Gaza Strip (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – The Israeli army announced this Sunday that it has intensified its operations against the Islamist movement Hamas in the south of the Gaza Strip, despite calls from its ally USA to protect Palestinian civilians.
After Gaza City, “we are turning south and concentrating our main operations on another Hamas stronghold, Khan Yunis,” Jonathan Conricus, an army spokesman, told US broadcaster Fox News.
Hundreds of thousands of displaced people from the north of the narrow area sought refuge in this city, where Gaza's Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was born and where its center of power is located.
Israel considers Sinwar to be primarily responsible for the Oct. 7 attack, in which Hamas militants killed about 1,140 people on Israeli soil, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures. That day, the Islamists also kidnapped around 240 people, 129 of whom are still held captive in Gaza.
In response, Israel vowed to “destroy” Hamas and launched a ground and air offensive against the Palestinian territory, which has been ruled by the Islamist group since 2007.
A group of people search for survivors in the rubble of a bombed building in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, December 24, 2023 © AFP / AFP
According to Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and the European Union, more than 20,000 people, mostly women and children, have died in the war so far.
During a phone call, US President Joe Biden called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “protect civilians.”
The United States continues to express strong support for its historic ally, but increasingly insists that the country reduce the intensity of its offensive and conduct more targeted operations against Hamas leaders.
The Israeli army announced that nine soldiers died in fighting in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, bringing to 152 the number of soldiers who have died in the Gaza Strip since the conflict began.
80% of Gaza's population is displaced
In central Gaza, rescue teams tried to pull people out of a destroyed building in Deir al Balah.
“I was praying when there was a big explosion. The rubble fell on us. I didn’t know what had happened,” recalled Yazan Moqbel, an injured man whose sister was still under the rubble.
Food distribution in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, December 23, 2023 © AFP / AFP
Israel denies direct attacks on civilians and asserts that the war against Hamas is crucial to prevent a massacre like that of October 7 from happening again.
The bombings only stopped a week later, when both sides agreed to a ceasefire in late November and exchanged 105 hostages held in Gaza for 240 Palestinian prisoners.
According to Hamas, Jabaliya and Gaza City in the north and Khan Yunis in the far south were again shelled this Sunday.
According to the United Nations, about 80% of Gaza's 2.4 million people have been displaced by the fighting.
The situation in this area, which has been completely besieged by Israel since October 9th, is catastrophic. According to the United Nations, most hospitals are out of operation and the population suffers from severe food insecurity.
The Israeli advance in the Gaza Strip © Patricio ARANA, Jean-Michel CORNU, Nalini LEPETIT-CHELLA / AFP
But Netanyahu “made clear in the phone call with Biden that Israel will continue the war until all of its objectives are achieved,” Israeli authorities reported.
The Israeli army said on Saturday it had captured “more than 200 terrorists” in the last week and “more than 700” since the start of the conflict.
– “We want a ceasefire” –
Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, has had bitter relations with several American presidents.
But disagreements over how the war in Gaza will be fought, when it will end and what will happen the day after have further strained relations.
Washington passed a resolution at the UN Security Council on Friday calling on Israel to authorize the “immediate, safe and unhindered” delivery of essential aid to Gaza “on a large scale”.
Three children search the rubble of a building in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, December 24, 2023 © AFP / AFP
The world powers argued for days over the wording of the text and, at Washington's insistence, preferred to avoid the term “ceasefire” and instead called for “the creation of the conditions for a permanent cessation of hostilities.”
Gazans interviewed by AFP were critical of the international community.
“Instead of (…) increasing aid, stopping supporting and arming Israel, (…) ending the war and giving us peace,” said Rami al Jalut, a resident of the northern Gaza Strip, who had to flee to Rafah in the south.
The resolution “reaffirms Israel's decision to kill more civilians and prolongs the war against these people in exchange for a little food,” he criticized.
Mahmoud al Shaer, another resident, added: “We don't want food, we want a ceasefire.”
© 2023 AFP