The armed wing of Hamas, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, declared that they had destroyed 136 Israeli military vehicles that were attempting to enter the Gaza Strip. The group’s spokesperson, Abu Ubaida, declared in a video address on Wednesday that Israel had refrained from fully cooperating with the resistance and that the Al-Qassam Brigades would carry on their front-line combat.
Additionally, he said that Israel was impeding efforts to liberate the Hamas inmates and that a complete agreement was the only way to do it.
Video footage of Israeli vehicles destroyed
Hamas also released footage of their fighters hunting Israeli tanks and other military vehicles and destroying them with rockets. The videos clearly show the Israeli vehicles destroyed and smoke rising from the place of impact.
As this was going on, the Israeli army announced that another soldier had died during the fighting in Gaza, increasing the total number of deaths from the beginning of the combat operation to 34. During the fighting, four more soldiers suffered serious injuries.
In reaction to the Israeli assault that has persisted for the 33rd day, several Palestinian factions launched multiple rocket attacks on the Israeli settlements surrounding Gaza.
However, Israel came under fire from UN Secretary-General António Guterres for the large number of civilian deaths and the Gaza humanitarian situation. He claimed that there was much less sympathy for Israel and that the Israeli military’s actions demonstrated a glaring miscalculation.
In addition, Guterres stated that the laws of war must be obeyed and that the number of journalists slain in Gaza was unprecedented. He went on to say that while he recognized Israel’s concerns about security, the Palestinian people should be in charge of Gaza’s post-operation government.
Israel was incensed by the UN chief’s words and demanded his resignation.
Furthermore, in light of Israel’s continuous airstrikes on Gaza, deputy prime minister of Belgium Petra De Sutter advocated for sanctions against the country. She stated that Israel was being barbaric by dumping bombs on Gaza like rain and that it was unaffected by international pleas for a truce.
In a phone conversation on Monday, US President Joe Biden disclosed that he had requested Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to temporarily cease hostilities in Gaza. He claimed that they talked about the potential for a humanitarian break and the captives’ release.
Hamas released two elderly hostages a few weeks ago due to poor medical conditions. They also released some other hostages including some American citizens.
Qatar’s increased efforts on releasing hostages held by Hamas
A knowledgeable source cited by Agence France-Presse claims that Qatar is spearheading efforts to mediate the release of hostages held by Hamas in return for a short-term ceasefire in Gaza.
According to the person with knowledge of the negotiations, Qatar is coordinating with the US to release ten to fifteen captives that were taken prisoner by Hamas during their assault on Israel one month ago. Israel would agree to put an end to the violence in Gaza for a day or two in exchange.
With Qatari mediation, Hamas has already freed a number of its detainees for humanitarian purposes through its military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades.