In the West Bank, Israeli forces raid ‘Arranah, shooting and injuring a Palestinian man. Israeli forces also shoot and injure a Palestinian during a raid in al-‘Ayn refugee camp. Elsewhere, Israeli forces shoot and injure a Palestinian man during a raid in Habla. Israeli forces also shoot and injure 3 Palestinians during a raid in Dura. Meanwhile, Israeli forces assault a Palestinian street vendor in al-Khader. Israeli forces also blow up commercial structures during a raid in Umm Safa. Separately, Israeli forces demolish a home in al-Burj and a house under construction in Aqaba. Israeli forces also raid ‘Azzun, Beit Kahil, Tarqumiyya, Idhna, Nablus, and al-Yamun. In Gaza, Israeli forces bomb Dayr al-Balah, Jabalia refugee camp, al-Bureij refugee camp, Rafah, Khan Yunis, Nuseirat refugee camp, and Gaza City, killing at least 39 people, including at least 15 at the Hafsa al-Faluja school in Jabalia refugee camp and at least 1 person at a tent camp in the courtyard of al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Dayr al-Balah. In Lebanon, Israeli forces bomb Beirut, Tyre, Younine, Qana, Cadmus, Ayta ash Shab, Burj al-Shemali, al-Qalila, Hanaway, Houmayri, Nabatieh, Sahmar, Yahmar, and Labaya, killing at least 92 people, including leader of Hezbollah’s aerial unit Mohammad Hussein Surur. Hezbollah forces fire dozens of rockets at Haifa, Kiryat Ata, and Safed, injuring 1 person. In Iraq, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq launches a drone at the Golan Heights. In Yemen, Houthi forces fire a ballistic missile at Tel Aviv, which is intercepted before making impact. (AJ, AJ, HA, HA, NYT, REU, REU, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 9/26; AJ, AP, AP, HA, UNOCHA 9/27)
More than 41,534 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 16,456 children and 11,088 women, and around 96,092 have been injured since 10/7/2023. At least 10,000 people are missing in rubble. 708 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 2,287 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. (AJ, HA, WAFA 9/26)
The 88 unidentifiable bodies handed over to Gaza by Israel are laid to rest in a graveyard at the Turkish cemetery near the Nasser Hospital. (AJ, NYT 9/26)
PA president Mahmoud Abbas addresses the UN General Assembly, saying if anyone should leave Palestine it should not be Palestinians but the “occupying usurpers,” calling for international sanctions against Israel and for the suspension of its UN membership for its crimes in Gaza. Abbas further calls on the UN to force Israel to end its attacks on the Palestinian people and says he does not understand why the U.S. insists on opposing the Palestinian people. He also presents a 12-point proposal for after Israel’s war on Gaza, including 1) a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to settler attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem; 2) urgent delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza; 3) full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza with no new buffer zones and housing provided to displaced Palestinians in the locations they are from; 4) physical and financial protections for UNRWA and humanitarian organizations; 5) international protection for Palestinians in all the occupied territories; 6) full Palestinian control of Gaza; 7) rebuilding infrastructure destroyed by Israel; 8) full Palestinian authority over all the occupied territories and preparations for holding elections; 9) full Palestinian membership at the UN; 10) implementation of the ICJ advisory opinion on the Israeli occupation; 11) an international peace conference held by the UN within a year to implement a 2-state solution; 12) a UN Security Council resolution to create a peacekeeping force between Palestine and Israel. Abbas also calls the Israeli war on Lebanon a “war of genocide.” Abbas meets with Gambian president Adama Barrow on the sidelines of the General Assembly. PA prime minister Mohammad Mustafa meets with UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres and addresses a ministerial meeting on the situation in Gaza and the implementation of the 2-state solution. (AJ, AJ, AP, HA, HA, NYT, NYT, REU, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 9/26; AJ, AP, WAFA 9/27)
Also at the General Assembly, Lebanese foreign minister Abdallah Bou Habib tells UN members that there needs to be a ceasefire in Lebanon and that Israel is systematically destroying Lebanese border villages. UK prime minister Kier Starmer calls for a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon and for the establishment of a Palestinian state. German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock calls on Israel and Hezbollah to agree to a 21-day ceasefire. (AJ, HA, NYT 9/26; AJ, REU 9/27)
Israeli officials meet with U.S. and French officials to discuss a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. Earlier, the Israeli prime minister’s office said in a statement that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had not responded to U.S. and French calls for a meeting on the potential ceasefire. Later, the prime minister’s office says Israel had been informed of the proposal and that Israel shares the aim of returning its residents to their homes. French president Emmanuel Macron says the proposal is supported by the EU and prepared with Netanyahu. The U.S. says it would not have publicly announced the plan if it had not been backed by Israel. Germany, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Canada, and Japan have voiced support for the ceasefire initiative. U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken meets with Israeli minister for strategic affairs Ron Dermer, telling him that further escalation in Lebanon will only make it harder for residents on both sides of the Blue Line to return to their homes. Lebanese environment minister Nasser Yassin says the number of displaced Lebanese people is likely more than 250,000, while 77,000 are sheltering in evacuation centers. More than 31,000 people have fled to Syria, including 16,130 Lebanese citizens. Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir says he will resign from the government if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire with Hezbollah. Foreign Minister Israel Katz says that there will be no ceasefire with Hezbollah. (AJ, AP, AX, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, NYT, NYT, NYT, NYT, REU, REU, REU, REU, REU 9/26; AJ, AP, AP, AX, HA, HA, REU, REU, REU, REU 9/27)
The Israeli Defense Ministry says it has secured a $8.7 billion military aid package from the U.S., including $3.5 billion for “essential wartime procurement” and $5.2 billion for air defense systems. U.S. secretary of defense Lloyd Austin says when asked if the U.S. has any “red lines” for Israeli aggression that the U.S. will not change its commitment to help Israel protect itself. (AJ, HA, REU 9/26)
Saudi foreign minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud says Saudi Arabia has formed a global alliance to push for a 2-state solution during meetings on the sidelines of the General Assembly. Al Saud does not mention the countries but says they are Arab, Muslim, and European. EU high commissioner for foreign affairs Josep Borrell says the group will have its first meetings in Riyadh and Brussels. (REU 9/27)
Norway issues an international arrest warrant for Rinson Jose, a Norwegian Indian man suspected of being linked to the sale of the booby-trapped pagers that Israel used to attack Lebanon on 9/18. Jose is said to be the founder of the Bulgarian company BAC Consulting that is linked to the sale. (AJ, REU 9/26)