Source: Mondoweiss.net
Israel rejected a Hamas proposal for a ceasefire, which included the return of Israeli captives held in Gaza, and is preparing instead to expand its ground invasion to Rafah, where 1.9 million Palestinians are seeking refuge.
Casualties
- 27,708+ killed* and at least 67,147 wounded in the Gaza Strip.
- 380+ Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem
- Israel revises its estimated October 7 death toll down from 1,400 to 1,147.
- 564 Israeli soldiers killed since October 7, and at least 3,221 injured.**
*This figure was confirmed by Gaza’s Ministry of Health on its Telegram channel. Some rights groups put the death toll number at more than 35,000 when accounting for those presumed dead.
** This figure is released by the Israeli military, showing the soldiers whose names “were allowed to be published.”
Key Developments
- UNOCHA: Risk of famine ‘increasing by the day’ in Gaza.
- Kataib Hezbollah announces death of commander after US strike.
- Norway transfers $26 million to UNRWA.
- PCRS: Israeli forces kill Red Crescent paramedic and wound two others in Gaza City.
- Occupied West Bank: Israeli forces kill 2 Palestinians in Nur Shams refugee camp and a man near Nablus.
- Occupied West Bank: Palestinian man dies weeks after being shot by Israeli troops near Ramallah.
- UNOCHA: Israel denied access to 56 percent of planned aid missions to north Gaza.
- Over 30 elected officials in Michigan pledge protest vote over Biden’s Gaza policy
- Israeli strikes on south Lebanon kill civilian.
- US Senate rejects package that includes assistance for Israel, Ukraine
- Israeli airstrike kills Palestinian journalist and son in Gaza city.
Israel rejects ceasefire, Netanyahu pledges to expand fighting.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Hamas’s proposed deal to halt fighting in the besieged enclave for at least four and half months, despite U.S. pressure to reach an agreement.
Instead, Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Israel is on the road to a decisive victory and that they will not return [from Gaza] without victory, according to Al Jazeera. He added that now is the time for the [Israeli military] to allow safe corridors for residents.
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri has told the news outlet Reuters that Netanyahu’s remarks today demonstrate his desire to pursue a wider regional conflict.
“Netanyahu’s comments are a form of political bravado, indicating his intention to pursue the conflict in the region,” Abu Zuhri said. “The movement [Hamas] is prepared to deal with all options.
Al Jazeera senior political analyst has said that despite U.S. optimism over a potential deal between Israel and Hamas, a “huge gap” remains between the two parties that will be difficult to bridge….