Black week, endless bloodshed

During the week of hostilities, as a result of the escalated conflict between the Islamist group Hamas and Israel, almost 200 people were killed, 58 of them children.

This morning, the Israeli army launched heavy airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, and on Sunday evening dozens of strikes in just a few minutes. The authorities in Gaza have not yet announced the exact death toll, but are reporting hundreds of damaged buildings and serious power outages, the French news agency reported. The statement of the Israeli Air Force is laconic, without details: “fighters” attacked the positions of “terrorists” in the Gaza Strip. It was the toughest airstrike since the beginning of a new round of violence that began last Monday evening.

Since 10 May, 197 Palestinians have been killed, including 58 children, and more than 1,200 have been injured. On the Israeli side, according to the authorities, 10 people were killed, including two children, and 282 were injured. On Sunday, the Israeli army announced 3,100 rockets fired by Hamas into the country since the beginning of the escalation. Moreover, most of them were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile system. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as reported by the Associated Press, said:

“Our campaign against terrorist organizations continues and is in full swing.”

The Israeli army claims it attacks Hamas military installations and equipment, members of the organization and underground galleries. The military accuses the Islamist group of using civilians as human shields.

On Sunday, the Israeli Air Force attacked property belonging to Hamas Politburo Gaza Chairman Yahya Sinwar and his brother Muhammad Sinwar, who is in charge of the organization’s supply in Khan Younis. Palestinian security sources have confirmed this, AMPE reports, but have assured them that they do not know the fate of Mr. Sinwar. UN Secretary General António Guterres warned yesterday during an emergency meeting of the Security Council:

Ongoing violence can provoke an uncontrollable crisis in terms of security and humanitarian assistance and further contribute to extremism. This irrational cycle of bloodshed, terror and destruction must end immediately.

However, diplomatic sources told Agence France-Presse that the United States has stubbornly rejected a joint statement by members of the Security Council calling for an end to hostilities. Guterres warns:

“Conflict increases the risk of an ongoing escalation of violence with devastating consequences – both for communities and for the entire region.”

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