2023-10-24 02:45:06
The Islamist group Hamas reported that it released two Israeli hostages while Israel’s military offensive against the Gaza Strip continues to aggravate the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave, where aid continued to enter and official sources already count more than 5,000 dead. The spokesman for Hamas’s military wing, Abu Obeida, said in a statement that the two hostages were released “for compelling humanitarian reasons,” thanks to the mediation of Qatar and Egypt.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s office identified those released as Yocheved Lifschitz, 85, and Nourit Kuper, 79, both of Israeli nationality and originally from Kibbutz Nir Oz, where they were kidnapped along with their husbands who are still being held. “After having been returned to the Israeli forces, they are heading to a medical center in Israel specially prepared to receive them,” Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement, thanking Egypt and the Red Cross for their contribution to the liberation.
“Although words fail me to express my relief at knowing they are safe, I remain focused on the release of my father and the 200 innocent people still held in Gaza,” Yocheved’s daughter, Sharone Lifschitz, a British national, said in a statement. . Since Hamas’ bloody incursion into Israel on October 7, only one American woman and her daughter had been freed as of last Friday.
US President Joe Biden said there can only be talk of a ceasefire in Gaza if Hamas releases all kidnapped hostages. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller assured reporters that a ceasefire would “give Hamas the opportunity to rest, reequip and prepare to continue launching terrorist attacks against Israel,” and therefore dismissed it.
Deaths on both sides rise
More than 5,000 people have been killed in the besieged Gaza Strip since Israeli bombing began on October 7, in retaliation for Hamas’ bloody offensive against Israel. According to the Islamist group that governs the enclave, 436 people lost their lives in the last 24 hours.
The Israeli Army has intensified its bombing of the Gaza Strip since Sunday with a view to a possible ground operation in response to the Hamas attack, the deadliest since the founding of Israel in 1948 that left 1,400 dead.
Israel promised to “annihilate” the Islamist movement and bombs it daily. The attacks damaged at least 181,000 homes, of which 20,000 were completely destroyed or unusable in this small territory of 362 square kilometers, where 2.4 million people live in overcrowded conditions. The territory has been under a “total siege” since October 9, when Israel cut off supplies of water, food, electricity and fuel.
Humanitarian aid began to arrive in dribs and drabs on Saturday from the Rafah crossing, on the border with Egypt. A third convoy of 20 trucks entered this Monday. The UN, however, considers that it is insufficient and that at least 100 trucks a day are needed to respond to the needs of the population.
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, demanded more and “faster” aid, because what is coming in is “insufficient.” And he called for a “humanitarian pause” to allow its distribution. He also reported that the ministers will address the United Nations Secretary General’s calls for a “humanitarian ceasefire” and that this issue will be discussed at the European Union leaders’ summit next Thursday.
Called to donate blood
On October 15, Israel asked civilians in the northern Gaza Strip to move south to take refuge from the bombing. According to the UN, at least 1.4 million Palestinians have been displaced and the humanitarian situation is “catastrophic.”
In the southern city of Khan Yunis, several children from the same family killed in a bombing were buried on Monday. According to the Hamas Health Ministry, 15,273 people were injured in the incessant Israeli shelling and authorities issued a call “for citizens to immediately come and donate blood.”
The Israeli Army stationed tens of thousands of soldiers around the Strip. But any ground operation is conditioned by the kidnapping of more than 200 people taken hostage by Hamas militants. The presence of these hostages in Gaza could hinder Israel’s ground operation in this overcrowded enclave, riddled with traps and tunnels.
Following the Hamas offensive, Washington deployed an aircraft carrier and other warships to the eastern Mediterranean. The Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, considered this Monday that the reinforcement of the US military presence in the region posed a risk of “escalation.” At the same time, he said that both Washington’s and the European Union’s actions were necessary to achieve a diplomatic solution.
Displaced people in Lebanon
The Israeli city of Ashkelon and its surroundings were targeted this Monday by rockets launched from Gaza. Israel asked the population to evacuate these southern areas bordering Gaza, but some refuse to leave. Hostilities are also multiplying on the border between Israel and Lebanon, with recurring exchanges of fire between the Israeli Army and Hezbollah, a pro-Iranian group allied with Hamas.
Residents on both sides of the border were evacuated and according to the UN, there are more than 20,000 displaced people in Lebanon. Netanyahu on Sunday warned Hezbollah that he would make “the mistake of a lifetime” if he decides to go to war with Israel. The United States, which firmly supports Israel, announced on Sunday a military reinforcement in the Middle East in the face of “recent escalations by Iran and its affiliated forces.”
Since the start of the war, tension has also increased in the occupied West Bank, where at least 95 Palestinians lost their lives in clashes with Israeli forces and settlers in the area. Two Palestinians were shot dead by the Israeli Army on Monday during a military raid on a refugee camp north of Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Short circuit rumors
The Israeli government and Army sent a message of unity this Monday to try to dispel rumors about differences regarding the ground operation in Gaza. In a joint statement published by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, it is stated that he, along with the Minister of Defense and the Chief of the General Staff, “are working together in close cooperation, 24 hours a day, to achieve complete victory.” about Hamas.”
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated this Monday that the Army is preparing for “the next step” in the Gaza Strip, which will consist of “a multilateral operation by land, sea and air.” Under these circumstances, the trust of Israeli citizens in the government is at the lowest level in the last 20 years, according to a survey published this Monday.
After the events of October 7, only 20.5 percent of those surveyed indicate that they continue to trust Netanyahu’s government to manage the current crisis. In this sense, only 8 percent of those surveyed expressed their complete confidence that the government has a concrete action plan in the war with Hamas. The survey was prepared by the Israel Democracy Institute.
The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported Monday that three members of Netanyahu’s cabinet, whose names were not mentioned, are considering resigning in response to the government and security establishment’s inability to prevent the Hamas attack and manage its consequences.
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