World
What bombs did Israel use against the al-Mawasi ‘safe zone’ in Gaza?
The three bombs dropped by Israeli warplanes on displaced people’s tents in southern Gaza left three enormous craters and myriad questions about the use of such big munitions on such a densely populated space.
In the early hours of Tuesday, Israel’s bombing of al-Mawasi killed at least 19 people and wounded many more.
At least 22 people are reported missing, assumed to have been vaporised by the intensity of the blast.
Israel claimed the strikes targeted Hamas militants, while Palestinians and aid groups condemned the attack as a war crime.
What happened?
Initial accounts of the Israeli strike were confused but it soon became clear Israel had struck the encampment with three large projectiles.
Twenty-two-year-old Tala Herzallah described to Al Jazeera she how and her family were asleep about 200 metres (220 yards) away and: “Suddenly, everything was turned upside down.
“The huge damage the bombs caused made us realise that these were meant for the largest buildings and not for tents made of the weakest materials in the world.”
Abu Muhammad al-Bayouk, a displaced person who lives near the encampment, told Al Jazeera: “We heard the explosions. It was … more than a missile. We found many injuries and martyrs and scattered body parts everywhere, including women and children.”
What did Israel use against the tents of al-Mawasi?
Al Jazeera’s verification agency Sanad concluded that US-made MK-84 bombs may have been used by Israel against the encampment of displaced families.
It based this on analysing the size of craters and footage of bomb fragments from the camp.
The MK-84 is 2,000lb ordnance, and one of the heaviest pieces provided to Israel by the US.
The US briefly suspended MK-84 supplies in May, worried that it may use them to assault southern Gaza’s Rafah. Israel proceeded to invade Rafah in May.
Armies tend to use the MK-84 sparingly, but Israel is reported to have used it heavily on Gaza.
The MK-84 causes a pressure wave so intense that, as well as destroying buildings, it exterminates life within a 365-metre (400-yard) radius.
According to the UN, the blast can rupture lungs, tear limbs apart, and burst sinus cavities up to hundreds of metres away from the blast site.
The crater MK-84s leave behind are roughly 15.5 metres wide and 11 metres deep (50 feet wide and 36 feet deep), in keeping with those found at al-Mawasi.
How many people were in the spot Israel hit?
There are no precise counts of people who are in the displacement tents, but Al Jazeera’s Sanad estimates that there were about 60 tents in the space Israel hit.
Previous accounts tell of huge overcrowding, with 20 or more people crammed into one tent to try to shelter from Israel’s ongoing war on the besieged enclave.
By that count it is estimated that at least 120 people were sleeping in the spot where the three large bombs landed.
Why were so many people in al-Mawasi?
Al-Mawasi had been designated as a humanitarian “safe zone” by Israel in October of last year.
Since then, thousands of displaced people have either fled or been instructed by the Israeli army to go there.
There, despite what many describe as appalling conditions, many hoped to find the chance of safety for their families not possible anywhere else in Gaza.
For many, the Israeli army’s assurances, the absence of any highrise buildings nearby, and the fine sand underneath making the chances of Israeli airstrikes upon suspected tunnels unlikely, it was hoped that the camp may at least be secure.
Those hopes were swiftly dashed. Before Tuesday’s attack, al-Mawasi had been struck four times but people stayed on because there was nowhere else to go.
The biggest attack occurred on July 13, 90 people were killed and at least 300 wounded.
At the time, Israel said the attack intended to target two senior Hamas senior commanders, a claim dismissed by Hamas.
More than 1,600 rescue workers have arrived and 25 flights filled with aid will land over the next day in Venezuela after earthquakes devastated the country on Wednesday, according to Venezuela’s vice minister of foreign affairs, Oliver Blanco.
World
American rescue teams pull infant alive from rubble in Venezuela days after devastating twin earthquakes
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American search-and-rescue teams pulled an infant alive from beneath the rubble in Venezuela days after the country’s devastating earthquakes, the U.S. Department of State said Saturday.
The State Department shared video on social media showing U.S. personnel pulling the infant from the rubble as rescue crews continued searching for survivors more than 72 hours after two powerful earthquakes struck the South American country.
The infant was 9 months old and was rescued along with her mother, the State Department told Fox News Digital. Both suffered only minor injuries, according to the rescue team.
“This heroic rescue was carried out in Catia La Mar by the Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue team (USA-01), which deployed to Venezuela on June 26 following activation by the State Department,” a State Department spokesperson said.
TRUMP SAYS VENEZUELA EARTHQUAKES LEFT ‘DEVASTATING NUMBER OF DEATHS’ AS US READIES AID
American search-and-rescue teams rescued an infant trapped beneath the rubble following this week’s deadly earthquakes in Venezuela, according to the State Department. (Department of State)
The rescue comes as emergency crews race against time to locate survivors before the critical rescue window closes.
“Against impossible odds, hope endures,” the State Department posted on X.
“American search and rescue teams rescued an infant from beneath the rubble following the earthquake in Venezuela,” the post continued. “Every life saved is a victory.”
The White House also shared the video, calling it “America at its best.”
“Thank you to the American search and rescue teams providing assistance in Venezuela,” the White House wrote.
PLAYERS, FANS FLEE STADIUM AS POWERFUL EARTHQUAKES STRIKE DURING VENEZUELA BASEBALL GAME
Rescue workers search through the rubble three days after earthquakes struck Catia la Mar, Venezuela. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
Round-the-clock rescue efforts have continued since magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes struck Venezuela’s northern coast Wednesday.
As of Saturday evening, officials said the death toll from the twin earthquakes had reached 1,430.
Earlier Saturday, officials reported that 243 people had been rescued.
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Rescue personnel with a rescue dog assist in rescue efforts after earthquakes hit the country, in La Guaira, Venezuela, Saturday. (REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria)
According to The Associated Press, more than 68,000 people remain missing across the country.
Aid groups consider the first 48 to 72 hours after a disaster to be the most critical window for finding survivors, though access to food and water can extend that period.
Venezuelan officials said 17 flights carrying more than 1,600 rescue personnel had arrived Saturday to assist with search-and-rescue efforts.
US RESCUE TEAMS TO DESCEND ON HARD-HIT CARIBBEAN AFTER CATASTROPHIC HURRICANE MELISSA’S IMPACT
Members of the County of Los Angeles Fire Department’s international urban search and rescue team (USA-2) prepare to leave for Venezuela, in Pacoima, Calif., on Thursday. (Blake Fagan/AFP via Getty Images)
Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams from Virginia, California and Florida were dispatched to Venezuela on Friday to help search collapsed buildings.
According to the State Department, the three USAR teams include 312 personnel and 18 canine teams, including firefighters, physicians, structural engineers and canine search specialists. The teams also deployed more than 200,000 pounds of specialized rescue equipment.
The Los Angeles County team includes 73 members equipped with concrete-breaking equipment and specialized listening devices used to detect survivors trapped beneath debris.
COLORADO AVALANCHE VICTIM RESCUED IN DRAMATIC VIDEO
Responders search for victims in a demolished building in Caracas, Venezuela, after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake and a 7.5 aftershock struck the region. (Jesus Vargas/Getty Images)
Rescuers have fanned out across La Guaira, where the worst destruction occurred, and parts of Caracas, where families and volunteers have spent days pulling survivors and victims from the rubble.
The United States has pledged $150 million in emergency assistance and support for international relief organizations responding to the disaster.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Fox News Digital has reached out to the State Department for additional information on the rescue.
Fox News Digital’s James Cirrone, and The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced on Saturday that he will resign in the coming weeks and called for early presidential and parliamentary elections.
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“I will be president for only a few weeks, and then I will resign,” Vučić told supporters at a rally in Belgrade. His second and final term was due to expire in mid-2027.
His remarks followed recent comments suggesting he could step down, amid speculation that he may seek a return as prime minister, a position he held from 2014 to 2017
It also follows a year and a half of student-led anti-corruption protests, triggered by the collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad that killed 16 people. The protesters have been demanding early elections.
During his speech, Vučić said he would support his Serbian Progressive Party in the upcoming elections, including snap parliamentary polls originally scheduled for next year.
He did not provide a specific timeline for his resignation or for the dissolution of parliament, which is required before early legislative elections can be held.
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