The crisis in Gaza is deepening. Here’s five developments you might have missed

The sight of Israeli tanks pulling up on the outskirts of Rafah this week stoked global fears a large-scale offensive could endanger the more than one million Palestinians sheltering there.

Israel has threatened a major assault on Gaza’s southernmost city to defeat the Hamas fighters it says are also holed up there. But the area is also a refuge for those fleeing combat further north.

UN officials say an attack on Rafah will collapse the aid operation keeping people across the enclave alive and potentially drive a region already in ‘full-blown famine’ into mass death.

Meanwhile, the prospect of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas was quickly dashed by Benjamin Netanyahu, who is weighing up whether or not to launch a full assault in defiance of US President Joe Biden.

As events which have been rumbling for months all look to be coming to a head, Metro looks at five big developments in the conflict from the past week you might have missed.

Grammy winner Macklemore releases pro-Palestine track Hind’s Hall

Macklemore has released a pro-Palestine song calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The 40-year-old American rapper – real name Ben Haggerty – has posted a campaign song on his socialmedia called Hind’s Hall.

It pays tribute to Hind Rajab, the six-year-old Palestinian child killed in an Israeli strike two months ago while she sat waiting for aid surrounded by the bodies of her dead relatives.

The song samples ‘Ana La Habibi’ by popular Lebanese singer Fairuz, who is known for her vocal support of Palestine.

Macklemore raps over the top of protest footage and videos of the destruction in Gaza.

‘The people they won’t leave,’ raps the Thrift Shop hitmaker alongside videos of pro-Palestine protests around the world, as he went on to ask: ‘What is threatening about divesting and wanting peace?’

‘The problem isn’t the protests, it’s what they’re protesting / it goes against what our country is funding,’ the lyrics continue.

Cutting to a video of President Joe Biden, Macklemore rapped there’s ‘blood’ on his ‘hands’ before confessing he would not be voting for the 81-year-old politician in the upcoming US elections.

Macklemore then took aim at the music industry’s ‘silence’ over the destruction in Gaza, saying they are ‘complicit’ in not speaking out against it.

It ends with the words on the screen: ‘Ceasefire now, free Palestine.’

Fans said they had ‘goosebumps’ at the song, and many – alongside music industry names – praised Macklemore for his taking a stand while many chose to stay quiet. 

‘Honestly Macklemore’s Hind’s Hall is the most Rage Against the Machine song since Rage Against the Machine,’ musician Tom Morello tweeted, referring to the rock band’s protest songs including Killing in the Name Of.

Netanyahu bans Al Jazeera in Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that his cabinet had voted to shut down Al Jazeera’s local operations for the war’s duration, saying it threatened national security.

The Qatari-owned TV station called the move a ‘criminal action’ and dismissed the national security accusation as a ‘dangerous and ridiculous lie’ that put its journalists at risk.

The network has criticised Israel’s military operation in Gaza, from where it has reported throughout the war.

Israeli satellite and cable television providers suspended Al Jazeera broadcasts following the government decision.

There was no official comment from the Qatari government, which deferred to Al Jazeera.

The network last month complained of ‘a series of systematic Israeli attacks to silence Al Jazeera’.

It said Israel deliberately targeted and killed several of its journalists, including Samer Abu Daqqa and Hamza AlDahdooh, both killed in Gaza during the conflict.

Israel has said it does not target journalists.

The UN Human Rights Office also criticised the closure.

Eurovision Song Contest already facing criticism over ban on Palestinian flag and symbols

This year’s Eurovision Song Contest is barely underway but it is already facing criticism.

Ireland’s first finalist since 2018 has criticised the organisers of the competition for asking them to alter a pro-Palestinian message.

Bambie Thug won a place in Saturday’s final with a mesmerising execution of their song Doomsday Blue at the semi-final on Tuesday in Malmo, Sweden.

The Cork-born singer, 31, told a press conference in Malmo they were forced to change their body paint in Ogham script – an early Medieval alphabet – which translated to ceasefire and freedom, a nod to the situation in Gaza and amid Israel’s inclusion in the competition.

Meanwhile, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) put out a message expressing ‘regret’ that the opening act made a political statement over the war.

Former Swedish Eurovision contestant Eric Saade was not competing and had the keffiyeh symbol, commonly used by people who want to show they are pro-Palestinian, on his arm on Tuesday as he performed his 2011 entry Popular.

Ahead of the event at Malmo Arena, fans were warned not to bring Palestinian flags, symbols or bags and were told that there will be ‘vigorous security checks’.

There have been several calls and protests urging a boycott of Eurovision this year as Eden Golan competes for Israel.

The dilemmas facing Netanyahu

Netanyahu continues to juggle competing pressures at home and abroad while weighing up how far to push the offensive against Hamas in Rafah.

Protests by families of the more than 130 hostages still held in Gaza have become a constant fixture, with demonstrators demanding a ceasefire deal which would get them back.

Others are just as vocal in calling for the IDF to press ahead with the assault.

The opposing pressures mirror divisions in Netanyahu’s cabinet between centrist ministers worried about alienating Washington – Israel’s most vital ally and supplier of arms – and religious nationalist hardliners determined to clear Hamas out of the Gaza Strip.

Hamas handed Netanyahu another dilemma this week when it declared it had accepted a ceasefire proposal brokered by Egypt for a halt to fighting in return for an exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

Israeli officials rejected the offer, accusing Hamas of altering the terms of the deal.

But it did not break off negotiations and shuttle diplomacy continues, with CIA chief Bill Burns in Israel on Wednesday to meet Netanyahu.

Internationally, protests have spread against Israel’s campaign in Gaza, which has so far killed more than 34,000 Palestinians and spread malnutrion and disease in the enclave.

Seven months into the war, surveys show opinion in Israel has become increasingly divided since Netanyahu first vowed to crush Hamas in retaliation for the October 7 attack that killed 1,200 people, took more than 250 hostage, and triggered the campaign in Gaza.

Despite his image as a security hawk, Netanyahu, Israel’s longest serving prime minister, has struggled with a widespread perception that he was to blame for the security failures that allowed Hamas to overwhelm Israel’s defences.

That has fed a mood of distrust among many Israelis who otherwise support strong action against Hamas.

A survey published on Wednesday for Channel 13 suggested that 56% of Israelis thought Netanyahu’s chief consideration was his own political survival against only 30% who thought it was freeing the hostages.

A survey by the Israel Democracy Institute found just over half the population believed a deal to rescue the hostages should be the top government priority, over the aim of destroying the remaining Hamas formations.

But a separate poll by the Jewish People’s Policy Institute (JPPI) found 61% thought the military must operate in Rafah no matter what. The Channel 13 poll found 41% in favour of accepting the deal and 44% opposed.

Glaring ‘dystopia’ of the Met Gala

The biggest names in film, music, TV and fashion ascended the off-white and airbrushed green steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York on Monday for this year’s Met Gala.

Outside, several people were arrested as pro-Palestine protesters tried to disrupt the event to condemn US funding and support for the war.

NYPD had to erect a ring of steel to keep dozens of demonstrators chanting ‘Rafah! Gaza!’ from crashing the lavish night out.

Social media users quickly pointed out how jarring they found it watching images of celebrities posing in outfits worth hundreds of thousands while Gaza lurches ever closer to famine.

‘I love fun. I love frivolity. I do. But wake up,’ one wrote.

Another highlighted the fact that the cost of one $75,000 (£60,000) ticket could evacuate up to three families from Gaza.

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