In the West Bank, Israeli settlers abduct and severely beat a Palestinian man and assault a foreign activist during a raid in Juba. Israeli settlers also attack 4 Palestinian women who accidentally enter the Givat Ronen settlement, setting their car on fire. Elsewhere, Israeli settlers attack a Palestinian man near Awarta, stopping and damaging his vehicle and attacking him with sticks. Israeli forces shoot and injure an American activist during a raid in Beita, while Palestinians suffer tear-gas related injuries. Israeli forces also arrest 2 Palestinians during a raid in Beit Sira. In Gaza, Israeli forces bomb Gaza City, Rafah, Nuseirat refugee camp, Khan Yunis, Dayr al-Balah, al-Mawasi, and Jabalia refugee camp, killing at least 51 people, including journalists Tamim Abu Muammar of Palestine TV and Abdullah Maher al-Suwaisi of al-Aqsa along with several members of their families in Khan Yunis. The Gaza Media Office says 168 journalists have been killed since 10/7/2023. In Lebanon, Israeli forces bomb Sidon, assassinating Hamas official Samer al-Hajj and injuring 2 others. Israeli forces also bomb Naqoura, killing 2 people. Hezbollah forces fire rockets at Dovev, al-Manara, and Kiryat Shmona. In Syria, a drone launched by an unknown party attacks a U.S. military site in Rumalyn; no injuries are reported. (AJ, AJ, AP, AP, HA, HA, NYT, REU, REU, REU, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA, WAFA 8/9; AJ, HA, REU 8/10)
More than 39,750 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 16,314 children and 10,980 women, and around 91,722 have been injured since 10/7/2023. At least 10,000 people are missing in rubble. 610 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 10/7/2023, including 140 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, 329 Israeli soldiers have been killed and 2,176 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. UNRWA estimates that 60,000 to 70,000 people have fled the Khan Yunis area to al-Mawasi since being forced to evacuate on 8/8. The UN says that 287 aid workers, including 205 UNRWA staffers, have been killed since 10/8/2023. (AJ, NYT, UNOCHA 8/9)
The Israeli housing ministry publishes new tenders for the construction of 110 housing units in the Alon Shvut settlement. (PCN 8/9)
Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir extends the ban on visits for Palestinian prisoners by 1 month, saying in a tweet “[t]he damned terrorists deserve the minimum provided by law.” (AJ 8/10)
The EU transfers $46.9 million to the PA to help pay salaries and pensions. (AJ, WAFA 8/9)
U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says in an email to Reuters that the U.S. will not sanction the Israeli military’s Netzah Yehuda battalion, claiming that human rights violations carried out by the battalion have been “effectively remediated.” The State Department also says that it has notified Congress that the U.S. will release $3.5 billion in military aid to Israel. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks with Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant, telling him that it is in no country’s interest to escalate tensions in the Middle East. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby criticizes Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich for publicly opposing the U.S. call for a ceasefire, saying Smotrich “essentially suggests that the war ought to go on indefinitely without pause and with the lives of the hostages of no real concern at all. His arguments are dead wrong. They are misleading the Israeli public.” (AJ, AJ, AP, AP, AX, AX, HA, REU, REU, REU, REU, REU 8/9; AJ, AJ 8/10)
French president Emmanuel Macron tweets “The war in Gaza must stop,” showing support for the U.S., Qatari, and Egyptian push for final ceasefire negotiations. Several other countries and organizations issue statements in support of the negotiations. (AJ 8/9)
Air India pauses all flights to Tel Aviv until the end of October. United Airlines also pauses flights to Tel Aviv without setting a date for their resumption. (AJ, HA 8/9)
The UK private pension fund Universities Superannuation Scheme divests $102 million from Israeli assets. The Palestinian Mission to the UK “welcome this principled policy.” (AJ, DT, FT 8/9)