Strikes pound Gaza as Israel PM vows to ramp up pressure

GAZA STRIP

Palestinians on Thursday mourned relatives killed in overnight Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, where Israel's prime minister has vowed to intensify the pressure on militants even as demands grow for him to reach a deal that would free hostages.

AFPTV images showed mourners at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah city, where several white-shrouded corpses lay on the ground. One man cradled the covered body of a child.

Rescuers confirmed several people had been killed in separate Israeli strikes in central Gaza.

At the hospital, Ahmed Abu Muheisen said one strike had targeted his cousin's family in the Al-Zuwaida area.

"His children and his wife were martyred and so was he," Muheisen said.

"Enough, enough already!" said another mourner, Eid Abu Rakab.

In Israel too, there are similar calls.

Anti-government demonstrators, sometimes marching by the tens of thousands, and separate rallies by families and other supporters of hostages held by Hamas, have stepped up their actions demanding the government reach a deal to free the captives.

Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh accused Israel of deliberately undermining negotiations for a truce and hostage release deal because it did not want to end the war.

The Israeli military said it had carried out 25 strikes in 24 hours, targeting "military structures, terrorist infrastructure, terrorist cells and rigged structures.”

At least 81 people were killed in Israeli attacks during the latest 24-hour period, according to the most recent update.

Netanyahu, who has repeatedly vowed to eradicate Hamas, insisted late on July 16 that despite mounting pressure, there would be no let-up in Israel's campaign against the militants.

"This is exactly the time to increase the pressure even more, to bring home all the hostages, the living and the dead, and to achieve all the war objectives," he said.

He rammed home the point in a speech to parliament, saying, "We have got them by the throat; we are on the road to absolute victory.”

Netanyahu recalled that his decision to send Israeli ground troops into Rafah in May had also drawn international criticism, including from top ally the United States.

"In the Middle East, it's the strong and determined who are valued, not the weak and fragile," he said.

Media reported said yesterday that Israeli forces have killed another 12,630 people and wounded more than 24,600 others, meaning more than 2,500 Palestinians were killed every month since the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to refrain from civilian casualties in January.

Meanwhile local authorities expressed fears that disease could rapidly spread as wastewater pumping stations in one of Gaza's main cities stopped working because fuel had run out.

Tens of thousands of people displaced by the Israel-Hamas war have sought shelter in Deir al-Balah, and city authorities said more than 700,000 people could be at risk from a "health and environmental crisis.”

It predicted that "roads will be flooded by waste water" and "diseases will spread.”

Draft notices to start for Ultra-Orthodox men

Ultra-Orthodox protesters fought police near Tel Aviv hours after Israel's military said it will begin issuing draft notices for men in the religious Jewish community within days.

Historically exempt from compulsory military service, ultra-Orthodox seminary students are being called up as Israel's war in Gaza and potential conflict with Hezbollah on the northern border saps resources and fuels resentment against those who do not have to serve.

The Israeli military said it will start issuing initial summons orders on July 21, beginning the recruitment screening process.

A statement noted "the increased operational needs" of the army but did not mention how many men would be drafted or when they could start serving.

In response to the announcement, demonstrators in Bnei Brak, an Orthodox majority town, blocked a highway, attacked police and called officers "Nazis,” according to a police spokesperson.

Under longstanding arrangements, ultra-Orthodox Jews, who make up about 13 percent of Israel's 10 million population, have not been subject to the draft.