Gaza Once Again Under Israeli Bombs
©(Jack GUEZ, AFP)
The war between Israel and Hamas entered its 56th day on Friday December 1, since the Palestinian Islamist movement launched a bloody attack on Israeli soil on 7 October from the Gaza Strip, where it seized power in 2007.

According to Israel, 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in this attack, during which around 240 people were abducted and taken to the Gaza Strip.

In retaliation, Israel relentlessly bombed the Gaza Strip, where its army entered, before a ceasefire began on November 24. The Israeli army resumed bombings at the end of this pause on Friday morning.

More than 15,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip, including over 6,150 under the age of 18, according to Hamas.

Here are the latest developments:
End of the Ceasefire

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which allowed the release of 105 hostages and 240 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, as well as the entry of more humanitarian aid into Gaza, expired on Friday morning, and hostilities resumed.

The Israeli army claimed to have hit "over 200 terrorist targets" in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas and Israel blame each other for the failure to extend the ceasefire, acknowledging, in particular, that they did not agree on the list of hostages.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also accused Hamas of "violating the agreement" and "firing rockets" towards Israel.
COP28 in the Shadow of War

The shadow of the Israel-Hamas conflict hangs over COP28, currently taking place in Dubai, sometimes overshadowing climate-related issues.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog traveled to Dubai to plead with his counterparts for the release of hostages still held in the Gaza Strip.


Iranian President Ebrahim Raissi canceled his attendance because Israel had been invited to participate, according to official media, and his delegation left COP28 in protest.

Among other leaders who dedicated part of their brief interventions to the Gaza conflict, King Abdullah II of Jordan declared it inconceivable "to talk about climate change independently of the humanitarian tragedies around us."
International Community Concerns

Qatar, the main mediator between Israel and Hamas, has urged the international community to act quickly to end the violence in the Gaza Strip, just like the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, who called the resumption of hostilities "catastrophic."

"Inaction is, essentially, a green light for the killing of children," said James Elder, spokesperson for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), to journalists.

The World Health Organization (WHO) described a "horror movie" in Gaza's hospitals. Rob Holden, a senior official in charge of emergency situations in Gaza, said, "The floor is flooded with blood and covered with patients waiting for vital care," with the worst imaginable injuries.
Five Hostages Dead, Three Journalists Killed

The Israeli army confirmed the death of five people who were hostages in the Gaza Strip and said it had informed the families.

A provisional toll mentioned 178 killed in the evening, according to Hamas.

Additionally, the official Turkish news agency Anadolu reported on Friday that a Palestinian freelance journalist it employed in the Gaza Strip was killed in Israeli bombardment.

Muntasir al-Sawwaf, who worked as a cameraman for the agency, died with his brother and "some of his relatives" in the southern part of the enclave, the agency specified.
Continued Negotiations

The United States "continues to work with Israel, Egypt and Qatar on ways to extend the humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza," a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said on Friday.
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