Deadly Israeli air strikes pound Gaza as Netanyahu vows to ramp up pressure

Israel continued its air strikes on Gaza on Wednesday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to intensify pressure on Hamas, as hopes for a US-announced ceasefire plan diminished.

Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh accused Israel of deliberately sabotaging negotiations for a truce and hostage release deal to prolong the war.

The Israeli military reported conducting 25 strikes within 24 hours, targeting “military structures, terrorist infrastructure, terrorist cells, and rigged structures.”

Netanyahu, who has consistently pledged to eradicate Hamas, reiterated on Tuesday that despite growing pressure, there would be no easing of Israel’s campaign against the militants.

“This is exactly the time to increase the pressure even more, to bring home all the hostages – the living and the dead – and to achieve all the war objectives,” Netanyahu emphasized in a speech to parliament, declaring, “We have got them by the throat; we are on the road to absolute victory.”

The health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza reported 52 deaths, mostly women and children, due to Israeli strikes in the previous 24 hours.

Gaza’s civil defense agency stated that 30 people were killed in three strikes on the Nuseirat refugee camp – one on a UN-run school, another on a house, and a third on a mosque.

Later on Wednesday, it reported 15 more deaths across central and northern Gaza from Israeli action, while the health ministry mentioned three children and a woman killed near Khan Yunis.

In southern Gaza, two people were killed in the Shakush area, northwest of Rafah, according to a medical source at Nasser Hospital.

Negotiations Stalled

At least 90% of Gazans have been displaced, with many seeking refuge in UN-run schools. Seven of these schools have been hit by Israeli strikes since July 6.

Nearly 70% of UN-run schools in Gaza have been affected during more than nine months of fighting, according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).

“Why do they target us when we are innocent people?” asked Umm Mohammed al-Hasanat, who is sheltering with her family at a UN-run school in Nuseirat, one of the schools that was hit. “We do not carry weapons but are just sitting and trying to find safety for ourselves and our children.”

The US has been advocating for a truce between Israel and Hamas since President Joe Biden announced an Israeli ceasefire roadmap on May 31. However, despite efforts by Egyptian and Qatari mediators, indirect negotiations have stalled.

In a phone call with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Tuesday night, Haniyeh blamed Israel for the deadlock.

“We dealt positively with the proposals put to us by the mediators but the occupation is avoiding the required outcome and does not want to reach an agreement to end its war,” Haniyeh said.

A senior Hamas official had earlier indicated that the group was withdrawing from current talks following Israel’s deadly strikes but was ready to return if Israel’s stance changed.

Hostage Families Demand Resolution

The conflict began with Hamas’s unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel, resulting in 1,195 deaths, mostly civilians, and 251 hostages being taken, of which 116 remain in Gaza, including 42 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s military response has killed at least 38,794 people, mostly civilians, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

The war has devastated Gaza, causing severe shortages of food, medicine, and basic goods.

The Palestine Red Crescent reported retrieving five bodies after Israeli air strikes on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza.

At a press conference on Wednesday, the World Health Organization’s representative in Gaza and the West Bank, Rik Peeperkorn, stated that only 16 aid trucks had entered Gaza via the Kerem Shalom border crossing in the past month, with dozens more waiting to enter.

The main aid crossing, Rafah, connecting Gaza with Egypt, has been closed for months since Israel’s ground troops entered the area.

The WHO also noted that out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals, only 15 were partially operational and that over a thousand attacks on health facilities had occurred since October.

Meanwhile, the US military announced the official end of its problem-plagued mission to deliver aid via a temporary pier.

Vice Admiral Brad Cooper told reporters the mission was “complete, so there’s no more need to use the pier”.

 

AFP

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