First incursion of Israeli tanks into the Gaza Strip

Should we see the beginnings of the Israeli ground offensive in Gaza? The IDF announced Thursday morning that operations had been carried out in the narrow strip of Palestinian land with special forces and for the first time tanks. “Overnight, the army carried out a targeted raid with Merkava tanks in the northern Gaza Strip, as part of its preparations for the next stages of the fight”simply indicated the general staff.

Black and white images released by the IDF show armored vehicles and bulldozers passing through a protective fence surrounding the Gaza Strip. During this incursion, the soldiers “operated to prepare the battlefield”. In a statement, the IDF said it had killed Shadi Barud, the deputy head of Hamas’s intelligence directorate, suspected of having organized the October 7 attack.

20th day of war

Considered and even announced on numerous occasions, the large-scale ground attack aimed at “eliminate the military potential of Hamas” was still waiting until the 20^e day of the war against the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, repeated the day before, as often since October 7 and the massacre of some 1,400 civilians committed in Israel – including 35 French according to a new report from the Quai d’Orsay – his desire to launch his troops en masse in the Hamas stronghold. This assault arouses the less and less hidden reluctance of the international community, including among the allies of the Hebrew State.

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Both the United States and Europe fear a significant number of civilian victims in this small territory where some 2.4 million inhabitants are crowded. The air raids carried out in Gaza in retaliation since October 7 have already left 7,028 dead, including 2,913 children and 18,484 injured, according to a report published Thursday by Hamas, which rules the enclave with an iron fist.

Emmanuel Macron thus judged on Wednesday, in Cairo, that such an operation, if it were to be “massive”would be a “error”. His Egyptian counterpart, Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, called for avoiding a “ground invasion of Gaza”. Even in the United States, Joe Biden explained on Wednesday that Israel, while having “the right” to defend himself, had to do his best.to protect innocent civilians”.

The humanitarian crisis

Washington, like Brussels, is concerned about the fate of some 224 hostages taken to Gaza by Hamas terrorists, including a number of dual nationals. The Islamist movement has “estimated” Thursday, on Telegram, that “nearly fifty” hostages had been killed by Israeli strikes. Only four women were released.

Westerners are also becoming increasingly worried about the immense humanitarian crisis that is looming. Besieged for almost three weeks, the landlocked territory, which depends on the outside for its vital needs, lacks everything. Only a few dozen humanitarian aid trucks have entered Gaza since October 21 via Egypt when the UN estimates that around a hundred would be needed daily.

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The emergency is particularly acute for fuel, which Israel refuses, essential for running generators in hospitals and pumping and purifying water. According to Mohammed Abou Selmeya, the director of al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City “ten hospitals are already out of service” And “more than 90% of medicines and products are exhausted”. Some 600,000 Palestinians, according to the UN, have left the northern Gaza Strip for the south since October 13 when the Israeli army ordered civilians to leave. “for their own safety”.

Washington suggests ‘breaks’

On Thursday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Palestinian Authority, Riyad al-Maliki, faced with the results and the shortcomings, accused Israel of carrying out a “war for revenge” and demanded a ceasefire. The proposal is far from unanimous. For the United States, a ceasefire “at this stage would only benefit Hamas”. The White House, no doubt embarrassed, instead suggests “breaks” to enable the delivery of humanitarian aid. The debate around a ceasefire is also tearing apart the European Union, whose 27 members met at a summit Thursday in Brussels. The chances of agreement on a joint decision are low when the EU is traditionally divided between its most pro-Palestinian members, such as Ireland and Spain, and the most fervent defenders of Israel, such as Germany and Israel. ‘Austria.

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The solution will no longer come from the UN. Secretary General Antonio Guterres certainly called on Tuesday for a “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” and condemned the “clear violations of humanitarian law” in the Palestinian territory, provoking anger and calls for Israel’s resignation. But the Security Council is powerfully divided, as shown on Wednesday by the rejection of two competing draft American resolutions pleading for “humanitarian breaks” and Russian, requiring a “humanitarian ceasefire” while castigating the “Abominable attacks by Hamas”. On Thursday, Russian diplomacy announced the presence in Moscow of representatives of Hamas and Iran, sponsor of the terrorist group, for discussions, a first since the start of the conflict.