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AT least 404 people, including many children, were killed from Monday night to early yesterday in fresh Israeli attacks that have ended a fragile two-month ceasefire in Gaza.
The Health Ministry’s toll is expected to rise as many victims remained under the rubble by late yesterday.
Apart from the ruthless killings, Israel has enforced a total aid blockade on Gaza for more than two weeks, and issued a new round of forced displacement orders for Palestinians living in several areas.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed he ordered the strikes because of a lack of progress in talks to extend the ceasefire.
While Israel’s top allies did not condemn the killings, many progressive forces condemned the Israeli genocide in the strongest terms.
US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib called for sanctions and an arms embargo against Israel.“The Israeli apartheid regime has resumed its genocide, carrying out air strikes all across Gaza and killing hundreds of Palestinians. This comes after a complete blockade of food, electricity, and aid.
“They will never stop until there are sanctions and an arms embargo,” said Tlaib in a social media post.
The humanitarian organisation Islamic Relief said Israel’s attacks on Gaza were an “appalling escalation” and must be “unequivocally condemned” by international governments.“The muted response from Israel’s allies to these repeated violations of international law, consisting merely of superficial expressions of concerns, are insufficient and make them complicit in these crimes,” it said.
“We urge international governments to utilise all their political and economic leverage – including immediately ending all arms sales and suspending trade agreements – to hold Israel accountable, enforce the phased ceasefire agreement, and ensure the entry of sufficient supplies into Gaza.”
Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Zimbabwe, Dr Tamer Almassri, yesterday condemned the resumption of the criminal genocide war against Gaza and called for immediate international intervention to stop the ongoing bloodshed.
In a statement, Ambassador Almassri said: “This brutal onslaught has claimed the lives of innocent civilians in full view of the entire world. “Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to resume this war of extermination against Palestinians is a desperate attempt to cling to power amidst internal government crises and his corruption cases, using the blood of Palestinians as a political lifeline.”
Ambassador Almassri accused the Israeli occupation forces of committing horrific massacres and intensifying a policy of mass starvation against Gaza’s 2,4 million residents.
He further described the ongoing military operation as a systematic attempt to displace Palestinians from their land.
“The occupation uses siege, border closures and the cutting off of food supplies as a weapon of war to subjugate the Palestinian people,” Ambassador Almassri said.
“This is a blatant violation of international humanitarian law, which criminalises the use of starvation as a weapon against civilians.”
Amid rising casualties and widespread destruction, the Ambassador urged the international community, the United Nations, the Security Council and human rights organisations to break their silence and take concrete action. Gaza’s Health Ministry says at least 48 577 Palestinians have been confirmed dead and 112 041 wounded in Israel’s war on Gaza.
However, Gaza’s government media office updated its death toll to more than 61 700, saying thousands of Palestinians missing under the rubble are presumed dead. — Additional Reporting: Al Jazeera
