Israel’s pounding of Gaza is mercilesswith the IDF stating that they “broke” the Hamas defense line.

Israelcontinuing his attack on Hamas militants, bombarded Gaza by land, sea and air as part of its campaign to wipe out the Iranian-backed Islamist group after its October 7 attack in southern Israel. According to Israel, Hamas gunmen they killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and took more than 200 hostages.

The Israeli armed forces announced Thursday that another soldier was killed in fighting in Gaza. bringing the number of dead soldiers to 17 since Friday when ground operations were extended.

Troops “confronted terrorist cells in the northern Gaza Strip and dozens of terrorists were killed”the armed forces said in a statement.

Israel announced that its attacks yesterday, Tuesday, and yesterday, Wednesday, claimed the lives of two Hamas military leaders in Jabaliyah, an area of ​​Gaza in which a refugee camp was created in 1948. Israel announced that the organization had command centers and other “terrorist infrastructure under, around and in civilian buildingsdeliberately endangering Gazan civilians.”

The Hamas media office in Gaza announced today that at least 195 Palestinians were killed from the two Israeli attacks in Jambaliya, while the fate of another 120 remains unknown. At least 777 people were injured, he added in a statement.

The Gaza Ministry of Health has announced that at least 8,796 Palestinians, including 3,648 children, have been killed since October 7 by Israeli strikes.

Palestinians were searching the wreckage yesterday, Wednesday, trying to locate trapped people. “It’s a massacre,” said one eyewitness.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a post on Platform X that his agency has “serious concerns” that (Israel’s) disproportionate attacks … could amount to war crimes.”

The “big exit” from Rafa continues

More foreigners are preparing to leave the Gaza Strip today, Thursday while the Hamas government announced that at least 195 Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes in a densely populated area on the outskirts of Gaza City, which Israel claimed killed Hamas commanders.

At least 320 foreign citizens from an initial list of 500, and dozens of seriously injured Gazans crossed into Egypt yesterday, Wednesday, as part of an agreement between Israel, Egypt and Hamas.

Passport holders of Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Finland, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Jordan, the United Kingdom and the United States were turned away.

Officials in Gaza said that the Rafah border crossing will reopen today to allow more foreigners to leave. A diplomatic source said that approximately 7,500 foreign passport holders will depart Gaza in approximately two weeks.

The conditions in Gaza are desperate

While international calls for a humanitarian pause in hostilities grow, conditions in the coastal enclave are becoming increasingly desperate due to the Israeli attack and the intensifying blockade. There are shortages of food, fuel, drinking water and medicine.

The hospitalsincluding Gaza’s only cancer hospital, struggling to make ends meet as fuel shortages force them to close. Israel has refused to allow aid convoys to carry fuel, citing concerns that Hamas fighters may use them for military purposes.

Ashraf Al-Kudra, spokesman for the Gaza Ministry of Health, said that the main generator of the Indonesian Hospital no longer operational due to lack of fuel.

The hospital uses a backup generator, but can no longer power the morgue’s refrigerators and oxygen machines. “If we don’t get fuel within the next few days, we will inevitably reach disaster,” the spokesman said.

Blinken again in Israel – Will he go to Ankara?

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken was due to leave today for his second visit to Israel in less than a month. He plans to meet with Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tomorrow, Friday, to express his solidarity but also to reiterate the need to minimize casualties among Palestinian civilians, his spokesman said.

Blinken will also make a stop in Jordan, one of the few Arab states to have normalized relations with Israel. yesterday, wednesday, Jordan recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv until Israel ends its assault on Gaza. Israel expressed regret at Jordan’s decision.

In Jordan, Blinken will stress the importance of protecting civilian life and reiterate the US commitment to ensure that Palestinians are not forcibly displaced from Gaza, a growing concern among Arab countries, the spokesman said.

Blinken will also promote talks being held by Egypt and Qatar to secure the release of all hostages held by Hamas.

It is noted that the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken was expected on Sunday in Ankara, according to Turkish sources, however the State Department did not confirm this, causing numbness in Turkey.

“They were celebrating that ‘Blinken is coming’, and 11.30 and 12 yok… Theories began that Israel told him ‘where are you going, what are you doing? We have 1,400 dead, 200 hostages, Hamas is a terrorist organization and he says ‘it’s a liberation movement’ and supports her” commented the correspondent of SKAI in Istanbul.

Although Blinken does not go to Ankara on his second tour of the region, this will be interpreted as a resounding message from the US, and the Turkish government will not like it, stressed Manolis Kostidis.

Political problems in Washington

Also today, the US House of Representatives will adopt, with Republican support, a bill to provide $14.3 billion in aid to Israel;

But it is considered difficult for this bill to become law, as it faces opposition from the Democratic-controlled Senate and the White House has threatened to veto it. President Joe Biden wants a $106 billion bill that would fund Ukraine, border security and humanitarian aid, in addition to money for Israel.