With a renewed ceasefire push in the eight-month-old Gaza war stalled, Israel bombarded central and southern areas again on Friday, killing at least 28 Palestinians, and tank forces advanced to the western edges of Rafah.
U.S.-backed Qatari and Egyptian mediators have tried again this week to reconcile clashing demands preventing a halt to the hostilities, a release of Israeli hostages and Palestinians jailed in Israel, and an unrestricted flow of aid into Gaza to alleviate a humanitarian disaster. But sources close to the talks said there were still no signs of a breakthrough.
A month after rumbling into Rafah in what Israel said was an assault to wipe out Hamas' last intact combat units, tank-led forces have advanced to the southwest fringes of the city that skirts the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt, residents said.
They said tanks were stationed in the al-Izba district near the Mediterranean coast while snipers had commandeered some buildings and high ground, trapping people in their homes. They said Israeli machinegun fire had made it too dangerous to go out.
Gaza health officials said two Palestinians had been killed and several wounded in western Rafah from tank shelling there. In central Gaza, Palestinian medics said Israeli bombardments killed at least 15 people died overnight.
"I think the occupation forces are trying to reach the beach area of Rafah. The raids and the bombing overnight were tactical, they entered under heavy fire and then retreated," one Palestinian resident told Reuters via a chat app.
In north Gaza, three Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a Gaza City school building that was sheltering displaced families, rescue workers said.
The Israeli military said it had targeted Hamas gunmen operating from a container inside the school premises, similar to its explanation for an airstrike on a U.N. school building in al-Nuseirat in central Gaza on Thursday that medics said killed 40 people including 14 children. Around 6,000 displaced people were sheltering at that site, the U.N. said.
The Israeli military has published the identity of what it said were 17 fighters concealed in the compound who it killed in Thursday's strike.
Hamas has rejected Israel's assertion that the school had hidden a Hamas command post.
Israel's military blames Hamas for Gaza's high civilian death toll, accusing it of operating within densely populated neighbourhoods, schools and hospitals as cover, something it denies. U.N. and humanitarian officials accuse Israel of using disproportionate force in the war, which it denies. Hamas accuses Israel of deliberately targetting civilian locations, which Israel also denies.
On Friday, Israel said U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has added its military to a global list of offenders who have committed violations against children, a move Israel's envoy at the United Nations Gilad Erdan described as "shameful."
Erdan said he was officially notified of the decision on Friday. The global list is included in a report on children and armed conflict that is due to be submitted to the U.N. Security Council on June 14.
"Israel's army is the most moral army in the world, so this immoral decision will only aid the terrorists and reward Hamas," said Erdan.
It was not immediately clear what violations Israel's military had been accused of committing.
Guterres' spokesperson Stephane Dujarric declined to comment.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza government media office, Israel's assault on Gaza has killed more than 15,500 children since Oct. 7.
Israel has ruled out peace until Hamas is eradicated, and much of Gaza lies in ruins, but Hamas has proven resilient, with militants resurfacing to fight in areas where Israeli forces had previously declared to have defeated them and pulled back.
Hamas precipitated the war when militants stormed from Israeli-blockaded Gaza into southern Israel in a lightning strike last Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's invasion and bombardment of Gaza since then has killed at least 36,731 people, including 77 in the past 24 hours, Gaza's health ministry said in an update on Friday. Thousands more are feared buried dead under rubble, with most of the 2.3 million population displaced.
Since a brief week-long truce in November, repeated attempts to arrange a ceasefire have failed, with Hamas insisting on a permanent end to the war and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will return to the Middle East next week, part of a push by Washington to get Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas to take up the ceasefire proposal laid out last week by U.S. President Joe Biden.
Israel says it is prepared to discuss only temporary pauses in the hostilities until the Islamist militant group, which has ruled the narrow, impoverished enclave since 2007, is wiped out and Gaza poses no more security threat.
© Thomson Reuters 2024.
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33 Comments
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sakurasuki
While in another front occupier targeting, congress members that doesn't align with their agenda.
If this done by Russia it will be over news, however since this is done by golden child so things are little bit quiet.
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/05/israel-targeted-lawmakers-in-disinformation-campaign-00161906
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/05/technology/israel-campaign-gaza-social-media.html
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wallace
Nowhere is any longer safe from bombing.
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kurisupisu
"Israel's army is the most moral army in the world, so this immoral decision will only aid the terrorists and reward Hamas," said Erdan.
The IDF continues to murder innocent people with its ‘morality’
Tell the thousands upon thousands of dead civilians and the yet to be murdered ones about Israeli morality!
There won’t be many willing listeners though…
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Capuchin
On Friday, Israel said U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has added its military to a global list of offenders who have committed violations against children,
Over 15,000 children dead, 9 in 10 children living in poverty and on the brink of starvation and all Netanyahu and Gantz can do is keep repeating their embarrassing line about "Israel is the most moral army in the world".
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WoodyLee
"Israel's army is the most moral army in the world, so this immoral decision will only aid the terrorists and reward Hamas," said Erdan.""
Is this suppose to be a JOKE or what? this got to be the most disgusting claim of all time.
The so called " most moral army " has killed civilians mostly Children and women at the rate of 150 souls / day.
STOP insulting the world intelligence, some time it is much better to just keep your Mouth Shut.
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carpslidy
Neither Isreal, Arab states or the US seems to care about the lifes of Gazans , not even children's
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Alfie Noakes
Over 15,000 children dead, 9 in 10 children living in poverty and on the brink of starvation and all Netanyahu and Gantz can do is keep repeating their embarrassing line about "Israel is the most moral army in the world".
Gaza now has the largest population of child amputees in the world. In January UNICEF estimated that around 1,000 children in Gaza had lost one or both of their legs. This is a rate of 10 per day. Many of these operations were done without anaesthetic.
https://x.com/abrahammatar/status/1798409952756666440
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zibala
Israeli forces batter central, south Gaza as tanks advance in Rafah
Good to hear Israel is staying with its international law compliant plan to rid its lands of occupiers who are terrorists and support terrorism.
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Moonraker
It's rather shocking there is not more condemnation and pushback from leading Arab states. What with their pathetic response to Chinese anti-Islam policies, we can know now that they have few principles beyond self-aggrandisem*nt. Just because they don't seem to care much in no way exculpates Israel for its continued massacre though.
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zibala
Just because they don't seem to care much in no way exculpates Israel for its continued massacre though.
It's a war.
One of the highest rates of terrorists killed to non-combatants of any war. So by using the word "massacre" that means in every war the US, UK, and Australia have participated in since and including WWI, those countries committed a massacre.
In recent times and in the Middle East, Syria and Yemen have committed massacres that have included 100 times the number of deaths we've seen in Israel.
Massacres go on daily around the world I guess.
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itsonlyrocknroll
The 7th October brought Gaza to the hell hole, we are all witnessing.
Israeli government, its people believe they are fighting for their existence, again, for a second time.
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zibala
Gaza now has the largest population of child amputees in the world.
No.
In January UNICEF estimated that around 1,000 children in Gaza had lost one or both of their legs.
1,000 is much less than the 14,000 in the US.
Of the 36.5 million children in the MarketScan database, 14,038 had a major lower limb loss,
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33158398/
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nik
Israel is the feeder of America. That's why Israel gets away with everything. Western countries only pretend to be concerned about the problems of Palestine
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Moonraker
So by using the word "massacre" that means in every war the US, UK, and Australia have participated in since and including WWI, those countries committed a massacre.
To the extent they killed lots of unarmed non-combatants, yes they did. They are well documented. And just because Syria has committed massacres, doesn't make it right for Israel to do so. Some people need to lose the whataboutism: it is not a clever tactic and only reveals no higher principles.
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GuruMick
The false idea that "Israel is fighting for it's existence " is a "hasbara " generated lie always rolled out by the Israelis.
Compare Israel a regional super power, with nuclear weapons, air, sea and land force capability supported by the worlds only super power , who funds Israel with billions EVERY YEAR with Hamas.
Hamas is a small resistance army whose weapons are home made rockets, rifles and RPG type weapons, which lacks an air force and bombing ability, lacks artillery and lacks any sea based warships to fire bombs from offshore.
So....This is a war against Israeli occupation , not a war for Israels existence.
Secondly, someone raises the point, why dont other Arab states offer military support to Gazan and Hamas.
Well, Gaza has no leverage against what the USA offers these other Arab states.
Support Gaza militarily and become a quasi enemy of the USA and at the least lose millions in aid, military assistance.
Maybe the heads of these Nations seek to hold onto power rather than go the way of other enemies of Israel {assassination } or end up like Saddam. {Hanged in a manner that decapitated him }
The Hamas tunnels ....Israel estimated 500kilometres of tunnels before the war, post Oct 7, that figure expanded to 750 kilometres of tunnels.
Now the estimate is 1000 kiliometres of tunnels with US Intel. saying 35% only are out of operation.
Message to the IDF....the tunnels are constructed like spiderwebs, not subway lines, so destroying one section of tunnel is easily overcome by using another section.
Israel is not winning this war.
It is fighting a war that Hamas designed and the IDF is not prepared for.
Finally, before Oct7 there were many battles, incursions etc into Gaza by Israeli forces.
Oct7 did not occur in a vacuum
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Bob Fosse
Gaza now has the largest population of child amputees in the world.
No.
In January UNICEF estimated that around 1,000 children in Gaza had lost one or both of their legs.
1,000 is much less than the 14,000 in the US.
Aside from the obvious population difference there is also the issue of distinguishing between children whose limbs are blown off by Israeli bombs and those in the US whose aren’t.
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wallace
zibala
In January UNICEF estimated that around 1,000 children in Gaza had lost one or both of their legs.
1,000 is much less than the 14,000 in the US.
Guess, you don't know the American population is 175 times the Gaza one.
350 million/2 million. 1,000 would equal 175,000 in the US.
The American children who have lost a limb weren't from being bombed in their beds during the night.
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zibala
And just because Syria has committed massacres, doesn't make it right for Israel to do so.
It wouldn't be right for Israel to do so--and they aren't.
Some people need to lose the whataboutism: it is not a clever tactic and only reveals no higher principles.
Seems the US government doesn't have "higher principles" as its definition of antisemitism has plenty of "whataboutism" to it.
Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.
https://www.state.gov/defining-antisemitism/
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itsonlyrocknroll
GuruMick whether the Israeli government in its destruction of Gaza, can ever justify the military action taken.
There is a undeniable belief, at least from my Jew friends, an unpalatable fear of another holocaust.
Paranoia you will scream, however this was started 7th October, accept that or not
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u_s__reamer
It's a war.
"War" is just a word to excuse every kind of atrocity, as in the hoary old saying, "All's fair in love and war" (that the rules of modern warfare have been designed to repudiate). No, the world has seen enough to conclude that the destruction of Gaza is no more a war than the razing of the Warsaw Ghetto was, the German playbook the Israelis took out of their drawer. The Jews had tunnels and underground bunkers from which they resisted their tormentors. In Gaza it's an occupation while the West Bank is just a fig leaf to cover the naked aggression of the Jewish land grab. The Palestinians have no choice but to resist the IOF by any means necessary. This second Nakba will never be forgotten. NEVER AGAIN!
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zibala
Guess, you don't know the American population is 175 times the Gaza one.
This article isn't about the US.
350 million/2 million. 1,000 would equal 175,000 in the US.
Oh, so Hamas killed the US-population equivalent of about 50,000 Israelis---in one day.
Israel is not winning this war.
Ok, then have to keep up the pressure to get to victory--no matter what it takes.
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wallace
zibala
Guess, you don't know the American population is 175 times the Gaza one.
This article isn't about the US.
Why did you introduce the topic then?
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itsonlyrocknroll
The reality is the fact there are no rules in a war. Just counting burying the dead.
This is an inescapable fact in Gaza.
Hamas will be extinguished, one way or another.
Many will protest and wave placards.
Any thought of a two state solution ended, to be consigned to history 7th October, Hamas has to answer to Palestinian people sooner or later.
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GuruMick
Google how many wars/incursions/aerial bombardments /attacks on aid ships by Israeli commandos/ blockade/ imprisonment without trial/ arbitrary prevention of women seeking access to child birth centres/ the daily checkpoints/ the bottle neck affect of food, fuel , electricity, etc/prevention of access to Mosques, prevention of freedom of movement in or out of Gaza, the denial of press presence , summary executions ....the list of suffering is endless.
Avail yourself of the deaths and injuries to Gazans' from kids to women to adult, to the elderly....
Add all these things up....all that happened daily BEFORE OCT 7.....and take your "poor suffering Jew "story and put it where it deserves to go.
And there ARE rules in war....following WW2 the UN set up a whole set of laws that civilised countries signed up to and adhere to.
Israel thinks it is above International Law but it is soon to feel the rules apply to them.
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wallace
A three-state solution is needed. Gaza. Israel. West Bank.
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itsonlyrocknroll
wallace, getting past the religion thing, I have for my 35 years come to worship know my catholic faith is inescapable. I have simply learnt to not preach force it on others
In the Middle East faith comes first.
And they will fight kill, die for it.
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wallace
There are rules in wars like not bombing sites with civilians which is why there are war crimes. Previously, many people have been executed or imprisoned for those war crimes.
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itsonlyrocknroll
We cannot force our genuine democratic values, Christian beliefs on a middle east that culture recoils in degust.
-6(+0/-6)
wallace
itsonlyrocknroll
I do not understand your comment.
Buddhist finds wars unacceptable but supports acts of defense. The Gaza war is an act of defense after decades of Israeli oppression. Their faith unites them just as it does for the Jewish people. Two religions from the same Book of Abraham but two religions opposed to each other.
The Gaza-Israeli war is a religious one.
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itsonlyrocknroll
Sorry wallace,
Gaza and Israel hope of living side by side was non starter.
As history has reflected the horror and death.
Your detailed analyses I totally agree with.
The conclusion?
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itsonlyrocknroll
How does two religious cultural opposites in such death and destruction find a root to a ceasefire?
wallace I will bow to your knowledge and experience, I read your posts comments
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TokyoLiving
36700 deaths..
STOP THE GENOCIDE!!!..
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itsonlyrocknroll
Politian/activist can wave banners protest, scream genocide, count the bodies of Gaza men women children as the bodies will continue to pile up.
That is the bottom line.
Whilst Hamas is active in Gaza, Israeli government will wage war.
Once global communities UN accepts this fact, any prospect of ceasefire will never materialise.
Never !
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