Israel: Fighting "in the heart of Chan Junis" in southern Gaza

Situation in the Middle East - Israel: Fighting "in the heart of Chan Junis" in southern Gaza

In the face of fierce fighting throughout the Gaza Strip, Israel's military has spoken of the "most intense day since the start of the ground offensive". The troops are now also "in the heart" of Chan Junis, the largest city in the south of the Gaza Strip, the military announced.

There is also fierce fighting in the north. In terms of the number of "terrorists killed, the number of battles and the use of firepower on land and in the air", this was the most intense day so far since the start of the offensive in the north of the coastal strip at the end of October. Meanwhile, international criticism of Israel's actions continues.

According to the United Nations, the expansion of attacks in the south since the end of the several-day ceasefire on Friday has led to more and more civilian deaths. "The number of civilians killed is increasing rapidly," wrote Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the Palestinian Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), in a statement.

With the resumption of the military operation and its expansion in southern Gaza, "the horrors of the past weeks are being repeated", lamented Lazzarini. At the request of the Israeli army, hundreds of thousands of civilians seeking protection had fled to the south of the coastal region from the already heavily contested north.

WHO: A child or young person is killed every ten minutes

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a child or adolescent is killed in Gaza every ten minutes. "The situation is getting worse by the hour," reported a WHO representative from Rafah on the Gaza Strip 's border with Egypt. He spoke to reporters in Geneva via a video link.

The spokesman for the UN Children's Fund, Unicef, James Elder, criticized Israel's calls for people to leave districts and go to safe zones. There are no safe zones in the Gaza Strip, Elder said via video link from Cairo. Such zones should have health facilities, water and food, but they are just small wastelands or sometimes just sidewalks, he said. "I think the authorities know this and I find it heartless. It underpins the indifference towards children and women, and this indifference is deadly."

Ministry: almost 16,000 dead so far

According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, around 15,900 people have been killed in the Israeli attacks. The casualty figures cannot be independently verified at present, but the United Nations and other observers point out that the authority's figures have proven to be generally credible in the past.

According to the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip is one of the "worst attacks on a civilian population of our time". NRC Secretary General Jan Egeland said on Tuesday: "Every day we see more dead children and more suffering for innocent people who have to endure this hell."

UN: plight of internally displaced people in Gaza exceeds capacity

In view of the fierce fighting and a new mass exodus, the UN Palestinian Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) no longer sees itself in a position to provide for all those seeking protection. Israel is calling on people in Chan Junis, the largest city in the south, "to move to Rafah to receive aid - but we are unable to provide for hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people," wrote UNRWA Director for Gaza, Thomas White, on the X platform, formerly Twitter.

White wrote that his organization would distribute its last 300 tents on Tuesday. "Thousands are living without shelter in the open." There will be more deaths, he warned.

Report: Israel has pumps for flooding

According to a report in the "Wall Street Journal", Israel is possibly making preparations to flood the tunnels of the Islamist Hamas. A system of large pumps could be used to flood the extensive network of tunnels under the Gaza Strip.

As the newspaper reported, citing US government officials, it is not known whether the Israeli government intends to use the tactic of flooding. Israeli army spokesman Richard Hecht said on Tuesday: "We are using all the means at our disposal to take action against the tunnel system."

Israel has intelligence information on hostages

When asked whether the military had intelligence information on where the hostages might be, an army spokesman said: "Yes, we do." He could not give any further details.

Israel assumes that 137 hostages are still being held. Around 240 people were abducted in the Gaza Strip during the Hamas terror attack. Recently, 105 hostages were released in exchange for 240 Palestinian prison inmates.

Rocket alert in Israel

Meanwhile, there were renewed rocket alerts on the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip, as well as in Tel Aviv and the center of the country. The Israeli news website ynet reported that a total of 15 rockets had been fired from the coastal area towards the greater Tel Aviv area.

The war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7 in Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip. As a result, more than 1200 people were killed on the Israeli side, including at least 850 civilians.

Baerbock: Israel must comply with international humanitarian law

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called on Israel to comply with international humanitarian law in view of the dramatic humanitarian situation. "Israel has the right to protect its population within the framework of international law. However, the decisive factor is how Israel proceeds in this new phase," said the Green politician after a meeting with Slovenian Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon in Ljubljana.

"Israel has a responsibility to comply with international humanitarian law, to alleviate civilian suffering and to protect the civilian population in the process," added Baerbock. "Because too many Palestinians have already fallen victim to this conflict."

Emir of Qatar accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza

The Emir of Qatar accused Israel of genocide with its military action in the Gaza Strip. The right to self-defense does not permit genocidal crimes such as those committed by Israel, said Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in his opening speech at the summit meeting of the heads of state and government of the Gulf Cooperation Council in Doha.

"It is a disgrace for the international community to allow these heinous crimes to go on for almost two months, with systematic and deliberate killings of innocent civilians, including women and children," the Emir said. Qatar had recently mediated between Israel and Hamas. At the same time, Qatar also harbors leading Hamas members.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg and other members of the Swedish branch of the climate protection group Fridays for Future have also accused Israel of genocide in the Gaza Strip. Thunberg and five other signatories wrote in an opinion piece published in the newspapers "Aftonbladet" (Sweden) and "Guardian" (UK) that the Islamist Hamas, which rules Gaza, had "murdered Israeli civilians in a horrific attack" and that this could not legitimize Israel's "ongoing war crimes".

Fighting again on Israel's border with Lebanon

According to Lebanese reports, several people were injured and one killed in renewed shelling on the border between Lebanon and Israel. The Lebanese army stated that at least one soldier had been killed in an Israeli attack on a military base in the border area.

This is the first Lebanese soldier to be killed in the current conflict. Security circles in Lebanon also reported that one person had been injured in an attack on a residential building. The Israeli military has not yet commented on the incident. The shelling followed a series of attacks by the Lebanese Hezbollah on Israeli territory.