As the Israel-Hamas war entered its third month, the Biden administration on Thursday asked the Israelis to end the large-scale offensive in the Gaza Strip and move towards a precise operation against Hamas as civilian casualties continue to increase. This development comes after Israeli tanks and planes intensified their bombardment in northern Gaza as well as Khan Younis and Rafah in the south.
According to Palestinian health officials, four people, including two children, were killed and several others injured in an Israeli air strike on a house in Khan Younis early on Friday. The death count in the besieged Gaza Strip has already crossed 19,000, most of them being women and children, as Israel faces mounting international pressure for an immediate ceasefire.
As the operations continue, Israeli troops on Thursday captured 70 terrorists from Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza, and uploaded a video of suspected militants with their hands above their heads while handing over weapons and ammunition on the street. "The terrorists were transferred to field interrogators for further questioning," said the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
As fighting resumed after a brief pause, a total of 116 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the ground offensive against Hamas, including high-ranking officers. Despite this, Israel has pledged to continue attacking until Hamas is completely destroyed, which has sown doubt as to whether Israeli forces can defeat the military group without wiping out Gaza.
What did Biden say?
US President Joe Biden, who earlier warned that Israel was losing international support due to "indiscriminate bombing" in Gaza, once again appealed to the country to scale back its operations to minimise civilian casualties. Notably, the US is becoming increasingly isolated on the global stage in its support of Israel as the situation in Gaza worsens.
"I want them to be focused on how to save civilian lives, not stop going after Hamas but be more careful," he told reporters, when asked if he wants Israel to scale back its assault in Gaza. The Biden administration had pushed Israel to do more to protect civilians in Gaza, as the majority of the 2.3 million population remains displaced.
Meanwhile, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met Netanyahu on Thursday, where he discussed moves to shift Israel's attacks on Gaza to lower-intensity operations focusing on high-value targets of Hamas. However, he did not provide a specific timeline for such operations and said that Israel is expected to continue its campaign for the time being.
He also held detailed discussions about getting the remaining hostages out of Gaza, and that there was a broad agreement that the future of Gaza would be Palestinian-led in the meeting with Netanyahu, according to officials. Israeli defence officials also spoke on "the extraordinary efforts that they are undertaking to try to separate the civilian population from Hamas".
"The issue really is, when does Israel shift from the high-intensity military operations that are underway today to a different phase of this conflict? One that's more precise, more targeted," Sullivan said on Israeli television. He also said that the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip need to be connected under a "revamped and revitalised" government by the US-backed Palestinian Authority (PA), Hamas' rival.
Hamas seized power from the Palestinian Authority in Gaza in 2007. Although the US wants the PA to govern post-war Gaza, Netanyahu's government is firmly opposed to Palestinian statehood and has said it will maintain open-ended security control over the Strip.
Sullivan would discuss revamping the Palestinian Authority and holding "extremist" Jewish settlers accountable for violence against Palestinians during a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, according to US officials.
12 killed in occupied West Bank
Meanwhile, Israeli troops killed a youth at a hospital and read Jewish prayers at a mosque in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin during raids in which at least 12 people were killed, according to Palestinian authorities. The operation was criticised by the Palestinian government as a "dangerous escalation" and the desecration of the mosque flared religious tension.
Allies of Israel backing its war against Hamas militants in Israeli-occupied Gaza have urged restraint in the West Bank, including punishing "extremist" settlers in the region accused of armed attacks on Palestinians. West Bank is seen as central to a future Independent State.
On Thursday, UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron announced travel bans on Israeli settlers responsible for attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank. "Extremist settlers, by targeting and killing Palestinian civilians, are undermining security and stability for both Israelis and Palestinians. Israel must take stronger action to stop settler violence and hold the perpetrators accountable," he said on X.
(with inputs from Reuters)
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