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JERUSALEM/GAZA, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Israel has expanded its military operations in the Gaza city of Rafah after Egypt's ceasefire talks broke down. The move has put Israel under increasing pressure, both domestic and international. After the UN General Assembly passed a resolution by a large margin recommending that Palestine's application for membership in the United Nations be reconsidered, there was even a dramatic scene of the United Nations Charter being smashed by the representative of the United Nations in the United Nations, outlining the antagonism and anxiety in the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
What's new in the situation in Gaza? Can ceasefire talks resume? Please see the interpretation of the reporter in front of the Xinhua News Agency——
Israel: "Cut the cake" style of Tarafa
The Israeli army continued to hold military operations in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on the 13th. A day earlier, IDF spokesman Hagari said in a video message that Israeli forces had continued to carry out "precision strikes" against the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in Rafah, killing dozens of Palestinian militants and finding tunnels and large quantities of weapons. Hagari stressed that the Israeli army is committed to the goal of defeating Hamas and freeing all Israeli detainees.
Israel views Rafah as Hamas's last stronghold in the Gaza Strip and sees the capture of the city as essential to eliminate Hamas's viability and release those detained by Palestinian armed groups. At present, the Israeli army's operations in Rafah are concentrated in the eastern region, and the method of "cutting the cake" is adopted to expand the scope of the attack piece by piece.
A new round of ceasefire talks in Gaza will be held in Cairo on the 7th of this month. On the 9th, Israel and Hamas respectively released the news of the breakdown of the talks. During the negotiations, Israeli forces continued to carry out targeted strikes in eastern Rafah. On the 6th, the Israeli army demanded the evacuation of residents in several areas in eastern Rafah and launched a ground operation in the area to take control of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah crossing. Subsequently, the US State Department repeatedly stressed that the Israeli army had not launched a large-scale military operation against Rafah and that the scope of the operation was "limited."
After the failure of the cease-fire negotiations, the Israeli army issued a notice again on the 11th, demanding that residents in other areas northeast of Rafah evacuate, and then expanded the fighting to this area.
Jonatan Freeman, an expert on international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, believes that Israel has three reasons for doing so: first, to show the international community, especially the United States, that it is very careful to control civilian casualties and call on civilians there to evacuate the area before the operation begins; second, to increase pressure on Hamas to accept an agreement with Israel on the release of the detainees; The third objective is to reduce Hamas's ability to acquire the equipment and goods it needs to continue its war against Israel by taking control of the Rafah crossing.
Hamas: Regrouping in northern Gaza?
In addition to Rafah, Israel has recently carried out another air raid on the northern part of the Gaza Strip and sent ground troops. Three months ago, Israel claimed to have cleared the northern Gaza Strip of Hamas forces. Sources told Xinhua that the current clashes between the two sides mainly include the Jabaliya refugee camp and the Zaitun district of Gaza City.
According to the Israeli army, Hamas is trying to redeploy its armed forces in northern Gaza. By all indications, Hamas is gradually regaining its strength. After a period of calm, the number of rockets fired from Gaza into southern Israel is increasing. The Israeli army issued a report on the battle situation on the 12th, saying that in the afternoon of the same day and on the evening of the 11th, the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon was attacked by rockets from the Gaza Strip one after another, and some rockets even hit Beersheba, the hinterland of Israel.
On the 11th, the Israeli military said that forces operating in the northern Gaza Strip were preventing Hamas from rebuilding its military capabilities there. Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari told reporters: "We have seen in the last few weeks that Hamas is trying to restore its military capabilities in Jabaliya. We are conducting operations there to eliminate these attempts. ”
According to Israel's 12th television station, the renewed fighting in northern Gaza has exacerbated the contradictions between the Israeli government and the military. The military believes that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's prolonged failure to develop a "post-Gaza" plan could lead to the military's efforts being in vain. In addition, the families of the soldiers are also very dissatisfied with the return of Israeli troops to fight in the north.
The international community: pressure on Israel
As the fighting in Gaza continues and the number of civilian casualties is huge, Israel is facing increasing domestic and international pressure, anti-war and anti-government demonstrations are becoming more frequent, universities in many places around the world have joined the anti-war wave, and the International Court of Justice may issue arrest warrants for Israeli leaders.
The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the 12th that in view of the expansion of Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip and the aggravation of its impact on Palestinian civilians, Egypt intends to support South Africa's prosecution of Israel by the International Court of Justice. On December 29 last year, the South African Government filed a lawsuit with the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide against the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip.
In the United Nations, there was a-for-tat scene: On the 10th, the 10th UN General Assembly adopted a resolution by an overwhelming majority, recommending that the Security Council reconsider Palestine's application for membership in the United Nations. Israel's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Gilad Edan, used a portable electric shredder to shred the cover of the UN Charter booklet on the spot after voting. This has sparked a lot of controversy.
The United States is opposed to the continuation of military operations in Rafah and has even threatened to stop supplying weapons. U.S. President Joe Biden was interviewed by CNN on the 8th, saying that if the Israeli army attacks Rafah, the United States will not provide it with bombs and other weapons. On the same day, the U.S. government announced a moratorium on the delivery of a batch of heavy bombs to Israel. But Freeman, an expert on international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, believes that the U.S. relationship with Israel remains strong, and military aid continues to be sent to Israel.
Negotiations: What are the prospects?
Since the outbreak of the current round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in October last year, there have been several rounds of ceasefire talks, but they have repeatedly reached a deadlock. Israel and Hamas respectively confirmed on the 9th that the latest round of ceasefire talks in Gaza, the capital of Egypt, has broken down. The international community, including the United States and major countries in the region, is looking forward to promoting relevant negotiations.
Efforts to resume negotiations continue amid the rumbling fighting in Gaza. The Britain-based "New Arab" newspaper reported on the 11th that after the failure of this round of negotiations, the international community is continuing to work hard to reach an agreement on the detainees agreement and ending the war. According to Egyptian sources, "negotiations are expected to resume in Doha within a few days".
On the same day, Israeli media quoted an Israeli official "familiar with the details of the negotiations" as saying that "the negotiations have not reached a dead end". (Reporters: Lu Yingxu, Wang Zhuolun, Liu Weijian, Huang Zemin; Video: Pei Wang; Editors: Chen Dan, Diao Huilin, Wang Fengfeng, Lu Yu, Ma Xiao)