While the Israeli army continues its strikes on the Gaza Strip, Emmanuel Macron reiterated Wednesday, during a telephone interview with Benjamin Netanyahu, his demand for a “lasting ceasefire”. The war between Israel and Hamas, which entered its 83rd day on Thursday, December 28, was triggered by a bloody and unprecedented attack perpetrated by the Palestinian Islamist movement on October 7 on Israeli soil from the Gaza Strip.
Information to remember
⇒ Strikes on central Gaza, fear of an “expansion” of the conflict
⇒ A drone crashes in the annexed Golan, an Iraqi faction claims
⇒ Macron reiterates his demand for a “lasting ceasefire” in Gaza
UN calls on Israel to end ‘unlawful killings’ in West Bank
The UN is calling on Israel this Thursday to “put an end to unlawful killings” among the Palestinian population in the occupied West Bank, denouncing a rapid deterioration of human rights in this area.
“The use of military tactics and weapons in law enforcement contexts, the use of unnecessary and disproportionate force, and the application of broad, arbitrary and discriminatory restrictions on movement affecting Palestinians, are extremely worrying,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said in a statement.
IDF warns of increased shooting on border with Lebanon
The Israeli army is focusing its operations on the center of the Gaza Strip this Thursday despite a critical situation for civilians, calls for a ceasefire and a possible “expansion” of operations on the border with Lebanon.
In addition to the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces are increasing raids at night in major cities in the occupied West Bank, notably in Jenin and Ramallah, where Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority is based, according to the official Wafa agency. The army general staff warned of an intensification of shooting along the border with Lebanon, the country from which Hezbollah operates, a movement which, like Palestinian Hamas, is part of the “axis of resistance”, a grouping of armed groups close to Iran and hostile to Israel.
Drone crashes in annexed Golan, Iraqi faction claims
A drone crashed near a village in the part of the Golan annexed by Israel, the Israeli army said Thursday after an Iraqi faction close to Palestinian Hamas claimed responsibility for an attack on this sector. According to Israeli media, a drone probably equipped with explosives launched from Syria fell late Wednesday evening south of Eliad, in the Golan annexed by Israel, without causing injuries but causing material damage.
Questioned early Thursday by AFP, the Israeli army confirmed the crash of this drone near Eliad without further details. In a statement, the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq”, a nebula of fighters from pro-Iran armed groups, claimed to have struck a “vital target” south of Eliad with “appropriate weapons”.
Macron reiterates his demand for a “lasting ceasefire”
Emmanuel Macron reiterated Wednesday, during a telephone interview with Benyamin Netanyahu, his request for a “lasting ceasefire” in Gaza, the Elysée indicated, adding that France intends to carry out humanitarian actions ” in the coming days” in the Palestinian territory. During this telephone exchange with the Israeli Prime Minister, the French president stressed the “need to work for a lasting ceasefire, with the help of all regional and international partners” in Gaza, according to the press release from the Elysée. “As such, France will work in the coming days, in conjunction with Jordan, to carry out humanitarian operations” in the Palestinian territory.
The French president once again “insisted on the importance for Israel to take all necessary measures to put an end to the violence committed by certain settlers against Palestinian civilians” in the occupied West Bank, “as well as to any new colonization project ” in this territory.
The toll rises in Gaza, the population in “serious danger” according to the WHO
The Israeli army continued its bombings against Hamas in the besieged Gaza Strip on Wednesday, despite civilian losses increasing day by day and cries of alarm over the humanitarian disaster hitting the Palestinian territory. The population of Gaza is in “great danger”, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday, stressing that “hunger and despair” were worsening in the war-ravaged territory.
More than two and a half months after the start of the war, triggered by the bloody attack launched on October 7 by the Palestinian Islamist movement against Israel, the Hamas Ministry of Health announced Wednesday that 21,110 people, mostly civilians, including 6,300 women and 8,800 children, had been killed in Gaza by Israeli military operations.
Maritime transport: ships return to the Red Sea
Vessels from the CMA-CGM shipowner returned to the Red Sea after attacks by Houthi rebels from Yemen, and those from Maersk will do the same, remaining on guard. The Houthis, who say they stand in solidarity with Palestinian Hamas in its war against Israel in the Gaza Strip, have warned that they will target ships sailing off the coast of Yemen with links to Israel.
“Certain ships have transited through the Red Sea” and “we plan to gradually increase the transit of our ships through the Suez Canal” – which connects the Mediterranean to the Red Sea – indicated the French group CMA-CGM in a message to its customers, and sent to AFP on Wednesday. The shipowner did not provide further details “for security reasons”. Maersk is preparing for its part to “resume navigation in the Red Sea towards the east as well as towards the west”, indicated the Danish carrier on Sunday in a press release, and the first cargo ships will use the canal “as quickly as possible”.