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[Live] Gaza: strong fears for Rafah after the announcement of an Israeli operation
While Hamas has drawn up a plan for a four and a half month truce, in three stages, likely, according to it, to lead to the end of the conflict which has opposed it to Israel since October, and by then, to the release of the hostages , Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused this prospect and asked the army to prepare for the offensive in Rafah. Thursday February 8, fears increased in this city where refugees were piling up.
An Israeli tank maneuvers along the northern border of the Gaza Strip, seen from Israel, February 7, 2024. © Amir Cohen / Reuters
By: Internet Editorial
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What you must remember
■ While the Palestinian group Hamas confirmed on Tuesday February 6 that it had submitted its response to the Egyptian and Qatari mediators regarding the
truce proposal
that had been made to it,
Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu refused this project
. According to him, “
Capitulating to the delusional demands of Hamas
,” he said, “
not only will not lead to the release of the hostages, but will lead to another massacre
.” He advocates maintaining pressure.
■ Benyamin Netanyahu also implemented what his government had been announcing for several days: “
We have ordered the Israeli defense forces to
prepare an operation in Rafah
as well as in two camps
” for refugees. He sees them as the “
last bastions
” of Hamas.
■ But such a ground operation arouses great fear. The
UN is alarmed by the idea of a ground invasion in Rafah
, which could “
constitute a war crime
”. On the border with Egypt, the town is now home to half of the Palestinian population, who have come to take refuge, notably following Israeli instructions. Its population has increased fivefold, with refugees sometimes crowding into cemeteries.
■ While the war is in its fifth month,
Israel
has again
bombed Khan Younes
, where it says leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement are hiding. According to the Israeli army, the leader of Hamas in
Gaza
is currently “
on the run
” and hiding “
from hiding place to hiding place
”.
■ “A
new round of negotiations
” begins Thursday in Cairo and aims to obtain “
calm in the Gaza Strip
” as well as an exchange of Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages, an Egyptian official announced to AFP.
■
American Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been in Israel since Tuesday 6
, as part of his regional diplomatic tour, continuing his efforts to obtain a truce. He ends his Middle East tour on Thursday with an interview with Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid
■
At least 31 of the 136 Israeli hostages still held by Hamas have died
, according to an internal assessment conducted by the Israeli army. Unconfirmed intelligence reports indicate that at least 20 others may also have died.
■ According to the latest report from the Hamas Ministry of Health, communicated on Wednesday February 7,
27,708 people have been killed in Gaza
since the start of the war on October 7, 2023. The dead are mostly women, adolescents and children. children. There are also
67,147 injured
.
Times are given in universal time (UT, i.e. Paris time -1),
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to refresh
.
6:35 a.m.: “
New round of negotiations
” in Cairo on Thursday, a Hamas delegation expected
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, touring the region, tried to push for the truce proposal drawn up by U.S., Qatari and Egyptian officials in late January in Paris, which Israel ultimately rejected. Although he considered that elements of Hamas' response were "
unacceptable
", he nevertheless said he hoped for a second truce after that of a week in November which had notably favored the release of hostages in Gaza and detained Palestinian prisoners. in Israel.
However, Egypt and Qatar are sponsoring “
a new round of negotiations
” which begins Thursday in Cairo and aims to obtain “
calm in the Gaza Strip
” as well as an exchange of Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages, announced a Egyptian official at AFP.
And Hamas clarified Thursday morning that a delegation led by Khalil al-Hayya, senior official of its political office, is expected in Cairo this morning.
5:20 a.m.: Deadly overnight strikes kill at least 109 people in southern Gaza Strip
During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, witnesses and hospital sources reported deadly strikes in the south of the Gaza Strip, notably in Rafah, with the Hamas Ministry of Health counting a total of 109 deaths from Wednesday evening to Thursday morning.
5 a.m.: Great fears for Rafah after the announcement of a land operation
Fears are growing on Thursday over the fate of more than a million Palestinians stuck in Rafah, a town at the southern tip of Gaza where Israel is preparing to carry out an offensive, as a new round of talks opens in Cairo for a truce.
After a first phase of its deployment which was concentrated in the north of the Palestinian territory, the Israeli army progressed towards the center and south of Gaza, notably in the town of Khan Younes, the epicenter of fierce fighting and raids in recent weeks. continuous aerial flights.
Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that he had ordered the Israeli army to “prepare” an offensive on Rafah, a city located on the closed border with Egypt, where there are 1.3 million Palestinians, the vast majority of whom are displaced people. by the clashes of recent months.
During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, witnesses and hospital sources reported deadly strikes in the south of the Gaza Strip, particularly in Rafah.
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our live from February 7 here
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