what to remember from Wednesday, December 6

The Israeli army surrounded the large city of Khan Yunis, and carried out targeted operations there, in addition to aerial bombardments, on the 61st day of war.

It is the 61st day of the war. Fighting intensified on Wednesday, December 6 in the south of the Gaza Strip between Hamas and the Israeli army, which reached the heart of the large city of Khan Younes. Residents and displaced Palestinians were trying to shelter from the deadly bombings. At the same time, there have been pressing international calls for better protection of civilians, notably from the UN and the G7. Here’s what to remember from this day.

Fierce fighting between Hamas and the Israeli army continues in southern Gaza

The Israeli army surrounded the large city of Khan Yunis, and carried out targeted operations there, in addition to aerial bombardments. It claimed to direct its strikes and ground operations against Hamas fighters and senior officials, stocks of weapons and explosives and tunnels. As night fell, thick clouds of black smoke and flames continued to rise from Gaza. During the day, trails drawn by rockets fired from the small Palestinian territory towards Israel also dotted the sky.

Three Palestinians killed in West Bank

Israeli forces killed three Palestinians, including a teenager, in operations in the occupied West Bank, plagued by an intensification of violence since the start of the war in Gaza, said the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry.

Antonio Guterres invokes Article 99

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned of a “Total collapse of law and order soon due to desperate conditions” in Gaza, in a previously unpublished letter to the Security Council. For the first time since his arrival at the head of the UN, he invokes Article 99 of the Charter, which allows him to“attract the attention of the Council” on a file which “could endanger the maintenance of international peace and security”. A few hours later, theThe Israeli Foreign Minister describes the UN chief’s mandate as “danger to world peace”.

Missile intercepted in Red Sea by Israel

Israeli air defenses intercepted a missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, the army said. The latter claimed responsibility for the shooting of a “salvo of ballistic missiles”. The Israeli army, for its part, explained that“a surface-to-surface missile heading towards Israeli territory was identified and intercepted in the Red Sea area”. The target did not enter Israeli territory, it added in a statement. The Houthis, in power in Sanaa, are part of what they describe as“axis of resistance”with groups supported by Iran, such as the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas or the Lebanese Hezbollah.

Israel responds after shooting on border with Lebanon

The Israeli army said it responded with airstrikes and artillery to projectile fire from Lebanon targeting Israeli soldiers across the border. It claimed to have bombed a command center and a military site belonging to Lebanese Hezbollah. Two People, including a Lebanese soldier, were killed following these bombings, said the Lebanese army and the official press agency. France “is deeply concerned by the continued clashes on the border between Lebanon and Israel”the spokesperson for the Quai d’Orsay subsequently reacted in a press release.

The G7 calls for “urgent” action to address the crisis and supports a Palestinian state

The leaders of the G7 countries, meeting by videoconference, called for action “more urgent” in the face of the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, saying he supports further pauses. “We remain committed to a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution that allows Israelis and Palestinians to live in a just, lasting and secure peace.”, they explained in a press release. The leaders of the G7 (United States, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, United Kingdom) have, at the same time, judged “More urgent action is needed to address the deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Gaza and minimize civilian casualties”.

New settler housing authorized in East Jerusalem

The Israeli municipality of Jerusalem has given final approval to the construction of new settler housing in Israeli-occupied East Jerusalem, according to the Israeli NGO Peace Now. This “new neighborhood”which will include 1,738 housing units, half of which must be located in East Jerusalem annexed and occupied by Israel, specifies the NGO in a press release. “If there was no war (…) it would make a lot of noise. It is a very problematic project for the continuity of a Palestinian state between the south of the West Bank and East Jerusalem”underlined to AFP Hagit Ofran, a manager of the NGO.