“Numbers three, two and one” are next in line, said the Israeli head of government, referring to the leadership of Hamas. Israel bombed a refugee camp that night. The overview:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterates his intention to lead the country to “absolute victory” in the war against the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip. “On the way to victory, we have already eliminated number four Hamas,” he said in a video message. “Number three, two and one are on the way,” he added. “They’re all dead men, we’ll get them all.”
Number four in the Hamas hierarchy probably refers to top official Saleh al-Aruri, who died in an air strike on his premises in the Lebanese capital Beirut at the beginning of January. The targeted killing was attributed to Israel at the time, but Israel has not yet commented on it. With Netanyahu’s video message, Israel may have admitted responsibility for this attack for the first time.
Al-Aruri was responsible within Hamas for maintaining close relations with the pro-Iranian Shiite militia Hezbollah in Lebanon. He was therefore also of central importance for the acquisition of weapons for the Islamists in the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu’s comments came hours after Israeli media reported the possible killing of Gaza’s third-highest-ranking Hamas official, Marwan Issa.
Accordingly, the Israeli Air Force bombed a building in the Nuseirat refugee camp that night, where Issa is said to have been staying at the time. Israeli forces were still checking whether the top Hamas figure was actually among the victims of the airstrike. With the numbers one and two, Netanyahu referred to the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Jihia al-Sinwar, and the head of the Qassam Brigades, Mohammed Deif.
Sea aid for Gaza not yet on the way
The delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip from Cyprus continues to be delayed. On Monday afternoon it was unclear when the ship “Open Arms” would leave the port in Larnaca. As Cypriot Foreign Minister Konstantinos Kombos said on the radio, the delay is due, among other things, to questions of unloading and distribution of aid supplies. “There were problems on some of these issues,” he said. A second shipment of humanitarian aid is ready at the port of Larnaca and could be delivered to Gaza in the next few days.
The professor of political science and head of the Center for Cyprus Issues (KYKEM), Christos Iakovou, said on Cypriot television that the ship’s repeatedly postponed departure is because Israel wants to ensure that the aid does not come from the terrorist organization Hamas or others extremist organizations are accepted and distributed.
According to the Cypriot government in Nicosia, the ship “Open Arms”, which is supposed to tow a cargo platform, has around 200 tons of drinking water, medicine and food on board. The start of the aid corridor by sea last weekend was announced by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulidis on Friday.
Tense situation at the beginning of Ramadan
Meanwhile, increased tensions are expected in the West Bank and around the holy sites in the Old City of Jerusalem during Ramadan. According to Israel’s foreign intelligence agency Mossad, Hamas is seeking to “set the region on fire” during the month of fasting. In the West Bank, Israel has strengthened its security forces stationed there after numerous warnings about an increase in violence, the broadcaster i24news reported on Sunday evening. On the eve of Ramadan, no fewer than 23 battalions of the Israeli military were stationed there.
Thousands of police officers are also deployed in the narrow streets of Jerusalem’s Old City, the Times of Israel reported. The Israeli government has allowed Muslims to pray on the Temple Mount – also known as Haram al-Sharif – during Ramadan. However, the security situation should be reassessed weekly. The place is sacred to both Jews and Muslims. According to the Times of Israel, a video circulated on social media on Sunday evening showing a scuffle between Israeli police officers with batons and believers at the entrance to the site.
Report: Hamas relies on Ramadan for survival
Launching a ground offensive in Rafah during Ramadan would be risky, Udi Dekel, a retired Israeli brigadier general and researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, told the Wall Street Journal. Israel has so far postponed major operations in Rafah to gain time for negotiations on a temporary ceasefire and the release of hostages. If the talks do not produce any results, there will no longer be any reason for Israel to hold back, said Dekel.
For weeks, Israel and Hamas have been fighting for a temporary ceasefire in indirect negotiations. The Hamas leadership is counting on Ramadan to turn the dynamics of the war in their favor, the Wall Street Journal wrote on Sunday. She hopes that diplomatic pressure will lead to the cessation of the offensive and thus ensure the survival of Hamas.
Hamas leader Haniya said that if mediators announced that Israel was committed to ending the war and withdrawing from the Gaza Strip, they would be willing to be flexible in the talks. The mediators’ proposal so far only called for a six-week ceasefire and a first phase of exchanging hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Hamas does not want to “give up the only card it has, namely the hostages, in return for a temporary ceasefire,” Ghassan Khatib from Birzeit University told the Wall Street Journal.
Netanyahu contradicts Hamas casualty figures
According to the Hamas-controlled health authority in Gaza, the number of Palestinians killed in the war rose to over 31,000. The information makes no distinction between civilians and armed fighters. The vast majority of victims were women, minors and older men, the Hamas authorities emphasized. Netanyahu contradicted this account in an interview. The number of civilians killed in Gaza is far lower, he said. His country’s army killed “at least 13,000 terrorists.”
UN representative rejects Israel’s accusation
The UN special representative on sexual violence in conflict has rejected an accusation by Israel that the United Nations wanted to suppress a report on sexual violence by Hamas terrorists on October 7th. “The Secretary-General made no attempt to suppress my report or its findings,” Pramila Patten told the UN Security Council in New York. “On the contrary, I received his full support, politically, logistically and financially, and he also gave clear instructions for the publication of my report and its immediate transmission to the Security Council.”Patten was responding to the accusation from Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz, who also was present at the meeting of the most powerful UN body. A week ago – on the day the report was already announced to be published – Katz accused the United Nations of wanting to “sweep” Hamas’ crimes “under the carpet.”
In the report, the UN classifies Israeli allegations of sexual violence during the October 7 massacre by Hamas terrorists as credible. There are “reasonable grounds to believe” that rapes and gang rapes occurred in at least three locations. There is also convincing information that sexualized violence has also been perpetrated against abducted hostages and that this could continue in captivity in the Gaza Strip.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
