Israeli bombings left 30 dead and several dozen injured on Sunday, May 26, in a center for displaced people near Rafah, a town in the south of the Gaza Strip, according to the press service of the government of the enclave administered by Hamas. .
The Civil Defense of the enclave reports 50 victims, without distinguishing the dead from the injured. “The ambulance crews (…) carry a large number of martyrs and wounded after the occupier targeted the tents of displaced people near the United Nations headquarters, northwest of Rafah”writes the Palestinian Red Crescent on X, adding that “this place had been designated by the Israeli occupation as a humanitarian zone”.
The Hamas health ministry and the Rafah governorate emergency committee also reported the bombing of a displaced center near Rafah, which they said left dozens dead and injured. The Israeli army has not yet responded to a request for comment. Israel launched a ground operation in Rafah in early May, despite international warnings about the fate of civilians massed in this city.
Rocket fire towards Tel Aviv
Warning sirens had previously sounded in Tel Aviv and central Israel after rocket fire from the enclave. This alert comes after several months of relative calm in this region of the country. At least three explosions were reported in central Israel, according to journalists from Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The Israeli military said at least eight rockets were fired from Rafah, in the far south of the Gaza Strip, towards the center of the country. The army claimed that “some of the rockets [avaient] been intercepted ».
In a message posted on Telegram, Hamas’ military wing claimed responsibility for the attack. “We bombarded Tel Aviv with a large barrage of rockets in response to the Zionist massacres against civilians”wrote the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades in a message posted online minutes after warning sirens sounded in central Israel.
Two Israeli soldiers killed
In twenty-four hours, at least 81 additional deaths were recorded, bringing the toll to 35,984 deaths, mainly civilians, since the start of the war triggered by the Hamas attack on October 7 on Israeli territory, according to reports. data communicated by the strip’s health ministry before the latest bombing of Rafah.
The Israeli army, for its part, announced the death of two soldiers on Sunday, bringing its losses to 289 killed since its entry into the enclave on October 27.
Reopening of the Rafah border post
Aid trucks from Egypt began entering the Gaza Strip on Sunday through the Israeli Kerem Shalom crossing point, according to Al-Qahera News, a media outlet close to Egyptian intelligence services. “Two hundred trucks” left the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing – access to the south of the Gaza Strip closed since Israel took control of the terminal on the Palestinian side – to head towards Kerem Shalom, some 4 kilometers further south.
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Israel, which is carrying out military operations in Rafah, took control of the border crossing in early May, and the passage of humanitarian assistance has been blocked since. Egypt refuses to reopen the Rafah border crossing as long as Israeli troops control the Palestinian side.
Al-Qahera News did not specify how many trucks passed the checks, but reported that “four fuel trucks” had already crossed and were heading towards hospitals. All aid from Egypt is inspected by Israeli authorities and distributed through the United Nations.
Towards a resumption of negotiations?
Shortly before the war cabinet meeting in Tel Aviv, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized Yahya Sinouar, leader of Hamas in the Palestinian territory, for “continue to demand an end to the war, the withdrawal of the Israeli Defense Forces from the Gaza Strip and to leave Hamas intact, so that it can carry out the atrocities of October 7 again and again”say his services in a press release, adding that the Prime Minister “strongly opposed it”.
This weekend, Israeli media reported that David Barnea, head of Mossad, had reached an agreement with CIA Director William Burns and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed Ben Abdelrahmane Al-Thani on a new framework for negotiations, during a meeting in Paris. Egypt is also suing “his efforts to relaunch the negotiations”according to Al-Qahera News, while Qatari officials are expected to meet a Hamas delegation in the coming days, according to the American site Axios.
In this context, the foreign ministers of the European Union will meet on Monday in Brussels with their counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, as well as with the Secretary general of the Arab League.
The ICC prosecutor explains in the “Sunday Times”
A few days after requesting arrest warrants against the Israeli Prime Minister and Hamas leaders, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, declared, in an interview with the British newspaper The Sunday Timesthat “no one is allowed to commit war crimes or crimes against humanity”.
“Our job is not to make friendscomments the ICC prosecutor. We must emphasize the equal value of every child, every woman, every civilian in an increasingly polarized world. »
“We cannot have double standards”he adds, ensuring that “the world is watching the situation” in Gaza and Israel. For Latin America, Africa, Asia, it is “a point of crystallization”.
“Are powerful states being sincere when they say there is a set of laws or is this rules-based system nonsense, a mere tool of NATO and a post-colonial world? », he asks. The 54-year-old prosecutor denies any equivalence between Israel, “with its democracy and its Supreme Court”and Hamas. “Israel has every right to protect its population and recover hostagessaid Mr. Khan. But no one has the right to commit war crimes or crimes against humanity. »
The prosecutor discusses the situation in the Gaza Strip, “the fact that the water was cut off, (…) that people queuing for food were targeted”. “It’s the whole pattern that’s revealing. We analyzed it objectively and rationally”he concludes.
For Madrid, recognition of the State of Palestine is only “justice” for the Palestinian people
“Palestinians have the right to have a state, as Israelis have this right”, said Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Sunday in Brussels during a press conference alongside Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. The latter judged that Madrid’s decision to recognize the State of Palestine represented “a major boost” for peace and stability in the region.
Spain, which has been maneuvering for months to join other capitals, took this decision jointly with Ireland and Norway. They will recognize a Palestinian state from Wednesday May 28. The Palestinian Prime Minister welcomed this decision, calling on all European countries to follow this example. “I think it’s the right decision to makehe said. This is the start of a new phase. » The subject divides the European Union, which has struggled to find a common position since the start of the war in Gaza.
On Wednesday, Mr. Mustafa will travel to Madrid, where he will be received by the Spanish authorities, ” equals “according to Mr. Alvares.