2023-12-18 18:42:00
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In the midst of Israel’s war with Hamas, Hezbollah is also repeatedly shelling the country. Its army threatens “destructive consequences.” News ticker.
- War in Israel: Hamas-supporter Hezbollah continues attacks against Israeli territory
- Attacks by Iranian militias: Israel’s army spokesman Hagari threatens Hezbollah and warns of war
- The information processed here about the war in Israel and the Gaza Strip come from local and international media and news agencies. Much of the information cannot be independently verified. We remain transparent in these cases too.
Update from December 18th, 7:38 p.m.: The UN refugee commissioner, Martin Griffiths, warned that the death toll in the Gaza Strip due to fighting in the Israel war could be significantly higher than previously thought. “We still have to see what is hidden under the rubble,” he said in an interview with the Financial Times. “Once you start digging under the rubble, the statistics change radically.”
As an example of his thinking, he cited the earthquakes in Turkey earlier this year, in which the death toll “nearly doubled” after a long search and rescue operation to recover bodies trapped beneath collapsed buildings.
Return to the northern Gaza Strip possible soon: Gallant sees Israel war entering a new phase
Update from December 18th, 6:29 p.m.: Israel’s Defense Minister, Joaw Galant, said of the situation in the Israeli war that the Israeli armed forces had achieved a “very significant and successful achievement” against Hamas on the battlefield in the Gaza Strip. At the joint press conference with Lloyd Austin (US Secretary of Defense), Galant said that the fight against the Hamas leadership would be over “hopefully soon.”
As the British Guardian further reports, Israel’s defense minister sees a new phase in the war in Israel. It is possible that the local population could soon return to the north of the Gaza Strip, said Galant.
More than 52,000 injured in the war in the Gaza Strip: numbers have continued to rise since the outbreak of the Israeli war
Update from December 18th, 4:52 p.m.: According to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, 151 people were killed last day. A total of 19,453 people are said to have died since the outbreak of the Israeli war and the conflict in the Gaza Strip. The authority’s figures cannot currently be verified, but the UN and other observers point out that they have proven to be overall credible in the past. More than 52,000 people have been injured since October 7th, it said.
Before the War in Israel: The History of the Israel-Palestine Conflict in Pictures
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Deaths again in the West Bank: There have been repeated conflicts since the outbreak of the war in Israel
Update from December 18th, 4:27 p.m.: According to Palestinian reports, four people were killed in a raid by the Israeli military in Faraa on Monday. The Health Ministry in Ramallah said they died from gunfire. The Israeli army said terrorists hurled explosives at the emergency services and shot at them during the raid. The soldiers fired back. A wanted suspect was arrested during the raid.
According to Palestinian media, residents of the refugee camp in the north of the area also reported clashes between militants and the army. Israeli snipers shot four Palestinians. According to the Ministry of Health, two of those killed were 17 years old.
War in Gaza: Former British defense minister warns of Israel’s “murderous anger”.
Update from December 18th, 3:15 p.m.: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called for a “sustainable ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip. This should make it possible for the Islamist Hamas to release more Israeli hostages and for international aid to reach the area, the conservative head of government said on Monday during a visit to Scotland. In addition, Hamas must stop firing rockets against Israel. Israel has a right to self-defense against the “horrific terrorist attack by Hamas,” but “it must do so in accordance with humanitarian law,” it quoted German press agency Altar.
Former British Defense Minister Ben Wallace had previously written in a guest article for the newspaper Telegraph warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of “murderous anger” that would fuel the conflict for 50 more years. Israel’s right to self-defense is being undermined by the “gross and indiscriminate” attacks on Gaza and also risks radicalizing Muslim youth worldwide, Wallace wrote.
Another attack in the Red Sea: Tankers are targeted in the midst of the Israel war
Update from December 18th, 2:10 p.m.: Another merchant ship has been attacked in the Red Sea. The ship’s Norwegian owner, Inventor Chemical Tankers, confirmed this to the business magazine on Monday E24. The tanker Swan Atlantic was hit “by an object,” managing director Øystein Elgan told the magazine. Accordingly, no crew member was injured and the tanker is ready for use. A US Navy ship had reached the tanker, Elgan said loudly E24.
According to the business magazine, Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said he was very concerned about the situation in the Red Sea. “Arbitrary attacks on civilian shipping are completely unacceptable,” Eide agreed E24. Recently, several merchant ships in the Red Sea were attacked by Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Iranian-backed rebels are threatening to block ships of any nationality bound for Israel from passing through the Red Sea.
War in Israel: German-Israeli hostage tells of his captivity
Update from December 18th, 12:45 p.m.: A German-Israeli woman released by Hamas spoke on US television about her abduction and the time she was held hostage in the Gaza Strip. After her abduction, she was paraded through the streets of the Palestinian coastal area like a trophy. “I wasn’t human,” said Yarden Romann-Gat in an interview with US broadcaster CBS. Many people would have celebrated her display.
The German-Israeli woman was later held in a house without other hostages and was watched there around the clock by a male guard. Romann-Gat was given a hijab to wear, but still didn’t feel protected. Her captors could have done anything to her. “You can’t disagree with anything, it could cost you your life.”
She said she was afraid of the Israeli bombings: “It’s a very frightening experience to be in a war zone. You can’t ignore it. It’s very intense.” Her sister-in-law is still being held in the Gaza Strip. According to CBS, she did not want to share some details from her time in prison.
Romann-Gat said she played dead during the Hamas attack on Kibbutz Beeri, but breathing gave her away. She was dragged to the car. Her pajamas slipped. At that moment she feared that the terrorists would abuse her. “I was afraid of being raped.”
Israeli soldiers take up positions on the edge of the Gaza Strip. © Ohad Zwigenberg/dpa
Negotiations for hostages: Israel now wants to continue talks
Update from December 18th, 10:40 a.m.: According to a media report, representatives of the Israeli government have given the head of the Israeli secret service Mossad the “green light” to negotiate a new hostage deal. David Barnea could work on a new agreement that would include the release of more people held in the Gaza Strip, Channel 12 reported.
According to Israeli media reports, Barnea will travel to Europe again in the coming days to speak again with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani about a possible agreement with Hamas. Mediator Qatar maintains good relations with Hamas.
Israeli media continued to report that Israel was considering releasing Palestinian prisoners accused of killing Israelis in order to secure a deal. The government had previously rejected this. However, Hamas is likely to demand a higher price for the many men and especially the military personnel remaining in the Gaza Strip than for the women and children who have been released so far.
Whether a new hostage deal will be reached remains completely open. The Islamist Hamas says it wants to negotiate only after Israel’s hostilities have ended. Israel, on the other hand, is relying on “sustained military pressure” to achieve the release of all hostages.
War in Israel: Clashes between the Israeli army and Hezbollah
First report from December 18th: Tel Aviv – The Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip has been underway for about two months after Palestinian Hamas militants carried out a bloody attack against Israel on October 7. However, there are also almost constant clashes on Israel’s northern border: the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia in Lebanon attacks Israeli territory with drones and rockets. It appears that Israel’s patience is hanging by a thread here. It has been said repeatedly in recent days that action will be taken against the threat if Hezbollah does not stop its attacks.
War in Israel: Hamas supporter Hezbollah continues attacks on Israel
The latest warning came from army spokesman Daniel Hagari. In a short video he spoke out and commented on the situation at the northern border. “Hezbollah, a proxy of Iran, is dragging Lebanon into an unnecessary war that would have destructive consequences for the Lebanese people,” Hagari said, adding: “This is a war they do not deserve.”
He was referring to Hezbollah’s drone and rocket attacks. These would have displaced 80,000 people in northern Israel. “When it comes to existential threats,” said Hagari, “we see every day as October 6th, so that the Hamas massacre of October 7th never happens again at any of our borders.”
Hezbollah attacks: Israel’s army spokesman Hagari threatens and warns of war
Until there is an effective solution, the Israeli military will continue to defend itself against Hezbollah attacks, he announced. The Israeli army carries out retaliatory air and artillery strikes against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon. So far, fears of the war spreading to Lebanon have not materialized, but Hagari warned in his statement that if a diplomatic solution is not found, they will prepare to “remove this threat from our border.”
Most recently, Benny Gantz, former defense minister and current member of the war cabinet, threatened that Hezbollah would be fought on its own in the background of the war in Israel if the international community did not find a solution. “If the world doesn’t remove Hezbollah from the border, then we will,” Gantz said. (bb/nak with agencies)
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