"We are living a real doomsday": Gaza residents with nowhere to hide from Israel’s looming incursion

As we go to press, Israel is on the verge of launching a massive ground operation in Gaza “to destroy Hamas,” in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s words, after giving nearly 1.1 million residents 24 hours to leave Gaza City in the north of the enclave.?

The death toll now exceeds 1,900 in Gaza and 1,300 in Israel.?

Israel has already cut off electricity, water, and food imports,?as Rasha Abu Jalal reports from Gaza, and more than 400,000 Palestinians have already been displaced.?

You can follow the breaking news on the Israel-Hamas war on our live blog here.

Israel:? Netanyahu launches Gaza invasion as ‘weakened leader’

Israel’s decision to invade Gaza is ?“fraught with danger,”?writes Ben Caspit today from Tel Aviv. “Hamas may have booby trapped areas where they think Israel will invade and ... an incursion risks the lives of?hostages?— mainly civilians, including children, the elderly and the sick — who were seized in Israel and taken to Gaza by Hamas.?The incessant Israeli bombing of homes suspected to be those of Hamas leaders in Gaza, as well as the organization’s weapons caches and other facilities, could also bear tragic consequences.”

Netanyahu has embarked on the war “with decreasing popularity, declining health and?a criminal trial, all while dependent on?an extremist coalition?of nationalist, racist parties?and saddled with a dysfunctional government,” adds Caspit. “The magnitude of the challenge facing Israel has forced Netanyahu to set aside narrow political considerations and form a war cabinet with the?participation of two of his political rivals, Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, former military chiefs and leaders of the National Union party."

Gaza: “There is no electricity, internet or even water.”

An Al-Monitor correspondent in Gaza wrote to us today, saying “I hope you pray for us, that may God look over us. We are living in a real doomsday in Gaza. There is no electricity, internet or even water. I made a great effort to respond to you. No one can leave Gaza. All crossings have been bombed, even the Israeli crossing. All people here are going through the same suffering of all nationalities. No one is able to help anyone. Everyone is fleeing from one dangerous place to another.”

Egypt:? Sisi tells Gazans to ‘remain on their land’

Egyptians in Gaza must “stay steadfast and remain on their land,” Egypt President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi said Thursday, as Cairo seeks to avert a mass exodus from Gaza to the Sinai Peninsula.

Egypt is once again involved in intense mediation between Israel and Hamas, as has been the case in previous conflicts. ??

“Many Egyptians have rallied behind the?Palestinian cause,”?writes Mohammed Magdy from Cairo, “while government officials are increasingly wary of a potential influx of Palestinian refugees to the country.”

China:? Hamas war a ‘net negative’

“For China, the Gaza war is a net negative,” writes Joyce Karam in this week’s Al-Monitor China newsletter. “It derails its agenda as a political and economic rising power in the region, and if history holds true, it may end up empowering Hamas while further weakening the PLO.?

“Where China could be effective, however, as a mediator is not between Israelis and the Palestinians, but with Iran, to avoid a regional war and contain the current escalation,” adds Karam.?

Washington:? US Special Forces ready to assist in hostage rescue operations

Seventeen US citizens are unaccounted for and presumed held hostage among the estimated 100-150 people thought to be held by Hamas in Gaza.

Steve Gillen, the deputy special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, has accompanied US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on his meetings in Israel and the region this week.

A spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry?told Al-Monitor’s Elizabeth ?Hagedorn that the Qataris are “in constant contact with all sides” to secure the release of the prisoners.?

The Pentagon’s elite Joint Special Operations Command is poised to assist the Israelis with?planning and intelligence support, ?two US military officials told Hagedorn this week. JSOC's Delta Force unit specializes in hostage rescue operations.?

Iran: ?State media lionizes Hamas

“The degree to which the Iranian public endorses the official line on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not measurable,”?writes our correspondent in Iran. “But on Friday the state-run Islamic Propagation Headquarters organized anti-Israel rallies across large cities, where public burning of Israeli flags were broadcast live on state television.?“

And the hard-line news media, which has been idolizing Hamas, published footage of old military drills by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, practicing massive strikes on Israel's Dimona nuclear facility.

Putin snubs Bibi; Zelenskyy steps up

Despite a long-standing relationship, Russian President Vladimir Putin has so far not called Netanyahu, and has instead focused his public statements on the rights of Palestinians and the injustice of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands.

“The negative approach by Moscow stands in stark contrast with the strong and unequivocal support offered to Israel by Ukraine in the past six days,”?writes Rina Bassist. “Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Wednesday in Brussels on NATO leaders to support Israel, encouraging them to travel there to clearly express that support.” Al-Monitor Israeli, Palestinian columnists talk war … and peace

In case you missed it, check out our webinar conversation with Ben Caspit and Daoud Kuttab about the Israel-Hamas war, the first in our weekly series on the conflict:?Israel-Hamas War: Live Q&A with Ben Caspit & Daoud Kuttab - Al-Monitor: Independent, trusted coverage of the Middle East.