First aid deliveries will be allowed to reach Palestinians at the Egyptian border crossing
The first humanitarian aid to arrive in the Gaza Strip since the Israeli bombardment began two weeks ago, and airstrikes destroyed two international airports in Syria
Some aid finally got through to the Gaza Strip and humanitarian efforts are still focused on aid convoys. Twenty trucks filled with medicine, medical supplies and food came into Gaza on Saturday morning from Egypt, marking the first humanitarian aid to arrive there since the Israeli bombardment began two weeks ago.
As the trucks made their way through the Rafah border, hundreds of foreign nationals gathered on the Gaza side, hoping to escape the violence. No one was allowed to leave. 100 trucks are on the Egyptian side of the border and the aid agencies hope that more supplies will come in the coming days. U.S. officials estimate that hundreds of American citizens are stranded in Gaza.
To the northeast, Syrian state media reported that Israeli airstrikes early Sunday targeted the international airports of the Syrian capital Damascus and the northern city of Aleppo, killing one person. The runways were damaged while being put out of service. The Israeli military had no immediate comment.
Hilfary at the Gazan Border: Eleven Truckloads of Aid, Food, Beds, and Water, and Mattresses
Loaded on the trucks were medical supplies for trauma treatment and chronic disease, the World Health Organization said Saturday. The delivery included some food and bedding. Notably, no fuel arrived, which aid groups say is needed to power hospitals and desalination plants for much-needed water.
The delivery also included some food, mattresses and blankets, according to aid workers at the Rafah border crossing. Notably, no fuel arrived, which aid groups say is needed to power hospitals and desalination plants for much-needed water.
But aid groups have warned that 20 truckloads do not come close to addressing the humanitarian needs in Gaza, where the U.N. reports a severe shortage of potable water, food and medical supplies.
The border crossing between Egypt and Tunisia continues to have additional trucks of aid by it. Additional aid is stockpiled in nearby El-Arish, with yet more set to arrive later today and in the days to come, the WHO said.
“They are the difference between life and death for so many people in Gaza,” said U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during a Friday visit to the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing. “We need to make them move to the other side of the wall so we don’t see them here anymore,” he said.
Early on Saturday morning, the U.S. State Department alerted American citizens in Gaza of the border’s opening but warned that anyone attempting to cross should expect “a potentially chaotic and disorderly environment on both sides of the crossing.”
The shelling is all over. We are sleeping next to the crossing, and we are frightened here more than if we had been inside,” said Mahmoud Abu Msallem, a Swedish citizen, who was at the border on Friday with his 6-year-old daughter Ghazal. They had been staying there for a long time, hoping to escape when the doors opened.
Israeli Warplanes and U.S. Airlines Have Arrived in Gaza: Why Did Israel Open the Gate? The View from Hamas
The experts say that there is no need for an armed hostage rescue at the moment.
Some Hamas political leaders are trying to distance themselves from the worst atrocities carried out by Hamas gunmen on Oct. 7 and now contend that it was angry Gazans and members of other armed groups — not their own fighters — who kidnapped the civilians. Yet videos released by Hamas fighters themselves depict the brutal killing of unarmed civilians.
The army of Israel is on the Gaza border ready for an invasion. Even though 20 trucks carrying humanitarian aid was allowed into Gaza on Saturday, the Israeli warplanes continued their bombardment of the strip, killing many civilians.
According to a former head of the Shin Bet, Israel may have agreed to let in humanitarian aid on Saturday morning after the release of hostages. He said Hamas’s motive might have been to inspire Israelis who have loved ones in captivity in Gaza to pressure their government to delay the impending ground invasion until more hostages are released.
There are still many questions of why, of all the 200 or so hostages, the Raanans were released. Robert D’Amico, a F.B.I. agent who worked on hostage cases overseas, believes that the two may have been healthy.
There are up to 10 more Americans in captivity, though the Raanans were picked because they are Americans. Hamas might be trying to temper Israeli retaliation on Gaza by gaining some good will from the Biden administration. President Biden and his team have been closely advising Israel on how it is waging its war on Gaza, although it is not clear how much Israel actually listens to what the Americans say.
Amid the terror and chaos, the video seems to underscore a long-held fear that Hamas—with the help of Iranian technology—had developed the ability to conduct air strikes on Israel. What’s more, these drones may prove more adept than Hamas’ supply of rockets at thwarting Israel’s sophisticated Iron Dome air defense system.
The Qassam rocket was not a very advanced one, being only lightweight and capable of traveling a few miles. In each successive generation of missile, they became larger and stronger, as well as having larger warheads.
Israel and the Gaza Campaign: Towards a Comprehensive Plan for the Next Stages of the War against Hamas and the Middle East
Over the past two decades, Hamas and Israel have engaged in a race—Hamas, to develop its offensive capabilities and extend its reach; and Israel, to frustrate those efforts as much as possible.
Like more than 20 non-state actors in conflict zones around the world, Hamas recognized that the drones could substantially upgrade its ability to wage war. Unlike its unguided missiles, which are designed to beat Israel’s air defenses simply by overwhelming them, drones are considerably harder to intercept. They fly low and don’t travel in a predictable, parabolic arch. A few countries recently learned that it is a tricky problem to tussle with an advanced drone.
The U.S. military said it would send more missile defense systems to the Middle East in response to “escalations” from Iran and its allies, who have threatened a broader war in the region. The deployment comes as Israel continues to signal intentions to invade Gaza after Hamas’s deadly incursion earlier this month.
An Israeli military spokesperson said his country is intensifying its bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip as part of the “next stages of the war” against Hamas.
Some people are being held captive in Gaza, according to Israel. The deputy chief of Hamas rocket forces was among the Palestinians who were killed in Israeli strikes overnight.
According to Reuters, many Palestinians said they had received renewed warnings from Israel’s military via leaflets and phone messages to move from north Gaza to the south of the enclave, with the added message that they “might be identified as an accomplice in a terrorist organization” if they stayed put. It’s unclear if moving is safe because of the strikes in the south of Gaza.
Israel claimed it hit a “terrorist compound” in Jenin in the West Bank, allegedly including operatives from a Hamas cell in a mosque, who were planning attacks.
The tally includes five Palestinians killed in separate incidents on Sunday. Israel carried out an airstrike during a battle in another West Bank refugee camp last week, in which 13 Palestinians, including five minors, and a member of Israel’s paramilitary Border Police were killed.
Unlike in Gaza, Israel rarely uses air power in the occupied West Bank. Israel says its forces have detained over 700 suspects in the West Bank, including 480 members of Hamas, since the start of hostilities.
There were strikes on Hezbollah targets on the border with Lebanon on Saturday after one Israeli soldier was hit by an anti-tank missile. “We are in the heart of the battle today,” said Hezbollah’s deputy leader, Sheikh Naim Kassem, on Saturday, the same day that the group said six of its fighters were killed.
First Arrival of the Heavy Ion Collider: Lynn Hastings and the U.S. Marines in Yukawa-Keene
Two aircraft carriers and 2,000 Marines are part of the naval power that the US has deployed to the area in recent weeks.
The arrival of the trucks Saturday was described by Lynn Hastings as a small first but important start. Obviously it’s really a drop in the bucket.”
