Africa

The Israeli military says it will withdraw five combat brigades taking part in the ground invasion of Gaza so troops can “gain strength” for future battles. At least 100 people were killed and 286 wounded in Israeli attacks on homes in central Gaza in the past 24 hours, the health ministry says. Displaced Palestinians found little to celebrate on New Year’s Eve in Muwasi, a makeshift camp in the mostly undeveloped area of southern Gaza’s Mediterranean coast designated by Israel as “a safe zone”. “From the intensity of the pain we live, we do not feel that there is a new year,” said Kamal al-Zeinaty, huddled with his family around a fire inside a tent. “All the days are the same.” Another relative, Zeyad al-Zeinaty, who fled with his family from the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, said his wife, brother and grandchildren are among many relatives he lost in the war. A video published by the Red Crescent showed the chaotic aftermath of strikes in central Gaza as rescuers worked in the dark to carry an injured child from smoking rubble. As the year drew to a close, Palestinians in Gaza were praying for a ceasefire, but had little optimism that 2024 would be better. “Gaza has been destroyed and we have nowhere to live. But we just want to stop hearing the sounds of planes and drones, for children to stop being afraid, and for us and our loved ones, those who are left, to meet again,” said Suzan Khader in Rafah.