Israel is facing increasing international pressure to commit to a ceasefire, especially from its main ally and arms supplier, the United States. Following negotiations in Cairo, Hamas said that it is evaluating a proposal for a truce and hostage swap, while Israel’s defense minister said it is the appropriate time for a deal.
Late Monday, a Hamas source close to the negotiations said that the group was evaluating a proposal for a six-week truce and the release of Israeli women and children in exchange for up to 900 Palestinian prisoners.
The source, who requested anonymity, stated that the first phase will also include the return of displaced Palestinian citizens to northern Gaza, as well as the daily delivery of 400 to 500 trucks of food aid to the territory, where the United Nations has warned of imminent famine.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that troops would be sent into Gaza’s far southern Rafah city
While negotiations were ongoing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that troops would be sent into Gaza’s far southern Rafah city on a specific date.
“It will happen — there is a date,” Netanyahu declared in a televised statement that did not define the time frame. He argues that “victory” over Hamas militants in Gaza needs soldiers to enter Rafah, where around 1.5 million people have taken refuge.
The threat of a Rafah invasion has terrified world leaders and humanitarian workers. Following Netanyahu’s remarks, the US State Department underlined that an invasion would have “an enormously harmful effect” on civilians and, ultimately, Israeli security.
A day earlier, the army announced the withdrawal of its forces from Khan Yunis city, to Rafah’s north, prompting thousands of displaced Palestinians to return through a horrific panorama of dust and wreckage.
“I am shocked at what I saw,” said Umm Ahmad al-Fagawi, in a voice that seemed choked with emotion. “All the houses are destroyed, not only mine but also those of all the neighbors around us,” she stated, surrounded by a bleak landscape of wreckage.
The health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza said that at least 38 more individuals had been killed the day before.
Witnesses told AFP that fresh Israeli air strikes and artillery fire hit north and central Gaza, as well as Rafah, where Israel has regularly bombed targets even before any invasion.
The conflict began on October 7 with a Hamas attack against Israel, which killed 1,170 people, the majority of whom were civilians.