by D. Frattini, correspondent; L. Cremonesi and A. Nicastro, correspondents; Online editorial team
The latest news from Saturday November 4th on the war between Israel and Hamas, live. Hamas accuses Israel of hitting an ambulance: “Fifteen dead” The IDF: This vehicle was used by the militiamen.
• It is the 28th day of the war: According to Hamas, over 9,000 Palestinians have died; 1,400 Israeli; 241 hostages in Gaza.
• Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, said in his public speech that “October 7 was an action led entirely by the Palestinians.”
• Israeli broadcaster Channel 12: “Zelensky will be in Israel next week.”
• The words and acronyms to understand the conflict: Here is the glossary.
• The history of the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis, explained here.
8:56 a.m. – The raid on ambulances outside Al-Shifa Hospital: What we know so far
According to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health in Gaza, the Israeli army’s attack on Friday evening, November 3, near al-Shifa hospital, the largest in Gaza, claimed 15 lives. Israel confirmed that it had attacked an ambulance convoy in the area, saying it was being used by “a Hamas terrorist cell.” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “appalled” by the attack.
On Saturday morning, Israeli media reported the words of a US source that Hamas “tried to get its fighters out of Gaza in ambulances via Rafah, slowing efforts to evacuate foreigners.” “Hamas provided Egypt and the US with a list of seriously injured people they wanted to evacuate, along with hundreds of foreigners waiting to leave,” the source said, adding that the US and Egypt then found out that “a third of the names they bore” were fighters, none of whom were among the 76 wounded and ultimately evacuated Palestinians.”
8:45 a.m. – What does it mean for the Israeli army to advance into Gaza?
A photo released by the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) shows Israeli soldiers marching through a battle-torn alley in the Gaza Strip:
You can use the image to get an idea of how complex a similar scenario might be. “Every alley can hold many surprises, it becomes a corridor of death, as the soldiers themselves discovered in the battles of the past,” explains Guido Olimpio in this article
8:32 a.m. – The story of Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism
Herzl (1860–1904) was a Hungarian Jew who lived in Vienna, where he worked as a journalist. After the Dreyfus affair in France and in response to the ongoing bloody pogroms against communities in Eastern Europe, he was pushed to seek a solution to anti-Semitism.
In the pamphlet The State of the Jews (1896), he argued that Jews were a distinct national group waiting to realize their destiny. His ideas, explains Lorenzo Cremonesi, were the result of European secular national movements and the growing problems of Jews facing racist anti-Semitism in late 19th-century Europe: “If one could convert before to be accepted, it is now.” The Jews were excluded forever in the name of the Law of Blood: a ruthless logic that Nazism would lead to its extreme consequences with the “Final Solution” less than half a century later. So here is Zionism’s answer: the Jews had to defend themselves, have an army and achieve the status of a nation among nations.” Full article here
8:30 a.m. – For the Pentagon, the threat of a “major regional conflict” has been “averted”
A “major regional conflict” in the Middle East “has been averted,” a Pentagon spokesman said. Speaking on BBC Newsnight, Brigadier General Patrick S. Ryder said he viewed “at this moment this conflict as a conflict between Israel and Hamas.” His statements came after the leader of the Lebanese Shiite Islamist group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, gave his first speech since the Oct. 7 attacks, but without committing his militiamen to an all-out war. Asked whether Hezbollah had succeeded in deterring the conflict, Ryder said: “It has been a central goal of our government and our Department of Defense to prevent this from becoming a larger regional conflict.”
8:27 a.m. – According to some US sources, Hamas hid militants in ambulances to get them out of Gaza
A US source said that “Hamas has attempted to get its fighters out of Gaza via ambulances via Rafah, slowing efforts to evacuate foreigners.” This was reported by Israeli media, to which the source reported that “Hamas Egypt and the United States provided a list of seriously injured people whom they planned to evacuate along with hundreds of foreigners waiting to leave the country.” The U.S. and Egypt noted that “a third of the names were fighters, none of whom were among the 76 injured and ultimately evacuated Palestinians.”
6:53 a.m. – The current state of affairs
(Luca Angelini) The good news from yesterday is that the words of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Iranian-armed Lebanese Hezbollah, appear to have stopped the conflict from escalating for now. As Beirut correspondent Andrea Nicastro summarizes:
“Nasrallah generously extended solidarity and honor to the “Palestinian resistance,” Hamas, and all “Gaza civilians” killed by Israel’s fury. After all, words are free. However, only mortar shells, rockets and rockets will continue to arrive from Lebanon. A long-distance duel with Israel within 5/10 of a kilometer of the border, as we already experienced in these first weeks of the war.”
Nasrallah did not limit himself to saying “We are already in the fight” and ruled out greater involvement for the time being (“We have to be realistic, we need time to deliver the final blow”), but also emphasized that “the operation by October 7th belongs 100% to Hamas, almost as if they wanted to protect their major Iranian sponsor. (One of the possible reasons for Nasrallah’s stance was given by Gregory Brew, an analyst at Eurasia Group: “In 2006 (the year of the war between Israel and Hezbollah), Iran had high oil revenues and was able to spend generously after the war “Today, Tehran must tighten its belt and reckon with its economy devastated by inflation. Nasrallah cannot count on the same help as before.”
The bad news is that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apparently did not accept the US proposal for a “humanitarian pause.” Israeli correspondent Davide Frattini writes: “Antony Blinken, the American secretary of state, landed in Tel Aviv convinced that he could get the green light for “humanitarian pauses” in the war against Hamas in Gaza. The Prime Minister replied: “No ceasefire until the hostages are freed.” However, Frattini adds, “it could be a question of formulas: the Americans – and the President had spoken to the Prime Minister about this – are demanding “limited and local” stops , to increase the flow of aid, and in this context Yoav Gallant, the Minister of Defense stated that he had no objections, the question remains as to what fuel could be confiscated by the Palestinian paramilitaries.
You can read it in the Corriere and on the website:
• The first episode of Lorenzo Cremonesi’s series on the history of Israel (but don’t miss the one that Gianluca Mercuri publishes every Friday in our review).
• Paolo Giordano’s editorial “Ukraine and the Middle East: two conflicts and a labyrinth,” which ends: “At least for those who want to try to hold them together, it is not certain that the multitude of constraints will remain so.” a path that leads to a way out. Towards a satisfactory final answer. There is an answer for Ukraine, and it has been there since day one of the full-scale invasion. Entering Gaza, it is possible that our minds are lost in a closed labyrinth.”
• Barbara Stefanelli’s editorial on 7: “Two peoples, two states, an ancient path through the rubble.”
• Nando Pagnoncelli’s poll, which shows that Israel’s decision to intervene in Gaza “raises considerable doubt among our respondents: 46% consider it disproportionate, but does not deny Israel the right to defend itself, just something more .” more than a quarter thought it was an understandable reaction.” Another fact: “Italians seem unwilling to take one side or the other.” The absolute majority (52%) are of the opinion that Mediation between the parties should begin today to prevent the conflict from escalating. (…) If 6% believe that Italy should support Israel without hesitation, 15% instead believe that the Palestinians should be supported while condemning Hamas, and a small minority (2%) would “Fully support Palestinians without condemning Hamas.”
• Giovanni Bianconi’s analysis of the anti-Semitic galaxy worrying the Interior Ministry (there are also fears about today’s twin demonstrations in Milan, one pro-Palestine, the other promoted by the League for the Defense of the West). Continuing on the subject of anti-Semitism, Mara Gergolet from Berlin speaks about the video message from Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck of the Greens, which has been viewed over 10 million times (“It was my grandparents’ generation that wanted to eradicate Jewish life in Germany.” And Europe. After the Holocaust “The founding of Israel is the promise of protection for the Jews: And Germany is obliged to keep this promise.” But Habeck goes further. He recognizes that “eighty years after the Holocaust” the Jews do not feel safe “here in Germany” that children are afraid to go to school “here in Germany”.
This analysis was published in PrimaOra, Corriere’s newsletter for its subscribers: to receive it free for 30 days, just click here.
6:19 a.m. – USAID agency officials call for an immediate ceasefire
Hundreds of US Agency for International Development (USAID) officials have asked the White House to pressure Israel into a ceasefire with Hamas. This was announced by Foreign Policy magazine. “The letter calls for “an immediate ceasefire” and a “cessation of hostilities,” the newspaper writes. USAID officials – at least 360 of whom have signed the petition – also want the United States to call on Israel to respect international law.
5:53 a.m. – Guterres “horrified” by Israeli attack on ambulance
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “appalled” by Israeli forces’ attack on an ambulance that Hamas said was part of a convoy carrying wounded people from Gaza to Egypt. “I am horrified by the news of the attack in Gaza on an ambulance convoy outside Al-Shifa Hospital. The images of bodies strewn on the street outside the hospital are heartbreaking. The UN chief insisted that he “does not forget the terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas in Israel” but added that “Gaza’s civilian population, including children and women, have been under siege for almost a month and have been denied aid, are being killed and driven out of Gaza.” “This has to stop,” he continued.
5:50 a.m. – Israeli troops capture Hamas stronghold with important documents
Israeli troops announced the capture of a key Hamas stronghold in the Gaza Strip, where soldiers from the Givati Brigade also found documents that could be crucial for further steps in the war. An army spokesman said this. According to Israel, the facility housed Hamas’s intelligence headquarters based in Jabaliya. Inside the fortress, soldiers discovered Hamas’ intelligence headquarters and associated documentation, complete with detailed maps, charts, media and personal information on terrorists and Hamas commanders; “Similar contents were found on the bodies of captured and dead terrorists after the October 7 attacks.”
5:05 a.m. – NYT journalist resigns after signing anti-war letter
New York Times Magazine reporter Jazmine Hughes has resigned for expressing support for the Palestinian people and opposition to Israel’s siege of the Gaza Strip. The decision came after a conversation with his editor. In recent days, the journalist signed a letter of opposition to the Israel-Gaza war from Writers Against the War on Gaza, which the NYT said was a violation of editorial policy. “While I respect that he has strong convictions, this was a clear violation of Times policy, which I fully support and which is an important part of our commitment to independence,” wrote Jake Silverstein, editor in chief of The New York Times Magazine , in an email to the editor. Hughes, who worked for the Times since 2015, had no comment on the resignation. The anti-Gaza letter was also signed by other journalists from the Los Angeles Times, Jewish Currents, Al Jazeera, Vox Media and New York Magazine.
5:04 a.m. – Guterres: “Horrified by attack on ambulance in Gaza”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “appalled” by the attack by Israeli forces on an ambulance convoy in Gaza. He said this in a statement, adding that the conflict “must come to an end.” “I am appalled by the reported attack on an ambulance convoy outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza. “The images of bodies scattered on the street outside the hospital are heartbreaking,” his statement said.
November 4, 2023 (modified November 4, 2023 | 09:08)
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