At least 78 Palestinians have been killed in in a single day Israeli strikes to mark one of many besieged enclave’s deadliest nights of Israel’s monthslong battle.
Strikes that started hours earlier than midnight continued into Christmas Day on Monday. Residents and Palestinian media mentioned Israel stepped up air and floor shelling towards al-Bureij in central Gaza.
Pope Francis lamented that Jesus’ message of peace was being drowned out by the “futile logic of war” within the very land the place he was born.
At least 70 folks have been killed in an Israeli airstrike focusing on Maghazi in central Gaza, well being ministry spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qidra mentioned Monday, including that many have been girls and kids.
The Israeli military mentioned it was reviewing the report of a Maghazi incident and was dedicated to minimizing hurt to civilians.
The Palestinian Red Crescent revealed footage of wounded residents being transported to hospitals. It mentioned Israeli warplanes have been bombing principal roads, hindering the passage of ambulances and emergency autos.
Medics mentioned an Israeli airstrike in Khan Younis in southern Gaza killed eight Palestinians.
Clergy canceled celebrations in Bethlehem, the Israeli-occupied Palestinian West Bank metropolis the place Christian custom says Jesus was born in a secure 2,000 years in the past.
“Tonight, our hearts are in Bethlehem, where the Prince of Peace is once more rejected by the futile logic of war, by the clash of arms that even today prevents him from finding room in the world,” the pope mentioned, presiding at Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
Palestinian Christians held a candle-lit Christmas vigil in Bethlehem with hymns and prayers for peace in Gaza, as an alternative of the standard celebrations.
There was no giant tree, the standard centerpiece of Bethlehem’s Christmas observances. Nativity collectible figurines in church buildings have been positioned amid rubble and barbed wire in solidarity with the folks of Gaza.
‘Difficult morning’
Hamas and one other smaller Palestinian resistance group, Islamic Jihad, are believed to be holding greater than 100 hostages from amongst 240 they captured throughout their Oct. 7 incursion of Israeli cities that killed 1,140 folks.
Since then, Israel has besieged the slender Gaza Strip and laid a lot of it to waste, with greater than 20,400 folks confirmed killed, in accordance with Gazan authorities, and hundreds extra believed useless beneath the rubble.
The overwhelming majority of the two.3 million Gazans have been pushed from their properties, and the United Nations says situations are catastrophic.
Since a weeklong truce collapsed at first of the month, preventing has solely intensified on the bottom, with battle spreading from the north of the Gaza Strip to the total size of the densely populated enclave.
The Israeli navy mentioned Sunday that two of its troopers had died up to now day, bringing to 158 the quantity killed since floor operations started on Oct. 20.
“This is a difficult morning, after a very difficult day of fighting in Gaza,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed his cupboard on Sunday. “The war is exacting a very heavy cost from us. However, we have no choice (but) to continue to fight.”
He mentioned in a video message that troops would battle deeper into Gaza till “total victory” over Hamas.
Israel has been beneath strain from its closest ally the United States to shift operations to a lower-intensity section and scale back civilian deaths.
On Saturday, Israel’s navy chief of employees mentioned his forces had largely achieved operational management within the north of Gaza and would develop operations additional within the south.
But residents say preventing has solely intensified in northern districts.
Diplomatic efforts, mediated by Egypt and Qatar, on a brand new truce to free the remaining hostages held by militants in Gaza have yielded little public progress, though Washington described the talks final week as “very serious.”
Islamic Jihad mentioned a delegation led by its exiled chief Ziad al-Nakhlala was in Cairo on Sunday. His arrival adopted talks attended by Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in latest days.
The resistance teams have mentioned they might not focus on any launch of hostages until Israel ends its battle in Gaza, whereas the Israelis say they’re keen to debate solely a pause in preventing.
Source: www.dailysabah.com