European Union leaders have stopped short of calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, instead appealing\u00a0for humanitarian \u201cpauses\u201d to provide aid, as the UN warned its operations were being \u201cparalyzed\u201d by Israel\u2019s bombardment of the besieged enclave. <\/p>\n
The communique, released after meetings Thursday in Brussels, <\/strong>follows several failed attempts by the UN Security Council to pass a resolution on the Israel-Hamas war, with member states preparing to vote on another draft resolution \u2013 this time put forward by Jordan on behalf of Arab states \u2013 on Friday. <\/p>\n Jordan\u2019s Foreign Minister\u00a0Ayman Safadi told diplomats gathered at the United Nations Assembly Hall that \u201ccollective punishment is not self-defense.\u201d The resolution calls for a \u201ccessation of hostilities,\u201d the release of hostages, and the rejection of \u201cany attempts at forced transfer of the Palestinian civilian population.\u201d <\/p>\n More than 2 million people trapped in Gaza are living through a deepening humanitarian crisis, hastened by daily airstrikes and an Israeli blockade of life-saving fuel. Israel says Hamas is stockpiling fuel for its own use and has called on the militant Palestinian group that governs Gaza to share it. Health services have been crippled by power shortages and hundreds of thousands of civilians have been forced to flee their homes amid the bombing. <\/p>\n Israeli strikes have killed more than 7,028 people in Gaza, including thousands of children, since October 7, according to figures released Thursday <\/strong>by the Hamas-controlled Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza. <\/p>\n Pressure is building on the international community to persuade Israel to allow\u00a0desperately needed aid\u00a0into Gaza; the United Nations and several countries in the region have called for an immediate ceasefire, while others advocate for a \u201chumanitarian pause\u201d in fighting. <\/p>\n But the world has so far failed to unite around a common position on the crisis, nearly three weeks since the outbreak of violence, sparked by Hamas\u2019 brutal October 7 terror attacks and kidnapping rampage that killed over 1,400 people in Israel and saw over 200 people taken to Gaza as hostages. <\/p>\n Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan on Thursday said requests for a ceasefire were \u201cnot an attempt for peace,\u201d but \u201can attempt to tie Israel\u2019s hands, preventing us from eliminating a huge threat to our citizens.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cIsrael is not at war with human beings, we are at war with monsters,\u201d he added, saying, \u201cour goal is to completely eradicate Hamas\u2019s capability and we will use every means at our disposal to accomplish this.\u201d <\/p>\n His comments came as Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel\u2019s forces are preparing for the \u201cnext\u00a0stages\u201d in its war against Hamas, which is widely expected to come in the form of a ground incursion. <\/p>\n \u201cThe maneuvering will begin when the conditions are right. These conditions are complex because so is the campaign. The troops are ready,\u201d Gallant said in a briefing in Tel Aviv. <\/p>\n For a second night, Israel\u2019s military conducted \u201ctargeted raids\u201d in northern Gaza overnight on Friday after vowing to continue ground raids over the coming days. <\/p>\n The raids included aircraft and artillery strikes in the area of Shaja\u2019iyah, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. Video published by the IDF showed tanks and armored vehicles moving on a road near agricultural land as well as strikes on buildings and open areas. <\/p>\n The incursions are intended to kill Hamas militants, lay the foundations for an all-out invasion and neutralize explosive devices and reconnaissance posts, IDF spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on Thursday. <\/p>\n Meanwhile, six people were injured when a rocket struck the Red Sea resort city of Taba, in Egypt, early on Friday, according to official sources cited by Egypt-affiliated Al-Qahera News. <\/p>\n The rocket hit an ambulance building and a residential area of the hospital\u2019s administration in the city, which shares its border with Israel. It is unclear yet who fired the rocket. <\/p>\n IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said at a press briefing Friday that Israel will cooperate with Egypt and the US to \u201ctighten the defense in the region against threats from the Red Sea area.\u201d Hagari said an aerial \u201cthreat\u201d had been detected in the Red Sea area, which he said he believed was the cause of the strike in Egypt. <\/p>\n