Indian UN staffer killed in Rafah, US rules out genocide by Israel in Gaza

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR: THE LATEST

• Israel’s assault in Gaza led to the killing of an Indian working with the United Nations. The individual was a staff member of the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (DSS). While the victim was not identified, news agency PTI quoted sources and said he was from India and a former Indian Army personnel. Later, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply saddened to learn of the death of a United Nations Department of Safety and Security (DSS) staff member and injury to another DSS staffer when their UN vehicle was struck as they travelled to the European Hospital in Rafah” on Monday.

• US national security adviser Jake Sullivan has said that President Joe Biden’s administration does not view the killings of Palestinians in Gaza by Israel in its war with Hamas as genocide. Sullivan said the United States wants to see Hamas defeated. He also said that Palestinians caught in the middle of the war were in “hell” and that a major military operation by Israel in Rafah would be a mistake. Sullivan expressed concern about reports of Israeli settlers attacking a humanitarian aid convoy on its way to Erez Crossing in northern Gaza, the second such incident in less than a week.

• Israeli forces pushed deep into the ruins of Gaza’s northern edge on Monday to recapture an area from Hamas terrorists, while in the south tanks and troops pushed across a highway into Rafah, leaving Palestinian civilians scrambling to find safety. Some of the most intense fighting for weeks is raging in both the north and south. Israeli operations in Rafah, which borders Egypt, have closed a main crossing point for aid. Humanitarian groups say this has worsened an already dire situation.

• The Biden administration does not see it likely or possible that Israel will achieve “total victory” in defeating Hamas in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said on Monday. While US officials have urged Israel to help devise a clear plan for the governance post-war Gaza, Campbell’s comments are the clearest to date from a top US official effectively admitting that Israel’s current military strategy won’t bring the result that it is aiming for.

• Israel began toned down Independence Day celebrations at sundown on Monday. As the country marked its 76th year, firework displays were cancelled and the traditional torch-lighting ceremony at the Jerusalem National Cemetery was taped for TV audiences instead of livestreamed. Israeli soldiers engaged in a marching display, with flags, in formation, in a “76” pattern in honour of the country’s 76th year, a menorah, a Star of David, an Israeli flag, and a ribbon patterned after a symbol in support of the hostages.