1 of 1 Ruins of a Palestinian house hit by Israeli attacks in alShati refugee camp in Gaza City. Photo: Mohammed Fayq Abu Mostafa/Portal Ruins of a Palestinian house hit by Israeli attacks in alShati refugee camp in Gaza City. — Photo: Mohammed Fayq Abu Mostafa/Portal
The conflict between Israel and Hamas entered its second week this Sunday (October 15th) with thousands of deaths on both sides, an increasingly acute humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and growing fears of a regional escalation that also includes other countries such as Lebanon could and Iran.
A week after the Hamas attack on the morning of October 7, in which 1,300 people were killed by members of the Palestinian group and at least 126 were taken hostage, the death toll from Israeli retaliatory bombings reached 2.4 thousand people this Sunday in Gaza .
In addition, according to the Palestinian authorities, around a thousand people are missing in the rubble of bombed buildings. More than 1.1 million Palestinians living in the northern Gaza Strip are evacuating the region to avoid an impending ground attack by Israeli troops.
In recent days, several United Nations (UN) agencies operating in the Gaza Strip have drawn attention to the chaotic humanitarian situation.
After the October 7 attack, Israel imposed an even tougher siege on the Gaza Strip, cutting off water, electricity and food supplies. Just this Sunday, the Israeli government announced the partial resumption of water supplies in the south of the territory.
Juliette Touma, director of UNRWA, the UN relief agency for Palestine refugees, called the moment “the worst we have ever seen”.
“It has reached its lowest point. Here Gaza is being pushed into the abyss, a tragedy is unfolding while the world watches. People are scared,” Touma told BBC News.
This Sunday, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, stated that he had spoken with the President of the Palestinian Authority (PA), Mahmoud Abbas, an opponent of Hamas.
Biden reiterated that “Hamas does not defend the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and selfdetermination.”
Biden also spoke about providing humanitarian assistance to Gaza as part of diplomatic negotiations over the entry of aid.
“I assured (Abbas) that we are working with partners in the region to ensure humanitarian supplies reach civilians in Gaza and prevent an escalation of the conflict,” Biden said on X (formerly Twitter).
Mark Regev, senior adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, rejected criticism from humanitarian organizations that some of Israel’s actions could constitute war crimes.
Regarding the casualties in Gaza, he said: “These figures are published by Hamas… There is no difference between combatants and noncombatants.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that the offensive will “eliminate Hamas,” and the slogan was repeated this Sunday after Israel’s government meeting that installed a war cabinet.
Netanyahu’s chief of staff, Minister Gideon Sa’ar, appeared on television and said Hamas must be destroyed “so that it can never threaten Israel again.” He added that this would be a lesson for the region.
Gideon Sa’ar also said the Gaza Strip, home to about 2.2 million Palestinians, “should eventually become smaller” with Israel taking control of a belt of land in the east and north of the strip.
This is a “safe zone” and anyone who goes in will be “intercepted” by the military, Sa’ar said, adding that this is his personal opinion.
Conflict in Lebanon and statements from Iran
There has also been an increase in regional tensions in recent days. Tense new fighting broke out between Israeli soldiers and members of the Hezbollah militia on Israel’s border with Lebanon, raising fears that the conflict could also involve other countries. There were several shootings, according to a report by Hugo Bechara, a BBC reporter in the area.
Israel’s borders explained on maps
A 40yearold man was killed in a Hezbollah guided missile attack on the northern municipality of Shtula, according to Israeli emergency services.
There are fears that Lebanon, home to the Iranianbacked Hezbollah, could be drawn into the conflict.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the country had “no interest” in war with the group.
“If Hezbollah chooses the path of war, it will pay a very high price. Very difficult. But if the group holds back, we will respect that and leave the situation as it is,” he said.
However, that same Sunday, Gallant announced that Israeli forces had bombed Hezbollahcontrolled points in southern Lebanon.
For its part, Iran continued to warn Israel that if the conflict in Gaza escalates, the Iranian military could become directly involved in the conflict in Gaza.
“If the atrocities in Gaza do not stop, Iran will not be able to remain a simple observer,” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told Al Jazeera TV.
“If the scale of the war expands, significant damage will also be inflicted on America,” he added, referring to the United States.
The statement comes a day after Amirabdollahian met with the leader of Hamas in Doha, Qatar.
On Saturday, the US announced the deployment of a second aircraft carrier to the region with the aim of “deterring hostile actions against Israel or any efforts to escalate this war.”
There were also Israeli bomb attacks on Syrian airports over the weekend.
GazaEgypt border where Brazilians wait
The border between Gaza and Egypt has also become a point of tension and pressure.
Thousands of Palestinians and immigrants of other nationalities, including Brazilians, are trying to leave Gaza through the Egyptiancontrolled Rafah border in the south, but it remains closed.
This Saturday, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva spoke with AP President Mahmoud Abbas. According to the PT member, the conversation was about support for the withdrawal of Brazilians from the Gaza Strip, although Abbas’s influence in the Hamascontrolled area is quite limited.
According to the Brazilian government, 28 Brazilian and Palestinian immigrants are awaiting deportation from Gaza. In total there are 14 children, 8 women and 6 adult men, three of whom are Palestinian immigrants and three are Palestinians living in Brazil, said the latest update cited by Agência Brasil.
According to a statement from the President of the Republic, Lula “condemned the terrorist attacks against civilians in Israel and stressed the importance of a humanitarian corridor and the immediate release of all hostages.”
According to the statement, Lula said that “the innocent people of Gaza cannot pay the price for the madness of those who want war.”
By this Sunday, hundreds of Brazilians staying in Israel had been evacuated on five planes sent by the government.