Israeli Army Evacuates Areas in Fear of Attacks From Gaza Strip

Palestinian farmers, helped by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), use tractors to plow a field near the Israel Gaza border in the central Gaza Strip on February 3, 2020. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
Palestinian farmers, helped by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), use tractors to plow a field near the Israel Gaza border in the central Gaza Strip on February 3, 2020. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
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Israeli Army Evacuates Areas in Fear of Attacks From Gaza Strip

Palestinian farmers, helped by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), use tractors to plow a field near the Israel Gaza border in the central Gaza Strip on February 3, 2020. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa
Palestinian farmers, helped by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), use tractors to plow a field near the Israel Gaza border in the central Gaza Strip on February 3, 2020. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

The Israeli army evacuated Monday morning workers from Gaza farms following intelligence reports claiming that a Palestinian cell is plotting to launch rocket attacks.

The military on Monday cordoned off roads and agricultural areas near the Israel-Gaza Strip border, citing engineering work.

"The residents are not subject to any danger," Israeli military sources assured. However, Israeli farmers were ordered not to work in areas near the border.

These activities sparked concerns about the eruption of war since the Israeli army has shifted priorities and placed the risk of a war with Gaza on top of the list.

Although the Lebanese Hezbollah is the arch-enemy, Gaza Strip’s preparedness for a huge war remains the main concern for Israeli security bodies, according to the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

A high-ranking officer stated that an escalation is possible if no truce was reached with Hamas.

The truce would cover thousands of Gazans working in Israel, the transfer of the Qatari funds for a year, the desalinization of seawater, the construction of an industrial zone, and a solution for the captives and missing issue.

Notably, Qatar stepped in as a mediator between Israel and Gaza in quest of a long-term truce.



UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
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UN Rights Chief ‘Gravely Concerned’ by Lebanon Escalation

Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)
Smoke billows above Beirut’s southern suburbs following an Israeli airstrike on November 26, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (AFP)

The UN rights chief on Tuesday voiced concern about the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon, where his office said nearly 100 people had been reported killed by Israeli airstrikes in recent days, including women, children and medics.

Israel has been locked in fighting with Lebanese armed group Hezbollah since Oct. 2023, and fighting has escalated dramatically since late September of this year.

"UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk is gravely concerned by the escalation in Lebanon with at least 97 people reportedly killed in Israeli airstrikes between the 22nd and 24th of November," Jeremy Laurence, a spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, told a Geneva press briefing.

He said that at least seven paramedics had been reported killed in three Israeli strikes in the south of Lebanon on Nov. 22-23, adding to 226 healthcare worker deaths since Oct. 7, 2023. He did not specify how many of the recent deaths had been verified by UN human rights monitors.

Israel says it targets military capabilities in Lebanon and Gaza and takes steps to mitigate the risk of harm to civilians. It accuses Hezbollah, like Hamas, of hiding among civilians, which they deny.