Experts see little change after US asked Israelis to bomb 'surgically'

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: The New York Times
5 Dec 2023 21:43

The regime says its military officials have been resorting to social media to inform residents of incoming aggressions, but with power outages and limited access to the internet, the evacuation orders have led to confusion among Gazans.

A woman mourns the covered bodies of her child and her husband killed in an Israeli army bombardment of the Gaza Strip, in the hospital in Khan Younis, Tuesday Dec. 5, 2023 (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)

A report by the New York Times on Tuesday detailed that concerns have been raised within the Biden administration over the high death toll in Gaza and that White House officials have reportedly advised the Israeli regime to "work harder" to avoid harming Gazan civilians.

Despite so-called warnings, more than 300 people were massacred in the mere span of two days (Saturday to Monday), resembling the high casualties seen in the initial stages of the war.

The United Nations' humanitarian office noted that the period from Sunday to Monday afternoon witnessed some of the most intense shelling in Gaza so far.

Two experts on the laws of war told NYT they had not observed any notable changes in Israeli tactics in recent days when it came to waging war in Gaza.

“I don’t have the sense that the renewed Israeli operations are significantly different than the earlier operations in terms of seeking to minimize the risk of harm to civilians,” Brian Finucane, a former legal adviser at the State Department and now a senior adviser for the U.S. program at the International Crisis Group, said.

The Israeli regime has been spreading claims its military officials have been resorting to social media to inform residents of incoming aggressions, specifying the sectors that Gazans should leave and indicating the designated safe locations.

While the US sees these changes as potentially limiting civilian casualties, there are concerns about their effectiveness, given challenges such as power outages and limited internet access for Gazans, the NYT report states.

Despite attempts to enhance precision in evacuation guidance, the nature of the Israeli genocide that touches all corners of Gaza makes it difficult to identify reliably safe areas.

The continued use of bombs and heavy artillery in densely populated regions and the destruction of apartment blocks without clear military objectives further endanger civilians.

Reporters were informed on Tuesday by Israeli military spokesman Peter Lerner that he was "not aware of any limitations on the ability to utilize our firepower."

Take refuge? Where?

International aid groups have raised urgent alarms about the plight of Gaza's civilians, with concerns about the impossibility of providing relief under amplified aggressions.

On Tuesday, Thomas White, the Gaza director of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, reported that orders were given to evacuate neighborhoods housing approximately 600,000 residents.

He noted that this evacuation could result in an additional half a million people relocating to Rafah, situated along the southern border with Egypt.

This influx would effectively double the number of displaced individuals seeking shelter in the already densely populated city, as conveyed in his post on the social media platform X.

Population in areas who have been ordered to move over 600K - could see half a million people being displaced to Rafah

Rafah that normally has a population of 280K and already hosting around 470K IDP will not cope with a doubling of its IDP population #Gaza @unrwa
— Thomas White (@TomWhiteGaza) December 5, 2023

The UN's aid coordinator for the Palestinian territories Lynn Hastings warned of a potential "hellish scenario" unfolding, especially with the evacuation of neighborhoods potentially doubling the displaced population in cities like Rafah.

Hospitals, already strained, are at risk of being knocked offline, leaving the sick and wounded in a dire situation.

The World Health Organization expressed deep concern about the unfolding humanitarian crisis, noting, "We have seen what happened in northern Gaza,” the agency said. “This cannot be the blueprint for the south."

Irreparable damage

This comes as part of efforts for the US to repair its reputation after sustaining enormous damage over its support for the Israeli-led genocide in Gaza, as well as its fear of regional escalation.

Several US military bases and warships have been targeted by resistance groups over the past weeks due to US complicity in the Gaza genocide.

Some reports have recently pointed out that a rift between "Israel" and the US has been widening due to the genocide.

The reality however is that the US is fully supportive of Israeli actions has been mulling ways to further expedite the genocide before elections are due to be held.

In fact, Congress has been working on providing a standalone bill that would issue funding worth $106 billion for "Israel."

But certain conditions are standing in the way of its approval as Democrats are requesting more transparency in the disbursement of aid.

Legislators are hoping that the bill will go into effect before year's end.

While the IOF is continuing its genocidal campaign in Gaza, Israeli reports have pointed out that operations and wars over the years that have not ended with "total victory" have resulted in a decline in confidence in the Israeli government.

According to Lebanese MP Mohammad Raad, the genocide has resulted in a severe loss of international legitimacy for "Israel".