The Israel-Hamas war

The Israel-Hamas War|The Victims  

Israel destroyed graves to search for dead hostages  

 

Israel has destroyed graves at a burial site in Khan Younis in Gaza, CNN reports. The aim was to exhume bodies to find out if the remains of Israeli hostages were among them, the Israeli army IDF said.  

 

Reports of the Israeli army destroying graves to search for dead hostages have previously circulated on social media, but this is the first time the IDF has confirmed that it actually carried out such operations.  

 

The IDF believes that the dead are treated with respect when they are examined in a safe place. If the dead are not included in the hostages, they will be returned with dignity, the IDF says 

 

CNN has obtained images from the burial site that show that graves have been destroyed by bulldozers and that dead bodies are exposed. Destroying burial sites in war can be a war crime.

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The Israel-Hamas war|The reactions 

Netanyahu snubs the US - refuses Palestinian statehood 

 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has informed the US that he opposes the creation of a Palestinian state "in any post-war scenario". He stated that on Thursday evening according to AP.  

 

In doing so, he snubbed his closest ally the United States and its calls to scale back the offensive and eventually work for a two-state solution. 

 

- In any future arrangement [...] Israel needs security control over all territory west of the Jordan River.

 It clashes with the idea of sovereignty, what to do about it?  

 

He adds that a prime minister must be able to say no to his friends.  

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Task: Arab countries are working on a peace plan for Gaza  

 

Several Arab countries are in the process of developing a far-reaching peace plan for Gaza, sources told the Financial Times.  

 

It would mean a ceasefire, the release of the Israeli hostages and a normalization of the relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia. In return, Israel must take "irreversible steps" toward the creation of a Palestinian state, according to a senior Arab official source.  

 

The plan has reportedly been presented to the US and European governments, and the hope is to present it officially within the next few weeks. 

 

- The central thing is that the Palestinians need hope, it cannot only be about economic benefits or removing the symbols of the occupation, says the source. 

 

On Thursday evening, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu told the United States that he opposes a Palestinian state "in any post-war scenario," according to the AP.  

 

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The EU is to adopt sanctions against Hamas next week  

 

The EU will impose sanctions on Hamas on Monday, in response to the terror group's attack on Israel on October 7, France said according to AFP. 

 

It is about "a set of sanctions" that will be aimed at "individuals and financial transactions", says Foreign Ministry spokesperson Cristophe Lemoine. 

 

It is not clear exactly which sanctions will be imposed.