what to remember from February 19

Fighting continued Monday in the Gaza Strip where Israel is threatening to continue its offensive against Hamas during Ramadan if the hostages are not released by then.

After advancing from the north of the Gaza Strip, Israeli soldiers are now not far from Rafah, where Israel has announced it is preparing a ground offensive. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the city a “last bastion” of Hamas and said he was determined to continue the offensive “until complete victory” and the release of the hostages. But the prospect of this intervention worries the international community, while the region has become a gigantic encampment housing 1.4 million people in disastrous sanitary conditions, forced to take refuge in the south of the Palestinian enclave to escape the fighting. Here’s what to remember from Monday, February 19.

EU countries except Hungary call for ‘humanitarian pause’ in Gaza

Twenty-six countries out of the 27 members of the European Union spoke with one voice. With the exception of Hungary, all demanded, on Monday, a “immediate humanitarian pause” in the Palestinian enclave, shelled by the Israeli army since the terrorist attacks of October 7. At the end of a meeting in Brussels of EU foreign ministers, the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, clarified during a press conference that this request was aimed at a “stopping the fighting” in order to then enable a lasting ceasefire. According to the latter, the 26 countries said “very concerned” by the possibility of an offensive in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip.

These states ask Israel not to launch military action in Rafah, where nearly a million and a half Palestinian civilians are massed, affirmed for her part the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hadja Lahbib, on X.

Report worries about malnutrition in Palestinian enclave

Three UN agencies reported Monday a “soaring” of malnutrition in the Palestinian enclave, stressing that one in six children under the age of two suffered from “acute malnutrition” in northern Gaza, a region almost completely deprived of humanitarian aid. According to this report from Unicef, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Food Program (WFP), 95% of pregnant or breastfeeding women are in a situation of “severe food poverty” and 95% of households limit the amount of food they eat. At least 90% of children under five suffer from one or more infectious diseases and 70% have had diarrhea in the last two weeks.

In this context, fighting continued in the Gaza Strip, with the Hamas Ministry of Health counting 107 deaths in 24 hours in dozens of strikes, notably on Rafah and the neighboring town of Khan Younes, in the south of Gaza. the enclave. If this assessment cannot be independently verified, the international community is concerned about a possible ground offensive in Rafah, which has become a gigantic encampment housing 1.4 million people, according to the UN.

Israel threatens to continue fighting if hostages are not released by Ramadan

“If, by Ramadan, the hostages are not at home, fighting will continue everywhere, including in the Rafah region“, warned Israeli Minister Benny Gantz, member of Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet, on Sunday. Ramadan, the holy month of Muslims, is scheduled to begin on March 10. After advancing from the north of the territory, Israeli soldiers are now not far from this town in the south of the territory, where Israel has announced that it is preparing a ground offensive.

According to Israel, 130 hostages are still held in Gaza, 30 of whom are believed to have died, out of around 250 people kidnapped on October 7.

The International Court of Justice consulted on the consequences of the Israeli occupation

The head of Palestinian diplomacy, Riad Al-Maliki, declared before the International Court of Justice that his people were suffering “colonialism and apartheid” under Israeli occupation, calling on the Court to declare this occupation illegal. “Some are outraged by these words but they should be outraged by the reality that is ours”he declared while the highest court of the UN is holding hearings from Monday on the legal consequences of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories since 1967.

An unprecedented number of 52 countries are called to testify. The United States, Russia and even China will address the judges during a session spread over a week at the Peace Palace in The Hague, headquarters of the ICJ. On December 31, 2022, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution asking the ICJ to issue a non-binding “advisory opinion” on the subject of the occupation.

New attacks in the Red Sea

Shipping in the strategic waters of the Red Sea has once again been targeted. Houthi rebels, who control large areas of Yemen and enjoy support from Iran, have targeted “two American ships” in the Gulf of Aden, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement. Since the beginning of December, attacks by Yemeni rebels targeting ships of countries they accuse of being linked to Israel, have multiplied, wearing a severe blow to trade in the area. The Houthis say they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Also in a statement, the Yemeni rebel spokesperson said they also targeted “a British ship in the Gulf of Aden, the ‘Rubymar’, with naval missiles”.

Faced with the continuation of these attacks and their consequences on maritime transport, The European Union announced on Monday the launch of a mission to protect maritime traffic in the Red Sea. While the disruptions particularly affect hydrocarbon deliveriesQatar’s Energy Minister, Saad al-Kaabi, said on Monday that the “root of the problem” in the Red Sea was “Israeli invasion of Gaza”calling for a ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave.

After Lula’s statements, the diplomatic crisis between Brazil and Israel continues

The diplomatic crisis caused by Brazilian President Lula’s statements comparing the war in Gaza to the Shoah escalated on Monday: Lula is now “persona non grata” in Israel, whose ambassador was summoned by the government in Brasilia. “The comments made by Brazilian President Lula when he compared the just war of the State of Israel against Hamas, which murdered and massacred Jews, to Hitler and the Nazis are a disgrace and a serious anti-Semitic attack against the Jewish people and the State of Israel”, declared Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz during a visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, where he summoned the Brazilian ambassador to Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced comments on Sunday “shameful and serious”. The Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs responded by summoning the Israeli ambassador to Brazil on Monday. “Faced with the seriousness of this morning’s statements from the Israeli government, Minister Mauro Vieira (…) summoned Israeli Ambassador Daniel Zonshine” in Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilian ministry said in a press release. He furthermore “recalled for consultations the Brazilian ambassador in Tel Aviv, Frederico Meyer, who will leave for Brazil” Tuesday.