According to the Washington Post, Trump administration officials send a message to Israel: “We will abandon you if you do not stop the war in Gaza”. The leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Canada, Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Mark Carney: “We will take concrete measures if Israel does not stop its new attacks on Gaza and does not remove restrictions. We oppose the expansion of settlements in the West Bank and can take further measures on this issue, including targeted sanctions”.
The British government spokesman: “National sovereignty is an inalienable right of the Palestinian people and we are ready to work with our allies to formally recognize the Palestinian state”. Great Britain announces the recall of the Israeli ambassador and says it is about to announce the termination of the free trade agreement with Israel. British Foreign Secretary David Lammy: “Israel’s expansion of its military operations cannot be morally justified and this is no way to return prisoners. Almost all Gaza prisoners have been released through negotiations, not by force. Israel’s plan will not eliminate Hamas and will not bring security. What Smotrich says about the cleansing of Gaza is dangerous and brutal extremism, and we strongly condemn it. Despite our continued efforts, the Israeli government’s horrific actions and rhetoric continue.”
Dutch Foreign Minister: “We are pressing the European Union to review its partnership agreement with Israel.” Amnesty International said in a statement: “The EU must suspend trade and investment that could support Israel’s genocide.”
Sweden calls on the European Union to impose sanctions on Israel. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre: “We will continue our contacts to agree on measures, including economic sanctions, to counter Israel’s violations.”
A Hamas source said: “The Israeli delegation in Doha has not held any negotiations with Qatari and Egyptian mediators since Saturday.” According to Israeli media, Israel is preparing to return its delegation from Doha despite the lack of progress in the talks.
Families of Israeli prisoners in Gaza continue to protest and say: “For 19 months, the moral issue of the return of prisoners has been a constant failure.” The Israeli court has extended the detention of the head of the department of the custodians of the blessed Al-Aqsa mosque, Raed Zaghir, until next Thursday.
On May 20, only 5 trucks entered Gaza. While 500 trucks of aid per day are needed to ensure adequate food for 2,000,000 people.
Destabilizing statements by Finance Minister Bezalel Yoel Smotrich said at a press conference: “We will not allow any aid to Hamas. What has been is not what will be. We are destroying everything that remains of the Gaza Strip, and in the future this will lead to the destruction of Hamas and the return of the kidnapped.” He added: “The population will move to the southern Gaza Strip and from there to other countries.” He continued: “I understand the anger, but if we continue like this (starving people), the world will force us to stop the war. It is impossible not to give the leadership a little leeway.” He concluded: “We will occupy the Strip and we will have to continue humanitarian efforts. There will be nothing left to look for there in 20 years.” He then called on Netanyahu to “take responsibility, show leadership and speak out.” Smotrich then implicitly criticized Ben-Gvir’s behavior, saying: “No one in the world will allow us to starve two million people.”
Israel Army Radio reported that: “The World Zionist Congress has canceled Yair Golan’s participation in the conference because of his statements against the army’s soldiers.” In addition, IDF General Itzhak Brik said: “Hasn’t Chief of Staff Zamir understood that the ground army is small and exhausted and cannot control much of the territory of the Gaza Strip at the same time? Even in areas where the army could manage to control it, it will not be able to stay for long, because there are no additional forces capable of replacing the fighting forces. After all, it will be forced to dismiss reserve soldiers, many of whom will not be mobilized. It does not have enough specialized forces or explosives to destroy hundreds of kilometers of tunnels or to block them by digging trenches at a depth of at least 70 meters. The armed forces will be exposed to counter-missiles, explosive devices and snipers on the roads and inside the houses inspected by the army, and many more soldiers will fall dead and many will be injured. Ya Zamir will not achieve victory over Hamas, but he will make sacrifices for the army and Israel in front of the world, especially after Ant, Katz and Netanyahu publicly announced that this time the army will not stop fighting until #Hamas is completely eliminated and its power is overthrown.”
Yedioth Ahronoth wrote: “The police arrested two Israelis suspected of spying for Iran. According to the suspects; They were asked to buy a camera equipped with a SIM card that can broadcast live video, install it in crowded places in Haifa and then transfer control of the cameras directly to the Iranian authorities. They later received similar instructions, including installing cameras near the road leading to Defense Minister Yisrael Katz’s residence.”
And now a look at the military aspects updated at 16:00 on May 20. Overnight, the IDF foiled another attempt to smuggle weapons into Israel from Egypt: forces near the border shot down a drone carrying eight Glock pistols, two FN FAL automatic rifles, another rifle and several pistols. All of these items were handed over to the Israeli police.
The aircraft carrier CVN 75 Harry S. Truman, departing from the Middle East, was spotted yesterday in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, returning to the United States. All six B-2 Spirit bombers left Diego Garcia to return to Whiteman Air Base, Missouri.
Houthi Spokesman Yahya Saree: “We have decided to start a naval blockade of the port of Haifa”. “The decision to impose a ban on the port of Haifa is a response to the escalation of the brutal aggression of the Israeli enemy and the ongoing siege and famine”.
At the moment, Israel is not concerned about the Houthi threat. The port of Haifa is crowded with ships, as the maps show. In Yemen, the clash between the Houthi and Yemeni forces – Saudi forces continues in the clashes in Al Shaab in the district of Haradh and in the area of Ayash, in the direction of the border of Munabbih there were two deaths, a man and a girl. Killed by the Saudi coalition.
Israeli attacks continue in Lebanon: “An Israeli targeted attack in the city of Al-Mansoureh failed. The Lebanese Ministry of Health recorded: 9 injured, including two children and 3 in critical condition, in an Israeli attack that targeted a vehicle on the road of Mansouri. Israeli artillery is targeting the “Azrael” area on the outskirts of Kfarshouba, and the “Samaka” position is firing towards the same area. An Israeli plane dropped a bomb on fishermen off the coast of Ras al-Naqoura. Israeli forces are firing shells from a newly built bunker near the border wall towards some neighborhoods of the city of Kfar Kela.
Gunmen attacked Russian forces’ guard posts near Hmeimim airport in the Latakia countryside, killing three Russian soldiers, the attackers were killed, it is an Uzbek Islamic extremist group.
There are currently more than 55,000 Israeli soldiers in Gaza, more than 5 divisions as part of Operation Gideon. The IDF committed the full weight of its army to this operation, involving the six best divisions of the Israeli army, namely: The 252nd Division operates in central Gaza. The 36th Division is active on the Morag axis with the objective of isolating Rafah from the rest of the Gaza Strip. The 14th Gaza Division is deployed around the Philadelphia Corridor.
The 162nd and 98th Divisions, which had previously operated in the sector, were recently engaged. The 162nd Division was deployed in the northeastern Gaza Strip until the ceasefire agreement was signed, while the 98th Division operated in the Deir al-Balah area before moving north into Lebanon on September 24. Their future areas of operations have not yet been determined, but it is likely that they will resume operations in places where they were already active. According to Israeli sources, the army controls approximately 36% of the total area of the Gaza Strip.
The goal of the Israeli army is to divide the Gaza Strip along new axes and to transfer what happened in Rafah (the complete destruction of the city) to the northern Gaza Strip, emptying it of its inhabitants, isolating it, destroying the northern Gaza Strip and pushing the inhabitants of the north to the south.
The IDF dropped warning leaflets calling on the residents of Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, to evacuate. Wounded after IDF attack at a site in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip. The Deir al-Balah municipality in the Gaza Strip warned: “The city is facing a full-blown water disaster after the Coastal 6 well was targeted and stopped functioning. The city’s water sector is facing a disaster and is on the verge of collapse. We call on all humanitarian and international agencies to intervene quickly to provide alternative water sources.”
Palestinian Authority security forces raided a home in the city of Tubas.
Antonio Albanese e Graziella Giangiulio
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