As of: February 8, 2024, 3:41 a.m
By: Nils Hinsberger, Bedrettin Bölükbasi
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Press
Split
The US Army continues to attack Hezbollah in Jordan - now with an attack in the middle of Baghdad.
The news ticker on the situation in the Middle East.
Billions in aid for Israel: US Senate rejects legislative package
Blinken
meets
Netanyahu
: The US Secretary of State has arrived in Jerusalem
Hamas
provides
response to hostage deal
: “Unclear and ambiguous” details
The information processed here about the war in Israel and the fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip
comes from local and international media as well as news agencies.
Much of the information cannot be independently verified.
Update from February 8th, 3:40 a.m.:
According to information from security circles, two high-ranking members of the Iraqi Hezbollah brigades were killed in a US attack on a car in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Wednesday.
One of those killed was a commander who was responsible for the “direct planning” of attacks on US soldiers, the Central Command responsible for the Middle East said in online services.
There are currently no signs of civilian casualties.
A Hezbollah Brigades official confirmed that Abu Bakr al Saadi, who was in charge of military affairs in Syria, was killed in the incident.
The Iraqi Interior Ministry said a drone “fired three missiles at a four-wheel drive vehicle.”
Accordingly, the driver of the two commanders was also killed in the attack.
According to the information, the attack took place in eastern Baghdad.
According to a photographer from the
AFP
news agency , the site of the attack was cordoned off by a large security presence.
In the evening the car body, which consisted of nothing more than a charred pile of metal, was transported away.
Iraqis gather in front of the burned vehicle hit by a US drone strike.
© Hadi Mizban/dpa
Update from February 7th, 10:48 p.m.:
The United Nations expresses concern about the advance of Israeli ground troops towards Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip.
“The living conditions of the population there are catastrophic – they lack the bare essentials for survival,” said UN emergency aid coordinator Martin Griffiths
on Wednesday evening in Geneva, according to
dpa .
“They are at risk of hunger, disease and death.”
The city lies on the border with Egypt and has been the destination of many refugee Palestinians since the beginning of the war.
The population in Rafah has quadrupled since the start of the war: today around a million people live there.
27,500 people have already died in the Gaza Strip and further fighting in Rafah would cost even more lives, said Griffith and called for an end to the war.
Netanyahu rejects peace with Hamas
Update from February 7th, 10:28 p.m.:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to stick to his course.
He said on Wednesday that he did not believe in an agreement with Hamas, according to the
Jerusalem Post
.
He could not agree to a ceasefire or an exchange of hostages.
For him, an end to the conflict can only be a “total victory” in Gaza.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeatedly criticized Netanyahu's harsh rhetoric.
He sees this as a security risk for Israel.
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Netanyahu, in turn, believes that only ultimate victory can prevent terrorist violence in the future.
Despite everything, Hamas spokesman Osama Hamdan announced at a press conference that he would send a delegation to Cairo for talks to discuss a ceasefire.
US Senate rejects aid to Israel
Update from February 7th, 9:35 p.m.:
The US Senate has rejected a billion-dollar legislative package worth $118 billion.
The money was intended, among other things, for aid to Israel.
As the
AFP
reports, the package failed to pass on Wednesday due to a lack of approval from Republicans.
Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced there would be a quick second vote that would focus only on foreign aid.
In addition to aid for Ukraine, financing to secure the US external border with Mexico was also negotiated.
Palestinian terrorist killed by IDF
Update from February 7th, 8:20 p.m
.: Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers are said to have killed a high-ranking terrorist in the West Bank.
In a statement, the IDF and Israel Border Police said they had located the wanted Palestinian Moatasem Ali in a house near Tulkarem.
In addition to Ali, two other armed men were killed in a firefight.
Image of devastation: Numerous buildings in the Gaza Strip are in ruins.
© Omar Ishaq/dpa
Ali is accused of being responsible for several attacks on IDF troops.
He also acts as a high-ranking terrorist in the Nur Shams refugee camp.
In addition to the terrorist suspect, weapons were also found in the building, reports the
Times of Israel
.
Israeli troops were not injured in the battle.
Netanyahu says victory over Hamas “a matter of months”
Update from February 7th, 7:00 p.m
.: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced at a press conference that a victory over Hamas is “within reach.”
According to Netanyahu, it is just “a matter of months.”
The aim is still to dismantle the terrorist organization, free the remaining hostages and ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel, reports the
Times of Israel
.
There is no alternative to Israel fighting Hamas until it is destroyed.
“There is no solution other than complete victory,” Netanyahu said.
A victory over Hamas also represents a “victory for the entire free world.” The Prime Minister is not concerned that the military aggression could pose a danger to the remaining hostages.
He assumes that increased military pressure will promote the release of people abducted from Israel.
Update from February 7th, 5:01 p.m.:
After his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US Secretary of State Blinken also met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for talks.
Abbas belongs to Fatah, which is based in the West Bank.
Merz travels to Israel for talks with Netanyahu
Update from February 7th, 4:27 p.m.:
Union faction leader Friedrich Merz is traveling to Israel next week.
In Jerusalem, Merz and his delegation will also be received by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as a parliamentary group spokesman announced on Wednesday.
During the trip on Monday and Tuesday, the delegation wanted to “gain a picture of the effects of Hamas’ terrorist attacks on Israel, hold discussions about regional security and express the full solidarity and support of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group with Israel.”
Update from February 7th, 3:28 p.m.:
According to a government spokesman, Israel is examining the new proposal for a ceasefire.
“The Mossad is looking closely at what has been presented to us,” he says, referring to the Israeli secret service.
He is repeating a statement that Israel published.
A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was announced for the evening.
Israeli forces probably find Hamas tunnels under Khan Yunis
Update from February 7th, 2:39 p.m.:
The Israeli armed forces have published images that are said to show a Hamas tunnel under the city of Khan Yunis.
The tunnel extends about a kilometer under the middle of the “civilian area” of Khan Yunis and is said to have cost several hundred thousand euros.
This is what the Israeli armed forces report on X.
The “tunnel was used by high-ranking militants to hold Israeli hostages and hide senior Hamas members,” the post continued.
War in Israel: US Secretary of State Blinken meets Netanyahu
Update from February 7th, 2:05 p.m.:
As part of efforts to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza war and the release of further hostages held by Hamas, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has begun talks in Israel.
He first met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Wednesday, according to US circles.
The US, along with Qatar and Egypt, are involved in mediating a new deal between Israel and the Islamist Hamas.
There will probably not be a previously reported private meeting between Blinken and Israeli General Staff Herzi Halewi.
According to Israeli media, Netanyahu's office objected to the plan because it would involve a meeting between a foreign diplomat and a military official without the presence of an elected Israeli official.
Saudi Arabia reiterates – “No diplomatic relations with Israel”
Update from February 7th, 12:45 p.m.:
Saudi Arabia only wants to establish relations with Israel once there is an independent and recognized Palestinian state.
This must be built along the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital, the Saudi Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday evening.
Saudi Arabia has also communicated its “firm position” to the US government, which is trying to mediate on possible normalization between the two countries.
Without such a Palestinian state, “there will be no diplomatic relations with Israel,” Riyadh said.
Before the start of the Gaza war between Israel and the Islamist Hamas, there were many signs of such normalization.
According to Hamas's own account, its terrorist attack on Israel on October 7th did not have the direct aim of stopping this rapprochement.
However, the attack "thwarted an attempt by Israel to invade the region under the guise of normalization and to violate the rights of the Palestinians," said Osama Hamdan, a member of the Hamas Politburo.
Riyadh suspended normalization talks after the start of the Gaza war.
Hamas presents its own plan for hostage deal
Update from February 7, 11:40 a.m.:
Anonymous Israeli officials have told the Israeli news portal
Ynet News
that the country cannot accept Hamas' demands for an end to the war and the release of around 1,500 Palestinians.
There are also “serious terrorists” among the Palestinians whose release Hamas is demanding.
Update from February 7th, 10:45 a.m.:
In the midst of negotiations between Hamas and Israel, the Palestinian organization has now brought its own draft for a hostage deal into play.
This was reported by the Reuters news agency.
The plan therefore consists of three phases, each lasting 45 days.
In the
first phase
, all female hostages, male hostages under the age of 19, the elderly and sick people should be released.
In return, Israel should release all Palestinian women and children in Israeli prisons.
In the
second phase,
all remaining male hostages are to be released.
In the
third phase,
the bodies of the killed hostages will finally be handed over to Israel.
At the end of this phase, Hamas hopes for a deal to end the war, rebuild Gaza and withdraw all Israeli troops.
Israeli Air Force attacks Syrian city of Homs: Two Hezbollah fighters killed
Update from February 7th, 9:15 a.m.:
According to observers, eight people were killed in Israeli air strikes on the Syrian city of Homs.
The dead in the attack on a building were six civilians and two fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah militia, said the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahman, on Wednesday.
Among the civilians were a woman and a child.
The attacked building in Homs was completely destroyed.
The Observatory obtains its information from a network of various sources in Syria.
The organization's information is often difficult to verify independently.
The Syrian Defense Ministry said Israel struck a number of targets in Homs and the surrounding area of the western Syrian city.
Many civilians were killed or injured.
Images from Syrian state television showed rescue workers searching through rubble of a destroyed building.
Update from February 7th, 8:10 a.m.:
According to the Israeli newspaper
Israel Hayom,
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wants to meet with Chief of General Staff Herzi Halewi in Israel.
Israeli media interprets Blinken's request for a private meeting with Halewi as a desire to obtain an honest opinion on the current military situation in Gaza without the influence of politicians.
Military experts continue to doubt the true extent of Israel's military success.
Most recently, former US Central Command commander General Frank McKenzie told NBC News that Israel's success in the Gaza offensive was "very limited."
In Israel, too, politicians such as the opposition members Gadi Eisenkot and Gideon Saar emphasize that they are still a long way from achieving their goals.
Hamas responds to hostage deal with several demands on Israel
First report from February 7th:
Tel Aviv - In the wake of the war in Israel and the Gaza Strip, Hamas's response to the latest draft of a hostage deal has been eagerly awaited in recent days.
The Qatari government had previously spoken of positive signals.
"We have received a positive response from Hamas, it has several reservations but is generally positive," Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said at a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday (Feb 6). Doha.
Hamas itself later said that it and its allies had handled the mediation proposal “in a positive spirit.”
However, the agreement must lead to a complete and comprehensive ceasefire, an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the reconstruction of the war-torn coastal area and the full release of Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas hostage deal: Joe Biden reacts to the response from Gaza
US President Joe Biden commented on the development in Washington with the words: “There is some movement.” There was a reaction from Hamas, but it seemed “a little exaggerated.”
Israeli officials gave a mixed picture.
A senior Israeli official told
Kan News
: "Hamas has put forward a list of preliminary demands, some of which are acceptable and some of which are non-negotiable for us."
Another Israeli official confirmed to the broadcaster that Israel would not give in to calls for an end to the war.
However, this is Hamas' central demand.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly emphasizes that Israel will not end the war until the main goals - the destruction of Hamas and the release of the hostages - are achieved.
Hamas provides response to hostage deal: “Unclear and ambiguous” details
In an interview with the Reuters news agency, high-ranking Hamas representative Ghazi Hamad attributed the fact that it took a while for Hamas to respond to the international proposal for a hostage deal to the “unclear and ambiguous” details of the draft.
However, media reports citing anonymous officials blamed internal disagreements within Hamas.
Hamad also said their goal was to free as many Palestinians as possible.
(bb)