Israel-Hamas War: 7 October 2023… This is the same date when Hamas suddenly fired about 5 thousand rockets on Israel within 20 minutes. Hundreds of fighters entered Israel by land, sea and air and attacked the civilians there. About 1200 Israeli civilians were killed in this attack and more than 250 people were taken hostage.
In response to this attack, Israel launched fierce airstrikes on the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. Now the Israel-Hamas war has completed one year. The result was that the Israeli action caused massive destruction in the Gaza Strip. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, about 42,000 Palestinians have died in Israeli attacks, while more than 96800 people have been injured and about 23 lakh people have become homeless.
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According to the report of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), more than one lakh people are facing severe hunger and many people have died due to hunger. Palestinians in Gaza have been evicted from their homes, they are living in very bad conditions. They have lost their family members. Their homes, mosques, schools-colleges and hospitals have been destroyed.
The plea of the families of the hostages
On the anniversary of the 7 October attack in Israel, the families of the people held hostage in Gaza appealed to the world for help. A meeting of these families was held on Sunday. In this they said, “Do not forget us. Do not forget the hostages.” They say that this is not just Israel’s problem. This should be a matter of concern for the whole world. These families want the world’s big leaders and all the big organizations to put pressure on Hamas. Their demand is that all the hostages should be released as soon as possible.
At the same time, demonstrations are taking place in many major cities of the world, where thousands of people are appealing to end the bloodshed in Gaza and the Middle East. About 40,000 protesters are marching at Centre Point in London, while thousands of people are also demonstrating in Paris, Rome, Manila, Cape Town and New York City. The protesters are demanding that all parties should come together for talks and end the conflict.
How many Hamas and Hezbollah commanders were killed in one year?
In the past one year, Israel has claimed to have killed 17,000 Hamas fighters. According to the Israeli army IDF, it has killed eight Hamas brigade commanders and more than 30 battalion commanders. The IDF has also claimed to have killed more than 165 Hamas company commanders and fighters of the same rank.
The IDF claims that since the beginning of the war, it has attacked 40,300 Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip. It has also detected 4700 Hamas tunnels. Israel is also in a dispute with Hezbollah. Israel has attacked around 11,000 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. More than 800 Hezbollah fighters have been killed in Lebanon, including 90 senior Hezbollah commanders. If we talk about attacks on Israel, Gaza, Lebanon have fired more than 26,000 rockets, missiles and drones on Israel.
Which big commanders of Hamas and Hezbollah were killed?
Here’s a list of key Hamas and Hezbollah commanders killed by Israel in retaliation over the past year:
- October 13, 2023:
Hamas Nukhba Unit Company Commander – Killed in a drone strike in the Gaza Strip.
Head of Hamas Aerial Unit – Killed in an airstrike in Gaza. - October 15, 2023:
Bilal al-Qedra (Hamas commander responsible for Kafr Aza massacre) – Killed in an airstrike. - October 31, 2023:
Ibrahim Biari (Hamas Nukhba commander, mastermind of October 7 massacre) – Killed in an airstrike. - January 2, 2024:
Saleh al-Arouri (Deputy Chairman of Hamas Political Bureau) – Killed in a drone strike in Dahiye, Lebanon. - January 8, 2024:
Wissam al-Tawil (Senior Hezbollah Redwan Force commander) – Killed in an airstrike. - January 9, 2024:
Ali Hussein Barji (Hezbollah Aerial Forces commander) – Killed in an airstrike in Khirbet Salem, Lebanon. - January 20, 2024:
Sadegh Omidzadeh (Quds Force Intelligence Chief) – Killed in Damascus, Syria. - March 10, 2024:
Marwan Issa (Deputy commander of Hamas military wing) – Killed in Nussairat, Gaza.
Ghazi Abu Tama (Senior Hamas commander) – Killed in Nussairat, Gaza. - April 1, 2024:
Mohammad Reza Zahedi (Commander of Quds Force in Lebanon and Syria) – Killed in Damascus, Syria. - June 11, 2024:
Taleb Abdullah (Commander of Hezbollah’s Nasr unit) – Killed in an airstrike in Jwaya, Lebanon. - June 17, 2024:
Muhammad Mustafa Ayub (Commander of Hezbollah’s rocket and missile unit) – Killed in Sela, Lebanon.
- July 3, 2024:
Mohammad Nehmi Nasir (Commander of Hezbollah’s Aziz unit) – Killed in Houch, Lebanon.
- July 31, 2024:
Ismail Haniyya (Hamas Supreme Political Leader) – Killed in an airstrike in Tehran, Iran.
- Possibility of Death:
Yahya Sinwar (New Hamas chief) – Potentially killed; not confirmed yet.
The hostage release agreement was reached in November
In November 2023, after weeks of negotiations, an agreement was reached between Israel and Hamas. Under this, 50 Israeli hostages were released and in return Israel released 150 Palestinian prisoners. This agreement also included a temporary ceasefire.
When this ceasefire ended, a total of 108 hostages had been released. After the four-day ceasefire ended, the war between the two countries started again from 1 December 2023.
Al-Shifa Hospital: Attack on Gaza’s largest hospital
Earlier on November 15, Israel attacked Gaza’s largest Al-Shifa Hospital. This six-storey hospital was an important part of Gaza’s health system.
According to Hamas, the hospital was then housing about 650 patients and 5,000 to 7,000 homeless civilians. According to Hamas, the hospital was attacked by snipers and drones. When the hospital lost power, about 40 patients died, including three premature babies.
Did the UN Security Council not try to stop the war?
Efforts are being made from all over the world to stop the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. In June this year, the UN Security Council passed the first resolution approving a ceasefire for the first time. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken appealed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the proposal, but Netanyahu expressed skepticism about the deal, saying that Israel is still committed to eliminating Hamas.
At the same time, Hamas welcomed this proposal and said that it is ready for indirect talks with Israel. Eventually, ceasefire talks were held in Egypt’s capital Cairo in August this year. But both sides could not reach any agreement.
What did the International Court say?
The world’s largest court has reprimanded Israel and said that its occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem is illegal. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) said in its decision on July 19 that Israel should remove its occupation from the Palestinian areas as soon as possible.
In its decision, the court cited an old law of 1907, which clearly states that occupation of any country can only be temporary and the occupying country cannot claim ownership over it.
Also read:
United Nations Role in Question: Has the Global Peacekeeper Failed to Prevent Wars? Is Its Era Over?
Did Israel Take Down Hezbollah’s Rising Commander Safiuddin? 10 Explosive Updates!
