Pressure on Israel to exercise restraint in the Gaza war grows

War in the Middle East - Pressure on Israel to exercise restraint in the Gaza war grows

Almost ten weeks after the start of the Gaza war, pressure is growing on Israel to show more consideration for the civilian population in its actions against the Islamist Hamas. The tone is also becoming harsher from the USA, a close ally of Israel. A visit to Israel by the US National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, is expected to lead to "extremely serious talks", according to reports from Washington.

Meanwhile, the federal prosecutor's office in Berlin and Rotterdam in the Netherlands had a total of four suspected members of the Islamist Hamas arrested on suspicion of membership of a foreign terrorist organization. According to a statement, weapons were being held in readiness for possible attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe.

According to the Israeli foreign intelligence service Mossad, there have also been several arrests of suspected terrorists linked to the Islamist group Hamas in Denmark.

Criticism of Israel is growing louder not only because of the many war victims in the Gaza Strip, but also because of the violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank. According to a report, the USA is already withholding arms deliveries out of concern that they could end up in the hands of radical settlers. Britain's Foreign Secretary David Cameron has announced entry bans against radical settlers.

A rift is also opening up between Israel and its allies on the question of what should happen in Gaza after the war. While a two-state solution is still seen internationally as the best way to achieve peaceful coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians, representatives of the Israeli government have once again cast doubt on such a solution.

US security advisor in Israel for "serious talks"

According to the White House, Sullivan wanted to talk to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the war cabinet about the next phase of military operations in the Gaza Strip. The aim was to take more precise action and reduce the damage to the civilian population. The opening of the Kerem Shalom border crossing for aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip should also be on the agenda.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had rejected calls for a ceasefire in no uncertain terms the day before. "We will continue until the end, until victory, until the destruction of Hamas, even in the face of international pressure," he told soldiers on Wednesday, according to a statement from the government press office. "Nothing will stop us."

Arrests in Berlin after suspicion of Hamas attack plans

On suspicion of membership of a foreign terrorist organization, the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office arrested a total of four suspected members of the Islamist Hamas in Berlin and Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

According to a statement, three men were arrested in Berlin. Another was arrested in Rotterdam. The suspects are accused of membership of a foreign terrorist organization. One of the Berlin-based suspects is said to have been commissioned by Hamas to locate an underground weapons depot in Europe, which the organization had set up there in the past. The weapons were to be brought to Berlin and kept ready for possible attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe.

CNN: Most Israeli ammunition not precision-guided

According to a report by the news channel CNN, around 40 - 45 percent of the air-to-ground munitions dropped by Israel in the Gaza war are not precision-guided. The US broadcaster based its figures on intelligence information. Since October 7, Israel has used a total of around 29,000 munitions against targets on the ground. Unguided munitions are generally less accurate and could pose a greater danger to the civilian population, the report said.

Israeli military spokeswoman Keren Hajioff said yesterday that the military plans its missions very carefully and uses special munitions to avoid civilian casualties as far as possible. US President Joe Biden had previously criticized that Israel was beginning to lose support due to its "indiscriminate bombing".

The war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups in Israel on October 7. More than 1200 people were killed and around 240 hostages were taken to Gaza. Israel responded with massive air strikes and began a ground offensive at the end of October. According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, around 18,000 people have died in the Gaza Strip so far.

USA withholds weapons for Israel because of radical settlers

According to a newspaper report, the USA is hesitating to deliver more than 27,000 rifles intended for Israel's police force. The government has concerns that the weapons could also end up in the hands of radical settlers in the West Bank, wrote the Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed government officials. Israel's previous assurances that the rifles would only remain with the police were therefore not sufficient. The US State Department has therefore demanded concrete steps to curb the violence against Palestinians by settlers in the West Bank, according to the newspaper.

Israeli ambassador in London: No two-state solution

The Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom, Tzipi Hotovely, rules out a two-state solution following the war in Gaza. In an interview with the British news channel Sky News, she said in response to repeated questions that a two-state solution was "absolutely out of the question" for the period after the Gaza war.

The Oslo peace process had failed because the Palestinians had never wanted their own state alongside Israel, but one that encompassed the territory of Israel, said the ultra-right former politician, who has already held several cabinet posts in her home country. The Israeli Minister for Social Equality, Amichai Chikli, from the ruling Likud party, did not even rule out the establishment of Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip.

Israel asks Egypt to mediate hostage deal

According to a media report, Israel asked Egypt to mediate a new hostage deal with Hamas and negotiate a ceasefire. The Arabic-language newspaper Al Arabi Al Jadid reported that a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and Israel should also be part of such an agreement.

Hamas confirmed that mediators were in "serious talks about a ceasefire". A high-ranking Hamas official told the German Press Agency that there would be no exchange of hostages and prisoners before a ceasefire came into force.

At the end of November, Israel and the Islamist Hamas agreed on a one-week ceasefire mediated by Egypt and Qatar, during which 105 hostages abducted by Hamas and other groups in the Gaza Strip were released.

Mossad: Hamas terror suspects arrested in Denmark

According to the Israeli foreign intelligence service Mossad, authorities in Denmark arrested several terror suspects with links to the Islamist group Hamas. The security services had thus "thwarted an attack aimed at killing innocent civilians on European soil", announced the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to the information, a total of seven people were arrested. The Danish police initially spoke of three arrests. The target of the planned attack was initially unclear.

US destroyer responded to attack in the Red Sea

A US Navy destroyer in the Red Sea responded to a distress call from a tanker which, according to American reports, had been attacked by the Yemeni Huthi rebels. The responsible regional command of the US military announced on X (formerly Twitter) that forces of the Iranian-backed Huthis had attempted to board the tanker. However, the attempt had failed. Two missiles were then fired at the ship from areas in Yemen controlled by the Houthis. Both missed their target.

Telecommunications services in the Gaza Strip are down

According to the provider Paltel, telecommunications services in the Gaza Strip have once again failed. All communication and internet services have been completely shut down due to the "ongoing aggression", the Palestinian company based in the West Bank wrote on Facebook.

Since the beginning of the war, the communication networks in the sealed-off coastal area have failed several times. Connections to the outside world were only possible with satellite cell phones and sometimes from high buildings in the south of the Gaza Strip with Israeli SIM cards.