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May 2021 |
14 may 2021 page 1
Two Palestinian women were killed in an Israeli air raid on Shujaiah suburb in eastern Gaza City on Friday morning.
Quds Press reported that Israeli warplanes bombed a house in Shujaiah without prior notice killing the two women, 27 and 32 years old. Both are from al-Hayya family, it added. video
Meanwhile, the bodies of two other women were found under the rubble in a house in Beit Lahia that was bombed on Thursday night. Paramedics retrieved the bodies of the 19 and 50 years old women.
The Israeli warplanes bombed houses, resistance sites and workshops in the raids on Friday morning.
Quds Press reported that Israeli warplanes bombed a house in Shujaiah without prior notice killing the two women, 27 and 32 years old. Both are from al-Hayya family, it added. video
Meanwhile, the bodies of two other women were found under the rubble in a house in Beit Lahia that was bombed on Thursday night. Paramedics retrieved the bodies of the 19 and 50 years old women.
The Israeli warplanes bombed houses, resistance sites and workshops in the raids on Friday morning.
The electricity networks in the areas north of Beit Hanoun and Gaza City east of Shejaiya and Al-Tuffah were severely damaged as a result of the continuous Israeli aggression for the fifth consecutive day, according to the Electricity Distribution Company.
The company said in a press release on Friday that the electricity networks of the targeted areas in the northern Gaza Strip, Al-Sha`f Street, the eastern line of Gaza City, and some networks in other provinces were cut off due to the Israeli attacks.
It explained that the company’s staff since the morning hours began the process of reconnecting some lines to provide electricity to the affected areas, noting that the company’s crews have not been able to reach some areas until this moment.
Furthermore, the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education in Gaza said on Thursday that the Israeli occupation bombed three new schools.
The bombing resulted in great damage to buildings, classrooms, squares, facilities and educational tools. The total number of schools demolished by Israeli aircraft since the beginning of the aggression has reached ten schools.
The ministry affirmed that the Gaza Strip suffers from the lack of schools due to the Israeli blockade on Gaza and preventing the entry of building materials. Hence targeting existing schools is a systematic Israeli plan and policy to eradicate education and destroy its infrastructure.
It noted that the bombing of schools is a flagrant violation of all international norms and the right to education advocated by the world community.
The ministry called on the international community, human rights institutions and other institutions, such as the United Nations, UNESCO, UNICEF, the International Education Group and the Joint European Funding Fund JFA to denounce the Israeli aggression against schools and educational facilities and to act immediately to stop these violations.
It also called on the international community and all human rights institutions and institutions related to education to put pressure on the occupation to lift the siege on the Gaza Strip, to work on rebuilding schools that were destroyed, to complete the construction of schools that were suspended due to the blockade, and to support the educational sector in Gaza.
The company said in a press release on Friday that the electricity networks of the targeted areas in the northern Gaza Strip, Al-Sha`f Street, the eastern line of Gaza City, and some networks in other provinces were cut off due to the Israeli attacks.
It explained that the company’s staff since the morning hours began the process of reconnecting some lines to provide electricity to the affected areas, noting that the company’s crews have not been able to reach some areas until this moment.
Furthermore, the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education in Gaza said on Thursday that the Israeli occupation bombed three new schools.
The bombing resulted in great damage to buildings, classrooms, squares, facilities and educational tools. The total number of schools demolished by Israeli aircraft since the beginning of the aggression has reached ten schools.
The ministry affirmed that the Gaza Strip suffers from the lack of schools due to the Israeli blockade on Gaza and preventing the entry of building materials. Hence targeting existing schools is a systematic Israeli plan and policy to eradicate education and destroy its infrastructure.
It noted that the bombing of schools is a flagrant violation of all international norms and the right to education advocated by the world community.
The ministry called on the international community, human rights institutions and other institutions, such as the United Nations, UNESCO, UNICEF, the International Education Group and the Joint European Funding Fund JFA to denounce the Israeli aggression against schools and educational facilities and to act immediately to stop these violations.
It also called on the international community and all human rights institutions and institutions related to education to put pressure on the occupation to lift the siege on the Gaza Strip, to work on rebuilding schools that were destroyed, to complete the construction of schools that were suspended due to the blockade, and to support the educational sector in Gaza.
Khaled Mishaal, Hamas’s leader abroad, stressed on Thursday that the Israeli occupation which began the aggression should back off and stop its violations.
Mishaal confirmed that the Palestinians are defending themselves and they have escalated their resistance because of the occupation’s insistence on its crimes by storming Al-Aqsa and its plans to displace the residents of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in Occupied Jerusalem.
On what it takes to end such escalation, he said, “Let the occupation withdraw from the Al-Aqsa Mosque, prevent settlers from approaching it, prevent tampering with the Old City and its gates, stop trying to displace Sheikh Jarrah’s residents, stop his aggression on Gaza, and release the detainees who were arrested during the recent escalation.”
The Hamas leader emphasized that the Palestinians in Gaza, Jerusalem, the West Bank and the 1948 occupied lands are one people. “We are under occupation and blockade and any people under occupation have the right to resist”, he underlined.
On efforts exerted to deescalate the situation, Mishaal said that there are efforts by Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the US administration with its allies and Russia and these efforts are appreciated.
He concluded by appreciating the support of the Arab and Islamic nation to the Palestinian people and their resistance.
Mishaal confirmed that the Palestinians are defending themselves and they have escalated their resistance because of the occupation’s insistence on its crimes by storming Al-Aqsa and its plans to displace the residents of Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in Occupied Jerusalem.
On what it takes to end such escalation, he said, “Let the occupation withdraw from the Al-Aqsa Mosque, prevent settlers from approaching it, prevent tampering with the Old City and its gates, stop trying to displace Sheikh Jarrah’s residents, stop his aggression on Gaza, and release the detainees who were arrested during the recent escalation.”
The Hamas leader emphasized that the Palestinians in Gaza, Jerusalem, the West Bank and the 1948 occupied lands are one people. “We are under occupation and blockade and any people under occupation have the right to resist”, he underlined.
On efforts exerted to deescalate the situation, Mishaal said that there are efforts by Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the US administration with its allies and Russia and these efforts are appreciated.
He concluded by appreciating the support of the Arab and Islamic nation to the Palestinian people and their resistance.
In a night described as the most violent since the Israeli aggression started on Gaza Strip, more than 160 American-made warplanes bombed various areas of the beleaguered enclave on Thursday night.
The PIC reporter said that the Israeli warplanes launched dozens of air raids on Gaza with the northern areas being the most targeted, adding that the warplanes fired more than 500 missiles during those raids.
The “mad” raids coincided with violent artillery bombardment that focused on residential areas near the northern border areas of the Strip.
Palestinian resistance factions, however, continued to fire rockets at Israeli targets.
The ministry of health said that the Israeli aggression has so far claimed the lives of 119 Palestinians including 28 children and 15 women in addition to an old man in his seventies. It added that 621 citizens were wounded in the ongoing attacks including 139 children and 66 women.
The PIC reporter said that the Israeli warplanes launched dozens of air raids on Gaza with the northern areas being the most targeted, adding that the warplanes fired more than 500 missiles during those raids.
The “mad” raids coincided with violent artillery bombardment that focused on residential areas near the northern border areas of the Strip.
Palestinian resistance factions, however, continued to fire rockets at Israeli targets.
The ministry of health said that the Israeli aggression has so far claimed the lives of 119 Palestinians including 28 children and 15 women in addition to an old man in his seventies. It added that 621 citizens were wounded in the ongoing attacks including 139 children and 66 women.
The Israeli occupation army committed on Thursday evening a new massacre by bombing a large residential building in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, and demolishing it while the residents were still inside. video
The Quds Press Agency said that the Israeli warplanes raided a residential building inhabited by several families in the Al-Jeneina neighborhood in Rafah without giving prior warning to its residents.
“The building was destroyed and there are at least 5 martyrs and several wounded, most of them are children and women”, the agency added.
Meanwhile, a report by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights stated that the occupation aircraft bombed a residential neighborhood in Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza Strip, with no less than 20 missiles.
Eyewitnesses confirmed the recovery of the bodies of an entire family, including Rafat al-Tanani, his pregnant wife and their four children from under the rubble of their house.
The body of a child was also recovered from the same neighborhood and four potential family martyrs are being searched for under the rubble of their house.
The bombing destroyed nine homes, inhabited by 15 families with 86 individuals, including 29 children and 28 women.
The bombing resulted in the death of an elderly man and his wife, seven other citizens and the wounding of 33 civilians, including 10 children and 8 women.
These missiles demolished the main street, water and sewage lines, the electricity and communications network, and damaged a large number of citizens' homes, including 6 badly damaged homes, and a residential tower adjacent to the targeted area in addition to dozens of houses that were partially damaged. video video
The Quds Press Agency said that the Israeli warplanes raided a residential building inhabited by several families in the Al-Jeneina neighborhood in Rafah without giving prior warning to its residents.
“The building was destroyed and there are at least 5 martyrs and several wounded, most of them are children and women”, the agency added.
Meanwhile, a report by the Palestinian Center for Human Rights stated that the occupation aircraft bombed a residential neighborhood in Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza Strip, with no less than 20 missiles.
Eyewitnesses confirmed the recovery of the bodies of an entire family, including Rafat al-Tanani, his pregnant wife and their four children from under the rubble of their house.
The body of a child was also recovered from the same neighborhood and four potential family martyrs are being searched for under the rubble of their house.
The bombing destroyed nine homes, inhabited by 15 families with 86 individuals, including 29 children and 28 women.
The bombing resulted in the death of an elderly man and his wife, seven other citizens and the wounding of 33 civilians, including 10 children and 8 women.
These missiles demolished the main street, water and sewage lines, the electricity and communications network, and damaged a large number of citizens' homes, including 6 badly damaged homes, and a residential tower adjacent to the targeted area in addition to dozens of houses that were partially damaged. video video
The Israeli army continued, on Friday at dawn, the bombardment and shelling targeting various parts of the Gaza Strip, killing at least ten more Palestinians, including three women, and wounding more than 50 others. video
The soldiers fired dozens of missiles and shells into various areas of the Gaza Strip, especially in the Sheja’eyya neighborhood, east of Gaza city, killing three women, and wounding dozens of Palestinians. video video
Also at dawn, medics and rescue teams recovered the corpses of two Palestinians under the rubber of a bombarded home, west of Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza, bringing the number of Palestinians killed in that home to four.
In addition, the WAFA News Agency said the corpses of two Palestinians were also found under the rubble of a bombarded home in the al-Atatra area, northwest of Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza.
Dozens of Palestinians were injured in the bombardment, and many families were rendered homeless.
According to the Health Ministry in Gaza, at least 119 Palestinians, including 27 children and 11 women, have been killed by Israeli missiles and shells, and more than 830 have been injured since Israel began its offensive on Gaza four days ago.
It is worth mentioning that, on Friday morning, the army fired many artillery shells into the eastern areas of Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza strip, in addition to al-Maghazi and Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, in addition to a Police station in the Zeitoun neighborhood in Gaza city.
The Shehab News agency said a Palestinian, identified as Mohammad Khaled at-Tawashi, 27, was killed in an Israeli bombardment in Deir al-Balah.
The Israeli army also fired dozens of shells into neighborhoods and farmlands in northern Gaza, in addition to Khan Younis and Rafah, in the southern part of the coastal region.
The Israeli army said 160 of its fighter jets participated in the bombing of 150 sites across the Gaza strip overnight.
Palestinian armed resistance groups said they fired dozens of shells into Israeli areas in retaliation to the ongoing war on Gaza.
The al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing o Hamas said it fired about 100 shells into Asqalan.
The al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, said it fired many missiles into Netivot, Sderot, Asqalan, Ashdod, Tel Aviv, and several other areas.
Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of the al-Qassam Brigades, said that any ground invasion into Gaza “will just be an opportunity for the resistance to kill or capture more Israeli soldiers.”
Israeli warplanes bomb Gaza's fishermen seaports
Israeli warplanes bombed with more ten missiles the fishermen seaports in the cities of Gaza and Khan Younis, said WAFA correspondent.Israeli F16 fighters launched a barrage of missiles on the fishermen seaport in Gaza causing massive destruction to the site.
There were no information whether any human casualties resulted from the Israeli aerial attack.
Israeli warplanes also hit the seaport of Khan Younis, south of the Gaza Strip, causing significant damage but no human casualties.
The besieged Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli aggression from the land, air and sea for five days now.
The Israeli bombing has targeted residential and civilian facilities, government headquarters and inhabited towers, resulting so far in at least 119 deaths and over 800 injuries.
The soldiers fired dozens of missiles and shells into various areas of the Gaza Strip, especially in the Sheja’eyya neighborhood, east of Gaza city, killing three women, and wounding dozens of Palestinians. video video
Also at dawn, medics and rescue teams recovered the corpses of two Palestinians under the rubber of a bombarded home, west of Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza, bringing the number of Palestinians killed in that home to four.
In addition, the WAFA News Agency said the corpses of two Palestinians were also found under the rubble of a bombarded home in the al-Atatra area, northwest of Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza.
Dozens of Palestinians were injured in the bombardment, and many families were rendered homeless.
According to the Health Ministry in Gaza, at least 119 Palestinians, including 27 children and 11 women, have been killed by Israeli missiles and shells, and more than 830 have been injured since Israel began its offensive on Gaza four days ago.
It is worth mentioning that, on Friday morning, the army fired many artillery shells into the eastern areas of Khan Younis, in the southern part of the Gaza strip, in addition to al-Maghazi and Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, in addition to a Police station in the Zeitoun neighborhood in Gaza city.
The Shehab News agency said a Palestinian, identified as Mohammad Khaled at-Tawashi, 27, was killed in an Israeli bombardment in Deir al-Balah.
The Israeli army also fired dozens of shells into neighborhoods and farmlands in northern Gaza, in addition to Khan Younis and Rafah, in the southern part of the coastal region.
The Israeli army said 160 of its fighter jets participated in the bombing of 150 sites across the Gaza strip overnight.
Palestinian armed resistance groups said they fired dozens of shells into Israeli areas in retaliation to the ongoing war on Gaza.
The al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing o Hamas said it fired about 100 shells into Asqalan.
The al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, said it fired many missiles into Netivot, Sderot, Asqalan, Ashdod, Tel Aviv, and several other areas.
Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of the al-Qassam Brigades, said that any ground invasion into Gaza “will just be an opportunity for the resistance to kill or capture more Israeli soldiers.”
Israeli warplanes bomb Gaza's fishermen seaports
Israeli warplanes bombed with more ten missiles the fishermen seaports in the cities of Gaza and Khan Younis, said WAFA correspondent.Israeli F16 fighters launched a barrage of missiles on the fishermen seaport in Gaza causing massive destruction to the site.
There were no information whether any human casualties resulted from the Israeli aerial attack.
Israeli warplanes also hit the seaport of Khan Younis, south of the Gaza Strip, causing significant damage but no human casualties.
The besieged Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli aggression from the land, air and sea for five days now.
The Israeli bombing has targeted residential and civilian facilities, government headquarters and inhabited towers, resulting so far in at least 119 deaths and over 800 injuries.
Four more Palestinians have been confirmed killed by Israeli missiles and shells, on Thursday night, in a series of airs strikes and shelling targeting various areas of the besieged Gaza Strip, and dozens injured, raising the number of slain Palestinians to at least 109, including 28 children, in four days. video
The army fired missiles and artillery shells into the al-Atatra area, west of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, killing four Palestinians in their home, and injuring at least twenty others. Rescue teams are still looking for more potential victims under the rubble.
At least thirty Palestinians were injured by Israeli missiles and shells in Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia, while many are still missing, believed to be dead and buried under the rubble of bombarded homes and buildings.
The Israeli army fires dozens of missiles into homes, buildings, structures, and facilities across Beit Lahia, and northwest of Gaza city, as well as other parts of the coastal region, causing casualties and displacing dozens of families.
In a statement, released just before midnight Thursday, the Health Ministry in Gaza has reported that the confirmed death toll in the coastal region is 109 Palestinians, including 28 children and 15 women, and added that at least 621 Palestinians have been injured.
The figures of fatalities do not include those who are still missing and presumed dead, especially presumed the bombed homes, residential towers, and other buildings, in several parts of the Gaza Strip, while the number of the injured is higher than reported as not all were moved to hospitals and medical centers due to the intensity of Israeli missiles and shells.
The following are some of the names of slain Palestinians, who were killed in recent Israeli strikes on Gaza:
Akram Mohammad Abdul-Al al-Attar, 37, Gaza.
Mahmoud Mohammad Jamil Fares, 38, Gaza.
Mustafa Mohammad Suleiman Farahat, 26, Gaza.
Hazem Misbah Ibrahim Khatib, 41, Gaza.
Mojahed Majed Yousef al-Hadeedy, 30, Gaza.
Abdul-Aziz Abdul-Hamid Abu T’eima, 25, Abasan al-Kabeera, Khan Younis.
Mohammad Sa’id Abu al-Ata, 32, Gaza.
Jom’a Abdullah Mohammad Talha, 59, Gaza.
Ezzeddin Mohammad Abdullah Hallas, 28, Gaza.
Halima Ali Mohammad al-Madhoun, 66, Jabalia
The army fired missiles and artillery shells into the al-Atatra area, west of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, killing four Palestinians in their home, and injuring at least twenty others. Rescue teams are still looking for more potential victims under the rubble.
At least thirty Palestinians were injured by Israeli missiles and shells in Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia, while many are still missing, believed to be dead and buried under the rubble of bombarded homes and buildings.
The Israeli army fires dozens of missiles into homes, buildings, structures, and facilities across Beit Lahia, and northwest of Gaza city, as well as other parts of the coastal region, causing casualties and displacing dozens of families.
In a statement, released just before midnight Thursday, the Health Ministry in Gaza has reported that the confirmed death toll in the coastal region is 109 Palestinians, including 28 children and 15 women, and added that at least 621 Palestinians have been injured.
The figures of fatalities do not include those who are still missing and presumed dead, especially presumed the bombed homes, residential towers, and other buildings, in several parts of the Gaza Strip, while the number of the injured is higher than reported as not all were moved to hospitals and medical centers due to the intensity of Israeli missiles and shells.
The following are some of the names of slain Palestinians, who were killed in recent Israeli strikes on Gaza:
Akram Mohammad Abdul-Al al-Attar, 37, Gaza.
Mahmoud Mohammad Jamil Fares, 38, Gaza.
Mustafa Mohammad Suleiman Farahat, 26, Gaza.
Hazem Misbah Ibrahim Khatib, 41, Gaza.
Mojahed Majed Yousef al-Hadeedy, 30, Gaza.
Abdul-Aziz Abdul-Hamid Abu T’eima, 25, Abasan al-Kabeera, Khan Younis.
Mohammad Sa’id Abu al-Ata, 32, Gaza.
Jom’a Abdullah Mohammad Talha, 59, Gaza.
Ezzeddin Mohammad Abdullah Hallas, 28, Gaza.
Halima Ali Mohammad al-Madhoun, 66, Jabalia
Late Thursday night, the fourth day of the current Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military says it has begun ground invasion of Gaza.
The announcement came in the midst of a wave of continuous airstrikes pounding every part of the Gaza Strip, killing dozens of Palestinians and causing millions of dollars in damage to buildings and infrastructure.
According to local sources, the Israeli military made an announcement just after midnight Thursday night/Friday morning that they have expanded their assault on Gaza to include ground forces, in addition to airstrikes.
Soon after, the electricity was cut off in the Gaza Strip (controlled by Israeli authorities), and Palestinians huddled in fear as airstrike after airstrike was followed by artillery tank shells fired from the border with Israel.
Palestinian resistance fighters responded by launching several homemade rockets toward the Israeli cities of Ashkelon and Tel Aviv. At least six Israelis have been killed by Palestinian rocket fire in the past three days.
During the same time period, over a hundred Palestinians have been killed, nearly a third of whom are children. tweet
Israeli officials issued alerts to Israelis living in border towns near Gaza to head to bomb shelters overnight.
Palestinians in Gaza have no bomb shelters, and no safe place to hide.
The Israeli launch of a ground invasion have sparked fears of an all-out war similar to the one in 2014 in which over 2100 Palestinians and 60 Israelis were killed. The Gaza Strip has never recovered from that attack, which left the infrastructure of the Strip in ruins from Israeli bombardment.
Israeli authorities, which control land, sea and air access to the Gaza Strip, have imposed an economic blockade on Gaza since 2006, when the Hamas party won the Palestinian election. Israel did not like the outcome of the election, so they besieged the Gaza Strip, preventing the entry of food, medicine, fuel, building supplies and other essential goods.
Residents of northern Gaza, near the border with Israel, have reported that Israeli tanks stationed at the border have been firing into Gaza, but no ground troops have been seen invading on foot, at the time of this report.
Israeli authorities say that 9,000 army reservists have been deployed along the border with the Gaza Strip to prepare for a ground invasion.
Gaza is among the most crowded places on earth, with 2.5 million Palestinians crowded into a tiny coastal strip with no way in or out except through Israeli controlled checkpoints and borders.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is currently on trial for fraud and corruption, posted on his social media, just moments after the announcement of the ground invasion, “I said that we would charge a very heavy price from Hamas. We do it and we will continue to do it with great intensity. The last word was not said and this operation will continue as long as necessary.”
The spokesperson for the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas party, issued a statement that the Brigades are not afraid of a ground invasion, and that Palestinian fighters are ready to intercept any Israeli soldiers invading the tiny, overcrowded coastal strip.
After the Israeli announcement of a ground invasion, the U.S. State Department announced that it will withdraw 120 Pentagon personnel stationed in Israel.
It is unknown why U.S. State Department personnel were stationed in Israel to begin with, since there has been no public announcement of the decision to station them there.
State Department spokesperson John Kirby said that the personnel were in Israel for a “routine planning event”.
The U.S. officials and military personnel were evacuated aboard a C-17 military aircraft to Ramstein, Germany.
“We made this decision to remove these individuals in coordination with our Israeli counterparts,” Kirby said at a Pentagon news conference.
The announcement came in the midst of a wave of continuous airstrikes pounding every part of the Gaza Strip, killing dozens of Palestinians and causing millions of dollars in damage to buildings and infrastructure.
According to local sources, the Israeli military made an announcement just after midnight Thursday night/Friday morning that they have expanded their assault on Gaza to include ground forces, in addition to airstrikes.
Soon after, the electricity was cut off in the Gaza Strip (controlled by Israeli authorities), and Palestinians huddled in fear as airstrike after airstrike was followed by artillery tank shells fired from the border with Israel.
Palestinian resistance fighters responded by launching several homemade rockets toward the Israeli cities of Ashkelon and Tel Aviv. At least six Israelis have been killed by Palestinian rocket fire in the past three days.
During the same time period, over a hundred Palestinians have been killed, nearly a third of whom are children. tweet
Israeli officials issued alerts to Israelis living in border towns near Gaza to head to bomb shelters overnight.
Palestinians in Gaza have no bomb shelters, and no safe place to hide.
The Israeli launch of a ground invasion have sparked fears of an all-out war similar to the one in 2014 in which over 2100 Palestinians and 60 Israelis were killed. The Gaza Strip has never recovered from that attack, which left the infrastructure of the Strip in ruins from Israeli bombardment.
Israeli authorities, which control land, sea and air access to the Gaza Strip, have imposed an economic blockade on Gaza since 2006, when the Hamas party won the Palestinian election. Israel did not like the outcome of the election, so they besieged the Gaza Strip, preventing the entry of food, medicine, fuel, building supplies and other essential goods.
Residents of northern Gaza, near the border with Israel, have reported that Israeli tanks stationed at the border have been firing into Gaza, but no ground troops have been seen invading on foot, at the time of this report.
Israeli authorities say that 9,000 army reservists have been deployed along the border with the Gaza Strip to prepare for a ground invasion.
Gaza is among the most crowded places on earth, with 2.5 million Palestinians crowded into a tiny coastal strip with no way in or out except through Israeli controlled checkpoints and borders.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is currently on trial for fraud and corruption, posted on his social media, just moments after the announcement of the ground invasion, “I said that we would charge a very heavy price from Hamas. We do it and we will continue to do it with great intensity. The last word was not said and this operation will continue as long as necessary.”
The spokesperson for the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas party, issued a statement that the Brigades are not afraid of a ground invasion, and that Palestinian fighters are ready to intercept any Israeli soldiers invading the tiny, overcrowded coastal strip.
After the Israeli announcement of a ground invasion, the U.S. State Department announced that it will withdraw 120 Pentagon personnel stationed in Israel.
It is unknown why U.S. State Department personnel were stationed in Israel to begin with, since there has been no public announcement of the decision to station them there.
State Department spokesperson John Kirby said that the personnel were in Israel for a “routine planning event”.
The U.S. officials and military personnel were evacuated aboard a C-17 military aircraft to Ramstein, Germany.
“We made this decision to remove these individuals in coordination with our Israeli counterparts,” Kirby said at a Pentagon news conference.
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