Palestinians inspect the ruins of buildings after an Israeli attack in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis on December 7. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad).
Ramallah, Gaza, December 10 (Xinhua) -- Israel continued its military operations in the Palestinian Gaza Strip on December 9, demanding the evacuation of more residents of Khan Younis, the largest city in the southern Gaza Strip.
On the same day, the United States said that it had approved "urgent" arms sales to Israel totaling more than $100 million. Arms sales deemed "urgent" by the United States** can bypass U.S. congressional scrutiny. According to the United States, although there is a precedent for this method, it can be called "rare".
There is no end in sight for people fleeing in Gaza.
Israel demanded on the 9th that more residents of Khan Younis should be evacuated. The Israeli side released the latest "emergency evacuation" map on social media, marking a number of areas in Khan Younis City, including the central area, some of which have been marked as such for the first time since the outbreak of the current round of conflict.
Israel had previously issued similar evacuation warnings before launching a military operation east of Khan Younis.
Zainab Khalil, a 57-year-old woman who fled to Khan Younis with 30 relatives and friends, said that people heard the bombardment all night and were afraid to sleep, fearing that the shells would fall at any time, and that "it may only be a matter of time before the Israeli army uses force against our area."
This is a child photographed in a makeshift camp in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on December 8. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad).
The Gaza Strip, with a population of about 2.3 million, is now concentrated in the southern part of the region, including many who have fled from the north since the start of the current round of conflict. Since the outbreak of the clashes on 7 October, Israeli forces have continued to carry out air strikes and ground operations in the Gaza Strip, while demanding that all residents of the northern Gaza Strip withdraw to the south on the grounds of military operations. As the military operation continues, the Israeli evacuation warning covers an increasingly wide area, expanding in the southern Gaza Strip, and many families have been relocated several times.
Residents of the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, near Egypt, also reported air strikes and shelling, one of the areas that the Israeli army had previously claimed was accessible to Palestinians.
This is a makeshift camp filmed in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on December 8. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad).
The Israeli army has designated the narrow coastal area of the southern Gaza Strip as a "security zone". The small size of the area and the lack of living infrastructure make it difficult to accommodate a large number of people. More than a dozen organizations, including United Nations agencies and international philanthropic groups, have issued a joint statement opposing such unilateral establishment of "safe zones".
Suad Kamut fled all the way from the town of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip to Mahwasi and had to sleep in the sand. She reported suffering from cancer and feeling cold at night.
The Associated Press, citing the United Nations World Food Programme as a source, reported that in the northern Gaza Strip, nine ** reported having gone without food for at least one day and one night, compared with about two-thirds in the southern Gaza Strip. The World Food Programme is concerned about this "appalling" situation.
The United States bypassed Congress and stepped up arms sales to Israel.
The United States said on the 9th that the United States had approved a total of 10.6 billion dollars in emergency arms sales to Israel, including nearly $140,000 tank shells. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that "there is an emergency situation that calls for immediate arms sales" due to U.S. considerations. An "urgent" arms sale means that it can bypass congressional scrutiny.
On the 8th, the United Nations Security Council voted on a draft resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The draft was submitted by the United Arab Emirates and supported by nearly 100 countries. However, the United States, a permanent member of the Security Council, exercised its veto power, resulting in the draft not being adopted. Many countries have expressed disappointment and regret over this.
Palestinian ** Abbas condemned the United States for using its veto power to prevent the Security Council from adopting a draft resolution on the Palestinian-Israeli ceasefire on 9 July. Abbas said that the U.S. position is "aggressive" and "immoral" and flagrantly violates all humanitarian values and principles, and that U.S. policies have become a threat to international peace and security.
Gaza's health system "collapsed".
The Palestinian health department of the Gaza Strip issued a statement on the 9th, saying that the health system in the Gaza Strip has "collapsed" and more medically equipped field hospitals need to be established to treat the injured.
The statement said that since the outbreak of a new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict on October 7, the Israeli army's military operations in the Gaza Strip have caused more than 1770,000 Palestinians died, 4More than 80,000 people were injured. At present, it is difficult for the seriously injured to be effective**, and at least 7,000 wounded in the Gaza Strip need to be taken abroad**.
People line up to fetch water at a makeshift camp in Rafah, a city in the southern Gaza Strip, on December 8. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad).
The statement said that in the past 24 hours, Israeli attacks have killed at least 210 people and injured more than 2,300, and a large number of people are still buried under the rubble and cannot be rescued.
According to a statement issued by the Palestinian Ministry of Health on the 9th, Israeli forces clashed with Palestinians in the cities of Hebron and Qalqilya in the West Bank on the same day, and at least three Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces.
Israeli adviser Tsahi Hanegbi said that Israeli forces had killed more than 7,000 Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) fighters. He did not say how that figure came to be. The Israeli side said that about 1,200 Israelis were killed in the current round of clashes.
Khan Younis fought or continued for another three or four weeks.
The United States reported on the 8th, citing Israel, that the Israeli side believes that the Hamas leadership is hiding in Khan Younis, and that the Israeli army's fighting in this strategic town has "just begun", and the high-intensity phase of the operation may last for three or four weeks.
The person, who asked not to be named, said that the United States did not set a deadline for the Israeli army's military operations in the Gaza Strip, but hoped that the Israeli army would "fight a quick victory" to avoid more civilians**. The United States hopes that the Israeli army will end its high-intensity operations in the Gaza Strip by the end of December, and the Israeli army has set a target for the end of January next year.
This is a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip on December 9 in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Rizek Abduljawad).
Israeli Chief of General Staff Hezi Al-Halevi said on 3 August that the Israeli army began combat operations in the southern Gaza Strip on 2 July. He announced on 5 May that the Israeli army's ground operation in the Gaza Strip had entered the "third phase." Israeli forces have entered the heart of Khan Younis and engaged in "the most intense exchange of fire since the beginning of the ground operation" with Palestinian fighters.
According to the Associated Press, the first phase of the Israeli military operation is to continue to bomb the entire Gaza Strip and strike at Hamas military installationsThe second phase focused on the destruction of Hamas's military capabilities in the northern Gaza Strip, with a focus on the capture of Gaza City;The third phase is the attack on the southern Gaza Strip.
Israel's Ministry of Defense declined to comment on relevant US media reports. The White House Committee responded with diplomatic rhetoric, saying that Israeli military action is decided by the Israeli side and the United States will continue to support it. (Reporter: Liu Weijian, Chen Lixi, Wang Hongbin;Editors: Yang Shuyi, Xu Xiaolei, Wang Fengfeng, Cheng Dayu).