Fierce house-to-house fighting between Israel's army and Hamas

War in the Middle East - Fierce house-to-house fighting between Israel's army and Hamas

The Israeli armed forces have fought a fierce urban battle with the Islamist Hamas in the largest city in the south of the Gaza Strip.

The soldiers had advanced "into the heart" of Chan Junis, the military announced. Numerous people fled from the fighting in the Hamas stronghold. "There is no 'safe' zone. The entire Gaza Strip has become one of the most dangerous places in the world," wrote the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) on the X platform, formerly Twitter.

Ground offensive and air strikes

The Israeli armed forces suspect that the leadership of the Islamist Hamas and many of the hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip are in the area not far from Egypt. Should the military take control of the city, the Hamas fighters would only be able to retreat to small areas in the center of the Gaza Strip and on the border with Egypt. At the same time, international pressure on Israel to end the ground offensive is likely to increase.

In other parts of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military continued its air strikes. According to the armed forces, around 250 "terror targets" were attacked over the course of the past day. The troops are continuing to locate weapons, tunnel shafts, explosives and military infrastructure.

Meanwhile, alarm sirens continued to sound in Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip due to rocket attacks. According to the Israeli armed forces, military positions in the north of the country were attacked from neighboring Lebanon. The army had taken the launch sites in Lebanon under fire, the armed forces announced.

UN chief urges Security Council to act exceptionally strongly on Gaza

In a rare move, UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged the UN Security Council to act to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip. In a letter to the Security Council, the UN chief invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter for the first time since taking office in 2017. This allows the Secretary-General to draw the attention of the Security Council to "any matter which, in his opinion, may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security".

The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other terrorist groups on October 7 in Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip. More than 1200 people were killed. In addition, 240 people were abducted in the Gaza Strip, 105 of whom were released during a temporary ceasefire. Israel responded to the terrorist attack with massive air strikes and a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinians: Tens of thousands in tents in Chan Junis

According to Palestinian reports, the humanitarian situation is becoming increasingly dramatic due to the fighting in the south of the Gaza Strip. Tens of thousands of people are living in tents in the streets of the city of Chan Junis, eyewitnesses told the German Press Agency.

There was a lack of food, water and shelter. The situation had become particularly acute after the Israeli army had ordered people in the east of the city to flee to western districts and to Rafah on the border with Egypt. According to UNRWA, there are now almost 1.9 million internally displaced persons in the coastal strip - out of a total population of more than 2.2 million.

According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, more than 16,200 people have now been killed in Gaza. This cannot be independently verified at present, but the UN and observers point out that the authority's figures have proven to be generally credible in the past.

Israeli military: large weapons cache discovered in Gaza

In the north of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli armed forces say they have discovered a huge weapons cache near a hospital and a school. According to the military, there were hundreds of anti-tank rounds and bazookas, dozens of anti-tank missiles, dozens of explosive devices, longer-range rockets, dozens of grenades and drones. It was "one of the largest weapons caches" ever discovered in the Gaza Strip. "The entire terror infrastructure was located right next to residential buildings in the heart of the civilian population," wrote a military spokesperson.

Israeli forces intercept surface-to-surface missile

According to the military, the Israeli Arrow missile defense system once again intercepted a surface-to-surface missile in the Red Sea area. The missile did not enter Israeli territory and posed no threat to civilians, the armed forces announced on Wednesday. A rocket alert had previously been triggered in the city of Eilat on the Red Sea in southern Israel. Together with David's Sling and Iron Dome, Arrow forms Israel's air defense system. The "Arrow" can destroy enemy missiles at an altitude of over 100 kilometers and thus outside the atmosphere in early space with a direct hit.

Türk criticizes Israel's representatives

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, criticized former and current high-ranking representatives of Israel for "inhuman and inflammatory statements" about Palestinians. "History has shown us what such expressions can lead to," said Türk.

"Not only is it unacceptable, but a competent court could consider such statements in the context of the circumstances under which they were made as incitement to atrocities," Türk said in connection with the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. He spoke of a human rights crisis with unnecessary and disproportionate use of force by Israeli forces, aggressive violence by settlers and an alarming increase in deaths in custody and allegations of mistreatment of Palestinians in detention.

Erdogan threatens Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Israel against persecuting members of the Islamist Hamas in his country. "If they dare to take such a step against Turkey, they will pay the price in a way that they will not be able to recover," Erdogan said according to his office on Wednesday. Earlier, the Wall Street Journal had reported that Israel's secret services were preparing to track down and kill Hamas leaders worldwide after the end of the Gaza war. Turkey maintains links with Hamas and officials are also said to be in the country.

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The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged the United Nations Security Council to take exceptional action in response to the ongoing conflicts in the Gaza Strip, specifically citing Article 99 of the UN Charter. Israel's military has been engaged in a fierce house-to-house fight with Hamas in the largest city in the Gaza Strip, Chan Junis, a stronghold of the Islamist group. The Israeli armed forces have advanced into the heart of the city, forcing countless residents to flee. According to UNRWA, the entire Gaza Strip has become one of the most dangerous places in the world.

The Israeli military accused Hamas of hiding their leadership and hostages in the Gaza Strip, close to the Egyptian border. If the Israeli forces manage to take control of the city, Hamas fighters would only be able to retreat to small areas in the center of the Gaza Strip and on the border with Egypt. International pressure on Israel to end the ground offensive is expected to increase.

In response to the conflict, the Israeli military carried out numerous air strikes across the Gaza Strip, targeting around 250 "terror targets" over the past day. The Israeli forces are focusing on locating weapons, tunnel shafts, explosives, military infrastructure, and other threats within the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military reportedly discovered a large weapons cache near a hospital and a school in the north of the Gaza Strip. The cache contained hundreds of anti-tank rounds, bazookas, anti-tank missiles, explosive devices, longer-range rockets, grenades, drones, and other weaponry. Hamas authorities reported that more than 16,200 people have now been killed in Gaza due to the ongoing conflict, although the number cannot be independently verified at this time.

Antonio Guterres emphasized the urgent need for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, stating that continued conflict would result in a catastrophic situation for the Palestinians. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected calls for a ceasefire, stating that the military operations must continue until Hamas capitulates.

The Israeli military has also reportedly targeted rocket launch sites in Lebanon due to ongoing rocket attacks on Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip. Lebanon has denied involvement in the attacks and accused Israel of launching unprovoked attacks on its territory.

In a rare move, UNRWA also dispatched emergency teams to provide humanitarian assistance to those affected by the conflict in the Gaza Strip. Antonio Guterres called for immediate action by the international community to prevent further suffering in the region.

The conflict between Israel and Hamas has sparked widespread protests and condemnation from governments and human rights organizations around the world. The United Nations Security Council is expected to hold an emergency meeting on the situation in the Gaza Strip in the coming days.

Hamas has also been condemned for firing rockets into Israeli territory, causing damage and causing fear amongst the population. However, the group maintains that their actions are a response to Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people.

The Israeli military continues to patrol the Gaza Strip, maintaining a heightened state of readiness in response to potential further threats from Hamas and other Islamist groups in the region. The United Nations Security Council, along with the international community, continues to call for a peaceful resolution to the conflict and an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people.

Source: www.stern.de