Israel wants to intensify fighting despite international criticism

Middle East - Israel wants to intensify fighting despite international criticism

While Israel's army is intensifying the fighting against the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip, there have been renewed rocket alarms on the Israeli side. As the Israeli army reported on Tuesday night, the sirens were wailing again on the border with the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously said during a rare visit to the troops fighting in Gaza that Israel would "intensify the fight in the coming days". The destruction of Hamas and the demilitarization of Gaza are prerequisites for peace, Netanyahu wrote in a guest article for the Wall Street Journal published on Tuesday.

Report: Israel's strategy minister expected in Washington

According to a media report, his Minister for Strategic Affairs, Ron Dermer, is expected in Washington for talks on the same day. Dermer wants to discuss his own plans for a new low-intensity phase in the war with Israel's most important ally, which is to begin by the end of January, the news portal "Axios" reported, citing two Israeli and US officials. The USA wants Israel to switch to more targeted operations against Hamas. In view of the high number of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military operation has been heavily criticized internationally.

Netanyahu: acting in accordance with international law

Netanyahu spoke out against this in the Wall Street Journal: Israel is "continuing to act in full compliance with international law". Israel is doing its best to keep the number of civilian casualties "as low as possible". According to the Hamas health authority, more than 20,600 people have been killed so far. "Unjustly blaming Israel for these casualties will only encourage Hamas and other terrorist organizations around the world to use human shields," Netanyahu wrote.

Chants of protest in Israel's parliament

"To render this cruel and cynical strategy ineffective, the international community must fully blame Hamas for these casualties. It must recognize that Israel is fighting the greater battle of civilized war against barbarism," the head of government wrote. Meanwhile, Netanyahu is also reaping protests in his own country. During a speech by the head of government in parliament the previous day, relatives of the Israeli hostages in Gaza chanted for Netanyahu to take immediate action to free the more than 100 hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip. "Now, now, now", they chanted repeatedly from the parliamentary gallery.

Hamas rejects new ceasefire

Many are calling for a second ceasefire to exchange the abductees for Palestinians imprisoned in Israel. During a first ceasefire lasting several days at the end of November, 105 hostages were exchanged for 240 Palestinians. However, Hamas rejected a new temporary ceasefire on Monday evening and demanded a permanent ceasefire. The terrorist organization was responding to an Arab media report that Egypt had drawn up a plan to end the Gaza war in several stages. Among other things, this draft provides for a ceasefire lasting at least two weeks, according to the report.

Netanyahu: No peace without the destruction of Hamas

"Hamas must be destroyed, the Gaza Strip must be demilitarized and Palestinian society must be de-radicalized. These are the three prerequisites for peace between Israel and its Palestinian neighbors in the Gaza Strip," wrote Israel's head of government in his guest commentary. During his troop visit on Monday, he spoke of a long battle, the end of which was not imminent. Nevertheless, diplomatic talks about the time afterwards are already underway in the background. According to "Axios", Netanyahu's Minister for Strategic Affairs, Dermer, also wants to talk about this during his visit to Washington on Tuesday.

Talks about a reformed autonomous authority

The USA is backing a revitalized and restructured Palestinian Authority (PA) led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Washington wants to pave the way for the ailing authority that governs the West Bank to take back control in Gaza as well, the Washington Post wrote on Tuesday. Netanyahu has so far rejected this idea. In recent weeks, however, Dermer and other officials have begun talking to US colleagues about a "reformed" PA, "Axios" further reported.

But first Netanyahu wants Gaza demilitarized after the destruction of Hamas, as he wrote in the "Wall Street Journal". That the PA would demilitarize the Gaza Strip is a "pipe dream", his article continues. "It did not succeed before Hamas drove it out of the territory in 2007, and it has not succeeded in the areas it controls today," Netanyahu wrote. For the foreseeable future, Israel will have to retain "supreme security responsibility" for the Gaza Strip.

The war was triggered by the terrorist attack by Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7 in Israel near the border with Gaza. They killed more than 1200 people. Israel responded with massive air strikes and a ground offensive in which, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority, more than 20,600 people have been killed and more than 54,500 injured so far.

What will be important on Tuesday

According to "Axios", Israel's Minister for Strategic Affairs, Dermer, is expected in Washington for talks on the war at the White House and the State Department. Dermer will meet with White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, US Secretary of State Tony Blinken and members of Congress, it said.