On December 7, in the southern city of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians inspected the ruins of buildings after being attacked by the Israeli army. Published by Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad)
Xinhua News Agency, Gaza/Ramalam, December 10: Israel continued to advance its military operations in the Palestinian Gaza Strip on the 9th, requiring more residents of Khan Younis, the largest city in the southern Gaza Strip, to evacuate.
The U.S. State Department said on the same day that the U.S. government had approved “emergency” arms sales to Israel totaling more than $100 million. Arms sales deemed “emergency” by the U.S. government can bypass congressional review. According to the American media, although this method has precedent, it can be called “rare”.
People in Gaza are fleeing with no end in sight
Israel asked more residents of Khan Yunis to evacuate on the 9th. Israel released the latest “emergency evacuation” map on social media, marking many areas in Khan Younis, including the central area. Some of these areas have been marked in this way for the first time since the outbreak of this round of conflict.
Israel has previously issued similar evacuation warnings ahead of military operations east of Khan Yunis.
Zainab Khalil, a 57-year-old woman who fled to Khan Yunis with 30 relatives and friends, said that people heard the sound of bombings all night and were afraid to sleep, fearing that the shells would fall at any time. “The Israeli army will use force against our area.” Maybe it’s just a matter of time.”
This is a picture of children photographed in a makeshift camp in the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip on December 8. Published by Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad)
The Gaza Strip has a population of approximately 2.3 million, currently mainly concentrated in the southern part of the region, many of whom have fled from the north since the outbreak of this round of conflict. After the conflict broke out on October 7, the Israeli army continued to carry out air strikes and ground operations in the Gaza Strip. At the same time, it required all residents in the northern Gaza Strip to evacuate to the south on the grounds of military operations. As military operations continue to advance, the area covered by Israeli military evacuation warnings is getting wider and wider, expanding in the southern Gaza Strip. Many refugee families have relocated several times.
In the city of Rafah, located in the southern Gaza Strip and adjacent to Egypt, residents also reported encountering air strikes and shelling. Rafah was one of the areas that the Israeli army previously claimed that Palestinians could go to.
This is a temporary camp taken on December 8 in the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. Published by Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad)
The Israeli military has now designated Mawasi, a narrow coastal district in the southern Gaza Strip, as a “safe zone.” The area is small and lacks living infrastructure, making it difficult to accommodate a large population. More than a dozen organizations, including United Nations agencies and international charity groups, have issued a joint statement opposing such unilateral establishment of “safe zones.”
Suad Kamut fled from the town of Beit Lahiyeh in the northern Gaza Strip to Mawasi and had to sleep on the sand. She said she had cancer and felt particularly cold at night.
The Associated Press reported, using the United Nations World Food Program as a source, that in the northern Gaza Strip, 90% of people reported going without food for at least one day and night, and this proportion was about two-thirds in the southern Gaza Strip. The World Food Program is concerned about the “appalling” situation.
The United States bypasses Congress to increase arms sales to Israel
The U.S. State Department said on the 9th that the U.S. government has approved emergency arms sales to Israel totaling $106 million, including nearly 14,000 tank shells. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said “an emergency exists that requires immediate arms sales” due to U.S. national security concerns. “Emergency” arms sales are meant to bypass U.S. congressional review.
On the 8th, the United Nations Security Council voted on a draft resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The draft was submitted by the United Arab Emirates and supported by nearly 100 countries. However, the United States, a permanent member of the Security Council, exercised its veto power and the draft was not passed. Many countries expressed disappointment and regret over this.
Palestinian President Abbas condemned the United States on the 9th for using its veto power to prevent the Security Council from passing a draft resolution on a ceasefire between Palestine and Israel. Abbas said that the U.S. position is “aggressive” and “immoral” and blatantly violates all humanitarian values and principles, and that U.S. policies have posed a threat to international peace and security.
Gaza’s health system ‘collapses’
The health department of the Palestinian Gaza Strip issued a statement on the 9th saying that the health system in the Gaza Strip has “collapsed” and more field hospitals with complete medical equipment need to be established to treat the injured.
The statement said that since the outbreak of a new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict on October 7, Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip have killed more than 17,700 Palestinians and injured more than 48,000 others. At present, it is difficult for people with serious injuries to receive effective treatment. At least 7,000 injured people in the Gaza Strip need to receive treatment abroad.
On December 8, people lined up to fetch water in a makeshift camp in Rafah, a city in the southern Gaza Strip. Published by Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad)
The statement said that in the past 24 hours, Israeli military attacks killed at least 210 people and injured more than 2,300 people. There are still a large number of people buried under the rubble and unable to be rescued.
According to a statement issued by the Palestinian Ministry of Health on the 9th, the Israeli army clashed with Palestinians in Hebron and Qalqiliya and other cities in the West Bank that day, and at least three Palestinians were killed by the Israeli army.
Israeli National Security Advisor Chahi Hanegbi said that the Israeli army killed more than 7,000 Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) militants. He did not say how the figure was arrived at. Israel said that this round of conflict resulted in the death of approximately 1,200 Israelis.
The battle of Khan Younis may continue for another three to four weeks
U.S. media reported on the 8th, quoting Israeli officials, that Israel had determined that the leadership of Hamas was hiding in Khan Yunis. The Israeli army’s battle in this strategic town “has just begun” and the high-intensity phase of the battle may continue for another three or four days. week.
The official, who did not want to be named, said that the United States has not set a deadline for the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, but hopes that the Israeli military will “quickly resolve” to avoid more civilian casualties. The United States hopes that the Israeli military will end its high-intensity fighting in the Gaza Strip by the end of December, and the Israeli military’s goal is the end of January next year.
This is a picture of a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip in the southern city of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip on December 9. Published by Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad)
Israeli Chief of Staff Hezi Halevi said on the 3rd that the Israeli army began combat operations in the southern Gaza Strip on the 2nd. He announced on the 5th that the Israeli ground operations in the Gaza Strip have entered the “third phase.” The Israeli army has entered the heart of Khan Younis and engaged in “the most intense firefight since the beginning of the ground operation” with Palestinian armed personnel.
According to an analysis by the Associated Press, the first phase of the Israeli military operation is to continue bombing the entire Gaza Strip and attack Hamas military facilities; the second phase focuses on destroying Hamas’ military capabilities in the northern Gaza Strip, focusing on seizing Gaza City; The third phase is to attack the southern Gaza Strip.
The Israeli Defense Ministry declined to comment on relevant US media reports. The National Security Council of the White House responded diplomatically, saying that Israeli military actions were decided by Israel and that the United States would continue to support it.
(Editors: Zhang Taiyun, Jiang Jie)
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2023-12-11 00:41:00
