Hamas' leader Ismail Haniyeh and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) boss Ziyad al-Nakhala spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on the phone to tackle the possibility of the Palestine-Israel war ballooning into a wider Middle Eastern conflict. They convened to discuss stopping what Amirabdollahian described as Israel's "brutal crimes" in Gaza.
Amirabdollahian posted on X, formerly Twitter: "Tonight, I had a conversation with my brother Sameh Shoukry, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, about sending humanitarian aid, and with Ismail Haniyeh and Ziad Nakhale, the leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad. The resistance is strong on the side of Palestine. The political and security structure of the Israeli regime has collapsed and only its war machine works against civilians."
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian openly announced negotiations with the leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
? “This evening I had a conversation with my brother Sameh Shoukry, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, about sending humanitarian aid, as well as with Mr.… pic.twitter.com/vYuGCY2V6L
— Sprinter (@Sprinter99800) October 23, 2023
Israel Defense Force (IDF) missiles have been raining down in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip since the terrorist group invaded Israel. The initial attack murdered at least 1,400 people while taking some 200 hostages two weeks ago. Now, the Israeli military publicly announces its preparations for an expected ground offensive with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to destroy the barbaric terrorists. President Joe Biden expressed his full support for the Gaza ground operations "privately" during his Tel-Aviv visit last week.
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However, the attacks have not been limited to Gaza. On October 23, the Israeli airstrikes also targeted two Hezbollah cells in Lebanon, which were preparing to launch anti-tank missiles and rockets into Israel, the military said. Also, Syria's two main airports, Damascus and Aleppo, were blasted on Sunday, putting both out of action and killing two workers, Syria's state media reported. A mosque allegedly used by terrorists in the West Bank was also hit.
In response, Iran issued a chilling warning to the United States that Israel's war with Hamas could "spiral out of control" if they do not immediately cease strikes on Gaza. "I warn the U.S. and its proxy [Israel] that if they do not immediately stop the crime against humanity and genocide in Gaza, anything is possible at any moment and the region will go out of control," the foreign minister said, alongside his South African counterpart, Naledi Pandor, at a joint news conference in Tehran. (Related: Lebanon's Hezbollah says it is "prepared and ready" to join the war against Israel.)
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh called on the international community to create "a united front" to stop Israel's attacks against Gaza and allow in desperately needed aid which has only begun to trickle in. But not minding the threats, Israel has already set up its tanks and troops near the fenced border around Gaza for its planned ground invasion to fulfill Netanyahu's vow to annihilate Hamas.
Meanwhile, at least three Palestinians were killed on Sunday night and several others were wounded in an Israeli air strike in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza strip, medics and witnesses told Reuters. Gaza's Health Ministry said most of the dead from air strikes over the past 24 hours were in Gaza's south. Israel says it is only targeting militants and that they often use residential buildings as cover.
Defense secretary warns of possible regional crisis
President Joe Biden called leaders of Canada, France, Britain, Germany and Italy separately after speaking with Netanyahu and Pope Francis as a way to ramp up his "diplomacy" and gain support in championing his assistance to Israel. Also, French President Emmanuel Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte are set to visit Israel this week.
Meanwhile, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin raised his concern about the risk of a regional crisis after announcing deployments of more military assets to the Middle East in support of Israel and strengthening the U.S. defense posture in the region after "recent escalations by Iran and its proxy forces." He was referring to Hezbollah, Palestinians and other militants.
"We're concerned about potential escalation. In fact, what we're seeing ... is the prospect of a significant escalation of attacks on our troops and our people throughout the region," Austin told ABC's "This Week" program on Sunday. "If any group or any country is looking to widen this conflict and take advantage of this very unfortunate situation ... our advice is: don't."
Terrorism.news has more stories on the barbaric attacks in Gaza that could instigate another world war.
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