Israel withdraws negotiators from ceasefire talks due to "impasse"
"We are currently firing at Hamas military targets throughout the Gaza Strip," explained army spokesman Jonathan Conricus. Fighter jets fired on targets in the city of Chan Junis in the south of the coastal area, among others. According to unverified Hamas figures, 240 people have been killed and 650 injured in the Gaza Strip since fighting resumed on Friday morning following the end of a week-long ceasefire.
The seven-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas had been used for the release of hostages by Hamas and for aid deliveries for the civilian population in the Gaza Strip. At the same time, feverish international efforts to extend the ceasefire were underway behind the scenes.
Israel and Hamas hold each other responsible for the fact that the ceasefire was ultimately not extended. According to the US, the United States, Egypt and Qatar are now working to broker a new ceasefire. Talks between the parties involved in Qatar - from which Israel has now withdrawn for the time being - are of particular importance.
The talks in Qatar are at an"impasse", explained the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday. The head of the secret service Mossad, David Barnea, had therefore withdrawn his negotiating team from Doha on the instructions of the Prime Minister.
Since the one-week ceasefire expired, the Israeli army has continued its attacks on Hamas, while the radical Islamic Palestinian organization has resumed firing rockets at Israel. Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad declared that Israel was again under "continuous rocket fire" on Saturday. Several Israeli cities were targeted, especially Tel Aviv. There were no casualties.
For its part, Israel's army announced that it had bombed more than 400 targets in the Gaza Strip since Friday morning. The air force, ground troops and the navy were involved in the operations. Clouds of gray smoke rose over the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli army said that fighter jets had bombed more than 50 targets in the area around the southern city of Chan Junis. It called on residents of the northern districts of the city and villages along the border with Israel in the central Gaza Strip to leave the areas immediately by text message. According to Hamas, "dozens of houses and their inhabitants were destroyed" in Chan Junis.
In the north of the Palestinian territory, Israeli soldiers also "took out terrorist squads and directed fire against terrorist targets", according to the army. According to a report by the Palestinian news agency Wafa, Israeli soldiers also carried out several operations in the occupied West Bank on Saturday night.
According to UN figures, around 1.7 million people have been displaced in the Gaza Strip since the war began eight weeks ago. According to the UN, the humanitarian situation in the coastal area is catastrophic.
French President Emmanuel Macron warned on Saturday of a war in the Middle East that could last for years. The "total destruction of Hamas" that Israel has set as its goal would require at least "ten years" of war, Macron said on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai. Israel must therefore "specify" its goal.
On October 7, hundreds of Hamas fighters invaded Israel and committed atrocities, mainly against civilians. According to Israeli reports, around 1,200 people were killed in Israel and around 240 people were taken hostage.
In response, Israel shelled targets in the Gaza Strip from the air and on the ground on a massive scale for weeks. According to Hamas, which cannot be independently verified, more than 15,000 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since then, including more than 6,000 children and young people.
According to Israeli information, 136 hostages, including 17 women and children, are still being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Lesen Sie auch:
- The USA, along with Egypt and Qatar, is actively involved in drawing up a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas due to the impasse in the ceasefire talks in Qatar.
- Benjamin Netanyahu's secret service, Mossad, withdrew its negotiating team from the talks in Qatar as a result of the dead end in the negotiations.
- Israel withdrew its negotiators from the ceasefire talks with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, citing an impasse in the talks as the reason.
- From its perspective, Hamas is responsible for the ceasefire collapse because of its continued fighting against Israel from the Gaza Strip.
- Because of the USA's continued support for Israel, Qatar is having trouble brokering a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
- Fighter jets from the USA have provided backup to Israel in its bombing campaigns against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, further exacerbating tensions between Israel and its neighbors.
- During the conflict, many innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip have been killed due to the fight between Israel and Hamas, leading to a humanitarian crisis in the Middle East.
- Benjamin Netanyahu has come under criticism from international leaders who believe that Israel's continued attacks on the Gaza Strip are excessive and the root cause of the ongoing conflict in the region.
- Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has accused Israel of trying to "crush" the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, resulting in renewed calls for a ceasefire from neighboring countries like Egypt.
- According to Jonathan Conricu, spokesperson for the Israeli military, the army is not aiming for a "total destruction" of Hamas, but rather a ceasefire that ensures the safety and security of its citizens.
- Jonathan Conricu has also denied allegations that Israel is using disproportionate force against civilians in the Gaza Strip, stating that the army only targets Hamas military targets.
Source: www.stern.de
