GAZA: Israel claimed its soldiers had surrounded Gaza City as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived again in Tel Aviv to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In an effort to get aid into the beleaguered Palestinian enclave, the United States was planning to put pressure on Netanyahu to agree to ceasefires.
Gaza health authorities say at least 9,061 people have been murdered in Gaza since Israel launched its deadly assault on the enclave of 2.3 million people in retribution for strikes by Hamas fighters on southern Israel.
Israel’s military has been fighting Hamas rebels, who have been launching hit-and-run strikes from underground tunnels, for the better part of four weeks now. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled in Israel for the second time in a month to speak with Netanyahu.
The conflict is at its climax right now. We’ve made tremendous progress and are now within striking distance of Gaza City. After the military claimed it had encircled the capital city of the coastal enclave, Netanyahu issued a statement saying, “We are advancing.”
Blinken, before leaving Washington for the Middle East, promised to talk about how to protect civilians in Gaza in a more tangible way. In the meantime, the White House has stated that any ceasefires should be brief and localized, and that they will not prevent Israel from defending itself.
Increased calls from world leaders for a ceasefire have been prompted by rising numbers of Palestinian civilian casualties and severe shortages of essentials including food, water, medication, and gasoline.
Israel has rejected these pleas, insisting that it only strikes Hamas positions and not the civilian population or structures they are hiding in. Even the White House has turned down appeals for a truce.
There is a “grave risk of genocide” among Palestinians in Gaza, according to a panel of independent United Nations experts.
We demand that Israel and its supporters immediately adhere to a ceasefire. Time is of the essence, the UN special rapporteurs warned in a joint statement.
The Israeli UN mission in Geneva condemned the rapporteur’s remarks as “deplorable and deeply concerning” and placed blame for the civilian killings on Hamas. Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said that only an appropriate UN legal authority could determine whether or not genocide had occurred.
The White House stated on Thursday that it was investigating a string of ceasefires.
US national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters, “We’re exploring the idea of as many pauses as might be necessary to continue getting aid out and to continue working to get people out safely, including hostages.”
The Foreign Minister of Jordan, Ayman Safadi, was scheduled to meet with Blinken on Saturday in Amman. Safadi has made a public speech demanding an end to Israel’s siege and bombing of Gaza’s civilian population.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), a major Arab power in the Gulf, issued a statement on Friday expressing concern that tensions in the Middle East were “approaching a boiling point” and promising to work “relentlessly” to achieve a quick and complete humanitarian truce.
Noura al-Kaabi, a minister of state for foreign affairs, warned delegates at an Abu Dhabi conference that “the risk of regional spillover and further escalation is real,” as was the possibility that extremist groups would use the situation to advance ideologies that would keep the world stuck in cycles of violence.
Tunnels are breached by Hamas fighters.
Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military’s official spokesperson, informed reporters that his country’s “troops completed the encirclement of Gaza City, which is the focal point of the Hamas terror organization” as bombs went off in Gaza.
Israeli military engineers commander Brigadier General Iddo Mizrahi reported that soldiers were finding explosives and booby traps.
“Hamas has learned and prepared itself well,” stated the leader.
Abu Ubaida, spokesperson for the armed wing of Hamas, stated in a televised statement on Thursday that Israel’s death toll in Gaza was significantly greater than the military had announced. “Your soldiers will return in black bags,” he informed us.
Since last Friday’s expansion of ground operations, Israel has claimed it has lost 18 soldiers and killed dozens of Palestinian combatants.
Residents and videos from both sides showed that Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters were emerging from tunnels to fire at tanks before withdrawing back into the network.
Two unnamed US sources indicated that spy drones were being flown over Gaza to aid in the search for hostages. Over a week of drone flights, according to one of the officers.
Exiting is necessary for more non-natives.
The Rafah gate from Gaza to Egypt was expected to open for a third day on Friday for limited evacuations under a Qatari-brokered accord aimed at letting some foreign passport holders, their dependents and some wounded Gazans out of the territory.
Officials at the border say that in the two days prior, almost 700 foreign nationals used Rafah to enter Egypt. Dozens of Palestinians in serious condition were also scheduled to cross. Israel reached out to other countries to help them by sending hospital ships.
For the safe release of over two dozen Thai nationals, Thailand has indicated it is in communication with Iran and other governments that can make contact with Hamas.
Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, Thailand’s foreign minister, said on Friday that Iran, which is friendly with Hamas, had agreed to assist with negotiations.
Many of Gaza’s 35 hospitals have been converted into makeshift refugee camps, and more than a third are currently inoperable.
Medical Aid for Palestinians, a nonprofit organization, described “the situation is beyond catastrophic,” with crowded hallways and many medical personnel who were themselves grieving and homeless.
