While the Israeli military continued its large-scale operation in northern Gaza and a ground incursion in Lebanon against Hezbollah militants, the defense minister of Israel warned that his country will retaliate for a recent Iranian missile launch with “lethal” and “surprising” measures.
Regarding international affairs, the first phone chat between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in seven weeks was reportedly about Israel’s negotiations regarding its response to Iran’s strike, according to a White House press secretary.
While Israel is considering a massive retaliatory strike on Iran in response to Iran’s Oct. 1 missile onslaught and escalates its weeklong ground battle against Hezbollah in Lebanon, the spiral of destruction and murder in Gaza continues, sparked by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel.
We promise a deadly, pinpoint, and most of all, unexpected strike. How and what transpired will remain a mystery to them. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant addressed the troops and promised them that they will witness the fruits of their labor. “Anyone who dares to harm us will meet with harm and punishment.”
On October 1st, Iran launched dozens of missiles towards Israel, which the US assisted in evading. Retaliatory strikes on locations associated with Iran’s nuclear program would not have Biden’s approval, he has stated.
Hezbollah took credit for Wednesday’s missile attack that killed two in Kiryat Shmona, a town in northern Israel. According to Ofir Yehezkeli, the interim mayor of the town, the victims were a dog-walking couple.
Displacement looms on survivors of dozens slain in Gaza: Heavy fighting broke out in Jabaliya, an urban refugee camp in northern Gaza, where Israeli troops have conducted multiple significant operations since the war’s inception and where militants have regrouped. The camp dates back to the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s formation. Since late last year, Israeli forces have largely isolated the northern region, which includes Gaza City, and caused massive destruction throughout.
Thousands of Palestinians have been confined to their houses in Jabaliya, Gaza, since the operation started on Sunday, according to locals there. Israeli jets and drones fly overhead, while forces fight terrorists on the streets.
As bad as hell, man. Mohamed Awda, who resides with his parents and six brothers, expressed frustration at being unable to escape. According to him, the fighting prevented the recovery of three bodies that were lying in the street outside his home.
You can’t escape the quadcopters, and they’re constantly attacking. Over the sound of explosions, he spoke over the phone to the Associated Press, explaining that not even opening the window would be possible.
Forty dead were found in Jabaliya between Sunday and Tuesday, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, with an additional fourteen bodies found in northern towns. According to it, there are probably additional bodies hidden under debris and in inaccessible places.
The people of Jabaliya are worried that Israel plans to isolate the northern territories, convert them into a military zone, or establish a Jewish colony there. Locals said that apart from the major highway heading south from Jabaliya, Israel has sealed off all roadways.
According to Ahmed Qamar, a resident of Jabaliya who lives with his family, the people here have made it obvious that they refuse to leave northern Gaza in favor of southern Gaza.
Medical facilities are in danger: Al-Ahly Hospital in Gaza City has taken in hundreds of injured and deceased individuals from the north, according to Fadel Naeem, the hospital’s director. He informed AP via text message that the hospital had declared a state of emergency, postponed scheduled surgeries, and released patients whose conditions were stable.
Due to Israel’s attack, the majority of Gaza’s hospitals have closed and the remaining ones are only partially operational, severely impacting the health sector.
According to Naeem, the violence has made it nearly impossible to reach three hospitals located farther north: Kamal Adwan, Awda, and the Indonesian Hospital. Israeli forces have reportedly ordered all three to evacuate its employees and patients, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. U.N. data shows that no humanitarian aid has reached the north since October 1.
“Israel has not halted the entry or coordination of humanitarian aid entering from its territory into the northern Gaza Strip,” stated the Israeli authority in charge of coordinating humanitarian matters in Palestinian territories.
Israel claims it solely attacks militants and holds Hamas responsible for civilian casualties due to the group’s attacks in residential areas.
Hundreds of thousands of civilians are thought to have stayed in northern Gaza, including Gaza City, after Israel ordered their departure in the early stages of the war. On the weekend, Israel restated its earlier orders, urging the fleeing population to head south to a humanitarian zone where hundreds of thousands are already living in overcrowded tent camps.
Less than a year ago, militants led by Hamas invaded southern Israel, kidnapping 250 people and killing 1,200 (mainly civilians). They are reported to be holding roughly 100 hostages, with one-third of them presumed dead.
Although the Gaza Health Ministry does not specify the number of combatants killed, their report indicates that more than 42,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s onslaught. According to reports, more than half of the casualties are children and women. Nearly 90% of the 2.3 million people who lived there were displaced, and many of them were displaced more than once, due to the devastating destruction that the offensive wreaked across the territory.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, has pledged to maintain the fight until Hamas is defeated and all hostages are returned.