Israel Breaks Ceasefire In Gaza After Far-Right March
Israel attacked the occupied Gaza Strip on Wednesday June 15, 2021 breaking a ceasefire that was reached weeks ago after 11 days of fighting last month, where Israel murdered up to 250 civilians. The latest Israel violation is alleged to be in response to incendiary balloons launched by armed groups in Gaza, who allege the balloons were in response to increasing Israeli aggression and a far-right hate march in occupied Jerusalem
The attack comes on the heels of Israel’s new government under Naftali Bennett which has replaced former PM Netanyahu's 12 year rule, which saw countless human rights violations and crimes against humanity on the Palestinian population. The airstrikes followed a far-right hate march in occupied East Jerusalem on Tuesday by Zionist nationalists that had drawn threats of retaliation by Hamas, the ruling party in Gaza.
The Israeli military said its aircraft attacked Hamas armed compounds in Gaza City and the southern town of Khan Younis and was “ready for all scenarios, including renewed fighting." The latest Israeli attacks left thousands homeless and destroyed dwindling infrastructure for the Gaza strip. Aid and supplies have been difficult to transport into Gaza due to Israel's illegal blockade which increases human suffering for the Palestinian population.
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The strikes, the Israeli military claims, came in response to the launching of so-called incendiary balloons, all of which landed in open fields and did minimal damage. Anonymous sources say that it is unlikely that the incendiary balloons were the cause for Israel breaking the ceasefire. Instead they an excuse for the new government to prove to its support base that it can be just as ruthless as former PM Netanyahu. A Hamas spokesman, confirmed the Israeli airstrikes and said Palestinians would continue to pursue their “resistance and defend their rights and sacred sites” in Jerusalem. Prior to the far-right march, Israel resupplied and deployed the Iron Dome anti-missile system in anticipation of possible rocket attacks from Gaza but the rocket attacks never materialized.
Hours before Israel broke the ceasefire, thousands of flag-waving right-wing Israelis gathered around the Damascus Gate of Jerusalem’s Old City before heading to the Western Wall. All along the route they chanted insults and slurs at the Palestinian population, including “death to Arabs” and "May your village burn." Openly celebrating Israel's latest massacre in Gaza weeks ago, drawing Palestinian anger and condemnation.
Israel, which occupied East Jerusalem in a 1967 war, displaced the native population, and later annexed it illegally and against UN approval, regards the entire city as its capital. In 2020, the mob-linked right-wing former US President Donald Trump caused global condemnation when the United States illegally recognized Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel.
The far-right march was originally scheduled for May 10 as part of “Jerusalem Day” festivities that celebrate Israel’s violent capture of East Jerusalem and the displacement of thousands of Palestinians. The march was supposed to run from the Damascus Gate and the Old City’s Muslim Quarter, as they yelled slurs and anti-Palestinian slogans, this and a combination of violent Israeli attacks on protesters against the forced and illegal displacement of Palestinian families by Israeli settler, provoked Hamas into firing primitive rockets (most of which were intercepted) towards Jerusalem. The right-wing march set off last month’s round of fighting and Israel's massacre in Gaza.
