Gaza: Europe and the Arabs

The Israeli army announced in a statement the launch of a large-scale military operation in the northern occupied West Bank. The statement read, "The IDF, the Shin Bet (internal security), and the Border Police have begun a large-scale counter-terrorism operation in the northern Samaria region (West Bank)."

Israeli media reported that the Israeli army conducted a troop deployment in the Tubas governorate of the West Bank and deployed snipers.

The army stated, "The forces began their operations as part of a large-scale counter-terrorism operation in northern Samaria," using the biblical name Israelis use to refer to the northern West Bank.

According to the Israeli army, the current operation is not part of the "counter-terrorism operation" launched in January 2014, which primarily targets Palestinian refugee camps in the area, but rather a "new operation." According to European media reports in Brussels, including the Belgian newspaper Nieuwsblad,

This comes after Israeli soldiers killed five armed Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip, according to the army. The army said in a press release that the incident occurred in the eastern city of Rafah.

During a search operation in the area, the forces reportedly "identified and neutralized five armed terrorists." They appeared to have emerged from a "clandestine terrorist infrastructure."

The statement added: "Israeli forces in the Southern Command remain deployed in accordance with the ceasefire agreements and will continue their operations to eliminate any imminent threat." The army released photos of firearms and ammunition found in the men's possession. A ceasefire agreement was reached on October 10th in the war between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group. However, deadly incidents continue to occur, with both sides accusing each other of violations.

In a related development, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced in a statement on Wednesday that the identity of the hostage whose remains were recovered by the army from Gaza on Tuesday had been confirmed. The statement read, "After the National Institute of Forensic Medicine completed the identification procedures... representatives of the Israel Defense Forces informed the family of the deceased hostage, Dror Or, that his body had been returned to Israel."

On Tuesday evening, Israel received Or's body through the International Committee of the Red Cross. He was one of three remaining Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip. The handover was part of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Israel and Hamas reached an agreement on the transfer of bodies as part of the October ceasefire. Under the agreement, Israel is required to hand over the remains of 15 Gazans killed in action for each Israeli hostage whose remains are returned.

Meanwhile, official media reported that delegations from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey—the three countries mediating the Gaza ceasefire with the United States—met in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss the second phase of the ceasefire. According to Cairo News Channel, which is close to Egyptian intelligence, the talks, attended by the heads of the Egyptian and Turkish intelligence services and the Qatari prime minister, focused on coordinating with Washington for the "successful implementation" of the second phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The first phase began on October 10, and since then, there have been repeated violations. According to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, at least 345 people have been killed by Israeli shelling since then. Qatar, the United States, Egypt, and Turkey were involved in what eventually became the 20-point US plan aimed at ending the bloody conflict.

Meanwhile, displaced people in the Gaza Strip are living in dire humanitarian conditions due to a storm that flooded tents, while Israel prevents the entry of aid needed to alleviate their suffering during the winter.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, said that a new UN report concluded that the Israeli war on Gaza wiped out 69 years of human development, destroying healthcare and education systems, infrastructure, and even banks. The occupied Palestinian territory is now experiencing the deepest economic crisis in its recorded history, with Gaza suffering an "unprecedented and catastrophic" collapse, according to a new report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Speaking Tuesday in Geneva at the launch of UNCTAD's 2025 report on the economy of the occupied Palestinian territory, UNCTAD Deputy Secretary-General Pedro Manuel Moreno said that decades of movement restrictions, coupled with recent military operations, have "wiped out decades of progress" and left both Gaza and the West Bank facing long-term devastation.

"What we are seeing today is deeply troubling," he said. "Gaza is experiencing the fastest and most damaging economic collapse ever."

Historic GDP Plummet

In 2024, Gaza's GDP plummeted by 83% compared to the previous year.

Per capita GDP fell to just $161 annually, less than half a dollar a day, one of the lowest rates in the world. Gaza’s economy is now only 13% of its 2022 size.

The national unemployment rate has reached 50%, and in Gaza, it now exceeds 80%.

UNCTAD’s Programme Coordinator for Assistance to the Palestinian People, Moatasem Al-Ajra, said the collapse was so severe that it has wiped out seven decades of human development in the Gaza Strip.

He added: “Gaza’s economy has lost 87% of its value since 2022. Per capita GDP has reverted to levels seen 22 years ago. This is the worst economic crisis on record anywhere in recent decades.”

He further stated: “Multidimensional poverty is engulfing all of Gaza’s residents.”