Operation Iron Swords - Day 106 - 20 January 2024
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NEW - Operations NEW - Operations Maps NEW - By-Standers NEW - Axis of Resistance NEW - Allied for Democracy UPDATED - Oasis of Martyrs UPDATED - Hostages |
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he would not give up full Israeli security control over all the lands west of Jordan. Netanyahu had said that Israel would maintain its security control over the Gaza Strip, after eliminating the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), stressing that security control is to ensure that Gaza does not pose any future security threat to Israel.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office denied what CNN reported about Netanyahu's commitment to the Palestinian state, during his call with US President Joe Biden, stressing that Netanyahu repeated to Biden his firm position regarding the Palestinian state. Biden had confirmed that Netanyahu did not oppose the issue, pointing out that the two-state solution was not impossible with Netanyahu in power. The US President's statements came after his first call with the Israeli Prime Minister in about a month, during which they discussed the issue of the two-state solution.
The Associated Press quoted American officials as saying that Biden's frustration with Netanyahu during their recent call had become more apparent. In this context, the Palestinian presidency called on the United States to recognize the State of Palestine and not just talk about a two-state solution, stressing that the Palestinian people will not give up their legitimate rights, Jerusalem and its sanctities, and the establishment of their independent Palestinian state, no matter how long it takes. The statement published by the Palestinian News Agency (Wafa) said that the occupation government still refuses to acknowledge the fact that peace will not be achieved without the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
On the 106th day of the Israeli war in the Gaza Strip , Israeli bombing and fierce clashes continued between the Palestinian resistance and the occupation forces in various areas of the Gaza Strip. In the West Bank, the IDF raided several areas there, and settlers continued their attacks on Palestinian citizens for the second day in a row. In the axes supporting the Palestinian resistance in Gaza, the Ain al-Assad base, which houses American forces in Iraq, was bombed with dozens of missiles, while the Lebanese Hezbollah announced that it had targeted many Israeli sites. As for Yemen, an American bombing targeted a Houthi anti-ship missile in the Gulf of Aden.
In several European countries, massive demonstrations took place in solidarity with Gaza, calling for an end to the Israeli aggression against the Strip, which has continued since the seventh of last October.
A member of the South African advisory group before the International Court of Justice said that the team expects a ruling on the case against Israel within a week.
Operational Update
The Israeli military questions the authenticity of The New York Times report, which cites Israeli commanders who have complained about the IDF's failures in the Gaza Strip. The New York Times reported that doubts have been raised by the Israeli military's high command regarding the feasibility of their objectives in Gaza, particularly in light of the limited progress in their proclaimed objective of "uprooting" Hamas from the Gaza Strip.
According to the report, Israel was unable to meet its goals of occupying large areas of the Gaza Strip and has had to settle for less than it had originally planned, which raised concerns among some commanders regarding the effectiveness of the Israeli war cabinet's strategy. The slow pace of the operation has led to private expressions of frustration among some Israeli commanders, according to NYT. The report suggests that some commanders are contemplating prioritizing the retrieval of Israeli captives held by the Palestinian Resistance, at the cost of backing away from the political command's goal of "dismantling" the Palestinian Resistance.
The Resistance's expansive tunnel network has proven to be an intricate maze, filled with booby traps that have cost Israeli special forces heavy losses since the ground invasion into the Gaza Strip was initiated. In fact, the Resistance's tunnels have been the main focus of the occupation's military, as they are regarded to be essential strategic infrastructure to the Palestinian Resistance's work. Despite the goal of destroying the tunnel network, the Israeli military has not succeeded. Brigade after brigade attempted to crack the puzzle but failed. This includes multiple Combat Engineering Brigades and the Yahalom Special Comabt Engineering Unit, whose ranks have been substantially reduced.
NYT also points to a reality that has contradicted the occupation's timeframe. Essentially, the IDF had expected to take "full control" of major cities in the Gaza Strip, such as Gaza City, Khan Younis, and Rafah by late December. According to the report, "Israel" is yet to even launch a ground invasion into Rafah, while it faces mounting difficulties in Khan Younis. Moreover, the IDF has also failed to "eliminate" many of the Resistance leaders that it had vowed to kill, including Yahya al-Sinwar, Mohammad Deif, Marwan Issa, and others.
The Israeli military command responded to the testimonies of several commanders given to NYT by saying that the sources were "not known" to the military and "do not reflect" its position.
Military expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi said that the Israeli occupation army began a broader ground operation north of Gaza in implementation of the warnings of Prime Minister Herzi Halevy a few days ago, in which he spoke about the possibility of the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) rebuilding its combat strength. Halevy had confirmed a few days ago that Hamas is capable of rebuilding its combat capabilities in the north, indicating that this matter may require implementing a broader operation than the previous one.
According to Al-Duwairi, Israel began this broader operation that the Chief of Staff spoke about, as the occupation forces attacked the Al-Daraj and Al-Tuffah neighborhoods during the past 48 hours with a force consisting of an armor battalion supported by the “Nahal” battalion, an artillery company, and an engineering effort, a force approaching an entire brigade.
Currently, fighting is raging in the northern sector, extending from Street 10 to the fence area, as Israeli forces are trying to penetrate the Tawam and Intelligence Towers areas, but they are taking place to a lesser extent than at the beginning of the ground operations, according to Al-Duwairi. Israel also pushed a similar force into the Jabalia area, but Al-Duwairi said that it is difficult to know whether this is a new force or whether the force that tried to penetrate into the north during the past two days failed to achieve any goal and was directed to another area.
Regarding the resistance’s handling of this new attack, Al-Duwairi said that it will continue to rely on the idea of lone wolves that surprise the forces in a specific place and time according to the available information.
In the northern axis of the Gaza Strip, the Al-Qassam Brigades said that they repelled incursion attempts by the occupation forces and targeted their vehicles in the Al-Jaabari camp. Jabalia also witnessed Israeli bombardment focused on the Tal al-Zaatar area and the Tal al-Salatin area in Beit Lahia, where martyrs and wounded were recorded. In Gaza City, confrontations took place during which the Al-Quds Brigades were able to snipe soldiers. The Brigades also announced that a number of military vehicles had been trapped in what it called a carefully engineered ambush with high-explosive devices east of Gaza, which resulted in soldiers being killed and wounded.
Al-Aqsa satellite channel said that violent clashes have been taking place for hours between the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli occupation forces in the Karama and Intelligence Towers areas west of Gaza City. The IDF artillery fired heavy flares into the airspace of Gaza City in conjunction with the clashes, while the occupation aircraft continued to launch air strikes on residential neighborhoods.
In the central region, fierce confrontations took place, whether in the Nuseirat camp, where the Al-Quds Brigades destroyed a Merkava tank, or the Bureij camp, where the Al-Qassam Brigades said they bombed Israeli army positions with heavy-caliber shells. A scene was also repeated in Al-Maghazi camp, which witnessed intense clashes.
To the south, Khan Yunis was subjected to Israeli bombing, resulting in martyrs. The city of Rafah was also subjected to a raid that targeted a car, resulting in 4 martyrs. Khan Yunis is also the center of gravity in the southern region, where strong confrontations took place, as the Al-Qassam Brigades and the Al-Quds Brigades announced the bombing of sites where Israeli forces were stationed.
Israeli warplanes dropped leaflets on the city of Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip, bearing pictures of Israelis detained in the Gaza Strip, and called on the Palestinians to inform the Israeli army if they recognized any of them. On the other hand, the Israeli army announced that 16 soldiers were wounded in the Gaza battles.
It also announced that it had discovered and destroyed a number of rocket launchers equipped with long-range missiles in the northern Gaza Strip, in addition to destroying a missile manufacturing facility belonging to the Islamic Jihad movement. The Israeli army also announced that its soldiers found dozens of war machines and explosive materials used in manufacturing missiles and that they were destroyed.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported on its page on the “X” website that 800,000 Palestinians in Gaza are suffering from a scarcity of basic materials, as Israel continues its siege of the Strip and prevents the arrival of aid.
The Israeli military expert, Alon Ben David, expressed the astonishment of the Israeli occupation army and the Shin Bet at the enormous size of military industries in the Gaza Strip. This astonishment was even doubled with the discovery of the unimaginable scope of Hamas’ capabilities to produce weapons and underground infrastructure. The expert pointed out to the Hebrew newspaper Maariv, Hamas's endless capabilities in strengthening its ranks with new people. The Israeli military expert added that the coming days will witness the end of the intense phase of fighting in Gaza, and the beginning of a new phase characterized by the same amount of challenge.
Alon Ben David explained that the 98th Division of the Israeli occupation army will end its operations in Khan Yunis, south of Gaza, while the army hopes that its forces will be able to achieve an achievement from this operation, represented by reaching the leadership of the Hamas movement or releasing the Zionist detainees, but achieving these goals Unsecured.
The expert believes that after controlling Khan Yunis, the occupation army will have operational control over about 80% of the territory of the Gaza Strip, with the exception of the Rafah area, the Nuseirat camp, and the city of Deir al-Balah. Most of the forces will leave, but some of them will remain, and will continue to divide the sector between north and south. He pointed out that 90% of Hamas's military capabilities are produced inside Gaza, in addition to the local production of advanced RPG launchers and drones.
Alon Ben David claimed that a very small portion of weapons reaches the Gaza Strip by smuggling through Egypt, and therefore the current challenge for the occupying army in the coming years is to destroy the huge quantities of Hamas’ weapons and dismantle its ability to manufacture military industries, warning of the movement’s ability. It continues to support its ranks with new people.
In the occupied West Bank, settlers attacked Palestinian farmers near the village of Ramoun, wounding some of them. They also continued their attacks on Palestinian shepherds and farmers in Masafer Yatta, threatening them with displacement. Israeli forces stormed - at dawn on Saturday - Balata camp, east of Nablus in the West Bank.
The Palestinian News Agency "Wafa" reported the outbreak of "violent confrontations with the occupation forces, who stormed several neighborhoods in the camp, led by a military bulldozer that carried out acts of sabotage on the internal roads. The occupation soldiers also raided several homes and tampered with their contents." Later, Israeli forces sent military reinforcements to the camp, amid continuing violent clashes.
The Israeli occupation forces also stormed the Al-Dhahr area in the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron in the West Bank. The occupation forces set up military barriers. They began searching citizens' vehicles and phones, and assaulted a young man before stopping him.
Israeli forces stormed the city of Hebron, south of the occupied West Bank . This was accompanied by an increase in settler attacks on Palestinian villages since the Battle of Al-Aqsa Flood and the ongoing Israeli aggression against the besieged Gaza Strip, which led to the displacement of hundreds of Palestinians. Human rights reports also revealed an increase in the number of detainees in the West Bank, and an increase in their abuse in the occupation prisons.
Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that the Israeli occupation forces stormed the "Traffic Circle" area in Ras Al-Joura in the city of Hebron in the West Bank, and closed all entrances to the area. Earlier, the reporter reported that the occupation forces stormed the city of Yatta, south of Hebron, assaulted citizens and confiscated a number of vehicles.
In a related context, a citizen was injured after dozens of settlers attacked Palestinian farmers in the village of Ramoun, east of the city of Ramallah in the West Bank. Local sources said that a group of armed settlers stormed the entrances to the village and - protected by members of the occupation army - attacked Palestinian farmers while they were on their lands located between the villages of Deir Dibwan and Ramon. They attempted to steal sheep and destroy buildings that had been erected by Palestinians about 20 years ago.
Settlers also attacked - for the second day in a row - Palestinian citizens in Susya in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron. Settlers prevent sheep herders from reaching their pastures and threaten them with weapons and forcible displacement from their homes. Susiya and other population centers in Masafer Yatta are subjected to continuous attacks by the occupation forces and settlers, but the frequency of attacks has increased significantly since the seventh of last October.
In the same context, the National Office for Land Defense and Settlement Resistance revealed that settlers view the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip as a golden opportunity for displacement and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians in the West Bank. The weekly settlement report explained that settlers are using violence, with the help of the occupation army, to displace Palestinian communities from areas classified as (C). It pointed out that the "settlers' terrorist practices" worsened after October 7, 2023, and prompted more than 1,500 Palestinian citizens from at least 25 communities to flee their homes and areas, raising the percentage of those displaced during the past year to three times that of 2022.
According to the report, the settlers have turned into military and paramilitary formations in times of war, armed and directed by Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir , financed by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich , and receiving clear sponsorship from the state, army and occupation police. Israeli human rights organizations reveal that the current settler violence aimed at displacement is “unprecedented” in terms of frequency and intensity, especially in the south of Hebron Governorate.
The report explained that, in the context of the aggression against the Gaza Strip , “terrorist” settler groups began to become active in the West Bank, announcing their goals with complete clarity. These are groups of “price tag” sisters who carry out their activities without restrictions on social media networks and call on Palestinians to immigrate to Jordan.
One of these groups is an organization that calls itself “Migrate Now” and on its Facebook page calls on Palestinians in the West Bank to “immigrate to Jordan before it is too late.” This page publishes a picture of a map that includes Palestine and part of Jordan, showing parts of Jordanian territory within the new Israeli map, which Smotrich presented in Paris last year, and in the middle of it is the logo of the "Aragon" organization known for its criminal history in Palestine.
In light of Israel's policy of persecution and its attempt to prevent operations against it in the West Bank, the occupation authorities arrested at least 22 Palestinians from Friday evening until Saturday morning, including children and a woman from Jerusalem. A joint statement by the Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners’ Affairs Authority and the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club stated that the total number of arrests since October 7 has risen to about 6,115, including those who were arrested from homes and at military checkpoints, those who were forced to surrender themselves under pressure, and those who were held hostage.
The arrest campaigns were accompanied by widespread raids and harassment, in addition to widespread sabotage and destruction of citizens’ homes, the destruction of infrastructure, and the confiscation of money and vehicles. The report indicated that the total number of Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons until the end of December 2023 amounted to about 8,800 citizens, including more than 80 female prisoners.
Within the framework of the occupation’s policy of abusing detainees, which has increased in frequency since the “Al-Aqsa Flood,” the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club stated in a statement that Megiddo Prison was one of the most prominent prisons in which detainees witnessed the most severe torture and abuse, in addition to what happened in Negev Prison. The statement explained that the detainees were subjected to brutal, systematic and collective torture and abuse.
In addition to the brutal and horrific attacks in prison, the prison administration continues its policy of starvation, which has affected their health conditions, in addition to the extreme cold, which has greatly exacerbated their suffering, and the accompanying deprivation of prisoners of sufficient clothing and blankets, in addition to the severe overcrowding that Departments witness it. The report stated that the majority of detainees sleep on the floor, and that no group was exempt from beatings and abuse, including children, in addition to the insults and profanity that the detainee receives during his assault.
In light of the attack on the Palestinians by the occupation army and its settlers, the Permanent Representative of Palestine to the United Nations , Riyad Mansour, sent three identical letters to the Secretary-General, António Guterres , the President of the Security Council , and the President of the United Nations General Assembly, regarding “the continuation of Israel, the occupying power, in Deliberately targeting Palestinian children. The letter stated, "Children in the Gaza Strip are exposed to killing, wounding, mutilation, starvation, orphanage, displacement, and disease and cold, while children in the West Bank are exposed to persecution and terror by soldiers and colonizers, in addition to being shot, beaten, arrested, and tortured."
Mansour appealed to the international community, including the Security Council, including its Group on Children in Armed Conflict, the General Assembly, the Human Rights Council, the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, “to take immediate and very rapid action in accordance with international law.”
At least 5 Iranian Revolutionary Guard advisers were killed in an air strike on the Mezzeh suburb of the Syrian capital, Damascus. The five advisors were killed as a result of what the official Syrian news agency described as an Israeli air aggression targeting a residential building in the Mezzeh neighborhood in Damascus. Iranian media revealed that the Syrian Quds Force intelligence commander and his deputy were killed during the attack.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced the killing of 4 of its military advisors in the Mezzeh area in Damascus, and later confirmed the death of a fifth advisor who succumbed to his wounds. The Revolutionary Guard published the names of the four advisors who were killed immediately: Hojatollah Amidwar, Ali Aqazadeh, Hossein Mohammadi, and Saeed Karimi, noting that two Syrian soldiers were killed in the air strike. Iranian media reported that among the dead were a Syria front intelligence official in the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force and his deputy.
Sources told Al Jazeera in Damascus that the targeted building located near the Political Security Division had completely collapsed. Regarding the circumstances of the assassination, the Syrian News Agency said that at 10:20 a.m. local time, Israel carried out an air attack on a residential building in the Mezzeh neighborhood, resulting in “the martyrdom of a number of people.” The agency added that Syrian air defenses responded to the attack and shot down a number of Israeli missiles.
In reactions, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement condemned what it called the Israeli aggression that targeted leaders of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in Damascus. The movement said - in a statement - that "this step expresses the occupation's attempt to export its military failure by expanding the scope of the war," as it put it.
In Iranian reactions, President Ibrahim Raisi said that Tehran will not leave the Israeli crime unanswered, adding that “the Zionist entity’s crime violated international decisions and was carried out with the support of the arrogant powers, including Washington.” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said that "the activity of Iranian military advisors in combating terrorism and ensuring the security of the region will continue strongly."
In a statement published by its spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, hours after the air strike, the Iranian Foreign Ministry strongly condemned what it called “the criminal act carried out by the Zionist entity,” and said that the repeated Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty are “a desperate attempt to spread instability and insecurity in the region.” The statement also said, “In addition to the political, legal and international prosecution of these aggressive and criminal acts, the Islamic Republic of Iran reserves the right to respond to the organized terrorism of the false Zionist entity at the appropriate time and place.”
Iraqi media reported that 40 missiles were fired at the Ain al-Asad base, which houses American forces in the Iraqi Anbar Governorate. A security source in the tribal mobilization in Anbar Governorate, west of Baghdad, confirmed that the Ain al-Assad base was targeted with missiles launched from the Al-Baghdadi area, close to the Ain al-Assad base. The source added that the international coalition forces responded by bombing the area from which the missiles were launched with about 18 missiles, without knowing the extent of the losses between the two sides.
Naim Qassem, Deputy Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, said that if the party waits for Israel to finish what it wants in Gaza, the next turn will be for the party in Lebanon. Naeem Qassem added that the party’s work in southern Lebanon is a defensive action to support Gaza and Lebanon. On the ground, Lebanese Hezbollah announced that it targeted a gathering of occupation soldiers in the vicinity of the Al-Dhahira site and caused injuries. They also attacked two other gatherings of soldiers in the vicinity of Hunin Castle and Zarit Barracks. For his part, Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that the outskirts of the town of Al-Adisa in southern Lebanon were subjected to two Israeli raids. He said that Israeli artillery also bombed the surroundings of the towns of Yaroun, Aitaroun, and the Marjayoun Plain.
The Civil Defense in southern Lebanon said that two people were martyred in an Israeli raid that targeted a car in the town of Al-Bazouriya in the Tire region in southern Lebanon. Al Jazeera's correspondent indicated that a drone bombed a car as it passed through the town of Al-Bazouriyah, which led to the car being completely burned. Ambulance teams transported the victims to the hospital.
US airbase Ain al-Asad in Iraq's western Anbar Province has been targeted by at least 15 missiles, Iraqi news agency Shafaq reported on Saturday, citing a security source. The missiles were launched from the Iraqi city of Albaghdadi, the source said, without giving further information. Yahya Rasool, a spokesman for the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi armed forces, told the Iraq News Agency that the bombing injured an Iraqi soldier and caused material damage.
"A number of missiles fell near the headquarters of the 29th Brigade, 7th Division, affiliated with the Al-Jazeera Operations Command, within the Iraqi Ain Al-Assad base, wounding a soldier and causing damage to the headquarters," he said. A number of US soldiers are being examined for traumatic brain injuries after "Iranian-backed militants" carried out a missile attack on US airbase Al-Assad in western Iraq's Anbar Province, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Sunday, adding that the US is also assessing the damage caused to the base.
"At approximately 6:30 p.m. (Baghdad time) time Jan. 20, multiple ballistic missiles and rockets were launched by Iranian-backed militants in Western Iraq targeting al-Assad Airbase. Most of the missiles were intercepted by the base’s air defense systems while others impacted on the base. Damage assessments are ongoing. A number of U.S. personnel are undergoing evaluation for traumatic brain injuries. At least one Iraqi service member was wounded," the CENTCOM said on X.
Since the beginning of the escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the bases of the US-led international coalition in Iraq, as well as US troops in Syria, have come under regular attacks, with armed Shiite groups claiming responsibility in Iraq. However, this attack is reported to be one of the most massive since the the start of the recent turmoil in Gaza.
In Yemen, the US Central Command said that it launched - at dawn on Saturday - an air strike on a Houthi anti-ship missile that was prepared for launch and targeting the Gulf of Aden, adding that the missile represented a threat to commercial ships and US Navy ships in the region, and that it destroyed it in self-defense.
"As part of ongoing efforts to protect freedom of navigation and prevent attacks on maritime vessels, on Jan. 20 at approximately 4 a.m. (Sanaa time), U.S. Central Command forces conducted airstrikes against a Houthi anti-ship missile that was aimed into the Gulf of Aden and was prepared to launch. U.S. forces determined the missile presented a threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region, and subsequently struck and destroyed the missile in self-defense. This action will make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy and merchant vessels."
In a related context, Reuters reported from regional and Iranian sources that commanders from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah are in Yemen to help direct and supervise Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea. The sources said that Iran intensified its arms supplies to the Houthis in the wake of the war in Gaza, and that it provided them with advanced drones, anti-ship cruise missiles, precision ballistic missiles, and medium-range missiles.
Maps
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All maps are lies. “Not only is it easy to lie with maps, it is essential,” wrote cartographer Mark Monmoneir in his book How to Lie with Maps. He showed that condensing complex, three-dimensional spaces onto a two-dimensional sheet of paper is bound to be reductive. But it is impossible to comprehend the war in Gaza without reference to maps, otherwise the entire conflict is reduced to an endless series of meaningless acts of random violence and the suffering of civilians. The first characteristic of guerrilla warfare is the loss of a front line. Evidently, different mappers have different ideas of how to depict the war in Gaza, notably those that seek to depict Israeli progress in the ground campaign. Part of the problem is latency. The news that forms the basis of the maps takes time to filter out to mappers, and the cartographers take time in crafting their maps, and it takes time to curate them. These processes are uneven among mappers, so their maps may differ in detail. Probably there is some ideological bias, or at least thematic apperception, which is understandable in wartime. It may come as no surprise that al-Jazeera maps depict rather less Israeli territorial progress than other sources. Finally, there remains the epistemological question of just exactly what are the colored in areas depicting. Naively, this might be understood as areas of Israeli control, that are no longer contested by the HAMAS. Or possibly these are areas of Israeli presence, in many of which the possibility of an RPG-wielding HAMAS militant popping out of a tunnel unexpectedly remains a live possibility. With the "zero-range" combat characterized by small unit tactics on both sides, maps may be prey to a fallacy of misplaced concreteness. |
Bystanders
Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper revealed that Egypt is taking steps to reach a new agreement, which includes concluding a long truce, through which a number of prisoners from both the Palestinian and Israeli sides will be exchanged. The newspaper quoted informed Egyptian sources as saying that the proposal being consulted on “takes into account the interests of various parties, and takes into account the current difficulties and declared positions.”
The sources indicated that the new proposal “will not be a substitute for the comprehensive Egyptian proposal to stop the war and arrangements for the next stage, but rather it will be part of the efforts to create the atmosphere to stop the fighting, alleviate the humanitarian suffering of the residents of the Gaza Strip, and then move to the next stage.” It added that Egypt received “positive indicators despite the difficulty of the current situation,” but the final crystallization of the agreement “is still in the maturation stage,” according to the sources.
Several European countries witnessed massive demonstrations in solidarity with the Gaza Strip and calling for an end to the Israeli aggression against the Strip that has been ongoing since the seventh of last October, which claimed the lives of more than 24,000 martyrs and more than 62,000 wounded, most of whom were children and women.
The Palestinian journalist residing in Berlin, Majid Al-Zeer, said that the demonstrations that took place today in the German capital, Berlin, have been continuing for 105 consecutive days in victory for the Palestinian right, and 19 other demonstrations were also launched throughout Germany , as well as in most European countries, in denunciation of the European policy towards the aggression against the Gaza Strip. Gaza.
During the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Uganda , United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed the necessity of recognizing the right of the Palestinians to build their state, in light of a stream of statements by Israeli officials and ministers who expressed their categorical rejection of the establishment of a Palestinian state. Guterres said in his speech at the summit that "refusing to accept a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians, and denying the right of the Palestinian people to establish a state, is unacceptable."
Axis of Resistance
The Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, said: The “Al-Aqsa Flood” has engraved itself deeply in the conscience of the Zionists, a defeat that cannot be erased. The myth has been shattered, the model has been shattered, the prestige has vanished, the project has collapsed, and the issue that they worked so long to stifle has returned to the top of all the world’s merits.
In a letter addressed by Sayyed Nasrallah to the Twelfth International Forum, “ Gaza: Symbol of Resistance ,” which was read by Mr. Abdullah Safi al-Din , representative of Hezbollah Lebanon in Tehran : Titled your conference with the slogan “Gaza: Symbol of Resistance,” and timing it at a crucial historical stage that is going through In which the Palestinian resistance is a major confrontation to the Zionist war of annihilation, it only demonstrates the sense of responsibility of those involved in managing the conference and their blessed call to stand by the Palestinian people, their cause, and their resistance, which requires all of us to have grave responsibilities and constant alert to mobilize the nation’s capabilities in support of the Palestinian people and in support of their valiant resistance that is being written today. Truly, through its sacrifices, its heroism, the blood of its men, and the steadfastness and steadfastness of its people, it creates the future of the nation, preserves its dignity, and consolidates its strength.
He added that what Israel has lost to date in Gaza in terms of officers and soldiers at the hands of Palestinian resistance groups is many times greater than what it lost in the 1967 War. The Israeli army, which occupied more than 69,000 km2 in the Six-Day War, is being defeated today over part of the Gaza area. It is unable to achieve a goal, declare an occupation, or come close to victory. Rather, it retreats and retreats under the title of moving to a new stage. Therefore, it is natural and correct for the conference’s slogan to be “Gaza is a symbol of resistance.” Gaza today is the symbol because in Gaza there is an honorable, brave and proud resistance.
He explained: Gaza is the symbol because it expresses, through its resistance, the pride, pride, pride, ambitions and hopes of our peoples who are thirsty for pride and victory. If Gaza had not resisted, it would not have been a symbol and symbol of pride. Resistance is what honors its people and the bearers of its banner. Resistance is the secret of pride, the secret of dignity, and the key to victory. Gaza is geographically small, but it is gigantic in its magnificence and heroism. Today, Gaza is more generous, more powerful, and prouder than the entire world.
He said: Since the occupation of Palestine, the enemy and its masters have worked on two paths. The first is the path of legitimizing the occupation internationally and polishing its image and demonstrating it as a model civilized entity that can be emulated as a role model for the region. In the first track, they recorded outstanding successes due to the capabilities they possess and their dominance over major international institutions and the West’s regimes and its effective and influential forces. As for the other path, its conclusion was to weaken and stifle the resistance of the Palestinian people and liquidate its cause, leading to its removal from the arena of global circulation by relying on force to eliminate the resistance forces and relying on the option of normalization, which guaranteed them the removal of influential regimes from the arena of confrontation.
He continued, saying: The option of normalization was and remains a project to subjugate the will of the nation... a project to waste its central cause, and a project to shatter the unity of its options until the issue of Palestine, which is the issue of the nation, almost turned into an exclusive Palestinian issue, an orphan, a stranger, a stranger among its people, its people, and its brothers. The choice of normalization with the enemy has placed the Palestinian cause and the right of the Palestinian people to their land in the circle of targeting, or even in the circle of imminent danger, and on a downward path that warns of every danger due to the connivance and betrayal of the Palestinian people that normalization with the enemy entails, and the abandonment of their right, their cause, their resistance, and their future.
He said: At this fatal moment, the flood of Al-Aqsa resistance came to shuffle all the cards, change all calculations, and turn the threat into an advanced existential opportunity and a turning point in the paths that the enemies had worked on for a long time. The flood has engraved deeply in the conscience of the Zionists, a defeat that cannot be erased. The myth has been shattered, the model has been shattered, the prestige has vanished, the project has been shattered, and the issue that they had worked so long to stifle has returned to the forefront of all the world’s merits, to awaken the world once again, to restore momentum and a resounding presence, and to reveal itself as a global issue. Extensive and present in all geography of the world and its corridors.
He added: The resisting flood of Al-Aqsa dealt a harsh blow to all attempts to write off the Palestine issue and confirmed that the issue that was conspired against by many of the West and many of the East, many of the far away and many of the closest ones, would not have survived without its resistance, its rifle and its sacrifices. No one has a presence in this brutal, brutal world except to the extent of his resistance, and if the truth is armed with strength, faith, and the will to resist and persevere, it cannot be defeated, no matter how oppressive and powerful the enemy is.
He said that the Israeli enemy, which today continues with massacres and crimes, killing tens of thousands of children and women, waging a comprehensive war of annihilation against humans, stones and life, and committing atrocities that are the greatest in modern history, is doing all of this to cover up defeats with massacres and to take away, with images of massacres and destruction, the humiliated image of “Israel” on the Day of Judgment. October 7, and to take revenge for destabilizing his project, to which he and his masters have made every effort for more than 50 years.
He added: In its attack on our region, the West, led by the United States of America and Britain, has exhausted the body and thought of the nation, length and breadth, with projects of fragmentation, misinformation, deception, and fragmentation, aided by brute tools, sinful pens, hired voices, and hired minds. It has torn apart, with sectarianism, racism, and sectarianism, a unified whole, and deepened the fragmentation of every fragmented one, so the nation’s commonalities were absent. The great ones are in favor of their small differences at a stage in which the nation’s identity, capabilities, role and existence are exposed to profound and stormy dangers... They have worked to tear our peoples apart and preoccupy them with issues of fragmentation, but Palestine alone remains a valve of unity, a path of convergence, a base for revival, and a crossing path to the future that our peoples yearn for, a future. Strength, pride, freedom, sovereignty, stability and well-being.
He stated: After decades of focused efforts, with full American and Western support, to dismember, fragment, and dissolve the Palestinian issue, victory for Gaza came from the arenas of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Yemen, broader than the enemy’s expectations, and the resistance factions succeeded in besieging the usurping entity with fire for more than 100 days. This is unprecedented.
He stressed that the blood of the martyrs of supporting Gaza in Lebanon, the blood of the martyrs of defending Gaza in Syria, the blood of martyrs of supporting Gaza in Iraq, the blood of the martyrs of supporting Gaza in Yemen, and the blood of the martyrs of supporting Gaza in Iran, the last of which was the blood of Major General Sayyed Radhi al-Moussawi, all these bloods unite, coalesce and integrate. With the blood of the martyrs of Gaza and the West Bank. It is the unity of blood, rifle, arena and target, which is what worries our enemies, and which is what we must continue and work to increase, deepen and extend. Whoever believes that this nation has an option other than resistance is wrong and very, very delusional.
He said: “Israel” did not occupy Palestine with diplomacy, but with weapons and force, and it did not occupy Beirut in 1982 with diplomacy, but with weapons and force. It does not threaten the nation today with diplomacy, but with weapons and force. “Israel” was not defeated from Lebanon in 1982 by diplomacy, but rather by resistance, just as it will not be defeated from Gaza and Palestine by diplomacy, but by resistance. We, as a nation, have no choice but to resist. We have nothing but resistance. There is nothing we can bet on but resistance.
He added that the confrontation with the enemy is not a confrontation for one or two days, but rather it is an ongoing, continuous and cumulative confrontation, and we must remain present in this confrontation. The gathering of the fleets of arrogant countries in support of “Israel” only confirms its weakness and instability, which must harden our will to adhere to the option of resistance. If the conditions for liberating Palestine are not available today, then we must prepare and prepare for tomorrow and the day after.
He stressed: Betting on international institutions and the so-called international community, as you have witnessed and we have witnessed repeatedly, is a failed and disappointing bet that has produced nothing but heartbreak, loss, disappointment and bitterness, adding that these international institutions are out of the bet because they are dependent on the will of the American administration, and the last farce and complicity of these institutions was the decision. Which condemned Yemen for its targeting of Israeli ships in defense of Gaza and legitimized the American-British targeting of the “Ansar Allah” brothers and ignored with all insolence and malice two million Palestinian citizens who were martyred, wounded, detained, hungry, thirsty, and displaced in the open, as a result of Israeli massacres and attacks.
He said: From your blessed conference, I extend my thanks to the brothers in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the leadership and people, for their pioneering and supportive stances, and for the authentic and wise stances of His Eminence the Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (may his soul rest in peace), and I thank your conference, your stance, and your support for the resistance.
He stressed: The pledge of the Islamic resistance in Lebanon is to remain in the position of supporting Gaza until the victory of Gaza. We pledged to our great Imam Khomeini (may God sanctify his secret) that we would keep his commandments, abide by his path, and continue on his path, the outcome of which would be nothing but victory, pride, and dignity. It is noteworthy that the twelfth international forum, “Gaza: Symbol of Resistance,” continues its work with the participation of a group of families of resistance martyrs, martyrs of defenders of the holy shrines, nuclear martyrs, elite officials and military leaders, guests from the Global Resistance Front, and activists in the field of the Palestinian cause.
Allied for Democracy
Israelis gathered in downtown Tel Aviv to protest the policy of Benjamin Netanyahu's government in managing the war on Gaza. The protesters raised banners demanding the dismissal of the Israeli government, immediate elections, and the formation of a new government seeking what they described as unifying the Israeli ranks. This comes as the families of the prisoners continue to demonstrate in front of Netanyahu’s house in Caesarea as an attempt to pressure him to conclude a deal to release their detained children in the Gaza Strip.
Chief of Staff of the Israeli army, Herzi Halevy, said that some reserve forces are being demobilized due to what he called the tension of the battlefield and the demands of life. Recently, Israeli media reports reported the demobilization of reserve units to reintegrate them into the economic cycle in view of the damage caused to the Israeli economy as a result of the war on Gaza, while official statements reported the withdrawal of some forces from the Gaza Strip, including a unit in the Golani Brigade .
The Israeli Walla website revealed that Defense Minister Yoav Gallant tried to storm Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office , and the situation almost deteriorated into a fist fight. Gallant threatened Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer to bring in the Golani Brigade to control the situation in the war council. Dermer, who renounced his American citizenship to serve as economic envoy in Washington before becoming ambassador there, is considered one of Netanyahu's closest associates.
According to the Walla website, Netanyahu's crew monitored Gallant's crew while recording the course of the security meetings on an audio tape. Israeli media reported that Gallant left the war cabinet meeting last Saturday because his office director was prevented from attending, amid increasing tension within the council. At the time, Israeli Channel 12 quoted a source as saying that the minister’s withdrawal came after he arrived at the meeting headquarters and his assistant was prevented from entering with him, but when he entered the room he found 5 of Netanyahu’s aides.
The source added, "Netanyahu told Gallant that as long as my assistant did not attend, your assistant should not attend, despite the presence of 5 of his employees in the place," and this is what prompted the Defense Minister to withdraw. According to the channel, Netanyahu believes that the army is leaking some information related to the bilateral talks or discussions. As the Walla website reported, Gallant sometimes refrains from answering calls from Netanyahu’s office for entire days. The Israeli Channel 13 revealed that Gallant asked Netanyahu not to "disrupt" his work within the government.
In a related context, the British newspaper The Times reported, quoting an unnamed Israeli security official, that the Israeli war government is on the verge of collapse and Netanyahu is hesitating and wasting time. During recent months, the Israeli media has repeatedly touched on ongoing disagreements between Gallant and Netanyahu, related to how to manage the war on the Gaza Strip, and the aftermath of the war, in addition to Netanyahu’s repeated attempts to hold the army responsible for the war on the Gaza Strip.
Many Israeli analysts point out that each member of the War Council only thinks about his political future and not Israel's interests. Ofer Shelah, a researcher at the National Security Research Institute, believes that the members of the War Council have been preparing themselves for the aftermath of the war since the first day of the war, “and this is because the ghost of October 7th is haunting them, and each one of them is running ugly media campaigns on satellite channels saying that he is doing well but the others are wrong.”
The intensity of the differences within the Israeli government and war council widened, after more than 100 days of war on the Gaza Strip, while voices calling on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down grew louder. Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper quoted Gadi Eisenkot, former chief of staff of the Israeli army and minister in the Israeli War Council, as saying that the behavior of the Israeli government before and after October 7, 2023 is characterized by a major failure. It added that Netanyahu and everyone who was in a military and political position on the seventh of last October and 10 years before that bears a clear responsibility, and that the Israeli leadership is not telling the truth to the people.
For its part, the New York Times quoted Eisenkot as saying that Israel did not overthrow the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ), and that the goals of the war have not yet been achieved, indicating that reaching an agreement with Hamas is the only way to release the detainees. He stressed that every effort should have been made to maintain the temporary ceasefire last November. Eisenkot promised that his presence in the emergency government prevented the outbreak of a comprehensive war with the Lebanese Hezbollah , which would not have represented a grave strategic mistake, as he put it. Earlier, Eisenkot said that Tel Aviv must stop lying to itself, and conclude a deal that returns those detained by the Palestinian factions, instead of continuing the war on the Gaza Strip.
For his part, the head of the Yisrael Beytenu party , Avigdor Lieberman , said that the current Israeli government is no longer capable of leading the people, indicating the necessity of forming a new government.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoted a source in the security mini-ministerial council as saying that there is no future for the war on the Gaza Strip. He added that Netanyahu is clearly stalling to buy time, and is evading responsibility, as he put it. For his part, opposition leader Yair Lapid told Israeli Radio that Netanyahu does not care about the State of Israel, and that all he cares about are his personal political interests, and he must be changed quickly.
A few days ago, the participation of Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz in a massive demonstration in Tel Aviv opposing the government and attacking its handling of the issue of Israeli prisoners in Gaza raised many questions about the cohesion of the Israeli government after more than 100 days of war. Recently, the Israeli media has repeatedly touched on ongoing disagreements between Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Galant , related to how to manage the war on the Gaza Strip, and the aftermath of the war, in addition to Netanyahu’s repeated attempts to hold the army responsible for the war on the Gaza Strip.
These tensions in the government coincide with the demonstrations taking place in various areas in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa, demanding that the Israeli government conclude a deal to release detainees held by the resistance in Gaza. The families of Israeli detainees in the Gaza Strip said that they had lost confidence in Netanyahu's government, and that they would make their own moves, without indicating what they were, according to what was reported by the Israeli Broadcasting Authority.
According to political analysts, there is a widespread belief that Netanyahu is running this war for personal political motives, and his opponents do not just accuse him of failing to achieve any of its goals; But also by falling hostage to the far-right ministers whose presence he buys at any cost, so that the government, whose popularity polls indicate a decline in popularity, does not collapse.
The Israeli newspaper "Israel Today" said that the administration of US President Joe Biden is currently working on formulating a major regional deal to stop the war in the Gaza Strip and reduce tension in the region. The newspaper quoted an unnamed Israeli source as saying that the deal includes a ceasefire, the establishment of a new regime in the Gaza Strip, the normalization of relations between Israel and the Arab world, and the release of prisoners.
The newspaper said that the aforementioned Israeli source confirmed that the deal includes several principles aimed at achieving long-term stability as part of the post-war reality. It pointed out that the deal is part of what US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken spoke about at the Davos Forum this week when he said that Israel needs to make difficult decisions.
The newspaper pointed out that the deal is still in its initial stages, and it is not yet clear how much of it has been formulated, or whether it will lead to an agreement that will end the war and launch a political process to resolve the conflict. So far, no official comment has been issued by the concerned parties regarding what was revealed in the Israeli newspaper report.
Talk about this deal comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had announced yesterday that he informed the United States of his opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state within the framework of any scenario for the post-war period in Gaza, and his insistence on continuing the war in the Gaza Strip until victory over the Hamas movement, which is a position that contradicts the American desire.
The United States called on Israel to reduce its attack on Gaza, and said that the establishment of a Palestinian state must be part of the post-war phase, which Netanyahu announced his explicit rejection of, demanding full Israeli control over the Strip.
The American network "NBC News" reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is rapidly losing the support of American lawmakers from both the Democratic and Republican parties. According to the network, supporters of Israel in both the Democratic and Republican parties are sounding the alarm about their loss of confidence in Netanyahu and his handling of the war against the Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip.
The network indicated that one of the Republicans in the House of Representatives, whose name was not revealed, said, “It has become difficult to defend Netanyahu or justify his political strategy, and that there is a real lack of confidence in his leadership, not to mention questions about his ability to lead.” The same source added, "He believes on a personal level that Netanyahu's political interest is to remain involved in the conflict, whether it is with Hezbollah or in Gaza, since any ceasefire, peace agreement, efforts to rebuild, or going out of the way will harm him." "Politically."
She pointed out that progressive lawmakers in the US Congress constantly criticize Netanyahu and the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip, but now these criticisms are coming from pro-Israel lawmakers who work on the main national security committees, and they are now expressing their frustration about Netanyahu’s leadership, albeit quietly. The network touched on the statements of 3 American lawmakers who wonder whether the 74-year-old Netanyahu has a strategy to end the bloody war in Gaza, and they indicated that the unpopular Netanyahu may be deliberately trying to prolong it in order to remain in power.
Earlier, NBC reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's proposal for normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, in exchange for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper revealed that the United States warned the Israeli Prime Minister that Israel's long-term security will only be guaranteed through the establishment of a Palestinian state . The newspaper said, quoting Reuters, that US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that “there is no way” to solve Israel’s security problems in the long term, as well as organize the Gaza reconstruction process at the end of the war, without establishing a Palestinian state.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said in a statement that Israel should have security control over Gaza after the war, in the context of conflicting statements between Washington and Tel Aviv regarding plans after the end of the fighting. The Bureau denied the content of a CNN report that stated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed US President Joe Biden - in a phone call yesterday, Friday - that he did not rule out the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state.
The Israeli statement said, "During his conversation with President Biden, Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated his policy that after the destruction of Hamas, Israel must maintain security control over Gaza to ensure that it will no longer pose a threat to Israel, which is inconsistent with the demand for Palestinian sovereignty."
This is a rare statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, which usually avoids making a statement on the holy Sabbath holiday for religious Jews, and it came hours after a call made by Biden and Netanyahu on Friday, their first in nearly a month. Biden said after the call that the Israeli Prime Minister does not oppose all solutions based on two states, considering that the matter is not impossible with Netanyahu in power. The US President indicated that there are "a number of possible patterns" for this solution, and that some UN member states do not have armed forces, in reference to the possibility of establishing a demilitarized Palestinian state.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that Netanyahu had been trying to arrange the phone call for some time, denying that it was a reaction to statements made by the Israeli Prime Minister - the day before yesterday, Thursday - in which he expressed his opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Netanyahu stated that he informed Washington of his opposition to any Palestinian state that does not guarantee the security of Israel, as he put it. He said, "Israel must have security control over the entire territory west of the Jordan River. This is a necessary condition."
On the other hand, Hamas rejected the US President's statements regarding "possible patterns" for establishing a Palestinian state. A member of the movement's political bureau, Izzat Al-Rishq said in a statement that "selling the illusion that Biden is trying to talk about a Palestinian state (...) does not deceive our people." Al-Rishq added, "Biden is a full partner in the war of genocide, and our people do not expect anything good from him." He said, "These people think of themselves as the guardians of the Palestinian people. They want to choose for them the type of state that suits them."
For its part, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry confirmed its refusal to comment on the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office on press reports regarding Biden and Netanyahu’s call. The Ministry stressed in a statement that repeating these statements and demanding Israeli security control over the West Bank and Gaza Strip is “a blatant challenge to the declared positions of the American administration and its efforts to resolve the conflict and achieve security and stability in the region.”
Israel continues its war on Gaza for the 106th day with broad political and military support from the United States, which supplies it with thousands of tons of weapons and ammunition via an air bridge. But there are discrepancies between Biden and Netanyahu regarding the management of the war and plans for the so-called “next day” after the end of the fighting, especially in light of the failure to achieve the main declared goals of the war, which are the elimination of Hamas and the recovery of Israeli prisoners.
Netanyahu is also facing escalating internal disputes, as the official Israeli radio quoted senior security and military leaders as agreeing with the ministers, Benny Gantz, Gadi Eisenkot, and Yoav Galant, that “the absence of a political vision for the day after the war on Gaza will prevent Israel’s victory over Hamas.”
The British Financial Times newspaper explained that US President Joe Biden's strong support for Israel risks harming his re-election prospects for a new presidential term, explaining that his apparent indifference to the Palestinians may be costly. Writer Edward Luce mentioned in his article that thousands of children were killed in the war on Gaza , according to Save the Children. However, Biden’s recent statement calling on the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) to “release the hostages” did not refer to what the Palestinians are suffering.
He added that acknowledging the plight of the Palestinians seems to cast doubt on Biden's "sincere sympathy for the Israeli victims in the attack launched by Hamas on October 7," so Washington avoids it, knowing that this upsets many young Americans who will need Biden badly. To their enthusiasm next November, it will also disturb the Arab Americans, who constitute a major voting bloc in many swing states.
The writer explained that progressive Democrats are not the only ones who feel dissatisfied with Biden's silence regarding what Israel is doing, as many of his most trusted allies in the US Senate are also upset.
In a meeting in Davos this week, the US Senator from Delaware, Senator Chris Coons, and Biden's closest friend in politics, said that the United States should consider setting conditions on military aid to Israel. In a letter to Biden before Christmas, a group of Democrats - some of them former CIA employees - urged the use of influence for “an immediate and significant shift in military strategy and tactics in Gaza.”
The writer stated that White House officials insist that Biden is secretly doing what he can to rein in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but there is little evidence to prove this. Israel has received more than 100 bunker-busting bombs from the United States since October 7, noting that these bombs are intended for destruction and not for “precise targeting of terrorists in urban areas.”
The writer believes that the answer is summed up in Biden’s deep feelings towards Israel. Since his first days in politics, he was one of its strongest allies in the Capitol , and he has always admired the approach of both Israeli Prime Ministers Golda Meir and Yitzhak Rabin, but now he faces a contradictory model represented by Benjamin Netanyahu, and despite this, he continues. In support.
Edward Luce said that Biden was a strong critic of the efforts of US President George H.W. Bush for the peace process in 1992 between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization . He also attacked Bush Sr.'s threat to withdraw American loan guarantees if Israel went ahead with building settlements in the occupied territories. The pressure exerted by Bush helped overthrow the Likud government in Israel at the time and bring Rabin to power, and this led to the Oslo Peace Accords, explains Edward Luce.
According to the article, Biden - while serving as vice president - had undermined President Barack Obama's attempt in 2010 to apply similar pressure on Netanyahu's government, and partly because of Biden's own reassurances, the Israeli prime minister mocked Obama.
The writer emphasized that Biden could oust Netanyahu by imposing strict conditions on American aid if he wanted to, and in doing so he would gain the respect of the Israelis, the Arab world, and the majority of Jewish Americans. This would also make him regain some of the ground that Washington lost in the global South because of its double standards. A large part of the world believes that America cares more about European victims such as the Ukrainians than it does about civilians in the Middle East or anywhere else.
The writer emphasized that the longer Netanyahu clings to power, the worse it will be for Biden. However, it appears that Biden's actions were designed to ensure this.
The American website The Intercept confirmed in a report that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee ( AIPAC ) donated about $95,000 to Republican Representative Mike Johnson last November, according to the website’s analysis of Federal Election Commission records. The Intercept added in a report by journalist Catherine Caruso that the pro-Israel lobby is considered the largest donor to Johnson in 2023 after he led the passage of a large aid package for Israel.
The Intercept said that most of the payments received by the US representative came after the beginning of the war on Gaza. According to the website, Johnson - who refused to speak to The Intercept - received small donations in late October, which quickly increased significantly during the month of November.
The Intercept confirmed that this increase came after Johnson led the passage of significant support for Israel, estimated at $14 billion, when he presided over the House of Representatives, where he struggled to accelerate the passage of that support by separating it from the bill to provide aid allocated to Ukraine, and resorting to using IRS funds to finance it. Once the bill passed the House, Johnson urged the Senate to approve it as quickly as possible.
The website confirmed that Johnson has always expressed his direct public support for Israel, and he previously confirmed on a trip to Israel in 2020 that it is not true that the Palestinians suffer from injustice in the region, and he continued, "We never see any of that."
The website confirmed that AIPAC is considered an influential intermediary in the Capitol , as it provides money to legislators from the Republican and Democratic parties in order to continue maintaining pro-Israel policies, and in the recent period the organization has focused on members of the Democratic Party who are critical of Tel Aviv’s policies.
The Intercept quoted the head of the Arab American Institute, James Zogby, as saying that AIPAC's contributions to election campaigns have two purposes, the first of which is to reward candidates who support Israel's interests, and the second is to use them as a stick to keep politicians aligned in one row. “On foreign policy, this is probably the single issue where money has the biggest negative impact,” said Stephen Walt, a professor of international relations at Harvard Kennedy School.
Even as a growing number of Democrats are willing to buck the pro-Israel consensus in Washington and reject AIPAC's influence, they still suffer from a significant lack of resources, according to the American website. The problem, Walt told The Intercept, is that “there are no similar groups on the other side,” as no pro-Palestinian or pro-Arab-American PAC has the same resources.
Butcher's Bill / Oasis of Martyrs
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 24,927 martyrs, and the killing of nearly 10,000 Palestinian children and 6,600 women killed. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
The number wounded was 62,388. The Palestinian Government Media Office in Gaza had said much earlier that the number of missing people had risen to more than 8,000, including including 4,700 children and women, amid expectations that the toll will be double thi figures.
The IDF intensified its military operations in the West Bank, and increased the pace of incursions and raids into cities, towns, and camps, resulting in the martyrdom of 342 Palestinians, the injury of about 3,950, and the arrest of 5,780, according to official HAMAS sources. As of 17 January 2023, the Israeli escalation in the West Bank led to the death of 360 Palestinians, the injury of nearly 2,200, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, and the arrest of about 6,000, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club.
More than 130 Hezbollah fighters were killed in Lebanon during exchanges of bombing operations with Israel.
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 officially announced number of deaths among the Israeli army since the start of the ground incursion on October 27th to 195, and 529 deaths since the Al-Aqsa Flood operation on the 7th of the same month. Among them are 56 with the rank of platoon commander, 43 with the rank of company commander, 9 with the rank of battalion commander, and 5 with the rank of brigade commander. These officers constitute 23% of the total deaths of the Israeli army in the war on Gaza.
Israeli media reported that 27% of the Israeli military casualties in the war were officers. In detail, the media highlighted that three brigade commanders, four battalion commanders, and other senior officers have been killed in the war so far.
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported that 29 of the army's deaths were caused by "friendly fire" and operational incidents since the start of the ground war in Gaza, late last October. The Israeli authority explained that "18 army soldiers were killed by friendly fire, two were killed as a result of gunfire (without explanation), and 9 Israeli soldiers were killed in ammunition, weapons, or run-over accidents." The Jerusalem Post newspaper revealed that 15 soldiers were killed in the Strip without their bodies being found.
According to some reports statistics indicate that 20% of the Israeli losses were due to friendly fire. Because the nature of the battle has become completely different from what was expected, and it lacks a front line.
According to the latest data published by the army, the number of wounded soldiers and officers has risen to 1,152 since the start of its ground attack on Gaza on October 27, including 228 seriously wounded, while the total number has reached 2,602 wounded since the outbreak of the war on the 7th of October.
The Israeli army reported that 2,438 soldiers - including 355 seriously injured - have been injured since the beginning of the war on Gaza, including earlier reports of 576 moderate, and 1,161 minor. The number of wounded since the start of the ground operation in the Gaza Strip on October 27 had risen to 1,042.
At least 13,340 Israelis were injured, according to i24 TV.
Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper had reported that 5,000 soldiers had been wounded since the beginning of the war on October 7, and that the Ministry of Defense had recognized 2,000 soldiers as disabled so far.
An estimate by the Israeli Ministry of Defense expected that the number of soldiers with disabilities in the war taking place in the Gaza Strip since October 7 of last year would reach 12,500 soldiers. The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said that the Soldiers' Rehabilitation Department of the Ministry of Defense has dealt with 3,400 soldiers who were classified as disabled in the army since last October 7.
The Israeli army revealed that about 9,000 of its soldiers have received “psychological assistance” since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, and about a quarter of them have not returned to combat. This came according to a new statement revealed by the Army Medical Corps, according to Channel 12 and the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. According to the statement, nearly 9,000 soldiers have applied for psychological assistance since the beginning of the war, and approximately a quarter of them have not returned to combat.
The statement continued, "In total, about 13,000 regular and reserve soldiers required accompaniment or medical treatment at some level during the fighting, and thousands of them were injured in the battles."
Al Jazeera military and strategic expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwairi expressed his conviction that the numbers of dead and wounded announced by Israel “cannot represent the truth,” due to a discrepancy between the Israeli army’s data and the Walla website, which is close to the army itself.
In an interview with RT, Military strategist retired Tunisian Brigadier General Tawfiq Didi said that the number of Israeli army deaths in the Gaza battles is much greater than what Israel announces. Didi explained in an interview with the “Best Saying” program on RT channel, “The number of people killed in battles can be easily known, as the equation in wars is that for every 3 wounded there is a dead person, and the numbers now in Israel hover around 12,500 wounded and disabled people, and when we divide by Three, we find that the death toll exceeds 4,000, especially after eliminating more than a thousand tanks and armored vehicles, and I know what happens when Kornet missiles hit a tank. Its ammunition explodes and no one is left alive.”
He added, "The Israelis announce their dead only of those of Jewish origin and of the first race, meaning all Arabs, Falash, and those who are among them. They are not counted because they are of the second category. So I am sure that the number exceeds 4 thousand dead, and this is a very easy military calculation." He pointed out, "The Palestinian resistance documented everything it did, unlike the Israelis. The resistance documented shooting at tanks and armored vehicles and destroying the houses in which the Israeli soldiers were holed up, and we saw them being killed... We saw the Kornet hitting the tanks, we saw Al-Yassin 105, so the difference is clear."
Hostages
The New York Times quoted Israeli military commanders as saying that retrieving the hostages is possible through diplomatic, not military, means. Israeli military leaders added to the newspaper that recovering the hostages and destroying Hamas have now become incompatible goals, and that the long battle aimed at destroying Hamas will likely cost the lives of the hostages. Israeli leaders stressed that the diplomatic path to recovering the hostages would be the fastest method. They said the strategic impasse exacerbated the military's frustration about the indecision of the political leadership. The Israeli military expressed to the newspaper their fear that the length of the military campaign, without a post-war plan, would lead to the erosion of allied support.
On the other hand, the New York Times said that it had seen documents indicating that Israel had imposed its control in Gaza on a smaller portion than it had envisioned in the battle plans since the beginning of the war. The documents indicated that Israeli plans included controlling the cities of Gaza, Khan Yunis, and Rafah by late December.
Israel had previously estimated there were 116 living hostages in Palestinian custody. Israel declared 20 out of 136 people in Gaza captivity dead in absentia, after announcing its forces had recovered the bodies of two hostages. By another count, 132 of them are still being held in Gaza, and 25 of them have been confirmed dead. Israel considers those still held by Hamas to be hostages regardless of whether they are dead or alive.
Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy earlier had 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.
Eylon Levy, the Israeli government spokesperson, told reporters 01 December 2023:
- Hamas still held 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 had released 110 hostages so far – 86 Israelis and 24 foreign nationals.
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.
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.
The Palestinian Prisoners' Club revealed that about 11,000 arrests were carried out by the Israeli army during the year 2023 in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, in addition to arrests from the Gaza Strip before the seventh of last October. The number of people arrested by the occupation in the West Bank since that date has exceeded 6,000. The total number of prisoners in Israeli prisons is 8,800, as documented by the club until the end of December 2023. The Prisoners' Club stated that cases of arrest among women amounted to (300), and this toll includes women from the occupied interior detained after October 7, while the number of cases of children reached 1,085. The arrest campaigns affected all groups, including women and children, as the number of women who were arrested reached about 200, while the number of arrests among children until the end of last December exceeded 355 children. The number of administrative detainees in Israeli prisons reached more than 3,290, which is the highest percentage since the years of the 1987 Intifada.
Israel said on 14 January 2024 that, since the beginning of the war, approximately 2,650 wanted persons have been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, approximately 1,300 of whom are affiliated with Hamas. On 08 January 2024 it was reported that more than 1,350 wanted persons had been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, more than 870 of whom are associated with the terrorist organization Hamas.
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