The battle between Israel and Hamas is only getting worse.
At this time 213 Palestinians including 61 children have now been killed by Israel, with 10 Israelis including two kids killed by Hamas’ thousands of rockets.
Although the majority of Hamas rockets have been intercepted and destroyed by Israel’s advanced Iron Dome missile defense system, some have made it through and caused major devastation as well.
The situation is getting more unstable by the hour and the scale of human suffering is growing, with over 17,000 Palestinians in Gaza now displaced and without a home.
The head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has now put out a warning about what’s happening, cautioning that more escalation of fighting could spiral out of control.
‘A Whole Series of Negative Consequences’
Speaking about the ongoing conflict Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley said that further combat is “in no one’s interest.”
“My assessment is that you risk broader destabilization and you risk a whole series of negative consequences if the fighting continues. In my view, I think de-escalation is a smart course of action at this point for all parties concerned,” Milley said.
At this point, some barrages have also come into Israel from southern Lebanon but haven’t made it through yet. The group Hezbollah has power in the south of Lebanon, so if that front opens up as well the situation could spiral even further.
According to US Secretary of State Tony Blinken, America is working “intensely” to find a solution to the violence, but there’s no real indication that it will let up anytime soon.
“I believe that whatever military objectives are out there need to be balanced against other consequences,” Milley said, adding that the agreements between Israel and Arab Nations such as the UAE could end up being risked if fighting continues.
JUST IN – US Army General Mark Milley warns of broader destabilization beyond #Gaza, urging de-escalation (Reuters)
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The Bottom Line
At this point the bottom line is that the humanitarian suffering in Gaza is reaching unbearable levels, and the danger and fear in Israel has the country extremely on edge.
Hamas’ stranglehold on the Palestinian people and its continued assault on innocent Israelis is only going to make this conflict worse.
As Milley says, this risks becoming even worse and leading to regional issues and breakdowns in diplomacy, and it’s up to Hamas to stop firing rockets and let Israel also cease its offensive.
A longer-term solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict is another matter, but as long as terror groups call for the destruction of Israel it’s unclear how the Jewish state would be expected to accommodate a peaceful solution.
You can’t live together peacefully with groups who want to kill you.
