CAIRO/GAZA: Israel’s military pushed deeper towards the most populated areas of Gaza City on Tuesday, a painful reminder for Gazans that Western powers’ recognition of a Palestinian state does not mean an end to the horrors of war as tanks approach.
Israel pressed on with its Gaza offensive a day after dozens of world leaders gathered at the United Nations to embrace a Palestinian state, a landmark diplomatic shift after
nearly two years of war that faces fierce resistance from Israel and its close ally the United States.
Israel says the moves will undermine the prospects of a peaceful ending to the war in the Palestinian enclave, much of it devastated by Israeli air strikes and a humanitarian crisis including widespread hunger.
Local health authorities said Israeli fire on Tuesday killed at least 22 people across the Gaza Strip, 18 of them in Gaza City, and the Gaza health ministry said hospitals in the enclave would run out of fuel in the coming few days, endangering lives.
“We are not steadfast, we are helpless. We don’t have money to leave to the south and we don’t have guarantees if we do the Israelis will not bomb us, so we are staying,” Huda, a mother of two from Gaza City, told Reuters via a chat app.
“The children tremble all the time from the sounds of explosions, we do too, they are wiping out a city that is thousands of years old and the world is celebrating a symbolic recognition of a state that won’t stop our killing.”
Israeli forces detonated explosive-laden vehicles in the suburbs of Sabra and Tel Al-Hawa as tanks made a big push towards the western side of Gaza City. Residents said the explosions destroyed dozens of homes and roads.
President Emmanuel Macron announced that France recognised Palestinian statehood at a meeting he convened with Saudi Arabia on Monday - a milestone that appeared unlikely to change much on the ground.