eyal Zamir, in coordination with US President Donald Trump's administration.
Smotrich threatened the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, noting that its fighters "know very well that their time on the ground is limited until Israel returns to battle with all its strength, speed and lethal capacity that will defeat and destroy them."
"When we decide that the time has come to resume the war, you will be surprised by the unity, strength and lethal precision of our Gaza occupation," he added.
He noted that the Israeli military is preparing under the leadership of Chief of Staff Zamir, who will assume his duties in the first week of March, with political backing from the Trump administration, which "is finally speaking clearly about eradicating Hamas from the face of the earth."
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2254 GMT — Palestine calls for UN probe into alleged executions of prisoners in Israeli jails
Palestine called for a UN investigation into the alleged execution of prisoners in Israeli jails.
The statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs followed announcements from Palestinian institutions that the number of known Palestinian deaths in Israeli prisons had risen to 59 since the start of Israel's genocidal war on October 7, 2023, after the death of a detainee from Gaza.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry expressed grave concern over the rising number of deaths among prisoners.
The ministry condemned the situation in the jails as a "serious escalation in the (Israeli) occupation's aggression and unprecedented torture and abuse against the prisoners," particularly affecting the thousands of detainees whose whereabouts and fates have not been disclosed.
It called for the UN Human Rights Council's investigative committee to perform its duties and investigate the execution of detainees in Israeli prisons, which it described as a flagrant violation of the Geneva Conventions.
2231 GMT — Pro-Palestine activists block access to Maersk headquarters in Copenhagen
Pro-Palestine activists blocked the entrance to the headquarters of shipping giant Maersk in the Danish capital, Copenhagen, demanding that the company cease transporting military equipment to Israel, according to reports from state media.
The activist group Mask off Maersk organised the protest, arriving early to block access to the company's main office on the Esplanade.
In addition to the blockade, some protesters climbed onto the roof above the main entrance, displaying banners with slogans such as "Break the connection to genocide!"
For our live updates from Monday, February 24, 2025, click here.
