The Israeli military intensified its assault on Gaza in response to Hamas’s unprecedented weekend attack on Israel, prompting preparations for a potential ground invasion. Concurrently, the United States demonstrated its support for Israel, with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin planning to visit, following Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s recent meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza escalated as residents faced severe shortages of food, fuel, and medicine, exacerbated by the shutdown of the territory’s sole power plant due to fuel shortages. Israel insisted that a full blockade would persist until Hamas released 150 hostages captured during their incursion.
Here are some major updates from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas:
1. Evacuation of Indians: Amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, a group of 212 Indians, including students, arrived in India from Israel via a chartered flight as part of Operation Ajay. This operation, initiated by India, aims to repatriate individuals who wish to return home. The decision came in response to recent attacks on Israeli towns by Hamas militants, which escalated tensions in the region.
2. Mass movement appeal: Israel’s military urged the United Nations to relocate approximately 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza to the southern part of the enclave within the next 24 hours. The UN expressed concerns about the humanitarian consequences of such a mass movement, stating it would be highly challenging.
3. British Navy support: To bolster regional stability and provide assistance to Israel, the United Kingdom dispatched two Royal Navy vessels and surveillance aircraft to the eastern Mediterranean.
4. Accusations of white phosphorus: Human Rights Watch accused Israel of using white phosphorus munitions during its military operations in Gaza and Lebanon. In contrast, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned acts of violence targeting civilians.
5. Social media crackdown: The social media platform X took action by removing numerous accounts associated with Hamas. The platform’s CEO, Linda Yaccarino, emphasised their commitment to preventing the dissemination of illegal content by terrorist organisations and violent extremist groups, actively removing such accounts.
6. Hamas calls for protests: Hamas, the governing militant faction in Gaza, called upon Palestinians to stage protests against Israel’s airstrikes on the enclave. They encouraged Palestinians to march towards East Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque and engage in confrontations with Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank.
7. Devastating casualties: Hamas’ weekend assault resulted in the loss of 1,300 lives, marking one of the most devastating attacks on civilians in Israel’s history.
8. Israeli response: Facing significant public pressure, the Israeli government has mobilised 360,000 army reservists and issued warnings of an unprecedented retaliation in response to Hamas’s extensive incursion over the weekend. The objective is to oust Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007.