Israel is preparing for a long-term conflict. The war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip will continue “all along” of the year 2024, declared an army spokesperson on Sunday, December 31. In his New Year’s message to troops, Daniel Hagari explained that tens of thousands of Israeli reservists will be needed to continue the fighting. Some, however, will take a break this week, with a view to these “protracted fighting”. Follow our live stream.
Air warning sirens in several parts of Israel. In Tel Aviv, for example, rockets were intercepted by Israeli missile defense systems at precisely midnight, according to AFP. The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas in power in Gaza, claimed responsibility for the attacks. The Israeli army confirmed them, without initially reporting any casualties or damage.
The Gaza Strip still under attack. According to the Hamas Ministry of Health, 24 civilians were killed and several dozen others injured by Israeli strikes on New Year’s Eve. Air raids targeted the center of Khan Yunis and at least seven other towns in the Gaza Strip, he said. The day before, at least 48 Palestinians were killed in strikes on Gaza City, according to the same source, and another strike on the campus of Al-Aqsa University in Gaza left at least 20 dead.
High tensions on the border between Lebanon and Israel. The war in Gaza has reignited tensions on the border between Lebanon and Israel, an almost daily scene of exchanges of fire between the Israeli army and Lebanese Hezbollah, an Islamist movement close to Iran and which supports Hamas. The Israeli army also announced on Sunday evening that it had identified and intercepted a “hostile aerial target” coming from Syria, according to her.