Israel intensifies attacks on Gaza. Protests continue in Tel Aviv.
To conquer the Hamas stronghold in Gaza City, which has remained unconquered for 23 months, the Israeli government has chosen the symbolic date of Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year), the anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve and the biblical beginning of humanity's role in God's world. This year, it falls on September 22. The Jerusalem government is pressuring the military leadership to hold that date, a"qualified" source (i.e., very close to the ministers) revealed to the public television station Kan, explaining that most of the humanitarian infrastructure in the southern Strip is ready to accommodate the population that will be evacuated from Gaza City, that is, between 800,000 and one million people. For days now, since the IDF's raids on the outskirts of the city intensified, citizens have begun to move away from the urban area. According to sources in the enclave, the number is already very high, while Israeli estimates speak of only 10,000 people having already left the war zone. The Red Cross warned that"it is impossible for a mass evacuation to be carried out safely and with dignity under the current conditions," said President Mirjana Spoljaric. But to push Gazans south, public television Kan reported that airdrops of humanitarian aid over Gaza City will be halted in the coming days, and the arrival of trucks into the northern Strip will be reduced.
Meanwhile, Hamas militants have launched their counter-campaign to prevent residents from moving, claiming there is no room in the south and evidently trying to use the presence of civilians as a shield. The Hamas Health Ministry stated in the evening that 15 people had been killed in the last 24 hours and at least 206 were injured while seeking aid. Furthermore, 10 civilians, including three children, are believed to have died from malnutrition in the last day. According to the ministry, the dead are among the 66 Palestinians killed in Israeli raids between Friday and Saturday. Shortly before the end of Shabbat, the air force and the Shin Bet (internal security) targeted the al-Bassoo building in Gaza City with the aim of eliminating a high-ranking Hamas figure.
Shortly thereafter, the same organization condemned the attack that targeted the infamous and powerful spokesman for Hamas's military wing, Abu Obeida. Gaza sources reported that seven people in the building were killed in the attack. The fate of Abu Obeida is still unclear. In an official statement, Hamas said that"the Israeli airstrike hit a residential building in the Rimal neighborhood in western Gaza City, causing dozens of deaths and injuries." A different source from the enclave claimed that 11 people were hit while queuing in front of a bakery during the attack, but again, the accounts are unclear at this time. The IDF, for its part, said it used precision weapons to avoid harming civilians. Just on Friday, Abu Obeida, who had already been the target of a failed IDF raid in May, declared that the army's plans to capture Gaza City"put the lives of the hostages at risk and the responsibility for their fate lies with the Israeli government and the IDF."
In Tel Aviv, thousands of people took to the streets to demand the government accept the hostage release deal, attacking the executive after national news outlets reported this evening that the issue would not be on the agenda at tomorrow's security cabinet meeting. Despite this, Israeli military and security officials are ready to present a united front to demand that ministers accept the current ceasefire and hostage release proposal and abandon the offensive. The Family Forum declared this decision"further proof that the Netanyahu government is resorting to perpetual war by sacrificing the hostages."
