Israel says the military has killed some key Hamas commanders. According to the armed forces, these are men who occupied a prominent place in the general staff of Hamas and who were close to Mohammed Deif, the leader of the armed branch of the movement.
Hamas, the strict Islamic group that controls Gaza and is seen by the West and Israel as a terrorist movement, has confirmed the death of one of its military leaders. This is the commander of Gaza City. This Bassem Issa is, according to the American AP news agency, the highest-ranking Hamas soldier killed by Israel since the Gaza war in 2014. Members of his entourage were also killed.
Barrage to missiles
The 16 dead in total were killed today in air strikes in Gaza City and Khan Younis, Israeli intelligence agency Shin Bet said. The dead also included a leader of Hamas’s missile and cyber program, according to the service.
Shooting continues today between Israel and the militant movements in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army speaks of this a jump-off to missiles from Gaza on the south of the country. The army says it has made several missile installations harmless.
Rivlin demands action by Arab Israelis
Israeli President Rivlin has lashed out at the leaders of the Palestinian-Israeli community. He believes that their silence on the conflict “supports terrorism and civil unrest” and thereby encourages “the division of society”.
Over the past 24 hours, the unrest that started in East Jerusalem spilled over to places in Israel where many Palestinians live. The mayor of one of those cities, Lod, said an intifada has broken out. That is a reference to the two Palestinian uprisings against Israel that lasted from 1987 to 1993 and from 2000 to 2005.
According to health authorities in the Gaza Strip, at least 50 Palestinians have been killed by the violence so far. Six people were killed on the Israeli side.
–
