UN rights chief ‘worried’ over calls to ‘transfer’ Palestinians out of Gaza

2024-01-04 14:09:37

UPDATE ON THE SITUATION – The head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken begins a new tour of the Middle East this Thursday in the hope of avoiding an extension of the war beyond Gaza.

Pro-Iranian Hezbollah announced early this Thursday, January 4, the death of four of its fighters, including a local official, in southern Lebanon, bringing its total losses in clashes with Israel for nearly three years to 129. month. A source close to the Lebanese Islamist movement told AFP that the four fighters were killed during the night from Wednesday to Thursday in the border town of Naqoura. Among them is the party leader in this locality.

According to the official National News Agency (ANI), the Israeli Air Force “led raids on the center of Naqoura which destroyed a home and damaged surrounding houses”.

UN rights chief ‘worried’ over calls to ‘transfer’ Palestinians out of Gaza

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said Thursday “very worried” after comments from senior Israeli officials calling on Palestinians to leave Gaza.

“Very troubled by statements by senior Israeli officials on plans to transfer civilians from the Gaza Strip to third countries”said Volker Türk on the social network “international law prohibits the forcible transfer of protected persons within an occupied territory or their expulsion from this territory”.

Saudi Arabia rejects Israel’s ‘extremist remarks’ on displacement of Gazans

Saudi Arabia rejects “extremist remarks” of two Israeli ministers who called for the displacement of Gaza’s population, the reoccupation of the Strip and the construction of settlements, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday.

Emigration “voluntary” of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip is a solution advocated, not only by far-right Israeli ministers, but also by those close to Benjamin Netanyahu, who maintains a certain vagueness on the issue. The campaign in favor of these departures and at the same time the return of Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip after the war with Hamas, has grown to such an extent that the United States has denounced this project.

Among the most ardent defenders of this scenario are Bezalel Smotrich, the Minister of Finance, and Itamar Ben Gvir, Minister of National Security and leader of a far-right party.

14 Palestinians, including 9 children, killed west of Khan Younes, says Hamas

Fourteen Palestinians were killed on Thursday, including nine children, in Israeli strikes on Al-Mawasi, west of Khan Younes, in the Gaza Strip, a Health Ministry official told Reuters. This information could not be independently verified.

Blinken in the Middle East this Thursday

The head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken embarks this Thursday evening on a new tour of the Middle East in the hope of avoiding an extension of the war in Gaza after the elimination in Lebanon of Saleh al-Arouri, the number two from Hamas, and explosions in Iran which left 84 dead. This is the fourth time since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas that the Secretary of State has visited the region, with a stop planned on Israeli soil.

No country has “interest in escalation”declared Matthew Miller, the spokesperson for American diplomacy criticized in the region for its unwavering support for Israel since the start of the strikes on Gaza.

Israel has sworn to “destroy” Hamas after the unprecedented attack carried out by the Palestinian Islamist movement on October 7 on its soil, which left around 1,140 dead in Israel, including civilians, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli data. Commandos had also taken around 250 people hostage, more than 100 of whom were released at the end of November.

Israeli air raids continue on the Gaza Strip

In the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army continued its air raids during the night from Wednesday to Thursday, notably in Khan Younes (south) and Deir al-Balah (center), where the Hamas Ministry of Health reported of deaths.

“Hamas still has significant capabilities in Gaza”National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby declared in Washington. “We believe that reducing and defeating Hamas’s capabilities to carry out attacks in Israel is an absolutely achievable goal for Israeli military forces. It can be done, militarily. Will his ideology be eliminated? No. And is the group likely to be annihilated? Probably not (…)”he added.

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22,313 dead in the Gaza Strip, according to Hamas

The war that has been going on in Gaza since this attack has cost the lives of 22,313 people, mostly women, adolescents and children, or nearly 1% of the population of this territory of 2.4 million inhabitants, according to the latest Hamas record. This figure could not be independently verified.

Gazans are also facing serious shortages of food, water, fuel and medicine as humanitarian aid trickles in despite a UN resolution.

Israeli army on alert on its northern border

In Israel, army chief of staff Herzi Halevi indicated that his troops were on alert on the border with Lebanon (north), an almost daily scene of exchanges of fire since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas.

“We are at a very high level of preparation in the North (…) I believe that our preparation is at its maximum level”he said, referring to “opportunities” pour “create meaningful change” In the region.

Saleh al-Arouri buried this Thursday in Beirut

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, promised “a harsh response” to explosions. And Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned Israel against further escalation following the death of Saleh al-Arouri, who is to be buried Thursday in the Palestinian camp of Shatila, in Beirut.

“For the moment, we are fighting on the front in a calculated manner (…) but if the enemy thinks of launching a war against Lebanon, we will fight without limits, without restrictions and without borders (…) We are not afraid the war”said Hassan Nasrallah in a speech on Wednesday.

US rejects idea of ​​American or Israeli involvement in Iran explosions

In Tehran, officials have accused Israel of being behind “murder” of the senior Hamas official and “the attack” near the tomb of General Qassem Soleimani, former architect of Iranian operations in the Middle East, whose death Iran marked the fourth anniversary.

Israel has not commented on the allegations. In Washington, an official said the strike against Saleh al-Arouri was “Israeli” while the State Department ruled “absurd” the idea that the United States or Israel is linked to the explosions in Iran.

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