Operation Iron Swords - Day 61 - 06 December 2023
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NEW - Operations NEW - By-Standers NEW - Axis of Resistance NEW - Allied for Democracy UPDATED - Oasis of Martyrs UPDATED - Hostages |
Division 98, which includes the commando formation and other special units, launched a combined attack on the area of ??the city of Khan Yunis against the centers of gravity of Hamas. Within a few hours the fighters of the division broke through the defense lines of the Khan Yunis Brigade, surrounded the city and for the first time began to maneuver in the heart of the area.
"The fight against Khan Yunis is a major effort, I get the impression that it is well managed - that they control it, that they push forward," said the commander of the Southern Command, Major General Yaron Finkelman, "There are valuable goals here, we will go with it. Continue to establish it. We will bring here what necessary, and push forward all the time in front of the goals that are identified here in front of us."
The Israeli police allowed right-wing extremist activists to organize a march to the Temple Mount near the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, on Thursday evening, to demand an end to the control of the Islamic Endowments that manage the holy site, according to the Haaretz newspaper. According to the newspaper, the activists are calling for “the restoration of full Jewish control over the Temple Mount and Jerusalem,” against the control of the Endowments, which declared its strong opposition to any Jewish religious expression there.
The mountain is home to the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the site of Jewish temples in ancient times, according to the newspaper. The newspaper reported that the march, which is limited to 200 participants, is scheduled to follow the path of the flag parade through Damascus Gate and the Islamic Quarter. The march will take place on the first night of Hanukkah, and it will be called the “Maccabi March,” in reference to an ancient Jewish revolt.
The newspaper quoted “Bayaden,” one of the nine groups organizing the march, as saying in a video clip on its Facebook page, “We will not win this war in Gaza only,” attacking “the Nazis and their friends in the Waqf.” The newspaper explained that during the “Flag March” last summer, participants clashed with Arab residents and assaulted journalists, including Haaretz newspaper correspondent Zia Haj Yahya, who was hit in the head with a stone.
The police said: “Contrary to the lies and inflammatory publications of the hostile parties, we stress that Muslim prayers on the Temple Mount will continue as usual even during the days of Hanukkah,” adding that law enforcement authorities will secure the route of the march with “an increase in forces” and that “any attempt to violate public order... “It will be dealt with decisively.”
According to the newspaper, strict Israeli restrictions on Jewish worship on the Temple Mount have eased significantly in recent years, and opinion polls show that half of Israeli Jews support allowing prayers there. Palestinians have long complained about Jewish worshipers “storming” the site, describing anyone who goes up to the sanctuary as a “settler.”
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres , sent an unprecedented message to the Security Council regarding the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip , warning of its dangers on a global level. He also warned that public order in the Strip is about to collapse completely. Guterres said in his message that the war in Gaza “may exacerbate existing threats to international peace and security.”
The Secretary-General relied on the rarely used Article 99 of the Charter of the United Nations, which authorizes him to “draw the attention of the Security Council to any matter that he considers may threaten the protection of international peace and security.” This is the first time that Guterres has used this provision since he took office in 2017. He said, "We face a grave danger of the collapse of the humanitarian system. The situation is rapidly deteriorating toward a catastrophe that may have irreversible consequences for the Palestinians and for peace and security in the region."
Guterres explained - in the message he addressed to the 15 member states of the Council - that “with the continuous bombing by Israeli forces, and with the absence of shelters or a minimum level of survival, I expect an imminent complete collapse of public order, due to desperate conditions, which makes it difficult to provide humanitarian assistance.” Impossible, even if limited. He added, "The situation may become worse with the spread of epidemics and increased pressure for mass movements towards neighboring countries."
Operational Update
Israel has not issued updated numbers about the munitions it used since Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said 01 November 2023, that Israel had dropped 10,000 bombs on Gaza until that time, as a number that cannot be independently verified.
It was allowed to be published that Maj. Gen. (Res.) Adi Shani, 39 years old, from Tzur Yitzhak, a Pelsar fighter in the 6036 Logistics Brigade, was killed in battle in the northern Gaza Strip. In response to a question about Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's statement that the IDF forces are "surrounding Sinwar's house," IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said that "Sinwar is not above ground, he is underground. I do not want to specify where and how. This is not the place To talk about such things. Our job is to get to Sanwar and kill him. We need to do it as quickly as possible."
US officials anticipate the conclusion of the current phase of Israeli ground invasion in the Gaza Strip in January, after which "Israel" is expected to shift to a less intense and localized strategy targeting fighters of the Palestinian movement Hamas, CNN reported, citing multiple senior administration officials.
The officials believe that the ongoing invasion by Israeli forces in the southern part of the Strip will persist for several more weeks, with "Israel" unlikely to achieve its ultimate objective of weakening the Palestinian Resistance until the end of the year, the report added on Tuesday, although, thus far, 61 days into the war, the Resistance continues to fire rockets at the Gaza envelope settlements, slamming Israeli claims of weakening the Resistance and destroying headquarters.
Meanwhile, an unidentified Israeli official concurred with the assessment that the current stage of the invasion is expected to conclude within the next few weeks, as reported by CNN. "We are in a high-intensity operation in the coming weeks, then probably moving to a low-intensity mode," the official said as quoted by CNN.
The "current phase" as referred to by both US and Israeli officials is described as the toughest so far despite it being concentrated in the south, subbed a "safe" zone by the Israelis and regardless of US calls and Israeli claims of a more "surgical", "focused" bombing to avoid mass civilian casualties, and the tens of massacres committed so far are the best proof of that.
Over the last day, the IAF struck approximately 250 targets in the Gaza Strip. IDF troops are continuing to locate weapons, underground shafts, explosives and additional military infrastructure, and to direct fighter jet to strike terror targets.
A number of launches were identified from Lebanon toward an IDF post adjacent to Arab al-Aramshe, as well as an IDF post in the area of Mount Hermon. The IDF is striking the sources of the fire. Furthermore, since this morning, IDF tanks and artillery have been striking several locations in Lebanon and IDF aircraft struck a military command center and military infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization.
The 98th Division, the elite paratrooper and commando division of the IDF, entered the fighting in the Gaza Strip a few days ago as another maneuvering division and is now fighting in the Khan Yunis area. There are currently 4 divisions fighting in the Gaza Strip - 3 of them in the attack in Jabaliya, Shaja'ia and Khan Yunis.
One of the largest weapons depots in the Gaza Strip was found near a clinic and school in the northern Gaza Strip. The depot contained hundreds of RPG missiles and launchers of various types, dozens of anti-tank missiles, dozens of explosive devices, long-range missiles, dozens of grenades and UAVs. The weapons were seized by the soldiers. All of the terrorist infrastructure was found close to civilian buildings in the heart of a civilian population.
IDF forces have been attacking since the morning with tanks and artillery fire in several areas in Lebanon. In addition, IDF aircraft have recently attacked an operational headquarters and terrorist infrastructure of Hezbollah. Also, several launches were detected a short time ago from Lebanese territory towards a military post near Arab El Aramsha and past a post in the area of ??Mount Hermon. The IDF attacks the sources of the shooting with fire.
An operational activity under the command of the Menashe Brigade, reserve fighters of the brigade, Dovdvan fighters in reserve, Lotr and MGB, under the direction of the Shin Bet, which began yesterday (Tuesday) at noon in the Jenin refugee camp, ended. The forces arrested ten wanted persons suspected of involvement in terrorist activities , located and destroyed two underground shafts and three cargo laboratories that contained many cargoes.
Following the report regarding sirens that sounded in the city of Eilat, a launch of a surface-to-surface missile toward Israel was identified, and was successfully intercepted in the area of the Red Sea by the "Arrow" Aerial Defense System. The target did not cross into Israeli territory, did not pose a threat to civilians and the sirens that sounded were according to protocol.
The Yemeni Armed Forces launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at Israeli military targets in Um Al-Rashrash - "Eilat", the army spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree said. In a statement, the General confirmed that the Yemeni forces " will continue to carry out military operations against the Israeli enemy and implement the decision to prevent Israeli ships from navigating in the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea, in support of the oppressed Palestinian people and until the aggression against our brothers in Gaza comes to a halt."
"The Red Sea, from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab al-Mandab, has become forbidden territory for the Zionist entity, and any of its ships in the Red Sea will be seized or targeted in support of our people in Gaza," Major General Mohammed Nasser Al-Atefi said. "Yemeni naval forces, missile force, and drones are ready to carry out the most severe individual and collective strikes against fixed or moving targets of the Zionist entity in support of our people in Gaza," he warned.
Reuters quoted two informed sources as saying that Saudi Arabia asked the United States for restraint in responding to attacks by the Houthi group in Yemen on ships in the Red Sea, at a time when Riyadh is seeking to contain the repercussions of the war between Hamas and Israel. The Houthis, allied with Iran, intervened in the conflict that has spread across the Middle East since the outbreak of war on October 7, attacking ships in vital shipping lanes and launching drones and missiles at Israel itself.
With the Houthis escalating their attacks on ships over the past weeks, two sources familiar with Saudi thinking said that the message of restraint that Riyadh sent to Washington aims to avoid further escalation. They added that Riyadh is satisfied so far with the way the United States is dealing with the situation. One of the sources said, "They put pressure on the Americans in this regard and why the conflict in Gaza must be stopped."
The British newspaper "Financial Times" said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was frank in expressing what Israel needed to destroy the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) when he told a group of government officials, "We need three things from the United States: munitions, then munitions, then munitions."
The newspaper explained - in a report by John Paul Rathbone from London - that Netanyahu, who was concerned that political pressures abroad would hinder US arms shipments, said, “There are huge demonstrations in Western capitals. We need to exert counter-pressure. There have been disagreements with our friends."
The newspaper pointed out that Israel consumed huge amounts of ammunition in its war against Hamas in Gaza , and used modern Western weapons, from satellite-guided bombs to precision laser-guided missiles, thus bringing the damage caused by the Israeli attack closer - as military analysts say - to the destruction caused in northern Gaza in less than 7 weeks, from the damage caused by the years-long comprehensive bombing of German cities during World War II.
American military historian Robert Pape says that Dresden, Hamburg and Cologne are cities whose names recall the most violent bombing campaigns in the twentieth century, and “the name Gaza will also be included as a place where the heaviest conventional bombing campaigns in history took place,” as entire neighborhoods were leveled to the ground.
By December 4, about 60% of the buildings in northern Gaza had been severely damaged, according to analysis of satellite data, meaning the destruction of between 82,000 and 105,000 buildings, despite the Allied bombing of 61 major German cities over the course of Two years ago, it destroyed only an estimated 50% of its urban areas.
The newspaper attributed some of the reasons for the extent of the destruction to the munitions used by Israel, which include 250-pound precision-guided small-diameter bombs, laser-guided “ Hellfire ” missiles, and Spike missiles, but among them are also unguided “dumb bombs” of the M117 model. , and 2,000-pound bombs.
Mark Garlasko, a military advisor to the Dutch organization PAX and a former employee at the Pentagon , said that the size of the smart bombs, or so-called joint direct attack munitions, is so enormous that survivors of the explosion said they felt like they were “sliding on liquid ground.” He explained that “the buildings are disintegrating, collapsing and fragmenting. Concrete, metal, cell phones, and everything else is blown away by the explosion at supersonic speeds.”
“The only reason I can think of why they would be used is that the Israeli army is trying to destroy Hamas’ network of tunnels, but their widespread use is remarkable,” Garlasco added. Amnesty International this week called for a war crimes investigation into Israel’s use of such Heavy munitions.
The second reason for the high level of destruction is the speed and intensity of the Israeli bombing, and military analysts said that the military campaign was based on relaxed targeting rules that allowed a large number of expected civilian casualties to occur, because Israeli officials said from the first moment that their response would be of a completely different magnitude than previous operations.
In the first two weeks of its campaign, Israel used at least a thousand “air-to-surface” munitions per day, while during the most intense periods of the air campaign it launched in Mosul, Iraq, the United States and coalition forces used no more than 600 munitions per week, and the pace of The bombing is very fast, so that it takes less than 10 minutes between identifying the target and hitting it with an air strike.
The newspaper concluded that more than 15,000 Gazans were martyred before Israel began its southern attack last week. Israel claims that 5,000 of them were Hamas fighters. Military historian Pape said, “Gaza, by all standards, is a severe civil punishment campaign that will be recorded in history as the most violent one.” Of the operations ever carried out using conventional weapons.”
Foreign Affairs magazine published an article by Robert E. Pape, professor of political science and director of the University of Chicago's Program on Security and Threats, in which he talked about the failed Israeli bombing campaign in Gaza, and that the collective punishment campaign will not defeat Hamas.
Pape said: “Since October 7, Israel has invaded northern Gaza with a combat force of 40,000, and has destroyed the small area with an intense bombing campaign the likes of which has never been seen in history. About two million people fled their homes, and more than 15,000 people were killed, including 6,000 children and 5,000 women. The US State Department suggests the real toll may be higher. "Israel" bombed hospitals and ambulances, and destroyed about half of Gaza's buildings. It effectively cut off all water, food and electricity supplies for 2.2 million people. By any definition, this massive campaign constitutes collective punishment against civilians.
While Netanyahu denied Israel's involvement in a collective punishment campaign , he referred to the Allied bombing of the Gestapo headquarters in Copenhagen, which killed numbers of schoolchildren.
As Israel advances into southern Gaza, it is still without a clear goal according to Pape, and although the Israelis claim that they are targeting Hamas only, the lack of distinction raises a real question about what the Israeli government actually wants. Was “Israel’s” desire to destroy Gaza a product of the same inability that... It led to the catastrophic failure of the Israeli army and its confrontation with the Hamas attack on October 7, plans that reached the hands of military and security officials more than a year ago? Is the destruction of northern Gaza, and now its south, a prelude to sending the entire population of Gaza to Egypt, as suggested by a “concept paper” prepared by the Ministry of Military Intelligence?
“Whatever the ultimate goal,” Pape responds, “Israel’s mass destruction of Gaza poses profound moral problems.” Even if we judge it through strategic criteria, Israel’s approach is destined to fail, and it has certainly failed already.” He added, “The collective punishment of civilians did not convince the residents of Gaza to stop supporting Hamas. On the contrary, it increased anger among the Palestinians.” The campaign did not succeed in dismantling the group that was supposedly targeted. 50 days and more revealed that “Israel” can demolish Gaza, but it cannot destroy Hamas. In fact, the group may have become stronger now than it was before.”
The writer notes that “Israel” is not the only state that relies on the magic of excessive air power. History reveals that aerial bombardments of large civilian areas did not achieve any goal. Perhaps Israel would have been wise if it had learned from these lessons and responded to the October 7 attacks with surgical strikes against Hamas leaders and fighters, instead of the indiscriminate bombing campaign it chose. But it is not too late to change course and adopt a workable strategy to achieve lasting security. It is an approach based on driving a wedge between Hamas and the Palestinians, not bringing them closer together, and taking meaningful unilateral steps towards a two-state solution .
Since the advent of air power, countries have tried to bomb their enemies into submission, shake civilian morale and push them toward a breaking point that would make them rise up against their governments, according to this theory, and change their positions. The strategy of coercive punishment reached its peak in World War II, in the indiscriminate bombing of cities that could be mentioned by name and targets: Hamburg (40,000 dead), Darmstadt (12,000 dead) and Dresden (25,000 dead). Gaza can be included in this notorious list.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used the comparison with World War II, and the Allied bombing campaign in it. While he denied Israel's involvement today in a campaign of collective punishment, he referred to the Allied bombing of the Gestapo headquarters in Copenhagen, which killed numbers of schoolchildren. What Netanyahu neglected to mention is that none of the allied attempts to punish civilians succeeded.
In Germany, the Allied air campaign against civilians, which began in 1942, destroyed one German city after another, bringing the final number at the end of the war to 58 German cities and towns. But the campaign did not deplete civilian morale or push them to revolt against Adolf Hitler, despite the confident expectations of Allied officials. Certainly, the campaign persuaded the Germans to fight hard for fear of imposing arbitrary terms on them in the postwar peace.
The failure of the air campaign was not surprising, given the failure of the German “Blitz” air raids on London and British cities that killed 40,000 people, but British Prime Minister Winston Churchill refused to surrender. On the contrary; He used the dead to mobilize the British and make further sacrifices necessary for victory. Instead of shaking morale, the Blitz convinced the British to organize a counterattack with their American and Soviet allies and invade the country that had bombed them. In fact, there is no example in history of a successful air campaign that pushed civilians to revolt against their governments.
The United States has tried this more than once, as it destroyed electrical power in North Korea in the Korean War, and in the Vietnam War, where it destroyed most of the electrical power in North Vietnam, as well as in the Iraq War, where air strikes disrupted 90% of power generation in Iraq. None of them ended in a popular revolution.
The war in Ukraine is the latest example, as Russian aviation tried, for more than two years, to force Ukraine to surrender through successive air strikes that killed more than 10,000 civilians, destroyed 1.5 million homes, and displaced about 8 million Ukrainians. The Russian bombing shook the morale of the Ukrainians, but did not destroy it, but rather pushed them to fight hard.
Pape writes these historical lessons are repeated in Gaza. Despite two months of merciless bombing and unlimited military support from the United States and the rest of the world, Israel has achieved only marginal results. By any meaningful measure, the campaign did not defeat Hamas, even partially. The air campaign killed 5,000 Hamas fighters (according to Israeli officials) out of 30,000 fighters, but these losses will not reduce the threats to the Israelis. As the October 7 attacks demonstrated, all Hamas needs are hundreds of its fighters to attack Israeli towns. Worse still, Israeli officials admit that the campaign killed twice as many Palestinian civilians as it killed fighters.
The writer points out that the structure of the movement was not dismantled, even the operation in which “Israel” boasted against Al-Shifa Hospital, which the army claimed that the movement used as a base of operations. Videos published by "Israel" showed the destruction of the entrance to a number of tunnels, but these can be repaired, and the leadership of "Hamas" left the place before the Israeli forces entered it, which means that it fled with its most important infrastructure: the fighters.
There is no example in history of a successful air campaign that prompted civilians to revolt against their governments. “Hamas has an advantage over the Israeli forces. It is easy for them to give up fighting, mix among the population, and live to fight again, in better conditions. Therefore, a large-scale Israeli military operation is doomed to failure.”
The Israeli operation did not weaken Hamas’ control over Gaza, and Israel only rescued one hostage out of 240 hostages. As for the rest, Hamas released them, and it appears that it is still in control of its fighters.
Despite the power outage and the massive destruction, the movement is still issuing propaganda and tapes about the massacres of civilians committed by “Israel” and the fierce battles between fighters and Israeli forces. The movement's propaganda is distributed via the Telegram platform to 620,000 subscribers. According to the University of Chicago Threat and Security Project, which the author directs, the military arm, Al-Qassam, released 200 videos and posters every week, from October 11 to November 22, on that channel.
The easiest way to defeat Hamas is to target its leaders and fighters, but this is easy to say, because it relies for its cadres on the local population and not on the outside. Certainly, the “Israel” campaign increases the popularity of “Hamas.”
Hamas and other Palestinian groups carried out 150 operations between 1994 and 2005, which led to the death of a thousand Israelis. They abandoned this method after Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza. Since that time, the percentage of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank has increased by 50%, making it extremely difficult for “Israel” to control it. There is reason to think that the military operation, which will take place “for an indefinite period,” as Netanyahu says, may lead to broader suicide attacks against Israelis.
The writer pointed to the problem of settlement, where Palestinian lands have been confiscated for Jewish settlement, since the eighties of the last century. Hence, one of Netanyahu's ministers called for the return of settlement in Gaza, where the last settlement was dismantled in 2005.
The increase in the Jewish population among the Palestinians is considered an important factor in provoking the conflict. The period that followed the 1967 war, when the number of settlers did not exceed thousands, did not witness suicide operations. However, things changed after the extremist “Likud” government came to power in 1977, and promised to expand... Settlement. The number of settlers increased from 4,000 in 1977 to 24,000 in 1983 and 116,000 in 1993. There are about 500,000 settlers living in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. With the increase in the number of Jewish settlers, the relative harmony between Israelis and Palestinians disappeared, and the launch of “Hamas” came first during the first intifada, between 1987-1993, then the second intifada 2000-2005, and after that there were rounds of conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.
The increase in settlement was a major reason for the loss of credibility of the two-state solution, and any path to peace and a Palestinian state in the future requires stopping settlement. After all this, why do the Palestinians reject Hamas and support a peace process if this means losing more land?
The writer says that the two-state solution is what leads to permanent security for Israelis and Palestinians alike. This is a viable approach, through which Hamas can be weakened. “Israel” must press forward and take unilateral steps with the aim of reviving a peace process that has been stalled since 2008. He proposes a limited political and military approach against “Hamas” and its leaders. It must adopt a political element in the strategy now, not tomorrow. Israel cannot wait for a magical time when Hamas is defeated.
The Al-Jazeera military and strategic expert, Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi, reiterated that the second phase of the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip is broader in scope, more destructive, and excessive in the use of ammunition, stressing that the facts on the ground belie the occupation forces’ claims of encircling Khan Yunis, south of Gaza.
Al-Duwairi said that the appropriate title for what is currently happening is “The Gaza Strip Under Fire,” explaining that the unprecedented bombing by Israeli forces on Gaza and its residents aims to achieve the old goal, which is, trying to displace the residents of the Gaza Strip and destroy the infrastructure. infrastructure and eliminate any possibility of life. He saw that the occupation forces were waging fierce battles in multiple areas, in Beit Lahia, Shujaiya, Jabalia, and east of Khan Yunis. There are frequent reports of losses among its ranks, and therefore it unreasonably overuses firepower in order to facilitate its advance operations.
Al-Duwairi spoke about the signals received regarding the end of military operations before the beginning of next January, which means - in his opinion - that the occupation forces are in a race against time in an attempt to achieve any achievement, especially in light of the stumbling block they are facing.
Among the obstacles faced by the occupation forces, the military expert gives an example of the Jabalia camp, where he said that the occupation forces claimed since yesterday morning, Tuesday, that they were able to encircle it, but the reality on the field does not prove this, and also with regard to Shujaiya, east of Gaza City, where they entered agricultural land, And in the area that is considered soft defensively.
In the southeast of Khan Yunis and the northeast of Khan Yunis, the occupation forces achieved certain breakthroughs, but in the southeast, battles are still fierce between them and the Palestinian resistance, indicating that the distinguishing point relates to what is between entry, incursion, and control. The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), had said that it was destroying crowds of enemy forces penetrating the northern areas of the city of Khan Yunis with a barrage of mortar shells.
He described the Israeli army as "immoral and the deadliest," and its supporters must be said to be "blind in sight and insight." He was surprised by the speech of US President Joe Biden , who echoed the Israelis' allegations about accusing the resistance of committing sexual violence and rape.
General Fayez Al-Duwairi, said that the occupation army is racing against time in the Gaza Strip, hoping to achieve a field achievement before the Christmas holiday to present to the Israeli community and the American administration. Al-Duwairi stated, during his military analysis for Al Jazeera, that the field situation in the second phase of the Israeli ground attack on Gaza was “more ferocious, violent and destructive” than what happened in the first phase.
According to field developments, the military expert believes that the bill that the occupation army will incur in the Bani Suhaila area, east of Khan Yunis (south of the Gaza Strip), is much greater than what it paid in Gaza and its north. He attributed his expectations to the fact that Khan Yunis is a sprawling city with towns and interstitial spaces, stressing that Bani Suhaila will be a major node and even a real graveyard for the occupation army, more than what is being exposed now in Juhr al-Dik, east of the central region, also ruling out control over it.
He added that this region is a major stronghold for most of the Palestinian resistance factions, and the elite forces are located there, citing the numbers revealed by the Al-Qassam Brigades - the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) - as well as the Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of the Islamic Jihad Movement. However, he revealed that the introduction of the Israeli armored forces will be harsh on the defending fighters, but the resistance plan is based on allowing them to enter and leaving them stationed behind dirt barriers, “and then comes the management of the battle.”
He stressed that there are fierce ground battles, "and the more the occupation enters, the deeper it gets into the hornet's nest," where the vehicles are disrupted by minefield explosions, forcing the soldiers to dismount, and then they are targeted with machine guns and a large number of them are finished off.
The strategic expert considered the death toll numbers announced by the occupation army in the Gaza battles to be “political numbers,” stressing that the numbers are much higher than that.
Regarding the differences between the battle of the north and the south in the Gaza Strip, Al-Duwairi explained that there is a similarity in the general framework of the battle through circumventing, encircling, and reaching Al-Rashid Street, but the details of the subsequent operations will be different from the battle of Gaza.
However, he stresses that the battle in the north is still difficult for the occupation army, and its faltering forced it to open a new front in the south and in the central region, especially since its first goal is to deport and displace Gazans, but Tel Aviv raises the slogan of “eliminating Hamas” in the media.
He said that the sniping operations carried out by the Qassam Brigades are one of the resistance's methods, referring to the Qassam "Ghoul" rifle, which was named after the commander of the military manufacturing unit, Adnan al-Ghoul, and which carries standard specifications for high accuracy in targeting.
Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi said that the scenes of the tank being charred, presented by the Al-Qassam Brigades - the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) - in the Shujaiya neighborhood, east of Gaza City, indicate that the “Al-Yassin 105” shell accurately hit the tank’s turret and detonated its ammunition. Al-Duwairi explained that the targeting was from a higher area, which gave the missile carrier and shooter an ideal opportunity to hit the tank turret, after the line of sight became open without obstacles.
He pointed out that targeting from above inevitably means fatal injuries after the shell penetrates the tank tower, noting that the burning scenes that resulted from the strike were the result of the shell entering the tower and exploding the ammunition it carries and not the result of the effect of the shell itself. He added that the tank's ammunition contains penetrating, phosphorous and regular bombs, reiterating that the explosion resulted from the explosion of the ammunition carried by the tank inside the tower frame.
Regarding the implications of a Qassam member’s talk about “charring” the tank, the military expert confirmed that the Israeli tank in the current battle inevitably carries 10 soldiers, “and certainly everyone inside it was killed,” which raises questions about the accuracy of the casualty figures announced by the occupation, which are exponentially lower than reality.
He noted that Al-Qassam fighters differentiate between targets, citing the scene of one of them allowing a bulldozer to pass, waiting for the “dangerous and dangerous target,” in reference to a tank that was later hit by an anti-armor shell. He praised the method used by Al-Qassam members through “teamwork.” One of them fires a Yassin missile, and two others wait in case soldiers get out of the tank and then finish them off if the first injury is not fatal.
He ruled out that the occupation would bear the human losses among its army and said that the cost bill was higher than the prisoners it was trying to recover from the grip of the resistance following the " Al-Aqsa Flood " operation. He greatly praised the Al-Shuja'iya Battalion, affiliated with Al-Qassam, and said that it is a special, historical case with a long track record, stressing that losses among the ranks of the occupation army in this region will be heavy, as happened in Juhr Al-Dik, east of the central region, and Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip.
The Al-Qassam Brigades announced that they completely or partially destroyed 23 occupation army vehicles, and killed and wounded Israeli soldiers, in operations against the occupation forces in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip, and in Beit Lahia, north of it. The Al-Qassam Brigades - the military arm of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) - published a series of statements via the Telegram application in which it reviewed its operations against the occupation forces in the Gaza Strip on the 61st day of the war.
In the eastern Khan Yunis axis (southern Gaza Strip), to the outskirts of which the occupation forces advanced in the past few days, Al-Qassam Brigades fighters targeted a house in which a number of occupation soldiers were barricaded, with a personnel shell and machine guns. Also in eastern Khan Yunis, Al-Qassam fighters were able to booby-trap and blow up a house in which a number of occupation soldiers were holed up with a barrel bomb. They also sniped 6 Israeli soldiers, and seriously injured them in the same area, according to what was stated in two separate statements.
On the same axis, the Al-Qassam Brigades targeted 3 Israeli tanks with a “Yassin 105” shell, and bombarded the forces penetrating there with a barrage of heavy-caliber mortar shells. In the northern Khan Yunis axis, the Al-Qassam Brigades targeted an Israeli troop carrier and two Merkava tanks with Al-Yassin 105 shells. It also announced that it bombed Israeli crowds in the northern areas of the city of Khan Yunis with a barrage of mortar shells.
In another statement, the military wing of the Hamas movement announced that its fighters targeted 12 Israeli vehicles in the axis of the Beit Lahia project in the northern Gaza Strip.
At the same time, the Al-Qassam Brigades announced that they bombed the city of Beersheba with a missile barrage in response to the massacres against civilians. Al-Qassam fighters also bombed the “Kissufim” site on the Gaza Strip with a 114 mm short-range “Rajum” missile system.
The military arm of the Hamas movement said that it also bombed Israeli crowds at the “Isnad Sufa” military site and the “Nir Ishaq” settlement near the Gaza Strip with missile bursts. The Al-Qassam Brigades stated that they also targeted crowds of occupation forces east of the "Magen" settlement in the Gaza Strip with a missile salvo.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced that it targeted the American occupation base "Ain al-Assad" in western Iraq in response to the crimes committed by the enemy against the residents of Gaza, saying that its mujahideen targeted for the second time today today the American occupation base "Ain al-Assad" in western Iraq with a drone that directly hit its target.
Social media users circulated a picture of Israeli army forces extending water pipes from the sea, in what appears to be an attempt to flood Hamas's tunnels in the Gaza Strip. Earlier, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Israeli army installed 5 pumping stations near the Beach refugee camp in mid-November. She confirmed that the pumps are capable of pumping water from the Mediterranean Sea to flood the tunnels within a few weeks.
Last October 15, an Indian expert specializing in geopolitics published an analysis in which he said that the Islamic Resistance Movement “Hamas” could use what he called a “seawater flood bomb” to make 25% of the area of the Gaza Strip that falls below level. The surface of the sea is a “pool of salt water,” which hinders any advance by the Israeli occupation forces there.
After about a month and a half of this analysis, the American newspaper “The Wall Street Journal” announced on December 4 of this year another use of sea water bombs, but this time it is being planned by Israel, as it seeks to direct them into the tunnels to submerge them, in an attempt to expel brigade fighters. Qassams, and disabling this important weapon in the resistance.
According to experts polled by Al Jazeera Net, the scenario predicted by the Indian expert seems possible to implement from a scientific standpoint, but it is unlikely from a practical standpoint, while the plan to flood the tunnels with seawater bombs that was announced by the American “Wall Street Journal” seems unlikely from both a scientific and practical standpoint although it was promoted in America.
The analysis of the Indian expert Rupinder Sachdev - who is the head of the Imaginedia Institute in New Delhi - which was published by the American Bazaar website, is based on the fact that 25% of the area of the Gaza Strip is located below sea level, and this area is divided into 4 regions, 3 of which are located in the north and center. Gaza, which is Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia (north), then Gaza City (centre), and the fourth region is Rafah (south).
The assumption that the Indian expert raises in his analysis is: What if Hamas created tunnels linking these four “undersea” areas to the Mediterranean Sea on the coast of Gaza? He says that it is possible to “dig tunnels up to the last two meters before connecting with the sea, and a remote-controlled bomb is placed at the entrance of these tunnels on the sea connection point with the Mediterranean Sea, and when the Israeli invasion begins from northern Gaza, these remote bombs explode at the sea connections, and sea water flows.” Through tunnels and flooding low-lying areas in the Gaza Strip.
He adds, "Physics tells us that water seeks equilibrium, and as soon as the seaward mouth of these specialized tunnels bursts, seawater will rush into these special tunnels with unimaginable ferocity, reaching the 'below sea level' areas of Gaza within minutes, submerging those Low-lying areas with water for a distance of between 2 and 5 feet, to make the water levels equal to sea level, which would create wetlands and swamps that would cause heavy artillery and tanks to fall. This is known in military language as the “area denial weapon.” A defensive device used to prevent an opponent from occupying or crossing a land, sea or air area.”
If the implementation of this plan referred to by the Indian expert is possible from a scientific standpoint, and the Hamas movement can implement it if it has the capabilities to do so because it possesses detailed information about each area, then it is unlikely from a practical standpoint, as explained by the head of the Irrigation and Drainage Unit at the Egyptian Desert Research Center, Mohamed Al-Hajri.
Al-Hajri said in a telephone interview with Al-Jazeera Net: “I do not think that the resistance has the luxury of converting 25% of the Strip’s area into an area of salt ponds from which there is no benefit.”
On the other hand, Al-Hajri and others believe that the plan to flood the resistance tunnels, which Israel announced its intention to implement, is neither scientifically nor practically possible.
The Wall Street Journal quoted American officials as saying that Israel had installed a large system of pumps that could be used to flood the tunnels used by Al-Qassam. The report stated that the Israeli army had completed placing at least 5 pumps approximately one kilometer north of the Beach refugee camp. It can move thousands of cubic meters of water per hour and flood tunnels within weeks.
Al-Hajri says, “There are two scenarios for pumping seawater into tunnels, and both are doomed to failure.” They are:
- First: Using lift pumps from the sea and pumping them into the tunnel openings. This is accompanied by high water pressure that will cause the tunnels to be demolished at the beginning of the pumping, especially since the nature of the soil is between sandy and clay. Therefore, the resistance used concrete walls to stabilize the walls of the tunnels, and then demolition is expected to occur. The tunnels are at the beginning of pumping, followed by blockage of the tunnel, which leads to water not reaching the rest of the tunnel network, which is 500 km long and at a depth of up to 80 km under the sea surface. Therefore, this scenario is already doomed to failure.
- Second: Using the level difference, which is 80 meters below the sea surface, and this causes a pressure estimated at 8 bars (the bar is the unit of pressure measurement), and this is similar to the rainwater drainage hole in residential buildings. If we imagine the shape, the sea surface will be the residential building, and the tunnels are the land. For which the water is drained, this is a less likely scenario to be implemented, but if implemented it will lead to the same previous result, and is also doomed to failure.
In addition, Al-Hajri points to another reason that confirms the practical impossibility of implementation, which is “Israel’s lack of knowledge of the designs and maps of tunnel networks, which are secret even to some members of the Qassam Brigades, as each group does not know of the design of tunnel network paths except what falls under its jurisdiction.” Its work, and each commander only has maps of his own range of tunnels, and the overall network is unknown except to a few members of the resistance.”
The director and founder of the Palestine Museum of Natural History and the Palestine Institute for Biodiversity and Sustainability at Bethlehem University in Palestine, Mazen Qumsieh, ruled out the resistance’s use of seawater bombs according to the scenario proposed by the Indian expert, describing it as “a very naive simplification,” and said: “How do we imagine that the resistance that... Defending the land could turn it into useless salt pools,” noting that “the resistance has not reached the stage of despair that prompts it to burn the land.”
Regarding Israel's use of water bombs to flood the tunnels, he said, "The matter is not as easy as it is portrayed in the analyzes of American experts that filled newspapers and websites."
One of these analyzes was adopted by the former Chief of Staff, Planning and Civil-Military Operations at the US Agency for International Development in Kabul, Jeff Goodson, who said that implementing the process of flooding the tunnels is very easy and simple. He mentioned in an article he wrote on the American website “Real Clear Defense” several reasons for this, including:
- First: The geography of the tunnels strongly supports the flooding strategy, as open source maps show no less than 11 independent tunnel networks, some of which are close to the sea. Therefore, the shortest and most direct route to the tunnel entrances will be directly to the Mediterranean Sea, and this will require permanent and continuous protection of the locations of the lines. Transporting and retaining water for the duration of operation. The distance that must be protected and retained when dealing with the tunnels located in the far north and east can be reduced by running a main line through adjacent Israeli territory and feeding water distribution lines to the tunnel entrances opposite that.
- Second: The engineering for this approach is clear and straightforward, as there is previous experience with this method dating back to 2015, when Egypt sank 37 cross-border tunnels in southern Gaza, representing a practical proof of concept at this site, and seawater will be pumped from the sea. The Mediterranean directly to the tunnel openings via pipelines, and this is not difficult as Israel pumps large quantities of water daily over long distances, and Israeli water technology is world-class.
- Third: The calculations for the filling process have been worked out, as the filling should not be slow, as the tunnel, which is 6 by 5 feet wide and extends 300 miles; It is a huge volume to fill, but how quickly it can be filled depends on how quickly the water is pumped, and rough calculations indicate that if one pipe is used for each of the 11 tunnels with each pipe pumped at a very conservative rate of 100 gallons per minute (a gallon is a unit of measurement for liquids and a gallon equals 3.78 liters), it will take about seven and a half months to fill all 11 tunnel networks. However, routinely pumping water at ten times that rate daily will only take its toll once the water starts flowing: by the time the tunnel has two or three feet of water in it, it is virtually unusable.
Qumsiyeh, refuting this analysis, says that the previous use of this weapon is not an encouraging factor, but on the contrary, it is a positive point in favor of the resistance, as it now has experience in dealing with this challenge. He adds that the soil in Gaza - specifically in the south - makes the filling task very difficult, and it will be difficult for the occupation forces to reach the filling rate that would put the tunnels out of service due to the nature of the tunnels' sandy soil.
Sandy soil contains relatively large particles with a larger space between them compared to other types of soil such as clay, and therefore when water comes into contact with sandy soil, it seeps quickly due to these large gaps between the particles, and the spaces between the sand particles create channels through which water can easily seep out. It moves downward in the soil, meaning that sandy soil does not retain water like other types of soil.
As for the geography of the tunnels, which is taken as an auxiliary factor, it is certain, according to Qamisa, that Israel does not have sufficient information about the maps of its networks, which is evident in the nature of the performance of its forces on the ground.
In contrast to the sandy soil, which does not encourage the scenario of flooding the Gaza tunnels, Zakaria Hamimi, vice president of the International Federation for the Ethics of Geosciences, believes that the clay soil in the north may be helpful in the plan referred to by the Indian expert, which the resistance can implement, but he agrees with what Qumsiyeh and Al-Hajri went to him to rule out implementing this in practice, because he believed that the resistance did not want to take large areas of the narrow Gaza Strip out of service.
Clay soil is characterized by unique properties that allow it to retain water more effectively than other types of soil, such as sandy soil, which scientifically helps in the success of the plan referred to by the Indian expert, which is “practically unlikely according to experts,” if the resistance wants to implement it. According to Hamimi, the characteristics of clay soil that contribute to water retention are the following:
- Particle size: Clay particles are much smaller than sand or silt particles, and their small size means they can pack closely together, creating small spaces that hold water molecules through forces of adhesion and cohesion.
- High surface area: Clay particles have a larger surface area compared to larger particles such as sand, and this increased surface area allows clay particles to attract and retain water molecules more effectively.
- Particle arrangement: The small size of clay particles allows them to form very small pores within the soil. These pores trap water and reduce its drainage, which helps retain moisture within the soil.
- Chemical Properties: Clay soil often contains negatively charged particles, which can attract and retain the positively charged ions found in water molecules. This interaction, known as cation exchange capacity, helps clay soil retain water.
"Bedrock" refers to the solid rock layer beneath the soil, which often consists of dense and solid materials such as granite, limestone, or oil shale. Its presence at great depths in sandy soil can lead to several defects, the most notable of which is that it can lead to failure. Soil settling, which may cause structural damage.
The other problem that Hamimi points out is that the success of this scheme means more salt water seeping into the groundwater and making it unusable. Groundwater is the main source of water in the Strip, and is exploited intensively through more than 4,000 pumping wells. As a result of its intensive exploitation, the aquifer has witnessed seawater seeping into many locations in the Gaza Strip, according to a study by Muhammad Aish, a researcher at the Institute of Water and Environment at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, published by the journal “Water Resources and Industry.”
While observers were aware of the seriousness of the Israeli plan’s success in exacerbating this problem, the analysis presented by the American Jeff Goodson reduces this, and says that “95% of groundwater has been unfit for public consumption since 2017, and the reason is that it is widely contaminated with chemicals and water.” sewage, in addition to salt water leakage from the Strip, and for this reason, Gaza relies heavily on desalination of potable water.” Therefore, he believes that this risk should not be exaggerated when planning the process of flooding the tunnels. In his opinion, there is no problem in removing this source of water from the service.
What is even more surprising is that he considered flooding the Gaza tunnels a humanitarian mission, and said: “Think of flooding the tunnels as humanitarian assistance. When their danger is eliminated, the need to continue bombing them will be eliminated, and this will reduce civilian casualties and other collateral damage!!”
Military and strategic expert, General Hisham Jaber, a Lebanese political commentator and researcher and former Lebanese Army major general. told Al-Alam News Channel: For 3 weeks before the ground incursion, all of Gaza was brutally bombed, then the ground incursion began from the north and east, and the main goal was to separate northern Gaza from its south, and the second goal was to dismember Gaza. Brigadier General Hisham Jaber added: During all the battles for 55 days, the enemy was focusing on northern Gaza, even though it is not wide in area, but rather a few kilometers, but the Israeli enemy was unable to advance more than two kilometers there in 3 weeks.
He continued: He advanced from the north towards Beit Lahia and the Jabalia camp , and was bombed from the sea. In the end, when the truce came, he announced that he had taken control of northern Gaza, but that was not true. Rather, he occupied two-thirds of northern Gaza, and there was no control, and the evidence for that is the bombing. The ongoing siege of Jabalia, as well as Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun .
Jaber continued: The Israeli enemy was unable to enter those camps despite all the bombing, and therefore the enemy decided that after suffering heavy losses in the center, he should withdraw his forces and keep a division in the area, and he contented himself with brutal bombing and committing massacres in the Jabalia camp, Beit Lahia, and Beit Hanoun until t this hour. He explained: These camps are subjected to brutal bombardment every day, and in the empty plain area between the camps, until now, the enemy is still exposed to resistance operations every day, which forced him to reduce his forces and focus on the south.
Jaber confirmed that the most intense battle in the south is taking place in Khan Yunis , because it has great strategic importance since Israel invaded Egypt in 1956 and 1967. If it were not for Khan Yunis, Gaza and Rafah would have been under control. He added: Khan Yunis is the largest city in the Strip after Gaza, and Khan Yunis constitutes a large area militarily and was chosen by the enemy so that he would not fall into the problem he fell into in the north, but today he is exposed to ambushes, and today is considered the worst in terms of enemy losses.
He explained: Today, more than 24 enemy vehicles were targeted by the resistance, and that is because Khan Yunis also gives the resistance more space to move and attack the enemy, who is not fighting a fixed target. Jaber continued: The Israelies do not know where the resistance is, but rather they advances, and the resistance emerges from unstable centers and locations, and suddenly appears before them. It has been proven that they suffer from a major lack of intelligence, and it has been proven during this war that he knows nothing about tunnels, and this is what increases losses.
Jeffrey Sachs, professor of political economy at Columbia University, said that "Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip are war crimes," and that the continued bombing and permanent siege may cause tens of thousands of innocent victims. Sachs added - in exclusive statements to Al Jazeera Net - that Israel cannot achieve security through war, but rather through a settlement that guarantees the political rights of the Palestinian people, as part of a comprehensive and just political solution.
Sachs was selected twice on Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world, and he has several books, three of which were best-sellers according to the New York Times. Last year, he also won the Tang Prize for Sustainable Development.
The political economy professor believes that failure will be the fate of the military operations launched by Israel in the Gaza Strip, and he attributed this to three reasons:
- A military reason , as Israel will face great difficulties in the urban warfare in Gaza, and will lose large numbers of its forces, which will put political and humanitarian pressure inside Israel to adopt a strategy based on political action instead of military force.
- A geopolitical reason , as “the world will increasingly demand that Israel stop its massacre,” and the political pressures imposed on it will become more and more strong, both within United Nations organizations and elsewhere.
- For a geostrategic reason , what is happening in Gaza today raises the possibility o
- f prolonging the war and extending it to all parts of the Middle East, including attacks on American forces deployed in the region, and this would greatly increase the security risks to the entire world, including Israel.
Sachs said about the victory of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) in the 2006 elections that Israel should have opened diplomatic and political negotiations with Hamas without preconditions, and Israeli officials should have met with Hamas officials to reach an understanding aimed at a future of mutual peace.
Sachs, who serves as President of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, pointed out that peace must be reached with the Palestinian people, and this should be achieved with the recognition of the State of Palestine by the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations General Assembly, so that Palestine enjoys sovereignty over its lands, including That's East Jerusalem. This does not relate to Hamas per se, but to Palestine.
The professor of political economy rejected America being a mediator in the peace negotiations between Palestine and Israel, because it is “an ally of Israel and this is clear,” but we need a global consensus on moving forward, and this consensus would hardly exist if it were not for the United States, Israel and a few countries that swim. Reverse the current.
Sachs is also currently director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, and he said about American politicians, “They are strongly supportive of Israel, not only because of the Israeli lobby, but also because of American ideology.” “Moreover, the US military and intelligence services are strongly allied with Israel.”
At the conclusion of his statements, he called for movement towards a political solution that was delayed for 50 years, and called on “the international community to unite in order to achieve justice in this geographical area that includes two peoples.” He said, "The two-state solution is the necessary first step towards this path," after "many Israeli human rights and political organizations considered the Israeli regime to be a regime based on apartheid."
The former Egyptian Consul General in Tel Aviv, Rifaat Al-Ansari, expected that the Israeli army would face fierce resistance in the aggression it launched against the Gaza Strip for the second month in a row, without being able to achieve the goals it announced at the beginning of the war, which were eliminating the Palestinian resistance and recovering the prisoners. Civilians and military personnel from its grip.
l-Ansari, who was Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Media and Press until his retirement in November 2009, said in an exclusive interview with Al-Jazeera Net that stopping the war depends on several things: Either Israel achieves its goals in the second phase of the military operation after its failure in... The first round, and either the resistance will suffer unbearable human losses, or the United States will change its position and support the world’s demands to stop the war.
The former diplomat stressed that Israel does not seek peace or the establishment of a Palestinian state, and that the fate of the resistance depends on several factors, foremost of which are: its steadfastness and ability to manage the battle, maneuver through its war on its territory, and rely on specific, painful and crushing strikes.
The following is the text of the interview with Al Jazeera Net:
Why did diplomatic efforts and international appeals fail to transform the temporary truce into a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip? Israel, and behind it the United States of America, do not want any ceasefire until it achieves its goals of liberating all prisoners and eliminating Hamas and its leaders. The goal of the truce was not to reach a permanent ceasefire; Rather, it was to liberate the largest number of prisoners held by the resistance, and therefore it continued for 7 days after it was extended more than once, and it was supposed to reach 10 days, but Israel refused.
Israel does not want peace with the Palestinians, nor does it want a permanent solution to the Palestinian issue, and it will remain an occupying state. I still believe that the Israeli military operation will extend until the end of this December at the very least, and the pressure on Israel is military when the resistance inflicts human losses that it cannot bear. Israeli society, then the war may stop.
America is the one who has the decision to cease fire and end the war, but on the contrary, it supports it with all its might and fuels it with all kinds of weapons it has. It can end everything with a phone call, but it is too early for it to think about that. Israel and America do not care about international public opinion or the international community. Nor any international appeals or efforts to stop this war, or genocide if you wish.
Did the absolute support for Israel at the beginning of Operation Flood turn into widespread condemnation, after the fall of thousands of martyrs, including civilians, children, and women?
Part of Europe's absolute support for Israel turned into widespread condemnation, after images of human killing and cultural destruction of everything in the Gaza Strip spread, but it still enjoys unlimited support from the United States.
There was an agreement between the American administration and the European Union that the war would take its extent and time to achieve its goals, but this agreement began to break down in the part related to the European Union countries, which began to be unable to issue a consensus in opposing the civilian losses, and therefore individual countries began to issue such statements. ; Such as: Belgium and Spain.
International public opinion has a major role in putting pressure on Western governments, and countries that have not taken a position on the necessity of stopping the war may respond to these calls when the pressure of public opinion in their societies becomes stronger than the governments’ ability to bear it, then there will be pressure on Israel.
America considers what happened last October 7 to be a defeat for itself and its man in the region, despite the unparalleled military and intelligence support that Israel has received. Therefore, this day was like a military slap in the face, and it is trying to restore its military and intelligence respect and honor.
America does not care about the deaths of thousands of civilians and sees them as collateral losses, and asks Israel to avoid any civilian casualties so that it can complete its political and military support, but opposition public opinion is developing and growing like a snowball little by little.
America demanded that Israel avoid greater civilian casualties with the start of the second phase of military operations to contain angry public opinion, but what happened was the opposite, due to overcrowding in the southern regions that Israel began bombing, as they became overcrowded three times their population. Due to displacement cases, the number of victims increased, but when the population was distributed throughout the territory of the Gaza Strip, the numbers were less than that.
Does this mean that the mental image of Israel in the West has been affected?
Certainly, the mental image of Israel and Hamas alike has changed, with regard to Israel losing, on the political level, its stereotypical image of being a democratic state that defends itself, to a brutal criminal state that kills children, women and men indiscriminately and destroys everything.
On the military level, Israel lost its honor militarily and intelligence after the terrible defeat on October 7, and its military prestige fell forever, thanks to the resistance’s invasion not only of the Gaza Strip, but also to its ability to storm and seize security, military and intelligence headquarters, and confiscate everything. It contains security and military secrets and intelligence information.
As for Hamas, it has proven to Western public opinion that it is not as brutal as the Israeli media was promoting, by beheading children and raping women. Perhaps the scenes of the exchange of prisoners between the two sides are the greatest evidence of this, and they have turned into inspiring stories between the resistance fighters and the prisoners.
Hamas has succeeded in creating a mental image of its civility in dealing with prisoners, which has brought it the respect and appreciation of international public opinion, and has dealt with prisoners in accordance with humanitarian laws and rules, and this was clearly evident in the feelings of warmth that were present during the receiving and handing over of the prisoners and bidding them farewell to the Hamas resisters.
On the Israeli side, the scene was inhumane and expressed moral decadence rejected by the international community. The prisoners released in the West Bank were deprived of all their rights, and the Israeli forces even physically assaulted them and their families, preventing them from expressing their human feelings.
What is your assessment of the gains and losses of Israel and the Palestinian resistance militarily in the first round? What does Israel seek to achieve in the second round?
For about two months, Israel was unable to free a single hostage during the first round of its military operations. It failed to achieve its declared goals of liberating civilian and military prisoners without any truce with Hamas, and it failed miserably in eliminating the resistance and liquidating its leaders.
I expect the second military round to be more ferocious and destructive, more violent and lethal than the first round. Because it will try to achieve what it failed to do in the first round, in which Israel surrendered and complied with Hamas’ conditions, and then it still has before its eyes the two previous goals that were not achieved, which are the liberation of civilian and military prisoners, and the elimination of Hamas.
Israel also wants to regain its military image with which it has surrounded itself as the strongest and smartest army in the region, first before internal public opinion before international public opinion. Therefore, it is setting its sights on revenge against Yahya Sinwar and Muhammad al-Deif until it declares its victory.
There is no doubt that the massacres committed on a daily basis, represented by the bombing of hospitals, citizens’ homes, bakeries, water stations, and markets, are aimed at causing the largest possible number of victims for several reasons, foremost of which is: putting pressure on Hamas’s leaders and recognizing that it cannot risk the lives of the Gazan people any more. From this, and in order to push people to disbelieve in the resistance, and hold it responsible for the devastation, destruction, and killing in which they live.
The resistance's steadfastness cannot continue indefinitely, but this depends on its economy in consuming its resources, whether energy or weapons and ammunition, its military tactics, and its ability to maneuver on the ground and exploit the land to its advantage in the face of Israel's destructive policy.
As for the Israeli army’s statement that Hamas is superior to them in its knowledge of the region, and still possesses complex capabilities, this is nothing new, and its acknowledgment that the war will be long and will not be limited in time confirms the complexities of the military situation on the ground. Israel did not expect, at the beginning of the military operation, that the war would extend for two months. She expected to achieve her goals within a month at least.
It is not the Israeli army's policy to admit its defeats. Its policy says that they are advancing, even if slowly, and that their losses are less than those of Hamas, and that they have goals and in order to achieve them, the progress may not be what Israeli public opinion desires, and that they are bearing losses, but these losses are equal to The value they will get when Hamas is defeated militarily and politically.
Is Israel risking the lives of dozens of Israeli prisoners by intensifying air, land and sea bombardments? Do you think that the recovery of military prisoners will be similar to the exchange of civilians?
It is indeed risking the lives of all the prisoners held by the resistance, through its bloody military operations throughout the Gaza Strip without respite, but the issue of recovering military prisoners is completely different from what happened with civilian prisoners, for several reasons. The most important of which is that a large portion of these are not ordinary soldiers or officers, but rather of a special type who belong to powerful agencies. Such as: Shin Bet and Unit 8200 of the Military Intelligence “Aman”, and their price is high.
We all know what happened in the deal with the former captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit years ago, and how all Mossad and intelligence services failed to reach his place of detention for years. Because of the special unit that Hamas created for this purpose, Israel was ultimately forced to negotiate his release, and paid a heavy price that I believe it will not forget. So the issue of military prisoners is a different matter, and they number in the dozens, but Hamas has not revealed their number yet.
How do you see the position of Egypt and the surrounding countries regarding displacement? Do you see a deal on this file, especially with the Egyptian movements in northern Sinai?
Moving the war to the south of the Gaza Strip, claiming that Hamas leaders are hiding in its cities, is a pretext for moving the war there and pursuing Hamas leaders, but also - in order to force civilians to move south towards the border with Egypt.
There are under-the-table discussions taking place to convince countries like Egypt to respond to the “human tragedy,” and they are approaching the issue from this standpoint, that it is not forced displacement but rather a humanitarian tragedy, and that the displacement will be temporary, and perhaps the residents of the Gaza Strip want a better life.
Egypt officially declared its position in all international meetings and forums and in its official statements on the issue of displacement, and repeated and emphasized that the displacement of Palestinians and its national security are a red line. Likewise, Jordan and all Arab countries declared their categorical rejection of forced displacement.
Israel today says that it does not aim for forced displacement, and the American administration explicitly declares that it is against forced displacement, and the European Union rejects forced displacement, but the media is one thing and the positions on the ground are another.
Do you think Israel can emerge victorious in its war? Do you think it is able to achieve its goals?
Israel's victory in the war can only be achieved by eliminating the movement's leaders and recovering civilian and military prisoners without negotiations or new deals. No one can predict the end of this brutal war. Because the data on the ground is variable, and force alone does not always guarantee victory.
If we assume that Israel was able to achieve its goals and liberate its hostages, this does not mean eliminating the resistance. Because it is not Hamas, it is not jihad, it is not anything else; Resistance is a belief of the Palestinian people, and the belief cannot be uprooted from the hearts of this people. After this war, everyone will be a loser. Blood only brings blood, and it is impossible to imagine any real future after this war, the effects of which will extend for many years.
The Israeli newspaper "Maariv" reported that residents of southern Tel Aviv filed a complaint with the Supreme Court against the "Home Front Command" for not protecting them from missile threats coming from the Palestinian resistance in Gaza. The petitioners pointed out that the refusal of the relevant authorities to protect them using mobile protected places puts them in a state of helplessness and exposes them to real danger to their lives, at a time when residents of many other neighborhoods in Tel Aviv, Jaffa and other cities have received appropriate attention to solve the existing protection gaps, as they put it according to What was reported in the Israeli newspaper.
Israeli Channel 12 said that the Iron Dome system attempted to intercept Palestinian missiles in the sky of Tel Aviv, confirming that witnesses spoke of about 10 explosions that shook the city. In turn, Al Jazeera's correspondent confirmed that Israeli ambulance teams went to locations in Tel Aviv where rockets were reported. Five Israelis were also injured and a residential building was damaged as a result of a missile falling in the city of Ashkelon , launched from the Gaza Strip, which was preceded by the sound of sirens in the city.
The Al-Qassam Brigades had announced the bombing of Beersheba with a missile barrage, in response to the massacres committed by the Israeli occupation against civilians in the Gaza Strip, in addition to the bombing of the settlements of Netivot and Sderot.
According to the Israeli news sites +972 and Local Call which exposed the "Habsora" mass assassination factory, the AI data arranged its "military" targets into four categories, with two related to civilian objectives: "power targets" and "family homes." Power targets encompass public institutions such as universities, schools, hospitals, government buildings, banks, communication centers, power generation, water plants, fuel storage, residential towers, etc., aiming to induce a high level of civilian suffering.
The other civilian category is "family homes." The Habsora database includes extensive private home addresses of persons suspected of being associated with the Palestinian Resistance. The purpose for this data is to carry out strikes on residential quarters on a massive scale. Even though there is no military activity associated with such addresses, and the unlikelihood that the alleged operative would be home during wartime events, AI delivers, killing multi-generational families, and neighbors as "unintended casualties." Entire generations from multiple families have been completely expunged from the civil registry. An example of this is what we saw on October 31, when "Israel" dropped two-two-ton bombs on a home in the middle of the dense Jabalia refugee camp.
As per +972 and Local Call, in the early days of the Gaza war, the Israeli army focused on civilian infrastructure, where in the first five days nearly "half of the targets bombed — 1,329 out of a total 2,687 — were deemed 'power targets.'"
Bystanders
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Israel will pay a heavy price if it dares to assassinate members of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) in Turkey, in light of the continuing war launched by Tel Aviv on the Gaza Strip. Erdogan explained that the world knows how far Turkey has come in the fields of intelligence and security, stressing that Hamas is a resistance movement fighting to protect its lands.
He said that the future of Gaza would be decided by the Palestinians and Israel must return the occupied territories. He refused to discuss a plan to form a “buffer zone” in Gaza and considered this a “lack of respect” for the Palestinians. He added, "These lands (Gaza) belong to the Palestinians, and the Palestinian people are the ones who decide what will happen and who will rule them." Regarding a peace conference between Palestine and Israel, Erdogan said that Turkey is ready to assume the role of guarantor and also host the conference, provided that there is a real will for peace. Erdogan criticized Western support for Israel and said, "If it were not for the support of all Western countries for Israel, especially the United States, we would not be facing such a scene in our region now."
Erdogan accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of committing war crimes in Gaza and said, "Netanyahu will not be able to escape paying the price for what he did, and he will be tried and pay the price for the war crimes he committed sooner or later." He pointed out that Netanyahu is currently in a situation where he faces bankruptcy, and the bankruptcy flag may be raised at any moment, as he described it.
Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ambassador Hossam Zaki, confirmed that only a complete ceasefire in Gaza can make humanitarian efforts have a tangible impact and change the humanitarian situation of civilians in the Strip. In his speech via video technology, before the International Humanitarian Conference for the Civilian Population in Gaza, Ambassador Zaki pointed to the significant deterioration that the humanitarian situation has witnessed since last month’s meeting, the steady increase in the number of deaths, and the deterioration of the food situation to cases approaching famine.
He pointed out that the health situation has almost completely collapsed and the spread of diseases in an epidemic manner clearly indicates that humanitarian and relief efforts cannot have a tangible impact, or change the picture of the humanitarian situation, without a complete and comprehensive ceasefire.
Ambassador Zaki added: “The Arab League believes that every step to save the civilian population and alleviate their suffering in Gaza is worthy of welcome. However, the covenants made by states do not protect civilians from the scourge of bombing, forced displacement , and death from hunger or disease. This is the truth that is renewed every day in front of Our eyes are blatantly and painfully exposed to the positions of the international community, which is still unable, due to the lack of clarity in the positions of important Western countries , to muster its will to stop the massacre immediately, and painfully to all people of conscience in the world who are following the movement of Gaza’s women and children from its north to its south, to escape indiscriminate strikes. Between a child and a fighter, and do not have mercy on the old or the sick.”
He added: “There is no place for hundreds of thousands to go, some of whom have moved between more than one safe haven over the past two months, after it became clear that there is no safe place in Gaza, neither in the north nor in the south... neither in UNRWA schools nor in hospitals. Every human being.” In Gaza, he is a potential and permissible target for killing at any time and in any place.”
The Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States explained that humanitarian pledges and commitments to provide aid will have a limited impact on saving the population as long as the war machine continues. Pointing out that "tightening the siege and controlling the quantities and quality of aid entering the Gaza Strip by the occupation army is, in fact, a deferred death sentence for hundreds of thousands who do not receive timely relief." He stressed that opening sustainable humanitarian corridors, through an effective and effective mechanism, remains an urgent priority.
He concluded: "The absolute priority remains to stop this war, which has crossed all limits of criminality and has undermined confidence in the system of international humanitarian law. We look forward to a clear, decisive and unified message emerging from this conference calling for an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire."
Axis of Resistance
The Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Iran, Major General Hossein Salami, said that a small part of the resistance’s capabilities had been activated in the recent war, stressing that the Zionist entity would not be able to manage a long-term war.
During the “Global Mobilization of Islam - Resistance, Symbol of Victory” meeting, hosted by Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian in the Foreign Ministry building in Tehran, Major General Salami considered: The biggest factor in the continuation of the war in Gaza today is Netanyahu’s personal need. The Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard said: Even in terms of the military and political logic that we look at in this scene, we see that the Zionist entity will not be able to manage a long-term war in the end, and when a small incident occurs in a large territory, its consequences remain stuck in public opinion for several months. This geography is such that it can make any defeat the final defeat.
He referred to the current conditions in the occupied territories and said that 30% of jobs were lost and that the daily cost of this war amounts to 260 million dollars to the Zionist entity. The biggest factor in the continuation of the war today is the personal needs of the Prime Minister of this entity, and there is no performance more weak and insulting than the performance of the Israeli entity during Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
Referring to the Al-Aqsa Flood operation, Major General Salami said that 1,500 people passed through electronic sensors, eavesdropping systems, balloons, etc., without being noticed, which is a fall in the credibility of the security system, which is the biggest reason for the collapse of any system.
He said about predicting this war: The Zionists and Americans are not acting rationally. Palestine's future generations have learned with whom they must fight and weapons will be provided to them. The Zionist entity will not become stronger, its enemies will become stronger, and finally victory will go to the oppressed Palestinians.
According to the Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, a small part of the resistance capabilities have been activated. He added that the mobilization forces, as we know them on the ground, are the greatest and inexhaustible defensive force in the world. He noted: When large armies operate, they have greater influence at the beginning of the operation, and when time passes, their power curve is a downward curve. Sometimes with a steep incline and sometimes with a slow incline. This is because the capacity of classical armies is fixed and their energy is gradually depleted over time.
Major General Salami continued: But the Basij, unlike all these military forces, is an endless force, and has the ability to move quickly, and its growth in war is always greater than its fall. Over time, this power will increase, because it depends on the logic of jihad and martyrdom. Every time a young man falls to the ground in battle, we find that more young men carry the banner and continue.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Guards added: “During the Ramadan operations, we were in our trench and the Basij men advanced carrying grenade launchers and hit the tanks from a close range. When they were wounded, others went to transport the wounded, and these operations continued, and no one feared bullet fire at all, and this is the nature of mobilization.” He continued that this force (of fatigue) knows no limits to defend the values of Islam, and they are sharpening their resolve to defend Islamic values.
Major General Salami said, “The possibilities of war are high in the environment around us, and in the past 45 years, all wars, except for the wars in the Balkans and Ukraine, have been in this region.” But inside us there are no signs of anxiety about war and no one is afraid. “Israel” Palestine is bombed and the Americans threaten. In our north, war is always a strong phenomenon, and it was also in our east. Aircraft carriers are sent to the region and are a symbol of imperial power roaming the waters of the world and acting as instruments of influence and political control, but once they arrive in Iran they lose their political character and are forced to accept influence. As the US Secretary of Defense said a few years ago, it becomes scrap metal.
He explained that the main reason for this is the ability that was formed, thanks to God, and is continuing its work. Major General Salami stated that, thanks to God, an interesting change has occurred in the world. You may not see it in the short term, but its effects in the long term will certainly be clear. This is when the Islamic Revolution crossed borders and formed power structures. These structures were linked to each other and formed the geography of resistance. Establishing a resistance front, our enemies were forced to leave strategic shelters and the enemies were forced to engage in military expansion directly. But this expansion became so extensive that they themselves suffered from the phenomenon of over-expansion.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani said the reality in Gaza surpasses a simplistic labeling such as “Hamas-Israel war”, describing it as a comprehensive military assault by an occupying regime with American support. Kanaani compared the ongoing propaganda campaign waged by the Zionist regime and the US coalition against the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas to the unrelenting barrage of missiles faced by the Palestinian people in Gaza.
He clarified that the situation in Gaza is not a war between Israel and Hamas but “a comprehensive military assault by an occupying regime, heavily armed and politically, militarily, technologically, operationally, and propagandistically supported by the American regime against the Palestinian people.” The spokesman highlighted that the Palestinians have faced occupation for 75 years, enduring a relentless onslaught including attacks, killings, expulsion, assassination, detention, torture, siege, and bombardment by the occupying regime. He emphasized that the propaganda bombardment by the Zionist-American axis against Palestinians is no less impactful than the missile bombardment they face.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Palestinian Authority explained that the Israeli entity is asking the displaced people in the Gaza Strip to move further “to cram them in and limit their movement in one direction” towards the Rafah border crossing with Egypt. What the Palestinian Foreign Ministry reached indicates that the occupation realizes that the duration of its bloody war with the support of a number of countries is running out and has become relatively limited, and therefore it is racing against time by intensifying its attacks and crimes in an unprecedented manner to destroy everything that remains of the northern Gaza Strip and complete the destruction of its south. In light of these massacres, Palestinian factions warned against falling in line with the "displacement project" from Gaza under the headings of protection, humanitarian assistance , or safe areas, appreciating the Egyptian position that rejects it.
Allied for Democracy
The massacre in the Gaza Envelope and the war drove many Israelis out of the country, according to data provided to Zeman Israel from the Population and Immigration Authority. According to the data, from October 7, approximately 370 thousand Israelis left the country - 230,309 of them from the beginning of the war to the end of October and another 139,839 from the beginning of November to November 29. At the same time, according to the PA's data, 301,982 Israelis entered Israel in October and 194,016 in November, for a total of about half a million. Apparently, the number of arrivals was much greater than the number of departures, but in fact, most of the arrivals were Israeli travelers returning to Israel from the holiday vacations. The number of Israelis who left and did not return was about 470,000 greater than the number who returned. This is, therefore, for now, a negative immigration of close to half a million people.
The fact that approximately 300,000 Israelis returned to Israel from the outbreak of the war until the end of October was misinterpreted and published in various media as "an exciting wave of immigration and return to Israel." The publications ignored the fact that most of those entering the country had just returned from the holidays, as well as the existence of hundreds of thousands of Israelis who did not return from the holidays - and those who left the country during the war.
An op-ed written by analyst Ishaan Tharoor for Wahington Post discussed the fact that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently facing two significant challenges, and he is unlikely to succeed at any of them. On one front, he is leading a war on Gaza and the resistance that carried out an operation on October 7, and on another front, he is dealing with the resumption of trial proceedings related to long-standing corruption allegations against him.
The charges include bribery, fraud, and breach of trust, making him the first Israeli prime minister to be indicted while in office. The resumption of the trial follows the end of an emergency at Israeli courts, which had halted non-urgent cases in the aftermath of the October 7 resistance operation. Netanyahu's legal troubles have been a significant backdrop to Israeli politics for almost half a decade, influencing his relationship with the regime's judiciary and media.
The October 7 operation heightened public scrutiny of Netanyahu. While there is a call for tough action against the resistance, many Israelis also hold Netanyahu accountable for the failures of the Israeli security apparatus. The friction between Netanyahu's cabinet and the families of captives has resonated in Israeli society, leading to protests and calls for the prime minister's resignation. Opposition leader Yair Lapid and other figures have urged Netanyahu to step down, citing his failure and loss of trust.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he will not allow any threat in the Gaza Strip or the presence of any external forces to ensure that Gaza remains demilitarized, while his Defense Minister Yoav Galant said that Israel's existence depends on victory in this war. Netanyahu stressed, during a joint press conference with Gallant and member of the war government, Benny Gantz , that the war will not stop unless its declared goals are achieved, and that he will not accept the presence of any non-Israeli forces to ensure that Gaza remains demilitarized after the end of the fighting.
Netanyahu made many allegations about resistance fighters attacking female civilian detainees, and claimed that some of them were subjected to rape and ill-treatment at the hands of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and criticized “the silence of international organizations and United Nations women regarding these crimes simply because they occurred to Jewish women,” as he put it.
Regarding the course of the war, Netanyahu said that he directed the fighting to continue in the south of the Gaza Strip, and that the ground shook in Khan Yunis and Jabalia, and that half of Hamas’ leaders were killed in this war, according to him. He added, " I told the families of the kidnapped people (prisoners and detainees) that we are working to return everyone and that the war serves this goal," stressing that "there is strong intelligence working around the clock to recover soldiers and civilians, and we are on the right path."
Netanyahu said that his army is currently dismantling the Hamas brigades, and that he eliminated the commander of the Shujaiya brigade who led the October 7 attack (the Al-Aqsa flood ), adding, “Hamas leaders surrounded us and our soldiers are fighting face to face, eliminating the saboteurs, and our hand is uppermost, and we will fight until the great victory.”
But Israel is paying a huge, heartbreaking price, because it has lost many soldiers, according to what Netanyahu said, who nevertheless stressed the continuation of the war until the elimination of Hamas, the return of the prisoners, and ensuring that there is no support for terrorism in Gaza, according to him.
Netanyahu said that "post-war Gaza" must be demilitarized, and that this matter will be done by the Israeli army alone, stressing that he will not accept the presence of any force to ensure that it remains demilitarized. He added, "We saw what happened from international forces in other demilitarized areas, and I say to those who are pressuring us to end the war that the only way (to stop the war) is to strike Hamas with a crushing blow. This is your war as well, and you must stand with us."
Netanyahu addressed those who are pressing to stop the war, saying, “I say to you in English and in all languages: Stand with us...Stand with Israel.”
In response to a question about the existence of a dispute between him and the Minister of Defense, who ordered a strike on Hezbollah without consulting him, Netanyahu said that they have a common goal that they are working to achieve in the north and south (the Lebanese and Gaza borders), and what we are doing to deter Hezbollah supports our security in Gaza.
He added, "I believe that this is the correct way to achieve victory, and everyone agrees with me on this, because the threat of Hamas and Hezbollah faces us all. Minister Gallant and I work in great cooperation in the war council and the expanded government."
As for Gallant, he also stressed that the army is paying heavy prices in this war, which he said is that Israel’s presence in the region depends on achieving victory in it. Gallant said, “We are striking Hamas from land, sea, air, and through intelligence, and we are achieving great, exciting, and accurate results,” adding, “This war has very high prices, because victory must be overwhelming, precise, and achieve the goal of striking Hamas, dismantling its military and authoritarian authority, and recovering the kidnapped (captives).” ", according to his expression.
Gallant pointed out that he visited the southern Gaza border on Monday, and saw the fighting for himself, saying: “I saw the precise fighting, and I know that the warriors do not leave a tunnel or a place for weapons or missiles. They eliminate every threat with all available means and in cooperation with all devices.”
He stressed that "what happened in Gaza City is now happening in Khan Yunis," describing the results after 5 days of renewed fighting as "significant." Gallant said, "Hamas currently realizes that neither Iran nor Hezbollah can help it, and that it is at the disposal of the Israeli army," adding, "We will dismantle all threats, Hamas' chain of command, and its weapons stores."
He continued, "I say to those who have recently asked about the legitimacy of continuing the war: We will not stop until we eliminate Hamas and recover the kidnapped people, and we are increasing military pressure in order to achieve this goal." Galant concluded his speech by saying that Israeli soldiers "face risks in order to carry out military and intelligence operations to recover the kidnapped people, and we are fighting an inevitable war, and we will not have a presence in the region unless we win this war and eliminate Hamas as a system."
For his part, member of the mini-war council, Benny Gantz, said that Israel is currently expanding its ground operations in the Gaza Strip, as we have committed to, adding, “We are proving that nothing stops us and that Israel is the one that determines its future... We are working in the north, south, and everywhere, and we are doing what is good.” "For Israel." Like Netanyahu and Gallant, Gantz also said that this war “has a great price, and we are making great and joint efforts to recover the kidnapped people.”
He added, "Tomorrow the budget will be presented for the first reading, and there are major challenges in the war and the economy. We will look at those who were evacuated and called up from the reserve, and we will make adjustments to the budget," stressing that the leadership "is facing a test and we must work responsibly." The IDF began to intensify its strikes in the south of the Gaza Strip, with the majority of its forces withdrawn from the north due to the severity of the strikes it was subjected to, according to what the resistance confirmed last Sunday.
During his speech at the Manama Security Forum two weeks ago, the Coordinator for Middle East and North Africa Affairs at the National Security Council, Brett McGurk, touched on the White House’s vision , which he summarized in 5 no’s and followed them with 5 principles. It has become common in Washington to refer to these principles and loyalties as the “Tokyo Principles,” since Secretary of State Anthony Blinken first touched on them in a press conference held in Tokyo, on the sidelines of his participation in the meeting of foreign ministers of the seven major countries. This vision indicates that in the near term, the United States insists on and will work to ensure the following with respect to Gaza:
- First, there must be no forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.
- Secondly, there must be no reoccupation of Gaza.
- Third, there must be no reduction or cutting of Gaza's lands. This is Palestinian land, and it must remain Palestinian land.
- Fourth, Gaza must not be used as a platform for terrorism or other violence, meaning there are no threats to Israel from Gaza.
- Fifth, there must be no siege of Gaza, and innocent people in Gaza must be separated from Hamas, as innocent civilians are not responsible for Hamas’ crimes.
In the medium and long term, Washington believes in five principles, which it believes will have positive consequences if adhered to. They are:
- First, the Palestinian people and their aspirations must be the focus of Gaza’s post-crisis governance system.
- Second, the West Bank and Gaza Strip must return to unified rule, eventually under active Palestinian authority, and be integrated into a future Palestinian state.
- Third, Israel must be secure, and terrorist groups and threats to Israel cannot be allowed to emanate and spread from the West Bank or Gaza.
- Fourth, resources must be made available, and preparations must now be made to support the post-crisis phase in Gaza, including security resources, and the use of these resources must aim to lay the foundation for a path that ultimately leads to a two-state solution.
- Fifth, a reconstruction mechanism must be established to ensure that the needs of the people of Gaza are met on a long-term and sustainable basis. We have done this before as an international community, and we can do it again.
In an interview on the Council on Foreign Relations website, the Council’s Middle Eastern affairs expert, Stephen Cook, ridiculed what the Biden administration is talking about in its pursuit of a two-state solution. Cook criticized the Biden administration’s approach with its partners in the region to the post-conflict issue, by suggesting that “it should There will be an effort to revitalize the Palestinian Authority ,” which is endangered by its dysfunction and massive corruption.
Cook said, “The legitimacy of the Palestinian Authority is at risk because of its security cooperation with Israel,” and added, “After the Palestinian Authority is activated to extend its authority again to the Gaza Strip, where it has been absent since 2007, and that security in the Gaza Strip will be the result of some kind of multinational effort, This would pave the way for the resumption of negotiations towards a two-state solution.”
Cook concluded his speech by saying, “I have to be honest. I think that talking now about a two-state solution is pure fantasy in every way. Neither side, for domestic political purposes, can meet the minimum requirements of the other side, so I did not understand what Secretary Blinken was saying, or everyone else, when there is talk of a two-state solution.”
American officials told Axios that Israel is currently showing greater willingness to discuss plans and visions for the future of Gaza after the war. American officials: Israel is now ready to discuss the future of Gaza"Politico" reveals Biden's post-war plan in Gaza and Israel's opinion of it According to officials familiar with the talks that took place this week between the Israeli government and the administration of US President Joe Biden, the Biden team has been pressuring Israel since the early stages of the war to develop a plan for what will happen in Gaza after the war. The officials told the site that the United States wants to avoid a governance and security vacuum in Gaza after the war that might allow Hamas to return again.
The website quoted a senior American official as saying that in the talks that took place this week with Phil Gordon, the national security advisor to US Vice President Kamala Harris, Israeli officials were “ready to talk about the future” in Gaza. The American administration also expressed its concern that Israel might continue its military ground operation in southern Gaza using the same tactics as it did in the northern part of the Strip.
American officials said that Gordon briefed the Israelis on Harris' conversations in Dubai with Arab leaders about what would happen after the end of the war in Gaza, and presented what Harris had put forward publicly about how the US administration views reconstruction, security, and governance in Gaza after the fighting. A third American official told Axios that American officials want to "be there every week so we can engage with Israelis and Palestinians face-to-face about the future of Gaza."
The Politico website reported that officials in the administration of US President Joe Biden had spent weeks formulating a multi-stage plan for the future of the Gaza Strip after the war, ending with the Palestinian Authority eventually taking control of the Strip, while the Israeli Foreign Ministry refused to comment on these perceptions. According to Politico, this solution is “not ideal,” but American officials view it as the best of the bad options, after the war between Israel and the Hamas movement, classified as a terrorist organization in the United States and other countries, led to the destruction of infrastructure, the killing of thousands of Palestinians, and the displacement of more than Another 1.5 million.
Officials at the State Department, the White House, and outside have laid out parts of the strategy in multiple position papers and interagency meetings since mid-October, according to what Politico reported, citing American officials, a State Department official, and an administration official familiar with the discussions, whose names were not disclosed.
Although US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, and other US administration officials have publicly declared that a “revitalized” Palestinian Authority should administer Gaza, they have not revealed details about how this will be done. They have already faced resistance from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has effectively ruled out any future role for the Palestinian Authority in Gaza. A US State Department official said, "We are stuck. There is a strong political preference for the Palestinian Authority to play a governing role in Gaza, but it has major challenges in terms of legitimacy and capabilities."
According to Politico, the broad vision that emerged from the internal talks is to reconstruct Gaza in multiple stages once the violent fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas ends. An international force will be needed to stabilize the region in the immediate aftermath, followed by a renewed Palestinian Authority that takes power in the long term.
Key parts of the plan include increasing security-related assistance provided by the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs to the Palestinian Authority and allowing a greater role for the U.S. Security Coordinator, who has a long track record of advising Palestinian security forces, the officials said.
“Ultimately, we want to have a Palestinian security structure in Gaza after the conflict,” a senior Biden administration official said. Officials confirmed that the proposed plan is “nascent ideas and is subject to many unpredictable variables,” while a spokesman for the White House National Security Council declined to comment.
According to Politico, any strategy proposed by the United States will face several obstacles, including Israeli suspicions and Arab frustration, although regional players and analysts generally agree that Washington will need to play a decisive role in the post-war phase.
Perhaps the most difficult immediate challenge is knowing who will play a role in achieving stability in Gaza in the transitional period following the fighting. An American official said, "While the Arab countries seemed hesitant or completely unwilling to send forces to Gaza, some in recent talks seemed more open to the idea."
The Biden administration has ruled out sending American forces, and one of the ideas that has been circulated is to ask the UAE to help rebuild health facilities or train civil servants. The American official said, "The United Nations can play a role in Gaza in the post-war phase, at least on the humanitarian front."
Neighboring Egypt is likely to play a major role in post-war Gaza, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s proposal that the future Palestinian state be “ demilitarized with a temporary international security presence ” has been echoed in Biden administration circles, according to Politico.
gyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s talk about a “future demilitarized Palestinian state” raised questions about the meaning of this concept, and the extent to which Israel and the Palestinian Authority accept the “proposal,” while officials and specialists reveal to Al-Hurra website the extent to which this can be implemented on the ground.
A senior Biden administration official said: “The big unknown is what will remain of Hamas in Gaza, and even if the group’s numbers are low, their access to weapons could dramatically change the calculations of countries considering sending forces.” The only thing the United States hopes to see is clearer condemnations of Hamas by Arab rulers, many of whom secretly hate the militant group and see it as a potential threat to their governments.
The key to convincing many Arab leaders to plan seriously for the post-war era appears to be the assertion that “the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel is the ultimate goal.” A State Department official said US officials are largely driven by this same outcome, but planning for now is focused on stabilizing Gaza. One reason President Biden and his aides have rejected the call for a long-term ceasefire is that they support the Israeli goal of destroying Hamas, which Washington sees as a major obstacle to a two-state solution.
In previous statements to Al-Hurra TV, the official spokesman for the Palestinian Presidency, Nabil Abu Rudeina, confirmed the Palestinian Authority’s readiness to assume responsibility in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. He pointed out that for 30 years, the Palestinian Authority has been sending all of Gaza's needs, including electricity, water, gas, health and education.
There are 88,000 employees, both active and retired, who receive their pensions from the Palestinian Authority’s budget,” according to Abu Rudeina. He added: "We are ready to assume our responsibilities in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, as we agreed in Oslo and in accordance with international legitimacy."
In 1993, Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization signed the Oslo Accords under American and international sponsorship, as a basis leading to the implementation of the two-state solution after agreeing on what became known as the “final solution issues.” Under the Oslo Accords, Israel partially withdrew from areas in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and their administration was taken over by the Palestinian Authority, led by Yasser Arafat, who returned to the Palestinian territories.
Speaking to Al-Hurra TV, Abu Rudeina said: “We have nothing to do with what is happening between Hamas and Israel,” adding, “We are responsible for the Palestinian people in Gaza.” He called for stopping the "aggression" and paving the way for holding free and fair elections, so that whoever succeeds in these elections will rule Gaza and the West Bank, as he put it.
Although US officials, including Biden himself, use the word “revitalized” to describe their hopes for a future Palestinian Authority running Gaza, words like “reform,” “renewal,” or “restructuring” are perhaps more applicable. In response to Politico's request for comment from the Israeli government, an Israeli official, who requested anonymity to discuss an issue still under review, said that "the gap between the United States and Israel is much smaller than meets the eye."
The Israeli official said: “The two administrations agree that the Palestinian Authority in its current form cannot govern Gaza.” He added: "A revitalized and reformed person may be able to do this... but we have not yet had discussions about what exactly this reform should look like." However, it is not clear what level of change in the Palestinian Authority would satisfy Netanyahu or his political allies.
Netanyahu has at times called for the establishment of a new Palestinian governance structure in Gaza, while also suggesting that Israel have some sort of overall security control. His statements have not always been consistent, but they do indicate openness to future Palestinian Authority rule in Gaza.
Speaking to Al-Hurra website, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Hayat refused to talk about a specific practical vision that Israel accepts for the future of Gaza. Hayat told Al-Hurra website: “No one can talk about that now.” He added: "This is not the right time to talk about what will happen next. We are still fighting Hamas and trying to release the hostages."
For his part, the administration official told Politico that American officials have not had as much luck as they would like to have Israeli leaders discuss in a meaningful way what Gaza will look like after the war. Some analysts and officials in Washington are concerned that simply trying to define what constitutes an end to the war will, over time, become “a point of contention between Israel and the United States.” The US administration official said: “The Israelis are not in the mood to talk about the next day.... They're very focused on today, so there wasn't a lot of interest there".
Axios reported that Israel is currently showing greater willingness to discuss plans and visions for the future of Gaza after the war, according to what it reported from American officials with direct knowledge of the talks that took place this week between the Israeli government and the administration of US President Joe Biden.
But the Axios website stated that Israel is currently showing greater willingness to discuss plans and visions for the future of Gaza after the war, according to what it quoted from American officials with direct knowledge of the talks that took place this week between the Israeli government and the administration of President Biden.
As it plans for the future, the Biden administration is consulting with outside analysts, civil society activists and others, some of whom have warned of “potential risks,” according to Politico. The Arab countries in the region cannot even agree among themselves on how to deal with the post-war scenario, and these are the countries that the United States hopes will finance any reconstruction process.
There is also the US presidential election in 2024, and if Republicans win, they will likely submit more to Israel's wishes, even if that angers America's Arab partners in the Middle East, Politico notes. American officials mapping out the different scenarios face difficulties because of the many variables involved. Unlike the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, which the Biden administration predicted months in advance, the Hamas attack was a surprise to the American establishment. The US administration official said that after nearly two months of war, "people were worried."
NBC News reported that more than 40 interns working in the White House and other executive offices joined the growing list of President Joe Biden's administration officials demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. NBC explained that the interns sent a letter to Biden and his deputy, Kamala Harris , late yesterday, Tuesday, accusing him of “ignoring the appeals of the American people,” and urging him to call for a permanent ceasefire now, and the release of all “hostages,” including Palestinian political prisoners.
They also called for support for a diplomatic solution that would put an end to the illegal occupation and Israeli apartheid, in accordance with international law and for the sake of a free Palestine , stressing that anything other than a complete cessation of the Israeli mass slaughter of innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip will not be enough.
“We, the undersigned, working at the White House, will no longer remain silent about the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people,” the interns wrote in their letter. They added: "We take into account the voice of the American people and call on the administration to demand a permanent ceasefire. We are not today's decision-makers, but we aspire to be tomorrow's leaders, and we will never forget how the appeals of the American people have been ignored so far."
The interns, like those demanding a permanent ceasefire in the US administration who sent similar letters in recent weeks, refused to write their names, but rather identified themselves with the offices in which they work: the Executive Office of the President, the Office of the Vice President, and the Domestic Policy Council. They also added their previous religions, nationalities, and ethnicities to identify themselves: “Palestinian, Jewish, Arab, Muslim, Christian, black, Asian, Latino, white.”
The interns said they went to work in his administration because of “our shared values ??and the deep belief that America, under your leadership, has the potential to be a nation that stands for justice and peace.” NBC News commented by saying that their meaning is clear, which is that they do not see him running the country to this standard at the present time.
Butcher's Bill / Oasis of Martyrs
Niazi Gideon, a former Israeli officer, revealed hidden official statistics that the occupation leaders and the Netanyahu government are withholding from the Israelis. Gideon said, in a video he posted on his personal Facebook account, that the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Martyrs Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement in Gaza, had killed more than “3,000” soldiers and officers from the Israeli army since last October 7 , and that the Israelis should not listen to the lies of the occupation government and its statistics about the deaths of its forces in the Battle of Al-Aqsa Flood.
Palestinian armed group Hamas launched thousands of missiles at Israel and deployed its militants to infiltrate Jewish settlements near the country’s border with Gaza on 07 October 2023. The 1,200 Israelis killed on the first day would be the equivalent of 36,000 Americans killed in an attack, as a proportion to Israel’s population of 9.3 million people (compared to 332 million in the USA). Israeli President Isaac Herzog stated: “Not since the Holocaust have so many Jews been killed in one day". PM Netanyahu stated "On October 7th, Hamas murdered 1,400 Israelis. Maybe more. This is in a country of fewer than 10 million people. This would be equivalent to over 50,000 Americans murdered in a single day. That’s twenty 9/11s. That is why October 7th is another day that will live in infamy."
It is the second largest loss inflicted on the Israeli forces after the 1973 war, as the Palestinian resistance killed more than 1,200, wounded more than 5,132 others, and captured more than 250, most of them military personnel, some of whom were high-ranking officers in the army.
The HAMAS Ministry of Health in the besieged sector announced that the number of victims of the Israeli operation its beginning had risen to 16,248 martyrs. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Gaza's health ministry had two days earlier registered the deaths of over 18,000 Palestinians, a major jump from the "about 15,000" reported a few days earlier. The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Observatory reports that it had "counted up to this moment about 17,500 dead Palestinians". The count included about 7,112 children killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since October 7, the Gaza Press Office said. The Hamas-run government said 4,885 women were among the dead.
The number of injured had risen to 43,616 with varying injuries, up from 36,000 five days earlier [which was up by 3,000 from the previous report]. The Palestinian Government Media Office in Gaza said the number of missing people had risen to more than 7,500 [ double the 3,750 previously reported], including 1,800 children still under the rubble, including 4,700 children and women. The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced that the number of wounded as 36,000 [previously announced as about 32,000 wounded], 75 percent of them children and women.
Israel revised down the death toll from the October Hamas attacks in southern Israel from 1,400 to 1,200. IDF had said previously it was holding 1,500 bodies of terrorists, a total that now would increas to about 1,700.
The number of Israeli soldiers that the IDF admitted were killed in ground battles with the Palestinian resistance reached 90, while the death toll for the Israel forces had risen to 410 soldiers since the beginning of Operation al-Aqsa Flood. At least 7,771 Israelis were injured.
The Israeli army announced the killing of 2 of its members, the day after 7 of its soldiers were killed in the ongoing battles in the Gaza Strip, including 5 officers, which is the highest toll announced by the occupation army in one day since the start of the operation.
The Hebrew newspaper Haaretz revealed that the number of soldiers who were injured since the start of the war reached about a thousand soldiers, noting that 202 soldiers were seriously injured. The army rarely referred to casualties when talking about the deaths of soldiers during battles. According to the same newspaper, this policy differs from what was prevalent in previous wars and military campaigns, during which the army also published the number of its wounded, in addition to publishing other details. The IDF previously announced that more than 260 soldiers had been injured since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip, including 100 in serious condition.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry released its first official casualty numbers in fighting, saying 77 people were killed and 251 wounded since the start of the war on Gaza.
Hostages
Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy told reporters that Hamas still held 137 captives. The resistance released 10 Israeli detainees, 4 Thais and 2 Russian women, who were released outside the agreement. Over the course of 6 days, Israel has received 102 detainees, women and children, including 78 Israelis, in exchange for the release of 234 Palestinian prisoners, women and children,
Levy told reporters 01 December 2023:
- Hamas still holds 137 hostages from the October attacks, in addition to four others who went missing before the war
- The hostages include two children aged four and 10 months, who, Hamas now claims, are dead
- 117 male hostages are still kept in Gaza, including the two children, as well as 20 females
- 126 hostages are Israelis, and 11 others are foreign nationals
- Foreign nationals are eight Thais, one Nepalese, one Tanzanian and one French Mexican citizen
- Ten of the remaining hostages are 75 and older. There are seven missing people since the October 7 attack
- Hamas has released 110 hostages so far – 86 Israelis and 24 foreign nationals.
The Al-Qassam Brigades announced the death of an Israeli woman and her two children who were detained by them as a result of a previous Israeli bombing of Gaza. The Israeli army confirmed the deaths of five hostages held in Gaza, saying their families had been informed, and the body of one of them returned to Israel. “In recent days, the IDF and Israel police notified the families of the hostages Eliyahu Margalit, Maya Goren, Ronen Engel and Arye Zalmanovitz about their deaths,” army spokesman Daniel Hagari said. He also said troops had brought back the body of a fifth person that he identified as Ofir Tsarfati. Hagari said Gaza militants were still holding “136 hostages, among them 17 women and children.”
Before the release of the sixth batch of Israelis detained in Gaza, Israeli government spokesman Elon Levy said that 161 Israelis are still detained in the Strip [al-Jazeera reported "more than 100 prisoners" remain with the resistance]. Levy added that Israel has prepared a list of 50 Palestinian detainees to be released if Hamas continues to release detainees. At least 76, and possibly more than 80, hostages had been released by Hamas over six days of a cease-fire. During the pause, Hamas fighters released 60 Israeli women and children. In return, Israel released 180 security detainees from its prisons, all of them women and minors under the age of 19. Hamas also separately released 19 foreign hostages, most of them Thai farm workers, under separate agreements parallel to the truce agreement.
Thirty children held by Gazan terrorists have been released as part of a four-day ceasefire deal with Hamas that began Friday, but 10 still remain in the Strip. The terror group has said it planned to release 20 more hostages as part of a two-day extension to the deal. U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said the Biden administration believes eight or nine more Americans are still being held but the U.S. does not have "solid information on each and every one of them." Perhaps 100 are Israeli civilians. Some of the rest are soldiers, seized when Hamas raided military bases in Israel. They may end up being held the longest. The Israeli military had not specified how many soldiers were captured, nor their ranks.
By one account
- 236 confirmed abducted civilians and IDF soldiers.
- 18 of the abductees are elderly people aged 75 and older.
- 121 of the abductees have foreign citizenship (including dual citizenship).
Conflicting estimates were provided regarding the number of Thai nationals still in captivity. The Wall Street Journal reported 25 November 2023 that Hamas is interested in releasing 23 Thai citizens during the four days of the ceasefire, mediated by Iran. On the other hand, the Thai Foreign Ministry claimed 20 more citizens who are held captive by Hamas, and that four of the ten who were released were not included in the number initially estimated.
According to some estimates, Hamas was initially holding nearly 210 of the 240 hostages, while Palestinian Islamic Jihad was holding the remaining 30. About 40 Israelis remained missing. More than 40 hostages taken from Israel into Gaza on October 7th are not currently in the custody of Hamas, the group responsible for the attack, according to a CNN report based on a diplomatic source briefed on the negotiations, CNN's prior reports had indicated that an estimated 40 to 50 hostages were held by Palestinian Islamic Jihad or other unidentified groups or individuals.
Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, said on Hamas’ telegram account that 23 bodies of the 60 missing Israel hostages were trapped under the rubble. “It seems that we will never be able to reach them due to the continued brutal aggression of the occupation against Gaza,” he said.
Since the start of the war on October 7, at least 3,400 people had been detained, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society. Israel said that, since the beginning of the war, about 2,100 wanted persons have been arrested throughout the IOS Division and the Bekaa and Emekim Brigade, about 1,100 of them are affiliated with Hamas.
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