KEYSTONE
Of the approximately 110 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza, 50 are still alive while the other 66 are dead.
US and Israeli security sources at the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) gave the picture of the situation – while the United States has publicly warned the Lebanese Hezbollah in the clash with the Jewish state – revising the estimates downwards by at least 25 people. kidnapped still alive also circulated by the government in Jerusalem.
The news seems to complicate the negotiations on the president’s road map Joe Biden. Of which, however, nothing more is known in what appears to be a new stalemate with Hamas which has yet to give its official response.
The prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu Even today he reiterated Israel’s official position: «We will not leave Gaza until all the hostages return and until we have eliminated the military and government capabilities of Hamas. We have no chance to give up, we have no chance to give up victory. This is my position. Whoever opposes, oppose openly. We are committed – he concluded – to bringing back all 120 kidnapped people, alive or dead. Even if in stages, we will not give up on anyone.”
«Disappointing, offensive, irritating and false»
Making the post-war situation in Gaza even more confusing – a point of strong friction between Biden and Netanyahu – came a statement from the PLO secretary general Hessein al-Sheihk which, bypassing the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), claimed future control of the Strip for the organization, under penalty of “civil war”.
Two days later, the White House does not seem to have forgotten Netanyahu’s video in which he criticized his ally’s fluctuating supply of weapons and ammunition to Israel. “Disappointing, offensive, infuriating and disingenuous given that no other country is doing more than we are,” said the spokesperson for the White House National Security Council John Kirby to those who asked him about the video.
“I am ready to suffer personal attacks as long as Israel receives from the United States the ammunition it needs in the war for its existence,” the Israeli prime minister replied.
Lebanon at open war with Israel
Tension remains high, so much so that the Strategic Forum meeting that should have taken place between Israel and the United States was quickly replaced with a meeting between the Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermerthe head of the National Assembly Tzachi Hanegbi and the US Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
If the dynamics of the conflict in the Strip remain a point of friction between Israel and its American ally, the same is not the case for the Lebanon dossier of Hezbollah in an open war with Israel which continues to strike with targeted raids, killing commanders in the field.
The American special envoy Amos Hochstein warned Lebanese officials that if Hezbollah does not end daily attacks on northern Israel, it could find itself the target of a limited, US-backed Israeli operation.
A diplomatic solution to repel Hezbollah
According to Kan TV, Hochstein reiterated the need for a diplomatic solution to push the Iranian-backed terrorist group from the border, otherwise Israel will launch a limited attack with American support.
The recent threats from the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as well as Israel and Cyprus, they also caused a reaction from Brussels. “Cyprus is a member state of the EU, any threat to Cyprus is a threat to the whole EU,” warned the spokesperson of the External Action Service of the European Commission.
«We follow closely – he continued – the tensions between Lebanon and Israel and we welcome the efforts of the USA and France to calm the situation: de-escalation is necessary and the EU is in contact with representatives of Lebanon and other partners in the area”.
In the 258th day of the war, Israel continues its operations in Rafah in the south of the Strip. But don’t forget the north where the IDF eliminated in Beit Hanoun Ahmed Hassan Salameh a-Swarkehone of the commanders of Hamas’ elite Nukhba squad that attacked Israel on October 7.
SDA
