Israel killed three of Hamas’ senior commanders in overnight strikes as at least 168 rockets were launched at Israel since midnight breaking the previous high of 154 rockets fired in a day. Meanwhile, Israeli ministers called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to wage a ‘war of attrition’ with Hamas, but to overwhelm the terrorist organization with military force.
Hamas violated an extended ceasefire some 8 hours before it was set to expire by firing over 50 rockets into Israel on Tuesday evening. Israel responded by killing a Hamas military chief and destroying some 30 terror targets in Gaza. Hamas’ armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, said Israel had ‘opened the gates of hell on itself’ by the killings and warned that the Jewish state would pay for its crimes. Israel recalled 2,000 reservists, as it prepares for a possible ground operation into the Gaza Strip.
Israeli and Palestinian delegations restarted indirect talks in Cairo over the weekend, however Israeli officials were skeptical a truce could be reached by Monday’s midnight deadline. Over the weekend, Hamas threatened a “war of attrition” if its demands were not met. Meanwhile, Israel threatened “harsh strikes” if Hamas broke the ceasefire with any type of fire against the Jewish state and Israeli officials said “quiet and security’ will be restored ‘one way or another.’
Amidst rocket attacks and Israeli retaliatory strikes within the Gaza Strip, both sides agreed to extend a three-day truce by an additional five days.
Egypt presented a proposed cease-fire to Israel and Hamas aimed at ending the month-long war, Palestinian officials said early Wednesday after negotiators huddled for a second day of Egyptian-mediated talks aimed at ending the crisis and bringing relief to the embattled Gaza Strip.
The head of the UN’s Gaza probe, Canadian legal expert William Schabas, said he would investigate possible Israeli human rights violations in Operation Protective Edge, but balked on Tuesday at clarifying whether his mandate included Hamas.
While reports from Palestinian media outlets say a long-term ceasefire could be reached by Wednesday, Israeli officials contend that the “gaps are still very wide, there has been no progress in the negotiations.” The blockade and the demilitarization of Gaza remain as points of contention between the two sides.
A Turkish aid group said on Monday it would send a new flotilla of ships to challenge Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza, four years after the deadly storming of one of its vessel by Israeli commandos.
A Catholic Archbishop ministering to Gaza’s Christian minority said Hamas had forced him to allow the use of his church to fire rockets at Israel during Operation Protective Edge, according to The Algemeiner.
As a 72 hour truce went into effect at midnight, Israel sent a delegation to Egypt to negotiate a ceasefire with Hamas. Over the weekend, Hamas claimed it still had tunnels going into Israel. In order to conceal its extensive tunnel system, Hamas has killed dozens of diggers fearing they would reveal site locations to Israel.
While protests around the world condemned Israel’s “indiscriminate” killing of civilians, the hard data does not support their assessment. In the latest figures coming from Gaza, a disproportionate number of men ages 20 to 29 — which represent a mere 9 percent of the population, represented nearly 35 percent of those killed in the Gaza Strip over the past month. At the same time, 725 men were killed compared to 214 women.
Israel has reportedly agreed to extend the current ceasefire in Gaza Strip Wednesday as indirect Israel-Palestinian negotiations over extending a truce in Gaza got underway in Cairo. However, Hamas was quick to deny the reports, saying it will renew fire at Israel as soon as the current lull has ended, Ynet News reported. Meanwhile, EU powers proposed Gaza rehabilitation in exchange for disarmament.
As journalists left the Gaza Strip more details emerged as television crews showed detailed footage of how Hamas assembled rockets and then fired them from residential areas just before a 72-hour ceasefire went into effect. Meanwhile, Israel-U.S. relations have hit a new low after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry haven’t spoken since their short phone conversation last week was disconnected due to “communications problems”. Lastly, Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said the U.S. and E.U. must “recognize” Hamas as a “legitimate political actor” in order to bring peace to the region.
As Operation Protective Edge enters its fifth week, Israel and Hamas have agreed to an Egyptian proposal for a 72-hour ceasefire beginning Tuesday morning.
As the conflict in Gaza entered its third week, pro-and-anti Israel rallies took place throughout the world. Since the beginning of the war, a surge in anti-Jewish hate crimes has taken place especially in Europe, leading to fears among Jewish communities that Europe is no longer a safe haven for its population.
Over the weekend, Israel completed its demolition of Hamas terror tunnels and began withdrawing its troops from the Gaza Strip ahead of Tisha B’Av, which begins Monday night. Meanwhile, the U.N. condemned Israel for not sharing its Iron Dome technology with Hamas, saying Israel committed war crimes by not “protecting” Gazan citizens from misfired Hamas rockets that land within the Gaza Strip. Last week, there were scores of misfired rockets by Hamas that killed dozens of Palestinian citizens. On the diplomatic front, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the White House not to ‘second guess’ him on dealing with Hamas.
Hamas wants Hezbollah to join the three-week-old conflict with Israel, Musa Abu Marzouk, a senior Hamas official said. While Hamas rocket strength was estimated at 10,000 rockets, conservative estimates say Hezbollah has well over 100,000 rockets aimed at Israel.
Israel and Hamas have agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire beginning Friday morning. While Israel has said it will observe the ceasefire, the IDF will continue to destroy terror tunnels. Meanwhile, three IDF soldiers were killed Wednesday morning in an explosion at a booby-trapped United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) health clinic. However, UNRWA claims the building was not registered leading to speculation Hamas stole UNRWA signs and placed it throughout the building. Gazan health officials place the death toll at over 1,400 while the IDF casualty toll grew to 61.
One thing that really frustrates me is the number of Christians who believe Israel is in the wrong for destroying Hamas…
Tensions intensified internationally as a U.N. run school was caught in the midst of a battle that left 19 Palestinians dead, and scores more injured. Nevertheless, Israel called up another 16,000 reservists as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) pressed forward with its campaign against Hamas vowing to destroy every terrorist tunnel. Meanwhile, the U.S. allowed Israel to resupply its grenades and mortar rounds from a U.S. munitions store located in Israel.