Israel’s offensive

ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the dramatic operation to free two of over 100 hostages still held captive by Hamas shows that military pressure should continue. Nearly 70 Palestinians died during the operation in southern Gaza city of Rafah. Israel claims that many among them were militants. The Gaza ministry says 70 per cent of them were civilians. On the border with Egypt, Rafah is the only open point of entry for humanitarian aid. About 15 lakh civilians have sought refuge there from other parts of Gaza after months of bombardment. Netanyahu also brushed aside international concern at plans for a full-scale ground assault. Four months after the October 7 terror attack left nearly 1,200 Israelis dead, there appears to be no sign of any de-escalation in Israel’s war on Gaza.

Over 28,000 Palestinians have died and much of the densely populated Gaza Strip is in ruins. The UN human rights chief has termed the prospect of an attack on Rafah terrifying. Those with influence must restrain rather than enable, he has said. The obvious reference is to the duplicity of Western leaders, who resolutely express alarm at the scale of suffering but shy away from hardening their position on Israel’s actions. Giving up on diplomacy would mean accepting a genocide. As the threat of a ground assault looms, the way forward is to step up pressure to secure the release of hostages and achieve a humanitarian ceasefire.

The global community cannot be a mute spectator to the horrors unfolding in the region. It must force Hamas to stop its rocket attacks and Israel to cease military operations. Also, there is a need to revive the peace process. A two-state solution is the only sustainable solution to end the cycle of violence.

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