This is an announcement that will further increase tensions in the Middle East. Benyamin Netanyahu claimed this Thursday to have ordered the Israeli army to further extend its territorial control in the Gaza Strip, despite the provisions of the ceasefire which came into force on October 10 under American pressure. In a video broadcast by the Israeli channel Channel 12, he indicated that Israeli forces now controlled 60% of Palestinian territory.
“Right now, we have Hamas by the throat. We now control 60% of the territory of the Gaza Strip, declared the head of the Israeli government during a conference organized in a colony in the occupied West Bank. While part of the audience chanted “100”, Benjamin Netanyahu replied: “In order. First 70. Let’s start with that,” before adding: “We have them on all sides… We’ll take care of the rest” later.
A ceasefire under threat
These statements come as fighting and Israeli strikes continue daily in the Gaza Strip, despite the truce concluded between Israel and Hamas. Both sides continue to accuse each other of ceasefire violations.
However, the transition to the second phase of the agreements appears to have been blocked for several weeks. This was to lead in particular to the disarmament of Hamas and a gradual withdrawal of the Israeli army behind the “yellow line”, which separated the areas controlled by Hamas from those held by Israel and granted the Israeli army a control of a little more than half of the territory of Gaza.
In Gaza, a “catastrophic” humanitarian situation
On May 15, Benjamin Netanyahu announced an extension of Israeli military control in the Palestinian enclave. “Some told us to leave, we didn’t leave and today we control 60% of the territory. Tomorrow, we will see,” he declared.
Our file on the Middle East
According to the text, more than two million Palestinians now live in the part of Gaza still controlled by Hamas. Three international aid NGOs alerted the UN on May 22 to a humanitarian situation deemed “catastrophic,” accusing Israel of not respecting its obligations in the territory.
