Fierce battles continue in Gaza Strip Claiming many lives

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) continued to operate in the Gaza Strip on the night of November 23.

During the night of November 22 to 23, information on the course of the fighting came exclusively from sources in Gaza, according to NEWSru.co.il.

Sources in Gaza reported fighting in the central and northern parts of the Strip. The fighting was particularly fierce east of al-Maghazi and Dir al-Balah, in the centre of the Strip.

There are dead and wounded from overnight strikes on houses in Jabaliya, in the north of the sector. Also, there are many killed and wounded in a strike on the house of Abu Musameh family in Bani Suhaila neighbourhood, east of Khan Younis, in the south of the Strip, and there are killed and wounded in a strike on a target in Al-Sabra neighbourhood, south of Gaza City.

Meanwhile, the radical Palestinian movement Hamas decided at the last moment to make changes to the agreement with Israel, which caused delays in the implementation of the truce deal and the release of hostages.

According to him, the head of the Israeli intelligence service Mossad, David Barnea, visited Qatar on Wednesday, where he was informed that Hamas would like to make changes to the draft agreement.

“The Qataris informed us [the Israeli side] around 23:00 that Hamas still has not signed the agreement. It seems they are still discussing this issue,” the radio station quoted an unnamed Israeli official as saying.

According to her information, at the moment the agreement cannot be implemented for at least the next 24 hours, since neither Qatar nor Hamas have yet signed its final version.

In addition, the humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip for the release of Hamas hostages will be postponed until November 24.

A source at Israel's National Security Council told CNN that the cessation of hostilities was being delayed by "fairly minor implementation details."

Another official told CNN that the reason for the delay is that Israel has not yet received the names of the first hostages to be released by Hamas.

Israeli media have reported that neither Israel nor Hamas have signed a written agreement to release the hostages, although it is unclear whether this will be enough to halt the deal. The Qatari Foreign Ministry claims that the time of the truce will be announced in the coming hours.

Moreover, US President Joe Biden held a phone talk on the night of November 22 to 23 with Egyptian President Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi, in which he thanked the Egyptian leader for helping to reach a deal on the release of hostages.

The US leader stressed that under no circumstances will the United States "allow the forced expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank, the blockade of Gaza or the redrawing of the borders of the sector."

He also stressed that under no circumstances "Gaza can remain a refuge for Hamas, from which it can continue to threaten Israel and the Palestinians, and undermine efforts to achieve peace."

Biden reaffirmed his commitment to the creation of the State of Palestine and recognized the special role of Egypt in shaping the conditions for this.