ISRAEL: Hamas, the Islamist militant group, issued a threat to execute an Israeli captive every time Israel bombs a Palestinian residence without prior warning, as Israel mobilised an unprecedented 300,000 reservists and enforced a blockade on the Gaza Strip, fueling fears it planned a ground offensive.
The ongoing violence, which has tragically resulted in over 1,500 casualties, has garnered international support for Israel following a severe weekend attack by Hamas and appeals for an end to the conflict and the protection of civilians.
Israeli television reports indicate that the casualty count resulting from the Hamas attack has risen to 900 Israelis, including a minimum of 2,600 injured individuals and numerous captives.
Among the Israeli fatalities were 260 mostly young individuals who were targeted at a desert music festival, where some of the hostages were also taken.
In a fiery address, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged retaliation and accused Hamas, backed by Iran, of committing heinous acts such as the execution of restrained children and other atrocities.
Gaza’s Health Ministry reported that, since Saturday, Israeli airstrikes in the besieged enclave have resulted in a minimum of 687 Palestinian fatalities and left 3,726 people injured.
Among the targets hit were residential buildings, a mosque, and medical facilities, with reports from both the media and witnesses indicating damage to roads and houses.
Israel also conducted an airstrike on the premises of the private Palestinian Telecommunication Co., potentially impacting landline telephone, internet, and mobile phone services.
The airstrikes persisted through Monday night, as confirmed by the Israeli military, which reported striking targets in the Gaza Strip using both naval and aerial assets, including what the military claimed was a weapons depot linked to Islamic Jihad, as well as Hamas installations along the Gaza coastline.
On Monday, Hamas spokesperson Abu Ubaida issued a chilling warning, stating that for every Israeli bombing of a civilian residence without prior notice, Hamas would retaliate by executing an Israeli captive, with the intent to broadcast these executions.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to that threat. According to Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, during the deadly cross-border incursion over the weekend, Hamas captured more than 100 people.
Meanwhile, Palestinians stated that they had received calls and mobile phone audio messages from Israeli security personnel instructing them to evacuate areas predominantly in the northern and eastern regions of Gaza and threatening to launch an army operation there.
In response to these alerts, numerous residents in Gaza City’s Remal neighbourhood chose to leave their homes.
Israel’s chief military spokesman stated that although troops had retaken control of overrun villages within Israel, there were still scattered clashes because some militants were still operating in the southern region of the country, where Hamas launched its attack.
Overnight, sirens alerting Israeli communities close to the Gaza border to impending rocket fire went off.
The news that 300,000 reservists had been called up in just two days fueled rumours that Israel might be planning a ground invasion of Gaza, a region it gave up almost twenty years ago.
“We have never drafted so many reservists on such a scale. We are going on the offensive,” said chief military spokesperson Rear-Admiral Daniel Hagari.
The United States, which annually provides Israel with $3.8 billion in military aid, announced it would be delivering additional shipments of air defence systems, ammunition, and other security assistance to Israel.
The highest-ranking U.S. military officer cautioned Iran against becoming entangled in the ongoing crisis and expressed his desire to prevent the conflict from escalating further. While Iran openly supports Hamas and praised the weekend attack, it denied any direct involvement.
“We want to send a pretty strong message. We do not want this to broaden, and the idea is for Iran to get that message loud and clear,” General Charles Q. Brown, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told journalists travelling with him to Brussels.
Several governments, including Italy, Thailand, and Ukraine, reported the loss of their citizens in the Hamas attacks. In Washington, President Joe Biden disclosed that a minimum of 11 Americans had tragically lost their lives, with a likelihood that U.S. citizens were among those being held hostage.
“I have directed my team to work with their Israeli counterparts on every aspect of the hostage crisis, including sharing intelligence and deploying experts from across the United States government to consult with and advise Israeli counterparts on hostage recovery efforts,” Biden stated.
Amid Israel’s extensive retaliatory airstrikes on Gaza, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant drew international criticism by announcing a stricter blockade aimed at preventing the delivery of food and fuel to the strip, which is home to 2.3 million people.
Human Rights Watch’s Director for Israel and Palestine, Omar Shakir, stated in a statement that depriving people of food and electricity in an occupied region is collective punishment and constitutes a war crime.
Hamas-affiliated media reported that Israeli strikes on residential homes in the Gaza Strip on Monday night resulted in the deaths of at least 20 people. Additionally, two Palestinian journalists were killed and a third was gravely injured in an Israeli airstrike on a building in Gaza City, according to Palestinian media.
International response
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres noted that around 137,000 people sought refuge with UNRWA, the U.N. agency providing essential services to Palestinians.
The governments of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and the United States issued a joint statement acknowledging the “legitimate aspirations” of the Palestinian people and endorsing equal measures of justice and freedom for both Israelis and Palestinians.
They also stated that Israel should remain “unified and coordinated” to ensure Israel’s capacity to defend itself.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan called for an immediate cessation of violence and the protection of civilians by both Hamas and Israel, according to the Egyptian presidency.
Qatari mediators engaged in urgent discussions aimed at negotiating the release of Israeli women and children held by Hamas in exchange for the freedom of 36 Palestinian women and children currently in Israeli prisons.
The escalating possibility of the conflict spreading caused deep concern both in the region and around the world.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group launched rockets into northern Israel following the loss of at least three of its members in Israeli shelling of Lebanon. Israel reported the death of one of its deputy commanders in an earlier cross-border raid originating from Lebanon.
The heightened fears of an expanding conflict led to increased market volatility, with oil prices surging by over 4%, gold prices rising, and a slight uptick in the U.S. dollar against the euro. Major international airlines have either suspended or reduced their services to and from Tel Aviv.
The distressing images of hundreds of Israelis, who had been gunned down at an outdoor dance event and abducted from their homes, lying in the streets were unlike anything witnessed in the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian dispute.
Also Read: History of Israel-Palestine Conflict in 10 Key Points
