Israel reports that it has attacked about 150 targets in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the latest round of opposition with Palestinians. On the Israeli side, there has been about one death and about 50 wounded people, and on the Palestinian side there are 6 dead people, and 30 wounded.
The situation has escalated since the beginning of the latest conflict after an Israeli operation liquidated a Hamas commander. The day before, the Israeli military had performed an operation at the southern border of the Gaza Strip near the city of Khan Yunis where six Palestinians were killed and seven were wounded.
Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu was in Paris at the peace conference while the attack happened.
The war?..
Experts don’t exclude the possibility that the situation in the Gaza Strip might develop into a full-scale military operation by Israel. They refer to “hawks” in the Israeli government (in particular, Minister of Defence Liberman) and representatives of the top military authorities who insist on conducting a large-scale military operation against the Gaza Strip. Recently, Tel Aviv, having secured US support, has begun to act more confidently and recklessly.
Other experts are inclined to delay the conflict – as a full scale operation could drag on for decades, and in such a scenario, the victims will not only be members of the military but also the civilian population, not to mention the destruction to infrastructure. This time, for example, the Israeli military purposefully attacked information points, including the building of Hamas’ tv channel. Thus, it is not just the attack, but also an attempt to get rid of their rival’s media presence.
Deceptive Diplomacy
Meanwhile, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu allegedly said in Paris that he “has no desire to launch a war with Gaza” that “there was no repetition of 2014”.
Traditionally, Tel Aviv is accustomed to first hold an official meeting or the summit and assure leaders of their commitment to peaceful settlements, and then launch an attack the following day (in Syria or the Gaza Strip).
It goes without saying by this point that Tel Aviv will not be punished for their actions. As the case of Jamal Khashoggi showed us, even the most radical actions at the level of the state can remain unpunished.
In mentioning Israel, we have to keep in mind the IL-20 accident on September 17 which resulted in the deaths of 15 Russian personnel – for which Israel has yet to receive any kind of punishment.
The USA pretends that they are trying to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but this remains only lip service. On November 11th, White House Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt announced the coming publication of Donald Trump’s plan for a compromise solution to the conflict… However, considering that the US’ current policy is conducted unapologetically in favor of Israel (especially in light of the recognition of Jerusalem as Israeli and the relocation of the US Embassy), we shouldn’t have much hope about this plan.
The Palestinian side is especially doubtful. As Talal Naji, Deputy General Secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) said, it can be regarded as an attempt to split the Palestinian people, calling the transaction a “poisoned temptation”.