President of France Emmanuel Macron landed in Israel this morning. According to French news agency AFP, in his meetings with Israeli leaders he will call for the renewal of a genuine peace process and for a halt to the colonization of the West Bank through settlements.
Macron has met families of people murdered in the Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7 and of hostages being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Macron has held a meeting with President Isaac Herzog, and is due to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Leader of the Opposition Yair Lapid, and Minister Benny Gantz.
After his meeting with President Herzog, President Macron said, “You are not alone in this war on terror. I thank Israel for standing by France in the past when it was also under terrorist attack. You can fight without hesitation, but without widening the conflict. A focused operation is necessary; we stand shoulder to shoulder with you in this mission, in order to restore peace and stability to the region. We are with you today, tomorrow, and also the day after. Israelis were murdered only because they were Jews.”
The White House in Washington DC has reported that President Joe Biden spoke to Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday and welcomed the release of two more hostages held by Hamas, and repeated his commitment to freeing all of the hostages. Biden also stressed the need for the continued flow of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, and updated the prime minister on the deployment of US forces in the region.
“The New York Times” reports concern on the part of the US administration that Israel does not have achievable aims in the campaign in the Gaza Strip and is still not ready with a war plan. Both “The New York Times” and “The Washington Post” report that the US has sent General James Glynn, who led the campaign against ISIS in Iraq, to assist Israel in dealing with the challenges of combat in built-up areas.
IDF spokesperson Real Admiral Daniel Hagari said this morning that the rocket fire from the Gaza Strip had diminished, but that Israelis must not become complacent. Addressing the residents of the Gaza Strip, Hagari said, “We continue to attack Gaza City and its surrounds intensively. For your own safety, move southwards. We are facilitating humanitarian conditions there.” Hagari said that in the past twenty-four hours the IDF had eliminated five groups of terrorists, including on the northern border. “We are committed to bringing all the hostages home. That is our aim,” he added.
Hezbollah has reported the death of another activist is southern Lebanon. Since the outbreak of the current war, Hezbollah has acknowledged 32 of its activists killed.
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After speaking to Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen and for the first time acknowledging Israel’s right to defend itself, Wang Yi, Foreign Minister of the People’s Republic of China, also spoke with the Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki and expressed support for and identification with the Palestinians.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on October 24, 2023.
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