Israel is bombing the south of the Gaza Strip this Saturday, January 20, where Hamas reports at least 90 deaths overnight. The United States, Israel’s historic ally, but in disagreement with the treatment reserved for Palestinian civilians, has tried in recent days to plead for the delivery of more humanitarian aid, and to move forward in negotiations towards a political solution. two states after the war, which is opposed by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.
Information to remember
⇒ Around a hundred dead in new bombings in Gaza, according to Hamas
⇒ Josep Borell, head of European diplomacy, in turn pleads for a two-state solution
⇒ Under pressure from the United States, Israel will allow the delivery of flour to Gaza
A hundred dead in new bombings in Gaza
During the night from Friday to Saturday, Israeli forces bombarded the north and south of Gaza, notably the Khan Younes sector (south), the new epicenter of ground fighting and air raids after a first phase of the war concentrated in the north of the territory. Early this Saturday, the Hamas Ministry of Health reported at least 90 deaths in Israeli “attacks” overnight.
The World Health Organization (WHO) deplores “inhumane living conditions” in the small coastal territory, whose 2.4 million inhabitants lack everything, including telecoms. Friday evening, however, the Palestinian operator Paltel announced a “gradual return” of telephone and internet services after a week of almost total outage, the longest since the start of the war.
In Tel Aviv, rally for the release of hostages
According to Israeli media, families of hostages staged a sit-in overnight in front of the private residence of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Caesarea, north of Tel Aviv, to demand an agreement to promote the release of those still captives.
On Friday, a Palestinian armed group, allied with the Islamist movement Hamas, released a video of an Israeli hostage claiming that he had been killed in an Israeli army bombardment in the Gaza Strip. This video received by AFP journalists in the Gaza Strip is not dated and cannot be independently authenticated.
The man who appears there corresponds to the description of one of the hostages kidnapped on October 7 on Israeli soil by Hamas commandos, and held since then in the Gaza Strip by the Islamist group and its allies. Unlike a previous video released by Hamas, the images do not show bodies.
EU and US call for two-state solution
“We believe that a two-state solution must be imposed from the outside to bring peace. Even if, and I insist, Israel reaffirms its refusal (of this solution) and, to prevent it, it has gone as far as “to create Hamas himself,” said Josep Borrell. The head of European diplomacy accused Israel on Friday evening of having “created” and “financed” the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, in power in Gaza and behind the unprecedented attack of October 7 on Israeli soil.
“Hamas was funded by the Israeli government to try to weaken the Fatah Palestinian Authority. But if we do not intervene firmly, the spiral of hatred and violence will continue from generation to generation, from funeral to funeral. funeral,” he added during a speech in Spanish at the University of Valladolid. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reaffirmed in recent days his opposition to the creation of a viable Palestinian state, thus attracting criticism from his American ally, who says he is pleading for the “two-state solution”, i.e. a state of Palestine alongside Israel.
On Friday, a White House spokesperson, John Kirby, affirmed that Joe Biden “still believes in the prospect and the possibility” of a Palestinian state, but “recognizes that it will take a lot of work to get there.” there”. The American president, according to this spokesperson for the National Security Council, discussed his position with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a “30 to 40 minute” conversation.
Israel allows flour to be sent to Gaza
Failing to agree with Washington on this issue, Israel has given the green light to the delivery, via the Israeli port of Ashdod, of flour shipments intended for the Gaza Strip, according to the White House. Three United Nations agencies asked Israel on Monday to allow access to its port of Ashdod to deliver more humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory, where the war between Israel and Hamas has triggered a humanitarian catastrophe for the few 2.4 million people struggling to get food, water, fuel and medical care.
The Americans, who militarily support Israel in its war against the Palestinian movement Hamas in Gaza, will “work in parallel on options allowing more direct deliveries of aid by sea to Gaza”, added the White House.
New US strikes against the Houthis in Yemen
The United States carried out new strikes on Friday against the Houthis in Yemen, saying it was acting in “self-defense” in the face of repeated attacks by Yemeni rebels targeting merchant ships in a crucial maritime area for world trade. Washington seeks to reduce the military capabilities of the Iran-backed Houthis, but after a week of intensive strikes they still pose a threat, and they have vowed to continue targeting merchant ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Iran. ‘Aden.
The Yemeni rebels, who claim to target ships “linked to Israel”, as a sign of solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza, had for their part earlier claimed strikes against an American merchant ship circulating in the Gulf of Aden.