Gaza City is completely surrounded and Israeli troops are already inside some areas of the town. Benyamin Netanyahu spoke of an operation “now at its peak”. “We also have painful losses – admitted the Israeli prime minister, referring to at least 19 soldiers killed in combat since the start of the ground operation – but as one of the fighters told me ‘nothing will stop us’. I appeal to those not involved to come out and go south, because we will not stop eliminating Hamas terrorists.”
Netanyahu, however, denied what Halevi said about the fact that Israel is ready to supply Gaza hospitals with fuel once they run out, thus opening another front of friction with the army. According to US estimates, however, Hamas retains around 40% of the 500,000 liters of petrol in Gaza to fuel the operation of the tunnels and its infrastructure.
The strategy on the field, as has been confirmed by the military, is that of combined attacks: not only soldiers and tanks for the advance on the ground, but also incessant raids by aviation and naval forces from the sea which thus pave the way for the operations of land. The dimensions of the ongoing conflict are given by the figures provided by the army, according to which in the last few hours alone “130 terrorists have been killed”. “Fighting planes and helicopters – continued the spokesperson – attacked several military headquarters used by senior Hamas officials and successfully destroyed a series of terrorist infrastructures located in civilian areas and military bases”.
The population of that part of the Strip where the humanitarian situation is in crisis remains in the midst of the “fierce fighting” between ground troops and Hamas militiamen. “Time is running out to prevent a genocide in Gaza”, UN experts reported from Geneva, according to whom the Palestinian people “run a serious risk of genocide”. From the Rafah crossing, between Gaza and Egypt, hundreds of foreigners managed to get out, including those with dual nationality and even those who were injured. Among the first also a 6-year-old Italian girl together with her Palestinian mother, after the four compatriots evacuated on Wednesday. A small glimmer of light in the humanitarian collapse that will be at the top of the dossiers that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will face when he arrives in Israel today, where he will see Prime Minister Netanyahu. The US pressure is aimed at Israel granting short “humanitarian pauses” for the safe release of the hostages and the distribution of aid. “This is something the United States is committed to,” Blinken himself stressed. However, there is a different story regarding a possible ceasefire, a topic on which Washington and Israel instead converge: for now there is no discussion about it given that it is believed it would favor Hamas. But if the southern front is the main one, the northern one with Hezbollah – whose leader Hassan Nasrallah will speak on TV today – is becoming increasingly heated. Israel has denounced that an Iranian militia is helping Shiite militiamen fight Israel from southern Lebanon. According to the Israeli military spokesperson, it would be from ‘Imam Hussein’, already in action in Syria in recent years.
Not only that, the Wagner group, according to US intelligence, could supply an air defense system to Hezbollah, the SA-22, which would guarantee the militiamen much higher protection than the current one. There is no news on the fate of the hostages held in Gaza (a new toll speaks of 242 people). Despite the strong air strikes on the Strip, new rockets rained down on Israel, hitting the south and center of the country. In Gaza – according to the Hamas Ministry of Health which does not distinguish between civilians and militiamen – the deaths have reached 9,061: of these 3,760 are minors while the wounded are around 32,000.
To know more
The front – Israel encircles Hamas: the battle of Gaza City
The background – In Hamas’ death tunnels: the trap that scares Israel
History – The party in Italy of Minerva who fled Gaza at the age of 6
Israel withholds tax funds intended for Gaza. There will be no more workers coming from the Strip
Israel’s security cabinet ministers voted to transfer tax funds raised for the Palestinian Authority to Ramallah, but deducted money earmarked for the Gaza Strip. This was announced by the Prime Minister’s office. Adding that “Israel is cutting off all contact with Gaza.” The statement, reports the Times of Israel, explains “there will be no more Palestinian workers from Gaza and the workers who were in Israel the day the war broke out will return to Gaza.”
The US House approves 14.5 billion in aid to Israel
The Republican-majority House approves the measure which provides 14.5 billion dollars in military aid to Israel. The measure requires to be financed by cuts to other government spending. The green light is in contrast to the requests of Joe Biden who had linked aid to Israel with that to Ukraine.
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