GAZA: Deadly Israeli bombardment rocked Gaza on Wednesday as US top diplomat Antony Blinken on a Middle East tour pushed for an elusive ceasefire and hostage release deal to end the ongoing violence raging since October 7 last year.
Meanwhile, northern Israel came under repeated barrages of rocket fire from a Lebanese group, a day after an Israeli attack killed a senior commander of the fighter group.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Qatar seeking support for a ceasefire deal proposed by President Joe Biden on May 31. However, despite ongoing mediation involving US, Qatari, and Egyptian officials, there has been no breakthrough in negotiations as both sides pursued their demands.
Mediators were studying Hamas’s reply, but there was no news of a breakthrough as the resistance group has insisted on a complete end to the war, a demand rejected by Israel.
The Palestinian resistance group Hamas late Tuesday submitted a response to mediators, insisting on a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. Their proposal includes a ceasefire timeline and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from the territory, amendments aimed at addressing the prolonged violence that has killed more than 37,167 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
Meanwhile, violence has also erupted along Israel’s northern border with Lebanon. An Israeli airstrike on Tuesday killed a senior commander of a Lebanese group, escalating tensions in the region.
Meanwhile, Gaza continues to bear the brunt of the conflict, with devastating airstrikes causing civilian casualties and widespread destruction. The United Nations, in a damning report released Wednesday, accused Israel of committing crimes against humanity, including “extermination,” during the conflict.
Efforts to reach a ceasefire have garnered international support, with calls from the UN Security Council and major world powers for an end to the violence. However, the path to peace remains elusive, with both sides yet to formally respond to the proposed truce plan outlined by President Biden.
On Wednesday morning, air raid sirens blared across northern Israel as three waves of about 160 rockets and missiles filled the sky. Several were intercepted by Israeli air defense while others struck inside northern Israel sparking fires, the military said, reporting no casualties.
The Israeli military said its “artillery struck the sources of the fire” and that fighter jets bombed a launcher and four “infrastructure sites”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned last week that the army was “prepared for a very intense operation” along the Lebanese border and that “one way or another, we will restore security to the north”.
Since October 7 last year, Israel has launched a relentless bombardment campaign in Gaza killing at least 37,164 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s health ministry.
Joe Biden on May 31 outlined what he called an Israeli plan that would start with a six-week truce and the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners and, in three negotiated phases, lead to the rebuilding of Gaza.
Washington has maintained that Israel is on board and has pushed fighter group to also agree, but neither party to the war has yet published its formal response.
