Under increased domestic and international pressure…..
President Biden has NOT gone hard against Israel’s actions in Gaza…..
(Again….One could suspect there is a Iran strategic angle in this)
He is NOT allowing the UN to condemn the Israeli /Gaza situation…
Isarel continues doing combats ops in Jabalya where they say Hamas had its combat headquarters….
Analysis seems to be that Israel is treansitioning to occupying the Gaza Strip to try to eliminate the Hamas influence….
Biden admin and other calls for a ‘two-state’ solution in the area is falling on deaf ears from Israel….
There IS renewed talks on more hostage/prisonor swaps….
The Israeli’s now hold Hamas fighters in detention….
Here’s what we know:
The Council is seeking to avert a U.S. veto on a resolution calling for a pause in fighting to deliver significant amounts of aid. The United States and Israel object to handing over aid inspections to the U.N.
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Talks in the Security Council hit an impasse over U.N. inspections of aid shipments.
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Israel says it has uncovered tunnels leading to Hamas’s ‘center of power’ in Gaza.
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Nearly all Gazan households are facing a severe lack of food and water, U.N. and aid groups say.
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A Hamas leader visits Egypt for talks on a possible truce.
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Israel’s deployment of more troops in Gaza signals unshaken intent, experts say.
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Austin says less intense Israeli attacks would calm the threat of a wider war.
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Bahrain detains an opposition figure who criticized the country for joining the U.S. maritime task force…..
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Dec 20, 2023 – ISW Press
Israeli forces are transitioning from clearing operations to holding operations in some areas of the northern Gaza Strip. Israeli forces in some areas of the northern Gaza Strip, such as Beit Hanoun and the al Shati camp, are beginning to execute tasks analogous to the US military definition of a holding operation. A holding operation “involves disrupting [enemy] activities in an area and providing a good security environment for the population” and “focuses on securing the population.” The Israeli Defense Minister said on December 18 that the IDF is preparing to transition to a “day after” the war and that Israel will begin bringing back the local population in some areas of the strip. The IDF redeployed some of the units responsible for clearing Beit Hanoun and al Shati camp and backfilled them with new units to hold the areas.The backfilling units are continuing lower intensity operations, such as raids against infrastructure and clashing with small cells of Palestinian fighters.The hold phase is defined by a decreased level of violence, but it still requires holding forces to engage and eliminate enemy forces and infrastructure to provide security.