Knesset Member: Gaza Won, Will Win War

Date: 31 May 2025 - 22:20

News ID: ۱۴۰۱۹۰

TEL AVIV (Dispatches) --
| Addressing a protest in Haifa on Saturday, Ayman Odeh, a prominent Arab lawmaker in the Israeli Knesset and head of the Hadash movement, called for an immediate end to the war and the creation of a Palestinian state.
“Gaza won, and Gaza will win,” he told the crowd, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported.
Odeh described the ongoing war as “a historic loss for right-wing ideology,” arguing it had exposed deep contradictions within Zionist politics.
He also praised protesters in Tel Aviv — most of them Jewish — for taking a stand. But he criticized those who oppose prime minister Netanyahu’s regime while ignoring what he called the core issue: the occupation.
“We value you and your persistence, but we cannot accept that you don’t see the crux of it all. The judicial coup came from the occupation, and there is no democracy with occupation,” Odeh said.
Israeli forces on Saturday killed at least 60 Palestinians and wounded 284 in the past 24 hours, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Wafa news agency said seven Palestinians, including an entire family, in Israeli airstrikes targeting Gaza City and Khan Younis.
According to the report, Arafat Deeb was killed along with his wife and three children in an Israeli attack on their tent near the Omar Mosque in the Al-Shanti area of Gaza City.
The killings brought the death toll in the besieged enclave since October 7, 2023 to 54,381, including 4,117 killed since Israel broke the ceasefire on March 18.
More than 124,054 Palestinians have been wounded overall. At least 10,000 people are still missing, likely dead and buried under rubble.
Health officials report that over 60 percent of the victims are women and children.
A spokesman for Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital told Al Jazeera Arabic that Israeli forces are “systematically targeting” Gaza’s already fragile healthcare sector by striking power sources that keep hospitals running.
“The occupation targets the electric generators that supply hospitals,” he said, adding that the army has destroyed “the three largest power generators supplying hospitals in the Gaza Strip.”
Without power, hospital departments are shutting down, forcing staff to ration electricity where possible to keep essential services operating.
“The occupation’s targeting of electricity generators means a death sentence for patients,” the spokesman warned, highlighting that Israeli authorities are also blocking the entry of critical spare parts needed for repairs.
“Various hospital departments cannot continue operating without electricity,” he said.
Gaza’s hospitals have faced relentless bombardment since Israel launched its war on the besieged enclave nearly eight months ago. Medical teams now find themselves scrambling to save lives with dwindling resources, no fuel, and no reliable power.
“The international community must intervene to pressure the occupation to protect the health system,” the spokesman urged.
Meanwhile, Hamas announced on Saturday that it has officially responded to the latest Gaza ceasefire proposal brokered by the United States, a plan that has drawn criticism for favoring Israel.
“After conducting a round of national consultations, and stemming from our deep responsibility towards our people and their suffering, we have delivered our response to the proposal by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to the brotherly mediators,” Hamas said in a brief statement.
The group said its response aims to secure a permanent ceasefire, ensure a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, and guarantee the sustained delivery of humanitarian aid to the territory.
As part of the proposed agreement, Hamas stated it is prepared to release 10 living Israeli captives and hand over the remains of 18 others, in exchange for an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners.