Israeli forces
killed at least 71 civilians and injured 289 more in a series of massive
airstrikes on the Al-Mawasi region on the southern Gaza coast, Al Jazeera
reported on 13 July.
An official at
Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis told Al Jazeera that more than 20 bodies and
dozens of wounded people have been brought to the hospital.
He said civil
defense teams continue to recover from the rubble, but the hospital cannot
receive any more wounded patients.
An eyewitness
told the BBC that the strike site looked like an “earthquake” had hit. The
British state broadcaster reported that “videos from the area show smoldering
wreckage and bloodied casualties being loaded onto stretchers. People can be
seen trying desperately to pick through the rubble of a large crater with their
hands.”
Abu Zuhri, a
senior Hamas official, denied a claim by Israeli Army Radio that the strikes
targeted the head of Hamas’ armed wing, Mohammed al-Deif.
“All the martyrs
are civilians and what happened was a grave escalation of the war of genocide,
backed by the American support and world silence,” Abu Zuhri said.
Zuhri also said
that the attack showed Israel was not interested in reaching a ceasefire
agreement.
Al-Mawasi, a
Bedouin town west of Khan Younis, is filled with hundreds of thousands of
displaced Palestinians living in tents.
Israel
designated the area a “safe zone” shortly after the war began in October and
demanded Palestinians flee there to escape massive Israeli bombardments and
ground assaults throughout the strip. A new wave of displaced families fled to
the area after the start of Israel’s offensive in nearby Rafah in early May.
But Israel has
bombed Al-Mawasi multiple times.
In late June,
Israeli forces killed 22 Palestinians when they shelled the office of the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Al-Mawasi. The ICRC office
was surrounded by hundreds of displaced Palestinians living in tents.
Witnesses told
AP that some people were killed as they went to help others who panicked after
an initial bombardment.
Israel has
killed over 38,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, since the
beginning of the war in October.
Thousands more
are feared dead, trapped under the rubble and in streets inaccessible to rescue
and ambulance crews.
Serag
El Hegazi
(The
Conversation) – Israel has reportedly approved its largest seizure of land in
the occupied West Bank in over three decades, according to a report released on
July 3 by Israeli anti-settlement watchdog, Peace Now. The seizure involves
more than 12 sq km of land in a key corridor bordering Jordan.
Land
that is privately owned by Palestinians in the West Bank can be declared as
“state land” by Israel and subsequently seized. One of the primary outcomes is
the establishment or expansion of Israeli settlements on the land, which are
widely considered illegal under international law.
According
to the Israeli authorities, the recent land seizure is necessary for “security
and development”. However, a spokesperson for the UN, Stephane Dujarric, called
it “a step in the wrong direction”, adding that “the direction we want to be
heading is to find a negotiated two-state solution”.
The
move follows a series of similar land grabs so far this year. Israel seized 2.6
sq km of land in the West Bank in February, and a further 8 sq km in March.
These actions are part of a strategy to expand Israeli control of the West Bank
and undermine the prospect of a Palestinian state.
There
has been a massive expansion in the number of settlements over the past three
decades. In 1987, there were 60,000 Israeli settlers living in the West Bank
(excluding East Jerusalem). This had grown to 247,300 by 2005 and 465,400 by
2021.
These
numbers look set to accelerate further. The Israeli government, led by Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is heavily backed by a coalition of rightwing,
ultranationalist parties. And many of its ministers have made the establishment
of Israeli settlements in the West Bank a priority.
On
June 28, far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich was quoted saying: “I will
bring 1 million settlers. One settlement for every country that recognised
Palestine as a state in the last month. This is their punishment.” Smotrich,
who is himself a settler, has previously said his “life’s mission is to thwart
the establishment of a Palestinian state”.
Many
Israelis do not class these settlements as illegal. They view them as integral
parts of ancient Israelite kingdoms and as a significant part of Jewish history
and identity. However, the seizure of Palestinian land on such a large scale
has historically always led to violence.
The
second intifada, for example, was a major uprising by Palestinians that
occurred between 2000 and 2005. It took place against the backdrop of the
refusal of successive Israeli governments to abide by the Oslo accords and end
the occupation.
But
the groundwork was laid years before by the fast expansion of Israeli
settlements. The number of Israeli settlers increased by at least 117% percent
in Gaza and 46% in the West Bank in the period between 1993 and 1998.
The
second intifada saw a significant escalation in hostilities between
Palestinians and Israeli settlers. This included a wave of deadly suicide
bombings and armed confrontations, which prompted the Israeli military to
respond with force. Over the course of the second intifada, violence led to the
deaths of an estimated 3,000 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis, with thousands
more injured.
Rising
settler violence
Since
the start of the ongoing war in Gaza, Palestinians in the West Bank have
increasingly become the target of violence by Israeli settlers. The UN reported
that attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank surged in the weeks following the
October 7 attacks.
At
least 115 people were killed, more than 2,000 were injured, and nearly 1,000
others were forced from their homes, citing violence and intimidation by
Israeli forces and settlers. The new moves by the Israeli government to expand
its control of the West Bank have only inflamed tensions further.
Amid
rising violence, outgoing Israeli major general Yehuda Fuks condemned what he
called “nationalist crime” that was undermining Israel’s reputation
internationally and sowing fear among Palestinians “who did not pose any
threat”.
By
condemning the land seizures and settlement expansions, global bodies such as
the UN and the EU could increase diplomatic pressure on the Israeli government
to change tack. But, for now, it looks to be stepping up its efforts to claim
more of the West Bank.
In
February, former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert wrote that the Netanyahu
government’s “supreme aim … is not the occupation of the Gaza Strip”. In
Olmert’s view, “Gaza is just the introductory chapter, the platform this gang
[the Israeli government] wants to build as the foundation upon which the real
fight they are eyeing will be conducted: the battle for the West Bank and the
Temple Mount.”
The
expansion of settlements is part of this.
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