• Middle East: Large-scale confrontation between Israel and Gaza after killing the Israeli army to the leader of the Islamic Jihad armed arm
  • Analysis: Gaza: a territory under Israeli blockade and in permanent tension

After intense contacts with Egypt, Islamic Jihad and Israel have put an end to 48 intense hours of escalation initiated following the death of the chief chief of the armed arm of the Palestinian group, Baha Abu Al Ata in the Gaza Strip in a selective Israeli attack in Tuesday morning.

The truce, announced by Egypt and confirmed by the two sides, has entered into force at 5.30 this morning although shortly after the projectile sirens were activated sporadically in southern Israel. Like the rest of the unwritten agreements between the Israeli Government and the Gaza militias that came on previous occasions, it is based on a fragile principle according to which "calm will be answered calmly." The big difference in this armed confrontation with respect to the past is the non-participation of the Islamist group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, merely giving the green light to Jihad to launch projectiles against Israel.

If the truce is consolidated in the next few hours, the escalation ends with 34 dead Palestinians (more than 20 militiamen and the rest civilians) and a hundred injured, according to the balance of the Gaza Ministry of Health, in Israeli air strikes against targets of Jihad and a dozen Israelis injured as a result of the 450 rockets and mortar shells fired at central and southern Israel. The Israeli defensive batteries, deployed significantly throughout the country including the Tel Aviv area, registered a 90% effectiveness against projectiles directed against residential areas. The rest fell in the open field.

"Egypt and the UN have worked hard to prevent the most dangerous escalation in Gaza and its surroundings from leading to war. The next hours and days will be critical. The Middle East does not need more wars," said UN special envoy Nickolay. Mladenov after contributing to the mediation of the Egyptian Intelligence service that this morning managed to convince the leader of the Jihad, Ziad Najaleh, to accept a ceasefire.

Truce Conditions

This group - supported by Iran and declared a terrorist by Israel, the European Union and the United States - had refused to negotiate a truce "until revenge is completed for the murder of the martyr Al Ata." In an interview last night at Al Mayadeen television channel, Najaleh exposed three conditions: Israel will not resume the policy of selective killings, will not use real fire against unarmed protesters in the protests that take place every Friday on the border between Gaza and Israel and the compliance with the truce agreements agreed months ago to guarantee the opening of all the accesses of the very poor Palestinian enclave. Jihad, on the other hand, committed to the immediate cessation of projectile launches since border protests are not violent.

The spokesman of the group, Musab al Breim, confirms the agreement indicating that they managed to impose their conditions "based on fire and blood". "We have reacted to the crime committed by the occupation (Israel) and sent them a message," he said shortly after the armed arm fired the most intense projectile save against southern and central Israel without causing casualties. Virtually at the same time, the Israeli Air Force resumed its bombardment against various Jihad targets. In one of them, he killed the head of the projectile unit in central Gaza, Rasmi Abu Malos, in an attack on a building in Deir al Balah that also killed several members of a family.

Israeli sources reply that "they have not yielded to any demand of the terrorists" clarifying that "the facts on the ground will dictate what happens. Israel is not interested in an escalation but is prepared for any scenario." While the army notes that in this spiral the Air Force reached "25 terrorists while conducting hostile operations against Israel and dozens of Jihad targets," Foreign Minister Israel Katz says that one of Israel's greatest achievements was to leave Hamas on the sidelines. .

Hamas did not participate in the climb

Initiated by the first selective murder against a leader of the Jihad since the 2014 war, the armed confrontation has been characterized because for the first time it has been exclusively a direct duel between Jihad and Israel. "Only Ala establishes when we die and when we live. The threats of Israel have no value. We will fight against Israel until the last drop of blood," Najale said, highlighting the paralysis of large parts of the country thanks to the resistance shells. ".

Beyond the rhetoric, Jihad is damaged by the loss of its most important military chief in the field and a dozen commands . He also failed to avenge Israelis dead. The second most important armed group in Gaza after Hamas can presume, for example, that 50% of the inhabitants in the border areas near the Gaza border abandoned their homes these days. Some deputies of the opposition in Israel have an impact on this point and denounce "the cowardice of Netanyahu before the little Jihad and make deals with Hamas allowing it to continue strengthening in Gaza."

The death toll of the Jihad armed arm - higher than in previous ecaladas - is explained by the Israeli decision to attack any command that launches projectiles against Israel, whether on ramps or motorcycles. In the skies of Gaza, Israeli drones, Palestinian shells, and a big question flew without pause, the answer of which marked the end of the escalation: Hamas will maintain its position as an observer or join Jihad in attacks on Israel?

Hamas decided the first option by strengthening its position before the Egyptian mediator but on the other hand receiving many criticisms in its bases for "leaving only" Jihad in this escalation. Islamist leaders had warned Al Ata weeks ago that their actions against Israel in recent months endangered the truce, brought Gaza closer to another devastating war and put it in the spotlight of the Israeli army.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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Middle East Large-scale confrontation between Israel and Gaza after killing the Israeli army to the leader of the Islamic Jihad armed arm

Middle East At least 23 Palestinians killed in the escalation between Israel and Islamic Jihad

The keys Gaza: a territory under Israeli blockade and in permanent tension