Gaza
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “shocked” by the carnage and destruction of the intense Israeli military operation in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, according to a statement released by his spokesman. The statement states that the situation of the Palestinian citizens of northern Gaza is intolerable. According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, hundreds of people have been killed in Gaza in the last few weeks, and more than 60,000 have been displaced.
Guterres said that Israel’s military operation in Gaza is destabilizing the life conditions of Palestinians around Jabalya, Beit Lahia and Beit Hanun due to destruction and deprivation and the conflict continues in violation of international law.
Guterres has also called for an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and accountability under international law. Meanwhile, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has proposed a two-day ceasefire and a hostage exchange in Gaza with the aim of achieving a ‘complete ceasefire’ after more than a year of war between Israel and Hamas. Sisi said in a press conference held in Cairo that further negotiations will be held for a ceasefire within 10 days. He has not said anything about whether this plan has been formally presented to Israel or Hamas.
This statement of Sisi was made public at a time when Israel is waging a war against Hezbollah in Lebanon and has launched airstrikes against its main enemy, Iran, and is occupying Palestinian territories. Saturday’s attack, Israel’s second retaliation for an Iranian ballistic missile attack, prompted global calls for restraint.
A meeting of the United Nations Security Council will be held on Monday at the request of Iran, and Tehran has asked to condemn the attack that killed four soldiers. Iranian leaders have downplayed their presence in the war at home, saying that the attack caused only limited damage.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezhekian has told his cabinet that Iran does not want war but will give an appropriate response. According to Tehran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi, Tehran received a “signal” a few hours before the attack. Earlier, US news site Axios reported that Israel had warned against “escalating wider tensions”.
Oil prices fell as much as 5 percent on Monday as traders felt relieved that Iran’s energy infrastructure had not been hit by an Israeli attack. Israel attacked Iran in retaliation for a missile attack by Iran on October 1 in retaliation for Israel’s killing of a Tehran-backed militant leader and an Iranian commander.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the campaign was “precise and powerful and achieved all its objectives”. Netanyahu was speaking at a memorial service held in Jerusalem to commemorate the attack by Hamas on October 7, when he had to stop his speech for a while after the screams of relatives of the dead. The Israeli Prime Minister has been under a lot of pressure from home and abroad to initiate the release of prisoners in Gaza, but he has said that his anti-Hamas campaign will not stop immediately.
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