Hamas-Israel Confrontation Sees Notable Differences from Past Fights
Voice of America
The Palestinian Hamas movement threatened Tuesday to redouble its rocket assault on Tel Aviv as Israel maintained its pounding of Gaza with airstrikes, dashing the hopes of US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators to pull off a ceasefire to end a confrontation that has seen both warring sides cross lines observed in previous duels.
Unrelenting Israeli airstrikes have killed scores of Palestinians, including at least 60 children, in the Gaza Strip since May 10. Israeli casualties have been much smaller — ten people, including a six-year-old boy, have been killed in Israeli towns and cities by rockets launched from Gaza. That’s largely thanks to Israel’s sophisticated anti-missile defense system. The rapid outbreak of violence, which has now entered its second week, took many seasoned observers by surprise, although others say there were clear discernible factors leading up to the clash and that a heated confrontation was all but inevitable. Hostility between Israel and the Gaza-based Islamist Hamas movement erupted into war in 2009, 2012 and 2014. But this latest clash of arms and is seeing some notable differences from past confrontations, say diplomats and observers.This handout photo released on June 2, 2024 shows South Korean military officers check unidentified objects believed to be North Korean trash from balloons that crossed the inter-Korea border, on a street in Seoul. In this photo provided by Jeonbuk Fire Headquarters, balloons with trash presumably sent by North Korea, hang on electric wires as South Korean army soldiers stand guard in Muju, South Korea, May 29, 2024.
A man takes a photograph of the election results at the National Results Operation Centre of the IEC in Midrand, South Africa, June 2, 2024. African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general, Fikile Mbalula, briefs the media on results of the elections at the Results Operation Centre in Midland, Johannesburg, June 2, 2024.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during the 21st Shangri-La Dialogue summit at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore, June 2, 2024. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right, shakes hand with Malaysian Defense Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin, left, and Singaporean Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen at the 21st Shangri-La Dialogue summit at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore, June 2, 2024.
Supporters of the ruling Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) hold cutouts of India's Prime Minister and their leader, Narendra Modi, as they shout slogans during an election campaign rally in Amritsar on May 30, 2024. A man watching television waits for the release of exit polls published after voting concludes during its seventh and final phase amid India's general election, at an appliance store in Ajmer on June 1, 2024.
FILE - In this photo provided by Jeonbuk Fire Headquarters, balloons with trash presumably sent by North Korea hang on electric wires as South Korean army soldiers stand guard in Muju, South Korea, May 29, 2024. This photo provided by Incheon Fire Headquarters shows balloons with trash presumably sent by North Korea, in Incheon, South Korea, June 2, 2024.