At Least 48 Palestinians Killed by Israeli Occupation Army in Besieged Gaza Strip
Summary
The Israeli entity has threatened to strike the resistance anywhere, following unprecedented airstrikes in Qatar against leaders of the Palestinian Hamas movement, which drew rare criticism from its American ally.
In the besieged and devastated Gaza Strip, the Israeli occupation army continued its offensive, killing at least 48 people, according to the local Civil Defense, and affirming its intention to intensify its strikes on Gaza City.
After the start of the war in Gaza, triggered by an unprecedented Hamas attack on Israeli soil on October 7, 2023, the Israeli entity has decimated the Hamas leadership, vowing to destroy and expel it from the Palestinian territory where it has held power since 2007.
Israeli Minister of Defense Warns of Further Strikes
"Israel's security policy is clear: its long arm will act against its enemies, wherever they are. They have nowhere to hide," warned Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz. "If the Hamas murderers and violators do not accept the conditions set by the Israeli entity to end the war, first and foremost the release of all hostages and their disarmament, they will be destroyed and Gaza will be destroyed," he added.
US Ally Criticizes Israeli Airstrikes
The previous day, the Israeli air force targeted Hamas leaders gathered in a complex in Doha, the capital of Qatar, a US ally and mediator between Hamas and the Israeli entity in negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages.
"The enemy did not succeed in assassinating the members of the delegation in charge of negotiations," Hamas said in a statement, while reporting six deaths, including the son of chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya, the head of Mr. Hayya's office, three bodyguards, and a Qatari policeman. According to Hamas sources, six leaders, including Khalil al-Hayya, Khaled Meshaal, former number one, and Zaher Jabarine, responsible for the movement in the West Bank, were in the building at the time of the attack.
International Condemnation and Humanitarian Crisis
The representative of the Israeli entity to the UN, Danny Danon, said it was "too early to comment on the outcome" of the strike. He also emphasized that his country does not always act "in the interests of the United States," its main ally.
Qatar, which hosts a major US military base and the Hamas political bureau, condemned the strikes but also affirmed its intention to continue its mediation role.
Despite international pressure for a ceasefire, the Israeli occupation army continued its ground operations and airstrikes, particularly in Gaza City, considered one of the last strongholds of Hamas in the territory. It struck and destroyed a new residential tower in Gaza City, according to an AFP journalist on the scene, as part of the intensification of its offensive in the main city of the Palestinian territory.
Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza
The war has caused a humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip, where the nearly two million inhabitants, displaced several times, live in very difficult conditions. The UN has declared a famine in the area.
"In the coming days, the Israeli army will intensify its strikes in Gaza City, based on precise intelligence, with the aim of dismantling the infrastructure (...) of Hamas, disrupting its operational capacity, and reducing the threat to troops," a military statement said.
The Israeli offensive has killed at least 64,656 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health in Gaza, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.
