Tag: Israel-Hamas

Israel-Hamas

Israel Warns Palestinians Not To Return To Northern Gaza

By LokMarg

On Day three of the temporary Israel-Hamas ceasefire, the Israel Defense Force warned Palestinians who evacuated northern Gaza not to return.

Reiterating warnings made in dropped leaflets, The IDF’s Arabic spokesman Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee directed Palestinians to continue moving south of Wadi Gaza. He also instructed Gazans not to try return to the Strip’s northern areas, enter the sea or approach within one kilometer of the Israel-Gaza border.

One condition of the temporary ceasefire was that Palestinians would not try to return to their homes in the combat zone of northern Gaza. While there does not appear to be large-scale Palestinian efforts to return, the warnings have not stopped some Palestinians from returning to inspect damage or bury the dead.

A temporary four-day ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas terrorist organization went into effect at 7 a.m. on Friday.

As part of the deal approved by the Israeli Cabinet on Wednesday, Hamas is to release 12 to 13 hostages each day of the truce. The release of every additional 10 hostages will result in one additional day in the pause in combat.

So far, 26 Israelis and 15 foreign nationals have returned to Israeli territory.

Under the agreement, the Israel Defense Forces is to refrain from using surveillance drones in Gaza for six hours each day of the ceasefire. Israel will also allow fuel to enter the Strip during that time and dramatically increase the volume of goods permitted into the enclave.

On Saturday, the Israel Defense Ministry’s Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) unit announced that four tankers of fuel and four tankers of cooking gas had entered Gaza from Egypt through the Rafah crossing.

At least 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on Oct. 7. Another 240 men, women, children and soldiers were taken back to Gaza as hostages. Some people remain unaccounted for as Israeli authorities continue to identify bodies and search for human remains. (ANI/TPS)

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Modi Condemns Civilian Deaths In Israel-Hamas War

By LokMarg

Condemning the mounting civilian deaths in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said new challenges are emerging from the events in West Asia.

Reiterating India’s condemnation of the Hamas terror attacks in southern Israel on October 7, PM Modi also highlighted that New Delhi has also sent humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine.

In his opening address at the Voice of Global South Summit earlier on Friday, Prime Minister Modi said, “For global prosperity, sabka saath and sabka vikas is parmount. We all are seeing that new challenges are emerging from the events in the West Asia region.”

“India has condemned the terrorist attack in Israel on October 7. We have laid emphasis on exercising restraint, dialogue and diplomacy,” he added.

PM Modi said that India has also sent humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine.

“We also strongly condemn the deaths of civilians in the conflict between Israel and Hamas. After talking to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, we have also sent humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine,” he added.

“This is the time when the countries of the Global South should unite for the greater global good,” Prime Minister Modi stated.

The Second Voice of Global South Summit is taking place in a virtual mode. The Second Voice of the Global South Summit would focus on sharing with countries of the Global South the key outcomes achieved in various G20 meetings over the course of India’s Presidency.

The challenges posed by global developments are also likely to be discussed. Further, the summit will serve as a platform to discuss ways to sustain the momentum generated towards our common aspiration of a more inclusive, representative and progressive world order.

Recently, Israel President Isaac Herzog said India advocates peace and can definitely pursue the voice of reason, security for Israel and peace for the region.

In an exclusive interview with ANI, Herzog described India as “a very important nation in the world” and “one of the greatest countries on earth”.

“India is a very important nation in the world and it was my true honour to speak at the joint session of US Congress in Washington in July, just a few weeks after PM Modi spoke. We believe India advocates peace and is a very impressive country, one of the greatest on earth and India can definitely pursue the voice of reason, security for Israel and peace for the region,” the Israel President said.

He was asked about India’s position on the sequence of events following Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7. The war between Israel and Hamas has entered the 41st day.

Asked if India can play a role to mediate or moderate the conflict, the Israel President talked about the need to rebuild Gaza as a peaceful place and noted that there can then be talk about true dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians and India has a lot to contribute to these ideas.

“I don’t know, I’m not sure but I say that the day after, part of the issue will be how do we rebuild Gaza again and how we make sure that Gaza is a safe haven and a peaceful place and then we can speak about doing business with the Mediterranean and having Israelis and Palestinians have a true dialogue. India has a lot to contribute to all these ideas,” he told ANI.

Israeli Ambassador to India Naor Gilon had last month urged New Delhi to designate Hamas as a terror organisation in India as well.

He stated that both India and Israel have a “shared war” against terror and counter-terrorism is one of the areas where the countries align.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was one of the first global leaders to condemn the terror attack on Israel.

India has said it sees the attack by Hamas on Israel as “a terrorist attack” and that it has always advocated the resumption of direct negotiations towards establishing a sovereign, independent and viable state of Palestine that lives side by side at peace with Israel.

The conflict in Gaza escalated after the October 7 attack by Hamas, where about 2,500 terrorists breached the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip, leading to casualties and the seizure of hostages.

Israel has characterised its Gaza offensive as targeting Hamas’ infrastructure with the goal of eliminating the entire terror group while making efforts to minimize civilian casualties. (ANI)

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Israel-Hamas

Israel-Hamas War: EU Reps To Visit Middle-Eastern Countries

By LokMarg

Amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said on Monday that he will visit multiple Middle Eastern countries to discuss humanitarian access and assistance in the war-torn region.

He asserted that the ongoing situation in Gaza needs two-state solutions and can only be achieved through dialogue.

Taking to X, the EU official said, “I will travel to Israel, Palestine, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan this week to discuss humanitarian access and assistance and political issues with regional leaders. We need a political horizon looking towards the two-state solution. This can only be achieved through dialogue.”

European Union called for immediate pauses in hostilities and the establishment of humanitarian corridors, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, said in a statement.

He said that the EU is “gravely concerned” about the “deepening humanitarian crisis” in Gaza.

In the statement, Borrell said, “EU joins calls for immediate pauses in hostilities and the establishment of humanitarian corridors, including through increased capacity at border crossings and through a dedicated maritime route, so that humanitarian aid can safely reach the population of Gaza.”

The EU condemned Hamas for using hospitals and civilians as human shields, according to the statement. The EU called on Hamas to immediately release all hostages and called it crucial that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is granted access to the hostages.

“The EU condemns the use of hospitals and civilians as human shields by Hamas. Civilians must be allowed to leave the combat zone. These hostilities are severely impacting hospitals and taking a horrific toll on civilians and medical staff,” Borrell said in a statement.

The EU reiterated its support for Israel’s right to defend itself in line with international law and international humanitarian law. In the statement, Borrell stated, “The EU calls for continued, rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access and aid to reach those in need through all necessary measures, including humanitarian corridors and pauses for humanitarian needs.”

The EU stressed that international humanitarian law stipulates that hospitals, medical supplies and civilians inside hospitals must be protected. It further said that most urgent medical supplies must be provided to hospitals and patients that need urgent medical care need to be evacuated safely. It urged Israel to exercise restraint to ensure the protection of civilians, according to the statement released by Josep Borrell.

Amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, Israel’s Defence Forces (IDF) have said that Israeli troops have provided 300 litres of fuel to Shifa Hospital in Gaza for urgent medical purposes.

Taking to X, IDF stated, “Our troops risked their lives to hand-deliver 300 liters of fuel to the Shifa hospital for urgent medical purposes. Hamas forbade the hospital from taking it. Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry has been warning for weeks that its hospitals are running out of fuel. If so, why would they prevent the hospital from receiving it?” (ANI)

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Israel-Hamas

India Calls For Immediate Release Of Israeli Hostages, De-Escalation: MEA

By LokMarg

Amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, India on Thursday called for immediate and unconditional release of hostages while also urged to de-escalate the situation to resume direct peace negotiations towards a two state solution.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that India has also shared its concern over the rising death toll of civilians during conflict.

“We (India) made our position very clear on multiple occasions during the UNGA debate. We have strongly condemned the horrific attack on Israel, urged the need for zero tolerance for terrorism and called for immediate and unconditional release of hostages,”he said while strongly condemning the barbaric Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.

Retierating India’s stand for supporting two-state solution for resolving the Isreal-Palestine issuse, Bagchi said,”We have also conveyed our deep concern at the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the increasing civilian toll and welcomed efforts to de-escalate the situation and provide humanitarian assistance. We have also urged the parties to de-escalate violence and work towards creating conditions for early resumption of direct peace negotiations towards a two state solution.”

While addressing the MEA weekly press briefing, he also went on to mention the humanitarian assistance provided by India to the war-torn Gaza and shared that India has also requested both the sides engaged in war to de-escalate the situation.

MEA spokesperson said, “India has also sent 38 tonnes of humanitarian relief material. We have emphasised strict observance of international humanitarian law”.

Notably, the medical supplies were sent by India for the people of Palestine included essential life-saving medicines and protective and surgical items aimed at handling emergency medical conditions. While arranging the medical supply, wound care was also taken into consideration.

Fluids and painkillers have been included in humanitarian aid for immediate relief. The disaster relief material weighing approximately 32 tons includes tents, sleeping bags, tarpaulins, basic sanitary utilities, water purification tablets etc.

Bagchi, in a response to the question on reports of India workers’ replacement in Israel, he informed that they are working to ensure the safety of Indians working in the world and shared that a lot of Indians have been working as caregivers in Israel .

He added, “We have been working towards giving our citizens access to a global workplace. We are in discussion to try and get into mobility agreements with a number of countries. In Israel, already a number of workers are employed there, especially in the caregiver sector. We have been discussing a bilateral framework in the construction and caregiver sectors. But this is a long-term initiative, I’m not as I said aware of the specific requests are numbers that are floating….”

Meanwhile, Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) Spokeswoman Shani Sasson on Thursday highlighted that 665 trucks have entered Gaza through Rafah as of Wednesday, stressing that, the trucks contain food, medicine, tents and water for the Gazans.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) shared the video message of COGAT spokesperson Sasson on X, emphasizing that the IDF is facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gazan civilians through COGAT.

International organizations and several countries have been providing humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza where the ongoing Israel-Hamas war entered a new phase after the Israel Defence Force entered Gaza City to eliminate Hamas operatives. (ANI)

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Israel-Hamas

Hamas Do Not Want People To Evacuate Northern Gaza: IDF

By LokMarg

Amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war that has now completed a month, Israel Defence Forces spokesperson Jonathan Conricus has said that the Hamas terrorists have made specific efforts to stop Palestinians from moving South.

The IDF spokesperson said that most of the combat operations are going on in Gaza because that is where most of the Hamas has its strong hold.

In a video posted on social media platform X, Conricus said, “Most of the combat operations are going on in northern Gaza. there are still other strikes going on , in other areas as well, but we are focussing on Northern Gaza, because that is where most of the Hamas has its strong hold.”

He said that Hamas wants to keep civilians in densely populated areas in order to meet their purposes.

“Now, what we have seen are roadblocks, hamas has made specific efforts to stop Palestinians from moving south, ..they do not want people to evacuate from the north….they want them to stay in a densely populated areas where there is the most serious and difficult fighting ..because they want the civilians on top of their tunnels,” Conricus said.

In a quick update, focussing on humanitarian efforts taken up from IDF side, Conricus mentioned that the forces are trying to get the Palestinian civilians out of Northern Gaza.

“As we have been saying since last two weeks, we are trying to get Palestinian civilians out of this area and down into the south….more than a million and a half pamphlets and flyers have been airdropped, different colors for different days…so that people can understand that these are different pamphlets… we have done almost 20,000 live phonecalls by Israeli intel officers calling people in various neighbourhoods like Jabaliya, in Gaza city and many other locations, telling them relocate to south, not to stay or remain in northern Gaza,” the IDF spokesperson said.

“The sum total of this is serious, relevant timely effort to get the message to the Palestinian population that they should go from the northern part of Gaza to go to south of Gaza…because it is not safe where they are standing,” he added.

The Israeli Army said on Sunday that “significant strikes” are being carried out and the Gaza Strip has been “cut into two”, Al Jazeera reported.

Army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that the Israeli forces “have encircled Gaza City” and “now there exists a south Gaza and a north Gaza”.

“Troops reached the coastline and are holding it”, he added. “There are now widespread strikes on terror infrastructure – below ground and above it,” Al Jazeera quoted Hagari as saying.

In another statement, Chief of the General Staff, LTG Herzi Halevi, during a meeting in the Northern Command, said that the IDF is ready to strike in the northern Gaza at “any moment”.

“We have a clear goal of restoring a significantly better security situation at the borders, not only in the Gaza Strip…We are ready to strike in the north at any moment,” IDF posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had declared that Israel will not agree to a ceasefire until the Hamas terror group releases the hostages it is holding, The Times of Israel reported.

“Take this (word ‘ceasefire’) out of the lexicon. We will continue until we defeat them; we do not have an alternative,” Netanyahu is quoted saying in a statement from his office.

Meanwhile, Israeli envoy to the US, Michael Herzog called Gaza as the world’s “biggest terror complex”, Times of Israel reported.

He said that Gaza is “the biggest terror complex in the world,” with tens of thousands of fighters and rockets, among other weaponry — and 310 miles (500 kilometres) of underground tunnels.

“This is what we’re up against. And we have to uproot it, because if we do not, they will strike again and again,” Times of Israel quoted Herzog as saying at CBS’s “Face the Nation” interview. (ANI)

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