Tel Aviv [Israel], October 11 (ANI): The first plane carrying US armaments landed in southern Israel on Tuesday evening, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said. “The first plane carrying US armaments has since arrived at the Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel this evening,” posted IDF on X. However, the IDF did not reveal the kinds of weapons or military equipment it received.
As Israel wages war with Hamas, US President Joe Biden’s administration has begun delivering munitions to Israel this week. “The cooperation between our militaries is a key part of ensuring regional security and stability in times of war,” IDF‘s post added. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday held a telephone conversation with US President Biden for the third time. “I told him (Biden) that Hamas is worse than ISIS – and that they should be treated that way,” posted Netanyahu on the social media platform, X, after the talks.
Biden reiterated that the “US stands by Israel” and “fully supports its right to defend itself,” the Israeli PM said while thanking him for “unreserved support”. “Since our last conversation, the scale of this evil has only grown. They abducted dozens of children, burned them and executed them. They cut off the heads of soldiers, they murdered the young people who were celebrating at a festival in the wild…We have not seen such barbarism in the entire history of the State of Israel…,” Netanyahu posted on X.
As the war against Hamas has completed four days, over a thousand Israelis have been killed, more than 2,800 are injured and 50 are confirmed hostage or missing, IDF said. It also said that over 4,500 rockets have been fired from Gaza so far on Israel.
On the other hand, over 770 Palestinians have also been killed in air raids after Israel launched a strong counter-offensive. The Health Ministry in Gaza said that at least 770 Palestinians have been killed and 4,000 wounded in Israeli air raids. Among the dead are 140 children and 120 women, a ministry spokesperson said.
A day ago, in a stern warning to Hamas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “though Israel did not start this war” but “will finish it”. “Israel is at war. We didn’t want this war. It was forced upon us in the most brutal and savage way. But though Israel didn’t start this war, Israel will finish it,” said Netanyahu in an address to the nation.
Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, firing a barrage of rockets into the southern and central parts of the country. (ANI)
Iran “complicit, in a broad sense,” in Hamas attack on Israel: White House
Washington, DC [US], October 11 (ANI): Iran is “complicit, in a broad sense,” in Hamas attack in which at least 900 Israelis were killed, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said here on Tuesday. “We’ve said since the beginning that Iran is complicit in a broad sense because they have provided the lion’s share of the funding for the military wing of Hamas, they’ve provided training, they have provided capabilities, they have provided support and they’ve had engagement and contact with Hamas over years and years, and all of that that has played a role in contributing to what we have seen,” Sullivan said, adding, “Now, as to the question of whether Iran knew about this attack in advance or helped plan or direct this attack, we do not, as of the moment I’m standing here at the podium, have confirmation of that.”
Sullivan’s remarks came after US President Joe Biden denounced the attacks on Israel as “pure unadulterated evil,” saying the stated purpose of the terrorist organisation Hamas is “to kill Jews.”
NSA Sullivan told reporters that the administration was engaged with its Israeli counterparts and “looking back through our intelligence holdings to see if we have any further information on that,” adding, “If there’s an update to that, I’ll share it with you.”
“But as I stand here today, while Iran plays this broad role, this sustained, deep and dark role in providing all of this support and capabilities to Hamas, in terms of this particular gruesome attack on October 7, we don’t currently have that information,” he added.
Asked why Israel was unable to anticipate Hamas‘ attack on Israel, Sullivan referred questions to Israeli officials, however, as for the US, he said, “We did not see anything that suggested an attack of this type was going to unfold any more than the Israelis did.”
The US State Department on Tuesday said that Secretary Antony Blinken will travel to Israel “to engage our Israeli partners directly about the situation on the ground.” “Secretary of State Antony J Blinken will travel to Israel and Jordan October 11-13, 2023, where he will meet with senior officials,” said the US Department of State in a statement. (ANI)
Israeli President Herzog in Time Magazine: Our darkest hour casts a shadow on the entire world
Tel Aviv [Israel], October 11 (ANI/TPS): Time Magazine published a statement from the President of Israel Isaac Herzog in which he said, “Not since the Holocaust have we seen such images of innocent Jewish mothers and children, teenagers and old women loaded into trucks and taken away into captivity.”
The President also shared the stories of victims of Saturday’s attack by Hamas and declared, “The world can no longer turn a blind eye. Any justification or attempts to rationalize this terrible attack will only encourage them further.”
“History will judge Hamas for its crimes against humanity, along with all those who fail to stand against them,” he added.(ANI/TPS)
