Another mass casualty strike has been reported on a refugee camp in southern Gaza, where the local health ministry says at least 90 have been killed and 300 injured after Israeli missiles slammed into Al-Mawasi camp, allegedly hitting tents where displaced persons were staying. Israel claims that most of the victims were likely Hamas operatives, and that it was targeting the leader of the group’s Qassam Brigades, Muhammad Deif, a mastermind behind previous attacks. Throughout Saturday, the military said it was still investigating whether Deif was killed, though there has been no confirmation as of yet.
Hamas responded by saying Israel’s “allegations about targeting leaders are false” and by design are “merely to cover up the scale of the horrific massacre.” According to updates from the New York Times: Saudi Arabia has been among the earliest countries to condemn the Israeli attack on the refugee camp. The statement released by the Saudi Foreign Ministry strongly criticized the continuing genocidal massacres against the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli war machine, and called for an end to these attacks.
Hardliners in Netanyahu’s coalition government have praised the strike, saying it demonstrates the need to keep intensifying operations inside Gaza. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich wrote on Twitter, “Congratulations to the prime minister, defense minister, the IDF, and Shin Bet.
Despite the Biden White House claiming that there’s been tentative agreement on a new ceasefire deal mediated by Qatar and Egypt, the warring sides are still publicly blaming each other for lack of a finalized hostage deal. Meanwhile, Hamas is urging Palestinians in the West Bank to rise up against the Israeli occupiers en masse. Senior Hamas official Abdel Hakim Henini called on Palestinians to “take action against the onslaught on their compatriots in the besieged Strip, and to stand up to Israeli settlers wreaking havoc across the West Bank.
Henini continued, saying that it’s essential for Palestinian youth to stand up to the occupying forces. He claimed that a global war is being waged against the Palestinian people, their rights, and their resistance forces. The US administration has been accused of being a true partner in all the massacres being perpetrated against the Palestinian people.
Simultaneously, Hezbollah continues to bog down Israeli forces in the north, and it appears Hamas is hoping that a multi-front war more fully opens up. Hezbollah leadership has said that if Hamas agrees to a ceasefire deal, it too will halt its attacks from Lebanon.
