Morning Briefing: June 24, 2024

By Alperen Aktas

ISTANBUL (AA) - Here's a rundown of all the news you need to start your Monday, including the Israeli army canceling around 20 arrest operations of Palestinian activists in the occupied West Bank due to overcrowded prisons, Russian airstrikes killing one and injuring 13 in Ukraine's Kyiv region and Kharkiv city and Israel’s ongoing offensive in the Gaza Strip killing at least 37,598 Palestinians.

TOP STORIES

• Israel cancels 20 arrest operations in occupied West Bank due to prison overcrowding: State media

The Israeli army halted around 20 arrest operations for Palestinian activists in the occupied West Bank, according to official sources.

“The Israeli army and the Shin Bet (General Security Service) were forced to cancel about 20 arrest operations planned for this week due to a lack of space in prisons,” the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation reported.

"Due to worsening conditions in detention facilities, security services are compelled to assess the risks posed by detainees,” the corporation said.

• Russian airstrikes kill 1, injure 13 in Ukraine's Kyiv region, Kharkiv city

At least one person was killed and 13 others were injured in Russian airstrikes in Ukraine's Kyiv region and Kharkiv city.

“This morning, the enemy attacked our area with rockets. As of 8.00 a.m. (0500GMT), two people went to the doctor,” Ruslan Kravchenko, the governor of the Kyiv region that surrounds the capital, said on Facebook, adding the injuries are minor.

Kravchenko said medical assistance is being provided on-site and debris from the rockets has damaged six apartment buildings and 35 private houses.

• Gaza death toll nears 37,600 as Israel kills 47 more Palestinians

At least 37,598 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s ongoing offensive on the Gaza Strip since last October, said the Health Ministry in the besieged enclave.

The ministry’s statement added that 86,032 people have also been injured in the onslaught.

“Israeli attacks killed 47 people and injured 121 others in the last 24 hours,” the statement said.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• At least 20 more Palestinians were detained by Israeli forces in military raids in the occupied West Bank, according to prisoners’ affairs groups.
• The EU’s foreign policy chief issued a warning about the escalating violence in the Middle East.
• More than 15 police officers have been killed in armed attacks in Russia's Dagestan region.
• Illegal Israeli settlers attacked a settlement of Bedouin or nomadic Palestinian tribes near Jericho in the eastern West Bank, firing gunshots to scare them and stealing several sheep.
• Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant is in Washington to meet with senior US officials to discuss the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip and tensions on the border with Lebanon.
• At least eight people are missing after a landslide hit a village in Hunan, central China, state-run media said
• Hezbollah said its fighters launched an air attack on Israeli barracks near the Lebanese border, killing and wounding Israeli soldiers.
  

SPORTS

• Standing with Gaza, football fans in Germany hand out watermelon caps before EURO 2024 matches

Football fans in Germany were given caps embroidered with images of watermelons as a symbol of solidarity with Palestine before several UEFA EURO 2024 group matches this week.

The solidarity caps were distributed before the Spain vs. Italy match on June 20 in Gelsenkirchen, the Türkiye vs. Portugal match on June 22 in Dortmund, and the Scotland vs. Hungary match on Sunday in Stuttgart as watermelons echo the colors of the Palestinian flag.

"We want to make our voice heard here about the (Israeli) oppression committed against our Palestinian brothers," one of the sponsors of the voluntary event in Germany, Mehmet Simsek, told Anadolu earlier in Gelsenkirchen.