January 22, Israeli prime minister, Netanyahu, refused a hostage deal with Hamas that would return all Israeli hostages under the conditions that Israel would withdraw all troops from Gaza, return all Palestinian prisoners, and leave Hamas intact. Netanyahu claims this deal would compromise Israel’s goals as well as put the country at risk. He made a statement, saying, “I reject outright the terms of surrender of the monsters of Hamas.” This has led to outrage amongst the families of hostages in Israel, with many protesting outside his home.
Netanyahu and Biden have begun to differ in goals, as Biden promotes the idea of a two-state solution. Netanyahu in a conference with the US claims that “In any future arrangement … Israel needs security control of all territory west of the Jordan [River].”
Biden maintains support of Israel but has growing concern about the conditions of the war. The Administration is currently considering decreasing the provisions of offensive weaponry in an attempt to pressure Israel in a more peaceful direction. The US would still, however, provide defensive weaponry at the same rate. This would include limiting dumb bombs and other non-precision artillery.
Despite differing end goals, the US and Britain remain defending Israel. The countries continue to strike Yemen targeting Houthi Militia. On January 22, a strike on Houthi military systems aimed to halt future attacks on aid to Israel. This is due to Houthi control of the Red Sea, and the bombardment of ships due to Israel’s actions against Gaza.
Monday, January 22 became the “deadliest day” for the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) in its invasion of Gaza. The IDF reported the loss of 24 soldiers, 21 of whom died in an explosion of Israeli explosives triggered by a grenade attack by Gazan militants.
Khan Younis is under evacuation as IDF troops bombard the city in search of Hamas members. Khan Younis is currently densely packed with refugees fleeing from other parts of Gaza. The three hospitals located in the city are full of patients, many of whom cannot flee due to the unsafe conditions of the war-torn streets.
South Africa has formally accused Israel of genocide, taking them to the ICJ international courts. Israel claims to be innocent, citing previously classified documents from the Israeli Cabinet. This was their attempt to refute “intent of destruction,” one of the requirements for violence to be categorized as genocide.
Genocide was first formally defined in 1944, primarily attributed to the Holocaust during WWII. After the end of the war, the Geneva Conventions established international law after the war. The Geneva Conventions prohibit slavery, collective punishment, and acts of terrorism, among others. Genocide was prohibited by the UN General Assembly in 1946. The 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide outlines the requirements for actions to be categorized as genocide.
“In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
- Killing members of the group;
- Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
- Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
- Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
- Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.”
The ICJ has chosen to hear the case, though a decision has yet to be made. The ICJ has instructed Israel to prevent acts of genocide against Palestine, however, a cease-fire has not been ordered. Netanyahu calls the accusation alone, “outrageous, and the willingness of the court to even discuss this is a disgrace that will not be erased for generations.”
Outside of Israel and Palestine, global protests continue. One such avenue is the current boycotts by the BDS, or Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement. Many pro-Palestinian activists call for the boycott of companies such as Starbucks, McDonalds, Disney, and Coca-Cola, as these companies aid the IDF. The BDS movement was founded in 2005, inspired by the boycotts of apartheid South Africa, and the segregated US that ended these oppressive systems.
The US military became further involved in the global conflict as three US soldiers were killed in a drone strike by Iran-backed Iraqi resistance soldiers. The drone attack has resulted in the first US military deaths in the Middle East since the attacks on October 7th. The US has maintained a presence in the Middle East as measures to prevent a resurgence of the Islamic State.
Iran backed militias grow and have created a threat for US and Israeli forces. These include those in Jordan, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and both Syrian and Iraqi militias.
Recent allegations against workers of UNRWA, the UN’s largest agency providing aid to Gaza, have halted US funding to the United Nations Relief Works Agency. Israeli intelligence claims that nearly 200 employees are associated with Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and had involvement in the October 7th attack. Countries suspending funding include: the US, Germany, Japan, Canada, the Netherlands, Britain, Australia, Austria, and Finland.
US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez responded to the cut in aid, “Cutting off support to [UNRWA] – the primary source of humanitarian aid to 2 million+ Gazans – is unacceptable. Among an organization of 13,000 UN aid workers, risking the starvation of millions over grave allegations of 12 is indefensible.”
Doctors Without Borders issues a statement January 29, on ceasing of funding for UNRWA. “In the Gaza strip, the humanitarian crisis has reached catastrophic levels, and any additional limitations on aid will result in more deaths and suffering. Humanitarian organizations are already grappling to meet even a fraction of the urgent needs in Gaza.”
This is after continuously growing concerns of the organization, including that of mothers and newborns in Gaza. Mothers facing pregnancy complications are unable to find room in hospitals, or get to hospitals to access care. Doctors Without Borders maintains a stance of calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.
There is not an end to the war in sight, but the past week has shown vast shifts in the international public eye. The Palestinian death count is at over 27,000 as of February 1.
