A weekend of combat in the Gaza Strip killed 14 Israeli soldiers
The Israeli PM tells Israeli soldiers: “We’ve fought all the way, until victory, and we don’t want you anymore”
On Saturday, rescuers and hospital officials said that more than 90 Palestinians, including dozens from an extended family, were killed in Israeli airstrikes on two homes in Gaza.
But the growing number of dead soldiers could undermine that support. Israel has compulsory military service for most Jews and the deaths of soldiers is a sensitive topic.
A small country with nearly 9 million people knows the name of almost every soldier who’s died in war and most people know at least one relative of a soldier who has died.
According to Israeli Army Radio, four soldiers were killed when their vehicle was struck by an anti-tank missile. The others were killed by other people.
The Israeli Prime Minister told his Cabinet on Sunday that the war exacts a very heavy price but that they have no choice but to continue fighting. “We are continuing with all the force, until the end, until victory, until we reach all our goals.”
On Saturday night, thousands of people demonstrated in pouring rain in Tel Aviv, chanting “Bibi, Bibi, we don’t want you anymore,” referring to Netanyahu by his nickname.
Hamas is hiding in Gaza: Israeli attacks against a civilian population during the Fourth Gazan Militant War and Israeli attacks on civilians and children
Netanyahu dodged responsibility for military and policy failures before the fighting began, but said he would answer tough questions once the fighting was over.
The military spokesman said that troops were fighting in “complex areas” in the second biggest city of Gaza, where Israel believes the leaders of Hamas are hiding.
An Israeli drone attack on the building of al-Amal Hospital killed a boy on Sunday morning according to the Palestinian Red Crescent. It did not give any further details.
The military campaigns in recent years have not been as bad as Israel’s offensive. More than two-thirds of the 20,000 Palestinians killed have been women and children, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Rescuers and hospital officials say 90 people, including many from an extended family, were killed in two homes in Gaza on Friday. The Civil Defense department of Gaza said that one of the homes in Gaza City was one of the worst to be hit during the war. The Palestinian Red Crescent said a 13-year-old boy was shot and killed in an Israeli drone attack while inside al-Amal Hospital in Khan Younis, a part of Gaza where Israel’s military believes Hamas leaders are hiding. An Israeli strike overnight hit a house in a refugee camp west of the city of Rafah, on Gaza’s border with Egypt. At least two men were killed and their bodies were taken to a hospital, according to Associated Press journalists. At least two people were killed and six others wounded when a missile stuck a building in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Palestinians said that Israel had bombed and fired on an area north of Gaza City that it had claimed to control. The Hamas military said it bombarded Israeli soldiers with rocket propelled grenades in the refugee camp. Israel faces international criticism for the civilian death toll and it blames Hamas because of their use of crowded residential areas and tunnels. Israel has launched thousands of airstrikes since Oct. 7. It says it has killed many of the people from Hamas. Palestinians and teenage boys are accused of being mistreated in Israel and elsewhere during the offensive. It denied abuse accusations and said that everyone is quickly released if they have no links to militancy. Speaking to the AP from a hospital bed in Rafah, al-Burdainy said he was taken into custody by Israeli forces after they partially destroyed his home. He said men were handcuffed and blindfolded. “We didn’t sleep. He cried and hid his face, as he explained that they did not get food and water. Another released detainee, Mohammed Salem, from the Gaza City neighborhood of Shijaiyah, said Israeli troops beat them. He said that they were humiliated. “A female soldier would come and beat an old man, aged 72 years old.”
Israel claimed to be in control of the area north of Gaza City, however Palestinians reported heavy bombardment and gunfire on Sunday. There were loud gunshots and bombs in the air and Israeli warplanes flying over the town. Hamas’ military arm said its fighters shelled Israeli troops in Jabaliya and Jabaliya refugee camp.
Assad Radwan, a Palestinian fisherman from the area, said there are bombings and fierce battles during the night. “Sounds of explosions and gunfire never stopped.”
Israel has been lambasted for its handling of the situation in Gaza, as well as the rising civilian death toll.
The United Nations Security Council has passed a watered-down resolution calling for the speedy delivery of humanitarian aid for hungry and desperate Palestinians and the release of all the hostages, but not for a cease-fire. It wasn’t immediately known how and when deliveries of food, medical supplies and other aid would increase. Trucks enter through two crossings: Rafah, and Kerem Shalom on the border with Israel. The head of the World Health Organization said on Sunday that a humanitarian cease-fire was needed. The Iran-backed Houthis say their attacks are aimed at Israel-linked ships in an effort to stop the Israeli offensive in Gaza.
Following the U.N. resolution, it was not immediately clear how and when aid deliveries would accelerate. Trucks enter through two crossings — Rafah on the border with Egypt and Kerem Shalom on the border with Israel. Fewer than 100 trucks entered on Friday, compared to a daily average of 500 before the war.
Filippo Grandi was the U.N. high commissioner for refugees and he again advocated for a cease- fire in Gaza to allow for aid delivery and the freeing of hostages.
He wrote on X, “For aid to reach those in need, hostages to be released, more displacement to be avoided and above all the devastating loss of lives to stop a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza is the only way forward.”
Israel’s allies in Europe have also stepped up calls for a stop to the fighting. Even though the U.S. has intensified calls for more protection for Gaza’s civilians, Israel’s top ally appeared to remain firmly behind it.
President Joe Biden spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu on Saturday, a day after the United States shielded Israel from a harsher U.N. resolution. While Biden said he didn’t ask for a cease-fire, Netanyahu’s office said the prime minister made clear that Israel would continue the war until it achieved its goals.
“The war exacts a very heavy price from us, but we have no choice but to continue fighting,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. In a nationally televised speech, Israeli President Isaac Herzog appealed for the country to remain united. “This moment is a test. He said that they would not break nor blink. His government has been criticized for failing to protect civilians on Oct 7 and for promoting policies that helped Hamas gain strength. Netanyahu has avoided accepting responsibility for the military and policy failures. Amos Harel, military affairs commentator, wrote that over time, the public will find it hard to ignore the heavy price paid and the suspicion that the aims that were loudly heralded are still far from being attained. The Israeli military said it had completed the dismantling of Hamas’ underground headquarters in northern Gaza, part of an operation to take down the vast tunnel network and kill off top commanders that Israeli leaders have said could take months. Efforts toward negotiations continued. The head of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, arrived in Egypt for talks. The militant group, which also took part in the Oct. 7 attack, said it was prepared to consider releasing hostages only after fighting ends. The leader of Hamas traveled to Cairo for talks a few days ago.
