While the Islamist group Hamas declared Monday evening that it had accepted an Egyptian-Qatari ceasefire proposal for Gaza, the Israeli government for its part unanimously approved its military operation on Rafah.
The hope of silencing the guns in Gaza was short-lived on Monday. If Hamas confirmed having accepted the latest ceasefire proposal presented by the Egyptian and Qatari mediators for the Gaza Strip, Israel’s response remains very firm.
Despite insistent pressure from his American ally, Benjamin Netanyahu announced in the evening that the military operation in Rafah still remained relevant (it also partially began Monday evening) in order to obtain the release of the Israeli hostages, the Prime Minister’s office said.
The Israeli army carried out intense bombings on the east of the city of Rafah, reported an AFP correspondent. A few hours earlier, the IDF had reiterated the injunction issued in the morning to the residents of the affected neighborhoods ofevacuate the area, specifying that this evacuation was a prelude to a “land” operation in this city which has become a refuge for more than a million Palestinians on the southern edge of the besieged Gaza Strip.
As a result of these bombings, the armed wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad immediately declared that it had also fired rockets from Gaza into southern Israel.
However, the government of the Jewish state also affirmed Monday evening that it wanted continue negotiations with Hamas even if, at this stage, the Islamist movement’s proposals would still be far from Israeli demands, Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated.
Israel nevertheless announced Monday evening the upcoming sending of a delegation to Egypt, while continuing its operations in Rafah to “exert military pressure” on the Palestinian movement.
“An extra effort”
On Monday, the UN chief called on Israel and Hamas to make a “extra effort” for a truce, said Antonio Guterres’ spokesperson, while the families of the Israeli hostages demanded an agreement for their part after Hamas’ statements.
“Hamas’ announcement should pave the way for the return of the 132 hostages held captive by Hamas for more than seven months”declared in a press release the Families Forum, an Israeli association of relatives of hostages founded the day after October 7. “The time has come for all parties involved to fulfill their commitment and turn this opportunity into an agreement for the return of all hostages.”
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi also called on Monday evening for increased efforts to reach an agreement in Gaza, saying he was closely following developments in ongoing negotiations for a “global truce”.
As for the details of the truce proposal, they have not been published. But in recent days, Egyptian and Hamas officials have said the ceasefire would take place in several stages, during which Hamas would release the hostages it is holding in exchange for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip. .
