UNITED STATES: The U.S. Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has arrived in Turkey as part of his diplomatic tour of the region and is advocating for a pause in the ongoing conflict. Speaking earlier in Baghdad, Antony Blinken stated that a humanitarian pause in Gaza would be “welcome” by regional leaders.
Israel has stated that it requires progress on the release of hostages before agreeing to any kind of offensive pause.
Meanwhile, Israel’s military has stated that it has surrounded Gaza City and split the besieged coastal strip into two separate areas in the midst of Gaza’s third complete communications outage since the conflict began.
“There is north Gaza and south Gaza today,” Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari told reporters on Sunday, referring to the situation as a “significant stage” in Israel’s conflict with Hamas.
According to Israeli media reports, it is anticipated that Israeli troops will enter Gaza City in the next 48 hours. After nightfall, powerful explosions were observed in northern Gaza.
However, the “collapse in connectivity” throughout Gaza, as confirmed by the Palestinian telecom provider Paltel and documented by the internet access advocacy group NetBlocks.org, made it much more difficult to disseminate information about the latest phase of the military operation.
Speaking to the Associated Press, UN Palestinian refugee agency spokesperson Juliette Touma stated, “We have lost communication with the vast majority of the UNRWA team members.” The initial outage in Gaza lasted for thirty-six hours, while the subsequent one lasted for several hours.
Israel’s bombardment continues
On Sunday, Israeli warplanes conducted airstrikes on two refugee camps in central Gaza, resulting in the deaths of at least 53 individuals and causing injuries to dozens, health officials stated.
Israel has declared its intention to continue its military offensive against Hamas, despite calls from the United States for even brief ceasefires to allow aid to reach civilians in desperate need.
The Palestinian Health Ministry stated that the conflict in the region has resulted in the deaths of over 9,700 Palestinians in nearly a month of war, with more than 4,000 of them being children. This tragic toll is expected to rise as Israeli troops advance into densely populated urban areas.
The health ministry has said that during the night, airstrikes targeted the Maghazi refugee camp, resulting in the reported deaths of at least 40 people and injuries to 34 others. The camp is located in an area where Israel’s military has advised Palestinian civilians to take shelter.
The Israeli military has not provided an immediate response.
In another incident, an airstrike targeted a residence near a school within the Bureji refugee camp in central Gaza. Al-Aqsa Hospital staff reported a minimum of 13 casualties. This camp had also been struck on Thursday.
Despite appeals and international protests, Israel has persisted with its ongoing airstrikes in Gaza. Critics argue that Israel’s military actions are frequently viewed as disproportionate, given the significant civilian casualties.
On Sunday, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the occupied West Bank, following his prior discussions with foreign ministers from Arab nations.
This military action by Israel was initiated in response to Hamas killing over 1,400 people in Israel and kidnapping more than 200 others. According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, over 9,700 people have lost their lives in the Strip since October 7th.
Also Read: Blinken to Hear Demand for Gaza Ceasefire from Regional Ministers in Jordan
