Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
Hospitals in the Gaza Strip must not be treated as targets, a top official from the International Committee of the Red Cross warned, as Israel's military offensive intensified on Friday.
“All measures must be taken to spare the hospitals, they should still exist tomorrow, after tomorrow and as long as the conflict continues. This is essential,” Christian Cardon, head of protection at ICRC, told The National.
“When it comes to hospitals, obviously, there are very clear obligations, they should be spared and they cannot be used for military activities.”
Israeli tanks have been seen outside medical centres in northern Gaza including Al Rantisi Hospital for Children, Al Nasr Children's Hospital and the Government Eye Hospital, according to local medical officials.
Several other hospitals were hit by air strikes overnight. A missile killed 13 people when it hit the courtyard of Al Shifa Hospital, the largest in Gaza, which is believed to be sheltering about 60,000, according to Hamas.
Mr Cardon said that hospitals cannot evacuate thousands of patients and displaced people when there are no safe places for them to go.
“We are extremely worried as guardians of the law of war and we keep on repeating this to both Hamas and Israeli authorities,” Mr Cardon said.
Mr Cardon said this must be applied to doctors, ambulances and health workers as well as civilians.
Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf Al Qidra said Israel had bombed Al Shifa Hospital buildings five times. Tanks have been seen outside of hospitals in northern Gaza amid fierce fighting with Hamas.
The Palestinian Red Cross said late on Friday that Israeli forces were shooting at Al Quds Hospital and that there had been violent clashes, with one person killed and 28 wounded, most of them children.
Israel has accused Hamas of using hospitals as bases and using people inside them as human shields, which the group denies.
All sides to the conflict must abide by humanitarian laws, Mr Cardon said.
“We also need to make sure that hospitals are being protected and that the population who decided not to move sometimes for very good reason can still be spared and protected,” he said.
Humanitarian nightmare
Mr Cardon described the situation inside Gaza as a “humanitarian nightmare”.
The majority of hospitals in Gaza – 18 out of 35 – have stopped functioning, reported the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah, which receives its figures from the Hamas-controlled territory.
Little humanitarian aid has entered the enclave since Israel's war in Gaza started after the October 7 Hamas attacks that killed 1,400 people.
“We are extremely pessimistic, nothing has moved, there were a few developments when it comes to some entry of humanitarian aid, only few trucks,” he said.
“This is nothing, it is certainly not enough compared to the needs we see. So it's a terrible situation.”
In recent days, Israel has stepped up its ground offensive in northern Gaza and increased its aerial bombardment.
Mr Cardon said the ICRC had been clear from the start of the war that if no aid is able to enter the Gaza Strip then a humanitarian disaster would unfold.
“Believe me, the ICRC, [with its] 160 years experience in war situations, doesn't necessarily say that every day,” he said.
Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
The Bio
Favourite Emirati dish: I have so many because it has a lot of herbs and vegetables. Harees (oats with chicken) is one of them
Favourite place to go to: Dubai Mall because it has lots of sports shops.
Her motivation: My performance because I know that whatever I do, if I put the effort in, I’ll get results
During her free time: I like to drink coffee - a latte no sugar and no flavours. I do not like cold drinks
Pet peeve: That with every meal they give you a fries and Pepsi. That is so unhealthy
Advice to anyone who wants to be an ironman: Go for the goal. If you are consistent, you will get there. With the first one, it might not be what they want but they should start and just do it
SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
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Marathon results
Men:
1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13
2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50
3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25
4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46
5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48
Women:
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Adele: The Stories Behind The Songs
Caroline Sullivan
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ACL Elite (West) - fixtures
Monday, Sept 30
Al Sadd v Esteghlal (8pm)
Persepolis v Pakhtakor (8pm)
Al Wasl v Al Ahli (8pm)
Al Nassr v Al Rayyan (10pm)
Tuesday, Oct 1
Al Hilal v Al Shorta (10pm)
Al Gharafa v Al Ain (10pm)
Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
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Mica
Director: Ismael Ferroukhi
Stars: Zakaria Inan, Sabrina Ouazani
3 stars
Mobile phone packages comparison
The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion
