Tag: Gaza Strip

Unprecedented shifts in Israel-Hamas war | What lies ahead?

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Just three weeks into the deadliest war between Israel and Hamas, it already is clear that the bloodshed has flipped long-standing assumptions in Israel and the region upside down.

Israel’s military and intelligence services were exposed as incompetent and ill-prepared. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decades of attempts to sideline the Palestinians and U.S. efforts to manage the conflict, rather than solve it, badly backfired.

Israelis’ sense of personal security was shattered. The international community’s traditional approach of urging Israel to withdraw from occupied land in exchange for peace now appears out of the question.

“Many paradigms have collapsed with this murderous attack by Hamas,” said Nadav Eyal, a commentator for Israel’s Yediot Ahronot newspaper.

Here is a look at how the key players got it wrong.

Over the decades, Israel’s military and security agencies built a reputation of near invincibility through sophisticated intelligence-gathering, daring covert operations and deterrence.

Israeli intelligence units kept tabs on Palestinians with sensitive surveillance tools. Travellers in and out of Gaza were subject to deep background checks and interrogations that together with a network of informants gave Israel a massive database.

This was backed by a high-tech military equipped with intelligence so precise a drone could kill a wanted militant in his bed while leaving the rest of his house intact. The border was fortified with tanks, army bases, a massive separation barrier fitted with cameras and sensors, and an underground wall seen as impenetrable.

Still, on October 7, militants blew through the barrier undetected and moved into Israeli towns without resistance. It took hours for Israeli forces to respond, allowing the militants to kill over 1,400 people, the vast majority civilians, and capture over 200 hostages. It would be days before Israeli security forces regained control, and some two dozen border communities remain evacuated.

The heads of Israel’s Shin Bet internal security service and Israeli military intelligence have admitted failure and taken responsibility.

They remain on the job while Israel wages its war. But they could be among a long line of expected resignations and firings when the dust settles.

Netanyahu has survived his lengthy political career by persuading the nation that he is best qualified to protect them and treating the Palestinians as a side issue.

He has repeatedly resisted attempts to restart peace talks and rejected calls for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Instead, he sought to manage the conflict with a combination of economic incentives to the Palestinians, backed by occasional military operations against Palestinian militants, while expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank and maintaining a stifling blockade of Gaza.

Netanyahu exploited the divisions between the rival Palestinian governments in the West Bank and Gaza — a policy that often served to strengthen Hamas at the expense of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority. This undermined Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and provided an excuse for not pursuing peace talks.

While trying to sideline the Palestinians, he courted wealthy Gulf Arab countries with the belief that this would force the Palestinians to accept an arrangement far short of independence. His message was that Israel could be a strong country and citizens could enjoy a Western-style lifestyle while containing the Palestinians with a powerful army and separation walls.

This worldview was upended by the Hamas attack, and Netanyahu’s lengthy political career now appears in jeopardy as his government faces widespread domestic outrage. Netanyahu, who loves to boast of his country’s military and economic successes, will be remembered as the man in charge during the worst attack in Israeli history.

Netanyahu this week acknowledged that he, like many others, “will have to provide answers” to the public — but only after the war is over.

“I simply cannot imagine an Israeli prime minister surviving such a colossal failure — not only in the history of the Zionist movement and the state of Israel, but a colossal failure in Jewish history,” said Eyal.

Since brokering interim peace accords three decades ago, the United States has pursued two sometimes contradictory goals.

It has repeatedly called for the establishment of a Palestinian state. But with the exception of a handful of short-lived peace plans, it has done little to promote this goal, focusing instead on conflict management, preventing tensions from boiling over and leaving a fragile status quo in place.

In many ways, the latest war is an outcome of this failed approach. It showed that the status quo was not sustainable and had in fact undermined chances of a two-state solution, in part by allowing Israel to expand settlements and deepen its 56-year-old open-ended military occupation.

Israelis, meanwhile, overwhelmingly see their 2005 withdrawal from Gaza as a failure that they believe led to the rise of Hamas and the October 7 disaster.

Mazal Mualem, a commentator for Yediot Ahronot, says there will be no appetite for territorial compromise with the Palestinians after the war. “No one will evacuate even one piece of land in the next generation,” she said.

Not that territorial compromise was ever an option. Netanyahu, who has governed with the exception of one year since 2009, never expressed willingness to yield occupied land to the Palestinians.

But Eyal sees increased militarization and little appetite for diplomatic initiatives. “It’s almost impossible to take risks,” he said.

Israeli historian Tom Segev, who has documented the uprooting of Palestinian communities during the war surrounding Israel’s creation, said he could not rule out a mass expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza.

The October 7 attacks played into deep-seated Israeli fears that the Palestinians are not prepared to accept Israel’s existence. While Segev said it’s too early to say which way the war is headed, the sentiments are clear.

“People are saying, ‘Expel them from Gaza,'” he said.

Israel withdrew its settlers and soldiers from Gaza in 2005 after concluding the continued occupation of the densely populated Palestinian territory was untenable. A close adviser to then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon famously said the withdrawal was also intended to pack peace efforts “in formaldehyde” and prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state with the West Bank at its core.

The withdrawal left a vacuum that Hamas quickly filled. The Islamic militant group won Palestinian parliamentary elections in 2006, and the following year violently seized control of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority.

Israel imposed a blockade, limiting movement in and out of Gaza in hopes of weakening Hamas. It waged a series of wars and smaller battles with Hamas — a policy known as “mowing the lawn” that was meant to keep the group in check.

In perhaps its biggest miscalculation, Israel concluded that Hamas had morphed from an armed group committed to Israel’s destruction to a more pragmatic organization focused on governing and survival. The Oct. 7 attack proved that Hamas’ military wing was more powerful, better armed and more organized than Israel assumed.

Israel “fell asleep at the wheel,” wrote Amos Harel, a commentator on military affairs for the Haaretz daily. “Israeli society repressed the ramifications of the Palestinian conflict, persuaded itself that it could go on rolling the problem forward without looking for a solution, and sought lucrative real estate and cheap vacations abroad,” he said.

Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, but this will not be an easy task against a group with significant public support and an entrenched military presence in Gaza. And even if Israel prevails, it has not presented a clear exit strategy.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has said Israel does not want to be responsible for civilian affairs — indicating that Israel does not want to re-occupy Gaza. He has also called for a “new security regime” without elaborating.

President Joe Biden said Wednesday that “when this crisis is over, there has to be a vision of what comes next.”

“And in our view, it has to be a two-state solution,” he added — repeating the same formula that has been the basis of 30 years of failure.

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Israel-Hamas war highlights | US imposes sanctions on eight individuals with links to Hamas

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Israel-Hamas war: As the Israel-Hamas conflict approaches its third week, the Palestinian health ministry reports that the death toll in Gaza has now reached 7,028, with 2,913 of those being children. A special session of the UN General Assembly is underway to vote on a potential ceasefire. Meanwhile, Israel claims that a ground invasion is imminent. Follow highlights on the Israel-Hamas war here:

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Israel-Hamas war Highlights | Hamas says over 7,000 killed in Gaza, includes 3,000 children

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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With the escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the main UN agency working in Gaza said it will be forced to halt its operations later today due to a lack of fuel. Meanwhile, US military advisers are urging Israel to avoid an all-out ground assault while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to tell soldiers Tuesday that a ground offensive was still on track.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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UN Security Council fails again to address Israel-Hamas war, rejecting US and Russian resolutions

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The UN Security Council failed again Wednesday to address the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza, rejecting rival United States and Russian resolutions.

The council is the U.N.’s most powerful body, charged with maintaining international peace and security, but its divisions have left it impotent and scrambling to try to find a resolution with acceptable language.

The resolution drafted by the United States, Israel’s closest ally, would have reaffirmed Israel’s right to self-defence, urged respect for international laws — especially protection of civilians — and called for “humanitarian pauses” to deliver desperately needed aid to Gaza.

In Wednesday’s vote in the 15-member council, 10 countries voted in favour, Russia, China and the United Arab Emirates voted against, and Brazil and Mozambique abstained. The resolution was not adopted because permanent council members Russia and China cast vetoes.

The Russian resolution, which was then put to a vote, would have called for an immediate “humanitarian cease-fire” and unequivocally condemned Hamas’ October 7 attacks in Israel and “indiscriminate attacks” on civilians and civilian objects in Gaza.

In that vote, four countries voted in favour – Russia, China, United Arab Emirates and Gabon. The United States and the United Kingdom voted against it, and nine countries abstained. The resolution wasn’t adopted because it failed to get the minimum nine “yes” votes.

The failure of the two resolutions followed the council’s rejections last week of a Russian resolution that didn’t mention Hamas and also failed to get nine “yes” votes and a widely supported Brazilian resolution vetoed by the United States that would have condemned the Hamas attacks and all violence against civilians and called for “humanitarian pauses.”

After the votes, Malta’s U.N. Ambassador Vanessa Frazier, speaking on behalf of the 10 elected members of the council serving two-year terms, announced they will be working on a new proposal in the coming days.

“As elected members of this council, we also represent the rest of the international community and we have a duty and an obligation to act,” she told the council. “There is no time to waste.”

Before the vote, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the council that last week she had said diplomacy needed to play out before it approved a resolution. She pointed to action by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, President Joe Biden, and regional leaders that led to the opening of the Rafah crossing from Egypt to Gaza to the delivery of some desperately needed humanitarian aid, though “much, much more help is needed” as well as the release of four of the more than 200 hostages taken from Israel.

Thomas-Greenfield called this moment a test for the international community and for the council. She accused Russia of introducing a resolution at the last minute “in bad faith” with no consultations and urged members to vote for the “strong and balanced” U.S. text.

Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia countered that an immediate humanitarian cease-fire is needed to de-escalate the conflict and reduce the bloodshed and “shocking” Palestinian casualties. He called the U.S. draft “politicised” and claimed the United States doesn’t want the Security Council to have any influence on a possible Israeli ground offensive that “would risk provoking an even larger-scale conflict in the region and possibly even beyond.”

After the vote, China’s U.N. Ambassador Zhang Jun said the U.S. draft contained many elements that went beyond humanitarian needs and were “deeply divisive.” He called it “evasive on the most urgent issue of ending the fighting” and said it failed to reflect the world’s strong calls for a cease-fire.

United Arab Emirates Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh, the Arab representative on the council who voted against the U.S. resolution and for the Russian draft, said the U.N. and humanitarian organisations have made clear that what is essential is a humanitarian cease-fire, the release of all hostages, and sustained humanitarian access to Gaza.

At a council meeting on the war Tuesday that heard nearly 90 speakers, there were “dozens of statements imploring this council to assign the same value to Palestinian life as it does to Israeli life,” Nusseibeh said. “We cannot allow any equivocation on this point.”

Israel’s U.N. Ambassador Gilad Erdan thanked the U.S. and other nations that supported its resolution for condemning “savage genocidal terrorists while standing up for the values of freedom and security.”

Those who voted against the resolution showed the world the Security Council is incapable of condemning “terrorists and cannot confirm the right to self-defence of the victim of these heinous crimes.”

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian U.N. ambassador, told the Associated Press after the vote “It’s disgusting the Security Council is not shouldering its responsibility” to “stop the war.”

“You do not start by killing the people and then say that I want to deal with the situation,” he said. “We need to save lives. … That is the most urgent priority.”

With the Security Council still paralysed, the Palestinians are turning to the 193-member General Assembly where there are no vetoes — just as Ukraine did after Russia’s February 2022 invasion. The assembly’s emergency special session opens Thursday, with 106 speakers on the list, and Arab nations have circulated a draft resolution which Mansour said he expects to be put to a vote on Friday afternoon.

The draft resolution calls for an immediate cease-fire, demands that Israel rescind its order for Gazans to move from the north to the south, calls for maximum restraint, and demands that essential goods including food, water and medicine are provided in the Gaza Strip.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

UN warns of relief operation cutbacks in Gaza due to fuel shortages | Latest Updates

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Israel-Hamas war has entered its 19th day, bringing the death toll in Gaza to at least 5,791 Palestinians. In the occupied West Bank, 96 Palestinians have been killed and 1,650 wounded in violence and Israeli raids since the Hamas’ October 7 attack killing 1,400 Israelis.

#600,000 internally displaced in Gaza taking refuge in 150 UNRWA sites

Nearly 600,000 internally displaced people are sheltering in 150 facilities of the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) in Gaza, while at least 40 UNRWA installations have been impacted, the UN agency posted on Wednesday on the social media platform X.

“Our shelters are four times over their capacities – many people are sleeping in the streets as current facilities are overwhelmed,” the agency added.

#UN warns Gaza blockade could force it to sharply cut relief operations as bombings rise

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees warned on Wednesday that without immediate deliveries of fuel it will soon have to sharply cut back relief operations across the Gaza Strip, which has been blockaded and hit by devastating Israeli airstrikes since Hamas militants launched an attack on Israel more than two weeks ago.

The Israeli military said its strikes had killed militants and destroyed tunnels, command centres, weapons storehouses and other military targets, which it has accused Hamas of hiding among Gaza’s civilian population. Gaza-based militants have been launching unrelenting rocket barrages into Israel since the conflict started. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said the airstrikes killed at least 704 people between Monday and Tuesday, mostly women and children. The Associated Press could not independently verify the death tolls cited by Hamas, which says it tallies figures from hospital directors. Read full story here

#Qatar PM says he hopes for a resolution in hostage situation

Qatar’s prime minister on Wednesday said that there was some progress on hostage negotiations after Palestinian militant group Hamas abducted more than 200 hostages during its October 7 rampage in southern Israel.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, who is also the minister of foreign affairs, said at a press conference with his Turkish counterpart that he hoped there would be breakthroughs on hostage releases “soon”.

Wealthy gas-producer Qatar has had an open dialogue with both Israel and Hamas, which has brought about the release of four hostages held by Hamas, including two Israeli women on Monday.

The Gulf state, in coordination with the U.S., is leading mediation talks with Hamas and Israeli officials over the hostages’ release as Israel prepares a ground assault on the enclave.

Speaking in Doha, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said an Israeli ground operation into Gaza would turn the fighting there into a massacre. (Reuters)

# Israel denies visas to UN officials over Guterres’ remarks

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, has announced that Israel will deny visas to UN officials following remarks made by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that were perceived as justifying Hamas’ actions.

Erdan specifically mentioned the refusal of a visa for Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths and emphasized the need to “teach them a lesson.” Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen also criticised Guterres’ stance, leading to the cancellation of a private meeting between the two.

Erdan called on Guterres to resign, stating that the Secretary-General’s comments demonstrated a lack of understanding of the region’s reality and appeared to sympathise with terrorism. Erdan also called for a reconsideration of Israel’s relationship with the UN.

# India flags civilian casualties, calls for direct negotiations at UNSC

In a recent address at the United Nations, India expressed deep concern over the worsening security situation and the significant loss of civilian lives in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

VIDEO | “India is deeply concerned with the deteriorating security situation and large scale loss of civilians in the ongoing (Israel-Palestine) conflict. The October 7 terror attacks in Israel were shocking and we condemn them unequivocally. Our PM was one of the first global… pic.twitter.com/b0A0mCKoP4

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 25, 2023

The country, represented by Ambassador R. Ravindra, the Deputy Permanent Representative of India at the UN, called on the parties involved to take steps towards creating conditions conducive to peace and to restart direct negotiations, emphasising the importance of de-escalation and the cessation of violence.

“Civilian casualties in the ongoing conflict are a matter of serious and continuing concern. All parties must protect civilians, especially women and children. The unfolding humanitarian crisis needs to be addressed,” Ravindra said.

India reiterated its support for a two-state solution, aiming for a sovereign and viable state of Palestine alongside Israel, taking into account Israel’s legitimate security concerns. The country also welcomed international efforts to restore normalcy in the region and reaffirmed its commitment to a just and lasting resolution of the Israel-Palestine issue.

# UNSC: India dismisses Pakistan’s Kashmir reference

During the United Nations Security Council meeting situation, India also firmly stated that it would dismiss Pakistan’s mention of Kashmir with the appropriate level of disregard, refusing to engage with it.

“Before I end, there was a remark of habitual nature by one delegation referring to Union Territories that are integral and inalienable parts of my country,” Ravindra said.

“I would treat these remarks with contempt they deserve and not dignify them with a response in the interest of time,” he added.

This is in reaction to Pakistan’s UN representative Munir Akram’s reference to Kashmir during the Security Council meeting on the Middle East situation.

# Australia sends Air Force transport jets

Australia has dispatched an additional two Air Force transport planes to the Middle East as a precaution for potential evacuations of its citizens in case the situation escalates. Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles announced on Wednesday that there are now three aircraft in the region for this contingency purpose.

While Marles didn’t specify the exact location of these planes, he clarified that they were not stationed in Israel. He encouraged Australian citizens wishing to return home to opt for commercial flights immediately instead of waiting for a potential military evacuation. Australia has already assisted numerous citizens in leaving Israel on chartered flights and is actively working to help 79 people exit Gaza.

# Will free civilian hostages if Israel stops Gaza bombardment: Hamas

Khaled Meshaal, a prominent figure within Hamas, has stated that civilians among the more than 200 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza will be released if Israel reduces the intensity of its bombing.

In an interview with Sky News, Meshaal emphasised the need for the right conditions to facilitate their release. He also denied that Hamas planned to kill civilians, and he attributed civilian deaths to Israeli actions.

Meshaal expressed the possibility of negotiating peace with Israel if the current conflict ceases and Israel withdraws from occupied territories.

# Biden says Israel can decide if it wants to invade Gaza

Amidst reports of an imminent ground invasion of Gaza by Israel, President Joe Biden has said that Israel can make its own decisions, as the US firmly backs its ally while urging caution.

Biden made the comment on Tuesday in response to a question while posing for a picture with the visiting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

“Are you urging Israel to delay its ground invasion?” Biden was asked, to which he replied, “The Israelis can make their own decisions.”

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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At Cairo Peace Summit, Arab allies of Israel express growing anger over Gaza war

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Egypt and Jordan harshly criticised Israel over its actions in Gaza at the Cairo Peace Summit on Saturday, a sign that the two Western allies that made peace with Israel decades ago are losing patience with its two-week-old war against Hamas.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, who hosted the summit, again rejected any talk of driving Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians into the Sinai Peninsula and warned against the “liquidation of the Palestinian cause.” Jordan’s King Abdullah II called Israel’s siege and bombardment of Gaza “a war crime.”

The speeches reflected growing anger in the region, even among those with close ties to Israel who have often worked as mediators, as the war sparked by a massive Hamas attack enters a third week with casualties mounting and no end in sight.

Egypt is especially concerned about a massive influx of Palestinians crossing into its territory, something that it fears would, among other things, severely undermine hopes for a Palestinian state. Vague remarks by some Israeli politicians and military officials suggesting people leave Gaza have alarmed Israel’s neighbours, as have Israeli orders for Palestinian civilians to evacuate to the south, toward Egypt.

In his opening remarks, el-Sissi said Egypt vehemently rejected “the forced displacement of the Palestinians and their transfer to Egyptian lands in Sinai.”

“I want to state it clearly and unequivocally to the world that the liquidation of the Palestinian cause without a just solution is beyond the realm of possibility, and in any case, it will never happen at the expense of Egypt, absolutely not,” he said.

Jordan’s king delivered the same message, expressing his “unequivocal rejection” of any displacement of Palestinians. Jordan already hosts the largest number of displaced Palestinians from previous Mideast wars.

“This is a war crime according to international law, and a red line for all of us,” he told the summit.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who leads the Palestinian Authority, a government exercising semi-autonomous control in the occupied West Bank, called for Israel to stop “its barbaric aggression” in Gaza. He also warned against attempts to push Palestinians out of the coastal territory.

“We will not leave, we will not leave, we will not leave, and we will remain in our land,” he told the summit.

Israel says it is determined to destroy Gaza’s Hamas rulers but has said little about its endgame.

On Friday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant laid out a three-stage plan in which airstrikes and “manoeuvring” — a presumed reference to a ground attack — would aim to root out Hamas before a period of lower-intensity mop-up operations. Then, a new “security regime” would be created in Gaza along with “the removal of Israel’s responsibility for life in the Gaza Strip,” Gallant said.

He did not say who would run Gaza after Hamas.

Meanwhile, Israel has ordered more than half of the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza to evacuate from north to south within the territory it has completely sealed off, effectively pushing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians toward the Egyptian border.

Amos Gilad, a former Israeli defence official, said Israel’s ambiguity on the matter is endangering crucial ties with Egypt. “I think a peace treaty with Egypt is highly important, highly crucial for the national security of Israel and Egypt and the whole structure of peace in the world,” he said.

Gilad said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs to speak directly with the leaders of Egypt and Jordan and say publicly that Palestinians will not be entering their countries.

Two senior Egyptian officials said relations with Israel have reached a boiling point.

They said Egypt has conveyed its frustration over Israeli comments about displacement to the United States, which brokered the Camp David Accords in the 1970s. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.

Egypt worries that a mass exodus would risk bringing militants into Sinai, from where they might launch attacks on Israel, endangering the peace treaty.

Arab countries also fear a repeat of the mass exodus of Palestinians from what is now Israel before and during the 1948 war surrounding its creation, when some 700,000 fled or were driven out, an event Palestinians refer to as the Nakba or catastrophe. Those refugees and their descendants, who now number nearly 6 million, were never allowed to return.

At Saturday’s gathering, the anger extended beyond the fears of mass displacement.

Both leaders condemned Israel’s air campaign in Gaza, which has killed more than 4,300 Palestinians, including many civilians, according to health authorities in Gaza. Israel says it is only striking Hamas targets and is abiding by international law.

The war was sparked by a wide-ranging Hamas incursion into southern Israel on October 7 in which over 1,400 people were killed, the vast majority of them civilians.

Abdullah, who is among the closest Western allies in the region, accused Israel of “collective punishment of a besieged and helpless people.”

“It is a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. It is a war crime,” he said.

He went on to accuse the international community of ignoring Palestinian suffering, saying it had sent a “loud and clear message” to the Arab world that “Palestinian lives matter less than Israeli ones.”

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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India sends humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza amid escalating war

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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India’s humanitarian aid for Gaza arrived in Egypt on Sunday, the Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Adrindam Bagchi, shared in a post on X. The materials were handed over to the Egyptian Red Crescent and will be sent forward from there.

🇮🇳’s humanitarian aid for the people of Palestine arrives in Egypt.

Amb @indembcairo @AjitVGupte handed over the relief material to Egyptian Red Crescent for onward transmission to Palestine. pic.twitter.com/mSn5RKoK5L

— Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) October 22, 2023

Posting on social media, the MEA spokesperson announced that India’s humanitarian aid for the people of Palestine has arrived in Egypt. He added that Ambassador of India to Egypt Ajit Gupte “handed over the relief material to Egyptian Red Cresent for onward transmission to Palestine.”

The Egyptian Red Crescent is a humanitarian society that provides emergency medical services and aid in Egypt. Aid to Palestinians has been reaching Gaza from Egypt through the Rafah border which separates the two regions. Rafah is the only route into Gaza that is not controlled by Israel and has been permitted aid transmission by Israel following a request from the United States.

Various other United Nations agencies have sent aid to Gaza via Egypt through the Rafah border.

As per a CNN report, the Indian Air Force plane arrived at el-Arish, a city in Egypt. It carried nearly 6.5 tonnes of medical aid and 32 tonnes of disaster relief material, including life-saving medicines, surgical items, tents, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, sanitary utilities and water purification tablets.

The packages were donned with an Indian flag and a message that read “Gift from the People of INDIA to the PALESTINIAN people.”

On Sunday, India also brought back 143 people including two Nepalese nationals from Israel under “Operation Ajay” amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle Eastern nation. The passengers were received at the Delhi airport by Union Minister of State for Rural Development and Steel Faggan Singh Kulaste.

India launched Operation Ajay on October 11 to repatriate stranded Indians from Israel who wished to come home in view of the Israel-Hamas war. More than 1,300 people have returned across six chartered flights by the Indian government.

The Israel-Palestine conflict escalated when Hamas militants stormed into Israel on October 7. The war is now on its 16th day and over 4,651 people have died as a result of it. For LIVE updates on the ongoing conflict, check here.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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Israel-Hamas war LIVE: Over 4,000 killed in Gaza as Israel amps up attacks on 16th day

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Shaping up to be the deadliest of five Gaza wars on both sides, the conflict between Israel and Palestinian military group Hamas is now in its 16th day. The death toll in Gaza is said to be around 4,651 with an additional 14,254 injured. As Israel warns that it is stepping up its attack on the Gaza Strip, here are some of the latest updates from the war:

# India sends humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza

India’s humanitarian aid for Gaza has arrived in Egypt, with Ambassador Ajit Gupte handing over relief materials to the Egyptian Red Crescent for onward transmission to Palestine.

This aid includes medical supplies and disaster relief materials. Read more here.

# Gaza water crisis intensifies post conflict

Gaza’s water supply was already short of meeting the daily per capita water consumption minimum. With the escalation of conflict, the water crisis in Gaza has intensified to the point where it’s now deemed a critical matter of survival, as stated by the United Nations

# Operation Ajay brings 6th flight of 143 people back from Israel

India on Sunday brought back 143 people including two Nepalese nationals from Israel.

India launched Operation Ajay on October 11 to facilitate the return from Israel of those Indians who wished to come back home given the Hamas-Israel conflict.

“6th #OperationAjay flight lands in New Delhi.143 passengers including 2 Nepalese citizens arrived onboard the flight,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a post on ‘X’.

The passengers were received at the airport by Union Minister Faggan Singh Kulaste.

More than 1,200 people returned from Israel in the previous five chartered flights.

# Death toll and wounded update

As per an AFP update quoting Hamas, at least 55 people were killed overnight after Israel stepped up its Gaza strikes.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said Sunday that the death toll in Gaza had reached at least 4,651 people, with another 14,254 people wounded in the besieged territory.

The ministry said 93 Palestinians were also killed in violence and Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank since Hamas militants stormed into Israel on October 7. More than 1,650 others were wounded, it added.

More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, mostly in the initial Hamas attack. In addition, 203 people were believed captured by Hamas during the incursion and taken into Gaza, the Israeli military has said.

# Israel says it’s stepping up attacks on the Gaza Strip

Israeli warplanes have struck targets across the Gaza Strip as well as two airports in Syria and a mosque in the occupied West Bank allegedly used by militants. At the same time, a second convoy of humanitarian aid reportedly began crossing into Gaza from Egypt on Sunday afternoon.

Israel’s military spokesman said the country is stepping up its attacks, and there are growing expectations of a ground offensive.

# US, UK and allies support Israel, urge it to uphold humanitarian laws

Leaders of the US, the UK, France, Canada and Italy supported Israel’s right to defend itself against the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Still, they urged the Jewish state to uphold international humanitarian laws and protect civilians.

The White House issued a joint statement on Sunday after US President Joe Biden initiated a call with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, France President Emmanuel Macron, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and UK PM Rishi Sunak. Read more here.

President Biden and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu also “affirmed” in a call Sunday that there will be a “continued flow” of aid into Gaza, the White House said, after the first convoys of critical assistance entered the enclave since Hamas launched its October 7 attack.

With agency inputs.

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Israel escalates bombardment in Gaza, evacuates near Lebanon

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Israel bombarded the Gaza Strip early Friday, hitting areas in the south where Palestinians had been told to seek safety, and it began evacuating a sizable town near the country’s border with Lebanon in a sign that a potential ground invasion of Gaza could trigger regional turmoil.

Palestinians reported heavy airstrikes in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis, and ambulances carrying men, women and children streamed into the town’s Nasser Hospital, Gaza’s second largest, which is already overflowing with patients and people seeking shelter. The Israeli military said it had struck more than 100 targets across Gaza linked to the territory’s Hamas rulers, including a tunnel and arms depots.

On Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered ground troops to prepare to see Gaza “from the inside,” hinting at a ground offensive aimed at crushing Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers nearly two weeks after their bloody incursion into Israel. Officials have given no timetable for such an operation.

Over a million people have been displaced in Gaza, with many heeding Israel’s orders to evacuate the northern part of the sealed-off coastal enclave.

Gaza’s overwhelmed hospitals are rationing their dwindling medical supplies and fuel for generators, as authorities worked out logistics for a desperately needed aid delivery from Egypt that has yet to enter. Doctors in darkened wards across Gaza performed surgeries by the light of mobile phones and used vinegar to treat infected wounds.

The deal to get aid into Gaza by way of Rafah, the territory’s only crossing not controlled by Israel, remained fragile. Israel said the supplies could only go to civilians and that it would “thwart” any diversions by Hamas. More than 200 trucks and some 3,000 tons of aid were positioned at or near Rafah, but work has not yet begun on repairing a road on the Gaza side that was damaged by airstrikes.

Israel has evacuated its own communities near Gaza and Lebanon, putting residents up in hotels elsewhere in the country in a state-funded program. On Friday, the Defense Ministry announced evacuation plans for Kiryat Shmona, a town of more than 20,000 residents near the Lebanese border.

Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group, which has a massive arsenal of long-range rockets, has traded fire with Israel along the border on a near-daily basis and hinted it might join the war if Israel seeks to annihilate Hamas. Israel’s arch-foe Iran supports both armed groups.

The violence in Gaza has also sparked protests across the region, including in Arab countries allied with the U.S. Those demonstrations could flare anew on Friday following weekly Muslim prayers.

In an address from the Oval Office on Thursday, President Joe Biden again pledged unwavering support for Israel’s security, while saying the world “can’t ignore the humanity of innocent Palestinians” in Gaza.

Speaking hours after returning to Washington from an urgent visit to Israel, Biden linked the current war in Gaza to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying Hamas and Russian President Vladimir Putin “both want to completely annihilate a neighbouring democracy.”

Biden said he was sending an “urgent budget request” to Congress on Friday, to cover emergency military aid to both Israel and Ukraine.

Meanwhile, an unclassified U.S. intelligence assessment delivered to Congress estimated casualties in an explosion at a Gaza City hospital this week on the “low end” of 100 to 300 deaths. The death toll “still reflects a staggering loss of life,” said the report, seen by The Associated Press. It said intelligence officials were still assessing the evidence and their casualty estimate may evolve.

The report echoed earlier assessments by U.S. officials that the blast at the al-Ahli hospital was not caused by an Israeli airstrike, as the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza initially reported. Israel has presented video, audio and other evidence it says proves the blast was caused by a rocket misfired by Palestinian militants.

The AP has not independently verified any of the claims or evidence released by the parties.

An Israeli airstrike hit near a Greek Orthodox church housing displaced Palestinians in Gaza City late Thursday. The Israeli military said it had targeted a Hamas command and control center nearby, causing damage to a church wall. In the immediate aftermath, Palestinian medics gave conflicting accounts of the number of people wounded.

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchy of Jerusalem condemned the attack and said it would “not abandon its religious and humanitarian duty” to help people in need.

The Israeli military has relentlessly attacked Gaza in retaliation for the devastating October 7 Hamas attack. Even after Israel ordered a mass evacuation to the south, strikes extended across the territory, heightening fears among the territory’s 2.3 million people that nowhere was safe.

Palestinian militants also have fired daily rocket barrages into Israel from Gaza, and tensions have flared in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Thirteen Palestinians in the West Bank, including five minors, were killed Thursday during a battle with Israeli troops in which Israel called in an airstrike, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

The Gaza Health Ministry said 3,785 people have been killed in the territory since the war began, the majority of women, children and older adults. Nearly 12,500 were injured, and another 1,300 people were believed buried under rubble, authorities said.

More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, mostly civilians slain during Hamas’ brutal rampage almost two weeks ago. The Israeli military said Thursday it had notified the families of 203 people who were captured and taken to Gaza.

In a fiery speech on Thursday to Israeli infantry soldiers on the Gaza border, Gallant, the defence minister, urged them to “be ready” to move in. Israel has called up some 360,000 reserves and massed tens of thousands of troops along the Gaza border.

“Whoever sees Gaza from afar now, will see it from the inside,” he said. “It might take a week, a month, two months until we destroy them,” he added, referring to Hamas.

With supplies running low because of a complete Israeli siege, some Gaza residents are down to one meal a day and drinking dirty water.

Egypt and Israel were still negotiating the entry of fuel for hospitals. An Israeli military spokesperson, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said Hamas has stolen fuel from U.N. facilities and Israel wants assurances that won’t happen again.

The Gaza Health Ministry pleaded with gas stations to give fuel to hospitals, and a U.N. agency also donated some of its last fuel. Gaza’s sole power plant shut down last week, forcing Palestinians to rely on generators, and no fuel has gone in since the start of the war.

The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees’s donation to Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital, the territory’s largest, would “keep us going for another few hours,” said Mohammed Abu Selmia, the hospital director.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow