The Israeli army massively bombards the Gaza Strip by air, sea and land on Monday in 80e day of a conflict which offers no respite to Palestinian civilians threatened with famine according to the UN, despite pressing calls for a ceasefire.
From the Vatican, Pope Francis denounced in his traditional Christmas message “the desperate humanitarian situation” in Gaza, calling once again for the release of hostages and a cease-fire.
After a deadly weekend, Israeli strikes continued from dawn on Monday in the Gaza Strip, subject to an Israeli blockade since the Islamist movement Hamas took power in the Palestinian territory in 2007, as well as in a total siege for almost three months.
One of these bombings, near the small village of Al-Zawaida (center), left 12 dead, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health. Another left at least 18 dead in Khan Younès (south).
The day before, at least 70 people were killed in a strike on the al-Maghazi refugee camp, according to Hamas. Asked by AFP, the Israeli army indicated that the “incident” was being “verified”.
On the Israeli side, the army announced the death of two new soldiers, bringing to 156 the number of its losses since the start of the ground offensive in the Palestinian enclave on October 27.
“We are paying a very heavy price for the war, but we have no choice but to continue fighting,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on Sunday.
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, after an unprecedented attack on its soil on October 7, which left around 1,140 dead, mostly civilians, according to the latest official Israeli figures.
Nearly 20,500 dead
Palestinian fighters also kidnapped around 250 people, 129 of whom remain detained in Gaza, according to Israel.
Nearly three months of Israeli bombing in the overpopulated Palestinian territory have left 20,424 people dead, mostly women, teenagers and children, according to the Hamas government.
“We are facing monsters,” insisted Benjamin Netanyahu in his Christmas message to Christians around the world. “This is a battle, not only of Israel against these barbarians, but also a battle of civilization against barbarism. »
In this context, the Palestinians did not have the heart for Christmas celebrations. “No one feels the holiday spirit,” sighed to AFP Fadi Sayegh, a Palestinian Christian who spent New Year’s Eve stuck with his dialysis in a hospital in Khan Younes.
On the ground, the situation is desperate. According to the UN, 1.9 million people have fled their homes, or 85% of the population, many of whom have been displaced several times as the fighting has progressed.
Desperate and hungry
In the al-Maghazi refugee camp, targeted by a strike on Sunday, Ziad Awad, a resident met by AFPTV, expressed his anger: “The Israeli army does not spare civilians,” he accuses. , comparing the strike to an “earthquake.”
” What do we have to do ? We are civilians, we live in peace, we seek security. Yet we were suddenly hit by Israeli warplanes without any warning,” he continues.
Despite the vote on Friday by the UN Security Council of a resolution calling for the “immediate” and “large-scale” delivery of humanitarian aid, this has not seen a significant increase and the residents lack everything.
“The conduct of the UN since October 7 is a shame for the organization and the international community,” Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen wrote on X (ex-Twitter), protesting against the positions of the Secretary General of the organization, Antonio Guterres, its staff and its institutions.
The UN has also warned that most hospitals will be out of service in Gaza for the next six weeks and that the entire population risks experiencing a high level of food insecurity, possibly leading to famine.
On Saturday, a new mission led by the World Health Organization visited hospitals in Gaza City, including the delivery of more than 19,000 liters of fuel oil to al-Chifa hospital, the largest of the Palestinian territory, which was besieged by the Israeli army in November, announced Sunday evening its boss, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
One of the humanitarian aid convoys carrying food was stopped and stormed by desperate and hungry people, he added. In Rafah, Hamas police fired shots on Sunday to disperse a crowd looting humanitarian aid trucks, according to images recovered by AFP.
Acts of torture?
For their part, Egyptian and Qatari mediators are still trying to negotiate a new truce, after a seven-day break in fighting at the end of November, which allowed the release of 105 hostages and 240 Palestinian prisoners as well as the entry into Gaza of important humanitarian aid convoys.
The leader of Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian armed movement allied with Hamas, classified as a terrorist organization by the United States, Israel and the European Union, in particular, arrived in Cairo on Sunday for negotiations.
As part of its operations, the Israeli army indicates that it arrests “individuals suspected of being involved in terrorist activities”. “People who are found not to be participating in terrorist activities are released,” she assures.
But released Palestinians told AFP they had been tortured, which the army denies.
“They handcuffed our hands behind our backs for two days. We were not given anything to eat or drink, nor were we allowed to use the toilet, just blows and blows,” said Nayef Ali, 22.
Hamas on Sunday called on the International Committee of the Red Cross to investigate the arrests.