Israel’s offensive on Gaza continues, mediators unable to stop it

The Israeli bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip continues for the second day, and mediators seem unable to stop it.

Early on Saturday morning, the Israeli occupation army announced it was preparing for a “week-long operation” against Palestinian armed groups in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli media reported Israeli occupation army spokesperson, Ran Kochav, confirming that there are no negotiations for a truce and that the offensive on Gaza may last for at least one week.

At the same time, the Islamic Jihad shared that there has been no talk of calm or mediation “for the moment.” A senior member of Islamic Jihad told a local Palestinian news agency that the situation “is heading for an escalation.”

READ: Israel ramps up security around Gaza Strip after arrest of Islamic Jihad official

However, Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum said that the Israeli occupation had repeated its request to Egypt to pressure the Palestinian resistance to stop their rocket fire at Israeli targets.

An Egyptian official reiterated to Israeli daily Haaretz that mediation between Israel and Gaza was still underway, with the focus now on preventing escalation.

The official told Haaretz that the Gaza factions’ response to the number of deceased and wounded would set the pace for further reactions by Israel.