Israel is carrying out the heaviest bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip since the start of the conflict. The army claims it has disabled 150 Hamas tunnels. But the damage above ground was also enormous. Hundreds of buildings and houses were destroyed by the bombings. According to the French news agency AFP, the heaviest bombings were concentrated on the areas around two hospitals in Gaza City. Israel claims that the Shifa hospital, the largest in Gaza City, serves as a Hamas command center.
We do not know how many civilian casualties have occurred as a result of the attacks since Friday evening. Because Israel has cut off electricity, internet and telephone lines, the Gaza Strip is even more cut off from the outside world. A BBC journalist on the scene reported that ambulances are rushing towards the explosions because they are no longer receiving calls due to the lack of communication.
What is Israel trying to achieve with such an operation?
David Criekemans: “That is difficult to find out. Israel may have recently gathered intelligence on Hamas’ key positions in the Gaza Strip and is now trying to eliminate it. But the way in which Israel works is particularly strong. When you see photos of how entire neighborhoods have been bombed, it is inevitable that there have been many civilian casualties. In recent days, Israel has advised the residents of Gaza to move south, but it turned out that a large number of them could not or did not want to leave. If all those people are also without electricity or telephone connection, then it becomes a completely dangerous situation.”
And then we still have to launch the big offensive on the ground?
“That is a possibility. We know that Israel has called up 300,000 reservists, but it could also be that they are keeping them in reserve for the time being. You should not forget that such a ground operation in a densely populated area like Gaza is particularly complex. Israel risks losing many soldiers, especially because the reservists have had more limited training. It takes a lot of time to prepare for such an operation, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes a while.
“Nonetheless, ground operations will undoubtedly take place, but these could also be smaller, targeted operations with a limited group of troops. Israel may use drones to monitor Hamas’ movements and attempt to strike at specific times. That will have to be determined in the near future. In any case, it seems clear to me that Israel intends to continue this for weeks, if necessary.”
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the organization representing family members of the 229 hostages in Gaza, strongly criticized the bombings. They fear that Israel is endangering them too.
“Those fears are justified. For the time being, Israel does not seem to be stopping this, but that may well play a role. It remains to be seen how much response this call will receive from those family members. But it strikes me that an Israeli newspaper such as Haaretz also strongly criticizes the bombings. What could also play a role is that there are about 500 Palestinian citizens in Gaza with an American passport. The Americans are also trying to use this as an argument to urge Israel to be cautious.”
This does not seem to have much effect for the time being. By bombing entire neighborhoods and cutting off all communications, Israel is affecting hundreds of thousands of civilians in Gaza. Shouldn’t the international community respond more forcefully to this?
“Israel defends itself by saying it has the right to self-defense. But principles such as proportionality also apply in international law. It is difficult to argue that cutting off an entire population from electricity is still proportionate. Indeed, it is up to Western governments and actors such as the UN to remind Israel of those principles of international law of war, otherwise this will become a precedent that will have an influence for years to come.
“What we see now is how both camps are reliving old traumas. Israel suffered its worst attack since the Holocaust, while many Palestinians are now experiencing déjâ vu from the 1948 Nakba. It is up to the international community to say: we understand those traumas, but we must now avoid this escalating into something that could have consequences for decades.”
Is the West well placed to take on that role? Only eight EU countries voted in favor of a non-binding UN resolution to impose a humanitarian pause. The US also voted against.
“Yes, that does not do our credibility any good. The EU is accused of a double standard: it criticizes Russia’s war crimes, but allows Israel to take similar actions. Yet you see that attitudes around this are starting to change. Many European countries are criticizing the fact that they have abstained on that resolution. And behind the scenes, government leaders are putting increasing pressure on Netanyahu. The window of opportunity for Israel to carry out such attacks is becoming increasingly rare.”
