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As Gaza's border protests become increasingly militant, Palestinian factions on Thursday called for mbad participation and "popular resistance" at the border march on Friday.
The statement was issued a few hours after the Hamas military wing declared that it was in a state of alert in Gaza and urged all Palestinian forces in Gaza to cooperate via a unified command. The organization has threatened to avenge the death of the three fighters killed on Wednesday during an Israeli attack on a Hamas outpost in east Gaza City. An IDF soldier was wounded that day, and the previous Friday, the marches claimed their first Israeli death when a Palestinian sniper killed Sgt. Aviv Levi.
>> To maintain the ceasefire in Gaza, Hamas expects more from Israel than mere incentives | Analysis
The army intends to re-examine its deployment along the fence to protect the soldiers from such a fire. The IDF said it was determined to locate the sniper who shot Levi and did not rule out the possibility of the murder.
Nine shots were fired at Israel from Gaza early Thursday, according to the military, after several days of violent clashes in Gaza. Most rockets fell in open areas near the border. Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system has intercepted a rocket, according to the army. No damage or victim has been reported.
The evaluation of the defense establishment is that Hamas will try to maintain a low level of violence during these demonstrations, seeking to avoid unwanted deterioration and worsening of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza , which could provoke a civil uprising. Last weekend, the IDF attacked dozens of Hamas targets and Israel was expecting a strong reaction.
The lack of response has been interpreted as evidence that Hamas is not interested in fanning the flames.
There is a broad consensus within the Israeli military that at this stage there is no need to conduct a large-scale operation in Gaza, despite some statements belligerent members of the government. Senior IDF officers repeat this badessment at each meeting with the decision makers. For the army, the most important goal at the moment is the completion of the protective wall along the border, which is perceived as a strategic change in the military. balance of power vis-à-vis Hamas.
Construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2019 and the military would prefer not to be dragged into a long series of battles until then.
Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot ordered that construction work continue despite tensions in the area and attempts to interfere with the work.
In the streets of Gaza, the issue that most worries people is that of UNRWA, where sanctions continued Thursday and hundreds of employees fired or whose contracts did not not been renewed have demonstrated in UNRWA offices. The organization estimates that the layoffs were largely due to deficits in a fund in which the United States had paid about $ 100 million a year, and the organization was trying not to hurt its program food aid for 1 million beneficiaries. Palestinian economists see this decision and view UNRWA services as a "heart attack" for the Palestinian public in Gaza and warn of possible results.
The defense establishment supports the restoration of the previous level of goods transferred across the Kerem Shalom border crossing. In the past two months, Egypt has opened the Rafah checkpoint over which Israel has no control, and the IDF is concerned that Hamas and Islamic Jihad are exploiting this traffic to introduce war material.
An important Hamas source told Haaretz that the organization has made it clear to international figures, including in the Arab world, who are trying to prevent a violent escalation that Gaza is waiting for. to see a global plan to lift the blockade, not plan on the scale for humanitarian aid alone. The source said that Israel sought to secure such an arrangement to keep the band's residents in the same cage that they have been in for 11 years – a beleaguered enclave band with a softening occasional restrictions that ignores the general situation amid a rapid rise in population.
"In the Strip there are people who want to live, this is not a zoo that only needs to be fed," the source said.
Hamas said UN envoy to the Middle East Nickolay Mladenov held a second meeting in as many days with Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh. Their agenda was focused on the escalation that took place on Wednesday and on fears of deterioration and conflagration. Haniyah also met with Egyptian intelligence chief General Abbas Kamel, who has been to Washington and will soon travel to Gaza and Ramallah as part of efforts to advance Palestinian reconciliation efforts.
The military rejects criticism of its decision not to destroy Hamas border positions, saying it wants to allow Hamas members to reintegrate them to impose order in the region after that things have stabilized.
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