War in the Middle East
Israel is waging a “battle for its existence”
A Palestinian woman walks through the rubble of a building hit by an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip. photo
© Ahmed Zakot/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Israel leaves no doubt that a ground offensive against the Islamist Hamas in Gaza is imminent. The situation there is becoming more catastrophic for civilians by the hour. The News.
Despite calls for a humanitarian ceasefire, Israel is sticking to its plans for a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip against the Islamist Hamas. “We are preparing for a ground attack. I will not say when, how and how many,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address on Wednesday evening. “All Hamas members are doomed – above ground, below ground, inside Gaza and outside Gaza.” Meanwhile, France’s leadership promised medical help to people suffering from thirst and hunger in the densely populated coastal strip.
France wants to deliver medical aid
From this Thursday, French planes carrying medical supplies should land in Egypt, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday after a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo. The United Nations refugee agency for the Palestinians, UNRWA, had previously warned of an imminent end to all humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip. The World Health Organization (WHO) said hospitals in the coastal area had already had to close due to a lack of fuel. Israel continues to block the delivery of fuel to the area because it could strengthen Hamas and there are fears of misuse for terrorist purposes. The Islamist organization itself has large reserves of fuel, but withholds it from its own people.
Netanyahu: Israel is fighting for its existence
Meanwhile, the war between Hamas and Israel continues relentlessly. Members of Hamas, classified as a terrorist organization by the USA and the EU, said they fired two long-range rockets towards Haifa in the north and Eilat in the south of Israel. Rocket alarms were triggered in places south of Haifa, the Israeli army announced on Wednesday. According to the military, there was also a rocket alarm again in the greater area of the Israeli coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv.
Israel is in the middle of a “battle for its existence,” said Netanyahu. Thousands of terrorists have already been killed since the Islamist Hamas massacre of Israeli civilians on October 7th and this is “just the beginning.”
Military spokesman Daniel Hagari said on Wednesday evening that the Israeli Air Force was continuing to attack targets in the Gaza Strip in preparation for a ground offensive. “Underground terrorist infrastructure” was also hit. “Every strike improves our situation for the next phases,” Hagari said. An extensive tunnel system runs under the densely populated coastal strip, in which hostages are believed to have been kidnapped by Hamas during its major attack on Israel.
Biden: Have not called for a postponement of the ground offensive
According to his own words, US President Joe Biden did not ask Israel to postpone the announced ground offensive. He made it clear to Netanyahu that – if possible – the hostages in the Gaza Strip should be freed safely, Biden said at a press conference in Washington on Wednesday. “It’s her decision. But I didn’t ask for it.” Biden was asked whether he had received an assurance from Netanyahu that the ground offensive would be postponed until the release of the hostages was secured. The US President then said: “No.”
UN Security Council remains divided
The UN Security Council is currently unable to agree on a resolution with a humanitarian focus in the Gaza war. Both a draft from the USA and a draft resolution from Russia failed on Wednesday before the most powerful UN body. The US text, which, among other things, emphasized Israel’s right to self-defense and called for a humanitarian ceasefire, was blocked by vetoes from Russia and China. The Russian proposal, which, among other things, called for a ceasefire, received only four yes votes in the committee, which includes 15 states.
Egypt’s President Al-Sisi warned against an expansion of the war after his meeting with Macron. “We see with great concern that the cycle of violence may spread to other parties in the region,” Al-Sisi said on Wednesday. The stated goal of the war is to eliminate Hamas and other armed groups in the Gaza Strip. “The invasion of the Gaza Strip can result in a lot of civilian casualties,” he warned – which is why it must be prevented. It is important to use the time to free hostages.
According to the WHO, the approximately 200 hostages held by Hamas urgently need medical care. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) should be given immediate access to the abductees, who should be released anyway, demanded WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday evening.
Violence continues on Israel’s northern border and in the West Bank
Meanwhile, there was renewed mutual shelling on the border between Israel and Lebanon. And the violence also continues in the West Bank: According to Palestinian information, more than 100 people are said to have died in confrontations there since the Hamas terrorist attack. US President Biden expressed concern about violent actions by settlers in the West Bank and condemned the violence against Palestinians. “I remain concerned about attacks by extremist settlers on Palestinians in the West Bank,” Biden said Wednesday. “This has to stop now.” Such attacks are like pouring gasoline on a fire.
What will be important on Thursday
The heads of state and government of the EU member states want to discuss at a summit how the EU can help prevent a regional escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hamas. On the same day, French planes carrying medical supplies are scheduled to land in Egypt. According to Macron, a French navy ship should leave southern France within two days to support hospitals in Gaza.