Israel struck the length of the Gaza Strip on Thursday even after US officials warned of rising civilian casualties, with the IDF warning America that the war against Hamas would continue until 2024.
“It will take a long time – it will last more than a few months – but we will win and we will destroy them,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
With the war spanning more than two months and resulting in the deaths of more than 19,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the Jewish State has seen a backlash to ongoing airstrikes across the territory.
“I want them to focus on how to save the lives of civilians. Don’t stop going after Hamas, but be more careful,” President Biden told reporters Thursday.
Biden, who has defended America’s support for the IDF and rejection of a UN-led ceasefire agreement, previously described Israel’s bombing as “indiscriminate,” which US officials have been quick to try and back down.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday that Israel’s airstrikes campaign was more thorough than anything the US would do in return in terms of avoiding civilian casualties.
Smoke billows in southern Gaza on Thursday following Israeli bombardment. Ismael Mohamad/UPI/Shutterstock The IDF continues to make advances across Gaza, taking over the remaining Hamas strongholds in the north and south. IDF/GPO/SIPA/Shutterstock
Kirby praised the IDF for publishing warnings and maps of when and where airstrikes would occur to allow civilians to flee, a tactic that has been criticized as controversial given the massive blackout in the area.
“That’s basically telegraphing your shot,” Kirby said. “There are very few modern armies in the world that would do that. I don’t know that we would.”
Despite Kirby’s praise, a US assessment of Israel’s estimated 29,000 airstrikes shows that nearly half of the IDF’s strikes have been “dumb bombs,” which pose a threat to residents living in the densely populated Gaza Strip, CNN reported.
Israeli flares illuminate Khan Younis, the largest city in southern Gaza where thousands have fled and are now fleeing. Ismael Mohamad/UPI/Shutterstock
Throughout the war, reports came out of airstrikes hitting hospitals, refugee shelters and other civilian buildings, with Israel defending the strikes as necessary to wipe out hidden Hamas bases.
Some of the hostages released in the seven-day ceasefire deal also denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu because of the airstrikes near where they were held.
Despite criticism of the bombings and their purpose, Israeli officials stand behind the tactic and condemn reports analyzing air-to-ground strikes in Gaza since the war began.
Palestinians recover personal belongings after fleeing airstrikes aimed at Rafah. Ismael Mohamad/UPI/Shutterstock Israel has been accused of using inaccurate bombs in almost half of its airstrikes in Gaza. Ismael Mohamad/UPI/Shutterstock
“There is no such thing as a ‘dumb bomb’,” Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter told Army Radio. “Some bombs are more accurate, some bombs are less accurate. What we have are mostly accurate pilots.”
Despite Dichter’s assurances, Sullivan met with Netanyahu on Thursday to discuss the need to make airstrikes more precise, Kirby told reporters.
The meeting between US and Israeli officials comes as the IDF continues a dual operation in northern and southern Gaza, where soldiers are approaching the Hamas headquarters located in the civilian hub.
Palestinians are mourning the loss of one person killed in Thursday’s airstrike in Rafah. Ismael Mohamad/UPI/Shutterstock
Despite the evacuation order, hundreds of people have been reported dead this week, with Israel previously estimating that of the total number of casualties, around 7,000 were members of Hamas.
Nesmah al-Byouk, a resident of Khan Younis where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled after bombing devastated the north, condemned Israel after the airstrikes destroyed her community.
“May God take revenge on them,” he said. “We came and saw that everything was destroyed, houses, factories, neighbors and our houses were all gone. Where can we go now?”
With Postal wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
