While U.S. President Donald Trump toured the Middle East from May 13 to 16, Israeli attacks killed approximately 400 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
According to the Ministry, 78 people died in the three days preceding Trump’s visit to the region, indicating a significant escalation in the intensity of the attacks.
Israeli local media reported on May 5 that the Israeli security cabinet discussed an attack plan aimed at expanding the occupation in the Gaza Strip.
An unnamed senior official stated that the security cabinet unanimously approved the plan. Following this date, there was an increase in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Days of bloodshed in Gaza
Trump began his tour in Saudi Arabia on May 13, followed by a visit to Qatar on May 14 and then arrived in the United Arab Emirates on May 15.
Since the beginning of the U.S. President’s Middle East tour, the Israeli military has launched intense attacks on several medical centers, including Nasser Hospital and the European Gaza Hospital, as well as civilian residential areas and facilities.
On the first day of the tour, the Israeli army issued evacuation orders for seven areas, including densely populated neighborhoods such as Jabalia, Tel al-Zaatar, Sheikh Zayed, and al-Salam in northern Gaza.
Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee described the warning as “the final warning before the attack.”
Following the warning, bombardments killed and injured many people, including women and children.
That same day, artillery strikes targeted both Nasser Hospital and the Gaza European Hospital, as well as homes and tents sheltering displaced people. Approximately 48 people were killed in the attacks.
On the second day of Trump’s visit, Israeli shelling targeting homes, civilians, and tents for displaced people killed around 118 Palestinians.
Additionally, evacuation orders were issued for four schools in Gaza City and for residential areas, including al-Shifa Hospital.
On the third day of Trump’s visit, Thursday, Israeli airstrikes targeted the homes and tents of displaced people, as well as a health center and a mosque in various parts of the blockaded Gaza Strip, killing approximately 94 Palestinians.
In Gaza, which has been under Israeli blockade for 18 years and is home to more than 2 million people, around 1.5 million Palestinians have been left homeless due to the attacks.
As a result of Tel Aviv’s imposition of a humanitarian aid blockade on Gaza since March 2, the Gaza Strip is also facing a famine crisis.
‘Gaza deserves better future’
On Tuesday, Israel intensified its bombardment, acts of genocide, and killings, as Trump, during a speech in Saudi Arabia, said that the Palestinians in Gaza “deserve a much better future.”
Palestinians viewed this as a direct message from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu aimed at blocking diplomatic pressure for a ceasefire.
In a statement on Thursday, Hamas said Netanyahu was trying to sabotage mediators’ efforts for ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement by escalating attacks and massacres against innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip.
The statement described the attacks as part of an ongoing genocide targeting civilians, emphasizing that bombing residential areas with their inhabitants reflects a “brutal, fascist” approach that will not bring victory to Netanyahu.
Hamas reiterated its readiness to enter comprehensive negotiations, proposing the collective release of Israeli captives in exchange for an end to the genocide, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the release of Palestinian detainees.
Netanyahu, while introducing new preconditions, has been evading the process and also insists on the disarmament of Hamas-a demand the group rejects as long as Israel continues its occupation of Palestinian lands.
Meanwhile, in Israel, opposition figures and families of the captives accuse Netanyahu of prolonging the genocide in Gaza to appease the far-right wing of his government, claiming his actions are driven entirely by personal political interests-especially his desire to remain in power.
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