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Tag: Israel-Gaza war

  • Eight Israeli soldiers killed in Rafah explosion, IDF confirms |

    Tel Aviv: Tragedy struck in southern Gaza’s Rafah this morning as eight Israeli soldiers lost their lives in a devastating blast, marking the deadliest incident for the IDF in the Strip since January, Times of Israel reported.

    Among the fallen, Cpt Wassem Mahmoud, aged 23, a deputy company commander in the Combat Engineering Corps’ 601st Battalion from Beit Jann, has been identified. The names of the remaining seven soldiers will be released following notification of their families.

    Initial findings from an IDF investigation indicate that the soldiers were inside a Namer armoured combat engineering vehicle (CEV) when the explosion occurred. The incident took place around 5 am as the convoy, following an overnight offensive against Hamas in Rafah’s Tel Sultan neighbourhood, was en route to secure buildings for rest, as reported by The Times of Israel.

    The Namer CEV, positioned as the fifth or sixth vehicle in the convoy, was struck by a powerful explosion. It remains unclear whether the blast resulted from a pre-planted bomb or if Hamas operatives directly placed an explosive device on the vehicle. Investigators are also considering whether explosives stored outside the CEV contributed to the intensity of the explosion.

    According to the IDF, there was no exchange of gunfire during the incident, and the vehicle was in motion at the time of the explosion.

    The deaths of these soldiers bring the total toll of IDF casualties during the ground offensive against Hamas and operations along the Gaza border to 307. This figure includes a police officer killed in a recent hostage rescue operation and a civilian Defense Ministry contractor also lost in the conflict, according to The Times of Israel.

    The deadliest incident prior to today’s tragedy occurred in January, when 21 soldiers perished in a blast triggered by Hamas RPG fire that resulted in the collapse of two buildings.

    The IDF continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding today’s devastating loss, emphasising the ongoing challenges and risks faced by military personnel operating in volatile regions, The Times of Israel reported.

  • Israel-Gaza War: Biden Warns Netanyahu Of Losing US Support If Rafah Is Invaded, Says ‘No More Weapons…’ | world news

    In a first since its war in Gaza, US President Joe Biden publicly warned Israel on Wednesday that if Israeli forces launched a significant assault of Rafah, a city packed with refugees in southern Gaza, the US would stop providing it with weapons. In an interview with CNN, Biden stated, “I made it clear that if they go into Rafah…, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities – that deal with that problem.”

    In an attempt to prevent an Israeli attack on Rafah, Biden used his strongest language in public to date in his remarks, which also highlighted the widening divide between the United States and its most powerful Middle Eastern ally. Biden acknowledged that US bombs provided to Israel have killed Gaza civilians in the seven-month-old offensive aimed at annihilating Hamas.

    Biden’s comments, his starkest to date, increase the pressure on Israel to refrain from a full-scale assault on Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have sought refuge after fleeing combat further north in Gaza.

    There was no immediate comment from Israel on Biden’s remarks, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the Rafah operation would go ahead. Israel says it must hit Rafah to defeat thousands of Hamas fighters it says are there.

    Biden has faced pressure from his Democratic colleagues and growing campus protests to prevent Israel from invading Rafah. His support for Israel has become a political liability as the president seeks re-election.

    The United States is by far Israel’s largest supplier of weapons, and deliveries accelerated following the Hamas attacks on October 7, which triggered Israel’s offensive in Gaza. Biden stated that the United States would continue to provide weapons for Israel’s defense, such as the Iron Dome anti-missile system.

    On Wednesday, US officials confirmed that the delivery of bombs to Israel had been halted due to the risk to civilians in Gaza. Israel, meanwhile, continued tank and aerial strikes on southern Gaza after moving in via the Rafah border crossing with Egypt on Tuesday, cutting off a vital aid route.