Israel: Hamas' fighting spirit broken

Middle East conflict - Israel: Hamas' fighting spirit broken - New UN vote

Immediately before a UN vote on a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, Israel says it has achieved further successes in the fight against the Islamist Hamas. Many Hamas terrorists are currently surrendering in the face of military pressure, said Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi. Meanwhile, the situation for civilians in the Gaza Strip continues to deteriorate. According to the UN, the people there are pleading for an end to "this hell on earth". The situation in the hospitals in particular is catastrophic. The UN General Assembly plans to vote tonight (from 21:00 CET) on Egypt's request for a ceasefire.

Israel: Many Hamas fighters surrender

"We are exerting great pressure. I think that they are surrendering and coming out with their hands up shows that their fighting spirit is broken. This accelerates our successes, after all we want to move forward quickly," said Halevi at a meeting with the head of the domestic intelligence service Shin Bet, Ronen Bar. Israeli Defense Minister Joav Galant declared that the last Hamas strongholds in the northern Gaza Strip were about to fall. The Hamas command centers in the districts of Jabalia and Shejaiya had been encircled and were on the verge of collapse, Galant said.

Biden pledges further support for Israel

US President Joe Biden assured Israel of further support in the fight against Hamas terrorists. "As I said after the attack (on October 7), my commitment to the security of the Jewish people (...) is unwavering," Biden said at a reception for the Jewish Hanukkah holiday at the White House on Monday evening. The USA would support Israel until the country got rid of Hamas. According to the White House, Biden emphasized that the US was working tirelessly for the safe return of the hostages kidnapped from Israel in the Gaza Strip. "And I will not stop until we bring every one of them home." He is also working to get more "humanitarian aid for innocent Palestinian civilians".

UN: People plead for safety

Following a visit to the sealed-off coastal strip, Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the Palestinian Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), posted on X (formerly Twitter): "People are everywhere, they live on the streets, they need everything." They pleaded for safety. "Our colleagues are being asked to do the impossible in an impossible situation," said Lazzarini. According to the United Nations, half of the population in the Gaza Strip is now starving. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have had to leave the fiercely contested north for the south on the orders of the Israeli military. But there is now fighting there too.

WHO: Hospital is a "humanitarian disaster zone"

According to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Al-Ahli hospital in the city of Gaza resembles a humanitarian disaster zone. The hospital can only occupy 40 of its 80 beds, but has more than 200 patients, reported Richard Peeperkorn, the WHO representative for the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel. Patients were lying in corridors, the library and a chapel as well as in the inner courtyard. Doctors were treating seriously injured patients who arrived on donkey carts or on foot, sometimes on the ground and on the sidewalk. There was hardly any staff left. Because there is no vascular surgeon, they have to amputate limbs.

UN reports fighting near clinics

The United Nations also reported fighting near hospitals. The Al-Auda hospital in Jabalia has been surrounded by Israeli troops and tanks for six days, reported the UN emergency aid office OCHA. According to reports, around 250 doctors, patients and their relatives are trapped in the hospital. Two medical staff had been killed on duty there during fighting in recent days.

According to the Hamas-controlled health authority, Israeli troops also entered the Kamal Aduan hospital in the north. According to reports, men, including medical staff, were ordered to gather in the hospital courtyard. The Israeli military did not initially comment on the incident when asked. According to OCHA, the hospital had come under fire the day before.

Ministry: death toll rises to 18,400

According to the health authority in Gaza, the number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip has risen to 18,412 since the start of the war. More than 50,000 other people have been injured, the ministry announced. Most recently, the number of deaths was put at around 18,200. The figures cannot be verified at present, but the UN and other observers point out that the authority's figures have proved to be generally credible in the past.

The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, carried out by terrorists from the Islamist Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7 in Israel near the border with Gaza. As a result, more than 1200 people were killed on the Israeli side, including at least 850 civilians. Israel's army has lost 434 soldiers so far.

Deaths in drone attack on Palestinian militant stronghold

Meanwhile, at least four Palestinian militants were killed in an Israeli military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin. They were killed in a drone attack, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported. The Ministry of Health in Ramallah confirmed the deaths. According to the Al-Aqsa Brigades, they were members of the armed group, which is close to the Fatah party of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The city of Jenin is considered a stronghold of militant Palestinians.

Read also:

Israel's successes in the fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip have led to many Hamas fighters surrendering. According to Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, the Hamas command centers in the districts of Jabalia and Shejaiya are on the verge of collapse. The United Nations (UN) General Assembly is planning to vote tonight on Egypt's request for a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas fighters are surrendering due to the great pressure being exerted by Israel, as stated by Halevi at a meeting with Shin Bet head Ronen Bar. Israeli Defense Minister Joav Galant announced that the last Hamas strongholds in the northern Gaza Strip are about to fall.

US President Joe Biden pledged further support for Israel in the fight against Hamas terrorists, reiterating his commitment to the security of the Jewish people. The USA would support Israel until it gets rid of Hamas, according to the White House.

Following a visit to the Gaza Strip, Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the Palestinian Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), reported that people are living on the streets and pleading for safety. According to the UN, half of the population in the Gaza Strip is now starving, and hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have had to leave the fiercely contested north for the south.

According to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza resembles a humanitarian disaster zone, with more than 200 patients being treated in corridors, libraries, chapels, and the inner courtyard.

The United Nations also reported fighting near hospitals in the Gaza Strip, with troops and tanks surrounding the Al-Auda hospital in Jabalia, trapping around 250 doctors, patients, and their relatives. Two medical staff have been killed during fighting at the hospital in recent days.

According to the Hamas-controlled health authority, Israeli troops entered the Kamal Aduan hospital in the north, ordering men, including medical staff, to gather in the hospital courtyard. The Israeli military did not comment on the incident when asked.

According to the health authority in Gaza, the number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip has risen to 18,412 since the start of the war, with more than 50,000 other people injured.

Meanwhile, at least four Palestinian militants were killed in an Israeli military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. The city of Jenin is considered a stronghold of militant Palestinians.

Biden emphasized that the USA was working tirelessly for the safe return of the hostages kidnapped from Israel in the Gaza Strip and for more humanitarian aid for innocent Palestinian civilians.

The WHO stated that patients were being treated on the ground and on the sidewalk due to a lack of staff at the Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza. The hospital only has 40 of its 80 beds occupied, but has more than 200 patients.

According to OCHA, the Al-Auda hospital in Jabalia has been surrounded by Israeli troops and tanks for six days, with around 250 doctors, patients, and their relatives trapped inside. The UN is urging Israel to allow humanitarian access to the hospital to avoid further loss of life.

Source: www.stern.de