Israeli army advances in southern Gaza

Situation in the Middle East - Israeli army advances in southern Gaza

Following the expansion of the Israeli military operation to the south of the Gaza Strip, criticism of the army's actions is growing in view of the suffering of the civilian population. Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock admonished Israel that there is a "responsibility to alleviate civilian suffering" even when exercising the right to self-defense. Aid organizations describe the situation in the Gaza Strip as desolate and speak of "horror" and "intolerable suffering of the civilian population". The operation against the Islamist Hamas also continues in the north.

No safe place in the Gaza Strip

Nobody feels safe when bombs are falling every ten minutes, said James Elder, spokesman for the UN children's charity Unicef, to the British BBC. He described the situation as "horror". "When I see one child after another being wheeled in, parents with terrible war injuries screaming on stretchers - they are not safe in hospitals or shelters," said Elder. For the people in the south of the Gaza Strip, the danger of attacks is compounded by the fact that they are already exhausted from the flight from the north.

Red Cross: no adequate humanitarian aid possible

The Israeli military accuses the Islamist Hamas of carrying out attacks from residential areas and hospitals and abusing civilians as human shields.

The President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric, lamented that no adequate humanitarian aid is currently possible. "The scale of human suffering is unbearable," she said during a visit to the embattled Palestinian territory.

UNRWA: almost 1.9 million internally displaced persons in Gaza

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians had fled from the embattled north to the south, where there is now also likely to be increased fighting on the ground. According to the Palestinian relief organization UNRWA, almost 1.9 million people are now displaced. This is more than 80 percent of the population. Almost one million internally displaced persons are in 99 facilities in the center of the coastal area as well as in Chan Junis and Rafah in the south. More than 2.2 million people live in the Gaza Strip - in an area only slightly larger than the city of Munich.

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. More than 1200 people were killed on the Israeli side, including at least 850 civilians.

Hamas: death toll in Gaza rises to almost 15,900

According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, almost 15,900 people have now been killed in the Israeli counter-attacks. More than 42,000 people have been injured. The casualty figures cannot currently be independently verified, but the United Nations and other observers point out that the authority's figures have proved to be generally credible in the past.

Baerbock to Israel: alleviate civilian suffering in the Gaza Strip

A spokesperson for the German Foreign Office said in Berlin that the expansion of the fighting to the entire Gaza Strip now also affected areas where people had sought protection at Israel's request. The humanitarian situation threatens to deteriorate further. It is therefore appealing for "necessary humanitarian aid, including fuel, to be allowed into the Gaza Strip in order to supply the people." Israel imposed a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip after the terrorist attack on October 7.

At a conference of the Green parliamentary group in Berlin, Baerbock said to Israel: "The central question is how this right to self-defense is carried out. That there is a responsibility to alleviate civilian suffering, especially in this phase."

Israel: Have not yet defeated Hamas in the north

Israel's declared goal is to destroy Hamas' leadership and military capabilities. Following the end of a ceasefire on Friday, Israel's army intensified the war against Hamas and, according to its own statements, is now also advancing into the south with ground troops. But fighting is also continuing in the north. Good progress has been made, but Hamas has not yet been completely defeated militarily in the north, Israeli army spokesman Jonathan Conricus told US broadcaster CNN. We are dealing with an enemy "that has no problem sacrificing civilians for its military cause", said Conricus.

Israeli military: 200 Hamas targets attacked

Israel's army said it had attacked 200 Islamist Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip during the night. Soldiers had attacked a school in the north, for example, from which Hamas had attacked Israeli soldiers, the military announced.

Extremist Palestinians again fired rockets towards Israel. According to the army, rocket alarms were triggered in border towns near the Gaza Strip.

Shelling on the border with Lebanon - Israeli soldiers injured

Israel's military also registered several attacks from Lebanon on targets in Israel. Three Israeli soldiers were slightly injured in the attacks. According to the report, the army attacked the locations from which the attacks originated. Hezbollah in Lebanon claimed responsibility for the attack on Israeli soldiers and for firing on other targets. Israel responded with return fire.

Army operations in the West Bank - three Palestinians dead

Meanwhile, the situation in the West Bank remains tense. Two Palestinian militants were killed in a raid by the Israeli army and police in Kalkilia in the north-western West Bank. According to the Israeli forces, those killed were terrorists. The armed wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party announced that the two were members of the Al-Aqsa Brigades.

In addition, according to the Ministry of Health in Ramallah, a 33-year-old man was killed during an army operation in Kalandia near Ramallah. According to reports, there were armed clashes.