Morning Briefing: Nov. 24, 2023

By Rabia Ali

ISTANBUL (AA) — Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Friday, including the death of several Palestinians in an Israeli attack on a school, commencement of a humanitarian pause in Gaza, and violent clashes between Israel and Lebanon.

TOP STORIES

• Israel kills 30 in school strike, bombs hospital ahead of humanitarian pause

Ahead of a humanitarian pause, at least 30 people were killed and 100 others injured in an Israeli airstrike on a UN-run school in the northern Gaza Strip Thursday evening, Hamas said.

In another incident, Israeli forces targeted Indonesian Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip late on Thursday.

"The hospital is subjected to heavy shelling that targeted power generators and large parts of buildings. The lives of 200 patients and medical staff are at risk amid the attack," warned ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra.

• Gaza humanitarian pause begins early Friday
  

A humanitarian pause in the Gaza Strip started at 7 a.m. local time (0500GMT) on Friday.

The four-day pause that includes a halt to hostilities and the release of hostages, as well as the entry of much-needed aid into Gaza, was announced on Thursday by the Qatari Foreign Ministry, which brokered the deal.

“The first group of civilian hostages will be swapped at around 4 p.m. on Friday,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari told a news conference in Doha.

Around 50 hostages will be released in four days, with the first group to include 13 women and children.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, confirmed the details. Over these four days, 200 trucks of humanitarian and medical supplies will be delivered.

• Israel comes under largest attack from Lebanon since start of Gaza war

Israel on Thursday announced that it had been subjected to the largest attack from Lebanon since the conflict escalated in Gaza early last month.

About 50 projectiles were fired at the towns of Upper Galilee, which is the largest bombardment in northern Israel, according to the Israeli Army Radio.

Lebanese group Hezbollah said Thursday that members had been killed in border clashes, the death toll of its members rising to 84.

It also claimed to have killed four Israeli soldiers in a missile attack.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• A Palestinian minor died in the West Bank on Thursday, taking the death toll from Israeli army attacks in the occupied territory to 229 since Oct. 7, the Health Ministry said.

• The UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA said 108 of its staffers have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the start of hostilities on Oct. 7.

• Violent protests erupted on the streets of Ireland's capital Dublin after five people, including a five-year-old girl and a woman, were injured in a stabbing attack.

• The Israeli army has detained Mohammad Abu Salmiya, the director of Al-Shifa Hospital in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority said on Thursday, a doctor told Anadolu.

• The Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip decided to halt coordination with the World Health Organization on the evacuation of hospitals, to object the detention of medical staff at Al-Shifa Hospital by Israel.

• British Foreign Secretary David Cameron on Thursday met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem. According to the UK Foreign Office, Cameron, "will be speaking to Israeli and Palestinian leaders about the crisis and the way forward."

• Türkiye has "neutralized" 1,927 PKK/YPG terrorists, including those who took refuge in Iraq and northern Syria, since the beginning of this year, the National Defense Ministry announced on Thursday.

• A UN peacekeeping force signed an agreement on withdrawal from the Democratic Republic of Congo, called for by the country's president.

• Daniel Noboa, 35, the youngest elected president in the history of Ecuador, assumed office on Thursday for a year and six months.

• Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in the Nepali capital Kathmandu on Thursday, seeking restoration of the monarchy and the nation's former status as a Hindu state.

SPORTS

• Fenerbahce Beko lose in Italy, EuroLeague leaders Real Madrid on 9-0 run

Turkish basketball club Fenerbahce Beko were handed a 87-79 loss at Virtus Segafredo Bologna on Thursday while Turkish Airlines EuroLeague leaders Real Madrid are on a perfect 9-0 run with a 99-75 win against ALBA Berlin.

Fenerbahce Beko suffered their fourth loss in a row after they were beaten by Virtus Segafredo Bologna in a Round 10 game in Italy.

• Footballer Dani Alves faces 9 years in prison for sexual assault

Spanish prosecutors are seeking a nine-year jail term for Dani Alves, the Brazilian football player accused of raping a young woman in a nightclub.

Alves, who used to play for Barcelona, has been in preventative detention since January. His requests to be released on bail have been repeatedly denied by the court, which claims he is a flight risk

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• Gaza war estimated to cost Israel $48B

The ongoing Israeli war in Gaza could cost the Israeli economy $48 billion over the current and next year, a financial consulting company estimated on Thursday.

"It is likely that Israel will bear two-thirds of the total costs of the war, with the remaining portion covered by the United States in the form of military aid," reported Israeli Leader Capital Markets.

• Türkiye raises policy rate 500 points, above market consensus

The Central Bank of Türkiye on Thursday hiked its policy rate by 500 basis points to 40%, much more than market forecasts.

Economists polled by Anadolu survey last week expected the bank would deliver a 250-basis points rate hike.

The bank stressed that the current level of monetary tightening is significantly close to that required to establish a disinflationary trend.