26-10-2023 (TEL AVIV) Amid escalating tensions, Israel has intensified its bombardment of the Gaza Strip in preparation for a potential ground invasion aimed at eradicating the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The conflict has raised concerns internationally, with Russia cautioning that the crisis could extend beyond the Middle East.
In besieged Gaza, the situation has reached a critical point, with humanitarian supplies running dangerously low. Efforts to secure a temporary ceasefire for aid delivery have faltered, leaving residents to bury the mounting number of casualties in mass graves.
Israel has expanded its attacks into Gaza, initiating ground assaults on multiple targets in the Hamas-controlled enclave. The military’s actions on Thursday marked the largest incursion of the current conflict, according to Army Radio. This development indicates a widening scope of Israeli operations.
In preparation for the next stages of combat, the IDF operated in northern Gaza.
IDF tanks & infantry struck numerous terrorist cells, infrastructure and anti-tank missile launch posts.
The soldiers have since exited the area and returned to Israeli territory. pic.twitter.com/oMdSDR84rU
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 26, 2023
Looking beyond the ongoing war, United States President Joe Biden expressed his vision for a future that includes separate Israeli and Palestinian states coexisting peacefully. “Israelis and Palestinians equally deserve to live side by side in safety, dignity, and in peace,” stated Biden during a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Washington.
Biden also suggested that one reason for the recent attack by Iranian-backed Hamas, which claimed the lives of at least 1,400 people and took numerous hostages, was to obstruct the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized the urgent need to halt the bloodshed and violence during a meeting with religious leaders from various faiths. He warned that failure to de-escalate the crisis could have grave and far-reaching consequences, extending beyond the Middle East.
Concerns about the conflict spilling over into other regions prompted Israel to agree to delay its invasion of Gaza until US air defense systems can be deployed in the area to protect American forces. The Wall Street Journal reported that the US officials raised concerns with Israel about potential attacks by Iran and Iranian-backed groups on US troops in the Middle East. An Israeli incursion into Gaza could potentially trigger such actions from Iranian proxies.
Israeli airstrikes continue in several areas of Gaza
An Israeli rocket hit a site near Al-Quds Hospital, in the western part of Gaza pic.twitter.com/2ZJcBmgmiM
— Sprinter (@Sprinter99800) October 26, 2023
The reverberations of the Gaza war have already extended beyond the Palestinian territories. Israeli warplanes targeted Syrian army infrastructure in response to rockets fired from Syria, an ally of Iran. Additionally, Israel has conducted strikes on Syria’s Aleppo airport and Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Iran, a longtime adversary of Israel, has been striving for regional dominance and supports armed groups in Syria, Lebanon, and other areas, including Hamas. Iran has warned Israel to halt its offensive in Gaza.
Efforts to secure aid for Palestinians faced obstacles at the United Nations, as Russia and China vetoed a US-drafted Security Council resolution calling for humanitarian pauses to allow the delivery of essential supplies to Palestinian civilians. The United Arab Emirates also voted against the resolution, while ten members voted in favor and two abstained. Russia proposed an alternative resolution advocating for a broader ceasefire, but it failed to secure the required number of votes. Israel has rejected both proposals, citing concerns that Hamas would exploit the pause to create new threats against Gaza’s civilian population.
As the death toll rises in Gaza, Palestinians are resorting to burying unidentified bodies in mass graves, marked only with numbers instead of names. Families are using bracelets in the hope of identifying their loved ones should they be killed.
According to the health ministry in the Hamas-run strip, Israeli retaliatory strikes have claimed the lives of over 6,500 people. However, Reuters has been unable to independently verify the casualty figures from both sides. President Biden expressed skepticism about the Palestinian death toll, stating that he had “no confidence” in the numbers without providing further explanation. His remarks drew criticism from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the United States, which called on the president to apologize for his comments on the Gaza figures.
With preparations underway for a ground invasion, Israel remains determined to eliminate Hamas, the governing authority in Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu affirmed that Israel was readying itself for such an incursion but refrained from providing specific details regarding timing or scale. Israeli tanks and troops are amassed along the border with Gaza, and the country has mobilized 360,000 reservists.
International pressure is mounting to delay any potential invasion of Gaza, primarily due to concerns for the safety of hostages. More than half of the estimated 220 hostages held by Hamas possess foreign passports from 25 different countries, as confirmed by the Israeli government. Many of them are believed to hold dual Israeli nationality.
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