Following the assassination of Saleh al Arouri, deputy head of Hamas' political office and head of the organization's military wing in the West Bank, Israel, which has not claimed responsibility for the attackHe is on high alert, awaiting possible retaliation.
That is serious the first targeted assassination attempt on an important member of the organization since the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza began 89 days ago.
Israeli media widely reported on al Arouri's death on Tuesday evening, warning of possible retaliation without confirming Israeli responsibility, while Hezbollah's Al-Manar television and Hamas's Al Ahkbar newspaper did the same but did not promise an immediate response . They recommended following the events closely, especially the speech by the Secretary General of the pro-Iranian Shiite organization Hezbollah in Lebanon, Sheikh Hasan Nasrallah.
Nasrallah had planned to give a speech today to mark the fourth anniversary of the assassination of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force chief Qassem Soleimani. His speech gained greater interest following the double attack on Soleimani's mausoleum in Iran. Nasrallah denounced today that events in Gaza since the start of the war show that the international community is unable to “protect anyone.”
The murder of al Arouri in the Shiite district of Dahiyeh in Beirut was carried out with a drone, according to the Lebanese state news service, and targeted Hamas offices in the Lebanese capital at a meeting. In addition to al-Arouri, two senior commanders of Hamas' military wing, Samir Findi Abu Amer and Azam al-Aqra Abu Amar, were also killed.
External and internal impacts
Hamas's leadership abroad is scattered Qatar, Türkiye And Lebanon. Although Israel has announced that it plans to assassinate all of the organization's high-ranking officials in response to the massacre carried out by Hamas in southern Israel on September 7, many in Israel are wondering what will happen to the negotiations for the release of the more as a hundred hostages are held captive by Hamas.
Meanwhile, the Islamist leaders who remain in Qatar do so because Doha is playing a leading role in efforts to reach an agreement to release more hostages Israelis. Nor does it appear that Israel wants to escalate tensions with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Since the war began, Hezbollah has expressed its solidarity with Hamas through daily attacks against Israel. Today as well. However, he has been careful to limit them to the area near the border in order to remain below wartime levels.
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, today criticized the killing, suggesting it could only escalate the conflict.
That seems to be the most immediate impact Negotiations between Israel and Hamas have stopped, diplomatic sources from the Arab world told Haaretz newspaper. Talks are now focused on preventing escalation, particularly in northern Israel, they added.
Hamas is still able to fire rockets into central Israel. On the night of December 31st, shortly after midnight, it triggered a large gust towards the center of the country. There is also Hamas activity in Lebanon. Hamas cells have already fired rockets from southern Lebanon in coordination with Hezbollah. The dilemma is whether Nasrallah will allow these longer-range missiles to be fired.
Famine in Gaza and “voluntary” resettlement
According to a United Nations report, half of the approximately 2.2 million inhabitants of the Gaza Strip are at risk of starvation. It says that 90 percent say they regularly go an entire day without eating.
International aid does not arrive as needed and does not progress smoothly through the individual steps. When it arrives in the enclave, it is not distributed fairly and theft and looting, as well as resale on the black market, are commonplace.
Meanwhile, some Israeli politicians in Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right ruling coalition are talking about it “voluntary” resettlement of Palestinians from Gaza. The newspaper Zman Israel (Israel Time, in Hebrew) reported today that the government is maintaining secret contacts so that Congo accepts thousands of immigrants from, among other places, Gaza.
Last Monday, Netanyahu said at a meeting of his Likud party that he was working to facilitate the voluntary migration of Gazans to other countries, state broadcaster Kan reported.
The far-right parties Religious Zionism and Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power, in Hebrew), led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, respectively, have supported the migration plans.
On Tuesday, the US State Department criticized Smotrich and Ben Gvir for advocating the relocation of Palestinians from Gaza, calling their rhetoric “inflammatory and irresponsible.” Smotrich dismissed the comments, saying they were without explanation More than 70 percent of Israelis support the idea of “promoting voluntary immigration” because “two million people (in Gaza) wake up every morning with the desire to destroy the State of Israel.”
Netanyahu's office has publicly insisted in statements in the past that Smotrich and Ben Gvir do not represent the government's policy on the matter, although they made their own comments last week in support of a population transfer.