War in the Middle East
Hamas agrees to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip
Palestinian women sit on rubble in the Nuseirat refugee camp in the Gaza Strip after the withdrawal of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). photo
© Omar Naaman/dpa
Little to no progress – that was the outcome for a long time in talks about a ceasefire in Gaza. Now there is movement from Hamas.
Israel initially did not comment. It also remained unclear exactly what content of the proposal Hamas had agreed to. However, Hamas circles in the Lebanese capital Beirut said it was a “key development”.
Hamas deception?
It was also unclear whether this was a proposal that Israel had also agreed to, as the negotiations were conducted “indirectly”. The Israeli television station Channel 12 reported that Israel was waiting for information from the mediators. According to the broadcaster, an unnamed cabinet member spoke of a deceptive maneuver by Hamas to portray Israel as a refusenik.
According to Israeli media reports, Israeli Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir considers the Islamist Hamas’ approval of the mediator’s proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza to be a “trick.” “There is only one answer to Hamas’ tricks and games: an immediate order to capture Rafah, increase military pressure and continue to harass Hamas until it is completely defeated,” said the right-wing politician.
Channel 12, citing unnamed Israeli government officials, reported that Israel had received Hamas’ response from mediators and was currently evaluating it. There should be a reaction during the evening.
133 hostages remain held in the Gaza Strip
Israel and Hamas have not been negotiating directly with each other for months, but there are talks. Their focus was recently moved from Qatar to Egypt. In total, terrorists from Hamas and other extremist organizations kidnapped more than 250 people into the Gaza Strip on October 7th. During a week-long ceasefire at the end of November last year, Hamas released 105 hostages. In return, Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners from its prisons. It was recently feared that of the 133 hostages still believed to be in the Gaza Strip, many are no longer alive.
Hamas continued to demand a comprehensive ceasefire, including a complete withdrawal of the Israeli army from the Gaza Strip. Israel, which has declared the complete destruction of Hamas as its goal, has so far rejected this. Foreign Minister Israel Katz recently said his country was ready to postpone the announced military operation in the city of Rafah if a deal to release hostages was reached. Just today, the Israeli military called on people in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip to evacuate.
Criticism of Netanyahu from hostage relatives
In recent days, relatives of the hostages and former hostages have urged the Israeli government to come to a negotiated solution. In a letter to Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, ministers in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, on Monday they demanded answers about the government’s stance. “We family members are watching in horror what is happening,” they wrote, also referring to the preparations for the Rafah offensive. “Netanyahu is deliberately destroying the deal and leaving the hostages to die.”