Israeli forces kill 79 Gaza residents in one day as Shabak chief nominee vows ‘forever’ war

CAIRO – 24 May 2025: Israeli forces have killed at least 79 Palestinians and injured 211 others in Gaza over the past 24 hours, according to the enclave’s health ministry on Saturday.

Daily fatalities among Palestinian residents to Gaza due to the Israeli war have increased over the past week since Israel launched a new operation to seize the entire enclave, displace the population toward the south and release dozens of captives still held there.

The war in Gaza has so far killed more than 53,900 people, according to the ministry, including 3,747 since the Israeli forces resumed the operations on 18 March, shattering a ceasefire that brought home dozens of captives held by Hamas in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.

The families of the captives in Gaza on Saturday slammed alleged remarks by Israeli Prime Minister’s newly-picked head of the Shin Bet (Shabak) David Zini that “I oppose hostage deals. This is a forever war.”

Channel 12 cited his remarks without providing a specific date, noting that this is a position that he repeatedly mentioned over the past year.

The war continues despite global condemnation and pressures by some of Israel’s closest allies in the west to end military operations and resume aid deliveries.

Israel, who is facing unprecedented pressures from its closest allies over its handling of the war in Gaza, has pledged to resume a “minimal” amount of humanitarian aid into the enclave after nearly three months of blockade#Egypt #Africa #MENAhttps://t.co/I41eHztROJ

— Egypt Today Magazine (@EgyptTodayMag) May 21, 2025

Italy’s Minister of Defense Guido Crosetto emphasized on Thursday that Netanyahu “is wrong in killing thousands of innocent Palestinians,” warning that such actions “risk damaging Israel itself.”

The European Union last week announced reviewing the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which spans political and economic ties between the two sides.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom, France and Canada have called on the Israeli government to halt its military operations in Gaza and immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

In a joint statement, the three countries threatened “concrete actions” against Israel in case of its failure to abide by the international humanitarian law.

As Israel escalated its military operations, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez addressed the 34th Arab League summit held in Baghdad last week and called for global pressure on Israel to “halt the massacre in Gaza.”

Moreover, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called for a halt to the deadly military strikes in Gaza, stating on Saturday that “we no longer want to see the Palestinian people suffer.”

Ireland’s Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris accused Israel of conducting “genocidal activity” and “a consistent pattern of war crimes,” stating that his country will consider a ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian territories.