Targeted bombings, reduced ground troops, buffer zone on the Egyptian border… Israeli leaders gave some details defining the contours of the new phase of fighting in Gaza, announced on Sunday by Prime Minister Netanyahu.
On Monday, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who discussed tensions on the border with Lebanon during his trip to Washington with Amos Hochstein, Biden’s senior adviser, echoed comments made by Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, that the war in Gaza is entering a new phase.
Israel is set to dismantle Hamas military brigades in the southern city of Rafah and maintains a “Total control” on the Philadelphia Corridor, a strategic buffer zone along the Gaza-Egypt border, said Israeli Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi. Israel says the corridor is riddled with tunnels that Hamas uses to smuggle weapons and other goods. Mr. Halevi said Israel’s control of the buffer zone would end this situation.
Prospect of ceasefire deadlocked
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would only be willing to accept a ceasefire deal”partial” which would not end the war, comments which sparked an outcry from the families of hostages held by Hamas.
In an interview broadcast late Sunday on Israel’s Channel 14, a conservative station favorable to Netanyahu, the Israeli leader said he was “ready to conclude a partial agreement – it is not a secret – which would make us certain people“, in reference to some 120 hostages still held in the Gaza Strip. “But we are determined to continue the war after a pause, in order to achieve the goal of eliminating Hamas. I’m not ready to give up on this goal“.
The comments come at a delicate time, when Israel and Hamas appear to be drifting apart over the latest ceasefire proposal, and they could represent a new setback for mediators trying to end the war.
Vigorously defended at the end of last month by American President Joe Biden, this three-phase plan provides for the release of the last hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. But disputes and distrust persist between Israel and Hamas over how the deal will be implemented.
Hamas insists it will not release the remaining hostages without a permanent ceasefire and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. When Joe Biden announced the latest proposal, he said it included both of these elements.