Relatives of the Palestinian martyrs mourn their beloved ones at the morgue of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir Al-Balah (photo by Anadolu / May 22, 2024).
Gaza Strip experienced a harrowing 24 hours as the Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed that the Israeli occupation perpetrated three massacres, resulting in the loss of approximately 100 lives and leaving 169 individuals wounded.
The Israeli starvation war kills a Palestinian child in Kamal Adwan Hospitals, north of Gaza. 💔 pic.twitter.com/pw6xpe5mzq
Amidst the devastation, reports indicate that numerous victims remain trapped under debris and on impassable roads, with rescue teams unable to access the affected areas.
BREAKING: The Israeli occupation army perpetrates a massacre against innocent civilians, including children, in the Al Shati refugee camp in Gaza City. pic.twitter.com/qO0DnB5URf
The occupation forces intensified their relentless assault on the western regions of Rafah, unleashing a barrage of bombings that has sent shockwaves throughout the besieged city in southern Gaza. Furthermore, the town of Abasan Al-Kabira, east of Khan Yunis, bore the brunt of an onslaught involving artillery shelling and tank fire from Israeli occupation forces.
The coastal enclave also faced aggression from Israeli gunboats, which deliberately targeted fishermen off the Gaza City coast, resulting in the injury of two individuals near the port.
The moment Israeli occupation warplanes targeted a residential block in the Beach Refugee Camp. pic.twitter.com/IMogY4XjZe
In the face of this dire situation, the Gaza Media Office sounded the alarm on the looming threat of famine in the Gaza and North governorates, painting a grim reality that is rapidly approaching as a result of the occupation’s actions.
A child in northern Gaza is suffering from malnutrition due to the ongoing Israeli blockade and continuous war on the region. pic.twitter.com/YDlVF9t0tX
Notably, the Israeli occupation’s obstruction of food aid entry into the northern Gaza Strip has exacerbated the severity of the situation, making famine an inevitability, particularly in the northern regions.
A father cries over his little daughter who is suffering from dehydration and malnutrition in the north of Gaza. pic.twitter.com/hl0vJS0CrL
As the death toll from the ongoing Israeli aggression surged to 37,551 martyrs and the wounded count reached 85,911, the Gaza Strip continues to grapple with the aftermath of the devastating assaults, further fueling the humanitarian crisis in the region.
Haniyeh: Hezbollah forced hundreds of thousands of settlers to flee, and the Houthis made the Red Sea forbidden to occupation.
In his Eid al-Adha speech, Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh underscored the necessity of negotiations for a comprehensive agreement to end the Israeli assault on Gaza and secure the release of prisoners, saluting all regional comrades in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq for their efforts in resisting the occupation and aiding the people of Gaza in their war.
Despite Israeli evasion and obstruction, Haniyeh emphasized the steadfast commitment of Hamas and resistance factions to achieving a permanent ceasefire, comprehensive withdrawal from Gaza, reconstruction efforts, and a prisoner exchange deal.
“The solution to the Israeli war of annihilation on the Gaza Strip and the release of prisoners will be achieved through negotiations leading to a comprehensive agreement, no matter how much the enemy evades or obstructs the process,” Haniyeh affirmed.
Haniyeh emphasized the continuation of efforts on all fronts to end the war of genocide against the Palestinian people. He stated that Hamas and the resistance factions are committed to achieving an agreement that includes four main items: a permanent ceasefire, a comprehensive withdrawal from Gaza, reconstruction, and a prisoner exchange deal.
He noted that Hamas and the resistance factions have shown significant seriousness and flexibility to reach an agreement that would prevent further bloodshed and halt the aggression. Haniyeh highlighted that the response to the ceasefire proposal aligns with the principles outlined in President Biden’s speech and the Security Council resolution.
“The occupation and its allies did not respond to Hamas’s flexibility and continued their maneuvers and attempts to circumvent and deceive through proposals and ideas aimed at obtaining prisoners and resuming the war of extermination,” Haniyeh stressed.
He emphasized the need for “the entire agreement to be clear and unambiguous, not subject to interpretations, postponement, bargaining, or maneuvering.”
Haniyeh expressed his commitment to the role of mediators, recognizing the importance of their efforts, and his willingness to give them sufficient time and space to accomplish their mission.
Amid media and incitement campaigns pressuring Hamas and the resistance factions to agree to the plans of the occupation and its supporters, Haniyeh said, “We remain steadfast in our positions that prioritize the interests, security, and protection of our people above all else.”
Haniyeh emphasized that the Palestinian people, who revolted on October 7 against oppression, will not retreat until they achieve their goal of freedom, independence, and return, which he described as the gateway to security and stability in the region.
“The cover provided by some countries for the occupation, especially the American administration, has been exposed politically, legally, and humanitarianly.” He added, “These forces must realize that not only did the military war against our people fail, but also the political and media war failed, underscoring the legendary steadfastness of our people in Gaza.”
The leader of Hamas conveyed several messages, with the first directed to the people of Gaza, praising their resilience and sacrifices in the face of aggression.
“The criminal enemy that committed and continues to commit genocide and brutality has failed to achieve any of its declared goals,” Haniyeh said.
He pointed out the signs of disintegration within the Israeli government, indicating its defeat and collapse.
Haniyeh’s second message was to the Al-Qassam Brigades and all resistance factions inside and outside Palestine. He saluted the Mujahideen for their heroism and steadfastness in confronting the enemy, despite the ferocity of the battle.
He highlighted the ongoing heroic operations by the resistance, even in areas destroyed by the occupation, with the latest examples occurring in Rafah, Gaza, and the northern Gaza Strip.
“We assure our Mujahideen brigades that God will not waste your efforts and victory will be achieved soon,” Haniyeh continued.
Haniyeh also saluted the support fronts, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Ansarullah in Yemen, and the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, for their roles in targeting the Zionist entity and supporting Gaza.
“Greetings to our brothers in Hezbollah in Lebanon, who stood with Gaza from the outset and expanded their strikes in support of our resistance, forcing hundreds of thousands of settlers to flee from our occupied northern regions,” he said.
He stressed that the sacrifices on the support fronts confirm the unity of the enemy and the nation, highlighting the importance of resistance and jihad for the sake of God.
In his message to the Arab and Islamic nations, Haniyeh called for increased support and confrontation with the Zionist entity to support Gaza and Jerusalem.
In a final message to the international community, Haniyeh emphasized the need to end the injustice faced by the Palestinian people for over a century and called for the fulfillment of their inherent and legitimate rights.
He stressed that the horrific images of famine striking the Gaza Strip and claiming innocent lives are the responsibility of the international community, particularly the countries supporting the occupation.
Haniyeh called for action to force the enemy to open all crossings.
The Israeli occupation forces admit that 11 soldiers were killed in Gaza and Rafah in a “catastrophic” day for the invading forces.
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) announced today that 11 soldiers from the 601st Engineering Brigade and the 179th Brigade were killed, with two others wounded during confrontations with the Palestinian Resistance in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli media reported a severe incident in central Gaza, where the IOF acknowledged the deaths of two additional soldiers from the 179th Brigade due to an improvised explosive device (IED), which also injured two more soldiers.
The IOF also confirmed the death of a soldier from the Givati Brigade. He succumbed to critical injuries sustained during fights in Rafah a few days prior.
Earlier, the IOF had reported the deaths of eight soldiers and officers caused by an explosive device that hit a Namer armored personnel carrier in the Tel Sultan refugee camp in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Among the dead was the deputy commander of a company in the 601st Engineering Brigade.
Additionally, a company commander with the rank of major, along with three other soldiers, was killed in southern Gaza a few days ago.
With these latest casualties, the death toll of Israeli soldiers since the start of the war on Gaza on October 7 has risen to 661. This includes 311 soldiers killed since the beginning of the ground offensive in Gaza. Furthermore, 3,617 soldiers have been wounded, according to the army’s published figures.
Israeli media described Saturday’s incident at 5 am in Rafah as a “disaster,” noting that an armored vehicle in the Tel Sultan neighborhood was engaged while on the move.
It took the military two hours to reach the vehicle, which was then towed to a secure location. Drones were deployed to locate the resistance fighters in the area, but these efforts were unsuccessful.
The media highlighted that Saturday’s incident in Rafah was the most severe since the Khan Yunis incident on January 23, which resulted in the deaths of 21 soldiers.
Namer up in flames
The Palestinian Resistance killed eight Israeli occupation soldiers who were reportedly asleep in an Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli media outlets reported on Saturday.
The news has emerged as Israeli occupation forces are launching an invasion into the western neighborhood of al-Sultan in Rafah.
Relating a slightly different course of events but with the same end result, the al-Qassam Brigades claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement in which it announced that on the morning of the day of Arafat Day, its freedom fighters carried out a complex ambush against Israeli vehicles penetrating the area of the Saudi neighborhood in Tal al-Sultan, west of the city of Rafah.
The cab of a D9 military bulldozer, according to the Resistance group, was targeted by an al-Yassin 105 shell, causing it to catch fire and resulting in casualties among its crew.
Immediately upon the arrival of the rescue force, a Namer APC was targeted with an al-Yassin 105 shell, which led to its destruction and the killing of all its crew members.
However, according to Israeli media reports, the eight Israeli troops were burnt to death in the attack, which targeted a Namer-type APC in Rafah. Prior to al-Qassam’s statement, it was reported that an unspecified anti-tank shell was fired at the APC, which led to an explosion and a fire in the vehicle, killing eight soldiers sleeping inside it.
The corpses of the soldiers were completely burnt, and the APC was destroyed, it was claimed. Among those killed was a combat officer in the Israeli occupation forces, Israeli media outlets reported later on Saturday.
It is worth noting that the Namer APC is one of the most advanced and heavily armored vehicles when compared to same-class vehicles internationally.
Related Videos
Special coverage | The occupation’s heavy losses in the Gaza field are devastating the Israeli interior
Special coverage | Abu Ubaida: Our qualitative operation in Rafah is confirmation of the failure of the occupation
Special coverage | A qualitative operation by the Palestinian resistance.. 8 Israeli soldiers were burned to death | 2024-06-15
An Israeli armored personnel carrier is seen up in flames after al-Qassam Brigades elite forces in al-Shujaiya in a video published by the Resistance on December 6, 2023. (Al-Qassam Brigades/Military Media)
Israeli media outlets are reporting a “difficult” event in Rafah, explaining that eight soldiers were burned to death in the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Resistance killed eight Israeli occupation soldiers who were reportedly asleep in an Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli media outlets reported on Saturday.
The news has emerged as Israeli occupation forces are launching an invasion into the western neighborhood of al-Sultan in Rafah.
Relating a slightly different course of events but with the same end result, the al-Qassam Brigades claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement in which it announced that on the morning of the day of Arafat Day, its freedom fighters carried out a complex ambush against Israeli vehicles penetrating the area of the Saudi neighborhood in Tal al-Sultan, west of the city of Rafah.
The cab of a D9 military bulldozer, according to the Resistance group, was targeted by an al-Yassin 105 shell, causing it to catch fire and resulting in casualties among its crew.
Immediately upon the arrival of the rescue force, a Namer APC was targeted with an al-Yassin 105 shell, which led to its destruction and the killing of all its crew members.
However, according to Israeli media reports, the eight Israeli troops were burnt to death in the attack, which targeted a Namer-type APC in Rafah. Prior to al-Qassam’s statement, it was reported that an unspecified anti-tank shell was fired at the APC, which led to an explosion and a fire in the vehicle, killing eight soldiers sleeping inside it.
The corpses of the soldiers were completely burnt, and the APC was destroyed, it was claimed. Among those killed was a combat officer in the Israeli occupation forces, Israeli media outlets reported later on Saturday.
It is worth noting that the Namer APC is one of the most advanced and heavily armored vehicles when compared to same-class vehicles internationally.
It is based on the chassis of the Merkava 4 main battle tank, replacing far-inferior American M113 vehicles that were involved in several IOF catastrophes due to their weak armor.
Nonetheless, the Palestinian Resistance marks yet another military achievement as it defends the Gaza Strip from the Israeli onslaught.
Israeli losses mount during war on Gaza
An expert in military and political affairs, Ahmad Abdul-Rahman, told Al Mayadeen that the operation casts a shadow over “the occupation’s operations in Rafah and the entire Gaza Strip.”
Abdul-Rahman explained that the Israeli military will now extensively contemplate any advances into the strategic al-Sultan neighborhood.
The Israeli occupation’s military command is yet to admit to the deaths of the eight soldiers, however, it has admitted to 650 killed officers and soldiers killed across all fronts since October 7, 2023.
On the other hand, the Palestinian Resistance continues to resist occupation forces across the Gaza Strip, as factions announced successful operations on Saturday.
Amid the advance into western Rafah, Al Mayadeen‘s correspondent in the Gaza Strip reported that intense confrontations have been ongoing since Friday night in the area.
Hamas’ al-Qassam Brigades has so far announced two operations, including a rocket attack on the Kissufim military site.
The Brigades also fired a locally-produced al-Yassin tandem rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) at an Israeli military-grade D9 bulldozer in al-Sultan.
While the Israeli forces remain tight-lipped about their losses and impose strict censorship, information and documented footage released by the resistance in Gaza confirm their casualties.
Palestinian sources on Friday reported intense clashes erupting between Palestinian resistance and Israeli forces in the Qishta neighborhood and Halal Market, west of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. The battles coincided with intense fighting unfolding in the Yabna refugee camp in Rafah.
Reporting on the war’s events, Al-Qassam Brigades targeted an Israeli Merkava 4 tank using a Yassin 105 shell near the Awadallah junction in the Yabna camp.
In the eastern part of Deir al-Balah, Al-Qassam struck a fortified Israeli infrastructure using a TBG shell, resulting in casualties among the Israeli forces.
Al-Qassam released footage showing their fighters engaging in direct combat with Israeli forces infiltrating eastern Deir al-Balah.
In turn, the Al-Quds Brigades reported targeting the headquarters of the Israeli army’s Gaza Division, located in the Ra’im site, using a salvo of rockets.
They further reported targeting several military vehicles breaching the Palestinian-Egyptian border west of Rafah with a barrage of heavy-caliber mortar shells.
They targeted enemy positions on the supply line in the Netzarim axis, located south of Tel al-Hawa, west of Gaza City, with mortar shells.
The Brigades’ military press released footage of their shelling of the occupied city of Ashdod and Israeli positions near the Netzarim axis, south of Gaza City.
In turn, the Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, bombarded Israeli forces stationed at the Netzarim axis with heavy-caliber mortar shells.
The Martyr Omar al-Qassem Forces, the military wing of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, targeted an Israeli infantry patrol in the Sultan neighborhood, west of Rafah, with an anti-personnel RPG shell.
Meanwhile, in the southeastern part of Gaza City, its fighters managed to seize an Israeli Sky Lark reconnaissance drone while it was conducting reconnaissance missions.
The Mujahideen Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Mujahideen Movement, documented their rocket barrage targeting the Israeli ‘Third Eye’ outpost.
The Martyr Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, also shared footage of their bombardment of Israeli forces with mortar shells, in coordination with the Al-Qassam Brigades.
While the resistance continues to repel Israeli forces, the Israeli forces on Thursday admitted to the deaths of two soldiers among its ranks in southern Gaza.
Israeli news sources clarified that one of the killed soldiers belonged to the Givati Brigade and was killed during an exchange of fire with a group that infiltrated from Gaza into the other side of the separation line, near the Kerem Shalom crossing.
Israeli media further reported the death of a soldier due to an explosive device detonation in a tunnel in Rafah.
Meanwhile, the Al-Qassam Brigades reported carrying out a “behind the lines” operation, enabling militants to breach the Israeli separation fence in Rafah and attack the headquarters of the occupying brigade.
On a related note, the Al-Qassam Brigades reported detonating a booby-trapped tunnel on an Israeli foot force of 5 soldiers, eliminating the force near Tel Zoarab, west of Rafah.
While the occupation remains tight-lipped about its losses and imposes strict censorship on them, information and documented footage released by the resistance in Gaza confirm that its casualties and injuries are much greater than officially announced.
Deputy Secretary General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Sheikh Naim Qassem, in an exclusive interview with Channel 4 and talking about the situation
Nasrallah to the Israelis: This time, listen to me carefully… and Nasser Qandil announces it: The crossing road has become passable and new borders have been established.
Marsad Nabaa 553| Has the discourse of atonement disappeared in Saudi Arabia? Why does political execution continue in the face of policy change?
Robert Inlakesh is a political analyst, journalist and documentary filmmaker currently based in London, UK. He has reported from and lived in the occupied Palestinian territories and hosts the show ‘Palestine Files’. Director of ‘Steal of the Century: Trump’s Palestine-Israel Catastrophe’. Follow him on Twitter @falasteen47
President Joe Biden’s long-overdue demand for both sides to accept a Gaza ceasefire proposal appears to be faltering under Israeli refusal to comply, an escalation of Israel’s offensive in Rafah, and contradictions between the proposal and the president’s speech.
On May 31, President Joe Biden issued what many considered a long-overdue call for both Israel and Hamas to accept an Israeli ceasefire proposal to end the war in the Gaza Strip. In the speech, he briefly outlined the phases of the proposal, stating it would be “a road map to an enduring ceasefire and the release of all hostages.”
According to unnamed officials in the Biden administration, the timing and manner of the president’s announcement were designed to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept it.
Shortly afterward, however, Benjamin Netanyahu publicly stated that his regime’s ceasefire was aimed at the destruction of Hamas. He affirmed his intention to continue the war in Gaza until victory is achieved against the Palestinian resistance movement. This directly contradicted the spirit of President Biden’s speech, implying that despite the ceasefire agreement with Hamas, it would still enable the dismantling of the group.
The confusion resulting from these conflicting narratives triggered an adverse reaction from ministers within the Israeli premier’s ruling coalition, including members of Netanyahu’s Likud Party. Israeli Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir announced that his Jewish Power Party would suspend its role in the ruling coalition until the terms of the ceasefire proposal were made available to him.
According to polling data released in March, around 50% of Israelis support the idea of Israel taking control of the Gaza Strip in a post-war situation. Only 10% approved of the Palestinian Authority running Gaza, and none of the respondents favored Hamas remaining in power.
While most Israeli Jews do not believe that Benjamin Netanyahu is winning the war in Gaza, the polling data suggests that the majority of Israelis want the war to continue and feel that Israel has either used enough or not enough force in Gaza.
On the other hand, Hamas officials heavily criticized President Biden’s portrayal of the group as obstructing the deal. They pointed to what they labeled as blatant Israeli intransigence and highlighted contradictions between the actual proposal and how the U.S. president represented it.
Majed Al-Ansari, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson, said, “We are waiting for a clear Israeli position that represents the entire government in response to the U.S.’s Gaza proposal.”
Hamas initially received the Biden administration’s initiative “positively” but maintains that any viable ceasefire proposal must lead to the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the end of the war.
Meanwhile, Israel has ramped up its offensive actions in the Gaza Strip, advancing with its invasion of Rafah despite the International Court of Justice’s ruling ordering Tel Aviv to halt its offensive there.
Not only has Israel continued its military actions in the Rafah area, but it has also launched new incursions into the central region of the besieged coastal enclave as the daily death toll continues to climb. On Thursday, an Israeli airstrike targeted a UN school in the Nuseirat Refugee Camp, killing around 45 civilians, half of whom were women and children.
A recent leak of the details of the ceasefire proposal, as reported by The Economist, appears to contradict President Biden’s presentation of the Israeli deal being offered. The article noted that the proposal would be much more difficult to conclude in phases two and three than the president had suggested.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Biden’s representation of the ceasefire proposal “inaccurate.” As the Israeli military continues to increase its operations in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian civilian death toll rises, hope appears to be faltering.
On May 6, Hamas accepted a ceasefire proposal. However, the Israeli government responded by immediately launching its Rafah offensive and seizing the Rafah Crossing between Gaza and Egypt. This move violated Israel’s 1979 Camp David normalization agreement with Egypt and led to the breakdown of ceasefire talks.
Fires burn in northern occupied Palestine as a result of rockets launched from Lebanon amid confrontations between Israeli troops and Hezbollah Resistance fighters on June 4, 2024. (AFP)
Israeli media discuss the dangers of expanding the war with Lebanon, stressing that this “will push Israel to the brink of the abyss.”
Israeli media discussed the dangers of expanding the war with Lebanon into a full-scale war, stressing it would “push Israel to the brink of the abyss, especially with the absence of international legitimacy and an exhausted army.”
Military affairs analyst Amos Harel, writing for Haaretz, emphasized, “A war with Hezbollah would present an unprecedented challenge to Israel’s home front, with the northern and central regions confronting a level of threat previously unseen.”
He added, “It is increasingly challenging to anticipate positive developments on the horizon, particularly as we approach the ninth month of war.”
Harel continued, citing “a series of discussions held over the past two weeks with officials in security and military circles,” which disclosed growing signs that “Israel is heading towards a multidimensional failure.”
In this context, he emphasized that “Israel” finds itself entangled in all fronts, with the most critical being “the arena of confrontation with Hezbollah in Lebanon,” facing the looming threat of a full-scale war. He warned that such a war would dwarf all previous events, asserting, “Everything that occurred before would pale in comparison.”
Ceasefire talks
He also highlighted that the negotiations concerning the captives-detainees deal with Hamas are “encountering another crisis,” “despite a brief moment where it appeared that US President Joe Biden’s speech might offer a breakthrough.”
He further emphasized that “the ongoing military operations in the Gaza Strip, particularly centered around Rafah and the central camps, are unlikely to yield a conclusive victory in the near future.”
Earlier on Thursday, Israeli media highlighted that the hits resulting from Hezbollah’s operation against an Israeli military gathering in Elkosh settlement were severe, deeming it the most serious incident in the northern front since the beginning of the confrontations due to its distance from the border with Lebanon and the extent of the inflicted losses.
The media called for an investigation into the Israeli Air Force’s failure to detect and intercept Hezbollah’s drones.
Touching on the Elkosh operation, the Israeli Channel 14 correspondent said it was “a well-planned and coordinated” operation by Hezbollah, adding that the Lebanese group appears to be escalating the level of its attacks.
The White House’s ‘Gaza ceasefire’ proposal is essentially a rehash of April’s Hamas offer. It reveals Biden’s shrinking options in exiting his self-created Gaza quagmire as US presidential elections draw closer.
Everyone who watched US President Joe Biden announce his Gaza ceasefire plan on 31 May must have wondered where the “surrender or die” threat that US officials – notably, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby – have been wagging at Palestinian resistance fighters for months has gone.
No, the American president, who essentially banned the word “ceasefire” from the lips of western and UN officials for the first part of Israel’s brutal military assault on the Gaza Strip, has not suddenly become a pacifist.
Rather, as Israeli journalist Gideon Levy recently summed up in Hebrew daily Haaretz on Israel’s unwinnable war:
The war has become an endless cycle of death and destruction. After Rafah we go back to the beginning, to the northern Gaza Strip, like in a game of Monopoly, but with cruelty, and from there southwards to Rafah, through the ruins of Jabalya, and so on, in blood-soaked mud.
Biden wants out of this quagmire for several reasons: the resistance’s steadfastness in Gaza, the regional military support and international solidarity it has garnered, and the Israeli army’s fluctuating fortunes on the battlefield all have played significant roles. Domestically, the looming prospect of Donald Trump’s return to the White House in the November elections has added to the president’s mix of considerations.
Miscalculations and limited options
Biden thinks it isn’t too late to fix matters. The shaken president is licking his wounds, the price of his losing bet on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s failed war strategies. But it isn’t early either: the “peace plan” Biden presented last Friday indicates Washington’s lack of viable options, and many hurdles lie ahead, not least from his Israeli “ally.”
From the outset, Hamas and other Palestinian resistance factions have maintained a clear stance in negotiations with various parties, including Egypt, Qatar, and France. They have insisted on a ceasefire agreement that ensures an end to the war and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.
On the other hand, Netanyahu is betting on manipulating the language and objectives of the deal’s clauses to assure his ‘extremist’ coalition partners that he has shed the most Palestinian blood possible and plans only to grant a temporary truce for him to return to his genocidal ways whenever desired.
A Resistance Axis source in Beirut tells The Cradle that preventing this Israeli trickery is the essence of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s (PIJ) stance in negotiations. But, interestingly, Biden’s plan is based on principles that Hamas already agreed to last month – an agreement that embarrassed Israel at the time and which it sought to avoid.
‘Cosmetic’ update to the old agreement
Biden’s announcement is essentially a repackaging of last month’s Hamas-approved agreement, which he is now repositioning as an Israeli-sanctioned deal. He even brazenly states that Tel Aviv had submitted “new proposals” structured in three stages, which serve as a roadmap for a ceasefire:
The first stage involves halting the fire, releasing prisoners, and allowing Palestinians to return to their homes. The second phase includes the exchange of living prisoners, including Israeli soldiers. The third phase focuses on reconstruction, which the White House is selling as necessary to prevent Hamas from repeating the events of 7 October.
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation also quoted Israeli and American officials saying that the Israeli proposal document is remarkably similar to the document Hamas accepted a month prior, which Tel Aviv had refused.
Dimitri Diliani, a member of the Revolutionary Council in the Fatah movement, reveals to The Cradle that the occupation state initially approved the Biden initiative at the end of April. Hamas approved the initiative several days later. But Netanyahu walked back his support for political reasons – mainly because he had anticipated Hamas would reject that deal.
When Hamas unexpectedly approved the initiative, Netanyahu balked. As Diliani recounts:
This initiative was proposed more than once, but the name differs. The first time, it was Egyptian, and today it is called the Biden Initiative, but what is different is that it is clear that there is an American political will to stop the war in Gaza, not in the service of humanity, peace, human rights, or mercy for women and children. But to make it a card for Biden and the Democratic Party after it became clear that he would lose the White House in the upcoming elections, for reasons that include mainly Biden’s support for the war in Gaza and the high number of supporters of stopping the war within the Democratic Party.
In any case, the “Biden plan,” says the Beirut-based Resistance Axis source, is an attempt to alter the status quo – akin to tampering with a crime scene – noting that the US president omitted a clause that demands the establishment of a “Palestinian state.” The White House also opportunistically hopes to use its proposed ceasefire deal to jumpstart the stagnating Saudi–Israeli normalization process – just in time for the November elections.
The plan’s lack of mention of a Palestinian state or a two-state solution has raised concerns. It appears to prioritize Israel’s security and regional integration goals, including normalization with key Arab states, over Palestinian sovereignty.
The source close to the Palestinian resistance movements says the most dangerous part of Biden’s new rhetoric is that he openly acknowledges Israel’s right to renew its war if Hamas “violates” the terms of the deal.
This loophole would allow Israel to exploit any Gaza-related incident, however innocuous, to restart its genocidal campaign on Gaza after the Palestinian resistance releases Israeli captives.
The same source points out that Biden’s initiative raises questions due to his administration’s role as a guarantor for Israel, while Egypt and Qatar are expected to provide assurances to Hamas. This is concerning for several reasons. First, the US has been deeply involved in the conflict from its onset, acting as the key player and weapons supplier in its escalation. Second, there is no certainty that Biden will remain in power after the upcoming November elections, which casts doubt on the long-term reliability of the US as a guarantor.
Internal Israeli politics
Diliani sums up the inherent weaknesses of Biden’s ceasefire plan well, warning that it will set Washington and Tel Aviv on a path of conflict:
There is an American will, for domestic political reasons, to stop the war, but it clashes with a domestic Israeli political will in Netanyahu’s coalition not to stop the war for political reasons. This is what may cause conflict to escalate between the two allies.
Part of the White House’s dilemma lies in the fact that its every initiative tiptoes around the far-right group within the Israeli government (led by National Security and Finance Ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich) that does not want the war on Gaza to stop.
At the same time, there is another Israeli grouping within the government’s “War Cabinet” represented by War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz – and a third external group led by opposition leader Yair Lapid, who supports halting the war and ousting Netanyahu from power.
But this complex circle of entanglements inside Israel is no longer in the interest of Biden and his Democrats. It is not unlikely that Biden is trying to lure Netanyahu into accepting the deal and going through with it, which could lead to his overthrow by Ben Gvir and Smotrich, who actually threatened to do so as soon as Biden announced his initiative. This is a scenario that could lead to the rise of a movement more willing to reach an understanding with the Americans, represented by Benny Gantz and Lapid.
Was it not remarkable that Biden directed many of his speeches and promises to the “Israeli people” on Friday, reminding them – most importantly – or actually acknowledging that the Gaza battle, despite its ferocity, has not closed and that salvation from Hamas is not within reach, completely as a concept? “The absolute victory” that Netanyahu and his minister Yoav Gallant promised them on 7 October 2023 did not come.
The “end” now is a pain for Israel that will not be cured soon, just as it would if it went ahead with an endless war. Both options are fatal.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of The Cradle.
The Palestinian resistance factions continued on Sunday confronting the Zionist aggression on Gaza, inflicting more losses upon the enemy troops.
In this regard, Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas resistance movement, announced targeting D9 military bulldozer in Yabna camp, Rafah, with Al-Yassin 105 shell.
Al-Qassam Brigades also targeted a Merkava tank with Al-Yassin 105 shell in Al-Sabra neighborhood, Gaza city.
Hamas fighters further fired Rajoom missiles at the Zionist occupation forces in Netzarim area, targeting two D9 military bulldozers in Salah El-Din Gate Street in Rafah with Tandem shells.
Special coverage | The Palestinian resistance burns the occupation army’s vehicles and destroys its headquarters in Netzarim
Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad resistance movement, fired mortar shells at the advancing troops in Yabna camp, Rafah.
Al-Quds Brigades also targeted and burnt a Merkava tank with RBG shell near khawla school in Rafah.
Al-Quds Brigades circulated a video which shows the process of preparing rocketry shells during Al-Aqsa Flood battle in coordination with “Martyr Omar Al-Qassem” fighters.
On the other hand, the Zionist enemy continued committing massacres against the civilians in Gaza for the 24oth consecutive day.
In this context, Israeli air raids on Al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City left a number of martyrs.
The occupation army also continued destroying and blowing up residential blocks in the Al-Maghraqa area, north of Al-Nuseirat camp. The Israeli artillery also targeted several areas east of Deir al-Balah.
Brazil neighborhood and Yebna camp in the southern Gaza Strip were raided by the enemy’s war jets.
A Palestinian carries some salvaged belongings in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip after she returned briefly with others who sought to check on their homes on May 31, 2024, amid the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
Israel’s claim to have lost control over military units in Gaza is an attempt to gain legal cover for its troops’ war crimes, and masks a far deeper issue of systemic impunity inside the occupation army.
Several months after media commentators began predicting a “strategic defeat” for Israeli forces in Gaza, Israel’s military high command is claiming it has lost control over various units in their armed forces.
The argument appears to scapegoat occupation soldiers to provide plausible deniability for their superiors and dissociate them from war crimes charges. The vast body of evidence emerging on these alleged ‘rogue Israeli units’ could potentially lead to a damning indictment of Tel Aviv’s military leadership.
Despite the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) recent call on Israel to halt its military operation in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains resolute in his vow to invade, even while personally facing an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant. Marred by internal division and pressure to comply with the ICJ order, Tel Aviv finds itself in a precarious position.
‘Rogue units’ in the occupation army
Hebrew-daily Haaretz dropped a narrative bombshell last weekend when it claimed that the Israeli army’s “General Staff lost control over the units, especially reserve units, months ago.” The article attempts to depict a situation in which Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has just “woken up” to the reality of allegedly rogue elements operating under his watch, with these ‘uncontrolled units’ committing the crimes cited by the ICJ against Israel.
Throughout the war in Gaza, Israeli soldiers have been publishing evidence of themselves committing crimes, showing genocidal intent, and performing perverse acts while operating inside the besieged coastal territory.
These incriminating clips, published primarily on TikTok and Instagram and also within Telegram groups that glorify the killing of Palestinian civilians, have attracted a lot of bad press. It appears that Israel’s leadership is now floating the “few bad apples” strategy to absolve their military high brass of accountability.
It won’t be easy. Some of these social media groups are run by occupation officials. Furthermore, the Israeli military establishment has admitted to running accounts on Telegram that showcase snuff films as part of a psychological warfare operation under the “Operations Directorate’s Influencing Department.”
Which units have gone rogue?
As of now, there is no official list of the units that have allegedly ‘gone rogue.’ Haaretz writer Amos Harel proposes that these troops can simply be identified by those who have posted incriminating videos of themselves.
Consider the case of Yair Ben David, a commander in the 2908th Battalion, cited in the South African ICJ submission for expressing genocidal intent. He boasted about the destruction his forces caused in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, referencing a biblical story where all male inhabitants were massacred, and stated, “the entire Gaza should resemble Beit Hanoun.”
Despite this statement being made in a video published on social media in December 2023, there has been no action taken by Israel’s military leadership to rein in his unit.
Another Haaretz article published in late January, titled ‘The Israeli Army Must Act Before Some of Its Soldiers Turn Into Lawless Gangs,’ referenced Ben David’s comment and noted that “90 reservist battalion commanders petitioned the IDF chief of staff not to stop in Gaza, Lebanon, and the West Bank until victory.”
David Bar Kalifa, commander of Division 36, the largest regular division in the Israeli army, was also quoted in the article for his orders of “vengeance” against the Palestinian population. However, Tel Aviv has taken no actions to structurally change or reform the division, which was instead later transitioned to the Lebanese border, despite the head of Israel’s Southern Command, Yaron Finkelman, arguing for them to move to central Gaza.
Aviad Yisraeli, an officer in the 261 Brigade’s 6261st Battalion, openly posted on social media about his intent to “make sure there is no one left” before participating in the invasion of Khan Yunis in December. Yisraeli, who lives in an illegal settler outpost near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, was not disciplined by his superiors and was recently deployed to Rafah.
On 6 May, when Israeli forces seized the Rafah Crossing, soldiers filmed themselves destroying and desecrating the crossing and posting the footage on social media. These soldiers belonged to the 401st Brigade of the 162nd Division, while the Givati Brigade captured other areas east of Rafah.
The Rafah Crossing seizure was perhaps one of the most sensitive military offensives committed by the Israelis during the entire war because their entrance into what is known as the ‘Philadelphi Corridor’ technically violated the 1979 Camp David agreement with Egypt. The use of the 401st Brigade, known for its subordination, reflects a deeper issue within the Israeli high command.
Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari has been urging soldiers not to film such acts for months, which is a clear indication that the army leadership has long been aware of their actions. No disciplinary actions have been taken to date – the most proactive measure conducted by authorities has been to announce police’ investigations’ into the posting of footage online. And there has been no follow-up on these inquiries into the thousands of videos, photos, and posts from soldiers.
Controlling chaos
If the Israeli leadership has truly lost control of entire units in their military, why would such units be deployed back into action in sensitive areas like the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and along the Lebanese border?
Such reckless decision-making, involving soldiers suspected of not following orders and whose videos are used as evidence of genocidal intent at the ICJ, is a significant indictment of the Israeli high command.
In January, a report by the Hebrew ‘Kan Reshet Bet’ radio stated:
“Reservist fighters who were called to training ahead of the establishment of the Hashomer Brigade … have severely criticized the serious gaps in equipment, professionalism, the lack of manpower and especially the fact that in the middle of the training they were informed that they were entering the Gaza Strip without having trained as required.“
Such reports are not uncommon in Israeli media and reflect the state of the military leadership’s decision-making. When combined with numerous statements of genocidal intent, as documented by Palestinian rights group Al-Haq, from both military and political leadership, it paints a picture of controlled chaos.
The South African legal team at the ICJ linked Netanyahu’s invocation of the biblical story of Amalek to Israeli soldiers, interpreting this as a call to mass murder Palestinian civilians. Potential war crimes motivated by such rhetoric cannot be isolated to individuals when military leadership decisions allow such behavior.
If the Israeli high command is unaware of radical and uncontrolled elements within their military, how do they explain the formation of the ‘Desert Frontier’ unit, which has integrated extremist settlers from the ‘Hilltop Youth?’ This radical group of settler-vigilantes was previously described by Israeli media as terrorists for attacking Israeli soldiers and Palestinian civilians.
An environment of impunity
This problem of reckless soldier behavior did not begin in 2023; it stems from Israeli troops operating in an environment of complete impunity. During the 2008/9 war in Gaza, the worst punishment doled out to an Israeli soldier committing a crime was for stealing a credit card – not for killing, torturing, beating Palestinians, or razing their homes, businesses, and land.
Or for using Palestinians as human shields – a crime Tel Aviv attributes to Hamas, but one its troops commit daily. According to B’Tselem, two soldiers involved in using a nine-year-old boy as a human shield received a three-month conditional sentence and were demoted from staff sergeant to private two years after the incident. None of their commanding officers were tried.
The two soldiers in question had ordered a nine-year-old boy, at gunpoint, to open a bag they suspected was booby-trapped. Despite the gravity of their conduct – putting a young child at risk – the two were given a three-month conditional sentence and demoted from staff sergeant to private some two years after the incident took place. None of their commanding officers were tried.
Since then, troop behaviors have only worsened. Despite there being so many more documented cases of Israeli soldiers deploying Palestinian civilians – often children – as human shields, this was the last case punished by the Israeli judicial system.
The argument that Israel’s military leadership is only now waking up to the reality of their soldiers’ misconduct serves to create plausible deniability. It is no coincidence that extremist ideologues have been empowered in the Israeli army and that ill-disciplined soldiers, encouraged by their leaders’ genocidal rhetoric, are given carte blanche to commit crimes against Palestinians.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of The Cradle.
Hezbollah Secretary-General touches on Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and its pivotal and far-reaching impact in the region, addressing some issues concerning the Lebanese front.
A screen grab from the speech of Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, on Friday, May 31, 2024. (Al Mayadeen)
Operation Al-Aqsa Flood has had a pivotal and far-reaching impact on the region, Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said.
Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized on Friday that “the Resistance front has become larger, broader, more comprehensive, and stronger than ever before.”
“We are on a front whose future is bright and victorious,” he said during the memorial ceremony for the late scholar Sheikh Ali Kourani, adding that “it is only a matter of time” before this front achieves victory.
He highlighted that the Israeli front is “experiencing a dire situation, the likes of which it has not faced in 79 years,” as per Israeli officials.
Sayyed Nasrallah affirmed that Operation Al-Aqsa Flood “concerns the future of Lebanon, its resources, and its sovereignty.”
The Lebanese Resistance leader stressed that the operation must be viewed “as a battle of existence and destiny-shaping, and we must all be involved in it,” emphasizing that victory in this battle “will have positive effects on the region at all levels.”
He affirmed that South Lebanon is at the heart of this battle, explaining that this front “is pressing, strong, and impactful” on the Israeli occupation and it “is part of the battle that shall shape the destiny of Palestine, Lebanon, and the region, beyond the narrow calculations preoccupying some Lebanese.”
Hezbollah’s chief called on the Lebanese people to pay attention to the assessments of Israeli generals, officials, and settlers about the effectiveness of the Lebanon front.
Sayyed Nasrallah indicated that Israeli leaders “came to the north to boast about pushing the Resistance kilometers away, only for the response to come with an operation just a few meters from the [Ramya] site,” adding, “Had the Resistance fighters planned to enter the site, they would have.”
Hezbollah Secretary-General touches on Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and its pivotal and far-reaching impact in the region, addressing some issues concerning the #Lebanese front. pic.twitter.com/VyUgCruZgj
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 31, 2024
Lebanon’s backing of Palestine transcends sects
Sayyed Nasrallah addressed the circulating claims about “the Lebanese not supporting the [Lebanese] Resistance operations,” asserting that any such support for the Lebanese front in its backing of Palestine transcends all sects and is not confined to any one group.
“Let everyone know their worth and speak on behalf of those they represent when claiming that the majority of the Lebanese people oppose the support front,” he stressed.
He questioned those who claim that the Lebanese people refuse to support Gaza, asking, “What opinion poll proves these allegations?”
The resistance leader explained that despite the burdens and aggression suffered by Lebanon from the Israeli occupation entity since 1948, the society remained supportive, loyal, and sincere, attributing the Resistance’s victories against “Israel” in May 2000 and July 2006 to this steadfastness.
Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized that the outcomes of the battle in South Lebanon “are far greater than any internal political wins,” just as the liberation in 2000 and the victory in 2006 were.
He also denied claims that the southern Lebanese front is preventing the election of a president for the country, asserting that the battles in the South and Gaza are not linked to the presidential elections.
What has disrupted the election of a president in Lebanon are internal disagreements and external vetoes, Hezbollah Secretary-General explained.
“From the beginning, we said that we do not want to leverage what is happening in the South for internal affairs, but some [sides] are living in delusion,” he indicated.
In a related context, Sayyed Nasrallah explained that the leaks about offers and temptations regarding drilling in exchange for halting the southern Lebanese front reveal the complicity of the United States in causing suffering for the Lebanese people.
He noted that the US is complicit in the electricity crisis in Lebanon and obstructing the issue of oil fields in Lebanese waters.
‘Netanyahu leading Israeli entity to the abyss’
Regarding “Israel’s” failure in Gaza, Sayyed Nasrallah explained that the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is leading the entity on a downhill course, through his insistence on the war he has waged.
"Netanyahu's push for war says things are only heading downhill for the [Israeli] entity."
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 31, 2024
He commented on the statements of the War Cabinet minister and the man behind the “Dahiya doctrine,” Gadi Eisenkot, in which he said that an entire contingent (comprising several brigades) of the Israeli occupation army is waging battles against one battalion that the army claimed it had dismantled in Jabalia, stressing that “the fighting is difficult.”
This, according to Sayyed Nasrallah, is clear proof that the Israeli army is drained, forcing it to enter Jabalia with an entire contingent, with the Rafah battle ongoing down south.
Further highlighting the dire situation the Israeli entity is mired in, Hezbollah’s chief reiterated the words of the head of the Israeli Central Bank who talked about a “catastrophe that would befall the entity,” depicting an upcoming state of crises and disasters as highlighted by army commanders and senior Israeli officials.
In a related context, Sayyed Nasrallah pointed out that “the stances of the countries whereby they condemned the aggression and ongoing massacres and recognized the State of Palestine are among the blessings of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.”
Yemen
During his speech, Sayyed Nasrallah expressed his condolences to the Yemeni people following the latest American aggression on Yemen, which killed 16 and injured 41.
He pointed out that the Yemeni stance has been clear from the beginning that “no American aggression will affect Yemeni support and backing for Palestine and the Gaza Strip.”
About Sheikh Kourani
Touching on the journey of Sheikh Kourani, the Lebanese leader noted that the late cleric put great efforts into religious propagation from Iraq to Kuwait, Lebanon, Iran, and many African and Arab nations, in addition to his participation in numerous conferences.
He added that Sheikh Kourani authored more than 60 books on theology, among other topics, deeming the Sheikh’s achievements significant, including his introduction of modern technologies to the seminary and academic research. Sayyed Nasrallah emphasized that the most important achievement in this context is his encyclopedic work.
The Hezbollah chief pointed out that Sheikh Kourani “did not consider himself confined to a specific file or geographical boundaries” and was among the founders of the Islamic movement work starting in Iraq in the 1960s and one of the founders of the beginnings of clandestine Resistance work in the late 1970s.
Sheikh Kourani continued his resistance work for over 40 years, leading to the launch of the Islamic Resistance, Sayyed Nasrallah mentioned, adding that the cleric’s faith in and support for the Resistance were absolute through statements and sacrifices, including his son, martyr Sheikh Yasser.
Elsewhere, the Resistance leader emphasized that Sheikh Ali Kourani was completely committed to the Palestinian cause “from the river to the sea,” strongly believed in the Resistance’s victory and the Israeli entity’s downfall, and was eager to witness that day.
The world’s two highest courts have made an implacable enemy of Israel in trying to uphold international law and end Israeli atrocities in Gaza.
Separate announcements last week by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) should have forced Israel on to the back foot in Gaza.
A panel of judges at the ICJ – sometimes known as the World Court – demanded last Friday that Israel immediately stop its current offensive on Rafah, in southern Gaza.
Instead, Israel responded by intensifying its atrocities.
On Sunday, it bombed a supposedly “safe zone” crowded with refugee families forced to flee from the rest of Gaza, which has been devastated by Israel’s rampage for the past eight months.
The air strike set fire to an area crammed with tents, killing dozens of Palestinians, many of whom burnt alive. A video shows a man holding aloft a baby beheaded by the Israeli blast.
Hundreds more, many of them women and Rafah, suffered serious injuries, including horrifying burns.
Israel has destroyed almost all of the medical facilities that could treat Rafah’s wounded, as well as denying entry to basic medical supplies such as painkillers that could ease their torment.
This was precisely the outcome US President Joe Biden warned of months ago when he suggested that an Israeli attack on Rafah would constitute a “red line”.
But the US red line evaporated the moment Israel crossed it. The best Biden’s officials could manage was a mealy-mouthed statement calling the images from Rafah “heart-breaking”.
Such images were soon to be repeated, however. Israel attacked the same area again on Tuesday, killing at least 21 Palestinians, mostly women and children, as its tanks entered the centre of Rafah.
‘A mechanism with teeth’
The World Court’s demand that Israel halt its attack on Rafah came in the wake of its decision in January to put Israel effectively on trial for genocide, a judicial process that could take years to complete.
In the meantime, the ICJ insisted, Israel had to refrain from any actions that risked a genocide of Palestinians. In last week’s ruling, the court strongly implied that the current attack on Rafah might advance just such an agenda.
Israel presumably dared to defy the court only because it was sure it had the Biden administration’s backing.
UN officials, admitting that they had run out of negatives to describe the ever-worsening catastrophe in Gaza, called it “hell on earth”.
Days before the ICJ’s ruling, the wheels of its sister court, the ICC, finally began to turn.
Karim Khan, its chief prosecutor, announced last week that he would be seeking arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his defence minister, Yoav Gallant, along with three Hamas leaders.
Both Israeli leaders are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including attempts to exterminate the population of Gaza through planned starvation.
Israel has been blocking aid deliveries for many months, creating famine, a situation only exacerbated by its recent seizure of a crossing between Egypt and Rafah through which aid was being delivered.
The ICC is a potentially more dangerous judicial mechanism for Israel than the ICJ.
The World Court is likely to take years to reach a judgement on whether Israel has definitively committed a genocide in Gaza – possibly too late to save much of its population.
The ICC, on the other hand, could potentially issue arrest warrants within days or weeks.
And while the World Court has no real enforcement mechanisms, given that the US is certain to veto any UN Security Council resolution seeking to hold Israel to account, an ICC ruling would place an obligation on more than 120 states that have ratified its founding document, the Rome Statute, to arrest Netanyahu and Gallant should either step on their soil.
That would make Europe and much of the world – though not the US – off-limits to both.
And there is no reason for Israeli officials to assume that the ICC’s investigations will finish with Netanyahu and Gallant. Over time, it could issue warrants for many more Israelis.
As one Israeli official has noted: “The ICC is a mechanism with teeth”.
‘Antisemitic’ court
For that reason, Israel responded by going on the warpath, accusing the court of being “antisemitic” and threatening to harm its officials.
Washington appeared ready to add its muscle too.
Asked at a Senate committee hearing whether he would support a Republican proposal to impose sanctions on the ICC, Antony Blinken, Biden’s secretary of state, replied: “We want to work with you on a bipartisan basis to find an appropriate response.”
Administration officials, speaking to the Financial Times, suggested the measures under consideration “would target prosecutor Karim Khan and others involved in the investigation”.
US reprisals, according to the paper, would most likely be modelled on the sanctions imposed in 2020 by Donald Trump, Joe Biden’s predecessor, after the ICC threatened to investigate both Israel and the US over war crimes, in the occupied Palestinian territories and Afghanistan respectively.
Then, the Trump administration accused the ICC of “financial corruption and malfeasance at the highest levels” – allegations it never substantiated.
Fatou Bensouda, the chief prosecutor at the time, was denied entry to the US, and Trump officials threatened to confiscate her and the ICC judges’ assets and put them on trial. The administration also vowed to use force to liberate any Americans or Israelis who were arrested.
Mike Pompeo, the then US secretary of state, averred that Washington was “determined to prevent having Americans and our friends and allies in Israel and elsewhere hauled in by this corrupt ICC”.
Covert war on ICC
In fact, a joint investigation by the Israeli website 972 and the British Guardian newspaper revealed this week that Israel – apparently with US support – has been running a covert war against the ICC for the best part of a decade.
Its offensive began after Palestine became a contracting party to the ICC in 2015, and intensified after Bensouda, Khan’s predecessor, started a preliminary investigation into Israeli war crimes – both Israel’s repeated attacks on Gaza and its building of illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem to ethnically cleanse Palestinians from their lands.
Bensouda found herself and her family threatened, and her husband blackmailed. The head of Israel’s Mossad spy agency, Yossi Cohen, became personally involved in the campaign of intimidation. An official briefed on Cohen’s behaviour likened it to “stalking”. The Mossad chief ambushed Bensouda on at least one occasion in an attempt to recruit her to Israel’s side.
Cohen, who is known to be close to Netanyahu, reportedly told her: “You should help us and let us take care of you. You don’t want to be getting into things that could compromise your security or that of your family.”
Israel has also been running a sophisticated spying operation on the court, hacking its database to read emails and documents. It has tried to recruit ICC staff to spy on the court from within. There are suspicions at the ICC that Israel has been successful.
Because Israel oversees access to the occupied territories, it has been able to ban ICC officials from investigating its war crimes directly. That has meant, given its control of the telecommunications systems in the territories, that it has been able to monitor all conversations between the ICC and Palestinians reporting atrocities.
As a result, Israel has sought to close down Palestinian legal and human rights groups by designating them as “terrorist organisations”.
The surveillance of the ICC has continued during Khan’s tenure – and it is the reason Israel knew the arrest warrants were coming. According to sources that spoke to the Guardian and 972 website, the court came under “tremendous pressure from the United States” not to proceed with the warrants.
Khan has pointed out that interference in the court’s activities is a criminal offence. More publicly, a group of senior US Republican senators sent a threatening letter to Khan: “Target Israel and we will target you.”
Khan himself has noted that he has faced a campaign of intimidation and has warned that, if the interference continues, “my office will not hesitate to act”.
The question is how much of this is bravado, and how much is it affecting Khan and the ICC’s judges, making them wary of pursuing their investigation, expediting it or expanding it to more Israeli war crimes suspects.
Legal noose
Despite the intimidation, the legal noose is quickly tightening around Israel’s neck. It has become impossible for the world’s highest judicial authorities to ignore Israel’s eight-month slaughter in Gaza and near-complete destruction of its infrastructure, from schools and hospitals to aid compounds and bakeries.
Many tens of thousands of Palestinian children have been killed, maimed and orphaned in the rampage, and hundreds of thousands more are being gradually starved to death by Israel’s aid blockade.
The role of the World Court and the War Crimes Court are precisely to halt atrocities and genocides before it is too late.
There is an obligation on the world’s most powerful states – especially the world’s superpower-in-chief, the United States, which so often claims the status of “global policeman” – to help enforce such rulings.
Should Israel continue to ignore the ICJ’s demand that it end its attack on Rafah, as seems certain, the UN Security Council would be expected to pass a resolution to enforce the decision.
That could range from, at a minimum, an arms embargo and economic sanctions on Israel to imposing no-fly zones over Gaza or even sending in a UN peacekeeping force.
Washington has shown it can act when it wishes to. Even though the US is one of a minority of states not a party to the Rome Statute, it has vigorously supported the arrest warrant issued by the ICC against Russian leader Vladimir Putin in 2023.
The US and its allies have imposed economic sanctions on Moscow, and supplied Ukraine with endless weapons to fight off the Russian invasion. There is evidence, too, that the US has been waging covert military operations targeting Russia, most likely including blowing up the Nordstream pipelines supplying Russian gas to Europe.
The media’s Nord Stream lies just keep coming.
Why do billionaires and governments scramble to control the media? Because the power over our minds is the greatest power there is.
The Biden administration has orchestrated the seizing of Russian state assets, as well as those of wealthy Russians, and it has encouraged a cultural and sporting boycott.
It is proposing to do none of that in the case of Israel.
Divisions in Europe
It is not just that the US is missing in action as Israel advances its genocidal goals in Gaza. Washington is actively aiding and abetting the genocide, by supplying Israel with bombs, by cutting funding to UN aid agencies that are the main lifeline for Gaza’s population, by sharing intelligence with Israel and by refusing to use its plentiful leverage over Israel to stop the slaughter.
And the widespread assumption is that the US will veto any Security Council resolution against Israel.
According to two former ICC officials who spoke to the Guardian and 972 website, senior Israeli officials have expressly stated that Israel and the US are working together to stymie the court’s work.
Washington’s contempt for the world’s highest judicial authorities is so flagrant that it is even starting to fray relations with Europe.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, has thrown his weight behind the ICC and called for any ruling against Netanyahu and Gallant to be respected.
Meanwhile, on Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his outrage over Israel’s attacks on Rafah and called for them to stop immediately.
Three European states – Spain, Ireland and Norway – announced last week that they were joining more than 140 other countries, including eight from the 27-member European Union, in recognising Palestine as a state.
The coordination between Spain, Ireland and Norway was presumably designed to attenuate the inevitable backlash provoked by defying Washington’s wishes.
Among the falsehoods promoted by the US and Israel is the claim that the ICC has no jurisdiction over Israel’s military actions in Gaza because neither of them have recognised Palestine as a state.
But Palestine became a state party to the ICC way back in 2015. And, as Spain, Ireland and Norway have highlighted, it is now recognised even by western states usually submissive to the US-imposed “rules-based order”.
Another deception promoted by Israel and the US – a more revealing one – is the claim that the ICC lacks jurisdiction because Israel, like the US, has not ratified the Rome Statute.
Neither believes international law – the legal foundation constructed in the aftermath of the Second World War to stop future Holocausts – applies to them. Which is yet more reason to discount their assurances that there is no genocide in Gaza.
But in any case, the argument is entirely hollow: Palestine is a party to the ICC, and the Rome Statute is there to protect its signatories from attack. It is only violent bullies like the US and Israel who have no need for the ICC.
Might makes right
Both the ICJ and the ICC are fully aware of the dangers of taking on Israel – which is why, despite the dissembling complaints from the US and Israel, each court is treading so slowly and cautiously in dealing with Israeli atrocities.
Pick at the Israeli thread of war crimes in Gaza, and the entire cloth of atrocities around the world committed and promoted by the US and its closest allies starts to unravel.
The unspoken truth is that the “Shock and Awe” bombing campaign and years of brutal occupation of Iraq by US and British troops, and the even lengthier and equally bloody occupation of Afghanistan, eviscerated the legal constraints that would have made it harder for Putin to invade Ukraine and for Israel to put into practice the erasure of the Palestinian people it has dreamed of for so long.
It is Washington that tore up the rulebook of international law and elevated above it a self-serving “rules-based order” in which the only meaningful rule is might makes right.
Faced with that stark axiom, Moscow had good reason both to take advantage of Washington’s acts of vandalism against international law to advance its own strategic regional aims and to suspect that the relentless military expansion of a US-led Nato towards its borders did not have Russia’s best interests at heart.
Now, as Netanyahu and Gallant risk being put in the dock at The Hague, Washington is finally finding its resolve to act. Not to stop genocide. But to offer Israel protection to carry on.
War crimes overlooked
For that reason, Khan did everything he could last week to insulate himself from criticism as he announced that he wants Netanyahu and Gallant arrested.
First, he made sure to weigh the accusations more heavily against Hamas than Israel. He is seeking three Hamas leaders against two Israelis.
In his indictment, he implicated both the Hamas political and military wings in war crimes and crimes against humanity over their one-day attack on Israel on 7 October and their hostage-taking.
By contrast, Khan completely ignored the Israeli military’s role over the past eight months, even though it has been carrying out Netanyahu and Gallant’s wishes to the letter.
Notably too, Khan charged the head of Hamas’ political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, who is based in Qatar, not Gaza. All the evidence, however, is that he had no foreknowledge of the attack on 7 October and certainly no operational involvement.
Further presenting Hamas in a worse light, Khan levelled more indictments against its leaders than Israel’s.
That included a charge rooted in a prominent western establishment narrative: that Israeli hostages held in Gaza have faced systematic sexual assault and torture. There appears to be little persuasive evidence for this allegation at this stage, unless Khan has access to facts no one else appears to know about.
By contrast, there is plenty of objective evidence of Palestinians being kidnapped off the streets of Gaza and the occupied West Bank and subjected to sexual assault and torture in Israeli prisons.
The message of Israel’s torture chambers is directed at all of us, not just Palestinians. ‘Black sites’ are about reminding those who have been colonised and enslaved of a simple lesson: resistance is futile.
That, however, is not on the charge sheet against Netanyahu or Gallant.
Khan also ignored plenty of other Israeli war crimes that would be easy to prove, such as the destruction of hospitals and United Nations facilities, the targeted killing of large numbers of aid workers and journalists, and the fact that 70 percent of Gaza’s housing stock has been made uninhabitable by Israel’s US-supplied bombs.
Taking on Goliath
In making the case against Israel, Khan clearly knew he was taking on a Goliath, given Israel’s stalwart backing from the US. He had even recruited a panel of legal experts to give its blessing, in the hope that might offer some protection from reprisal.
The panel, which unanimously endorsed the indictments against Israel and Hamas, included legal experts like Amal Clooney, the nearest the human rights community has to a legal superstar. But it also included Theodor Meron, a former legal authority in the Israeli government’s foreign ministry.
In an exclusive interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, explaining his reasoning, Khan seemed keen to preempt the coming attacks. He noted that an unnamed senior US politician had already tried to deter him from indicting Israeli leaders. The prosecutor suggested that other threats were being made behind the scenes.
The ICC, he was told, was “built for Africa and thugs like Putin” – a criticism of the court that echoed complaints long levelled against it by the Global South.
In Washington, the ICC is expected to serve as nothing more than another institutional tool of US imperialism. It is not there to uphold international law dispassionately. It is there to enforce a US “rules-based order” in which the US and its allies can do no wrong, even when they are committing atrocities or a genocide.
The predictably skewed framing of the interview by Amanpour – that Khan needed to explain and justify at length each of the charges he laid against Netanyahu and Gallant but that the charges against the Hamas leaders were self-evident – was one clue as to what the court is up against.
The ICC prosecutor made clear that he understands all too well what is at stake if the ICC and ICJ turn a blind eye to the Gaza genocide, as Israel and the US want. He told Amanpour: “If we don’t apply the law equally, we’re going to disintegrate as a species.”
The uncomfortable truth is that such disintegration, in a nuclear age, may be further advanced than any of us cares to acknowledge.
The US and its favourite client state give no sign of being willing to submit to international law. Like Samson, they would prefer to bring the house down than respect the long-established rules of war.
The initial victims are the people of Gaza. But in a world without laws, where might alone makes right, all of us will ultimately be the losers.
The Israeli prime minister’s senior security aid says the genocidal war on the Strip is expected to last seven more months.
The war on Gaza is expected to continue throughout 2024 at least, Tzachi Hanegbi, the “National Security Advisor” to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israeli Kan public radio.
“The fighting in Gaza will continue for at least another seven months,” he explained.
The Israeli occupation army launched an invasion of densely populated Rafah earlier this month, which coincided with the shutting down of the only two crossings delivering aid to southern Gaza; the Rafah and Karem Abu Salem crossings.
According to Netanyahu and top Israeli military officials, taking control of Rafah is essential to secure “absolute victory” in the genocidal war no nearing its eighth-month mark.
Hanegbi said that the long period of the war seeks to “fortify our achievement and what we define as the destruction of the governmental and military capabilities of Hamas and [Palestinian] Islamic Jihad.”
During the first wave of the invasion, Israeli forces occupied the Rafah crossing after destroying its facilities.
Occupation forces later advanced along the Philadelphi Corridor, the border separating Egypt from southern Gaza spanning around 13 kilometers, claiming that the aim is to close all means of the Resistance to receive weapons via tunnels.
“Inside Gaza, the IDF is now in control of 75% (9 km) of the Philadelphi Corridor and I believe it will be in control of it all with time,” the prime minister’s top aid said, adding that the plan is to work with Egypt to “ensure weapon smuggling is prevented.”
Cairo on its part denied that arms are being delivered from its side to Gaza.
Rafah witnessed in the past 10 days the most violent Israeli bombardment since the war began.
The occupation committed a number of massacres against families residing in the small city, most notably the killing of over 40 Palestinians in a bombing of a tent city in al-Mawasi sheltering thousands of forcibly displaced Palestinians. The occupation army has forced Palestinians fleeing Rafah to move to al-Mawasi, claiming it was a “safe zone“. Most of the massacre’s martyrs were women and children.
Footage of the massacre showing slaughtered children and incinerated bodies sparked global outrage, leading to wide condemnation of the Israeli crime, including from the entity’s closest allies.
The invasion expanded, reaching Rafah City, with tanks entering crowded residential neighborhoods and streets coupled with intense airstrikes and shelling.
Around one million Palestinians have had to flee Rafah in the past three weeks, the United Nations Palestinian Refugee Agency (UNRWA) said earlier this week. The international humanitarian organization stressed that the displacement from Rafah “happened with nowhere safe to go and amidst bombardments, lack of food and water, piles of waste and unsuitable living conditions.”
‘One barely functional hospital’
On Monday, Rafah’s Kuwait Speciality Hospital was forced to shut down its operations after an Israeli strike just outside its gates killed two of its medical staff.
Dr. Suhaib al-Hams, the hospital’s director, said it suspended its operations due to the “Israeli occupation forces’ expansion of their military operation in Rafah and their repeated and deliberate attacks on the hospital and its vicinity”.
Additionally, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza stated on Tuesday that six hospitals and medical facilities in Rafah were forced out of service. In addition the the Kuwaiti hospital, the ministry named the al-Najjar hospital (Rafah’s largest hospital), the two city’s field hospitals, the Indonesian field hospital, and the Abu al-Walid Central Clinic.
Talking to Reuters and AFP earlier this week, the World Health Organization WHO representative for Gaza and the West Bank said, “If the [Israeli] incursion would continue, we would lose that last hospital in Rafah,” Dr Rik Peeperkorn said.
In a solemn address, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah thanked supporters for their condolences on his mother’s passing and condemned the recent massacre in Gaza, urging action against the brutality of the Israeli forces.
During a speech at the Sayyed Al-Shuhada Complex in Al-Ruwais on Tuesday at the three-day commemoration of his mother, Sayyed Nasrallah expressed his gratitude to all those who offered condolences on the passing of his mother, Nahdia Hashem Safieddine. Addressing those mourning his mother’s passing at the mourning places set by Hezbollah since her demise, “I welcome your presence, thank you for your condolences, and ask Allah to reward you with goodness in this world and the hereafter.”
He apologized for not being able to be present in person due to security reasons. “I apologize for the circumstances that everyone is aware of, and I thank all those who attended at the mourning ceremonies. You all understand my situation, and I wish I could be in the first row to share your condolences.”
“I apologize for not being able to be with you in person and for not answering phone calls. Your support and actions mean a great deal to us,” he added.
Sayyed Nasrallah thanked all the mourners and consolers from various countries, including Lebanon, Iraq, Palestine, Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Turkey, Yemen, Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt, Tunisia, Mauritania, many African countries, Jordan, Djibouti, and the Lebanese communities abroad.
He also thanked the leadership of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement for their support and the honorable families of the martyrs who sent condolence messages. “I express my heartfelt gratitude to my brothers in the leadership of Hezbollah and the Amal Movement for their early presence to offer condolences alongside my father and for standing for hours to accept condolences,” Sayyed Nasrallah said.
Who Is Sayyed Nasrallah’s Mom?
Describing his mother, Sayyed Nasrallah said she was a woman of faith and integrity, prioritizing her family’s well-being. Despite living in modest conditions, she was content and selfless, always helping her husband and showing patience and respect towards her parents.
“The late Nahdia Hashem Safi Al-Din, born to two Hashemite parents, was a devout, pure, and gentle woman. She remained uninvolved in the affairs of others, never offended anyone, and harbored no hatred,” he said, adding: “Her family was her top priority, ensuring their upbringing and protection. She was a contented woman who never complained about clothing, housing, or food, and she spent most of her life in a single room.”
“She actively supported my father in shouldering responsibilities, demonstrating patience and a commitment to righteousness, particularly in her dealings with her parents,” his eminence pointed out. “Martyr Hadi was her first grandson whom she loved dearly, and he reciprocated that love, his martyrdom profoundly impacted her.”
Throughout her life, Sayyed Nasrallah recalled, “my mother praised Allah in times of both health and sickness. When asked about her well-being, she would respond with gratitude, saying that she was doing well, thanks to Allah.”
Humble-Rich Neighborhood
Sayyed Nasrallah reminisced about their humble neighborhood, the Sharshbouk neighborhood, which was diverse and harmonious, despite the lack of religious institutions. “We were born in a humble neighborhood known as the Sharshbouk neighborhood, a part of the Karantina area. Despite the absence of a mosque, scholar, or religious activities in our vicinity, the blessings of faith and religiosity from our parents guided us,” the Secretary General indicated.
He emphasized their allegiance to the teachings of Imam Sayyed Musa al-Sadr. “From the outset, we aligned ourselves with the teachings of Imam Sayyed Mousa al-Sadr and his movement, a commitment that persists whether we are affiliated with Hezbollah or the Amal movement, myself and my brothers included.”
“While not large, our neighborhood was diverse, home to Lebanese, Palestinians, Kurds, Armenians, and Maslakh Arabs, all of whom shared a common experience of poverty. Despite our circumstances, there existed a sense of love, peace, and solidarity among us all,” Sayyed Nasrallah said. “We aspire to witness today the same unity and harmony that characterized life in the Sharshbouk neighborhood; the core issue in Lebanon, in our view, lies in the actions of certain political leaders who, instead of fostering unity, incite division and conflict,” he added.
Rafah Massacre Stripped You Away!
Regarding the recent massacre in Rafah, Sayyed Nasrallah condemned the brutality of the Israeli forces, stating that such actions reveal the true nature of the occupation. “The massacre in Rafah stands as a stark confirmation of the enemy’s brutality, treachery, and betrayal. In our perspective, their actions mirror those of historical killers of prophets, as they mercilessly bomb tents and mutilate the bodies of children.”
“The blood that was shed in Rafah should stir the conscience of all those who have remained silent until now,” Sayyed Nasrallah stated.
He urged the international community to act against these atrocities and not to remain silent. “The massacre stripped away all the false pretenses of legality and adherence to international laws that the occupation had cloaked itself in,” he said, adding: “To those who seek normalization, we ask: with whom do you seek to normalize? With these treacherous monsters whose crimes know no bounds?”
“A few days ago,” Sayyed Nasrallah pointed, “the International Court of Justice called for an end to the aggression, yet the response was met with violent raids.” “We must condemn these horrific massacres and strive to be a catalyst for ending the war and aggression against the people of Gaza,” his eminence urged.
“These massacres must serve as a stark example for us and for those who rely on the international community and international laws to protect Lebanon,” Hezbollah’s leader indicated. “To all the ignorant: The body parts of Gaza’s children scream in your ears, their blood staining your faces, and their severed heads address you. Strength, unity, resistance, martyrs and sacrifices will protect you; submission and surrender at the door of the helpless international community will not do so.”
Sayyed Nasrallah concluded by reaffirming his commitment to the resistance and the liberation of the land, stating that the sacrifices made will ultimately lead to the defeat of the oppressors. “We are in the month of liberation, May, when we reclaimed our land through sacrifices and blood, the resistance has offered thousands of martyrs in this endeavor,” he said, concluding: “The blood that was shed in Rafah will hasten the defeat and demise of this Nazi-like and brutal entity, for which we see no future in our region.”
In a brutal escalation of violence, the city of Rafah in Gaza experienced the most violent Israeli bombings since the Israeli aggression began last October.
As Israel escalated its shelling of Rafah throughout the night, Palestinian families fled from Tel Zorub to Tal al Sultan as Israeli tanks advanced through the city. pic.twitter.com/MP3C13rnFl
Israeli occupation forces focused their airstrikes and shelling on the western part of Rafah, with the Emirati Hospital and the Tell al-Sultan neighborhood suffering heavy bombardment. Civilian structures, including homes and a clinic, were hit by Israeli artillery, trapping medical staff and displaced persons inside.
BREAKING| Israeli artillery shelling targets the upper floor of the Indonesian Hospital in Tal Al Sultan in the west of Rafah right now. pic.twitter.com/Ew6iIxV7L6
Forcibly displaced families in Rafah found themselves trapped as the relentless Israeli bombardment prevented rescue teams and medics from reaching them. Israeli quadcopters roamed the area, opening fire at civilians and journalists attempting to flee the violence.
BREAKING| Israeli forces open fire at journalists in the vicinity of the Kuwaiti Hospital in Rafah. One journalist has been reportedly wounded. pic.twitter.com/LLlFpeGYud
Confrontations Between Palestinian Resistance and IOF
Amid the intense Israeli attacks on western Rafah, fierce confrontations erupted between Palestinian Resistance fighters and Israeli occupation forces near the Zaarib roundabout. The central Rafah City also saw heavy battles around key locations, resulting in further casualties.
The Israeli assaults extended beyond Rafah, with strikes reported in central Gaza, eastern Khan Younis Governorate, and northern Gaza.
Israel seeks fast, hard wars, while its opponents seek slow-boiling, irregular wars of attrition. Now, with the resurgence of resistance ops in Jabalia and Gaza areas, Israel has lost both the field and the war.
The ground situation in Jabalia refugee camp, north of Gaza City, is more than merely a military clash between an invading force and resistance fighters fighting a “guerrilla war.” The deeper implication of the sudden battles that have sprung up in Gaza’s largest camp is that Israel is far more entangled than it wants to acknowledge, mirroring the US experience in its disastrous Vietnam quagmire.
Unlike the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Vietnam, however, Gaza is a flat strip of land that lacks crossings, mountain passes, or forests for the resistance to move personnel and weapons with ease across swathes of terrain. Egypt, which shares the Rafah Crossing with Gaza, has distanced itself from the Strip, and Gazans share no other borders with the outside world.
The resurgence of resistance in Jabalia, in fierce battles that have caught the Israeli army off guard, therefore, points to what some may call a ‘miracle.’
More than a guerrilla war
Speaking to The Cradle, a Hamas leader says that Tel Aviv’s claims of controlling the north and center of the Strip before focusing on the south were always false and that the resistance still retains its strength and leadership.
Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) spokesman Mohammed al-Haj Moussa assesses the situation similarly, telling The Cradle, “We are ready for a long battle of attrition” – echoing the words of Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu Obeida.
Their comments that northern Gaza is not under Israeli control, as it has often claimed, are evidenced by today’s resurgent battles in the north of the Strip.
At the war’s onset, Israeli forces moved from several directions toward the Strip, including Al-Atatreh, Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun, and Shujaiya in the north and northeast, and from central axes like Juhr al-Dik and Al-Zaytoun neighborhood towards Sheikh Ajlin near the coast – ostensibly to further tighten their control over Gaza’s north.
However, in January, Israel announced the redeployment of its forces, withdrawing from most northern areas and stationing mainly in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, intending to move toward areas where resistance continued, mostly southward of the Strip.
Tel Aviv’s confidence that matters had swung in its favor in Jabalia was misplaced. Today’s the occupation army’s announced losses – in both soldiers and hardware – confirm that a fierce fight is taking place in the camp and its environs.
A senior Hamas source informs The Cradle that Israel’s “mowing the grass” strategy, intended to weaken or cripple Gaza’s resistance periodically, has failed to make the desired dent, even after 225 days of war.
The real war of attrition
Sources in the Palestinian resistance report that even Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, a major stronghold for Israeli forces to counteract the ‘Palestinian Viet Cong’ in northern Gaza, was unstable for Israeli soldiers. Palestinian fighters regularly emerged from the rubble and underground to fight a real war of attrition against the thousands of soldiers stationed there.
Resistance sources also say that a range of explosive weapons were used in ambushes and attacks: “Al-Shuath bombs” and “Tandem” to destroy Merkava tanks and other armored vehicles, “Al-Yassin 105” shells, and bombs and booby-traps in houses using rockets and shells that didn’t explode during earlier raids, detonated when soldiers take cover inside.
Additionally, there are also ongoing sniper operations, mortar shelling, and sudden face-to-face clashes with enemy soldiers by fighters who emerge from tunnels.
The aforementioned Hamas leader tells The Cradle that these operations reveal “the IDF’s loss of control” and adds:
“The enemy is not ready for long and multi-front battles, and this is what made it lose its balance and, at the same time, began to lose the theory on which it was based, which is a policy of deterrence and pre-emptive operations.”
A particularly ironic aspect is that the Israeli military claimed it had ‘dismantled’ 20 of the original 24 Hamas battalions, giving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an excuse to move ahead with his invasion of Rafah.
“We can’t leave them there,” Netanyahu said of the intact battalions in an interview earlier this month. “What they are trying to do is extort [or] blackmail us to leave Gaza. Leave them in place, these battalions, leave their leadership in place, and they go take over Gaza again and do it again.”
A stalled ‘victory’
But Netanyahu’s relentless efforts to overwhelm Gaza and declare ‘victory’ over the resistance keep hitting the wall of the Palestinian Viet Cong and their nonstop display of new tactics: deception, ambushes, sabotage, espionage, sacrifice, and, importantly, strategic patience.
Jabalia serves as a quintessential lesson from this new-and-improved resistance. It is a resounding slap to the prime minister and his war cabinet, undermining an Israeli ‘victory’ at every turn. It exposes the futility of the proposed plans – whether Israeli, American, or Arab – to occupy, administer, or impose authority over Gaza.
The PIJ’s Haj Moussa says the military battles in Jabalia and Rafah, where occupation forces are also suffering increased losses, show that Israel “has not been able, for about eight months, to reach any of its declared goals in Gaza, neither at the level of uprooting the resistance nor the expulsion of Zionist prisoners.”
Despite unconditional US and western security band military support, Tel Aviv has been unable to definitively impose its control over Jabalia or other areas. The PIJ official emphasizes that the Al-Quds Brigades, his movement’s military wing, is still present throughout the Gaza Strip, and there is no fear of resistance weakening.
Analysts, including some within the Biden administration, agree that Israel is far from achieving victory. It has neither captured land, freed prisoners, nor killed senior resistance leaders. Lacking a credible plan for the “next day” and unable to destroy the labyrinth of tunnels, Israel is lost in the labyrinths above ground, not just below.
What happened to Tel Aviv’s boasts of killing 13,000 Hamas militants (out of 30,000–40,000 fighters), or its identification and destruction of “Hamas tunnels,” or its “cleansing” of entire areas from resistance control? What happened to Netanyahu’s claims that only “four battalions” were left in Hamas?
How is the Palestinian resistance still fighting fiercely in Shujaiya, Jabalia, Al-Zaytoun, Deir al-Balah, all the way to Rafah in Gaza’s south? How are Israeli tanks and armored vehicles being depleted so quickly, and the occupation forces dying in larger numbers than before?
If Netanyahu was betting that the subjugation of Jabalia, Rafah, and other key areas would facilitate his ability to negotiate the release of Israeli prisoners, he should cut his losses quickly to evade two defeats: a political one from his coalition partners and an angry public, and a military one in Gaza.
It is only a Gaza ceasefire that can save the Israeli prime minister from a Palestinian war of attrition, which will wear down Israeli morale, drain its economy, and frustrate its western allies.
For Haj Moussa, “the talk of Netanyahu and the occupation leaders about the expected victory, it is nothing but an illusion, and they are nothing but slogans that have nothing to do with the truth.”
EDITORS NOTE: Graphic content / TOPSHOT – Injured Palestinians are transported to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah following Israeli bombardment of al-Bureij in the eastern Gaza Strip on May 21, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (Photo by AFP)
Since October 7th, Israeli occupation forces have maintained their relentless attacks on Gaza, resulting in numerous casualties and widespread destruction. On the 228th day of aggression, multiple Palestinian lives have been lost, including women and children, with many more injured or missing.
A Palestinian youth lost his mother by an Israeli air strike in Beit Lahya north of Gaza. pic.twitter.com/dIsRQuZ3wY
Israeli raids and artillery shelling targeted various areas including Beit Lahia, Khan Younis, Nuseirat Camp, al-Bureij Camp, and Jabalia refugee camp, along with al-Zaytoun Neighborhood, Rafah city, and Sheikh Ajlin. The violence has escalated in recent hours, with homes being bombed and innocent civilians bearing the brunt of the attacks.
In a sad incident, a little girl lost her life after the oxygen machine at Martyr Kamal Adwan Hospital was stopped due to the ongoing siege. This heartbreaking event underscores the dire humanitarian situation facing the people of Gaza amidst the continued Israeli onslaught.
The arrival of a martyr girl and several other injured children to the Baptist Hospital coming from Jabalia camp. pic.twitter.com/QYHc1hHEbD
Despite public disagreements between Washington and Tel Aviv over Gaza, ongoing US–Israel weapon supplies suggest that the discord is more media spectacle than policy shift.
With Israel appearing determined to launch a large-scale military operation in Rafah to reverse its current image of defeat in Gaza, another public confrontation – between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – intensified last week.
Biden claims to have halted the shipment of precision weapons to Israel to prevent a large operation in southern Gaza, where around 1.3 million displaced Palestinian civilians have sought shelter, while Netanyahu threatens to continue the war without Washington’s help.
In a CNN interview last week, the US president said, “I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities – that deal with that problem.”
To which Netanyahu responded that same evening, in a podcast discussion with American Jewish journalist Dan Senor, “If we have to stand alone, we will do so, because I’m the prime minister of Israel, the one and only Jewish state, and we will not go down.”
At first glance, the growing tensions between the two allies playing out in the political and media arenas seemed promising for those parties keen on ending the Palestinian bloodshed seven months after Tel Aviv launched its brutal assault on Gaza.
But the Israeli premier, who has often been caught on camera boasting about Israel’s control over the US political scene, may have won this round. Within just a few days, Biden’s warnings and threats all but dissipated.
It began with a flurry of American politicians hitting the TV circuit to lambast their sitting president for veering from Israel’s war agenda, with some US media outlets describing Biden’s decision as “encouraging antisemitism.”
US ambassador to Tel Aviv, Jack Lew, following the script of his Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, confirmed on Sunday that “fundamentally, nothing has changed in the basic relationship” – that only one batch of US munitions was frozen, but everything else continues to flow “ordinarily.”
And Biden’s meek initiative ended decisively on Tuesday when his administration informed Congress that it is planning a $1 billion weapons transfer to Israel.
Netanyahu certainly knew how to turn the screws.
Confirmation of the status quo
As this was the first rhetorical confrontation between the US and Israel since the Gaza war’s onset, many Arab and western media outlets interpreted the intensity of the exchanges as a result of growing divergence between a Biden administration concerned “for the lives of civilians” and a Netanyahu government seeking to restore the deterrent power it lost on 7 October with Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and Iran’s 13 April retaliatory strikes.
Speaking to The Cradle, Australia-based political analyst Hussein al-Dirani says:
“The American administration is primarily responsible for the war of extermination practiced by the Zionist forces against the Palestinians now, in the past, and in the future, and the entity is nothing but one of the arms of American evil in the Arab and Islamic region. Biden can, within one day or less, stop this massacre through an order to the leaders of the aggression to the effect: ‘Stop the war now,’ and it will stop immediately.“
The west’s commitment to Zionism
The roots of today’s conflict remain an age-old one: the implantation of the Israeli entity into West Asia, a project of global Zionism originating from the “Herzl Conference” at the end of the 19th century.
For decades, no American or European political leader has had the option of ending support for Israel. The global Israel lobby, now deeply entrenched in western political, academic, media, and finance institutions, aims to protect the existence of Israel at all costs, stabilize it in the region, and push Arab countries to normalize relations with Tel Aviv, explains Yemeni political journalist Osama Sari.
Sari, who is editor-in-chief of the Yemeni Press Agency, tells The Cradle that Biden cannot abandon Israel at this stage, with the contentious US presidential election looming in November and facing great domestic pressure from anti-war US youths and key minority voters.
Some observers believe that Biden’s threat to cut off offensive weapons to Israel was a feint to score points with his restless, disenchanted electorate and to prod Israel into re-opening negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire, which Tel Aviv recently rejected.
Others, like analyst Dirani, contend that Biden’s political ploys cannot effectively influence the presidential contest because Biden and his chief competition, former US President Donald Trump, are both known, longtime, to-the-wall supporters of Israel.
Theatrics of US-Israel’ tensions’
Biden’s short-lived media strategy intended to market the idea that Washington is dissatisfied with Netanyahu’s intransigence and his insistence on invading Rafah to commit even more massacres – turning global and US public opinion further against Israel – despite Hamas agreeing to a ceasefire under the Egyptian–Qatari proposal.
Rhetoric and posturing aside, the US position toward Gaza does not fundamentally differ from Israel’s and may even be more impulsive and irrational. Had it not been for unprecedented amounts of US military support from day one of this round of conflict, the Gaza war would have stalled a good six months earlier. Israel would also not have been able to withstand Iran’s retaliatory response in April without the US military leading all defensive operations, nor even hope to thwart the combined military operations of the region’s Axis of Resistance.
In the UN Security Council, the US has a long history of using its veto power to shield Israel. Out of the 262 vetoed resolutions since the UN’s inception in 1945, Washington has wielded its veto 116 times on issues related to Palestine.
It used this power 80 times to prevent condemnation of Israel and 36 times against laws supporting Palestinian rights, with the latest veto coming down just a month ago.
The White House and the State Department also consistently provide cover for Israel, claiming absurdly that the occupation state is defending itself by international law and that the US has not observed any violations in Gaza despite the Palestinian death toll exceeding 35,000 and the number of wounded surpassing 78,000.
Whose red lines?
This unquestioning support of Israel, despite mumblings in some Beltway corridors that Tel Aviv is becoming a “US liability,” begs the question of whether there is any US red line for malign Israeli behaviors. Yemeni editor Sari doesn’t see the Americans drawing any lines for Israel, no matter the crime:
“Until now, no international party has been able to classify Biden’s red lines. His attempt to suggest that it was an invasion of Rafah is not convincing at all. The entity has not left any red lines since the beginning of its aggression against Gaza, and its crimes affected hundreds of patients in the hospitals it stormed.“
In fact, Sari adds, “This point does not reflect real seriousness, as Biden and Blinken stated in November that there were no red lines that would prevent military support for Israel against Hamas.”
Journalist Dirani agrees, reflecting growing Arab opinion that the US is only stage-managing matters and shows little intent to pressure Tel Aviv into a resolution of this brutal war:
“Biden wants to tell Netanyahu that instead of committing 100 massacres a day in Rafah, he should commit 90 massacres. This is why he did not reach 100, meaning that the massacres should be commensurate with America’s brutality and not with Netanyahu’s well-known brutality.“
Dirani further assesses, based on their statements, that all Resistance Axis factions understand the US is complicit in the Gaza genocide and is ultimately the root cause of all tragedies, scourges, and wars in the region.
Finger-pointing aside, this perception of US complicity in Gaza is growing fast in global discourse. Efforts to divest from and boycott Israel are on the rise; many of these targets are weapons factories and transport and logistics firms.
If Israel proceeds with an invasion of Rafah, the repercussions could be severe, leading to the wholesale collapse of US interests in West Asia. As Yemen’s waterway blockades, Iranian strikes, and strategic military operations and salvos from Lebanon’s Hezbollah, the Palestinian resistance, and the Iraqi resistance have demonstrated, today it is the leaders of the Axis who are setting those red lines, not western powers.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of The Cradle.
“The basic steps of this action plan is 15th of May is a special day of commemoration of all victims of Palestinians from 1948 until today. And Nakba is continuing today as well.”
Former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has made a formal plea to world leaders to declare May 15 a day of global mourning to mark the Nakba or Great Catastrophe when the creation of Israel in 1948 led to the mass ethnic cleansing of Palestine.
“The flags must be lowered and there should be one day of mourning everywhere in the world. Secondly, we are calling them to organize a UN General Assembly meeting, summit level, not ambassador level, summit level,” Davutoğlu told The Palestine Chronicle on the sidelines of the first Global Anti-Apartheid Conference on Palestine held in Johannesburg from May 10 – 12.
He explained that last November, a group of 139 intellectuals, former statesmen and Nobel Prize winners met “to defend Palestinians against genocide in Gaza.”
Amongst the participants were Richard Falk, former UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the occupied Palestinian Territories; Professor Noura Erakat, human rights attorney; and Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace Laureate (1976), and Member of Russell Tribunal, Northern Ireland.
The meeting resulted in the Declaration of Global Conscience established in December, and a call was made to world leaders.
"The basic steps of this action plan is 15th of May is a special day of commemoration of all victims of Palestinians from 1948 until today. And Nakba is continuing today as well.
“So we are making a call to world leaders that this day should be accepted as a day of global… pic.twitter.com/u2NLRNCDBl
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) May 15, 2024
“I declared this in (the) Turkish Parliament” last month, Davutoğlu said. “The basic steps of this action plan is 15th of May is a special day of commemoration of all victims of Palestinians from 1948 until today. And Nakba is continuing today as well.”
He added: “So we are making a call to world leaders that this day should be accepted as a day of global mourning in all the countries who supported Gazan people against genocide.”
UN General Assembly Summit
Davutoğlu, who is also the former Turkish Foreign Minister, said: “All the leaders supporting Palestine, they should go to UN General Assembly summit 15th of May.”
Letters, he explained, were sent “to almost all the leaders, President Ramaphosa, President Lula, leaders of all pro-Palestinian as well as UN Security Council members. Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Algeria, Russia, China, many of them.”
In this UN General Assembly meeting, at summit level, “a resolution should be taken to mandate UNICEF to take care of children in Gaza, to mandate World Health Organization to take care of health services in Gaza, mandating UNHCR refugees, UN High Commission for Refugees to take care of refugees in and out Gaza, and UNHCR Human Rights Council to take (a) stand regarding human rights violations in Gaza.”
The World FAO, Food and Agriculture Organization, he added, could prepare a report on famine and food shortage in Gaza.
“Such a meeting, global level, would change the situation on the ground,” he stressed. “In the same UN General Assembly meeting, a delegation should be formed to be sent to Gaza to prepare a report and a working team could be established on the ground.”
Davutoğlu stated: “So this is basically our initiative and I hope there will be some leadership to bring this to (the) UN platform. We wrote these letters to secretaries, generals of OIC, Arab League, UN as well, and 15th of May should not be a day of commemoration in an ordinary way this year. There should be a special action plan for Nakba Day.”
‘Issue of Humanity’
Asked whether the Turkish government is participating in this initiative, Davutoğlu said he had sent a letter to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, adding “I made a call to him as well.”
He said he also spoke to Hakan Fidan, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The former chief advisor to Erdogan, said that in the first week following Israel’s launch of its military assault on the Gaza Strip, he had called for the government to “stop all trade” with Tel Aviv, “to ban Turkish airspace for Israeli flights, and to have an active position stand to apply to the ICJ.”
“Unfortunately, Turkiye didn’t do it and fortunately, South Africa did,” he said.
“For me, this is not a Turkish issue, this is not an Arab issue, this is not even just a Muslim issue, this is an issue of humanity. Those who are supporting Gaza and Palestine, they are supporting human values.”
Davutoğlu was one of the keynote speakers at the conference attended by delegates from more than a dozen countries which aimed “to set the basis for the mobilisation of a Global Anti-Apartheid Movement to hold Israel accountable for its crimes against the Palestinian people, and to work to dismantle Israeli apartheid.”
The Johannesburg Declaration on Israel’s Settler-Colonialism, Apartheid and Genocide, was issued at the conclusion of the conference on Sunday.
It declared that “The war prosecuted for decades by Israel and its genocidal enablers is not only against the Palestinian people, it is against humanity as a whole.”
The Declaration called “for the immediate release of all Palestinian political prisoners, detainees and hostages, and demand an end to arbitrary arrest, administrative detention, abductions, and torture of prisoners.”
It condemned governments “that have enabled or been complicit with the Zionist project, which – from Balfour to Biden – remain complicit even as Israel perpetrates a genocide and violates international law with impunity.”
“We are committed to isolate apartheid Israel by intensifying consumer, academic, sports, arts, and cultural boycotts and escalating the campaign for economic and financial sanctions,” it stated.
The movement will “prioritize blocking its shipping routes, campaigning for an arms embargo against Israel, targeting those supporting, funding, supplying weapons to and joining the Israeli Occupation Forces, and expelling Israel from international sporting, cultural and academic bodies.”
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 35,233 Palestinians have been killed, and 79,141 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
– Nurah Tape is a South Africa-based journalist. She is an editor with The Palestine Chronicle.
قال رئيس المكتب السياسي لحركة حماس إسماعيل هنية: “تحل بنا اليوم الذكرى السادسة والسبعون لنكبة فلسطين، تلك النكبة التي عاشها آباؤنا وأجدادنا عندما هاجمتهم العصابات الصهيونية في قراهم ومدنهم الآمنة وأجبرتهم بقوة السلاح ورعب المذابح والمجازر على الهجرة إلى شتّى أصقاع الأرض”.
وفي كلمة له بذكرى النكبة، أضاف هنية: “تمر بنا هذه الذكرى بينما شعبنا يخوض معركة طوفان الأقصى مقدمة التحرير والاستقلال، ويمرّغ أبطالنا أنف المحتل في التراب، ويؤكدون بأن زواله عن أرضنا حتمية قرآنية وحقيقة تاريخية، وأن أكذوبة أرض بلا شعب لشعب بلا أرض أو مقولة الكبار يموتون والصغار ينسون قد انتهت وإلى الأبد”.
وأوضح أنَّهم “أرادوها نكبة تقضي على الشعب الفلسطيني وتنهي قضيته المقدسة، فإذا قضية فلسطين حاضرة قوية في وعي شعبنا وأمتنا وأحرار العالم ولم تطوها سنوات النكبة واللجوء”.
وأكَّد أنَّه بعد 76 عامًا من نكبة الشعب الفلسطيني ما زال هذا المحتل يعيش الرعب وخطر الوجود ويصارع بكلّ وحشية من أجل البقاء بينما ينادي أحرار العالم بالنداء العظيم “الحرية لفلسطين FREE FREE PALESTINE”.
وبيّن هنية أنَّ الشعب الفلسطيني أسقط كلّ المؤامرات وأجهض كلّ المخطّطات الماكرة الخبيثة، وثبت وصمد في كلّ مكان، ولفت إلى أن محاولات المستوطنين البائسة لاقتلاع الشعب الفلسطيني من أرضه وإقامة مستعمرات زائلة آيلة إلى الفشل، وجيش المحتلين ومستوطنوه يعيشون في رعب دائم أمام العمليات البطولية لشباب الضفّة الأبطال.
وأكَّد رئيس المكتب السياسي لحركة حماس تمسك الشعب الفلسطيني في مخيمات اللجوء وفي المهاجر والشتات بحقه في العودة إلى أرضه ووطنه، وتوارثت الأجيال مفتاح العودة وكوشان الدار وتوشح الجيل الرابع المنتشر في معظم دول العالم بالكوفية الفلسطينية والثوب الفلسطيني، وأعلن في كلّ المحافل والمؤتمرات أن لا عودة عن حق العودة.
وأوضح هنية أنَّه في غزّة العزة انفجر الطوفان العظيم، طوفان الأقصى المبارك واجتاح قلاعهم الحصينة، وأذلّ وما زال الجيش الذي قيل إنه لا يقهر، وانهارت صورتهم التي حاولوا رسمها، فإذا العالم كله يراهم على حقيقتهم التي بدؤوا بها نكبتنا عام 48.
وأكد هنية أنَّ فصائل المقاومة التي نراها في كلّ خطوط المواجهة وخاصة الآن في رفح وجباليا والزيتون التي انكفأ عنها اليوم مجددًا يُسطّرون أمجاد شعب وأمة، ولم تتوقف ضربات المجاهدين من كتائبنا المظفرة في كتائب القسام وسرايا القدس وكلّ فصائل المقاومة وتوقع بهم الخسائر للشهر الثامن على التوالي رغم الفارق الكبير في ميزان القوّة.
ولفت إلى أنَّ التصريحات الأميركية الأخيرة التي ترمي إلى تحميل الحركة مسؤولية توقف مفاوضات وقف العدوان مع علم الإدارة الأميركية نفسها بالإيجابية التي تحلت بها الحركة والتي انعكست على موقفها الأخير لتؤكّد من جديد انحياز الموقف الأميركي إلى العدو، والاستمرار في منحه الغطاء السياسي والدعم العسكري لحرب الإبادة التي يشنّها ضدّ الشعب الفلسطيني.
وبيّن أن الحركة على تواصل مع الأشقاء في مصر بشأن ما قام به العدوّ في رفح وخاصة إعادة احتلال معبر رفح، “ونحن متوافقون على ضرورة أن ينسحب الجيش “الإسرائيلي” من المعبر فورًا”، مؤكدًا أنَّ العدو لا يحق له التدخل في كيفية إدارة المعبر بل هو شأن فلسطيني داخلي، ونحن سنديره وفق الأصول المعمول بها.
وعمّا يسمّى اليوم التالي للحرب، قال رئيس المكتب السياسي لحركة حماس: “توالت مواقف الاحتلال الممجوجة بشأن إدارة الوضع في غزّة، والقول بإخراج حركة حماس من المشهد، ونحن نقولإن حركة حماس وجدت لتبقى، مشددًا على أنَّ إدارة القطاع بعد الحرب سوف تقرر فيه الحركة مع الكل الوطني، مستندةً في ذلك إلى المصالح العليا لأهلنا في غزّة والتسهيل عليهم في كلّ ما يتعلق بمرحلة ما بعد الحرب وإلى الرؤية الوطنية الناظمة لوحدة الضفّة والقطاع”.
وأكد هنية أنَّه “أمام الهجمة الصهيونية الواسعة وأمام الصمود البطولي الذي غيّر وجه المنطقة وأعاد ترتيب أولويات وأجندات العالم، نقول لكم نحن واثقون من أن هذا العدوان سوف ينكسر وسيندحر عن أرضنا مهما طال الزمن، معتبرًا أن دم الشهداء والجرحى وعذابات الأسرى وأعباء النزوح واللجوء كلّ ذلك لن يضيع سدى بإذن الله”.
وشدَّد على وجوب “أن تتلاحم الصفوف مع غزّة وفي كلّ مدننا وقرانا في الضفّة الغربية وفي الداخل المحتل، وأن نهب في وجه العدو، وأن يتحرك الشعب الفلسطيني الحر في كلّ الساحات في الأردن وسورية ولبنان وفي كلّ أماكن الشتات واللجوء إلى تصعيد المواجهة لوقف هذا العدوان الغاشم بل ولإنجاز مشروع التحرير والعودة”.
ولفت هنية إلى “أننا أعددنا ملفًا حول الاعتداءات على الأسرى وبدأنا بإيصاله إلى الدول والمؤسسات الإقليمية الدولية ومؤسسات حقوق الإنسان”، متوجهًا للأسرى بالقول إن “مع العسر يسرا، وإن فجر الحرية لآت، وإن طوفان الأقصى سيحقق لكم الحرية بإذن الله”.
وعن جبهات المساندة، قال رئيس المكتب السياسي لحركة حماس: “جبهات المقاومة التي تكتب العهد مع فلسطين بمداد الدم في الجنوب اللبناني وعبر المقاومة المشرفة التي يقودها الإخوة في حزب الله والمقاومة الفلسطينية والجماعة الإسلامية، ومن على جبهة اليمن المتوثبة الأصيلة، وفي العراق الأبي، كما ونذكر بتقديرٍ عالٍ الضربة التي وجهتها الجمهورية الإسلامية في إيران إلى العدوّ الصهيوني وكيف أظهرت حاجة هذا العدوّ إلى من يحميه”.
وتابع: “إنه لشرف عظيم لكل شباب هذه الأمة المشاركة في هذا الطوفان الهادر نصرة للقدس وغزّة وفلسطين، فدونكم الحدود وساحات الجهاد يا شباب الأمة ورجالها ونساءها، انفروا خفافًا وثقالًا وجاهدوا بأموالكم وأنفسكم في سبيل الله”.
كما، ثمنّ هنية عاليًا “كلّ المواقف التي تساند شعبنا وتدعم حقه في الحرية والعودة والاستقلال وفي وقف العدوان على غزّة، ونخص هنا القرارات التي اتّخذتها تركيا بوقف الحركة التجارية مع دولة الاحتلال والانضمام إلى الدعوى المقدمة إلى محكمة لاهاي الدولية، وكذلك موقف مصر وليبيا بالانضمام أيضًا إلى هذه الدعوى”.
واعتبر هنية “أننا أمام مشهد غير مسبوق في التاريخ أن يتحرك طلاب العالم في أميركا وأوروبا وأستراليا واليابان وغيرها دعمًا للقضية الفلسطينية وتضامنًا مع أهلنا في غزّة في مواجهة الكيان الغاصب، وتبني مطالب شعبنا في الحرية والاستقلال على كامل الأرض الفلسطينية المحتلة، والمطالبة بإيقاف حرب الإبادة الجماعية التي يتعرض لها أهلنا في غزّة ووقف تصدير السلاح لهذا الكيان والمطالبة بوقف استثمارات جامعاتهم في الكيان، مشيرًا إلى أن غزّة التي أضحت أيقونة شباب العالم في كلّ التحركات، إنها غزّة التي أسقطت السردية الصهيونية، وكشفت حقيقة هذا المحتل وطبيعته الدموية”.
UPROOTED PALESTINIANS: SALAM ALQUDS ALAYKUM 