Was a weekend of heavy bombing both in Gaza and in Ukraine. A missile attack Israeli in a refugee camp west of Rafah, in the Gaza Strip, has killed at least 40 people Sunday evening. The explosions of eight missiles caused a huge fire in the Brix camp, in the Tal as-Sultan area, where many people were burned alive. There are also dozens of injured, according to the Palestinian Civil Protection. Israel confirmed the attack, saying it targeted military targets, including two Hamas officials, and used precision weapons. The Israeli army has opened an investigation into the incident.
It was also a bloody weekend in Ukraine. Saturday at Kharkiv a shopping center had been bombed by the Russians causing the death of 16 people while in the last 24 hours there has been intense fighting in eastern Ukraine, especially near the towns of Kupiansk and Pokrovsk. At least 95 armed clashes occurred: "The Russian aggressor is trying to exploit his superiority in terms of personnel, equipment and air support" wrote the General Staff of the Ukrainian armed forces, taking stock of the situation of the Russian invasion.
Israeli raid on a humanitarian zone in Rafah
In the Gaza Strip, the city of Rafah continues to be a symbol of the brutality of the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The Palestinian Red Crescent reported an Israeli air strike on a designated humanitarian area near Rafah which caused many victims.
The raid, which took place near the United Nations headquarters, caused the death of at least 40 people, according to Palestinian sources. Israel confirmed the attack, saying the target was a meeting of senior Hamas officials. Israeli forces announced that two senior members of the terrorist group were killed in the raid. “The attack was carried out against terrorists, who are a target in accordance with international law, using precision munitions and based on intelligence information indicating the use of the area by Hamas terrorists,” he said the army.
The presidency of the Palestinian National Authority has denounced a “atrocious massacre” by Israel in the Rafah camp, defining the attack as a challenge to resolutions of international legitimacy. He accused Israeli forces of deliberately targeting the displaced people's tents.
Twenty-eight dead and 180 injured are taken to the Trauma Patient Stabilization Center supported by Doctors Without Borders. “We are horrified, what happened proves once again that nowhere is safe in Gaza. We continue to call for an immediate and lasting ceasefire,” said the Italian nurse Gaia Giletta from Rafah. The Center opened on May 15 to assist trauma victims.
Israel also struck in Lebanon. The Israeli army announced on Telegram that it had struck a Hezbollah terrorist cell in a military facility in Yaroun, southern Lebanon and another cell in Houla. During the night, further Hezbollah targets were hit in southern Lebanon, including an arms depot and other military facilities in the areas of Meiss El Jabal, Khiam and Houla.
The Hamas Ministry of Health has updated it to almost 36 thousand victims since the beginning of the conflict.
Hamas returns to launch missiles on Tel Aviv
After four months, Hamas has resumed firing rockets at Tel Aviv and central Israel. The Israeli army counted eight rockets, claimed by the Qassam Brigades and launched from the Rafah area, where Israeli forces were conducting the military operation.
The attack, the largest in a long time, set off warning sirens. In Tel Aviv they were heard strong explosions caused by the intervention of the defense system Iron Dome, which intercepted three of the eight rockets. In Herzilya, fragments of a rocket hit a building, slightly injuring two people.
Le Qassam Brigades they claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that it was a response to “Zionist massacres against civilians“. The War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz - who called for an investigation into October 7 and the conduct of the war - denounced that "the shooting from Rafah shows that the IDF must act wherever Hamas is".
Rafah crossing reopens, new negotiations in Cairo on Tuesday
The Israeli intervention in Rafah coincided with the reopening of the border crossing by Egypt which allowed humanitarian aid to enter the Gaza Strip. The reopening of the crossing allowed theentry of 200 food aid trucks and four fuel tankers in the Strip.
All eyes are now on Cairo where they might on Tuesday resume negotiations to negotiate a possible truce and the release of the over 120 hostages still in Hamas hands. The mediators will be Egypt, the USA and Qatar. According to Israeli sources, recent developments in The Hague are leading the army to review the operation in the area, scaling it down: "It will continue to operate, but in a more contained way." Netanyahu convened the War Cabinet to discuss the position ahead of meetings in Cairo. Hamas reiterates the need to stop the war throughout the Gaza Strip even though the Israeli prime minister reiterates that he "is firmly against the end of the war".
The war in Ukraine: Kupiansk under siege
In parallel, Eastern Ukraine continues to be a fierce battlefield between Ukrainian forces and the Russian army. The Ukrainian army is trying to defend his positions against an enemy that has numerical and technological superiority. Russia has stepped up missile and air attacks, hitting various locations with kamikaze missiles and drones. On the Russian side, there were at least four missile attacks and 46 air attacks, using a total of 14 missiles and 69 fighter planes, and also using 311 kamikaze drones.
The main theater of these clashes is the city of Kupansk it is one of the main fronts of this war. In recent days, intense fighting has involved this area, with a total of 95 armed clashes recorded. Casualties from Saturday's Russian attack on a DIY hypermarket in Kharkiv, meanwhile, rose to 16 deaths, according to the region's governor, Oleg Synegubov.
“The attack on a shopping center in Kharkiv last Saturday is another example of war crimes and atrocities committed by Russia,” said EU High Representative Josep Borrell, on the sidelines of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.
Ukraine responded with an attack conducted by a drone in Russian territory which caused one death and three injuries at a service station in the Oriol region, located about 160 kilometers from the border. Local governor Andrei Klychkov confirmed the incident and said a drone fell on the gas station, damaging an administrative building. After
Zelensky continues to call for weapons to be sent to the West
The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky renewed its appeal to Western partners for greater military support, including the sending of F-16s and advanced air defense systems. He stated that he had information on the concentration points of Russian troops and urged them to destroy this terrorist threat. Zelensky called for an acceleration in the supply of F-16s and stressed the importance of obtaining air defense systems to protect Ukraine and stop Russian terrorists.
“We see every point of concentration of Russian troops. We know all the areas where Russian missiles and fighter planes are launched. Destroying this terrorist force, and thus saving thousands of lives and ensuring that the expansion of the war is stopped, is a purely political decision. A decision that must be made,” Zelensky said in his evening speech, according to the Kyiv Independent.
Medvedev threatens the USA: "World war if they attack Russian targets"
Dmitry Medvedev, number two of the Security Council in Moscow, warns of the possibility of a world war if Russian targets are hit by the Americans, as suggested by the Polish Foreign Minister.
“Hitting our targets by the Americans means start a world war, and a Foreign Minister, even from a country like Poland, should understand this" Moscow's number two wrote on social media.
The tension arises after statements by the Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, who called on the allies to lift the ban on Kiev using Atlantic military supplies on Russian territory. Medvedev then also referred to the tactical nuclear weapons announced by the Polish president, stating that Warsaw would receive its share of "radioactive ash": "Duda, you recently announced that you want to use tactical nuclear weapons in Poland, Warsaw will not be left out and will definitely receive its share of radioactive ash. Is this what you really want? The Poles are resentful; I have been like this for over 400 years...", commented Medvedev.
Meanwhile, the prime minister Giorgia Melons, in response to the words of the NATO secretary Stoltenberg, urged everyone to be "cautious" while underlining the importance of the Alliance's firmness.
Peace efforts continue, with French President Macron saying France and Germany will examine all scenarios to promote peace in Ukraine and provide support to Kiev at an upcoming meeting of the Franco-German Defense and Security Council.