Israel vs Palestine/Lebanon/Iran/Yemen/Syria: a New Middle East War

“You’ve NO IDEA How Many You’ve Killed?” Piers Morgan vs Avi Hyman
https://youtube.com/watch?v=QvGkK...rganUncensored 39:57
At last Piers Morgan has produced a hard-hitting interview with Israeli government spokesperson Avi Hyman. I cannot find much online about Mr Hyman's bio but, like fellow Israeli government spokesperson, David Mencer, he too appears to be BRITISH! :facepalm:

"Piers Morgan continues his coverage on the tragic conflict in Palestine and Israel by taking Israeli Spokesman, Avi Hyman, to task on the operations of the IDF. While Mr Hyman emphasises that the IDF are going to great lengths to protect civilians, Piers is shocked to hear the Israeli Spokesman has official numbers on the amount of Hamas fighters killed, but has no similar data on the death toll for civilians. Piers rightfully presses Mr Hyman on this point, who seemingly cannot respond.

Piers then turns to Abby Martin and Mosab Hasan Yousef for their perspectives on what Mr Hyman had to say, and the debate soon becomes personal. Abby calls Mosab "a Palestinian who hates Palestinians" and he responds in kind by saying "Abby is a self-appointed, low-grade journalist". Both contributors lay accusations of supporting violence at the feet of the other."

00:00 - Introduction
00:43 - Piers' monologue
01:26 - Why did Israel reject the peace deal?
02:09 - Avi Hyman: "We will keep up the pressure on Hamas"
02:23 - Rafah offensive
02:23 - How many civilians have to die?
05:28 - "Why won’t you say how many civilians have been killed?"
13:19 - Abby Martin: "Israel needs to be stopped before this horrific onslaught"
14:43 - Mosab Hasan Yousef: "This is war, in war people die!"
19:23 - How do Israel stop Hamas without killing civilians?
23:03 - "Would you allow Hamas to stay in power?"
24:48 - Mosab: "Abby is a self-appointed, low-grade journalist"
28:28 - Abby: "You’re a spy for Israeli intelligence!"
31:23 - "Should Palestinians have the same human rights as Israelis?"
35:48 - Is this the same as other wars throughout history?
38:58 - Mosab: "Israel is fighting for its very existence"

Katie Halper interview John Loffredo, a journalist who has traveled to Israel and has spoken to many Zionist Isrealis and captured their ugly words and deeds. Some of the footage here:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=aruA8-mFDLU

• Loffredo travels to the Gaza border where Zionists protesters are blocking humanitarian aid from entering the country. They harass the truckers who are patiently waiting to be allowed over the border. When CNN and other film crews are present, the IDF border guards act distant to the protesters but when they are gone, they bring each other food. The one protester who talks about how the Palestinians should all be absorbed into Europe is probably the most humane person there. The others feel that all the Palestinians deserve to starve to death, and they discuss their plans for moving to Gaza once the Palestinians and what a paradise it will be once the Palestinians "are removed" from the area.
  
  
• In New York City, Zionists protesters openly call for the death of all Palestinians and their removal from Gaza and the West Bank. There chants of "Death to Arabs" suddenly changes to "Death to Hamas" when mainstream media comes to cover their events.
  
  
• In the West Bank, a Christian olive farmer talks about how Zionist settlers constantly sabotage his olive farm, stealing equipment and cutting down trees, trying to make it impossible for him to have a livelihood.
  
  
• Also in the West Bank, the IDF arrest Palestinians for their Facebook and WhatsApp posts. One Palestinian man made a post on Facebook about a young Palestinian soccer player who was murdered by the IDF. The police come to take him away and he may face the death penalty for his words. Some elderly Palestinians come to witness the arrest and are assaulted by the police.

"By taking over Gaza border crossing to Egypt Israel has breached Camp David accords and declared war. Will Egypt respond?"

INTERVIEW: Egypt, a beggar state
https://youtube.com/watch?v=JnwBbxI1s30

Top Secret: In a 2018 letter, Netanyahu asks Qatar to fund Hamas
Nir (Shoko) Cohen
ynet
Sun, 05 May 2024

https://www.sott.net/image/s35/70587..._Sheikh_Mo.jpg
Benjamin Netanyahu • Sheikh Mohammed Thani • Yahya Sinwar

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the government of Qatar to continue the transfer of money to Gaza, in a secret letter sent to the Qatari leadership in 2018 and only seen by a handful of people since. In the letter, Netanyahu explained that the funding would reduce the motivation of terror groups there to carry out attacks, would prevent a humanitarian crisis and was vital for preserving regional stability.


There are two different time periods for Qatari funding of the Gaza Strip, which allowed Hamas to grow from an insignificant terror organization into a military empire with battalions, an underground network of tunnels and the fire power of a small army.

Between 2007 and 2014, Qatar provided Hamas with funds, away from any international oversight or review. From 2014 on, funding from Qatar was coordinated with the United States and Israel.

The 2014 war in Gaza was the turning point. The U.S., UN, Israel and Qatar decided soon after the war to set up a new system in which $30 million would be delivered to the coastal strip by Doha each month.

Some $10 million was to buy fuel from Israel, needed to operate Gaza's power station, $10 million to pay the salaries of government employees, and the final $10 million was to be given in $100 stipends to some 100,000 Gazan families in need.

That was the time when the notion that Hamas would back away from its intent to destroy Israel as long as it accumulates governing and economic assets took root in Israel.

Until 2018, Qatari funds were not given to Gaza on a regular basis and delivered only occasionally with approval from Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Dr. Udi Levi, who was the Mossad official charged with fighting the funding of terror until 2016, said:

"The PA said it would no longer agree to fund Hamas and rather than let the terror group collapse, Israel decided on an alternative route for its funding. That was part of Israel's policy to buy quiet. Hamas demanded that the $30 million per month would be delivered directly to the ruling faction. It was naïve to believe Hamas would provide the money to the population in Gaza."

continue: https://www.sott.net/article/491193-...-to-fund-Hamas

https://x.com/ivan_8848/status/1788571761237242278

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Text:
Highlights from the address given by the Leader of the Ansarallah movement, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, on 9 May.

⦿ "The targeted ships reached 112 ships, and the operations during this week were carried out by 10 ballistic and winged missiles and a drone."

⦿ "The United States is the one that gave the signal to Israel to occupy the Rafah crossing and provided the conditions for it, and is an accomplice in all its crimes."

⦿ "We are beginning to think about the fifth stage and sixth stages of our operations, and we have very important, sensitive, and influential options for the enemies."

⦿ "Egypt is supposed to be at the forefront of the Arab movement to take a firm stance to pressure the enemy to evacuate the Rafah crossing."

⦿ "The enemy only knows the language of force, and the Ummah needs to pay attention to the power of deterrence."

⦿ "For us, there are no red lines that could hinder us from carrying out our operations."

⦿ "As the fourth stage of our operations intensifies and gains momentum, we are beginning to prepare for the fifth stage."

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/1788598291598327871

https://x.com/MayadeenEnglish/status...61432113852641

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/...ing-israeli-tr

Resistance blows up booby-trapped tunnel, hitting Israeli troops
Al-Qassam Brigades on Thursday announced that one of the Palestinian resistance units detonated a tunnel rigged with explosives targeting Israeli military personnel.

This resulted in the destruction of three Israeli vehicles, and a digger, and casualties among the soldiers, including one killed and one injured, as per Palestinian military media reports.

Shortly afterward, an Israeli military spokesman confirmed that three Israeli soldiers sustained injuries due to the explosion.

Read more: Resistance defends against Rafah invasion, fires large rocket barrages

Earlier in the day, the Al-Qassam Brigades reported that its forces targeted several Israeli military units in the southern part of the Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City using mortar shells.

This coincided with an announcement by the Mujahideen Brigades that its forces targeted the "Gaza envelope" with a barrage of rockets.

They further targeted an Israeli military vehicle using an RPG shell and also aimed at Israeli troops stationed in the "Netzarim" axis using 107-type rockets.

Meanwhile, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades reported its fighters engaging in fierce clashes with Israeli infantry forces in the Shoka neighborhood, located east of Rafah.

Palestinian resistance groups have thus far reported several successful operations throughout the day.

This morning, the Al-Qassam Brigades announced the targeting of Israeli forces advancing east of Rafah with mortar shells.

Similarly, Al-Quds Brigades declared the targeting of Israeli military gatherings with heavy caliber mortar shells east of the Shoka neighborhood.

As for the Al-Qassem Brigades, they announced the firing of 107 rockets this morning targeting an Israeli military vehicle assembly near the airport east of Rafah.

https://x.com/MayadeenEnglish/status...63422374080814

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/...-in-kfar-gilad

Hezbollah drone strikes Israeli command center in Kfar Giladi
The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah announced Thursday that it had carried out a drone strike targeting an Israeli military command center in the settlement of Kfar Giladi.

The drone strikes, carried out using kamikaze drones, struck the command and several positions near it, with the operations room being struck, inflicting several injuries and killing several officers.

The Resistance underlined that the operation came in response to the Israeli assassination of Hezbollah fighters in Bafliyeh, southern Lebanon, as well as in support of the Palestinian people and Resistance in light of the war they have been under for months.

Hezbollah issued another statement declaring that its fighters attacked an Israeli assembly point at the Jal al-Alam site using a Burkan rocket.

The Islamic Resistance also announced that its fighters attacked an Israeli military vehicle using armor-piercing missiles, setting fire to it and killing and wounding its crew.

The resistance showed scenes of the operation to target spy devices at the Hadab al-Bustan site of the Israeli occupation forces on Tuesday, and the bombardment of the al-Raheb and al-Malikiyah sites on Wednesday.

The Israeli air defense division in northern occupied Palestine is not able to "100% confront" suicide drones, which are sent from a short range and fly at a low altitude, Israeli Channel 12 said Wednesday.

Hezbollah drones devastating 'Israel'

The channel's correspondent in the north, Guy Varon, admitted that the drone launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon on Tuesday in the direction of the Metulla settlement accurately struck their targets, stressing that many of the drones that penetrate the airspace, "film and collect information without hindrance by the security establishment."

The channel stated that it was permitted to publish that two reserve fighters from the 551st Brigade in the Israeli occupation forces were killed as a result of the attack, claiming that was only the third case in which drone attacks from Lebanon killed Israeli soldiers.

The Israeli channel talked about Hezbollah's capabilities and tactics in aerial attacks, quoting reservists serving in the North for seven months as saying that many small drones pass over their heads before they see the large explosive-laden kamikaze drones.

Speaking with Channel 12, the soldiers emphasized that "there is no actual Israeli response to the launch of drones from Lebanon," adding that "the drones penetrate the sky without warning many times."

The Israeli soldiers revealed that "even in cases where a warning is given, there is not always a fortified place, or it is not always accessible."

North uncared for

Regarding the situation for settlers in northern occupied Palestine, Channel 12's correspondent said Israeli officials in the north were planning on waiting until September 1 for the situation to improve, and if it did not, they would present them with an ultimatum to deal with the issue.

The reporter pointed out that the voices in the War Cabinet emphasize that the escalation on the front with Lebanon will take several months, noting that this means that "families will register their children for the next school year in distant places and will not return to the north."

Northern settlers feel abandoned and do not receive the minimum appropriate attention from officials, the correspondent added, stressing that financial transfers have been suspended for seven months. Meanwhile, when the transfers were interrupted in Tel Aviv, "Israel" as a whole was shaken.

https://x.com/MayadeenEnglish/status...59578789347635

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/...-israeli-targe

Iraqi resistance executes 3 operations against Israeli targets
The Islamic resistance in Iraq announced Thursday that it carried out 3 operations against Israeli occupation targets.

It mentioned in its statement that the Israeli Nevatim base in Beersheba/occupied Bir al-Sabe was targeted by drones, in addition to striking a vital target in occupied Umm al-Rashrash (Eilat) with drones at dawn.

The resistance also announced the targeting of occupied Asklana Ashkelon port using cruise missiles, confirming that it would continue to destroy enemy strongholds.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced carrying out a drone strike against a vital Israeli target in occupied Umm al-Rashash [Eilat] late Tuesday as part of its ongoing operations in support of Palestine and Gaza.

Israeli media reported that air defense systems were activated in the area without mentioning if an interception was achieved.

This comes one day after the Resistance group launched several operations against Israeli targets in occupied Palestine in response to the ongoing massacres against the Palestinian people.

In a statement, the Iraqi Resistance mentioned that its fighters targeted the Israeli Yarden base in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights and the Israeli Yonatan base in the occupied Palestinian territories with drones.

It also said it targeted the Leviathan gas platform and an Israeli military airbase in occupied Umm al-Rashrash with drones.

Additionally, the oil port of Ashkelon and another military facility in the occupied Palestinian territories were struck by the Resistance using al-Arqab cruise missiles and drones.

Finally, the statements reaffirmed that the Islamic Resistance in Iraq would continue to strike enemy strongholds, vowing that its operations would continue in alignment with the Palestinian cause, in support of the Palestinian people and Resistance, and in response to the Israeli massacres being carried out in Gaza.

https://x.com/anadoluagency/status/1788663984326910099

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/us...th-aid/3215028

US ship sails from Greek Cypriot administration to Gaza with aid

LEFKOSA, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

US-flagged ship, Sagamore, loaded with humanitarian aid, departed Thursday from the port of Larnaca in the Greek Cypriot administration for the Gaza Strip, according to media reports.

Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister Konstantinos Kombos said the aid will be unloaded onto the floating pier built by the US off the coast of the besieged Palestinian enclave.

The Greek Cypriot administration announced in March that it created a sea corridor to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza with the support of many countries, including the EU and the US.

US President Joe Biden also announced the construction of a large floating pier off the Gazan coast to deliver humanitarian aid.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a Hamas attack in October, which killed less than 1,200 people.

More than 34,900 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and over 78,500 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

https://x.com/anadoluagency/status/1788656434424549458

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east...sembly/3215089

Palestine's UN membership bid to be discussed again at UN General Assembly

NEW YORK

The UN General Assembly will convene Friday to discuss a draft resolution to reconsider Palestine's membership bid and grant additional rights.

Palestine's membership to the UN was vetoed April 18 by the US at the Security Council.

According to the information obtained by Anadolu, the new resolution, which is set to be presented to the General Assembly for a vote, is sponsored by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the rotating representative of the Arab Group.

It highlights that Palestine meets membership criteria, according to Article 4 of the UN Charter and therefore should be admitted as a member.

It advises the Security Council to reconsider the issue in a "positive" manner within the framework.

Calling for certain arrangements to be made to allow Palestine's participation in General Assembly sessions, the resolution also urges Palestine to participate in meetings organized by UN bodies and UN conferences, with the condition that this is done "exceptionally and without setting a precedent."

The resolution urges the Economic and Social Council to implement those arrangements for Palestine "without being a member of the Council," and requests that it applies to other UN organs, specialized agencies and bodies within the UN system.

Referring to the right of the Palestinians to self-determination and statehood, the resolution urges UN chief Antonio Guterres to take necessary steps to implement the decision.

Some of the arrangements requested for Palestine listed in the annex of the resolution include: "The right to be seated among Member States in alphabetical order; The right of inscription on the list of speakers on agenda items other than Palestinian and Middle East issues in the order in which it signifies its desire to speak; The right to make statements, submit proposals and amendments on behalf of a group; The right of members of the delegation of the State of Palestine to be elected as officers in the Plenary and Main Committees of the General Assembly; The right to full and effective participation in United Nations conferences and international conferences and meetings."

Palestine's UN membership bid

Palestine applied for full membership in the UN in 2011 but did not receive the necessary support from the Security Council. In 2012, Palestine obtained "permanent observer status" at the UN.

Palestine's Permanent Representative to the UN, Riyad Mansour, sent a letter to Guterres on April 2, requesting a review of Palestine's membership application.

On April 3, Guterres wrote to the Security Council and urged consideration of Palestine's request.

On April 8, the Council referred Palestine's request to the "Committee on the Admission of New Members." After two meetings, the Committee announced it could not reach an agreement.

Afterward, Algeria submitted a draft resolution to the Council on April 18 for Palestine's membership, which was vetoed by the US.

https://x.com/anadoluagency/status/1788633785116000679

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east...ansfer/3214952


Israeli officials vow to continue Gaza war despite US freeze on arms transfer

JERUSALEM

Top Israeli officials vowed Thursday to continue its war on the Gaza Strip despite US President Joe Biden’s decision to freeze arms transfer to Tel Aviv over its offensive on the southern city of Rafah.

“I say to the leaders of the world — no amount of pressure, no decision from any international forum, will stop Israel from defending itself,” Netanyahu said in a video message on X.

“As prime minister of Israel, the only Jewish state, I pledge that if Israel is forced to stand alone, Israel will stand alone,” he added.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also vowed that Israel will “achieve its goals” and “can’t be subdued.”

“I say from here to Israel’s enemies and its best friends: The State of Israel cannot be subdued — not the IDF (army), not the Defense Ministry, not the defense establishment, not the State of Israel. We will stand, we will achieve our goals,” he said at a military ceremony.

“Whatever the cost, we will ensure the existence of the State of Israel,” he added. “We will hit Hamas, we will destroy Hezbollah, and we will bring security.”

Biden said in an interview on CNN on Wednesday that he paused arms transfer to Israel over its offensive on Rafah, where some 1.5 million displaced Palestinians have sheltered from Israel's ongoing war on the Gaza Strip.

"I made it clear that if they go into Rafah – they haven't gone in Rafah yet – if they go into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities – that deal with that problem," Biden said.

His decision has triggered a storm of anger inside Israel with several government officials opening fire on the US president.

Biden acknowledged that US weapons have been used to kill civilians in Gaza.

The US president added that Israel's actions in Rafah so far have yet to cross any "red lines" that would prompt him to overhaul his Gaza policy.

Early Thursday, Israeli President Isaac Herzog called on government officials to refrain from making “irresponsible” statements about the US president.

Israel has killed more than 34,900 people and injured 78,500 others in a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following a Hamas attack that claimed nearly 1,200 people on Oct. 7, 2023.

Over seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

https://x.com/anadoluagency/status/1788603586106311084

https://x.com/MiddleEastEye/status/1788676443905335436

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/n...=ap_k3catuhg6m

'Not possible': Palestinians too 'starved' to leave Rafah

Three days ago, the Israeli military dropped flyers ordering displaced people and residents of Rafah to leave.

In the orders where people were told to move out of Rafah, the military said it was “about to operate with force against the terror organisations in the area”.

A UN estimate says there are 1.2 million people sheltering in dire conditions in Rafah, Gaza's southern city. The "full-blown famine" that has taken hold in the north of Gaza has spread to the south, Cindy McCain, the head of the World Food Programme, confirmed over the weekend.

There are roughly 200 Palestinians that are being forcibly displaced from Rafah every hour, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (Unrwa) said on Wednesday.

During an online press briefing, medical doctors and humanitarian aid workers reporting from the ground in Gaza spoke about the impossible feat of moving people from Rafah, as people are ridden by famine plus a collapsed transportation and healthcare system.

"There are children and elderly that are so starved that they can barely walk. These people cannot just relocate to another area, to so-called 'safe zones'. It is not possible," Alexandra Saieh, head of humanitarian policy from Save the Children, said.

Several aid workers have expressed that there is no "safe" area in the Gaza Strip for people to relocate to. "The concept of safe zones is a lie," Helena Marchal, from Medecins du Monde, said.

Restricted movement

Aid workers also reiterated the difficulty of getting aid both into Gaza and then distributing it. Both the Rafah and the Kerem Shalom crossings, through which most aid reached the besieged Strip, have closed since Sunday evening.

Roads across Gaza are largely destroyed or blocked by people sheltering, contributing to the difficulty of movement of both goods and people. Only a very limited number of routes, especially between the north and south, are available for humanitarian use, Jeremy Konyndyk, from Refugees International, explained.

Another issue is overcrowding.

"In Deir al-Balah and the Mawasi area on the outskirts of the Rafah and Khan Younis governorates, there is barely any space. There are tents everywhere, on the beach, on the sidewalks, the streets, the graveyards, the courtyards of the hospitals, in the courtyards of the schools," Ghada Alhaddad, from Oxfam International, said.

Saieh explained that it took her team six weeks and four failed attempts to move a couple of hundred food parcels from Rafah to the north of Gaza.

"One litre of fuel cost $40 yesterday," according to Ranchal.

Fuel enters through the Rafah crossing.

"The whole aid operation runs on fuel. If the fuel is cut off, the aid operation collapses," Konyndyk said.

Severe malnutrition

Professor John Maynard, a surgeon from the UK who has spent the last two weeks operating on Palestinians in Gaza, highlighted complications from a direct result of malnutrition.

"I had two patients, 16 and 18, both of whom had survivable injuries, [and] both of whom died last week as a direct result of malnutrition."

His colleague Dr Kahler, spoke of a "tipping point" after six-eight months, "the immunological system breaks down".

"It is at that time when infections and complications from malnutrition will start," he added.

A famine, one aid worker explained, requires three thresholds: a sustained, severe lack of access to food, high levels of child malnutrition, and highly elevated mortality as a result of famine and disease.

All thresholds have been passed in the north, Konyndyk stated.

"If there is a Rafah invasion, this will certainly push things past the tipping point, and we will see a skyrocketing mortality related to the famine."

https://x.com/MiddleEastEye/status/1788669650240172464

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/i...itary-officers

Israel abandoning captives to hunt Hamas leaders, say military officers

Israel has abandoned its goals of freeing the captives in Gaza, instead seeking to establish a long-term presence with its Rafah ground offensive and pursue top Palestinian leaders, Israeli military officers have told Middle East Eye.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, three officers, one of whom is serving in Gaza, questioned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s strategy in the ongoing war on Gaza, which has killed at least 34,800 Palestinians and failed to return captives taken by Hamas on 7 October.

One officer told MEE the government’s aims were unclear and the objective of rescuing captives and destroying Hamas had “collapsed”.

“Netanyahu's operations in Gaza are fundamentally aimed at ... hunting down Yahya Sinwar,” said the officer in Gaza, adding that the war had become “personal” for the Israeli premier.

Sinwar, Hamas’s leader in the enclave, is Israel’s number one target and has not been seen in public since the war began.

The officer told MEE that Israel’s military had become “obsessed” with Sinwar and the upper echelons of the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas.

Last month, a Hamas official said Sinwar had visited combat zones above the ground and held deliberations with the group's leadership abroad.

Speaking to the pan-Arab news outlet Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed (or The New Arab), the Hamas official said Sinwar was not always staying in tunnels, as claimed by Israel, but also performing his duties in the field. MEE could not independently verify the reports on his whereabouts.

The military officer in Gaza said that conducting special operations targeting high-ranking individuals in a densely populated area risked making the conflict “perpetual”, and would be impossible without Israeli casualties and subsequent "retaliations" by the army.

“The army and intelligence are unable to make the right decisions in this respect,” one source said.

An officer not currently serving in Gaza said a “new phase” of the war was being planned involving a long-term military presence through special operations.

“This plan has been partially approved by the US,” the officer told MEE. “It's all part of a plan agreed upon by the two countries for a Hamas-free Gaza.”

MEE contacted the US State Department and the Israeli military for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

The US has previously said it opposes the re-occupation of Gaza or re-establishing a permanent Israeli presence there.

Israel has repeatedly said its main war objectives remain "returning our hostages and eliminating Hamas".

Captives 'no longer of concern'

According to the source, the planned long-term presence includes a ground invasion of Rafah, which Israel launched earlier this week.

Israeli forces captured the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Tuesday, hours after its troops had disconnected a major road in eastern Rafah from the crossing.

The capture came after several days of deadly heavy air raids and shelling of Rafah, where around 1.5 million displaced Palestinians have been sheltering for months.

It also followed an announcement by Hamas that it accepts a US-mediated ceasefire proposal that leads to the release of all captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, the end of the war and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops.

Everything that Israeli leaders had “discussed for a while” was currently taking place, according to one of the military sources, who added that a temporary truce was likely to follow in order to quell anti-government protests in Israel.

Hamas has repeatedly said it will not agree to a temporary truce.

“A few hostages might be exchanged. However, hostages are no longer of concern to anyone,” the source said.

Israel estimates that 128 of around 250 captives taken to Gaza during Hamas's surprise attack on Israel in October remain there, including 35 who the military says are dead. Hamas says at least 70 captives have been killed in Israeli air strikes.

Protests in Israel led by the families of captives have called on the government to end the war on Gaza and bring their loved ones home.

Responding to Hamas's agreement to the US-mediated ceasefire proposal on Monday, Netanyahu's office said the Palestinian group's stance was “far from meeting Israel’s core demands".

However, he said that Israel "will dispatch a ranking delegation to Egypt in an effort to maximise the possibility of reaching an agreement on terms acceptable to Israel".

Another round of indirect talks reportedly began on Tuesday in Cairo, with the presence of delegations from Hamas, Israel, the US, Qatar and Egypt.

CIA director William Burns, who is leading the talks, is set to arrive in Israel and meet with Netanyahu.

Text:
Government Media Office in Gaza reports:
⭕️The Government Media Office warns of a deep humanitarian disaster emerging from the Israeli occupation's invasion of eastern Rafah governorate and its occupation of the Rafah and "Kerem Shalom" crossings. This includes the blockade of medical and food aid, as well as the prevention of travel for thousands of patients and wounded individuals, indicating a genuine crisis in Gaza.

⭕️Over the past two days, the Israeli occupation has prevented the entry of more than 400 trucks carrying aid, food, medical supplies, and equipment. They also prohibited 159 cancer patients and wounded individuals from traveling outside Gaza for treatment.

⭕️We affirm that, in the midst of the genocide, every sector in Gaza relies on aid and assistance. Halting this aid signals famine for over 1,700,000 Palestinian living in southern provinces. They will struggle to obtain even a single meal daily, and hunger will prevail due to the lack of food and water resulting from the aggression.

⭕️We urge all free nations to pressure the occupation to halt the aggression on Rafah governorate, urgently open the crossings, and stop the genocide. We also call for an independent international investigation into the occupation's crimes against civilians, children, and women, their starvation, and their deprivation of treatment, food, and water.

https://x.com/QudsNen/status/1788632322318668199