Israel-Hamas war

Israeli ground raid in Gaza for the second night in a row  

Israeli troops have carried out a ground raid on the Gaza Strip for the second night in a row, AP reports. According to the military, they struck about ten Hamas targets on the outskirts of Gaza City.  

The ground troops were supported by artillery and air. Now they must have left Gaza again.  

The Israeli forces have not reported any casualties. What the damage looks like on the Palestinian side is not clear. 

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57 of the UN's employees have been killed in the Gaza Strip 

57 people who worked for UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, have been killed in recent weeks of war between Israel and Hamas. That's what Unrwa chief Philippe Lazzarini says, according to international news agencies. 

In a debate post in The Guardian, Lazzarini writes that "history will judge us all" if civilians are not protected.  

He refers to the Swedish UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjöld who said that the UN was not formed to "give us the kingdom of heaven" but to "save us from hell".  

"In today's Gaza there is not much humanity left and hell is establishing itself." 

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"Figures from Gaza have previously been considered credible"  

Can the death toll from the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Authority be trusted? Several assessors have pointed to the difficulties in verifying the figures.  

Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestine refugees (Unrwa), today gave his view at a press conference. He said that figures previously coming from the Gaza Strip were considered credible and that "nobody has really questioned" them.  

He also states that the stated death figures for the entire population correlate with the number of dead UN employees, so far 57 people.  

- We have more or less the same percentage.  

According to the latest figures from the health authority, 7,028 Palestinians have been killed in the ongoing war, including 2,913 children. The figures were questioned on Wednesday by US President Joe Biden, who said he "lacks confidence" in the figures.  

Credibility has also been questioned internationally after the hospital explosion in which Hamas said 500 people died, a claim that was reproduced by the world's media. US intelligence later estimated that 100–300 people died, probably closer to the lower figure than the higher.

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The US attacks targets in Syria - the Minister of Defense: "Must stop Iran-backed attacks" 

The US has carried out airstrikes against two targets in eastern Syria linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard, US media reports. The attacks are a response to recent weeks' repeated attacks against US military in Iraq and Syria, Defense Minister Lloyd Austin writes in a statement.  

 

"The United States does not seek conflict and has no intention or desire to engage in further hostilities, but these Iranian-backed attacks on American forces are unacceptable and must be stopped," Austin wrote, according to the New York Times.  

 

According to Reuters sources, the US airstrikes were aimed at weapons and ammunition depots used by Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

 

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Pause" or "pauses" - the EU agrees after a sensitive choice of path 

Five hours of conversation behind closed doors and no mobile phones in the room. EU leaders' discussions in Brussels about the war in the Middle East are described as so sensitive that diplomats were left without access, reports Politico.  

 

In the final statement, the parties to the war are called on to "pause" for humanitarian aid to reach Gaza. "Pause" is a key word because "pause" in the singular can be interpreted as the EU calling for a more permanent ceasefire, which is controversial for some member states because it is seen as a rejection of Israel's right to defend itself.  

 

According to sources, Spain, the country holding the EU presidency, tried at the last moment to get permission to change to "pause" but failed, which the country officially denies.  

 

The Israel-Palestine issue has particular significance in Spain, as Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wants to form a minority government with a left-wing coalition that wants to see recognition of an independent Palestine.