Overview of the situation - Netanyahu in the USA - Geisel loyalists hope for an agreement
During the bleeding in Gaza continuing, the hostages held by the islamist Hamas in captivity place their hope in the Israeli minister-president Benjamin Netanyahu, who has arrived in the US. "We firmly believe that his speech before the Congress on Wednesday will be the announcement of the hostage agreement that we have all been waiting for", quoted the "Times of Israel" paper the father of an American-Israeli hostage in Washington.
A meeting between Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden, planned for today, was postponed due to Biden's Covid infection. Biden intends to work closely with the Israelis and Palestinians in the remaining months of his presidency to find a way to end the Gaza war, secure peace in the Middle East, and bring all the hostages home. "I believe we are very close to achieving that", Biden added during a visit from his Vice President Kamala Harris at the Democrats' campaign headquarters.
Biden's relationship with Netanyahu is strained due to his handling of the war. Indirect negotiations, in which the US, Qatar, and Egypt mediate between Israel and Hamas, are to be continued on Thursday. A three-tiered plan is on the table, which includes the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners and ways to achieve a permanent ceasefire.
Reports: Israeli Security Chiefs for Agreement
According to Israeli media, all senior security officials of the country are in agreement that the military could fully withdraw from the Gaza Strip during the first six-week phase of a potential agreement. The relatively short timespan would not allow Hamas to regroup, according to Defense Minister Joav Galant, Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, and heads of intelligence agencies, who spoke with Netanyahu. They reportedly informed him that they would support a hostage agreement.
In his speech before both houses of the US Congress on Wednesday, Netanyahu will express his views on the situation in Gaza. If his speech does not include the announcement of the signing of a hostage agreement, it would be a "total failure", the father of American-Israeli hostages further quoted. In the sealed coastal strip, around 120 hostages are still believed to be missing, many of whom may no longer be alive. The Israeli army has just declared two more hostages in the custody of Hamas dead.
Reports of many dead in Gaza
During a new Israeli military offensive in the southern Gaza Strip, there were reports of many deaths according to Palestinian reports. The army attacked the city of Khan Younis in the east, eyewitnesses said. At least 71 Palestinians, among them women and children, were reportedly killed, and over 200 more were injured, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa, citing hospital staff. The information could not be independently verified.
The Israeli army had previously called on the residents in the eastern part of the city to leave the area immediately. Intelligence findings had shown that Hamas was launching rocket attacks on Israel from there. Thousands of civilians fled as a result. Many of them had already sought refuge there from other parts of Gaza before the war. The frequent evacuation orders further damaged the healthcare system, lamented the UN Humanitarian Affairs Office (OCHA).
UN Humanitarian Affairs Office laments water shortage
According to humanitarian organizations, the people in the sealed coastal region were still suffering from severe water scarcity, OCHA reported. Between the 8th and 21st of July, the average daily water volume was approximately 90,000 cubic meters - that's about a quarter of the amount produced before the war began almost ten months ago. Damage to infrastructure, lack of electricity, fuel, spare parts, and chlorine hindered water production and purification as well as sewage pumping.
Cause of the war was the massacre with over 1,200 deaths committed by terrorists of Hamas and other groups in Israel on October 7. Israel responded with massive air raids and a ground offensive. The high number of civilian casualties and the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip has Israel facing increasing international criticism. German Ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert, criticized another attack by radical settlers.
Ambassador criticizes violence by radical settlers
"International and Israeli activists, among them a German citizen, were attacked by radical settlers in the West Bank," wrote Seibert on Monday on the platform X. "These attacks are well-documented criminal behavior, they must be pursued with all legal means." He also posted a video that was supposed to show the attack.
According to media reports, the incident occurred on Sunday in the village of Kusra near the Palestinian city of Nablus. A group of volunteers had accompanied Palestinian farmers to their olive groves to protect them. By their presence, the volunteers wanted to ensure the safety of the Palestinians. In the video taken from the activist group, masked men are seen attacking them with wooden sticks. Several victims, among them a young German, were later treated in the hospital.
Report: Israeli army confirms attack
The "Tagesschau" and US broadcaster CNN reported on the incident, speaking with the victims. The Israeli army confirmed CNN's report. They had issued warning shots in the air and condemned violence in principle. According to the reports, the activists claimed that the military had fired shots at a Palestinian. Since the start of the Gaza War, violence by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has significantly increased.
Israel had taken the West Bank and East Jerusalem during the Six-Day War in 1967. Today, among the three million Palestinians living there are around 700,000 Israeli settlers. Only on Friday did the International Court of Justice issue a non-binding legal opinion declaring the Israeli occupation and settlement building illegal.
- The Israeli minister-president Benjamin Netanyahu is currently in the United States, hoping that his speech before the US Congress on Wednesday will announce a hostage agreement in the ongoing Gaza conflict.
- US President Joe Biden, who is currently recovering from Covid-19, has postponed a meeting with Netanyahu, expressing his intention to work closely with both Israel and Palestinians to end the Gaza war and bring all hostages home.
- Kamala Harris, the US Vice President, visited the Democrats' campaign headquarters, where Biden stated that they are close to achieving a peaceful resolution to the conflicts in the Middle East, including the Gaza war and the hostage situation.
- Senior security officials in Israel, including Defense Minister Joav Galant and Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, have reportedly agreed that the military could withdraw from the Gaza Strip during the first phase of a potential agreement.
- The Israeli military has launched a new offensive in the southern Gaza Strip, resulting in reports of many deaths among Palestinians in the city of Khan Younis, according to Palestinian sources.
- The UN Humanitarian Affairs Office (OCHA) lamented the frequent evacuation orders in Gaza, which further damaged the healthcare system and increased water scarcity in the region.
- The Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that at least 71 Palestinians, including women and children, were killed and over 200 injured during the Israeli military operation.
- The ongoing Gaza conflict has resulted in increasing international criticism of Israel due to the high number of civilian casualties and the deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip.
- German Ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert, criticized another attack by radical settlers on international and Israeli activists in the West Bank, calling for legal action against the perpetrators.
- The Israeli army confirmed an incident of settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, issuing warning shots and condemning any form of violence against civilians.
- The International Court of Justice issued a non-binding opinion declaring the Israeli occupation and settlement building in the West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal, drawing attention to the ongoing issues in the region.
