Israeli forces have unleashed a new wave of attacks on Gaza, hitting areas near some of the few remaining functioning hospitals , as the ground assault on Gaza City continues. Health sources told Al Jazeera that at least 83 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces today. Rockets hit the areas around al-Shifa and al-Ahli hospitals, among the few still functioning.

Yesterday, a pediatric hospital, al-Rantisi, was also attacked three times . The UN, in its investigation that led to declaring Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide, also highlighted Israel's destruction of the Al Basma in vitro fertilization center, destroying 4,000 embryos and 1,000 sperm and egg samples. It called it "a measure aimed at preventing births among Palestinians in Gaza," and one of the acts defined as genocide by the 1948 Convention.

Meanwhile, the conquest of Gaza City is proceeding under military secrecy, with a unique ground maneuver and unprecedented, elaborate attacks . Military sources, while not revealing crucial details, suggest that in Gaza City, IDF generals are implementing operational methods unknown to strategy manuals: immediate results but slow progress.

The internet is intermittent, making it difficult for militants to communicate, and complicated for local videographers to broadcast abroad. Virtually no images are coming from the ground, aside from a few photos released by the army . Tanks rumbling through clouds of yellow dust do little to highlight the attrition of the battle. Only the roars shake the earth, terrifying the residents left behind after the exodus of over 400,000 Gazans.

Local medical sources cited by the Palestinian news agency Wafa say the death toll from yesterday's Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip stands at 99 , including 77 in the northern Palestinian enclave. Among them is a Doctors Without Borders worker, the 13th since the beginning of the war . The overall Palestinian death toll in the Strip since October 7, 2023, is at least 65,062 dead and 165,697 injured , according to data released by the Islamist movement Hamas.

Meanwhile, Hamas official Razi Hamed, who survived the Doha raid, challenged the US president: "We are not afraid of Trump when he says he will open the gates of hell to us. We do not receive instructions from him on how to treat enemy hostages. We treat them according to our values and our religion," he said, speaking to Al Jazeera for the first time since the Israeli attack in Qatar. "Whoever wants to free them must order Netanyahu to conclude a prisoner exchange agreement and stop the war," he warned.

Equally striking were the words of the nationalist, settler, and messianic Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich . He publicly confirmed for the first time that the project for the reconstruction of the Strip is the subject of discussions with the US, explaining: "I have started negotiations with the Americans, I say this without joking, because we paid a lot of money for this war. We must divide it up like we divide land ." Speaking at a summit on urban regeneration, he described post-war Gaza as an El Dorado, a goldmine for investment .

This is the battle plan of General Yaniv Ashur, head of the IDF Southern Command, revealed by Walla. There are three phases: the "moment of fire," with the massive destruction of terrorist infrastructure , especially at night. The second phase is the ground operation, a process coordinated with intelligence, with great attention to detail in planning to reduce risks to soldiers and hostages . According to available information, the kidnapped people are surrounded by booby traps and men with explosive devices. Finally , the third phase: classified with the highest level of secrecy .

An Israeli military intelligence colonel told Knesset members that there are an estimated 7,500 armed fighters in the Gaza City area, 5,000 from Hamas and 2,500 from Islamic Jihad .

Meanwhile, yesterday, the European Commission , following a public commitment from President Ursula von der Leyen, took action and presented a package of measures to sanction the "Israeli government" in light of "the unacceptable humanitarian situation in Gaza." The 27-member EU will therefore discuss measures against Benjamin Netanyahu's extremist ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, and violent settlers, as well as the suspension of part of the EU's free trade agreement with Israel (the same chapter also includes the blacklisting of 10 members of the Hamas Politburo). "The daily horror in Gaza must end," commented von der Leyen. It's a shame that member states are deeply divided on the measures .

And the UN denounces: "In Gaza, women are forced to give birth on the streets, without hospitals, doctors, or clean water. About 15 babies are born every week without medical care."

(Unioneonline)

© Riproduzione riservata