The war between Hamas and IsraelDossierThe essential information on the war between Hamas and Israel from this Tuesday, January 23rd.
Review of the news surrounding the war in the Middle East this Monday, January 22nd. You can find Monday's summary here.
An adviser to Joe Biden is in Cairo to discuss hostage-taking and a new lull in fighting. Brett McGurk's schedule is full. As Joe Biden's Middle East adviser, he is currently in the region to discuss a “pause” in hostilities in Gaza to release hostages kidnapped by Hamas. According to White House spokesman John Kirby, the US presidential envoy was “in Cairo” on Tuesday and would make further stops in the region. And “one of the things he is discussing is the possibility of a new hostage release agreement that would require a longer humanitarian pause,” Kirby added, calling the discussions “serious.” “We would be very much in favor of a longer pause than the week we previously received if it gives us the opportunity to free the hostages and bring more humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” he said. -he continued.
24 Israeli soldiers, including 21 Israeli reservists, were killed on Monday, the highest daily casualty toll for the IDF. The Israeli army spokesman announced on Tuesday, January 23, the deaths of 24 soldiers, including 21 “reservists” who were killed in the Gaza Strip the previous day. This is the highest daily damage on the Israeli side since the ground offensive against this Palestinian territory began on October 27. General Daniel Hagari said during a televised press conference that most of these reservists were killed by the explosion of “an RPG” (shoulder-mounted rocket) that targeted a tank and a building mined by the army for its demolition in the south of the country Gaza Strip.
“The armed forces worked to destroy terrorist buildings and infrastructure […]“, 600 meters from the border” between Gaza and Israel, the official said during a televised news conference. “At around 4pm, an RPG missile was reportedly fired by terrorists at a tank providing security to the troops,” he continued. “Simultaneously,” an explosion tore away both buildings, “which collapsed instantly while most of the force was still inside or nearby.” The buildings had been heavily mined for destruction. It was not yet clear on Tuesday why they exploded earlier than expected.
The army had previously published the identities of ten of these reservists on its website. “We worked until the last hours to locate the victims,” General Hagari said, citing the difficulty of recovering bodies buried under the rubble. “War has a high, even very high, price. “Our reservists sacrificed what they care most about so that we can all live here safely,” he added.
The IDF announces that it has “surrounded” Khan Younes. Israeli forces announced Tuesday that they had “surrounded” Khan Younes, the capital in the territory's south where Israel says local Hamas leaders are hiding. The city was where Yahya Sinouar, Hamas's Gaza leader and architect of the October 7 attack, was born. This Tuesday, fierce fighting continued in the city between the Israeli army and the Palestinian Hamas, amid negotiations to pause the war for a few weeks in the absence of a longer-term solution. Early Tuesday, Palestinian witnesses reported Israeli artillery fire near Nasser Hospital in Khan Younes, the southern capital of the territory where Israel says local Hamas leaders are hiding. The Palestinian Red Crescent accused the Israeli army of firing artillery on the fourth floor of its headquarters in the city and opening fire on drones, injuring people who had taken refuge in the grounds of this medical complex. According to the UN Humanitarian Coordination Office (Ocha), “hostilities are increasing” in this city, where the Israeli army claimed on Monday to have taken control of Hamas command posts.
Mathilde Panot will be present at the tribute to the French Hamas victims. The leader of the LFI deputies Mathilde Panot announced this Tuesday that she would attend the tribute that Emmanuel Macron paid on February 7th in Paris to the French victims of the attacks carried out by the Islamist movement Hamas on October 7th in Israel. “I'll be there […] and I have asked to pay tribute to all the French victims of this war in the Middle East, announced the rebel MP during a press conference. I believe we must pay tribute […] to the Franco-Israelis and the Franco-Palestinians who lost their lives, whether through Hamas war crimes or Netanyahu war crimes.”
“On February 7, at the Memorial to the Victims of Terrorism” on the Esplanade des Invalides in Paris, “I will pay tribute to these victims, together with their loved ones, their families and everyone who wants to join us there,” Emmanuel Macron said last week. The head of state recalled that France “lost 41 of its children” in these attacks. La France insoumise caused controversy after the October 7 attacks, particularly with its refusal to classify Hamas as a “terrorist” group.
About two months of ceasefire? Israel, through the mediation of Egypt and Qatar, has offered Hamas a two-month break in fighting and raids in Gaza in return for the release of all hostages, the American website Axios reported on Monday evening. This proposal does not mean the end of the war in Gaza, but a second ceasefire after a week that allowed the release of a hundred hostages in exchange for at least 240 Palestinian prisoners held in Israel. Israel's proposal calls for the return of living hostages to Israel and, according to Axios, consists of several phases, the first of which would include women and men over the age of 60. This was followed by female soldiers, men under 60 who were not in the military, male Israeli soldiers and then the remains of hostages. As part of the plan, Israel and Hamas would have to agree in advance on the number of Palestinian prisoners released in exchange for each hostage according to their category, Axios continued.
Israel still rejects “the two-state solution.”. When the Netanyahu government discusses a ceasefire, it is refusing to think longer-term about the “two-state solution,” an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, European foreign ministers complained on Monday. At their meeting in Brussels, they met one after the other and separately with their Israeli counterparts Israel Katz and the Palestinian Riyad al-Maliki. Katz said he was seeking European support for Israel's war against Hamas and for the release of the hostages. “The (Israeli) minister could have used his time better and worried about the security of his country and the high number of deaths in Gaza,” reacted the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell, irritated by Israel's refusal to talk about it Two-state solution. “What other solutions are you thinking about?” asked Borrell. “Let all Palestinians go? Kill them?” he added. Israelis “are sowing the seeds of hatred for generations to come.”
Updated at 11:15 a.m. with the new assessment on the part of the Israeli army.