While Israel estimates the number of people taken hostage in the Gaza Strip since October 7 at 240, Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Sunday of a possible future agreement on the issue.
The war between Israel and Hamas entered its 37th day on Sunday, November 12, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raised the possibility of an agreement on the fate of the hostages held by Hamas. Franceinfo takes stock of what you will remember from the day.
Benjamin Netanyahu speaks of a possible hostage deal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raised the possibility of an agreement to release hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip in an interview with NBC. “Is there a possible agreement?” the journalist asked him. “It could be,” he replied, “but I think the less I say on this issue, the greater the chances are that this will happen,” Benjamin Netanyahu continued. “We weren’t close at all [d’un accord] “Until we started ground operations,” he described. “But the moment we started ground operations, things started to change.”
The Israeli military estimates that around 240 people were taken hostage in the first Hamas attack on October 7 in the Gaza Strip. According to Israeli media, these prisoners include at least thirty minors, including small children.
Israel says Emmanuel Macron called the president to “clarify” his comments made to the BBC.
Emmanuel Macron said in an interview with his Israeli counterpart that he “does not accuse Israel of deliberately causing harm to civilians in Gaza,” referring to comments made during an interview with the BBC, the Israeli presidency said. According to a press release from the Israeli presidential services, Israeli leader Isaac Herzog welcomed this telephone interview, which allowed Emmanuel Macron to “clarify” his remarks.
In an interview with the BBC on Friday evening, Emmanuel Macron “called on Israel to stop the bombings” that were killing civilians in Gaza. “De facto, civilians are being bombed today. These babies, these women, these elderly people are being bombed and killed,” he said. Comments that the Israeli presidency said “caused much pain and anger in Israel.”
The headquarters of a United Nations branch was bombed
The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) reported “a significant number of dead and injured” in the “bombing” of its headquarters in Gaza City, which was evacuated by its staff and is now inhabited by hundreds of displaced Palestinians.
“The ongoing tragedy of civilian deaths and injuries in this conflict (…) must come to an end,” the UNDP demanded in a statement. “Civilians, civilian infrastructure and the inviolability of UN premises must be respected and protected at all times.”
At Al-Chifa Hospital, at the center of the fighting in Gaza, the situation is still unclear
According to the Hamas government’s deputy health minister, a building in the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip was destroyed by an Israeli army attack. The latter has not yet responded to this accusation, but denied on Saturday that he had targeted Al-Chifa Hospital. Army spokesman Daniel Hagari described as “false” the information that his troops “surrounded and attacked” the establishment. “Hamas lies about what happens in hospitals,” he said. Since Friday, numerous witness statements have reported an intensification of fighting around Al-Chifa Hospital.
The European Union on Sunday condemned Hamas’s “use of hospitals and civilians as human shields” in the Gaza Strip, while calling on Israel to exercise “maximum restraint” to protect civilians in the ongoing war.
The Hamas government announces a new death toll
According to the Palestinian Hamas government’s new count, 11,180 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war. The deaths registered so far include 4,609 children and 3,100 women, according to the same source. In addition, 28,200 people were injured. No on-site source or image can support this assessment.