Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC 20240703 : vimarsana.com

Which is classed as a Terrorist Organisation by many western governments, killed more than 1300 people in israel and took dozens hostage. We can show you these live pictures of gaza city right now, where it is shortly after 6 00am in the morning. In a drone strike, the Israeli Military said on saturday that it has killed a hamas commander who led part of the assault on israel. Ali qadhi is the second hamas chief to have been killed in a day. Meanwhile, on the ground in gaza, thousands of civilians are on the move. Thats after israel warned over one million living in the north to move south beyond the Wadi Gaza River here an order the World Health Organization has said is a Death Sentence for those needing hospital treatment. The authorities in gaza say more than 2,200 people have been killed in retaliatory israeli bombing, including children while attempting to evacuate along a designated safe route. Earlier on saturday, israels Prime Minister visited an army post, and asked troops whether they were ready for the next stage. 0ur Correspondent, lucy williamson, reports. Every day, hamas sends rockets into israel, and waits for israels response. After last weekends attack, israel says these air strikes are just the beginning, and that People Living in the north of gaza should leave now. Gazas Salahadin Road has become a lifeline for people flowing south, a humanitarian corridor labelled safe. Not always. A strike here yesterday killed at least 12 people. The bbc has verified the location. Women and children under five among the casualties. Israel says its investigating. Israels Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, visited the troops gathered at gazas borders today. The next stage is coming, he told them. Are you ready . The israeli army has been pounding gaza from here across the border and also from the air. Israel says it doesnt deliberately target civilians, and that this is directed at the people who do. Today, israel said it had killed the organiser of last weekends attack. Ali qadi was released from an israeli jail more than a decade ago in a Prisoner Exchange deal with hamas. Israel says it was he who planned the attacks on communities like be� eri. Gunmen arrived there last saturday, caught on a Security Camera relaxed, unhurried and well prepared. They brought everything they needed to kill and kidnap grenades, gaffer tape, plastic cable ties. Three members of the gat family are still missing. Among them, carmel and her sister in law. Their family home, shattered. It looks like indiscriminate violence, but it wasnt. This was a targeted attack. Some of the people who lived here are now thought to be just a few miles away inside gaza a different world. Be� eri has lived for years with occasional rockets or infiltrations, but destruction like this signals a different kind of vulnerability, and the build up of Israeli Forces here, a different kind of response. But what will that response mean for hostages inside gaza . I dont know the effort, i dont know the intelligence, i dont know anything. They dont tell us anything. They dont tell us afterwards. Nobody calls me to say there is negotiation for them. Frankly, nobody really knows if they are taken or not. Youre angry about that . I am very angry. There is not even a place for sad, to be sad for me. Israels soldiers are now massing at gazas borders, their weapons pointing towards both hamas and their hostages. For the army that failed to protect its people at home, how much harder will it be to protect them there . Lucy williamson, bbc news, southern israel. The United Nations says nearly a million palestinians have fled their homes in the gaza strip in the week since israel launched its Military Response to the killings and kidnappings by hamas. The entire enclave is being hit by israeli strikes from gaza city in the north to rafah in the south. The Border Crossing there with egypt has remained shut since the hamas attacks last weekend. Crowds of palestinians and foreign nationals have been gathering at the crossing after news that an Evacuation Route may temporarily open. You may find some of the images in this report now from jon donnison distressing. Outside the main hospital in rafah, ice cream trucks. The morgue is full. Some of the dead have been here for two days, this man tells us. These freezers are meant forfood, not bodies. And this is right in the south of gaza, where people are now being told to evacuate to. Hundreds of thousands are now heading in this direction. The question is, where do they go . At the border with egypt, Hundreds Of Palestinians who are lucky enough to have foreign citizenship, are hoping to get out. Among them, clutching her british passport, is maryiam. Im really in fear and every time ijust have to have the thought of me dying in a bomb in gaza. Its not a good thing. Every place i go, i run away and ijust find bombs and ifind dead people. And maybe one day i will end up like them. Its a really scary thing for me. But egypt says it wont open the crossing, even forforeign nationals, until israel agrees to allow aid in. And hamas also controls this border and has a say on who is allowed out. The nearby United Nations school is packed with those seeking shelter, but it was already at full capacity before this latest evacuation order. As palestinians, what did we do for this to happen to us . , hanan asks. She tells us she ran out of the house barefoot with nothing when israel bombed her neighbourhood, and came straight to the school. At noon today, many were praying one would think for better times. Many of those here are children, still smiling despite it all. Around half gazas population is under 18, and some are old beyond their years. Ramez is just 15. This is his fifth war. I can barely stand it, he says, and look around you at all these kids. Ask them, � do you want to live or not . � we just want to be secure, he goes on. 0ur dream is to live, thats all we want. Jon donnison, bbc news. 0ur Correspondent Rushdi Abualouf is one of the very few journalists reporting from inside gaza. Hes in khan younis now, in the south of the territory, from where he sent us this update. I had to take the journey from gaza to the Southern City im in khan yunis since yesterday and the scene i witnessed, its really tragic. It has been one week since israel launched its retaliation since the deadly attack. The situation here is at the edge of catastrophe. The city which already has 4000 hundred people has to accommodate now more than i has to accommodate now more thani million people, feed them, treat them and accommodate them. In southern israel, tensions are high as israeli troops build up their presence ahead of the likely Ground Offensive. To find out more about what that operation could look like, i spoke to retired Lieutenant General Mark Schwartz, who served as the us� s Security Co Ordinator to israel and the Palestinian Authority. Thank you so much forjoining us. Now, the Israeli Military, as weve been hearing, they say that the next stage is coming. Were hearing this could be some sort of invasion into gaza by land, by sea and by air. In your mind, how prepared is the Israeli Military for this kind of mission . Thanks for having me this evening, carl. Im confident that the Israeli Military, as they have stated publicly, that they are increasing their level of readiness, they are working the integration of over 350,000 now reservists into their tactical formations. They obviously are receiving additional resupply to continue the sustainment of their operations, their operation in the gaza in preparation for the Ground Offensive and, as been as youve reported and particularly your reporters that are on the ground there in gaza and down in southern israel, youve got the Combat Formations that are in their Tactical Assembly areas and doing final preparations. Those final preparations are probably a few days away, not hours away. Whats often forgotten about is the logistical sustainment thats going to be necessary, the the dealing with the really hard to assess the number of casualties that will be taking place, both by the Israeli Military but also, theres going to be casualties of the terrorists as well, you know, and more important civilians that are going to be caught in the crossfire of this assault, this ground assault, and obviously, from the sea as well, once it commences. Well, interesting, of course, to hear your Point Of View that this may not be imminent, that it could take a day or two longer. But in the meantime, what kind of defence is hamas capable of putting up . Of course, this invasion would be taking place on their own home turf. And that point is very important. So, they are on their home terrain. Theyve the ability to prepare both above the ground and, as has been reported, anywhere from 150 300 miles of underground tunnels, so that they can move without really with impunity, until such time that theyre fixed. Underground is like the intent to do the idf will do above ground but theres no more complex operation than fighting in this type of environment and, you know, youve they are doing preparations, you know, to move the civilian populace out of northern gaza. Really, thats i would think clearly, thats where they intend to initiate their ground assault. But that said, youll establish a foothold but then, the real hard work occurs where you dont have the ability to use your long range direct fire Weapons Systems and its going to be building to building, house to house, room to room fighting. And with respect to individual readiness, one of the major challenges that the idf is going to face is that with the integration of all these reservists, and while there are very capable active duty forces available, they still have the majority of the idf has not recently conducted the level of repetitions and full dress rehearsals for this kind of ground combat. Its extremely complex, and we in the United States witnessed that, obviously, in the early days of iraq and throughout the iraq war, frankly. Retired Lieutenant General Mark Schwartz and a former Us Security Co ordinator for israel and the Palestinian Authority. Thank you very much for your insights. Thank you, carl. Israels Intelligence Services have long been considered one of the worlds most sophisticated. But hamas� s attack caught israel completely by surprise and was the worst breach of the countrys defenses in 50 years. New york times staff writer Ronen Bergman has been investigating how this could have happened, and who was involved in the planning. Hejoined me earlier from tel aviv. Ronen, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us. We are one week on from the attacks on israel by hamas. Just first of all talk us through what appears to be a massive failure of intelligence on the part of israel, and according to your reporting, what appears to have gone wrong . I think there is nothing on the israeli side that did not go wrong. There were mistakes and failures on three different levels. Intelligence that was supposed to supply reliable alerts enough time before the attack, and just 50 years and a day after the previous major intelligence blunder of the Yom Kippur War was not able to supply as it happened six years ago was not able to supply any alert that this is coming. Hundreds of hamas operatives, militants were working for at least a year, i believe even more than that, but looking at documents of hamas, we have initial plans that were drawn in november of 2022, so at least a year. They were in active preparation, drilling, planting, thinking, collecting intelligence, doing all sorts of drills and exercises and israel didnt know anything. In order to mobilise 2000 people over the fence after major assault on the fence you have to have a lot of people in the know how loop, and these kinds of forums which so many people consider to be may be the easiest to penetrate, and israel did not know anything. This is a major intelligence achievement for her hamas and a major Intelligence Failure for israel. Let me hop in there quickly because you mentioned that israel seems to not be prepared or not know that this attack which had been in the making was about to take place. According to your reporting. Why is that . Why do you think israel seem to be caught flat footed . Well, not to put all the credit the negative credit to israel. Theres also, from their Point Of View, positive credit for hamas for planning secretly and executing this horrifying massacre. I think hamas has learned the lessons from years of confrontation with israel. With or without iranian guidance and help, it was able to identify the channels that israel was monitoring. Just into 2018, hamas was able to uncover a group of alleged ngo activists working in gaza but were, in fact, israeli commandos and their agents working undercover. And they were monitored they were installing a massive Bugging Device to an encrypted hamas switchboard. Hamas was able to get their equipment, they withdrew under fire and they left the classified equipment that they were working with, so hamas was able to identify these channel and any other channels that israel was looking at, using, apparently, other channels that israel didnt know about and i think that israel was also caught in some kind of conception which apparently was also guided by hamas deception that, relatively to hamas, this is a moderate time. New york times staff writer Ronen Bergman. Here in the us, the pentagon has ordered a second Aircraft Carrier group to the eastern mediterranean. According to us officials, the Uss Eisenhower is part of american efforts to deter hostile actions against israel or any efforts toward widening the war. Meanwhile on saturday, us President Joe Biden spoke to both israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority president mahmoud abbas, in another effort to de escalate the conflict. President biden also briefly addressed the crisis at a National Human Rights Campaign dinner here in washington dc. In gaza, innocent palestinian families and the vast majority have nothing to do with hamas. Cheering and applause. Are being used as Human Shields yesterday, i spoke for over an hour the Family Member of those americans who are still unaccounted for on a zoom call. Theyve endured an agony of not knowing whats happened. And a short while ago i spoke to our North America correspondent Shingai Nyoka, about the us response. Shingai, we heard there a bit from President Biden� s speech earlier. What more did he have to say . Well, he also added that hate doesnt go away. What hes done in the last week or so, ever since this attack on israel, is that almost every platform that hes been on, hes tried to weave in the narrative of the us support to israel into whatever the agenda was and today, he did exactly that. He wove the issue of rights into the broader discussions about his fight against islamophobia, against Anti Semitism and also against homophobia. And what was interesting, i think, was the fact that at the beginning of his address, there was a heckler who shouted, let gaza live. A ceasefire now. He didnt hear that but some of the people on the floor did. But doing what hes done over the past couple of days, which is bring up the topic of israel and gaza at almost every platform and try to shore up domestic support. Well, and it has been a busy day for President Biden a couple of different phone calls today, speaking with israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority president mahmoud abbas. What more do we know about those prior conversations . Well, they were very important conversations, two, really, key conversations with two parties that are on either side of this conflict. The white house said that his conversation with his israeli counterpart was to reiterate that unwavering support this, as you spoke about earlier, as the pentagon announced that a second us carrier is on its way to the eastern mediterranean. With president mahmoud abbas, he spoke