Almost two weeks after Hamas’s attack on Israel, the Tel Aviv army’s bombardment of the Gaza Strip continues. Today, Thursday, October 19, the IDF announced that it had killed several leading members of Hamas. Among them is Rafat Harb Hussein Abu Hilal, head of the Popular Resistance Committees, one of the armed factions supporting the Palestinian terrorist organization. In 2006, the same committees took part in the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, a hostage held in Gaza for five years and released as part of a prisoner exchange. But Jamila al-Shanti, widow of Hamas co-founder Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi and the first woman elected to the organization’s Politburo in 2021, and Jehad Mohaisen, head of Hamas’ national security, were also killed. The airstrikes were compounded by raids by some Israeli army commandos trying to locate missing citizens. Military spokesman Daniel Hagari gave an update on the status of operations, saying Israel estimated the number of hostages brought to Gaza by Hamas at 203. In further attacks last night, “ten terrorists from Hamas’ elite Nukhba unit” were also killed, the Tel Aviv Air Force spokesman added.
Humanitarian aid and the Rafah border crossing
This morning, the Palestinian authorities released a new update on the number of victims of the war: at least 3,785 dead and 12,493 injured have been recorded since October 7th. Meanwhile, international efforts continue to ensure humanitarian assistance to civilians in the Gaza Strip. The press service of the Russian Emergencies Ministry announced the departure of a special flight with 27 tons of relief supplies. “At the direction of the Russian President and on behalf of the government – the Kremlin statement says – the ministry’s plane will deliver humanitarian cargo to the population of the Gaza Strip,” the statement said. The flight departed from Ramenskoye Airport in the Moscow Region and flew to El Arish International Airport in Egypt. And the country of Al-Sisi itself, thanks to the mediation of Joe Biden, has announced the opening to the “sustainable” passage of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing.
However, the passage is still closed and – some local sources told ANSA – there are no border personnel to be seen. According to forecasts, the agreement reached between Israel, Egypt and the USA could open the border crossing from tomorrow, Friday, October 20, as Biden also confirmed to some journalists on the return trip to the USA. Egyptian Red Crescent chief Khaled Zeid reported that “hundreds of tons” of medical aid “are ready to enter the Gaza Strip.” It is not yet clear how much border controls will be expanded. But Martin Griffiths – under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and UN emergency response coordinator – hoped that aid would be “safe and consistent” and on the order of 100 trucks a day.
Captagon’s role in the October 7 Hamas attack
Rocket firing from Gaza towards Israel also resumed in the morning. Around midday, air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and some central regions of the country. Meanwhile, new details are emerging about Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, which triggered the military escalation. According to Israeli TV Channel 12, the soldiers of the Palestinian terrorist organization who took part in the invasion were under the influence of a synthetic drug called Captagon. Some traces of the substances were actually discovered on Hamas prisoners in Israel, while some pills were still in the pockets of some soldiers who died in battle. Captagon, also known as “poor man’s cocaine,” is manufactured primarily in Lebanon and Syria and has also been used by ISIS fighters in the past.
Former Israeli PM: “It will be a brutal operation”
And while the West is still waiting to understand how harsh the Tel Aviv government’s response to the Palestinian terrorist organization will be, it is former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Omer who reveals more details about what in an interview with La Stampa could happen now in the Middle East: “It makes no sense today to talk about a diplomatic compromise, there will be nothing other than a brutal and bloody operation, for which I only hope that Israel can create the conditions to stop the collateral damage to reduce to a minimum.” . According to Olmert, prime minister from 2006 to 2009, “the real problem is Iran” and the biggest deterrent to an expansion of the conflict is “the American military presence in the region.” Olmert then claims that Netanyahu is now “at the end of the line” and that his rhetoric in recent days has been “extremely angry, inappropriate and inappropriate.” Regarding the international reaction, the former Israeli prime minister added: “The West, which quickly gave up pity for the Israeli victims and turned to the Palestinian victims, surprised me this time.” We have to deal with it.
Photo credit: EPA/Haitham Imad | The Rafah border crossing connecting the Gaza Strip with Egypt (October 16, 2023)
Also read:
