War in the Middle East
UN Palestinian Relief Agency: “Tragedy is unprecedented”
Israel has sealed off the Gaza Strip and begun massive air and ground strikes. photo
© Mohammad Abu Elsebah/dpa
For the first time since the beginning of the Gaza war, the Commissioner General of the UN Palestinian Relief Agency is visiting the sealed-off coastal strip. He laments the catastrophic situation and calls for more help. The overview.
In view of the numerous civilian casualties and the tense supply situation during the Israeli attacks on positions of the Islamist Hamas in The UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA has again called for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
“A humanitarian ceasefire is long overdue,” said UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini after his first visit to the Gaza Strip since the start of the war. “Without it, more people will be killed, the living will suffer more loss, and the once vibrant society will forever sink into mourning.”
He attended a school run by UNRWA in Rafah, near the border with Egypt. “The scale of the tragedy is unprecedented,” Lazzarini said. Children would have asked him for a drink of water and a piece of bread. The hardship and unsanitary living conditions are beyond imagination.
“It was one of the saddest days in my humanitarian work,” said Lazzarini. The current humanitarian aid for the people in the Gaza Strip is far from enough. “I am once again calling for urgent fuel deliveries. No fuel has arrived for almost a month and this is having a devastating impact on hospitals, bakeries and waterworks,” said Lazzarini.
According to the Israeli military, at least 240 hostages were kidnapped to the Gaza Strip during the terrorist attack on Israel by the Islamist Hamas on October 7th. More than 1,400 people died during and in the following days. In response, Israel sealed off the Gaza Strip and began massive air and ground strikes. The number of Palestinians killed in Gaza has since risen to 8,796, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority.
Israel’s military kills Hamas commander in Gaza Strip
Meanwhile, the Israeli armed forces continued their military operation in the Gaza Strip. According to their own statements, they killed the head of Hamas’ anti-tank missile unit. The high-ranking commander was killed in an attack by a fighter jet, the Israeli military said. The Israeli army released a video showing the explosion of a building from the air.
Mohammed Asar was responsible for all Hamas anti-tank missile units throughout the Gaza Strip. The missions he commissioned targeted Israeli civilians and soldiers.
Israel: Number of civilians killed in Jabalia unknown
After the severe attacks on the Jabalia refugee camp, the Israeli military says it cannot yet provide any information on the number of civilians killed. Hamas, which rules in the Gaza Strip, is deliberately hiding behind civilian infrastructure there, military spokesman Daniel Hagari told journalists. “They want this image of destruction.”
Footage shows the devastating consequences of the attack, which, according to the army, also caused Hamas tunnels to collapse and leave a crater. According to Palestinian information, many civilians were among the victims. According to the Israeli army, the airstrike was aimed at a mastermind of the massacre of Israeli civilians on October 7th. 50 terrorists were killed in the operation in Jabalia.
Pope calls for two-state solution
More than three weeks after the start of the new Gaza war, Pope Francis called on Israelis and Palestinians to find a solution at the negotiating table. “Every war is a defeat. Nothing is solved with war. Nothing. Everything is won with peace, with dialogue,” said the head of the Catholic Church in an interview with the Italian television channel Rai. The 86-year-old campaigned emphatically for a two-state solution – that is, one state each for Israel and one for the Palestinians. This approach is supported by many quarters, but despite all international appeals, it has not made any progress for decades.
Debate about German abstention from UN resolution
Despite German support for Israel in the fight against Hamas, Israeli Ambassador Ron Prosor criticized Germany’s abstention from the UN vote on the Gaza war. German voting behavior in the UN General Assembly has been “disturbing for years and in this latest case even more than disappointing,” he told the German Press Agency. The resolution, which calls for an “immediate permanent and sustainable humanitarian ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip without condemning the Hamas terrorist attack, was approved by 120 countries. Germany was one of the 45 countries that abstained. The USA voted against it along with 13 other countries.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock defended Germany’s abstention. Germany has the special role of keeping the channels of communication open to other actors in the region such as Egypt or Jordan, said the Green politician in the ZDF program “What, now…?”. Through discussions with other countries, Germany has ensured that the text does not unilaterally condemn Israel.
That will be important on Thursday
Following the Israeli attack on targets in the Jabalia refugee camp in the north of the Gaza Strip, the exact extent of the damage and the number of victims remain unclear. Meanwhile, efforts to secure the welfare and release of the Hamas hostages continue. After hundreds of foreigners and Palestinians were able to leave the coastal strip otherwise sealed off by Israel for Egypt on Wednesday for the first time since the start of the war with a second passport, there is also hope that the departure of foreign nationals can continue in the next few days.