Doha (Reuters) – Israel continued its airstrikes on the Gaza Strip unabated on Friday despite increasingly vocal criticism from the United States.
Palestinian health authorities reported at least 15 deaths as a result of the latest attacks, including eight in Rafah. The city on the border with Egypt has become the last refuge for many residents of the Gaza Strip after more than four months of war. The US is pushing for a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government carries out its threat of a ground offensive in Rafah. In unusually sharp words, US President Joe Biden publicly spoke out against Israel’s actions on Thursday (local time).
“I believe, as you know, that the response in Gaza was excessive,” Biden told the press. He campaigned very strongly for a ceasefire that would enable the release of hostages held by Hamas. The USA is closely allied with Israel. In recent weeks, however, the Biden administration’s appeals have become increasingly clear for Israel to moderate its deployment and instead target Hamas fighters. The USA expressly rejected a military operation in Rafah without taking the situation of the civilian population into account.
The radical Islamic group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th and, according to Israeli figures, killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 others hostage. In response, Israel launched a major offensive on the Gaza Strip, which is densely populated with more than two million residents and where Iran-backed Hamas has ruled for years. Initially, Israeli attacks were concentrated in the north, but their focus then shifted south. Accordingly, refugees continued to flow towards Rafah. More than half of Gaza’s population now lives in the city. The living conditions there are catastrophic. Aid organizations such as the Norwegian Refugee Council warn of a “bloodbath” if there is a ground offensive.
PALESTINIANS: SOON TO 28,000 DEATHS SINCE THE WAR BEGAN
A Palestinian freelance journalist living in a refugee camp said children were among those killed in recent airstrikes. They were still sleeping in the early hours of the morning when a rocket hit a house, Salem El-Rajjes wrote on Facebook. The victims were thrown from the third floor of a house onto parked cars in the street. According to health authorities in the Gaza Strip, the number of Palestinians killed since the start of the war is approaching 28,000 and the number of injured is approaching 68,000. The number of victims could be much higher, as many people are missing and are believed to be lying under the rubble of destroyed buildings.
Israel initially had no comment on the latest air strikes. The government has repeatedly referred to steps it is taking to protect civilians. She accuses Hamas of using civilians as human shields by hiding fighters in schools and hospitals. Hamas rejects this.
US President Biden, who is scheduled to receive Chancellor Olaf Scholz for talks in Washington on Friday, recently sent Foreign Minister Antony Blinken to the Middle East. With the mediation of Egypt and Qatar, Blinken should achieve a breakthrough towards a ceasefire. In response to an advance from these circles, which also included the US and Israeli secret services, Hamas had responded in recent days with a counterproposal: It proposed a ceasefire of four and a half months during which all hostages should be released. To do this, Israel must withdraw its troops and negotiate an agreement to end the war. Netanyahu refused, calling Hamas’ ideas “delusional.” Israel will continue to fight, and victory is only a matter of months away.