JDay after day, the terrible toll of the Gaza war continues to worsen, now exceeding forty thousand dead and some one hundred thousand wounded, which, on the scale of France, would represent approximately 1.3 million dead, a third of them children, and three million wounded. Even though these figures are dizzying, international opinion seems to have become accustomed to such a routine of horror.
Such widespread passivity can be explained by various factors, starting with the ban on Western press access to Gaza, which softens the blow of the ongoing tragedy and even encourages denial campaigns. But the scale of this collective shock also stems from a troubling loss of meaning, as if such a terrible carnage had come to defy understanding. This is why it is essential to recall that the Israeli offensive against Gaza, launched in retaliation for the terrorist bloodbath of October 7, 2023, has already changed its nature twice, first with the land reoccupation of October 27, then with the attack on Rafah on May 6.
- A first war of reprisals
In response to the massacre perpetrated on October 7 by Hamas and its allies in Israeli territory (1,200 dead, two-thirds of them civilians), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government launched an unprecedented wave of bombings against the Gaza Strip. The intense pounding of the Palestinian enclave, cut off from the rest of the world, left nearly eight thousand dead in three weeks, even though two-thirds of the population had to flee their homes to reach areas deemed “safe” by the Israeli army. Although the vast majority of victims were recorded in the center and north of the territory, no sector of the Gaza Strip was truly spared. Israel’s allies solemnly warned it of the dangers of a ground offensive. But Benjamin Netanyahu ignored them, even if it meant falling into the trap that Hamas had set for him in Gaza.
- The Second War of Reoccupation
The ground campaign that Israel launched in the Gaza Strip on October 27 is fundamentally different from the previous ground interventions that marked the 2009 and 2014 wars in Gaza. It is indeed a methodical and devastating reoccupation, based on Israel’s total control of a central axis, running for seven kilometers to the Mediterranean, an axis that cuts the enclave in two south of Gaza City. This axis is called the “Netzarim corridor” by Israel in memory of the religiously inspired settlement that was evacuated there in 2005.
You have 49.21% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
Related News :