Israel’s military attacks targets in Syria after rocket fire, giving more time for evacuation
“Without their human shields, Hamas is at our mercy”
On Saturday, the Israeli military once again assured the people in the Gaza Strip a period of time and an escape route without attacks. “We are warning the civilian population in hundreds of ways that they should now move south,” said Arye Shalicar, spokesman for the Israeli army.
The Israeli military has responded with artillery fire in response to rocket fire from Syria. During operations in the north of the Gaza Strip, Israeli soldiers found several bodies of kidnapped Israelis. The overview.
IIsrael’s military said it responded to rocket fire from Syria with artillery fire. The military announced on Saturday evening that the target was the launch site of the missiles. According to initial findings, two rockets were fired at Israel. Both landed in an open area. Warning sirens had previously sounded in two places on the border with Syria.
It was initially unclear which group was responsible for the shooting from Syria. According to Syrian activists, a militia closely linked to the Lebanese Hezbollah fired the rockets. Hezbollah had previously reported one death among its fighters in Lebanon. On Saturday there were several brief exchanges of fire on the border with Israel.
According to the Israeli military, a suspicious object was intercepted in the evening that is said to have entered Israeli territory from Lebanon. However, the military did not provide any further information.
The situation on Israel’s northern external borders has been tense for days since the massacre by the Islamist Hamas and Israel’s subsequent attacks in the Gaza Strip.
Israel is urging Palestinians to quickly flee the northern Gaza Strip
Ahead of the expected start of a ground offensive, Israel has called on Palestinian residents to rush to flee northern Gaza. There was growing international concern about the humanitarian situation in the besieged Palestinian territory. The EU announced a tripling of its humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military reported the killing of two Hamas commanders who were partly responsible for the major attack on Israel. According to the army, Israeli soldiers found several bodies of kidnapped Israelis during operations in the north of the Gaza Strip.
On Friday morning, the Israeli army asked around 1.1 million civilians in the north of the Gaza Strip to leave the area south. She justified her call with planned military operations in the coming days. On Saturday evening, an army spokesman said Israel was giving residents more time “because there are still a huge number of people who have to leave.”
“We will continue to give civilians time to leave the places that we believe Hamas is using for its terrorist infrastructure,” added Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat.
“There will be more to come,” says Netanyahu
“Are you ready for what’s coming? There is more to come,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday during a visit to troops near the border with the Gaza Strip, according to a video distributed by his office.
The Israeli army says it killed two leading Hamas representatives who were said to have been partly responsible for the major attack on Israel a week ago. Hamas did not initially confirm the deaths of its two leaders.
The radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas attacked Israel a week ago with thousands of rockets and hundreds of fighters. The militants carried out bloodbaths in several towns in southern Israel, killing more than 1,300 people in total. Around 120 people were kidnapped as hostages in the Gaza Strip. Army spokesman Lerner said on Saturday evening that the bodies of several hostages had been found during limited Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) held crisis talks in the Egyptian capital Cairo on Saturday, which, among other things, focused on efforts to release the Hamas hostages. According to Baerbock, the authorities are aware of eight suspected kidnapped German citizens.
Israel has been bombing the Gaza Strip almost continuously for a week. According to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, a total of 2,215 people have been killed so far.
Von der Leyen announces tripling of humanitarian aid
On Saturday, after talks with UN Secretary-General António Guterres, EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen announced that humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip would be tripled to a total of 75 million euros.
EU Council President Charles Michel invited the heads of state and government of the European Union to a special summit via video link on Tuesday. It is “of the utmost importance” that the EU sets a common line in view of the escalating situation in the Middle East, he explained.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniya accused Israel of committing war crimes in the Gaza Strip. In a televised speech, Haniya also called on the residents of the Gaza Strip to refuse “expulsion” within the Palestinian territory or to Egypt.
During her visit to Cairo, Federal Foreign Minister Baerbock emphasized that the fight against Hamas must be carried out “with the greatest possible consideration for the humanitarian situation” in the Gaza Strip.
A senior Israeli official meanwhile acknowledged “errors” in the intelligence services’ assessments ahead of the major Hamas attack. There was a belief that Hamas had “learned its lessons” from the last escalation of the conflict with Israel in 2021, said national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi. This turned out to be a mistake.