GAZA: Israel is preparing a ground invasion of Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday while Israeli shelling killed more Palestinian civilians and international pressure grew to deliver aid and to safeguard hostages held by Hamas.
US President Joe Biden, in remarks looking beyond the war that broke out with an Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Palestinian Hamas militants, said the future should include a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians.
Israel should be integrated among its Arab neighbors, he said.
“Israelis and Palestinians equally deserve to live side by side in safety, dignity and in peace,” Biden said at a joint press conference in Washington with visiting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Israeli retaliatory strikes have killed over 6,500 people, the health ministry in the Hamas-run strip said on Wednesday. Reuters has been unable to independently verify the casualty figures of either side.
Biden said he had no notion that the Palestinians were telling the truth about how many had been killed. “I’m sure innocents have been killed, and it’s the price of waging a war.”
In Jerusalem, Netanyahu said the decision on when forces would go into Gaza would be taken by the government’s special war cabinet, but he declined to provide any details on the timing or other information about the operation.
“We have already killed thousands of terrorists and this is only the beginning,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement.
“Simultaneously, we are preparing for a ground invasion. I will not elaborate on when, how or how many. I will also not elaborate on the various calculations we are making, which the public is mostly unaware of and that is how things should be.”
Israeli tanks and troops are massed on the border with Gaza awaiting orders. Israel has called up some 360,000 reservists.
International pressure is growing to delay any invasion of Gaza, not least because of hostages. More than half the estimated 220 hostages held by Hamas have foreign passports from 25 different countries, the Israeli government said.
The Wall Street Journal, citing US and Israeli officials, reported that Israel had agreed to delay invading Gaza for now so that the United States could rush missile defenses to the region to protect US forces there, reflecting its concern about the Gaza war spreading around the Middle East.
US officials have so far persuaded Israel to hold off until US air defense systems can be placed in the region, as early as this week, the Journal said.
Asked about the report, US officials told Reuters that Washington has raised its concerns with Israel that Iran and Iranian-backed Islamist groups could escalate the conflict by attacking US troops in the Middle East. An Israeli incursion into Gaza could be a trigger for Iranian proxies, they said.
As Israel stepped up bombings of south Gaza, violence flared elsewhere in the Middle East and a showdown loomed at the United Nations over aid to Palestinian civilians, hundreds of thousands of whom fled from north to south in the tiny coastal strip.
Israel had warned them it would bombard mainly the north to wipe out Hamas militants.
Among Wednesday’s casualties, an internally displaced person was killed and 44 were injured in an air strike near an United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) school in the southern town of Rafah, said the agency, which is responsible for Palestinian refugees in the strip.
The school was sheltering 4,600 people and sustained severe collateral damage, an UNRWA statement said.
The Israeli-Hamas war has already kindled increased conflict well beyond Gaza.
Israeli warplanes struck Syrian army infrastructure in response to rockets fired from Syria, an ally of Iran.
Syrian state media said Israel had killed eight soldiers and wounded seven near the southwestern city of Daraa, and hit Aleppo airport in the northwest, already out of action.
Israel did not accuse the Syrian army of launching rockets but is suspicious of Iran, its arch-enemy which has a significant military and security presence in Syria.
Iran has sought regional ascendancy for decades and backs armed groups in Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere as well as Hamas. It has demanded Israel stop its onslaught on Gaza.
Israel said its forces also hit five squads in south Lebanon preparing attacks. Lebanon’s Iranian-backed Hezbollah group said 42 of its fighters had been killed since border clashes with Israel resumed after the Gaza war erupted.
The United States and Russia were leading rival calls at the United Nations for a pause in fighting to allow aid into Gaza, where living conditions are harrowing with medical care crippled due to a lack of electricity, and food and clean water scarce.
Limited deliveries of food, medicine and water from Egypt restarted on Saturday through Rafah, the only crossing not controlled by Israel.
In proposals the UN Security Council was expected to consider on Wednesday, the United States was seeking short pauses to allow aid in while Russia advocated a wider cease-fire. Israel has resisted both, arguing that Hamas would only take advantage and create new threats to its civilians.
Israel bombs Gaza, prepares invasion as Biden urges ‘path to peace’
https://arab.news/cq3xa
Israel bombs Gaza, prepares invasion as Biden urges ‘path to peace’
- Israeli retaliatory strikes have killed over 6,500 people in Gaza
- “I’m sure innocents have been killed, and it’s the price of waging a war," Biden says
A missile fired by Houthi rebels targets central Israel as airstrikes hit displaced area in Gaza
- No injuries from the missile or falling debris, but some people suffered injuries when running to shelters
The Israeli military said it made several attempts to intercept a missile launched from Yemen and “the missile was likely intercepted.” The Magen David Adom emergency service in Israel said 11 people injured while running to shelters.
Israel’s military also said an earlier missile was intercepted before it entered Israeli territory.
Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, who have held Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, since 2014, have launched direct attacks on Israel and some 100 commercial ships as part of their campaign over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The rebels did not immediately acknowledge the attack, though it can take hours or even days for them to claim an assault.
In central Gaza, at least six people — two women and their four children aged between 1 month and 9 years old — were killed by Israeli strikes that hit an area in Deir al Balah where displaced people live in tents. One woman — the mother of two of the boys killed — was pregnant. The other woman was killed together with her daughter and son.
The information was confirmed by Al Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al Balah, which received the bodies.
Some Israeli soldiers refuse to keep fighting in Gaza
- Seven soldiers who’ve refused to continue fighting in Gaza spoke with AP, describing how Palestinians were indiscriminately killed and houses destroyed
- Ishai Menuchin, spokesperson for Yesh Gvul, a movement for soldiers refusing to serve, said he works with more than 80 soldiers who have refused to fight and that there are hundreds more who feel similarly but remain silent
JERUSALEM: Yotam Vilk says the image of Israeli soldiers killing an unarmed Palestinian teenager in the Gaza Strip is seared in his mind.
An officer in the armored corps, Vilk said the instructions were to shoot any unauthorized person who entered an Israeli-controlled buffer zone in Gaza. He saw at least 12 people killed, he said, but it is the shooting of the teen that he can’t shake.
“He died as part of a bigger story. As part of the policy of staying there and not seeing Palestinians as people,” Vilk, 28, told The Associated Press.
Vilk is among a growing number of Israeli soldiers speaking out against the 15-month conflict and refusing to serve anymore, saying they saw or did things that crossed ethical lines. While the movement is small — some 200 soldiers signed a letter saying they’d stop fighting if the government didn’t secure a ceasefire — soldiers say it’s the tip of the iceberg and they want others to come forward.
Their refusal comes at a time of mounting pressure on Israel and Hamas to wind down the fighting. Ceasefire talks are underway, and both President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump have called for a deal by the Jan. 20 inauguration.
Seven soldiers who’ve refused to continue fighting in Gaza spoke with AP, describing how Palestinians were indiscriminately killed and houses destroyed. Several said they were ordered to burn or demolish homes that posed no threat, and they saw soldiers loot and vandalize residences.
Soldiers are required to steer clear of politics, and they rarely speak out against the army. After Hamas stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel quickly united behind the war launched against the militant group. Divisions here have grown as the war progresses, but most criticism has focused on the mounting number of soldiers killed and the failure to bring home hostages, not actions in Gaza.
International rights groups have accused Israel of war crimes and genocide in Gaza. The International Court of Justice is investigating genocide allegations filed by South Africa. The International Criminal Court is seeking the arrests of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant.
Israel adamantly rejects genocide allegations and says it takes extraordinary measures to minimize civilian harm in Gaza. The army says it never intentionally targets civilians, and investigates and punishes cases of suspected wrongdoing. But rights groups have long said the army does a poor job of investigating itself.
The army told AP it condemns the refusal to serve and takes any call for refusal seriously, with each case examined individually. Soldiers can go to jail for refusing to serve, but none who signed the letter has been detained, according to those who organized the signatures.
Soldiers’ reactions in Gaza.
When Vilk entered Gaza in November 2023, he said, he thought the initial use of force might bring both sides to the table. But as the war dragged on, he said he saw the value of human life disintegrate.
On the day the Palestinian teenager was killed last August, he said, Israeli troops shouted at him to stop and fired warning shots at his feet, but he kept moving. He said others were also killed walking into the buffer zone — the Netzarim Corridor, a road dividing northern and southern Gaza.
Vilk acknowledged it was hard to determine whether people were armed, but said he believes soldiers acted too quickly.
In the end, he said, Hamas is to blame for some deaths in the buffer zone — he described one Palestinian detained by his unit who said Hamas paid people $25 to walk into the corridor to gauge the army’s reaction.
Some soldiers told AP it took time to digest what they saw in Gaza. Others said they became so enraged they decided they’d stop serving almost immediately.
Yuval Green, a 27-year-old medic, described abandoning his post last January after spending nearly two months in Gaza, unable to live with what he’d seen.
He said soldiers desecrated homes, using black markers meant for medical emergencies to scribble graffiti, and looted homes, looking for prayer beads to collect as souvenirs.
The final straw, he said, was his commander ordering troops to burn down a house, saying he didn’t want Hamas to be able to use it. Green said he sat in a military vehicle, choking on fumes amid the smell of burning plastic. He found the fire vindictive — he said he saw no reason to take more from Palestinians than they’d already lost. He left his unit before their mission was complete.
Green said that as much as he loathed what he witnessed, “the cruelty was at least in part provoked by the havoc wreaked by Hamas on Oct. 7, which people can forget.”
He said he wants his actions in refusing to serve to help break the vicious cycle of violence on all sides.
The soldiers’ refusal as an act of protest
Soldiers for the Hostages — the group behind the letter troops signed — is trying to garner momentum, holding an event this month in Tel Aviv and gathering more signatures. A panel of soldiers spoke about what they’d seen in Gaza. Organizers distributed poster-size stickers with a Martin Luther King Jr. quote: “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.”
Max Kresch, an organizer, said soldiers can use their positions to create change. “We need to use our voice to speak up in the face of injustice, even if that is unpopular,” he said.
But some who fought and lost colleagues call the movement a slap in the face. More than 830 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the war, according to the army.
“They are harming our ability to defend ourselves,” said Gilad Segal, a 42-year-old paratrooper who spent two months in Gaza at the end of 2023. He said everything the army did was necessary, including the flattening of houses used as Hamas hideouts. It’s not a soldier’s place to agree or disagree with the government, he argued.
Ishai Menuchin, spokesperson for Yesh Gvul, a movement for soldiers refusing to serve, said he works with more than 80 soldiers who have refused to fight and that there are hundreds more who feel similarly but remain silent.
Effects on soldiers
Some of the soldiers who spoke to AP said they feel conflicted and regretful, and they’re talking to friends and relatives about what they saw to process it.
Many soldiers suffer from “moral injury,” said Tuly Flint, a trauma therapy specialist who’s counseled hundreds of them during the war. It’s a response when people see or do something that goes against their beliefs, he said, and it can result in a lack of sleep, flashbacks and feelings of unworthiness. Talking about it and trying to spark change can help, Flint said.
One former infantry soldier told AP about his feelings of guilt — he said he saw about 15 buildings burned down unnecessarily during a two-week stint in late 2023. He said that if he could do it all over again, he wouldn’t have fought.
“I didn’t light the match, but I stood guard outside the house. I participated in war crimes,” said the soldier, speaking on condition of anonymity over fears of retaliation. “I’m so sorry for what we’ve done.”
Macron says new Lebanon PM represents ‘hope for change’
- Lebanon has been managed by a caretaker government for the past two years, and Salam’s backers hope he can reduce the militant group Hezbollah’s domination of Lebanese politics and strengthen the central government
PARIS: France on Monday hailed the appointment of Nawaf Salam as Lebanon’s new prime minister, saying he had the will to help the war-scarred country emerge from its deep economic crisis.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun picked Salam, the presiding judge at the International Court of Justice, as prime minister.
“A hope for change is rising,” France’s President Emmanuel Macron said on X, wishing him “success in forming a government in the service of all Lebanese people.”
A majority of Lebanese lawmakers endorsed Salam to form a government for a country whose economy has been battered by the conflicts engulfing its neighbors.
Lebanon has been managed by a caretaker government for the past two years, and Salam’s backers hope he can reduce the militant group Hezbollah’s domination of Lebanese politics and strengthen the central government.
Macron’s office said Salam was “recognized for his integrity and his skills.”
He “has already expressed in the past his desire to lead the reforms that the Lebanese and the international community expect to put Lebanon back on the path to restoring its sovereignty and the reforms necessary for the economic recovery of the country.”
Macron’s office said he hoped Salam’s government could be both “strong” and “represent all the diversity of the Lebanese people.”
The agreement on a new prime minister “opens extremely promising prospects” to overcome Lebanon’s financial crisis, it said.
“It is about rebuilding trust and we are in a framework that will allow us to reassure international donors, carry out the expected reforms and build a financing framework,” the French presidency said.
Macron is expected to visit Lebanon shortly to show his support for the new leadership.
He has recently also spoken to Nabih Berri, the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, to Najib Mikati, the outgoing prime minister, and to Walid Jumblatt, the leader of the Druze community.
Turkiye’s Erdogan launches ‘Year of the Family’ with an attack on the LGBTQ+ community
- Despite its low profile in Turkiye, the LGBTQ+ community has emerged as one of the main targets of the government and its supporters in recent years
ISTANBUL: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan marked the launch of Turkiye’s “Year of the Family” on Monday with an attack on the LGBTQ+ community and the announcement of measures to boost birth rates.
Citing the “historical truth that a strong family paves the way for a strong state,” Erdogan unveiled a series of financial measures to support young families.
The president returned to themes he has espoused before about LGBTQ+ people, including the portrayal of the LGBTQ+ movement as part of a foreign conspiracy aimed at undermining Turkiye.
“It is our common responsibility to protect our children and youth from harmful trends and perverse ideologies. Neoliberal cultural trends are crossing borders and penetrating all corners of the world,” he told an audience in Ankara. “They also lead to LGBT and other movements gaining ground.
“The target of gender neutralization policies, in which LGBT is used as a battering ram, is the family. Criticism of LGBT is immediately silenced, just like the legitimate criticisms of Zionism. Anyone who defends nature and the family is subject to heavy oppression.”
Despite its low profile in Turkiye, the LGBTQ+ community has emerged as one of the main targets of the government and its supporters in recent years.
Pride parades have been banned since 2015, with those seeking to participate facing tear gas and police barricades. In recent years, meanwhile, anti-LGBTQ+ rallies have received state support.
Turning to the “alarming” decline in the population growth rate, Erdogan said Turkiye was “losing blood” and recalled his 2007 demand that families have at least three children.
The president also pointed to people getting married later in life and rising divorce rates as causes for concern. Turkiye’s annual population growth rate dropped from 2.53 percent in 2015 to 0.23 percent last year.
“If we do not take the necessary measures, the problem will reach irreparable levels. In such an environment, population loss is inevitable,” he added.
To combat the threat to the family, Erdogan revealed policies such as interest-free loans for newlyweds; improved monetary allowances for the parents of new-born children; financial, counselling and housing support to encourage new families; and free or low-cost childcare.
UAE president welcomes Azerbaijani counterpart to Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
- President Ilham Aliyev reaffirms his country’s dedication to enhancement of growing ties with the Emirates in various sectors
LONDON: Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the president of the UAE, on Monday greeted Ilham Aliyev, his counterpart from Azerbaijan, who is visiting the Emirates to take part in Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
During their meeting at Qasr Al-Shati in the capital, the leaders discussed ways in which cooperation between their countries might be enhanced in terms of the economy, investment, development, renewable energy and climate action.
They also examined key aspects of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and its role in efforts to enhance global awareness of the challenges related to sustainability, the Emirates News Agency reported. Aliyev also reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s dedication to growing ties with the UAE in various sectors.
Other officials present at the meeting included Mohammed Murad Al-Balushi, the Emirati ambassador to Azerbaijan, and Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the UAE’s national security adviser and deputy ruler of Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week began on Jan. 12 and continues until Jan. 18.
