On June 20, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched airstrikes on the central and southern Gaza Strip, while IDF tanks advanced deeper into the city of Rafah.
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| Israeli tanks are advancing deep into Rafah. (Source: EPA-EFE) |
Reuters news agency quoted medical officials as saying that Israeli aircraft attacked a house in the Al-Nuseirat residential area, killing two people and wounding 12 others, while tanks shelled the Al-Maghazi and Al-Bureij residential areas.
These were three of the eight settlements that housed the first Palestinian refugees who fled the conflict to Gaza in the late 1940s.
The IDF is currently focusing its attacks on the two last remaining Hamas strongholds: Rafah in the south and Deir al-Balah in the centre. However, Hamas members have recently fled to other areas to switch to guerrilla warfare.
On the same day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement saying that the Middle Eastern country needs the US to provide ammunition for its "battle for survival" and that he is "ready to endure personal attacks as long as he receives ammunition" from Washington.
Netanyahu's remarks came days after he released a video criticizing the US for "delaying the supply of weapons and ammunition to Israel over the past few months" as "unimaginable", angering Washington officials.
AFP news agency on June 20 quoted US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby as saying: "Those comments are deeply disappointing and certainly upsetting to us, given the level of support we have provided and will continue to provide."
Mr. Kirby also noted that US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will meet with his Israeli counterpart Tzachi Hanegbi and Secretary of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer on the same day.
Meanwhile, more than 30 United Nations (UN) experts have issued a statement calling on countries and companies to stop transferring weapons and ammunition to Israel, mentioning BAE Systems, Boeing, Caterpillar, General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin.
“These companies, by sending weapons, parts, components and ammunition to Israeli forces, risk becoming complicit in serious violations of international human rights and international humanitarian law,” the statement said.
The cessation of transfers must include those made indirectly through intermediary countries that could ultimately be used by Israeli forces, particularly in the ongoing offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Financial institutions that invested in these weapons companies, including Bank of America, Capital Group and JP Morgan Chase, could also be called to account.
“The imperative to impose an arms embargo on Israel and for investors to take decisive action is more urgent than ever,” the statement said.
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