Israel insists on closing off the Gaza Strip. But the military response to the bloody Hamas attack is jeopardizing his efforts for reconciliation with the Arab world. The news at a glance.
Tens of thousands of civilians in the Gaza Strip are fleeing to the south of the area ahead of an expected Israeli ground offensive. The Israeli army had informed about two temporary escape routes that should be spared from attacks until Saturday afternoon.
Since the unprecedented Hamas massacres in Israel on Saturday last week, the Israeli military has been carrying out heavy air strikes on targets in the Gaza Strip. According to the Israeli military on Saturday, two of the suspected Hamas masterminds of the bloody attacks were also killed. The destruction is massive. In total, more than 2,200 people died in the Gaza Strip and over 8,700 were injured, according to the Ministry of Health.
Sharp criticism of Israel from neighboring countries
Saudi Arabia and Egypt, with which Israel made peace in 1979, sharply criticized the Israeli military’s call for the mass evacuation of more than a million residents of the northern Gaza Strip. Saudi Arabia rejects “forced relocation,” the Foreign Ministry said. All forms of military escalation directed against civilians must be stopped. The people in the Gaza Strip have been deprived of the basic requirements for a dignified life, which represents “a violation of international humanitarian law,” it said from Riyadh. Egypt spoke of “a serious violation of the rules of international humanitarian law.”
Conflict threatens Israeli-Arab normalization
The harsh Israeli reaction in the Gaza Strip to the bloody attack on Israel by the Islamist Hamas, which left at least 1,300 dead, endangers the Jewish state’s normalization with its Arab neighbors. Saudi Arabia stopped talks on Saturday about possible establishment of relations with Israel, as the German Press Agency learned from Saudi diplomatic circles.
Israel’s arch-enemy Iran has already declared a possible rapprochement between Israel and Saudi Arabia to have failed. “This is completely off the table,” said Iran’s Foreign Minister Hussein Amirabdollahian in the Lebanese capital Beirut.
USA and Saudi Arabia emphasize cooperation during Blinken’s visit
The USA and Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, emphasize their cooperation. The joint exchange is important, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a meeting with his Saudi counterpart Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud in Riyadh on Saturday, according to a transcript from the US State Department. He therefore expressed himself in a similar way. It is important to ensure that this conflict does not spread to other places and other fronts.
Water in the Gaza Strip is becoming scarce
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) warned in drastic terms of a life-threatening water shortage for the people of the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli blockade. “It has become a matter of life and death,” said Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner General. Fuel urgently needs to be delivered in order to provide water for two million people. “People, including young children, the elderly and women, will die from severe dehydration,” Lazzarini warned.
Israel makes the end of the blockade dependent on the release of hostages
After the bloodiest massacres of Israeli civilians since the founding of the state, Israel has sealed off the coastal strip, which is only 40 kilometers long and between six and twelve kilometers wide. The government makes the resumption of supplies dependent on the release of up to 150 Israelis abducted by Hamas. According to an unconfirmed media report, Israeli soldiers recovered the bodies of those abducted during the first limited commando operation in the Gaza Strip. Hamas reported that 22 hostages had died from Israeli fire so far.
Iran’s foreign minister warns Israel against attacks against Hezbollah
Iran’s foreign minister warned Israel against attacks against the Shiite organization Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. “In terms of scenarios against Hezbollah, any action will be an earthquake against the Zionists,” Amirabdollahian said in Beirut.
There is growing international concern that the conflict is developing into a conflagration. Many observers are looking at Hezbollah, which is allied with Hamas and was already involved in a war with Israel in 2006. The organization is considered a loyal ally of Iran. Since last weekend there have been several clashes on the Israeli-Lebanese border with deaths on both sides. A Reuters journalist was also killed.
Experts had expressed the suspicion that the Islamist Hamas could have intended its devastating attack on Israel to prevent the normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia that was being sought through mediation by the USA.
UN warns of catastrophe
According to a spokesman, the UN fears a “catastrophic situation” if the army invades the densely populated coastal area. Eyewitnesses reported panic among the population. The UN called on Israel to revoke the order to evacuate around 1.1 million people. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for immediate access to the Gaza Strip for humanitarian aid. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also described the mass evacuation as impossible.
US President Joe Biden again assured Israel of solidarity, but also expressed concern. “We must not lose sight of the fact that the overwhelming majority of Palestinians have nothing to do with Hamas or Hamas’s disgusting attacks,” Biden said.
Foreign Office: Helped 2,800 Germans and their relatives leave the country
According to its own information, the Foreign Office supported around 2,800 German citizens and family members to leave Israel. People left the country by land, air and sea after the Islamist Hamas began its attacks a week ago. This Sunday there is an opportunity to leave the country with special flights from the airline Condor from the Jordanian city of Aqaba, which is located directly on Israel’s southern border.