A bomb from Israel hit central Gaza and killed 20 people, mostly women and children. There is a lot of fighting happening in the north of Gaza. Israel’s leaders are arguing about who should be in charge of Gaza after the war, which has been going on for eight months.
The Prime Minister is getting criticized by his own War Cabinet. His main rival, Benny Gantz, says he will quit the government if a plan isn’t made by June 8 that involves other countries in running Gaza after the war.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan was supposed to talk to important Israeli leaders on Sunday about a big plan the US has. The plan is for Saudi Arabia to agree to Israel and help the Palestinian Authority rule Gaza. In return, the Palestinians would eventually be able to have their own country.
Netanyahu doesn’t want a Palestinian state and said no to the proposals. He wants Israel to have control over security in Gaza and work with Palestinians who are not part of Hamas or the Palestinian Authority.
Gantz quitting won’t make Netanyahu’s government fall apart, but it will make him depend more on far-right friends who want Palestinians to leave Gaza, have a strong military presence, and create more Jewish towns there.
While people are talking more about planning for after the war, the fighting is still going on and it doesn’t look like it will end anytime soon. Lately, Hamas has come together again in some areas in the north of Gaza that were hit hard by bombings at the beginning of the war. Israeli soldiers had also been in these areas.
An air attack in Nuseirat, a crowded Palestinian refugee camp in central Gaza that has been around since the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, killed 20 people. This included eight women and four children, as reported by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah, where the bodies were taken.
A different attack on a street in Nuseirat caused the deaths of five more people, as reported by the Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service. In Deir al-Balah, a powerful attack caused the death of Zahed al-Houli, who was a high-ranking officer in the police force run by Hamas, and another man, as reported by Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital.
Palestinians are saying that there have been more airstrikes and intense fighting in the northern part of Gaza. Israel has been keeping this area cut off for a long time, and the World Food Program says there is a shortage of food.
The Civil Defense says that the attacks hit some houses near Kamal Adwan Hospital in the town of Beit Lahiya and at least 10 people were killed. The rescuers showed a video of them trying to save a woman stuck under collapsed buildings. There were loud explosions and smoke in the background.
In the nearby Jabliya refugee camp, people said there were many bombs and attacks with weapons.
Abdel-Kareem Radwan, a 48-year-old in Jabaliya, said that the situation is really hard. He said that the eastern side has turned into a place where Israeli fighter jets attack anything that moves.
Mahmoud Bassal, who speaks for the Civil Defense, said that rescuers found at least 150 bodies. More than half of them were women and children. This happened after Israel started a mission in Jabaliya last week. He said about 300 houses have been “completely ruined. ”
Israel attacked after Hamas attacked on Oct 7. The Palestinian fighters entered southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 as prisoners.
At least 35,000 Palestinians have died in the war, says Gaza’s Health Ministry. About 80% of the 23 million Palestinians have been forced to move within their area, sometimes more than once.
Israel says it tries not to hurt innocent people and says that Hamas is responsible for the high number of deaths and damage because they put their fighters, tunnels, and rocket launchers in crowded neighborhoods.
Netanyahu’s opponents, including many protesters, say that he is making the war last longer and refusing to agree to a ceasefire that would free hostages, because he wants to avoid being held accountable for the security mistakes that caused the attack.
Surveys say that Gantz, who is in the middle politically, would probably become the leader instead of Netanyahu if elections happen soon. This could lead to Netanyahu being charged for corruption he is accused of for a long time.
Netanyahu says he is not doing this for politics and wants to keep attacking until Hamas is stopped and the people being held captive in Gaza are released. He thinks it’s a waste of time to talk about what will happen after the war while Hamas is still fighting. The fighters have warned people not to work with Israel.
Netanyahu is being pressured by the United States, which is Israel’s closest friend. The United States has been giving important military help and support for the attack, but they are starting to get frustrated with how Israel is handling the war.
The US President Joe Biden’s team stopped a delivery of 3,500 big bombs to southern Gaza. They said they don’t want to give weapons for a big attack on the city of Rafah because they are worried about a big disaster for people living there.
Last week, Israel started a small military operation in Rafah. The government plans to go ahead with selling $1 billion worth of weapons, tank ammunition, vehicles and mortar rounds to Israel.
Sullivan is supposed to go to Israel after meeting with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Saturday. The government is making a big plan for Saudi Arabia to accept Israel and work with other Arab countries to help Gaza. In return, they would get a defense agreement with the US and assistance in starting a civilian nuclear program.
US and Saudi officials say that the agreement needs Israel to agree to a realistic plan for a future Palestinian state, which Netanyahu has refused to do.
In Gantz’s statement, he said he wants to make friendly relationships with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries. But he also said “we will not let anyone from another country, whether they are our friends or enemies, make us have a Palestinian state. “
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20 people dead in a central Gaza airstrike
