Middle East crisis Gaza war

European call for more from EU: “If not now – when will we do it?”

More than 200 former European ambassadors and civil servants have signed a letter demanding that the EU take action against Israel, Sky News reports.

Simon Harris, Foreign Minister of member state Ireland, calls the initiative “long-awaited” and “crucial”. The background is last week’s report from the UN-backed expert body IPC, which concluded that famine at the worst level prevails in parts of Gaza.

– If we do not act jointly now, with the famine as a background, when will we do it?

He also says that individual member states can act but that the impact will be greater if the EU does it jointly.

Analysis: Israel's double act a tactic, not a mistake

Israel's attack on the al-Nasser hospital in southern Gaza constitutes a war crime in many ways, writes Peter Beaumont in an analysis in The Guardian.

Beaumont is particularly critical of Israel's "reckless" double attacks. First, the IDF bombs a location and when rescue workers and civilians rush there to help, Israel shells the location again. Critics say the strategy has become more common and, according to a journalistic review, it can be linked to Israel's desire to ensure that injured Hamas members do not receive treatment, he writes.

He condemns Israel's description of yesterday's deadly attack as a mistake:

"It seems to be policy and not a mistake."

The double attacks are also particularly deadly for journalists who rush to the scene to cover the situation, writes the BBC's Lucy Williamson. With almost 200 journalists dead, the Gaza war is the world's most dangerous conflict to cover.

Killing healthcare workers and journalists violates international law and is a war crime, says SVT's Middle East commentator Samir Abu Eid.

- Journalists in Gaza are becoming fewer and fewer and we are being told less and less, he says.

IDF says camera was target of hospital attack

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claim that the deadly attack on Nasser Hospital in Gaza on Monday was aimed at a camera that the IDF says Hamas had set up in the area. This is based on what it calls an initial investigation into the attack in which 20 people were killed, including five journalists, writes AP.

The IDF states in a post on X that there are "gaps" in the investigation, and that, among other things, it will review how the process of approving the attack was carried out.

Israel's explanation that it wanted to knock out a camera is in line with information that reached the Haaretz newspaper on Monday evening. IDF sources then pointed out that the area is full of cameras.

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Norway sells Israeli holdings: “Unacceptable risk”

The Norwegian state oil fund is selling holdings in additional companies with suspected links to war crimes in Gaza, the fund writes in a press release. These are shares in the American company Caterpillar and in five Israeli banks.

“The reason is the unacceptable risk that the companies contribute to serious violations of the rights of individuals in war or conflict situations,” the statement says.

As recently as last week, holdings in several companies with similar links to the war in Gaza were sold, due to a media storm surrounding the investments, TT reports.