Middle East Crisis Gaza War

After Netanyahu's Call - Israel Attacks Several Areas in Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the country's military to carry out "powerful attacks" on Gaza, according to several media outlets.

During the evening, several international news agencies reported that Israel attacked several areas in Gaza, including Gaza City. Hamas has responded by pausing the planned handover of a dead hostage.

The ceasefire agreement that the parties signed with the help of the United States is now under pressure, the AP news agency reports.

The attacks come after Hamas fighters opened fire on Israeli soldiers in southern Gaza earlier in the day, Haaretz reports. Israel accuses the terror group of having violated the ceasefire. Hamas, in turn, claims that they had nothing to do with the attack in southern Gaza.

- The terrorist organization will have to pay a high price, says Defense Minister Israel Katz.

IDF accused of dumping construction waste inside Gaza

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have allowed private contractors to dump large amounts of construction waste and rubble in Gaza, according to Haaretz. Video clips show trucks driving into Gaza and dumping waste a few hundred meters in, then returning and loading more material.

The materials reportedly include concrete, metal and pipe fittings that come from the IDF's own construction work near the border.

- Apart from the fact that it is shameful, one can ask whether this is really what the army is supposed to be doing. They are dumping construction waste [...] that Hamas will ultimately use for its own purposes, says a source with insight into the newspaper.