Israel’s army said on Wednesday that it had launched “terrestrial activities directed” in Gaza, partially recapturing a key area in the territory, a day after launching an air bombing on the enclave that broke the two-month ceasefire with Hamas.
Israel accused Hamas of “repeatedly” refusing to release hostages and reject offers from mediators. Hamas, in turn, blamed Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to unilaterally topple the truce and put the hostages “at risk of an unknown destination.”
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said their troops “began terrestrial activities directed in downtown and southern Gaza to expand the safety zone and create partial protection between the north and southern Gaza.”
“As part of land activities, troops expanded their control even more to the center of the Netzarim corridor,” the military said.
Hamas called the latest offensive of a “dangerous new violation” of the ceasefire agreement. The militant group, in a statement, said he was still committed to the ceasefire agreement he signed with Israel in January.
Under the January ceasefire agreement, Israel withdrew from the Netzarim corridor, an important land track that divides Gaza in half, dividing the center of Gaza and the north of Gaza from the southern parts of the track bordering Egypt.
Although Israel withdrawn from the corridor, foreign military contractors continued to operate control posts between the north and southern Gaza.
After the truce came into force, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians went through the corridor on foot, by car and, in some cases, from donkeys, with many of them returning to houses that had been destroyed after 15 months of Israeli bombing.
Israeli air strikes on Tuesday killed more than 400 people in Gaza, according to the Enclave Ministry of Health, making it one of the deadliest days of the war.
UN employee
On Wednesday, the United Nations (UN) said that one of its international humanitarian workers was killed by an “explosive ammunition” in the UN guest house in downtown Gaza, and five others were injured.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza attributed the attack on the Israeli army, which IDF denied, saying that had not led any air strikes near the guest house.
Jorge Moreira da Silva, head of the UN Project Services Office (Unops), told reporters that the attack took place at a UN guest house in Deir Al-Balah that was often used by employees of the entity.
The place was known by IDF and in an isolated area without other buildings nearby, he said. Da Silva stated that the guest house was attacked several times this week.
“Two days ago, there was an almost accident with these facilities, and yesterday the facilities were hit, and today there was another attack, unfortunately with these victims,” he reported.
“It cannot be categorized as an accident,” he added, emphasizing that “attacks on humanitarian facilities are a violation of international law.”
A spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday night that a Bulgarian citizen who worked for the UN died in Gaza, but was not immediately clear if Bulgarian was the same person mentioned in the UN statement.
The video filmed by CNN At the scene showed a hole in the side of the building.
Trevor Ball, a former senior member of the US Army Explosives Disposal team who revised the shoot, said the scene’s weapons fragments are consistent with the M339, an Israeli tank projectile.
The damage of the building is also consistent with a tank bullet, said Ball, and point to a very straightforward impact.
Nic Jenzen-Jones, director of Armament Research Services (Ares) who also analyzed the shoot, said the “remains seem to be a 120 mm Israeli tank projectile, probably the M339 multipurpose model.”
THE CNN He asked the IDF if they were investigating the possibility that the attack could have been caused by Israeli tank fire. A spokesman said, “We have nothing to add at the moment. If new information arises, we will publish it.”
New protest
Meanwhile, the renewed war attracted thousands of protesters to the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset in Jerusalem. Netanyahu’s government critics accuse the prime minister to use the war to reinforce his unstable coalition.
The Israeli Military Declaration came after Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Gaza residents “will pay the total price” if Israeli hostages are not returned and Hamas continues to rule in the track.
An Israeli authority said on Tuesday that air strikes in Gaza were the first phase of a series of climbing military actions designed to press Hamas to release more hostages, marking a return to Netanyahu’s vision that military pressure is the most effective way to ensure hostage release.
So far, the Israeli army has brought only eight living hostages back to Israel, of the 251 made by Hamas and his allies on October 7, 2023. The vast majority were released as part of ceasefire agreements in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
This content was originally published in Israel launches first terrestrial offensive after breaking ceasefire in Gaza on CNN Brazil.
Source: CNN Brasil
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