Netanyahu’s relationship with military establishment at all-time low: Former general
Retired Israeli General Israel Ziv says strains between Netanyahu and Israeli military leaders over the aims of war in Gaza are worse than ever. The Israeli military and security echelons, he said, feel they have “exhausted the purpose of the war”, reaching a “tactical peak”.
“We are getting close to finishing the job defined by the government and we’ll reach a point when we’re just fighting guerrilla warfare, and that could take years,” Ziv was quoted as saying by US media.
The divide between Netanyahu and Israel’s military played out yesterday when Israel’s military spokesman Daniel Hagari said Hamas could not be rooted out because it is “an ideology”, undermining Netanyahu’s stated goal of fully defeating it.
Number of Palestinian detainees killed in Israeli prisons rises to 54: Commission
The number of Palestinian prisoners killed in Israeli-run prisons since October 7 has risen to 54, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs in Gaza says. “The conditions in which detainees live in the occupation prisons are terrifying, inhumane and unprecedented,” it charged.
It said 36 of the prisoners who were arrested in Gaza during the war were killed under torture and harsh detention conditions.
The number of prisoners held by Israeli forces has risen to 9,000, including 300 women, 635 children and 80 journalists.
UN experts say firms sending arms to Israel could be complicit in abuses
A group of United Nations experts has warned arms and ammunitions manufacturers against taking part in the transfer of weapons to Israel, saying it could make them complicit in human rights abuses and violations of international law.
The group of 30 experts, including several UN special rapporteurs, said arms manufacturers supplying Israel should halt their transfers of war material “even if they are executed under existing export licenses”.
“These companies, by sending weapons, parts, components, and ammunition to Israeli forces, risk being complicit in serious violations of international human rights and international humanitarian laws,” the experts said in a statement.
There was no immediate comment from Israel, which has repeatedly denied carrying out abuses during its Gaza operations.
Activists tell UK weapons makers they may face criminal liability: Report
Activists have written to the directors of 20 weapons manufacturers based in the UK, saying they may face criminal liability for failing to prevent war crimes if their companies continue to sell military equipment to Israel, The Guardian reports.
Four groups, including the Campaign Against Arms Trade, have written to companies that make parts for F-35 fighter jets used by Israeli forces in their bombing of Gaza.
The letter says company directors face “potential criminal liability for atrocity crimes currently taking place in Gaza” even though the UK government has continued to approve arms sales to Israel since the start of the war.
