Israel besieges Gaza from 3 directions, "spiral of conflict" is spreading

Israeli soldiers near the Gaza Strip (Photo: Reuters).

A spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced today, November 3, that the country's army is entering Gaza and destroying Hamas infrastructure.

"IDF forces are encircling Gaza from the air, land and sea, surrounding Gaza City and its surroundings," Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said at a press conference.

"The (Israeli) fighters are advancing in battles, destroying (Hamas) infrastructure above ground and underground, and eliminating the enemy," the IDF spokesman added.

Mr. Hagari said that the IDF forces had identified a Hamas explosives warehouse.

Location of Gaza Strip (Graphic: BBC).

United Arab Emirates (UAE) officials today warned of the risk of the Hamas-Israel conflict spreading to the region from the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

“As we continue to work to stop this war, we cannot ignore the broader context and the need to reduce the temperature in the region that is approaching a tipping point,” UAE foreign minister Noura Al Kaabi said at the conference in Abu Dhabi.

"The risk of (conflict) spreading in the region and escalating further is real, as is the risk that extremist groups will exploit the situation to spread their ideologies that will trap us in a spiral of conflict," said Ms. Al Kaabi.

The UAE, a leading oil producer, sees Islamist groups like Hamas as an existential threat to the Middle East.

“Every effort must be made to protect civilians and bring this conflict to an immediate end,” the UAE official said.

Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip in its war with Hamas has raised concerns among Arab states about a sharp rise in civilian casualties as well as Israel's blockade of the densely populated coastal strip.

The UAE said it planned to take in 1,000 Palestinian children from Gaza, but did not say how they would leave the besieged area.

“We are working tirelessly to achieve an immediate and full humanitarian ceasefire so that aid can be delivered to the Gaza Strip,” Ms. Al Kaabi added.

UAE officials also called for the protection of civilians and said the conflict was the result of "decades of failure" to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hezbollah in Lebanon announced on November 2 that it used two small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to attack an Israeli command post on the Lebanon-Israel border. This is believed to be the first time Hezbollah has used suicide UAVs to attack an enemy.

The Israeli military said it carried out strikes inside Lebanon in response, destroying a Hezbollah compound and damaging the group's infrastructure.

Israel said its military was maintaining a "very high level of alert" on the Lebanese border. The IDF announced a "wide-scale operation on the northern border".

Earlier, the Israeli Prime Minister warned that Lebanon would suffer dire consequences if Hezbollah entered the war in the Gaza Strip.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/israel-bao-vay-gaza-tu-3-huong-vong-xoay-xung-dot-tren-da-lan-rong-20231103184844669.htm