'If Genocide in Gaza Continues, US Will Not Be Spared from This Fire': Iran Foreign Minister at UN

Oct 27, 2023 | Amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, Iran's foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, on Thursday warned that if Israel's continued retaliation against Hamas doesn't end, then the "United States will not be spared from this fire."

US Strikes Two Syria Bases Used by Iran-linked Groups - BBC News

Oct 27, 2023 | The US has carried out air strikes against two weapons and ammunition storage facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said the strikes were in response to recent attacks on US bases in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups.

The US strikes were "separate and distinct from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas," he said in a statement.

Iran did not immediately comment. It is not yet known if there were any casualties from the attacks.

Israel-Hamas War: 'Hamas Opened Up the Gates of Hell', Mosab Hassan Yousef Tells Piers Morgan

Oct 26, 2023 | In an eye-opening interview, Mosab Hassan Youssef, the son of one of the co-founders of Hamas, reveals the true intentions of the militant group and calls for their removal from power.

With first-hand experience and an insider's perspective, Youssef exposes the brutality of Hamas and emphasizes the urgent need to stop them before their destructive actions escalate further.

His passionate plea aims to shed light on the reality of the situation and highlights the importance of separating the Palestinian cause from the extremist ideology of Hamas.

He says Hamas has “opened up the gates of hell on the Palestinian people.”

Speaking to Piers Morgan, Yousef he went on to also say: "Hamas's cause is a sick one... only God knows what will happen next, if Hamas is not finished."

Tanks and Infantry Raid Gaza as Israel "Prepares Battlefield" for Ground Offensive - BBC News

Oct 26, 2023 | Israeli tanks and infantry have carried out their biggest ground raid into Gaza since the start of the current conflict. Israel’s military said they were “preparing the battlefield” ahead of an expected full-scale ground offensive.

The overnight raid came as Israel continued its massive airstrikes in Gaza, which the Palestinian authorities say have claimed the lives of 7,000 people, most of them civilians and many of them children.

Israel says its operations are targeting Hamas, following their raid on Israel on 7 October in which 1,400 people were killed and more than 200 taken hostage.

Jeremy Bowen reports for BBC News at Ten.

Melanie Phillips: The Murderous Consequences of Western Diplomacy | Top Story

Oct 25, 2023 | Is Western 'peacemaking' in the Middle East perpetuating the Arab-Israeli conflict? Has the refusal by the West to see the evil of Hamas backfired? This week, Jonathan is joined by author and journalist Melanie Phillips.

I generally agree with much that Melanie Phillips says, especially when it comes to Islam; however, in this video she mentioned several times that Netanyahu's goal is to destroy Hamas. Melanie Phillips is certainly not alone in talking about this objective. One hears it over and over. I fully understand why people want to destroy Hamas. I go along with that desire myself; wholeheartedly so. But, how on earth do people think that it can be done? I think that it's an impossibility! Why do I say this? Simply because Hamas is based on ideas; so, even if you were to be able to kill each and every member of Hamas today, the ideas behind the organization would survive, only to be taken up by a new generation of people with identical sympathies.

After World War II, Nazis were caught and were either killed or put on trial in the Nuremberg trials. Some others esscaped to South America, and elsewhere. One, Aribert Heim, known as 'Dr Death' and also the 'Butcher of Mauthausen', escaped even to Egypt, where he converted to Islam and lived under the alias Tarek Farid Hussein. Others have since died of old age in exile. But have the ideas of Nazism died along with the death of these ruthless, cruel scoundrels? Certainly not! Nazism is alive and thriving to this day; in fact, it is growing in strength and number. And not only in Germany! We have Nazis here in the UK too; and there are many in the States, and elsewhere.

And the same it will be if Israel manages to catch and kill all the murderous Hamas members of today. In time, a new generation will grow up and take up the very same ideas and ideology; after all, so many of them are rooted in Islam. Many people might not know that one of Hamas's objectives is not only the establishment of a Palestinian state, but a Palestinian state based on Sharia law, so that its people will live strictly in adherence to Islamic laws and principles. Hell will freeze over before those ideas will vanish off the face of the earth! So it is really hard to comprehend how Benjamin Netanyahu imagines he will be able to kill off Hamas the organization and Hamas's ideas too, ideas which are based on faith and Islamic doctrine.

If Hamas can be eradicated, great; but I wish someone would explain to me how. – © Mark Alexander

En direct, guerre Israël-Hamas : le ministère de la santé à Gaza, administré par le Hamas, annonce un bilan de plus de 7 000 morts

LE MONDE : Le ministère de la santé gazaoui a affirmé jeudi que 7 028 personnes, dont 2 913 enfants, avaient été tuées depuis le début des bombardements israéliens sur l’enclave palestinienne, le 7 octobre. Selon la même source, 18 484 personnes ont été blessées. LIVE EN COURS » | jeudi 26 octobre 2023

"Hamas Counted on a Very Forceful Israeli Response" | YNH Short

Listen to Yuva Noah Harari’s reasoning here.

Au Maroc, la rue continue de se mobiliser pour Gaza en dépit du rapprochement entre Rabat et Tel-Aviv

LE MONDE : Depuis le 15 octobre, la mobilisation n’a cessé de s’étendre dans de nombreuses villes à l’appel de coalitions rassemblant partis de gauche, syndicats, associations et organisations islamistes.

Au Maroc, pas un jour, ou presque, ne passe sans un rassemblement pour la Palestine. La riposte israélienne à l’offensive du Hamas et la dévastation qu’elle entraîne dans la bande de Gaza ont suscité une vague de colère dans le royaume, rappelant combien les Marocains sont attachés à la cause palestinienne en dépit du rapprochement opéré par le Maroc et Israël depuis 2020. » | Par Aurélie Collas (Casablanca, correspondance) | mercredi 25 octobre 2023

Israel-Gaza: Palestinian Prime Minister Calls for Immediate Ceasefire - BBC News

Oct 25, 2023 | Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, who is based in the occupied West Bank, has called for an immediate ceasfire. Speaking to BBC Newsnight, he called for the "immediate opening of a safe passage for international aid". Also speaking on the programme, Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy said: "Israel is united now around a single goal and that goal is total victory against Hamas, in response to the October 7 massacre."

How the Israel-Hamas War Could Impact the 2024 US Elections | Amanpour & Company

Oct 25, 2023 | President Biden says now is not the time for a ceasefire in Gaza -- a comment that sparked anger among liberal Democrats in Congress as well as young Muslim and Arab American voters. Senior Democratic strategist Waleed Shahid tells Hari Sreenivasan how this could pose a risk for 2024, as politics and passions are ignited by this new war.

Obama fordert Israel zur Beachtung des Völkerrechts auf

Der frühere US-Präsident Barack Obama | Bild: AP
KRIEG IM NAHEN OSTEN
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Der ehemalige amerikanische Präsident Barack Obama spricht Israel seine Solidarität aus. Er warnt aber: Eine Militärstrategie, die menschliche Kosten ignoriere, könnte nach hinten losgehen.

Der ehemalige ehemalige Präsident der Vereinigten Staaten, Barack Obama, hat Israel nach der Terrorattacke der Islamistenorganisation Hamas vom 7. Oktober zur Besonnenheit bei Militäroperationen aufgefordert. „Insbesondere kommt es darauf an – wie Präsident (Joe) Biden wiederholt betont hat –, dass Israels Militärstrategie das Völkerrecht beachtet, einschließlich der Gesetze, die darauf abzielen, den Tod oder das Leiden der Zivilbevölkerung so weit wie möglich zu vermeiden“, schrieb Obama in einem am Montag auf der Seite barackobama.medium.com veröffentlichten Beitrag. Schon jetzt seien Tausende Palästinenser bei der Bombardierung des Gazastreifens ums Leben gekommen, viele von ihnen Kinder. Hunderttausende seien vertrieben worden. » | Quelle: dpa | Dienstag, 24. Oktober 2023

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Calls for Immediate Ceasefire in Gaza

Oct 25, 2023 | In a wide-ranging speech to parliament, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for an immediate ceasefire and proposed an international conference to reach a lasting peace. Al Jazeera’s correspondent Resul Serdar who's covered Turkey extensively joins us now in our Doha studio to discuss more about this.

Civilian Casualties in Israel-Hamas War 'Alarming,' Warns UN Secretary-General Guterres

Oct 24, 2023 | The war between Israel and Hamas has created a crisis in the Middle East "growing more dire by the hour," United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said during a meeting of the Security Council on Tuesday.

"The war in Gaza is raging and risks spiraling throughout the region. Divisions are splintering societies, tensions threaten to boil over."

The Oct. 7 attack by Hamas into Israel left over 1,400 Israelis killed in the fighting. Israel has responded with a bombardment of Gaza. According to Gaza's Health Ministry, more than 5,700 Palestinians have been killed in the two weeks since the war began.

Guterres condemned the Hamas attack and called for the release of hostages while also noting the attack "did not happen in a vacuum."

"The Palestinian people have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation. They have seen their land steadily devoured by settlements and plagued by violence; their economy stifled; their people displaced and their homes demolished. Their hopes for a political solution to their plight have been vanishing," Guterres said.

"The grievances of the Palestinian people cannot justify the appalling attacks by Hamas, and those appalling attacks cannot justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people."

Guterres also called on fuel to be allowed into Gaza, which is currently being blockaded by Israel. He said United Nations efforts to distribute aid would not be possible without fuel for trucks and that Gaza's hospitals would not be able to function without electricity.


WIKIPEDIA: António Guterres »

Related article here.

Iran Warns Israel to Stop War in Gaza: FM Says Situation Like ‘Powder Keg’

Oct 23, 2023 | Iran's Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, has warned Israel that the region could spiral out of control if it does not stop bombarding Gaza. He said that the results could be "severe, bitter" and "have far-reaching repercussions", both regionally and for those advocating for war. He also said the US was also "to blame" for providing military support to Israel. Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari reports from Tehran.

Related here.

In Full: Senior Hamas Leader Says Hostages Will Be Freed If Israel Reduces Gaza Bombing

Oct 24, 2023 | The key Hamas negotiator over the fate of more than 200 hostages held by the group inside Gaza has told Sky News all the civilians among them will be released - if the right conditions are met.

A Gaza, un premier convoi humanitaire est entré, alors qu’Israël annonce intensifier ses frappes

LE MONDE : Le poste-frontière entre l’Egypte et la bande de Gaza a été brièvement ouvert samedi matin pour laisser passer une vingtaine de camions dans le territoire palestinien assiégé depuis presque deux semaines par l’armée israélienne. Insuffisant pour l’ONU qui décrit une situation « catastrophique ».

L’armée israélienne a annoncé, samedi 21 octobre, intensifier les frappes sur la bande de Gaza dans le cadre des préparations de la prochaine phase de l’opération « Glaives de fer » qui consiste à investir le territoire palestinien contrôlé par le Hamas, afin « d’anéantir » le mouvement islamiste qui a lancé une l’attaque sanglante sur Israël il y a deux semaines.

« Dès aujourd’hui nous allons augmenter les frappes » sur la bande de Gaza, a dit le général Daniel Hagari, porte-parole de l’armée israélienne, le but étant selon lui de « réduire les risques pour nos forces dans les prochaines étapes » du conflit. » | Le Monde avec AFP | dimanche 22 octobre 2023

The Gaza Diplomacy of Biden, Sunak and Co Seems to Be Heading for Failure

Analysis
GUARDIAN EUROPE: The US president was empathetic, sharp and subtle, but there are signs that his closest Arab allies are losing patience

Two weeks of non-stop western shuttle diplomacy appear to have reached the brink of failure since, as it stands, the west can only point to 20 aid trucks crossing into Gaza as the visible fruit of its labour. At the same time, Israel’s neighbours are taking to the streets and acts of terrorism are returning to the capitals of Europe.

With more than 4,000 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis already dead, the only certainty is that Gaza’s depleted healthcare system will collapse if Israel launches a lengthy land invasion to wipe out Hamas.

The round of western diplomatic visits to Jerusalem had a dual purpose. They were public acts of solidarity in which the visit was the message, but there was also private questioning of the Israeli war cabinet, and what comes after an invasion.

…

Prince Turki al-Faisal the former Saudi ambassador to the US, speaking in Washington, said: “I’ve been hearing a repeated phrase in American media: unprovoked attack. What more provocation is required to make it provoked than what Israel has done to the Palestinian people for three-quarters of a century?” » | Patrick Wintour, Diplomatic editor | Friday, October 20, 2023

Tanks Line Up at Gaza Border as Ground Invasion Appears Imminent

NEW YORK POST: Israel appeared to be readying its expected ground invasion of the Gaza Strip early Friday, with a large border town evacuated and fleets of tanks lining up on the border where hundreds of thousands of soldiers are already camped out.

Israeli officials have been warning for days that it will soon launch its ground invasion, as they amassed at least 300,000 troops along the border in response to Hamas’ surprise attack on Oct. 7, when the terrorist organization killed at least 1,400 people — mostly civilians — and took more than 200 others hostage, the Voice of America reports.

Speaking to those troops on Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said they would soon see Gaza “from the inside.

“Whoever sees Gaza from afar will soon see it from the inside,” he said. “The order will come.” » | Melissa Koenig | Friday, October 20, 2023

Being Palestinian and Gay in Gaza Prior to the Current Conflict: i24NEWS Exclusive Interview: 'When I Was 17, Hamas Caught Me with My Boyfriend'

Aug 10, 2023 | Years of repeated torture at the hands of Hamas. i24NEWS host Natasha Kirtchuk speaks to a Palestinian man who escaped the Gaza Strip after years of being tortured by the terrorist group for being gay.

We Must Not Deepen the Humanitarian Catastrophe in Gaza and Dramatically Undermine Israel’s Security

Oct 19, 2023