Israel Gaza war: UN says no let-up in Israeli air strikes in Gaza

by on December 26 2023 at 11:49 AM

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During a visit to a hospital that is trying to treat the injured, a United Nations official stated to the BBC that there is no letup in the Israeli air attacks that are taking place in Gaza.

"Absolute carnage" was what Gemma Connell, a representative of the United Nations' Ocha humanitarian agency, described what she witnessed on Monday at the Al-Aqsa hospital located in the central region of Gaza.

It was "absolutely overloaded" at the hospital, she claimed, which meant that a great number of badly injured patients could not receive treatment.

At an earlier time, the Prime Minister of Israel made a commitment to step up the campaign against Hamas.

Benjamin Netanyahu stated that he had traveled to Gaza on Monday morning and that Israel's military campaign in the region was "not even close to being over."

His remarks come just a few days after Secretary of State Antony Blinken of the United States of America said that Israel should minimize the severity of its attacks.

The United States Department of Defense (Pentagon) has reported that the United States Armed Forces have taken out air strikes in Iraq against "Iranian-sponsored militias" in response to an attack on the Irbil air base, which resulted in the injuries of three United States military personnel, one of whom was in serious condition.

Lloyd Austin, the Secretary of Defense, stated that the strikes had targeted three facilities that were utilized by the Kataeb Hezbollah group and its affiliates, which is supported by Iran.

He stated that there had been a number of attacks of militias on US sites in both Iraq and Syria, and he emphasized that the United States would not hesitate to protect its people and infrastructure in the event of any more attacks.

Following Israel's military assault in Gaza, there has been an increase in the level of activities carried out by Kataeb Hezbollah and other armed militias in the region.

During an interview with the BBC World Service's Newshour program, Tom White, the director of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), stated that there were approximately 150,000 individuals in central Gaza who had been given orders to evacuate by the Israeli military.

Ms. Connell, who was also interviewed by the Newshour, stated that "what I saw at the Al-Aqsa Hospital in [the city of] Deir al-Balah was absolute carnage."

According to her, there were a great number of casualties at that location who had "extremely severe wounds but [who] cannot be treated because there are so many people in front of them in the line for surgery, and the hospital is absolutely overloaded."

She claimed, "And some of those that I saw were people who were hit in the strike yesterday [Sunday]," in reference to an attack that was reportedly carried out on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp, which is located in the central region of Gaza.

According to the health ministry, which is managed by Hamas, the Israeli strike resulted in the deaths of at least seventy persons.

There were "reports of an incident in the Maghazi camp," according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which they stated they had received. The statement stated that "despite the challenges posed by Hamas terrorists operating within civilian areas in Gaza, the IDF is committed to international law including taking feasible steps to minimize harm to civilians" .

Ms. Connell also mentioned that while she was in Al-Aqsa, "there were new air strikes hitting areas around the hospital in the middle area and new casualties being brought in." This occurred while she was there.

"Tragically I saw a nine-year-old boy with a devastating head injury who passed away," according to her.

"When I say that there were strikes again today and casualties arriving, some of those strikes were in areas that people have been told to evacuate to, which, again goes back to the refrain that, I think, I am so sick of saying: that there is no safe place in Gaza," added the spokesperson.

"And even when people are told to evacuate the places that they are fleeing to are not safe."

After Hamas conducted a murderous attack on towns within Israel on October 7, the war broke out. The offensive resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people, the most of whom were civilians, and the capture of approximately 240 hostages. According to Israel, 132 people are still being held.

On Monday, the health ministry of Gaza, which is governed by Hamas, said that about 20,674 Palestinians have been killed as a result of Israeli bombardments since January. Children and women are thought to make up the majority of those who have passed away.

The media in Israel and the Arab world have reported that Egypt has put out a proposal for a ceasefire between the two parties.

Reports indicate that the proposal would involve the gradual release of all Israeli captives as well as an undetermined number of Palestinian detainees who are currently being held in Israeli jails over the course of a month and a half, culminating with the cessation of Israel's offensive.

A prior agreement for a temporary cease-fire that Qatar mediated resulted in the release of dozens of hostages from Gaza in exchange for release of Palestinian inmates.

Despite the growing number of requests for a ceasefire, Israel and Hamas have both resisted at this point.

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