In the West Bank, Israeli settlers assault a Palestinian man and unleash a dog on him during a raid in Kisan. Israeli settlers also throw stones at Palestinian vehicles traveling near Burin. Elsewhere, Israeli settlers throw stones at 2 Palestinian schools in Jaba’. Israeli settlers also steal cattle and attack Palestinian homes in the Masafer Yatta area. Israeli forces raid Qabatiya, killing 7 Palestinians, including 4 in an airstrike on a vehicle and 3 who are shot and thrown off the roof of a building; 12 others are injured, including a child. 1,200 children and staffers are evacuated from 2 schools after being trapped in the Israeli raid. Israeli forces also issue notices that they will seize 7 dunams (1.7 acres) of land in Beit Lid. Elsewhere, Israeli forces demolish a home and 3 agricultural structures in Bayt Awa. Israeli forces also arrest 35 Palestinians during raids in and around Qalqilya, Ramallah, Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus, and Jerusalem. In Gaza, Israeli forces bomb Beit Lahiya, Gaza City, Maghazi, Jabalia refugee camp, al-Bureij refugee camp, and Rafah. The Ministry of Health in Gaza does not publish an updated death toll. In Lebanon, Israeli forces bomb Chihine, Tayibe, Blida, Meiss Ej Jabal, Aitaroun, Mahmoudieh, Ksar al-Aroush, Birket Jabbour, al-Haniyeh, Khiam, and Kafr Kila, injuring 4 people in al-Haniyeh. Hezbollah forces launch drones and rockets at Beit Hillel and Ya’ara. 2 Israeli soldiers are killed near the Blue Line, one in a drone attack and the other after being hit by an anti-tank missile, 9 others are injured. (AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, HA, HA, NYT, NYT, REU, REU, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 9/19; AJ, AJ, HA, REU, REU, UNOCHA, WAFA 9/20)
More than 41,272 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 16,456 children and 11,088 women, and around 95,551 have been injured since 10/7/2023. At least 10,000 people are missing in rubble. 705 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 10/7/2023, including 151 children. More than 5,420 people have been injured. Israel reports that 1,139 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed and 5,400 have been injured in Israel since 10/7/2023, including Israeli soldiers. In addition, 346 Israeli soldiers have been killed and 2,281 injured in Gaza since the ground invasion began on 10/27/2023. Over 1.93 million Palestinians, nearly 85% of the population of Gaza, have been displaced since 10/7/2023. There has been a complete electricity blackout in Gaza since 10/12/2023 due to the Israeli blockade. At least 79,000 housing units have been destroyed and 370,000 have been damaged in Israeli airstrikes since 10/7/2023.
PA president Mahmoud Abbas meets with Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez in Madrid. The 2 discuss the PA’s difficult financial situation, bilateral ties, and Abbas’s planned trip to Gaza. (AJ, AP, WAFA 9/19)
Hezbollah secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah gives a televised speech, blaming Israel for the 9/17 and 9/18 terror attacks in Lebanon where hundreds of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies exploded killing at least 37 people and wounding more than 3,000 people, calling the attack a declaration of war. Nasrallah says that senior Hezbollah officials do not carry the model of pagers Israel used in its terror attack and that Hezbollah will not cease operations against Israel until its war on Gaza ends. Bulgaria says it will launch an investigation into a Bulgarian company linked to the sale of the pagers used in the attack. Taiwanese authorities question the founder of Gold Apollo which has also been linked to the pagers. The Japanese government says it will investigate the usage of the Icom brand in the walkie-talkies. Icom has said it has not produced the type of walkie-talkie used in the attack since 2014, suggesting they are counterfeit. (AJ, AJ, AJ, AJ, AJ, AP, AP, AX, HA, HA, HA, NYT, NYT, NYT, REU, REU, REU 9/19; AJ, AJ, AP, REU, REU, REU 9/20)
French president Emmanuel Macron speaks with Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati, condemning the attacks on Lebanon. Separately, Mikati calls on the UN Security Council to convene and take a “firm stance to stop the Israeli aggression on Lebanon.” U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken meets with French foreign minister Stephane Sejourne in Paris, calling for restraint and urges a “de-escalation when it comes to the Middle East in general and when it comes to Lebanon in particular.” Axios reports that U.S. defense minister Lloyd Austin has postponed his trip to Israel scheduled for next week due to the Israeli attacks on Lebanon. (AJ, AJ, AP, AX, REU, REU, REU 9/19)
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child condemns the Israeli military’s operations in Gaza, saying its violating international law. The committee says 17,000 children have been killed. (NYT 9/19)
The Wall Street Journal reports that U.S. officials believe that a Gaza ceasefire will not happen until the end of President Joe Biden’s term in January 2025. (AJ, HA, REU 9/19; AJ 9/20)
U.S. House representative Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) submits the names of Palestinian children killed by Israel in Gaza to the Congressional record. (AJ 9/20)
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump says “Israel, I believe, has to defeat” Democratic candidate Kamala Harris during a campaign event in Washington, D.C. (HA 9/19; AJ, AX, HA 9/20)
Delta Airlines suspends all flights between New York City and Tel Aviv until the end of 2024. (AJ, HA, REU 9/19)