Israel signals a ‘new phase’ in war in Gaza a year after Hamas’ Oct 7 attack
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At least 41,870 Palestinians have been killed amid Israel’s relentless offensive against Gaza since Hamas' attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023.
PHOTO: AFP
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GAZA STRIP – The Israeli military carried out air strikes in the Gaza Strip on Oct 6 and signalled that it was stepping up operations in the enclave as it pressed on with its campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The apparent escalation in Israeli military activity – against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah – comes amid rising concern over a broadening war in the Middle East a year after Hamas’ attack on Israel.
On Oct 7, 2023, at the end of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, Hamas militants broke through the border from Gaza into southern Israel in what would become the deadliest attack in Israel’s history
The militants killed more than 1,200 Israelis and took 251 hostages.
Hours after that attack, Israel launched a lightning military offensive against Gaza that has reduced large swathes of the enclave to rubble. Nearly all of Gaza’s population of 2.4 million have been displaced at least once as a humanitarian crisis worsens.
Israel’s relentless offensive against Gaza has so far killed at least 41,870 Palestinians.
Israel placed its forces on alert on Oct 5 and deployed more troops to defend southern communities and areas bordering Gaza, ahead of the anniversary of the Oct 7 attack.
“We are prepared with increased forces in anticipation of this day”, when there could be “attacks on the home front”, Rear-Admiral Daniel Hagari, the military spokesman, said in a televised briefing.
Just hours after that warning was aired, a 25-year-old woman was killed and 10 others injured on Oct 6 in what was described as a suspected terrorist attack in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba.
Israel’s ambulance service, Magen David Adom, said in a statement that five people were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds and another five were mildly injured by glass and shrapnel.
“The terrorist was neutralised at the scene,” police said in a statement.
‘New phase’ in Gaza war
Early on Oct 6, the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for the vast majority of northern Gaza, saying this was in preparation for “a new phase” in the war.
That came hours after Israeli warplanes attacked Jabalia, the largest of Gaza’s eight historic refugee camps in the northern part of the enclave.
The Israeli military said it surrounded an area where it has identified Hamas fighters and “efforts by Hamas to rebuild its operational capabilities”.
It also said it struck a mosque and a school-turned-shelter
The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 26 Palestinians were killed and dozens more were wounded.
Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepting rockets after Iran fired a salvo of ballistic missiles, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel, on Oct 1.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The Israeli military instructed residents to head towards what it said is a humanitarian-designated area in Al-Mawasi in southern Gaza.
Palestinian and UN officials, though, say no place in the enclave is safe, including the humanitarian zones that Israeli missiles have hit several times.
“The war is back,” said 52-year-old Raed from Jabalia, before he and his family left for Gaza City on Oct 6.
Asked whether they would go to Al-Mawasi as the army requested, he replied: “As if they didn’t kill people displaced in the so-called humanitarian areas? We will not leave northern Gaza.”
Intensified Israeli attacks in Lebanon
In recent weeks, Israel has intensified attacks against Hamas’ allies, like Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israeli air strikes hit just south of Beirut overnight into early Oct 6
“Last night was the most violent of all the previous nights. Buildings were shaking around us, and at first I thought it was an earthquake. There were dozens of strikes – we couldn’t count them all – and the sounds were deafening,” said Mr Hanan Abdullah, a resident of the Burj al-Barajneh area in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The attack came less than an hour after the Israeli military issued new evacuation warnings for parts of the area known as the Dahiya, where Hezbollah holds sway and where heavy bombardment in recent days has already forced many residents to flee.
Israel has been systematically targeting the leaders of Hezbollah and Iran’s other regional proxies.
A Lebanese security source said on Oct 6 that Hashem Safieddine, who was believed to have succeeded Hassan Nasrallah as head of Hezbollah, had been out of contact since Oct 4
An Israeli air strike near Beirut’s international airport on Oct 3 was reported to have targeted him.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, visited troops along the border with Lebanon on Oct 6, his office said.
At least nine Israeli soldiers have died nearly a week after the Israeli military launched ground operations against Hezbollah inside southern Lebanon.
Fire and smoke in Beirut’s southern suburb, which was targeted by an Israeli air strike on Oct 6.
PHOTO: AFP
Protests against the war
Thousands of protesters took to the streets
About 40,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through central London, while thousands gathered in Paris, Rome, Manila, Cape Town and New York City.
Demonstrations were also held near the White House in Washington, protesting against the US’ support for its ally Israel in military campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon.
Protesters at New York City’s Times Square wore the black-and-white keffiyeh scarf and chanted slogans like “Gaza, Lebanon, you will rise, the people are by your side”. They held banners demanding an arms embargo against Israel.
In Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, at least 1,000 pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on the morning of Oct 6 near the US embassy, demanding that Washington stop supplying weapons to Israel.
More protests were planned in several cities on Oct 6.
In London, counter-demonstrators waved Israeli flags as pro-Palestinian marchers walked by. There were 15 arrests on the sidelines of the protests, according to police, who did not specify whether those detained were from either group.
In Rome, police fired tear gas and water cannon after clashes broke out. About 6,000 protesters defied a ban to march in the city centre ahead of the Oct 7 anniversary of Hamas’ attack.
In Berlin, a protest drew about 1,000 demonstrators with Palestinian flags, who chanted: “One year of genocide.” NYTIMES, REUTERS
