USA "deeply concerned" about development of Gaza ground offensive
Israel expands the fighting in the Gaza Strip and advances into Khan Yunis. Its partner, the USA, is observing the developments with concern and is clearly calling for more efforts to protect civilians. The Biden administration assumes that the war will continue into next year.
According to a media report, the US government assumes that the current phase of the Israeli ground offensive in the southern Gaza Strip will continue for several weeks. As the US television channel CNN reported, citing several senior US government officials, Israel could switch to a "less intensive, highly localized strategy" in January, targeting specific Hamas terrorists and leaders.
The White House is "deeply concerned" about how Israeli operations will evolve in the coming weeks, an unnamed senior administration official was quoted as saying. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had recently urged Israel's leadership in no uncertain terms to protect civilians in the Gaza Strip. The numerous deaths among the civilian population and the displacement on the scale seen in northern Gaza must not be repeated in the south.
The USA had made it clear to Israel that the time available to Israel for military action in its current form and for maintaining international support was rapidly diminishing, according to CNN. World opinion is increasingly turning against the current ground offensive, in which thousands of civilians are being killed, the broadcaster continued.
USA insists on more aid deliveries
In the view of the USA, Israel must also make an effort to deliver more aid to the Gaza Strip. "Not enough is being done right now," said US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller in Washington. "The amount of aid coming in is not enough. It needs to be increased, and we've made that clear to the Israeli government," Miller said. "There's not enough fuel, there's not enough food, there's not enough water coming in," the spokesman continued. According to the UN, around 100 trucks of aid are currently arriving in the Gaza Strip every day. This is less than during the ceasefire that ended last Friday, explained Miller.
Israel's army recently expanded its attacks in the sealed-off Gaza Strip and is now encircling the largest city in the south of the coastal strip, Khan Junis. At the request of the army, hundreds of thousands of people seeking protection had previously fled from the previously fiercely contested north to the southern part of the coastal region.
The war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, carried out by the Islamist Hamas and other terrorist groups on October 7 in Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip. More than 1200 people were killed. Israel assumes that 137 hostages are still in the hands of the terrorists.
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The ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict has led to concerns from the USA, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging Israel to protect civilians in the Gaza Strip. Despite the USA's "deep concern" about the evolving situation, reports suggest that the Israeli ground offensive in the Gaza Strip could continue into the new year. Furthermore, the USA is advocating for increased humanitarian aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip, as the current amount is deemed insufficient.
Source: www.ntv.de
