2023-11-07 06:38:00
The Israeli Prime Minister once again rejected the possibility of a ceasefire in Gaza, which according to the UN has become “a cemetery for children”, and promised to take “general responsibility for security” there after the war which enters its second month on Tuesday.
“There will be no ceasefire, no general ceasefire, in Gaza without the release of our hostages,” Benjamin Netanyahu said in a television interview with the American channel ABC News on Monday evening. during which he also affirmed that Israel will take “for an indefinite period, general responsibility for security” in the Palestinian territory after the war.
Because “when we do not have this responsibility for security, we witness the eruption of Hamas terror,” he added.
Previously, Osama Hamdane, a senior official of the Palestinian Islamist movement in Lebanon, had affirmed that Hamas would remain in Gaza and would not accept “a Vichy government” in this territory which it has controlled since 2007, in reference to the French collaborationist regime under Nazi occupation during World War II.
Mr. Netanyahu’s comments come after UN boss Antonio Guterres called for a “humanitarian ceasefire”, “more urgent with each passing hour” in the small Palestinian territory, transformed into a “cemetery for the children”.
“The nightmare in Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis, it is a crisis of humanity,” he lamented.
For the head of the Palestinian Red Crescent Younis Al-Khatib, “we are witnessing crimes against humanity every day. Thousands and thousands of civilians are being killed (…) Our men have been killed. Our volunteers have been You are”.
10,022 dead
The Israeli bombings against the Palestinian territory, launched in retaliation for the attack carried out on October 7 on its soil by Hamas, left 10,022 dead, mostly civilians including more than 4,000 children, according to the report of the Ministry of Health of the Hamas Monday.
Mr. Guterres also reiterated his condemnation of the “heinous terrorist acts” of Hamas on October 7 and castigated the Palestinian movement which uses “civilians as human shields and continues to fire rockets towards Israel indiscriminately”.
More than 1,400 people died in Israel according to the authorities, mostly civilians killed on the day of the Hamas attack, the deadliest in the country’s history. The Palestinian Islamist movement has also taken more than 240 hostages to Gaza.
The White House announced that President Joe Biden had discussed with Mr. Netanyahu the “possibility of tactical pauses (from the fighting) to provide civilians with opportunities to safely leave combat zones, ensure that aid reaches civilians in need and enable the potential release of hostages.”
On Sunday evening, the Israeli army announced the intensification of its bombing campaign which should last “several days” while its soldiers have been operating in parallel on the ground since October 27.
“It was like a million earthquakes combined… We had no warning, nothing, and suddenly we were surprised by missiles falling on our heads, non-stop,” Saad said Abou Sariya after strikes on Rafah (south).
“Yes, I’m scared.”
The most intense ground clashes are taking place in the north of the territory, where the city of Gaza is located, now surrounded and which, according to Israel, houses the “center” of Hamas. The army also claimed to have cut the territory in two, between north and south.
Near the border with Gaza, young Israeli soldiers display their “pride” in serving their country, without hiding their fears.
“Yes, I’m a little afraid to go. We don’t know if we’ll come back alive,” says a 20-year-old soldier, whose name is forbidden by military censorship. “We’ll do what we have to do, but it’s a terrible place to go.”
At least 30 Israeli soldiers, according to the army, have been killed since October 27.
In front of the Western Wall, the holiest site in Judaism in Jerusalem, 1,400 candles were lit Monday during a ceremony in the presence of families of victims of the Hamas attack.
“We have no other way to pay tribute to them than with prayers, by lighting candles, by carrying them in our hearts,” said Yossi Rivlin, 26, who lost two brothers killed during the rave. party Tribe of Nova.
In New York, a few hundred progressive American Jewish activists peacefully occupied the Statue of Liberty in New York on Monday to demand a cease-fire from Israel and an end to the “genocidal bombing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.”
“As long as the people of Gaza are screaming, we must scream louder, regardless of the attempts to silence us,” exclaimed American photographer Nancy Goldin.
The Israeli bombings are having a severe impact on the 2.4 million Palestinians, trapped in the 362 km2 territory and deprived of water, electricity and food deliveries by the siege imposed by Israel since October 9. They also pushed 1.5 million people onto the roads, according to the UN.
Mr. Guterres deplored on Monday the insufficient humanitarian aid arriving through Rafah, a crossing point with Egypt. With 569 trucks since October 21, “the drip of aid is nothing compared to the ocean of needs.”
The Gaza Strip, from which Israel withdrew in 2005 after a 38-year occupation, had already been subject to an Israeli blockade since Hamas, classified as a terrorist organization by the United States, came to power in 2007. European Union and Israel.
On Monday, an unknown number of injured people and dual nationals were able to cross into Egypt via Rafah, an official said, marking a resumption of evacuations that began last week after a two-day suspension.
American submarine
While the international community still fears an extension of the conflict, the American Department of Defense announced that a submarine had been deployed in the Middle East as a deterrent.
Tension is high, particularly in the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, where more than 150 Palestinians have been killed by fire from Israeli soldiers or settlers since October 7, according to the same source.
In East Jerusalem, the Palestinian part of the Holy City annexed by Israel, an Israeli police officer died after a stabbing attack by a 16-year-old Palestinian who was killed.
Another source of violence is Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, where there are daily exchanges of fire between the Israeli army on the one hand, and Hezbollah and its allies including Hamas, movements close to Iran, the other.
Since October 7, 83 people have been killed on the Lebanese side, including at least 11 civilians according to an AFP count. Hezbollah reported the deaths of 61 of its fighters. On the Israeli side, six soldiers and two civilians were killed.
07/11/2023 05:35:29 – Gaza Strip (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
#Netanyahu #refuses #ceasefire #claims #control #security #Gaza #war