Israelis and Palestinians come to a bleak end to the year this Sunday, without seeing any prospect on the horizon of an end to the fighting that continues to wreak havoc in the Gaza Strip, which is mired in a serious humanitarian crisis after nearly three months of war .

In the last hours of the year 2023, aerial bombardments, artillery fire and fighting in the Gaza Strip continue to the deep dismay of an ‘exhausted’ Palestinian population.

The Hamas Health Ministry reported the deaths of at least 40 Palestinians in overnight bombings in Gaza City. Eighteen bodies have been found so far and many more are buried under the rubble, he added.

“After the explosion, we arrived on the scene and saw martyrs everywhere (…), children are still missing,” said Mohamed Btihan, a resident of Gaza.

The Israeli military said it had killed more than a dozen enemy fighters in multiple ground battles, airstrikes and tank fire, adding that it had located Hamas tunnels and explosives planted at a school.

This war was sparked by an unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israeli territory, which killed 1,140 people, most of whom were civilians, according to an AFP count based on Israeli data.

In response, Israel has vowed to “destroy” the Palestinian Islamist movement that rules Gaza, ruthlessly striking the area where 129 of the 250 hostages held by Hamas and its allies since the October 7 attack are still being held.

According to Hamas, the death toll in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, has reached 21,822 people since the start of the war, the highest of any Israeli operation.

“Difficult situation”

In recent weeks, the Israeli army has been deployed in northern Gaza, then in Khan Younis and recently in the fields in the middle of that area where 1.9 million residents (85% of the population) have been forced to flee their homes. because of the fighting.

“We hoped that 2024 would arrive under better omens and that we would be able to celebrate the New Year as a family at home. But the situation is difficult,” said Mahmud Abu Shahma, 33, from a refugee camp in Rafah, on the southern edge of the enclave.

“We hope for the end of the war and that we can return to our homes and live peacefully,” added the man originally from Khan Yunis, the main city in the south of the Gaza Strip and the new epicenter of the war between Israel and Hamas. .

Amid the displacement, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned of the growing threat of the spread of infectious diseases and the UN fears famine.

In Israel, New Year’s celebrations will likely be more austere than usual. In Tel Aviv, the party capital, the bars will be open all night, but the atmosphere will not be the same, with tens of thousands of young people mobilized to the front.

“Bring Them”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated this Sunday that Israel will continue the war “whose justice and morality are unparalleled”, after South Africa accused the country of “acts of genocide” before the International Court of Justice.

On Saturday evening, more than a thousand people demonstrated in Tel-Aviv in support of the hostages and their families, chanting “bring them home.”

“I try to be optimistic, I really do. I hope that there will be an agreement, even partial, or that information will be published. “I’m trying to hold on to every bit of hope,” 45-year-old Nir Shafran said at the scene.

International negotiations between Qatar and Egypt reached a weeklong ceasefire in late November, allowing the release of 100 hostages and limited aid to Gaza. Today, efforts still continue to achieve a new lull in the fighting.

A delegation from Hamas, a group classified as terrorist by the European Union, the United States and Israel, arrived in Cairo on Friday to convey “the response of the Palestinian factions” to an Egyptian plan that provides for the release of hostages and a break. in the fighting.

This response will be provided “in the coming days,” Muhamad al-Hindi, deputy secretary general of Islamic Jihad, an armed group fighting alongside Hamas, said in a statement.

When questioned about the issue on Saturday, Netanyahu remained evasive.

“Hamas issued a whole series of ultimatums that we rejected (…) We see a change (but) I don’t want to create expectations,” he stated, assuring that “the war will continue for several more months.”

Various fronts

The war in Gaza has reignited tensions along the border with Lebanon, where gun battles have taken place almost daily since October 7 between the Israeli army and the Lebanese Hezbollah, a group close to Iran and backing Hamas.

In the Red Sea, the US military announced on Sunday that it had sunk three ships belonging to Yemen’s Houthi rebels that had attacked a container ship.

Since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began, the Houthis – allies of Iran – have attacked ships in the Red Sea on several occasions, claiming they were doing so in support of the Palestinians in Gaza.

Danish shipping giant Maersk announced on Sunday that it is suspending its fleet traffic via this strategic sea route for 48 hours. (JO)