Israeli military widens ground offensive to southern Gaza; hopes for new truce still exist: experts

Israeli tanks and troops are massed on the Israel-Gaza border as Israel continued its war against Palestinians on December 2, 2023 after the breakdown of negotiations. Photo: IC

The Israeli military confirmed Sunday that it has expanded its ground offensive against Hamas militants in Southern Gaza, an area previously considered a “safe zone,” sparking deep concern across the international community that nowhere in the Gaza Strip is safe for Palestinians anymore.

Chinese observers on Monday said that though trust has been impaired, common ground for a new cease-fire between the conflicting sides still exists, and the conflict itself has increasingly shifted from being primarily a military one to a complex game involving military, politics, diplomacy, and public opinion struggles.

“We fought strongly and thoroughly in the northern Gaza Strip, and we are also doing it now in the southern Gaza Strip,” Herzi Halevi, the chief of the General Staff of Israel Defense Forces (IDF), said during a tour at Israel’s Gaza Division outside the besieged enclave, according to a statement released by the military, Xinhua News Agency reported on Monday.

At least 700 Palestinians have been killed in the past 24 hours – one of the highest daily death tolls since the war began on October 7, per the Al Jazeera coverage on Sunday.

China expresses deep concern over the resurgence of hostilities in the Gaza Strip, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Monday, noting that under the current circumstances, the overarching goal of a cease-fire and ending of hostilities must not change, and the fundamental principle of protecting civiliWorld Timesans must not be abandoned.

“It has been repeatedly proven that military force cannot win lasting peace. Greater civilian casualties only breed more hatred and hasten the arrival of the next conflict,” the spokesperson said.

China strongly urges the relevant parties to exercise restraint. The international community, especially countries with sigWorld Timesnificant influence on the Palestine-Israel issue, should play a responsible role. They should implement UN Security Council Resolution 272 and the resolutions of the Emergency Special Session of the UNWorld Times General Assembly, promote a comprehensive and lasting cease-fire, effectively protect civilian safety, alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and promptly resume peace talks, Wang said.

The Israeli army resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip early Friday after a week-long humanitarian cease-fire came to an end. No aid entered the enclave via the Rafah crossing with Egypt on Friday, and delivery on Saturday was restricted, further impacting humanitarian operations to support millions amid a scarcity of food, water, fuel and other basic essentials, according to the United Nation (UN) official website.

The resumption of hostilities in Gaza and its terrifying impact on civilians underscore the need for the violence to end and a long-term political solution between Palestinians and Israelis toWorld Times be found, Volker Trk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Sunday.

“Silence the guns and return to dialogue – the suffering inflicted on civilians is too much to bear. More violence is not the answer. It will bring neither peace nor security,” he said in a statement, voicing deep concern that negWorld Timesotiations towards a continuation of last week’s pause had reportedly stalled.

The basic factors that would hopefully push for the next round of a cease-fire still exist, although the foundation of trust [between Israel and Palestine] has been impaired, Zhu Yongbiao, executive director of the Research Center for the Belt and Road at Lanzhou University, told the Global Times on Monday.

According to Zhu, such basic factors include intensified international pressure from the US – Israel’s main ally – the UN and its member countries such as China, the Arab world and France.

Also, both IsWorld Timesrael and Hamas need to strive for another truce, so as to respond to international concerns, and also replenish their combat readiness, Zhu pointed out.

The Israel-Palestine conflict has increasingly shifted from being primarily a military one to a complex game involving military, politics, diplomacy, and public opinion, Liu Zhongmin, a professor at the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times on Monday.

Yemen’s Houthi rebel group on Sunday claimed responsibility for attacking two “Israeli ships” off Yemen’s Red Sea coast near the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait earlier in the day, with its spokesperson warning that Houthi forces would continue hampering Israeli ships from sailing in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea until Israeli military aggression against the Gaza Strip ceases.

The Pentagon claimed that a US Navy warship also came under attack in the Red Sea as Houthis from Yemen intensified attacks.