Israel’s Third Day of War: The Number of Hamas Insurgers and the Number of Their Shots in the Gaza Strip
The Israeli military said Tuesday it had largely regained control of areas in the south that had been attacked by militants from Hamas. The announcement came on the fourth day of war with Hamas and amid an Israeli siege and heavy bombing of The Gaza Strip.
The military said it had found “hundreds and hundreds” of bodies of Hamas militants who died fighting inside Israel – an indication of the size of their attack. There are still questions as to whether there were infiltrators coming over the Gaza border. There could still be some holdouts on Israeli territory.
The death toll on both sides continued to climb. There were more than 900 people killed by Hamas attackers and rocket fire in Israel. Palestinian health officials say at least 680 people in Gaza have been killed by Israeli strikes. More than 5000 people have been wounded.
The Gaza Attack on the Zionist Regime: a Statement by Ali Khamenei, the UN Secretary General, and the Palestinians
In his first televised comments since the war started, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei denied that Iran was involved in the attack but said we kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime.
Israel imposed a complete siege of Gaza, cutting off water, food, fuel and energy. Egypt has also closed its borders with Gaza.
Hamas leaders say Israeli actions in the West Bank, continued construction of settlements and the ongoing blockade of Gaza pushed it to attack.
The bloodshed began on the Jewish Simchat Torah holiday, and a day after the 50th anniversary of the start of the Yom Kippur War, when Israel came under attack by Arab countries.
The Palestinian group Hamas launched a large surprise attack along the southern border of Israel on Saturday. Paragliders, bikes, and boats were used by terrorists to enter Israel’s border.
The UN Secretary-General described the conditions of children in the Gaza Strip as “hell on Earth”.
Since Hamas seized control of the strip in 2007, Israel and Egypt have restricted the movement of people and goods. Israel controls what goods can and cannot enter Gaza’s borders.
“We make clear that the terrorist actions of Hamas have no justification, no legitimacy, and must be universally condemned. There is never any justification for terrorism,” the statement read.
The leaders went on to add they “recognize the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people, and support equal measures of justice and freedom for Israelis and Palestinians alike.”
“But do not make a mistake,” the group said. “Hamas does not represent those aspirations, and it offers nothing for the Palestinian people other than more terror and bloodshed.”
U.S. Ambassador to the Gaza Strip: “Hostiles in the West Bank and Gaza,” Secretary of State Ashoka Biden
President Biden confirmed Monday at least 11 Americans have been killed and that it is believed that U.S. citizens are likely among those being held captive by Hamas.
“I have directed my team to work with their Israeli counterparts on every aspect of the hostage crisis, including sharing intelligence and deploying experts from across the United States government to consult with and advise Israeli counterparts on hostage recovery efforts,” he said in a statement.
Biden urged Americans fleeing the area to follow the directions of local authorities and take “sensible precautions in the days ahead.”
Argentina’s Minister of Foreign Affairs said 250 Argentinians had signed up for an evacuation registry that the country’s consulate was preparing in Tel Aviv, while Peru reported two of its citizens missing. 180 Colombians have been assisting in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and others according to officials from the embassy in Tel Aviv.
Meanwhile, U.S. officials tell NPR they are offering Israel air defense and munitions and are pressing to get munitions to the country as quickly as possible.
The Department of Defense has no timetable for the USS Gerald Ford strike group to arrive in the Mediterranean.
Gaza’s hospitals are regularly beset with shortages of equipment and medicine because of the blockade. Gaza’s health ministry director general said that the area’s hospitals, already struggling, will be overwhelmed by the current Israeli offensive.
Hamas founder and spiritual leader Yassin — a paralyzed man who used a wheelchair — spent years in Israeli prisons and oversaw the establishment of Hamas’ military wing, which carried out its first suicide attack in 1993.
The U.S. State Department has designated Hamas a terrorist group in 1997. The European Union and other Western countries also consider it a terrorist organization.
The group has vowed to annihilate Israel and has been responsible for many suicide bombings and other deadly attacks on civilians and Israeli soldiers.
Hamas won 2006 parliamentary elections elections and in 2007 violently seized control of the Gaza Strip from the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority. The West Bank has been administered by the Palestinian Authority, a group that is dominated by the Fatah movement.
Hamas’ current leaders are Yehia Sinwar, in Gaza, and Ismail Haniyeh, in exile. They realigned the group’s leadership with Iran and its allies, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah. Many of the group’s leaders have relocated to Lebanon.
In the last few years, Israel has made peace agreements with Arab countries without having to make concessions to the Palestinians. The U.S. has recently been trying to broker a deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, a bitter rival of Hamas’ Iranian backers.
The Gaza Strip has been under heavy bombardment by Hamas during the 1948 Gaza Mass Mass Reaction: Israel’s largest open-air prison
Its leaders say hundreds of its 40,000 fighters took part in the assault. Israel claims the group has 30,000 fighters and an arsenal of rockets and drones, with some with a range of over 200 miles.
LONDON — Human rights groups call it “the world’s largest open-air prison.” The Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million people, has come under heavy bombardment from Israel in recent days, after Hamas militants launched an unprecedented ground invasion and thousands of rockets into Israel from Gaza.
Over 80% of those living in Gaza depend on aid because of restrictions on movement in and out of the enclave and ongoing hostilities with Israel. Israel and Egypt maintain that the blockade is needed to protect against militancy, but Palestinians and humanitarian groups disagree.
Prior to the creation of the state of Israel, Gaza was a part of Palestine. It was part of historic Palestine before being occupied by Britain in 1948. More than one million Palestinians fled or were kicked out of their homes in 1948 when the state of Israel was created.
The UN says that more than 80% of Gazans live in poverty and have access to clean water and electricity. The UN agency says that 95 percent of the population in Gaza do not have clean water. The territory’s unemployment rate stood at 46% in the second quarter of this year, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.