The International Criminal Court will begin its review from Monday: “War crimes, crimes against humanity, in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949”

100 Chilean lawyers, most of whom are of Palestinian origin, filed a complaint before the International Criminal Court regarding the crimes of the Israeli occupation in the Gaza Strip, namely genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, which violate the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949.

"We have complied in accordance with the Rome Statute, and we have received the concerns and requests of nearly 100 Chilean colleagues who conducted the relevant consultations, to direct a petition before the International Criminal Court, and its review will begin as of next Monday," Wafa quoted lawyer Juan Carlos Manriquez as saying.

Among the lawyers are members of the Chilean Senate Francisco Chahuan, Jimena Rincon, Paulina Vodanovic, Iván Moreira, Sergio Gahona and Alfonso de Uresti, who uphold the complaint filed showing disproportionate Israeli retaliation against the elderly, women, children and the sick, without a logical basis, or A moral limit, by committing serious and deliberate human rights violations against Palestinian civilians in Gaza, in a clear and systematic premeditation of genocidal war, and their forced migration.

Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Francisco Shahwan said: “Here they are demanding that Netanyahu bear criminal responsibilities, to impose an immediate ceasefire.”

The complainants, who constitute the largest Palestinian community in the world outside the Palestinian territories, demand the issuance of an arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu and other agents and soldiers responsible for these crimes.

Government Media Office in Gaza:

-29,722 dead and missing persons since the start of the aggression against the Gaza Strip, including 10,000 children and 7,000 women.

The occupation forces committed 1,903 massacres against civilians in the Gaza Strip.

The occupation army stole money and gold from the Gaza Strip worth 90 million shekels.

-30 hospitals in the Gaza Strip were taken out of service by the occupation.

-The occupation army completely destroyed 69 thousand housing units, and 290 thousand units partially.

On the 92nd day of the aggression: killed and wounded in the ongoing occupation bombing of the Gaza Strip

A number of citizens were killed, and others were injured, today, Saturday, in the continuous occupation bombing of various sites in the Gaza Strip, by air, land, and sea, as the aggression entered its 92nd day.

The occupation aircraft launched violent raids targeting a house in the town of Al-Zawaida in the middle of the Gaza Strip, which led to the death and injury of dozens, while ambulance crews were unable to reach them.

The occupation aircraft bombed the city of Khan Yunis, especially in the Asdaa area, west of the city, which led to the death of two citizens and the wounding of others.

The Maghazi, Bureij, and Nuseirat camps witnessed a series of violent artillery shelling, while occupation snipers mounted some high-rise buildings and fired bullets at any citizen trying to move or flee to another area.

In an infinite toll, the number of killed since the start of the aggression on the seventh of last October has risen to more than 22,430 dead, including 9,730 children and 6,830 women, in addition to 7,000 missing persons, and more than 57,600 wounded.

This week, the administration of US President Joe Biden continued to avoid accusations regarding Israel's actions in Gaza, saying that it (Israel) does not commit acts of genocide. But the administration acknowledged that it had not made any formal assessment of whether Israel was violating international humanitarian law.

The lack of any real-time assessments of Israel's behavior and methods in its devastating war on the besieged Gaza Strip has drawn intense criticism from inside and outside the government, as President Joe Biden has shown no signs of wanting to change approach, according to media sources in Washington.

Questions about this position were raised in plenary sessions last week, in the wake of South Africa launching a genocide case against Israel in the United Nations Supreme Court, according to Politico.

According to the website, “The United States is confident that Israel is not committing any ethnic cleansing or genocide in Gaza, as a senior administration official said, and that “if you only look at what Israel is doing, you will find that it is not systematically targeting civilians.” The United States has came to this conclusion in part after reviewing press reports and conversations with Israeli officials about their military operations.

It is noteworthy that US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said last Wednesday in response to press questions that the United States has not witnessed any acts of genocide committed by Israel in Gaza. When Miller was asked the next day how the United States reached this decision, he said he would not discuss internal deliberations or speak to any formal process that had been launched.

On the same day, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby answered a question at the White House about how the United States knows whether Israel is complying with the laws of war, saying: “I am not aware of any kind of formal assessment that the United States government is conducting to analyze the extent of our partner’s compliance to international law, but we haven't seen anything that would convince us that we need to take a different approach in terms of trying to help Israel defend itself." This may impede sending large quantities of weapons and ammunition to Israel to continue its devastating attacks on Palestinian civilian areas in the Gaza Strip.

These and other comments led to more criticism of the US administration's policy towards Israel.

Politico quotes Matthew Doss, executive vice president at the Progressive Center for International Policy, as saying: “The administration issued an assessment of Russian war crimes within a month of the invasion of Ukraine, and the United States has much greater visibility and knowledge of Israeli operations.” So to claim that they were unable to make such an assessment on Gaza after three months demonstrates naivety or truly dispensation with others.

It is noteworthy that the Biden administration is now speaking more forcefully about the need to protect civilians than it did after Israel launched its war following the Hamas attack on October 7, and has put some pressure on Israel to open a second crossing into Gaza, allowing more humanitarian aid to enter the Strip, which Its population is 2.3 million people. “American officials say that Israel did not pursue a comprehensive invasion of Gaza after the US administration warned of the consequences, also pointing out that Israel’s recent shift to a more targeted campaign is the result of weeks of intense diplomacy,” according to Politco.

But Washington said little about the intentions of some senior officials in Benjamin Netanyahu's government. Bezalel Smotrich, Israel's finance minister, who is not a member of the war cabinet, has repeatedly called on Palestinians to leave Gaza. “What needs to be done in the Gaza Strip is to encourage immigration,” he told Israeli Army Radio last month. “If there were 100,000 or 200,000 Arabs in Gaza and not two million Arabs, the whole discussion the next day would be completely different.”

Israel is also in talks with Congo and other countries regarding a “voluntary migration” plan for Palestinians in Gaza, with Netanyahu recently telling members of his party (according to The Times of Israel) that “our problem is [finding] countries willing to absorb the population of Gaza, and we are working on that.”

The Biden administration's defense of Israeli actions, while also saying that it did not look deeply into military operations, confuses many of President Biden's supporters.

On Friday, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) became the latest Democratic member of Congress to suggest that the United States impose restrictions on military aid to Israel because of its conduct in the war.

“The United States cannot write a blank check to a right-wing government that has shown an appalling disregard for Palestinian lives,” the Senate Armed Services Committee member wrote on X.

In a new threat to the future of the Middle East...the United States is taking off the dress of diplomacy and putting on the gear of war

The American news website (Politico) reported yesterday evening that the United States is building a military plan to prevent the possibility of the aggression on the Gaza Strip turning into a large-scale regional war in the Middle East.
The website said, quoting officials in the US administration, one of whom holds a high position, that the United States has been working for some time on plans to confront scenarios related to the Middle East and developments in the war in the sector, and the possibility of participating in it as a regional war, in order to confront the attacks of the Houthis from Yemen, who are firing non-stop on commercial ships in the region. The Red Sea, which is heading to Israel, in addition to confronting expected attacks by what the American administration described as militias supported and backed by Iran..
The website said that behind the scenes, the United States made numerous contacts with Iran to reduce tension and stop attacks on American and Israeli targets, but all indications showed that Iran has a desire to continue fighting in the region, and therefore the United States will be forced to attack a number of targets, and thus the war may expand and spread to areas and continues for another period...
A major dilemma facing the American president is that the current year will witness the presidential election campaign that will be held next November, and popular and public pressure will be greater on Biden, who may lose the presidential battle after his involvement and the role of his administration in the war and aggression against the Gaza Strip.
The United States moving through these statements, even if they are implemented on the ground, means that it has taken off the dress of elegant diplomacy and will put on the equipment and uniform of military war to impose on the Middle East a new war that will bring destruction and instability. This is not surprising at the head of the axis of evil and the main supporter, but rather the strategic planner of the war of annihilation on the Gaza Strip..
The United States, until this moment, refuses to stop Israel’s aggression against the Gaza Strip and provides all justifications for its continuation despite its targeting of civilians, including women and children, which has caused an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe. Accordingly, the justifications it presents in order to stop the attacks of the Houthis and a number of movements and parties loyal to Iran are merely Simply declaring war, as was done previously in Afghanistan and Iraq, and this is not unusual for the axis of evil led by the United States with the support of some European countries, and all of this comes for the sake of further support for Israel to prolong its war on the Gaza Strip for as long as possible.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry directed its embassies to pressure the host countries to issue statements denying South Africa's accusations against Tel Aviv before international justice of practicing genocide in Gaza.

According to Axios, the cable sent by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on Thursday to its embassies around the world explains the details of the Israeli diplomatic action plan before the International Court of Justice session next week, to put international pressure on the court not to rule to stop the military campaign in Gaza.

The cable indicates that Tel Aviv's "strategic goal" is for the court to reject the request for an injunction, refrain from determining that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and recognize that the Israeli army operates in the Strip in accordance with international law.

The cable, a copy of which was obtained by Axios from three Israeli officials, said: “The court’s ruling may have significant potential implications not only in the legal world, but also has practical bilateral, multilateral, economic, and security repercussions.”

The cable said: “We request an immediate and unequivocal public statement as follows: that you publicly and clearly declare that your country rejects the outrageous, ridiculous and baseless accusations against Israel.”

The cable says that under the 1948 Convention, genocide is defined as the creation of conditions that do not permit the survival of a population with the intention of exterminating them, noting the need to emphasize Israel's efforts to increase humanitarian aid to the population of Gaza and reduce the number of civilians killed.

In the cable, Israeli embassies were instructed to ask diplomats and politicians at the highest levels to “publicly acknowledge that Israel is working alongside international actors to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, as well as reduce harm to civilians, and its actions are in self-defense after the Hamas attack.” On the seventh of last October.

Israeli ambassadors were also instructed to work urgently to obtain such statements before the session that will be held on January 11.

They were told that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would send messages to dozens of world leaders along the same lines.

The website said that the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs refused to comment on the cable.

South Africa filed the case last week and, in its 84-page report, says Israel's military campaign in Gaza violates Tel Aviv's obligations under the 1948 Genocide Convention, which defines genocide as "acts committed with intent to completely or partially eliminate a national, ethnic or racial group." Or religious.

South Africa says Israel's actions in Gaza are "genocide because they aim to eliminate a large portion of the Palestinian population in the Strip."

Israel rejected the case as "unfounded", but unlike previous cases in international courts, it decided to appear at the hearing because it is a signatory to the Genocide Convention, where Israel will be represented at the International Court of Justice by British lawyer Malcolm Shaw.

South Africa asked the court to take urgent interim measures, including ordering Israel to suspend its military campaign in Gaza.

Scottish Prime Minister Hamza Yousaf called on the British government to take action to stop indiscriminate Israeli attacks in Gaza.

He said: "The British government's refusal to do so is shameful. It is time for Britain to make clear to Israel that its actions in Gaza went far beyond a legitimate response to the Hamas attacks on October 7."

Referring to calls by government ministers to encourage immigration from Gaza and the establishment of Israeli settlements there, he said: “If that is not equivalent to ethnic cleansing, I don’t know what is. Gaza is occupied Palestinian territory and will be part of the future Palestinian state. The residents of Gaza should not be displaced or deported.” Forcibly from Gaza.

At least 15 citizens died at dawn on Saturday, and others were injured, some of them seriously, as a result of the occupation aircraft bombing two homes in the Al-Hakar area of Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, and in the Al-Manara neighborhood east of Khan Yunis in the south.

Sources at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir Al-Balah reported that from Friday morning until midnight tonight, 35 dead and more than 60 wounded, most of them children and women, arrived at the hospital.

The sources indicated that the occupation forces targeted an inhabited house in the Al-Manara area, east of Khan Yunis, which led to the death of 10 citizens, the majority of whom were children and women, and the wounding of a number of citizens with varying injuries, all of whom were taken to the European Hospital in the city.

Israeli warplanes launched several raids on Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.

The aggression launched by the Israeli occupation against Gaza Strip continues for the 92nd day in a row, and has led, in an infinite toll so far, to more than 22,430 dead, including 9,730 children, 6,830 women, 7,000 missing persons, and more than 57,600 wounded.

UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths says it's "long past time" for the conflict in Gaza to end 

UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths on Friday said Gaza had become "uninhabitable" after relentless bombing by Israeli forces in retaliation for the Hamas militant group's attack in October. "Three months since the horrific 7 October attacks, Gaza has become a place of death and despair," Griffiths said in a statement. "Gaza has simply become uninhabitable. Its people are witnessing daily threats to their very existence -- while the world watches on. "The humanitarian community has been left with the impossible mission of supporting more than two million people. "With much of the Gaza Strip already reduced to rubble, airstrikes continued through the night in the southern cities of Khan Yunis and Rafah as well as parts of central Gaza, AFP correspondents reported Friday.

The Israeli army said its forces had "struck over 100 targets" across Gaza over the past 24 hours, including military positions, rocket launch sites and weapons depots." We continue to demand an immediate end to the war, not just for the people of Gaza and its threatened neighbors, but for the generations to come who will never forget these 90 days of hell and of assaults on the most basic precepts of humanity," Griffiths said. "This war should never have started. But it's long past time for it to end."

The Hamas assault on October 7 resulted in the deaths of around 1,140 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on the latest official Israeli figures.

In response, Israel launched a bombardment and ground invasion that have killed at least 22,600 people, most of them women and children, according to the Gaza health ministry.

It is the strongest militarily, the most important technologically, and the most extensive in its alliances, and about its economic superiority is obvious. 

Despite all that, it seems strange that a question is asked: Is it a disabled state?

In its latest issue, the first newspaper in Israel, Yedioth Ahronoth, said that twelve thousand soldiers of various ranks were registered as permanently disabled at the level of physical disability, and they participated in the current war on Gaza, with its extensions in the West Bank and the northern front.

However, if we expand the circle outside the military scope, disability at other levels appears exponentially greater, and there is no exaggeration when it is said that it has afflicted the state and society. The word disability may not be used in this area, so let us replace it with “psychological and moral damage,” which has the deepest and strongest impact on the life of Israel in all its aspects.

The beginning was on the morning of October 7, 2023, when the “Al-Aqsa Flood” earthquake struck the entire psyche of society, as the people moved from a state of celebration on one of the most important days for the Jews, to a state of terror and astonishment at what happened, which put everyone in a sudden state of loss. Trust in the first icon of the state, which is the army. Confidence in it was shaken and the feeling of security evaporated under its protection.

In its latest issue, the first newspaper in Israel, Yedioth Ahronoth, said that twelve thousand soldiers of various ranks were registered as permanently disabled at the level of physical disability, and they are among those who participated in the current war on Gaza.

Hasty ground entry

The shock was deep and strong and required immediate treatment, prompting decision-makers to embark on a major adventure by opening a comprehensive war on Gaza, which developed into a hasty ground invasion, which politicians and the military bet that they would end in days or weeks and return from Gaza with the leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad captive, leaving the Gaza Strip behind them as a lifeless corpse. Moreover, they liberate detainees whose number and diversity exceed the number of prisoners in all previous wars.

After the shock of October 7, which was likened to an earthquake, came a series of shocks that increased and deepened the psychological imbalance at the level of the army and the rest of the components of society, due to the unexpected faltering of the military campaign in its ground framework, and due to the continued landing of missiles on cities and villages, which, if they do not kill and destroy, cause panic to those who hear them. This was accompanied by the arrival of the bodies of dead officers and soldiers, and convoys of the wounded, whose number exceeded thousands, according to the same Israeli sources.

It can be said that the dead and wounded, no matter how many, can be overcome by saying: “This is war, and there is no war without dead and wounded.” However, what is deeper and more dangerous is the tyranny of the state of moral collapse, for which there is no cure, as those inside Israel fear for their lives. Their security, their lives, their interests, and those outside it no longer see it as a safe place to seek refuge when a disaster strikes in their original homeland.

The newspaper "Haaretz" published the day before yesterday that 1,600 soldiers suffered from symptoms of trauma and stress due to their participation in the war, and that the army was forced to demobilize 90 of them at the present time.

A reverse immigration nightmare

Therefore, instead of the Hebrew state receiving waves of Jews coming to it from all over the world, it found itself facing what it always feared, which is the escalation of reverse immigration. Even if the Hebrew state found a cure for this phenomenon, where would it get the effective treatment for the deteriorating economic situation, where there is no agriculture, no industry, no tourism, and no construction? Due to the deepening hostility and hatred towards the Palestinians, hundreds of thousands of workers have been laid off from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and replacements are being sought for them from all over the world, which leads to significant economic losses in all fields.

Even if there was a solution to this dilemma, where would they find a solution to the miserable situation that the political class has reached at the level of decision-makers and those influencing it?

In the last meeting held under the title “Agreement on a unified policy for the next day that follows the war on Gaza,” a sharp quarrel broke out between the two participants, who were ministers, generals, and party leaders, and Benjamin Netanyahu was forced to end the meeting after the madness reached its peak, which made him say: “With this "The situation is that we cannot lead the war."

We can say that “Netanyahu committed a crime against himself and committed a crime against Israel.” At the resolution meeting, he found those demanding the annihilation of the Palestinians, the restoration of settlement in Gaza, the displacement of the remaining Palestinians to any place, and the opening of a comprehensive war on the northern front. He was threatened that if he did not do all of this, he would not remain prime minister, and because those who threatened him were his allies, he had no choice but to end the meeting. His threat to leave his position is more dangerous to him than any existential threat to the state.

This is the state of Israel now, and what makes it a truly disabled state is that its superior power has become a burden on it due to its misuse. This is because decision-makers in Israel only see things through the prism of rifles, cannon barrels, and aircraft missiles, which, no matter how smart they are described, remain stupid, in addition to that decision-makers In Israel, they feel encouraged no matter how great the losses are, because there are those in Washington who cover up everything, even madness.

By Walid Shaqir

Since US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's recent visit to Israel in the middle of last month, it has become clear that Washington's insistence on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant to move to a new phase of the war on Gaza, one that reduces the killing of civilians, includes continuing what the president had previously done. The Israeli ministers announced that the Mossad had been assigned to assassinate Hamas leaders and hunt them down wherever they were.

Sullivan himself said during his press conference in Tel Aviv, where the talks dealt with reducing the intensity of combat operations, that “Israel will continue to pursue Sinwar and Deif.” That is, the assassinations are part of American coverage of the “different” approach that Washington wants to continue the war.

Targeting Al-Arouri means that Israel was able to achieve the easiest target in the southern suburb of Beirut, where the operation indicated a kind of disdain by Hamas and even the party for Israeli intentions.

America and the decision to assassinate

That Israel chose to assassinate the Deputy Head of the Hamas Political Bureau, Saleh Al-Arouri, is because it has been unable so far to reach Yahya Al-Sinwar, Muhammad Al-Deif, and Marwan Issa... who are still in Gaza. This is one of the failures in achieving the declared goals of the invasion of the Gaza Strip, including eliminating Hamas and recovering its Israeli hostages.

In this sense, targeting Al-Arouri means that Israel was able to achieve the easiest target in the southern suburb of Beirut, where the operation indicated a kind of underestimation by Hamas and even the party of Israeli intentions. It did not take precautions of concealment or maneuvering in its movement, to avoid security breaches as much as possible.

Some attribute the underestimation of Israeli intentions and American support for them, not only with regard to assassinations, but also with regard to other confrontation plans with the Palestinians, and in the relationship with the axis of resistance led by Iran, to a number of factors, including:

1- Changing the method of war to accommodate public opinion

- The assassinations are part of a plan to change the method of fighting with the aim of absorbing the escalation of resentment among public opinion in Western countries over the method of genocide and forced displacement practiced by the Netanyahu government with its religious extremist allies, by reducing systematic indiscriminate bombing. One of the politicians observing Washington's efforts to convince Netanyahu of this commented that the intention is for hundreds to be killed within a few weeks instead of thousands as long as the war lasts long and without a ceasefire, and prolonging it allows achieving the goal of killing the largest number of Palestinians.

- While the conclusion is correct that Israel suffered a major defeat as a result of the “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation, which made the Israelis feel an existential threat to the entity, which is proven by the madness of the Israeli retaliatory reaction, relying on the euphoria of Hamas’ success on October 7 over the unprecedented threat is valid. The internal security of the Hebrew state does not obscure the fact that Hamas’ achievement, in return, awakened the feeling of the desire for brutal revenge among the Israeli leaders, to the point where they consider that they are fighting a war of “second independence.”

2- The West’s exits are to save Israel, not the Palestinians

- Concluding that the repercussions of failure to achieve the goals of the war will bring about a change within Israeli society and will show more weakness in it with the rise in counter-migration, does not mean ignoring what it has achieved in terms of the growth of extremism. The latest opinion poll a few days ago reported that two-thirds of Israelis support the continuation of the war, despite the significant decline in the Israeli public’s acceptance of Netanyahu and his performance.

In this situation, Netanyahu seeks to adapt internal public opinion to his goal of waging the long war, all the way to changing the name of the war from “Iron Swords” to “Genesis.” The goal is to give it a religious character to convince the public that it will only end with victory over the opponent, and that Israel needs his continued presence at the head of the government to obtain this victory. Moving the war to this sacred level contributes, according to the logic of Netanyahu and his biblical companions, to convincing the Israelis of the high prices they are paying, the most important of which is the unprecedented rise in the number of army deaths.

That Israel chose to assassinate the Deputy Head of the Hamas Political Bureau, Saleh Al-Arouri, is because it has been unable so far to reach Yahya Al-Sinwar, Muhammad Al-Deif, and Marwan Issa... who are still in Gaza.

3- The West does not really want a two-state solution

- The difficulties that Israel is going through economically, politically and regionally, in terms of its health, do not mean ignoring the depth of Western countries’ solidarity with the Hebrew state, ignoring the accumulation of Palestinian oppression since the founding of Israel at the expense of the Palestinian people, as a reason for the “Al-Aqsa Flood.” The changes in the language of some Western countries, especially America, regarding the two-state solution and the rights of the Palestinian people, and protesting genocide, are aimed at finding a way out for Israel from the impasse it has fallen into as a result of the “apartheid” approach adopted by its rulers over decades, and not Its goal is to find a solution to the Palestinian issue. What the Western countries and the United States oppose in terms of Israeli practices in the war are being reversed on the ground. It is expected that the situation will continue in this manner until God decrees something that was already in effect.

Canadian and Australian visas for Palestinian immigration

The way the United States is conducting the war on Gaza is no mystery about what it will lead to. The only constant until further notice is that it will continue in various forms to achieve its implicit goals that are more important than the declared ones:

- Displacing the largest possible number of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

- Establishing a security belt inside Gaza to protect the settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip. This requires a lot of time, months if not more.

Achieving the previous goal begins with pushing them militarily to flee, and forcing countries, the first of which is Egypt, to receive them. While countries such as Canada and Australia have begun granting them entry visas very quickly in recent weeks.

The administration of President Joe Biden has a few weeks and less than two months to accommodate the continuation of the war with his election campaign, which begins next month with a significant decline in his popularity compared to his supposed rival, Donald Trump. He needs the support of the Zionist lobby in his party first, and at the American level second. This is what Netanyahu realizes, from whom he extracted approval to continue his military campaign with a lower intensity. Biden, in return, needs to reduce Israel's atrocities, ensure that it does not expand the war during his election campaign, and continue negotiating with Iran so that it maintains its abstention from opening fronts.

Unity of Arenas and unity of  replies

The above leads to a review of many accounts in the understanding of Hamas’s allies in the resistance camp, led by Iran, in dealing with the United States and its relationship with Israel. Netanyahu:

1- Some members of the resistance forces considered that Israel was deterred from expanding the war because Washington was restraining it. While the assassination of Al-Arouri proves that this assumption is wrong. In fact, Israel is the only one that wants war.

2- One of the explanations that Israel is not deterred from expanding the war is that Iran is deterred from engaging in that war, and with it Hezbollah. This was confirmed after the assassination of Al-Arouri, according to American data that followed the assassination, whether from Syria, Tehran, or the party.

3- The opposition forces read Washington’s withdrawal of the aircraft carrier Gerald Ford from the Mediterranean Sea as putting pressure on Netanyahu not to expand the war.

Whether this is a message to Israel or not, the responses that Washington implemented this week against the targeting of its forces in Iraq and Syria, and the ultimatum that the international coalition it leads issued to the Houthis about violating freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, in addition to Israel’s assassination of Al-Arouri in Lebanon, suggest that it is meeting... The "unity of the arenas" that Tehran sponsors by moving the fronts under the roof of negotiation, by distributing deterrent actions in these arenas between itself and Israel. Despite the issuance of a statement claiming responsibility for the bombings in the Iranian city of Kerman the day before yesterday, observers do not rule out that they occurred as part of these responses.

Senator Jeffrey Merkley, a member of the US Democratic Party, said in a press conference in front of the Rafah land crossing today, Friday, that the situation in Gaza is “tragic, and that hundreds of thousands of wounded and injured need large amounts of water, food, electricity, and medical care... and this situation needs great attention so that famine does not occur.”

US Senator Christopher Fan, a member of the Democratic Party, said at the conference, “We intend to return to the United States to talk to our colleagues in the Senate that we need to make more efforts to ensure the arrival of more humanitarian aid.”

He added, "We are working with Ambassador David Satterfield, the US special envoy for humanitarian issues in the Middle East, to ensure that some of these issues are addressed and that obstacles are overcome."

The American delegation visited the Rafah land crossing and inspected the aid for the Gaza Strip in the warehouses of the city of Al-Arish, accompanied by Egyptian officials.

The Israeli Broadcasting Authority said on Friday that Tel Aviv is afraid that the International Court of Justice will issue a “decision to stop hostilities in the Gaza Strip,” in the wake of the lawsuit filed against it by South Africa.

The official broadcasting authority said in a brief statement, “Tel Aviv fears the issuance of a decision from the court in The Hague ordering a cessation of hostilities in Gaza,” without other details.

At the beginning of this January, South Africa filed a lawsuit before the International Justice Department, accusing Tel Aviv of committing “genocide crimes” in the Gaza Strip, which has been subjected to a fierce war for about three months, while Israel appointed, on Thursday, a British expert in international law. To represent her before the court in the case filed against her.

On November 21, South Africa suspended its relations with Israel, in protest against its attacks in Gaza, and was preceded by recalling its Israeli ambassador to consult on the attacks on the Strip.

Since October 7, 2023, the Israeli army has been waging a devastating war on Gaza, which, as of Thursday, has left “22,600 killed and 57,910 injured, most of them children and women, massive destruction of infrastructure and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe,” according to the Gaza Strip authorities and the United Nations.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo denied allegations reported by Israeli media regarding discussions between the two sides regarding Kinshasa accepting Palestinian refugees from Gaza.

Democratic Congo government spokesman Patrick Muyaya stated on social media that there are no talks, discussions or initiatives related to what was reported in the Israeli media about “Congo accepting Palestinian refugees on its territory.”

The Time of Israel news website claimed, in a story published on January 3, that Israeli officials are holding secret talks with the Democratic Congo, Chad, and Rwanda to receive Palestinians from Gaza, as part of its plan for the “voluntary” displacement of the residents of the Strip.

The website added: "Israel offers countries an aid package under which any Palestinian who decides to immigrate there will receive a generous financial grant, in addition to extensive aid to the receiving country, including military aid."

Earlier, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said that the “voluntary displacement” of the population of Gaza requires “an international stance to stop this crime and war,” while Hamas described calls for displacement as “merely un-executable daydreams” and called on the international community to “intervene to confront them.”

Israeli media: Discussions with Chad and Rwanda regarding “voluntary migration” from Gaza

Earlier today, Friday, an Israeli news website reported that Tel Aviv was holding talks with Chad and Rwanda to receive Palestinians from Gaza, as part of its plan for the “voluntary” displacement of the residents of the Strip.

The Zaman Israel news website (exclusive) said, “Officials from the Mossad (the intelligence service) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are negotiating with Rwanda and Chad to accommodate the Palestinians who choose to immigrate from Gaza.”

He added: "Israel offers countries an aid package under which any Palestinian who decides to immigrate there will receive a generous financial grant, in addition to extensive aid to the receiving country, including military aid."

The website quoted a senior Israeli political source (which he did not name) that “the two countries (Chad and Rwanda) expressed their basic agreement to continue the discussion, unlike other countries (which he did not name) who rejected the idea in principle, and were not contacted again,” without Provide more details.

The source added, "The work is very complex, and we must be very careful of the reactions in the world, and also the fear that it will be interpreted as deportation and not voluntary immigration, and for this reason we work with close legal advice."

He continued: "Israel has formulated a mechanism for negotiations with the two countries, which consists of providing a generous financial grant to any Palestinian who wishes to immigrate from Gaza, in addition to extensive assistance to the receiving country, including military aid."

The website noted that "Israel also made this offer to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but they are hesitant to accept the offer."

It added, "Rwanda and Chad are more open to the idea," noting that "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is aware of these movements and is not stopping them."

The website noted that "a diplomatic source told reporters last Wednesday that Israel is not negotiating with any country regarding voluntary immigration."

But he added, "It is reasonable to assume that this news was issued in order to calm the harsh international response, especially before an expected hearing in the International Court of Justice regarding South Africa's complaint in which Israel is accused of committing war crimes in Gaza."

Israeli ministers, including Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich, and Knesset MP from the ruling Likud Party, Danny Danon, called in recent weeks to encourage “voluntary” migration of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, which sparked American, international and Arab criticism.

The families of Israelis killed inside a house by occupation tank fire on October 7th called on Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy to conduct a “comprehensive and transparent investigation” into the case.

Haaretz newspaper said: The families of Israelis who were killed in a house inside the “Be’eri” kibbutz near Gaza during the Al-Aqsa flood battle, after they were captured by Al-Qassam gunmen, sent a letter to the chief of staff of the occupation army, demanding that he conduct a “comprehensive and transparent investigation” into the decision to fire on the house, while it was Israeli civilians are detained inside.

The Hebrew Channel 12 published footage showing an army tank firing towards the house, where Al-Qassam gunmen were present, accompanied by Israeli detainees.

Last November, Haaretz newspaper published a report, quoting the police, that an Israeli helicopter opened fire on Palestinians and Israelis in the town of Ra'im, on the border of the Gaza Strip.

Hamas killed about 1,200 Israelis, wounded about 5,431, and captured at least 239, following its attack on settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip on October 7.

Later, a prisoner exchange deal took place that lasted 7 days and ended in early December, resulting in the release of 105 civilians detained by Hamas, including 81 Israelis, 23 Thai citizens, and one Filipino.

Palestinian prisoners' institutions stated that, under the temporary truce, the occupying state released 240 Palestinian prisoners from its prisons, including 71 female prisoners and 169 children.

Israel estimates that there are about “137 people still detained in the Gaza Strip,” according to identical media reports and statements by Israeli officials.

For three months, the occupation army has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, which, as of Friday, left 22,600 killed and 57,910 injured, most of them children and women, massive destruction of infrastructure and an “unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe,” according to official Palestinian and UN sources.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said on Friday, “Israel has no right to determine the future of Gaza, which is considered Palestinian territory, and we must return to the principle of international law.”

This came in a statement to the American CNN channel, in which Colonna described the repeated statements made recently by Israeli politicians and officials about forcing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to emigrate as “irresponsible.”

The French Minister affirmed her country's support for the two-state solution.

She said, "Gaza is Palestinian land that wants to be part of the future state of Palestine, and we support the two-state solution, which is considered the only possible option."

Colonna stressed the need for Israel to protect civilians by adhering to international law.

Israeli ministers, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and Knesset member of the ruling Likud Party, Danny Danon, called in recent weeks to encourage “voluntary migration” of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, which sparked American, international, and Arab criticism.

Since last October 7, the Israeli army has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, which, as of Friday, has left 22,600 killed and 57,910 injured, most of them children and women, massive destruction of infrastructure and an “unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe,” according to official Palestinian sources. And internationalism.

Israeli officials said on Friday that Tel Aviv believes that if an agreement is not reached to remove Hezbollah forces from the Lebanese border, a “limited war” may break out between the two sides.

Officials in the Israeli government told the (official) broadcasting organization, which they did not name, that we are “on the verge of exhausting” attempts to reach an agreement, because “Hezbollah” does not express to the mediators its desire to reach such an agreement.

The officials added, “If an agreement is not reached to remove Hezbollah from the Lebanese border, a limited war may break out between the two parties.”

They pointed out that “if this war breaks out with Hezbollah, this may lead to a comprehensive escalation in the entire region.”

Last December, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant vowed to remove Hezbollah beyond the Litani River in southern Lebanon, whether through an international political arrangement or military action.

Otherwise, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said on December 17 that “nothing will prevent the outbreak of war with Lebanon except the implementation of International Resolution 1701 to remove Hezbollah fighters to the north of the Litani River.”

On August 11, 2006, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1701, which called for a complete cessation of hostilities between Lebanon and Israel, after a 33-day war between Hezbollah and the Israeli army.

The resolution calls for the creation of an area between the Blue Line (separating Lebanon and Israel) and the Litani River in southern Lebanon, free of any militants, military equipment and weapons, except those belonging to the Lebanese Army and the United Nations Interim Force (UNIFIL).

“In solidarity with the Gaza Strip,” Hezbollah and Palestinian factions in Lebanon have exchanged intermittent daily bombardment with the Israeli army since October 8, resulting in dozens of deaths and injuries on both sides of the border.

Since last October 7, the Israeli army has been waging a devastating war on Gaza, which as of Friday left “22,600 killed and 57,910 injured, most of them children and women, massive infrastructure destruction and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe,” according to the Gaza Strip authorities and the United Nations.

A senior US administration official said on Thursday evening that the White House does not know when Israel plans to move to a less severe phase of its retaliation against Hamas, adding that the war may continue until the end of 2024.

Brett McGurk, the National Security Council's senior Middle East official, held a Zoom briefing with several experts on Thursday, during which he discussed the Biden administration's thinking on the ongoing conflict. Three people familiar with the 45-minute conversation said McGurk was frank about what the United States knows and does not know.

“We don’t know when that shift will happen,” McGurk said, though the senior aide noted that they saw encouraging signs that Israel is moving toward less intense operations, specifically the withdrawal of five combat brigades from Gaza, according to Politico.

In recent days, the administration has reportedly breathed a sigh of relief that Israel will no longer carry out the massive bombing operations, which led to the death of 22,500 Palestinians and the displacement of 85% of Gaza's population of 2.3 million people. But McGurk's candor suggests that the administration has yet to see any concrete sign of a tactical shift, and that there is little visibility into when change will occur — despite public administration confidence and urging behind closed doors.

McGurk, citing Israeli officials, added that the conflict may continue for a long time, perhaps until the end of the year. Israeli officials have said publicly that they expect the war to continue for several months.

Politico indicated that this may increase the chances of the war spreading beyond its borders, which could drag America into a sprawling regional conflict. The military is already formulating plans to respond to Iranian-backed Houthi militants attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea, and devising ways to anticipate and repel potential attacks on the United States by Iranian-backed forces in Iraq and Syria.

McGurk said there was also a discussion about Palestinians returning to their homes in northern Gaza, an area that has been devastated by Israel's months-long bombing campaign, in part because military operations there have dwindled as Hamas has been "dismantled" there. . This reflects the language used by Israeli officials.

He also said that the United States was discussing this possibility with the United Nations but was aware that many homes had been destroyed or rendered unlivable. One idea is to train about 6,000 members of a Palestinian security force, but this would require about eight to ten months.

There were no specifics in the briefing, and McGurk covered much of what administration officials have been saying publicly, including emphasizing the humanitarian crisis and the need to find ways to enable Palestinians to return to their homes in northern Gaza. However, it was made clear to those familiar with McGurk's comments that the United States is less aware of Israel's intentions than it lets on, even though it has gathered intelligence on Israel's war behavior. “They don't know,” the third person said of the main theme of the conversation.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant on Thursday laid out Israel's plans for the next phase of the war, saying there would be a scaled-down "new combat approach" in northern Gaza. When the fighting ends, a member of the military cabinet proposed that Israeli forces maintain security in the Strip while a Palestinian entity administers the enclave. However, Gallant did not reveal many details.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will seek to get more out of his counterparts during his visit to the Middle East that begins Friday — his fourth regional stop since the Oct. 7 attacks — which includes stops in Israel, the West Bank, Qatar and Egypt. While he will certainly discuss the issues raised by McGurk, the main reason for the top diplomat's visit is to prevent violence from widening and deepening across the Middle East.

“He will discuss specific steps the parties can take, including how to use leverage with others in the region to avoid escalation,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Thursday.

Two Palestinians were injured by Israeli occupation forces' bullets, suffocation cases occurred, and another by settlers' bullets in the occupied West Bank, today, Friday.

In the Arroub camp, north of Hebron, dozens of citizens suffocated this evening during confrontations with the occupation forces.

In detail, the occupation forces fired live bullets, stun grenades, and poison gas towards citizens, resulting in dozens suffering from suffocation.

In the town of Ya'bad, southwest of Jenin, a 12-year-old child was injured by bullet fragments in his head this evening, while he was inside his house, as a result of the occupation forces firing heavy bullets at homes after they stormed the town.

The occupation forces raided several neighborhoods in the town, leading to the outbreak of confrontations during which the occupation soldiers fired live bullets, stun grenades, and toxic tear gas.

They also stormed the village of Tura and the vicinity of the towns of Arraba and Ya'bad, where citizens suffocated as a result of inhaling toxic tear gas fired by the occupation forces during their storming of the village of Tura.

In the town of Surif, northwest of Hebron, a young man was injured by settlers’ bullets from the “Beit Ain” settlement established on citizens’ lands northwest of Hebron.

The settlers, protected by the occupation forces, fired live bullets at the citizens, resulting in the injury of a young man with live bullets in the foot.

The “Yellow” settlers, established on the lands of Khirbet al-Qanub, east of the town of Sa’ir, north of Hebron, also attacked the property of a citizen east of the town of Shuyoukh, wreaking havoc on it and destroying his agricultural equipment and a “caravan” that he uses as a storeroom for his agricultural equipment.

In the village of Madama, south of Nablus, a number of citizens suffered from suffocation during confrontations with the occupation forces.

The details stated that large forces of the occupation army stormed the village and randomly fired live bullets at homes and poisonous tear gas bombs, which led to a number of citizens suffocating.

The occupation forces surrounded the citizens in the village mosque during the afternoon prayer and Beit Ghazza in the village council hall, and fired gas bombs and sound bombs at them, which resulted in the hall’s windows being shattered.

Tonight, Israeli occupation forces stormed the city of Tulkarm and stationed in the western neighbourhood.

Local sources said that the occupation forces stormed the city and were stationed in the Western Neighborhood, roaming its streets, specifically Khadoori University Street, the School District, and Al-Alimi Roundabout (Courts).

On Friday evening, Israeli occupation forces stormed the city of Qalqilya.

Local sources said that the occupation forces raided the city and deployed in various neighborhoods, specifically in Western Street and the vicinity of Sharjah School.

A young man from the town of Qabatiya, south of Jenin, was injured this Friday evening by Israeli occupation forces’ bullets at a military checkpoint near the town of Asira.

Jenin Hospital Director Wissam Bakr said that a young man from Qabatiya was injured by occupation bullets in the leg while passing through a military checkpoint near the town of Asira in Nablus Governorate. He was given first aid in Asira and then transferred to Jenin Hospital.

On Friday, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority quoted government ministers as saying that the war cabinet would not last long.

Israel continues its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, since the Palestinian movement’s sudden and unprecedented attack on October 7, on the Gaza Strip. The government meeting, on Thursday evening, witnessed a stormy discussion due to an investigation that the Israeli army decided to conduct into the Hamas attack, which occurred last October.

Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy began appointing a team to investigate the events that led to the surprise Hamas attack on October 7, which Israel says killed about 1,200 people.

Media reports said that Thursday evening's meeting witnessed "screaming, chaos, and attacks on the army and the chief of staff," while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was forced to end the meeting.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation "Kan" quoted Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich as saying: "In fact, in the last five minutes of the meeting, there was a stormy discussion about this issue, but the loudest voices were among the ministers and not against the chief of staff."

One of the ministers also revealed to Kan, “The debate that erupted was insulting. They attacked the army. Some senior members of the defense establishment remained in the middle.”

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said that Israel has a powerful army and a weak, miserable government, against the backdrop of the conflict occurring between members of the mini-ministerial council due to the formation of a team to investigate the October 7 attack.

Lapid criticized the recent cabinet session, describing it as a new, unprecedented decline, saying that ministers are trying to insult Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is doing nothing, adding that this is not a government but a “national disaster.”

Lapid added that National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who supports terrorism and did not serve in the army, is attacking Saul Mofaz, the worthy leader and hero in Israel, according to him.

In turn, Benny Gantz, a member of the Israeli War Council, said that the attack on the Chief of Staff in the Council of Ministers was politically motivated, and the Prime Minister must choose unity and security or politics.

For its part, the Likud Party said that it expects Gantz to stop looking for excuses to break his promise not to withdraw from the emergency government until the war ends.

Israeli Army Radio also quoted Minister Itamar Ben Gvir as saying, “Even in the ministerial council, Gantz continues on the path to failure.”

Sharp disagreements

The Israeli "Wala" website had said that the meeting of the Israeli mini-ministerial council ended after sharp disagreements between the Chief of Staff and a number of ministers, due to the formation of a team to investigate the events of October 7, which prompted Netanyahu to break up the meeting that was scheduled to discuss some stage. After the war.

Israeli Channel 12 revealed that a dispute broke out between Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant, against the backdrop of Netanyahu preventing the heads of the Mossad intelligence agency, David Barnea, and the Shin Bet internal security service, Ronen Bar, from attending a war cabinet session.

The channel explained that Gallant told Netanyahu that preventing such meetings would harm Israel's security, while Netanyahu and Gallant denied the existence of such differences, and stressed that they were working together to achieve victory in the war.

The website added that ministers in the mini-council attacked the Chief of Staff because of the appointment of Shaul Mofaz - who supervised the implementation of the unilateral withdrawal plan from Gaza in 2005 - to head the investigation team.

The investigation team includes a number of former security officials, including Mofaz, in addition to the former head of the Military Intelligence Division, Zeevi Farkash, and the former commander of the Southern Army Command, Sami Turgeman.

For its part, Israeli Radio reported that military officials left the small council meeting after the ministers attacked the Chief of Staff.

The Israeli Army Chief of Staff had decided to form a security team to begin conducting an investigation into the failures of the October 7 events, in their security, military and intelligence aspects.

Israeli media said that the investigations will also include the conduct of military operations during the war on Gaza.

Admitting negligence

Netanyahu did not admit to any personal negligence, unlike some senior officials, and spoke only generally about the need to hold accountable all decision-makers involved in setting the policy adopted by Israel towards Gaza, including those who preceded his long term in office.

Two far-right ministers in the Israeli government expressed their annoyance at the inclusion of Shaul Mofaz in the military investigation committee. The two ministers, Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, accused another former general helping in the investigation of weakening the army by supporting reserve soldiers who protested the judicial amendments made by Netanyahu in the year. the past.

“These are the people who should be investigated, not included in the investigation committee,” Ben Gvir said in a post on social media.

Also in a post on social media, Smotrich said that he did not oppose the military investigation aimed at improving military performance, but he added that any investigation into the reasons that led to the events of October 7, and into security practices in general, requires the contribution of the Council of Ministers.

The Palestinian resistance inflicted on the Israeli occupation army more losses in soldiers and equipment in several operations carried out in several areas in the Gaza Strip, and while a new toll of dead and wounded in the Strip was issued, the occupation committed 15 massacres against civilians.

The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), said that its fighters targeted 9 Israeli vehicles, clashed with foot forces, and killed soldiers east of al-Tuffah in Gaza City.

The Al-Qassam Brigades also announced that its fighters targeted a gathering of occupation vehicles in Khan Yunis with mortar shells. They also, in a joint operation with the Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, targeted 3 Israeli Merkava tanks with “Al-Yassin 105” and “Tandum” shells in the Ma’an area of Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip.

In the Al-Zinna area, east of Khan Yunis, Al-Qassam fighters detonated anti-personnel bombs against two Israeli forces, one of which was stationed in a house and the other advanced towards a tunnel opening, killing and wounding their members.

Also in the Zinna area, Al-Qassam announced that it had targeted an Israeli “Nimr” troop carrier with an “Al-Yassin 105” missile.

In the town of Khuza’a, east of Khan Yunis, the Al-Qassam Brigades targeted an Israeli bulldozer with an “Al-Yassin 105” shell. They also announced the detonation of a minefield in an Israeli force of 7 soldiers, leaving them dead and wounded in the same town.

On the other hand, the Al-Qassam Brigades broadcast images that they said were of targeting gatherings of enemy vehicles and soldiers in the Qurm area, north of the Gaza Strip.

The Al-Quds Brigades also published scenes that it said showed its fighters targeting a number of Israeli vehicles in the Al-Taqadim axes in the Al-Tuffah and Al-Daraj neighborhoods, east of Gaza City.

For its part, the occupation army announced that 14 soldiers were injured in the battles taking place in Gaza during the past 24 hours.

Rocket bombing

On the 91st day of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian resistance is still able to launch rockets from various areas of the Strip, despite the occupation army’s claims that it has limited its ability to launch them.

Sirens sounded in Ashkelon and the towns surrounding Gaza, and Israeli Army Radio said that two missiles were detected fired at the town of Sderot in the Gaza Strip, but it did not clarify whether they reached Ashkelon or not.

The radio reported that one of the two missiles fell on a public building in the town of Sderot, without causing human casualties, while no details were given about the second missile.

The radio did not indicate who was responsible for launching the two missiles, and no party immediately claimed responsibility for the incident.

The occupation evacuated Sderot and dozens of other towns around the Gaza Strip following the Battle of Al-Aqsa Flood and the start of the aggression against the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023.

15 massacre

For its part, the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced that the Israeli occupation committed 15 massacres against civilians in the Gaza Strip, killing 162 dead and injuring 296 during the past 24 hours. Thus, the toll of the aggression on Gaza rises to 22,600 dead and 57,910 wounded.

In a related context, pictures from Al Jazeera showed the effects of bulldozing left by the occupation forces in the Martyrs’ Cemetery in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood in Gaza City.

The pictures show that the occupation forces bulldozed the martyrs’ cemetery, exhumed the graves, and threw the bodies on the side of the cemetery. The people began burying the bodies of their relatives again, while some people did not recognize the bodies of their relatives that they had buried in the cemetery after it was vandalized and bulldozed.

The occupation forces also fired fire and artillery shells into the incursion routes into the eastern regions of the central Gaza Strip. An occupation army spokesman said that more than 100 targets in Gaza were bombed during the past 24 hours.

The spokesman claimed that the forces attacked command headquarters, military sites, missile launching pads, buildings containing combat equipment, and infrastructure used by the factions.

Source: Al Jazeera + Anatolia

By Alexandra Schwartzbrod

Three months after the Hamas massacre on October 7, Israeli leaders do not intend to put an end to military operations in Gaza. Despite the risk of extension to the Middle East and the vagueness of the follow-up to be given to the conflict, the war appears to be an opportunity for a particularly shaken Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel has been bombing Gaza relentlessly for almost three months, in retaliation for the massacre committed by Hamas on its soil on October 7, and there is no indication that this campaign will end soon. It will slow down or change its nature perhaps, but Israeli leaders, blind and deaf to the warnings of their own allies, do not intend to end it before... Before what? No one knows for the moment, probably even at the highest level of the IDF.

Eliminating the leaders of the military branch of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar and Mohamed Deif, the two instigators of the October 7 killings, is of course part of the war aims and the noise of weapons will not stop until they are not reached. But beyond? Will we have to wait until nothing remains of Gaza, neither on the surface nor underground? But then, with living conditions continuing to deteriorate in the enclave, what will become of the Palestinian civilians who have survived? Some far-right Israeli ministers could see themselves ousting them and replacing them with settlers – for the moment this is only a dream, or rather a nightmare, but for how long?

These questions are all the more dizzying since Benjamin Netanyahu is a Prime Minister on borrowed time. His responsibility for the security failures of October 7 is overwhelming and the Supreme Court has just undermined him by revoking the main measure of his judicial reform, the very one which was to give him full powers and allow him to escape a corruption trial. It's good news. The bad news is that war is its best ally because you cannot get rid of a leader, even a discredited one, while the cannons are thundering. Especially since the Israeli population, usually divided, is so traumatized by the Hamas attack that it continues to support the bombings on Gaza. This is why the end of the war is not for tomorrow despite the risks of extension of the conflict. This is neither in the interest of Netanyahu nor of Hamas, which does not care about the Palestinian deaths.

Head of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), Ismail Haniyeh, called on US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to focus during his visit to the region on ending the aggression against Gaza on the way to ending the occupation.

In a speech addressed to Blinken, Haniyeh said, “We hope that Blinken has drawn lessons from the past three months and realized Washington’s mistakes in its support of the occupation.”

The head of Hamas's political bureau added, "We hope that the officials of the Arab and Islamic countries" that will meet with Blinken will confirm to Washington that "the stability of our region is linked to the Palestinian issue."

Haniyeh said, "Thousands of massacres and terrible destruction cannot achieve security or stability unless our people obtain their freedom and their independent, fully sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital."

Blinken arrived this Friday evening in Istanbul, his first stop on a tour in the region centered on the war in Gaza.

In addition to Turkey and Greece, Blinken will visit Jordan, Qatar, the Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, as well as Israel and the West Bank, as part of this fourth tour in the region since the start of the Israeli war on Gaza.

Commenting on this visit, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said, “It is not in anyone’s interest, neither Israel, nor the region, nor the world, for this conflict to extend beyond Gaza,” adding that Blinken will discuss steps to avoid escalation, which he did not specify. Miller told reporters -Yesterday, Thursday- “We don’t expect every conversation on this journey to be easy.”

Source: Al Jazeera

Japan expressed its concern over statements made by two ministers in the Israeli occupation government regarding the displacement of our Palestinian people out of the Gaza Strip and the construction of settlements there.

Japanese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maki Kobayashi said in a statement, “Settlement activities violate international law and undermine the viability of the two-state solution.”

It added that these inflammatory statements are unacceptable and increase tensions, stressing that Japan calls for refraining from irresponsible words and actions.

The Washington Post said that the Palestinians insist on remaining in the ruins of their destroyed homes in the Gaza Strip, indifferent to the extremist Israeli proposals calling for their displacement.

The newspaper quotes a Palestinian from Jabalia camp named Tariq, who returned on Sunday to his home destroyed by an Israeli bombing in November, saying, “Despite all the destruction in the Gaza Strip, and fears about its unfitness for living, I will never leave.”

Tariq, who was one of the first Palestinians to return to their homes after a partial withdrawal of the occupation forces from the northern Gaza Strip, added, "We would rather die and be buried under the soil of Gaza than go out and live in any other country."

As for Moamen Al-Harthani, he says that he was not able to extract a single piece of cloth from the building in which he lived, but he confirms that he is determined to stay and rebuild his house, saying, “How do you think I will leave Gaza? All I want now is for the war to end and for me to live in the ruins of my house.”

This comes as the leaders of the Israeli right continue to present proposals regarding the displacement of the people of Gaza, or their resettlement in other countries, to ensure complete Israeli control over the Strip.

The Washington Post said that the proposals of extremist Israeli officials caused divisions with Washington, Europe and the United Nations.

Earlier last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged US President Joe Biden to put pressure on Egypt to open its borders with Gaza and agree to receive displaced Palestinians, while Israeli media reported that Netanyahu is holding talks with the Democratic Republic of the Congo to open the door to “immigration.” "Voluntary" from Gaza.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also said, in an interview with Israeli Army Radio on Sunday, that what Israel should do in the Gaza Strip is to encourage “voluntary migration,” adding, “If there are 100,000 or 200,000 in Gaza, not two million.” "The discussion of the 'day after' the war will be completely different," he said, while National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir echoed the same call on Tuesday.

According to what critics of the Israeli calls say, this could amount to Arab cleansing in the Gaza Strip, and indeed, this was included in the case brought by South Africa against Israel in the International Court of Justice.

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on the X platform on Wednesday that forced displacement is completely prohibited and is considered a serious violation of humanitarian and international law.

The Washington Post indicates that American officials have been reassured that these proposals do not represent official Israeli policy, speaking about the US State Department issuing a reprimand to Smotrich and Ben Gvir regarding their statements, which it described as “inflammatory and irresponsible.”

The newspaper confirms that the proposals stem from the Yemeni policy of the Israeli government coalition and Netanyahu’s reliance on extreme right-wing parties to maintain his power, noting that the proposals of the occupation government ministers regarding the displacement of the population of Gaza, and Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to refute them, continue with increasing opposition to the war launched by Israel on the Strip.

A person with direct knowledge of the talks within the government told the newspaper: “The leaders in the army and the security establishment know that this is unlikely. They know that there is no future without Gazans in the Strip, and the Palestinian Authority as part of the government there.”

Shira Efron, director of research at the Israeli Policy Forum, commented on the calls for displacement, saying that Israel is shooting itself in the foot. She added: “It would be good for Netanyahu to come out and announce that this is not Israeli policy, but this is the election period and he must fulfill the desires of his electoral base.”

The newspaper points out that some international law experts who claim that Israel adheres to the laws of war confirm that the extremist Israeli rhetoric regarding the displacement of the people of Gaza undermines the efforts made to "defend Israel."

“The decisions of the International Court of Justice are binding, and it can decide that Israel must stop the war on Gaza, ‘because we fear the annihilation of a people.’ Israel is obligated to comply, and if it does not do so, it is the UN Security Council that is expected to enter the picture.”

The expert in international law at the Israeli Reichman University Dr. Dafna Richmond-Barak said: , the lawsuit against Israel submitted by South Africa to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, aims to quickly stop the war on Gaza.

Richmond-Barrack, who worked at the International Court of Justice in the past, explained that the powers of the International Court are “to settle disputes between states, and it is different from the International Criminal Court in The Hague, which investigates personal crimes committed by individuals. The goal of the International Court of Justice is to contribute to peace and security.” International parties, in order to prevent the use of force,” she told Channel 12 today, Friday.

She pointed out that when a country files a lawsuit against another country, the court decides on it, “and its decisions are binding on both parties to the conflict. The court may agree to the plaintiff’s request. South Africa seeks to cause an immediate cessation of the war, that is, for the (Israeli) war effort in Gaza to stop.”

She added, "The court can decide that 'Israel must stop fighting in Gaza now, because we fear that there may be targeting or an intention to annihilate a people, or a fear of annihilating a people.' Legally, it is obligated to obey, but there is no police for the international community." To enforce the decision.

She continued, "There is the UN Security Council, which is also part of the (international judicial) system, and if the International Court of Justice issues a binding decision on Israel and Israel does not comply with it, it can be expected that the Security Council will enter the picture later."

Richmond-Barak pointed out that the International Court of Justice has great legitimacy and prestige, “and therefore it is forbidden to underestimate what is happening there. Countries take this seriously, and it has very great importance and has weight in the international arena.”

She said that Israel's decision to "cooperate" with the court is "very rare and very correct. This confirms the importance of this measure for Israel," especially since it is accused of exterminating a people. She indicated that Israel refused to cooperate with the International Criminal Court’s investigations into the continuation of the occupation, which are currently ongoing, and with its investigations into the apartheid wall.

She added, "What has changed now is that we are facing allegations of the genocide of a people. This is the most serious and serious crime in the international judicial system. What is happening now is that Israel is facing an accusation of carrying out Genocide, and this is something we cannot bear. And by the way, because this is the most serious crime, it is the most difficult." "To prove it. The ceiling is very high."

She continued, "The procedures before the court usually last a long time. The intelligence of South Africa's lawsuit is not only that it is based on the genocide of a people, which gives it great importance, but also that South Africa's request is heading on a fast track. And setting the court session for next Thursday is a rare thing." "It also stems from South Africa's request. This is a procedural matter, when there is something serious and it needs to be brought to an immediate end."

Richmond-Barak considered, "Israel must prepare at a very rapid pace. There is a war going on here, and we have an infinite number of problems, and seven fronts, and now another front has emerged opposite the International Court. This includes the cooperation of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, the Judiciary, and the Military Prosecution."

She warned against Israeli ministers continuing to make statements “in a way that could cause further harm. Because in South Africa’s lawsuit, there are entire pages containing statements by state ministers and government representatives that, according to South Africa’s claims, indicate that what is happening here is the annihilation of a people. Great caution should be exercised.” And to provide briefings to everyone, and for everyone to understand the implications of these statements in the international arena.”

On Friday, the left-wing Israeli "Peace Now" movement revealed an unprecedented boom in settlement activity in the West Bank since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7.

Peace Now, which rejects settlement, said in a report: “After three months of war on Gaza, we are witnessing an unprecedented surge in settlement activities, including the construction of settlement outposts, roads, fences and roadblocks.”

It added: "Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, settlers have established or re-established at least 10 settlement outposts, some of which were evacuated in the past and then rebuilt."

It continued: "So far, at least 18 new roads built by settlers have been documented, and we estimate that the actual number is higher."

It explained that "paving these roads allows the seizure of large-scale new areas along the road's path, which constitutes an area that is inaccessible to the Palestinians due to the presence of settlers and their ease of access to the area."

It added that "the settlers continue to control Area C in the West Bank, which further marginalizes the Palestinian presence," as Area C constitutes 60 percent of the West Bank area.

It also stated that "the establishment of settlement outposts and the paving of roads contributed to the spread of the phenomenon of roadblocks that prevent Palestinians from reaching the main roads in the West Bank, while barriers are erected along these roads to impede the movement of Palestinians and their presence in various buffer zones."

In this context, Peace Now said, “During the current war in Gaza, we witnessed an increase in settlers’ participation in security and civil decisions related to the lives of Palestinians in the West Bank, including preventing the opening of roads for the use of Palestinian vehicles and closing the entrances to Palestinian villages.”

It pointed out that "the settlers exploited the three months of the war to impose facts on the ground and effectively control large areas in Area C."

It added: "The settlers decide where to build roads and settlement outposts on an ongoing basis, ignoring the legal status of the land. They continue to build settlement outposts on private Palestinian land, define open areas, and restrict the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank."

It continued: “The permissive military and political environment allows reckless construction and land seizures almost unchecked, with minimal adherence to the law. The result is not only physical harm to the Palestinians and their lands, but also a major political shift in the West Bank. The unchecked settlers’ rampage must be stopped immediately.”

Peace Now estimates that more than 700,000 settlers reside in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Since the formation of the current government a year ago headed by Benjamin Netanyahu, a coalition that includes far-right parties, settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories have escalated.

The United Nations considers Israeli settlement illegal, and calls in vain for its cessation, warning that it undermines the chances of addressing the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in accordance with the principle of a two-state solution (Palestinian next to Israeli).