By Ken Afor
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that the ongoing conflict could spread beyond the Middle East as bombardments in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli military continue, targeting annihilation of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Innocent women, children and old people are most of the casualties in Gaza.
In the besieged Gaza Strip, the humanitarian activities have been extremely low as world powers have failed to agree to stop the fighting to provide aid, and as the civilian population grows, residents bury their bodies in mass graves.
In his speech on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden said that in the future, Israel and a Palestinian state should stand side by side, looking beyond war.
“Israelis and Palestinians equally deserve to live side by side in safety, dignity and in peace,” Biden said at a joint press conference in Washington with visiting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Biden said he believed part of the reason Iran-backed Hamas attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing at least 1,400 people and taking dozens more hostage, was to prevent normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
“Our task today, our main task, is to stop the bloodshed and violence,” said Putin in a meeting with Russian religious leaders of different faiths, according to a Kremlin transcript.
“Otherwise, further escalation of the crisis is fraught with grave and extremely dangerous and destructive consequences. And not only for the Middle East region. It could spill over far beyond the borders of the Middle East.”
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Israel agreed earlier this week to delay its invasion of the Gaza Strip until it deploys US air defense systems to the area to protect US forces, amid fears that the war in the Gaza Strip could escalate.
In response to the report, US officials told Reuters that the US had expressed concern to Israel that Iran and Iran-backed Islamist groups could escalate the conflict by attacking US troops in the Middle East.
They say Israel’s invasion of Gaza could be a trigger for Iran’s allies.The war in Gaza has already led to conflicts outside the Palestinian territories.
Israeli warplanes struck Syrian military infrastructure on Wednesday in response to missiles fired from Syria, an ally of Iran. Israel also attacked Aleppo airport in Syria and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel’s enemy, Iran, has sought regional dominance for decades, supporting not only Hamas but also armed groups in Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere. She warned Israel to stop attacking Gaza.
At the United Nations, Russia and China vetoed a draft US Security Council resolution calling for an end to hostilities to allow Palestinian civilians to receive food, water and medicine. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) also voted against. There were 10 people in favor and 2 abstentions.
Russia submitted a counter-proposal calling for a broader ceasefire, but failed to get the minimum number of votes. Israel opposed both, arguing that Hamas only benefits the citizens of Gaza and poses new threats.
As the death toll in Gaza rises, Palestinians are burying unidentified bodies in mass graves with numbers rather than names, residents say. Some families use bracelets to locate their loved ones when they die.
The Ministry of Health in the Hamas-controlled areas said on Wednesday that more than 6,500 people had been killed in the Israeli retaliatory attacks. Reuters could not independently confirm casualty figures for either side.
Biden said on Wednesday he had “no confidence in the number that the Palestinians are using” for the death toll, but did not specify why he doubts it.
In the United States, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said it was “gravely disturbed” by Biden’s comments about the Gaza figures and called on the president to apologize.
It would be recalled that Israel has vowed to wipe out Hamas, which rules Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised statement that Israel was “preparing for a ground invasion. I will not elaborate on when, how or how many.”
Israeli tanks and troops are massed on the border with Gaza awaiting orders. Israel has called up 360,000 reservists.
International pressure is growing to delay any invasion of Gaza, not least because of hostages. More than half the estimated 220 hostages held by Hamas have foreign passports from 25 different countries, the Israeli government said. Many were believed to have had dual Israeli nationality.
