The Israeli army announced this Tuesday the death of 24 soldiers on Monday in the Gaza Strip, the worst balance for its troops since the beginning of the ground operation against that Palestinian territory, last October.
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The Israeli government is under increasing pressure to find a solution to the conflict and, according to a US media outlet, has presented an agreement proposal that contemplates a two-month halt.
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The Israeli army lost 24 soldiers in Gaza on Monday. His spokesperson, General Daniel Hagari, explained that 21 died when an anti-tank rocket hit an armored vehicle and two buildings that his troops had mined for demolition.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that “The army had launched an investigation into the disaster.”. “We must learn the necessary lessons and do everything to preserve the lives of our warriors,” he said in a statement.
The bad news we received yesterday (this Monday), with the death of 24 of our warriors (…) is a hard blow.
“The bad news we received yesterday (this Monday), with the death of 24 of our warriors (…) is a hard blow,” said Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, in a speech with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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“This is a war that will determine the future of Israel for decades to come: the fall of the soldiers forces us to achieve the objectives of the fight,” Gallant added on the X social network, where he urged the war to continue.
Regarding this fact, Army spokesman Daniel Hagari explained: “As far as we know, around 4 in the afternoon the terrorists fired an RPG at a tank that was protecting the forces and at the same time an explosion occurred in two two-story buildings.
The spokesperson confirmed to the Hebrew media that The causes of the accident are being investigated, specifically whether the explosion was the result of mines placed by the troops themselves..
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The incident occurred in the center of the Strip, near the border community of Kissufim, where the Army announced that troops were destroying Hamas Islamist structures in order to create a security perimeter that “would allow residents of Israeli border communities return to their homes.
The Israeli Defense Army has so far revealed the identity of 17 of the fallen soldiers and notified the rest of the families, so the identity of the other four will be announced in the coming hours.
This event may further increase pressure on Netanyahu's government, according to Israela Oron, an analyst at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. “Everyone is mourning the soldiers this morning and I think people will ask for clear answers about the purpose and objective of this operation in Gaza,” she said.
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In the last weeks, Fighting is concentrated in the south of the Palestinian territory governed by Hamas. The Israeli army said on Tuesday that its forces had “encircled” Khan Younis and had “deepened” their operations in the densely populated city, killing dozens of Islamist militants in the past 24 hours.
Witnesses reported strong explosions in this city, the most populated in southern Gaza, as well as in Deir al Balah, in the north of the territory, and in Rafah, in the extreme south.
The Palestinian Red Crescent reported that Israeli forces had attacked its offices in Khan Younis “with artillery”, causing “injuries among internally displaced people” sheltering in its facilities.
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The total number of casualties in the Israeli ranks amounts to 219 with those killed this Monday since the start of the ground offensiveto which we must add about 330 counting the soldiers killed during the brutal attack by Hamas on October 7 on Israeli soil.
Since the start of the war on October 7, around 25,300 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza, where the total number of wounded is more than 63,000.
'Serious negotiations' for Gaza truce
Qatar confirmed this Tuesday that there are “serious negotiations” between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas to reach a truce in the Gaza Strip, but warned of the existence of “obstacles” in these talks such as the rejection by the Israeli Government of the two-state solution.
“I cannot give details now, but we are involved in serious negotiations between the two parties, and that makes us optimistic,” Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al Ansari said at a press conference, lamenting that “there are several obstacles that affect the negotiations.”
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I can't give details right now, but we are involved in serious negotiations between the two sides, and that makes us optimistic.
Among these obstacles he listed the “rejection” of the Israeli Government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the creation of an independent Palestinian State and calls for the “displacement of the inhabitants of Gaza” out of the Palestinian enclave.
Likewise, he indicated that there is a “lack of trust” between Israel and Hamas after the assassination of the number two in the political office of the Islamist movement, Saleh al Arouri, at the beginning of January in Beirut, while he indicated that “Contacts were cut off” with the leadership of the Palestinian group in Gaza “for some time”.
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“The challenges are great,” said Al Ansari, who reiterated that mediation is currently focused on reaching a cessation of hostilities in Gaza, where “5% of the Strip's inhabitants have been killed or injured.”
However, the Qatari spokesperson indicated that His country's mediation efforts “will not stop whatever the situation on the ground” to reach a truce and he was “optimistic” about the success of these contacts..
“The Israeli side must realize that continuing the war only leads to more losses,” insisted Al Ansari, whose country has been the key mediator in reaching a brief truce at the end of 2023 in Gaza and for the exchange of hostages in hands of Hamas by Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
(Keep reading: Why the situation in Gaza went from being catastrophic to being close to collapse, according to the UN)
Along these lines, he assured that “Qatar is the one who offers the proposals” to reach understandings between Israel and Hamas during this new round of “sensitive talks”.
Last week, Qatar announced “the success of Qatari mediation in cooperation with France” for an agreement between Israel and Hamas that will provide medicine and other humanitarian aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip, “in the most affected areas.” and vulnerable”, in exchange for part of the medicines reaching the hostages.
INTERNATIONAL EDITORIAL
*With information from AFP and EFE
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