Israel will not accept Hamas’ rule over Gaza and is studying alternatives, its defense minister said, a further indication that it rejects a ceasefire proposal announced by US President Joe Biden as fighters Palestinians continue to resist the invasion.
“While we carry out our important military actions, the defense establishment is simultaneously evaluating a government alternative to Hamas,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement on Sunday.
“We will isolate areas, expel members and introduce forces that will allow an alternative government to form – an alternative that threatens Hamas,” Gallant added.
“On the one hand, military action and on the other the capacity to change government. (This) will lead to the achievement of two of the objectives of this war: the dismantling of the Hamas government and its military power, and the return of the hostages. We will not accept Hamas rule in Gaza at any stage of the process to end the war. »
Pressure is mounting on the Israeli government after Biden announced the proposal Friday, saying it was an “Israeli” truce deal and urging Hamas to accept it. The group that has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007 reacted “positively” to the American president’s statements.
Israel’s war cabinet meets later Sunday.
Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir have pledged to leave the government led by Benjamin Netanyahu if the ceasefire proposal is accepted.
“The agreement…means the end of the war and the abandonment of the goal of destroying Hamas. This is an irresponsible deal that constitutes a victory for terrorism and a threat to the security of the State of Israel,” Ben-Gvir said.
Ophir Falk, Israel’s senior foreign policy adviser, said Biden’s plan is a “deal that we agreed to — it’s not a good deal, but we sincerely want all the hostages to be released.”
“Israel is expected to say yes”
Yossi Beilin, a former minister and peace negotiator, said that even if far-right members left the government, it could still survive if the parties of opposition leader Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz replaced them.
“The right-wing government poses enormous problems for us. This was a political decision by Netanyahu, who three years earlier had refused to join them. But because he needed them to have a majority and become prime minister again, he agreed to something he should never have accepted,” Beilin told Tel Aviv Tribune.
“If this agreement is ultimately linked to a broader regional agreement, in accordance with the 2002 Arab (Peace) Initiative and the will of the Saudis, this will be its most important legacy. Otherwise, his legacy will be very disappointing.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby said that if Hamas accepts Biden’s ceasefire proposal to end the war, the United States expects that ‘Israel also accepts the plan.
“It was an Israeli proposal. We expect that if Hamas accepts the proposal – like the one that was conveyed to them, an Israeli proposal – then Israel will say ‘yes,’” Kirby said in an interview on ABC News This Week.
More than 100,000 Israeli protesters took to the streets of Tel Aviv on Saturday to demand that the Netanyahu-led coalition sign the truce proposal.
“Catastrophic” hunger spreads in Gaza
Pressure is mounting on Israel and Egypt to reopen the land crossings linking Gaza to allow the delivery of desperately needed aid. Hundreds of aid trucks have been stuck in Egypt with rotting supplies for weeks after Israel took control of the crucial Rafah crossing last month.
“The closure of the nine potential crossing points is a catastrophe,” Ahmed Bayram, spokesperson for the humanitarian group Norwegian Refugee Council, told Tel Aviv Tribune.
“Our teams tell us daily that children are sleeping on the sand because there are no more tents, that they are drinking unsafe water all day long and that they are eating very, very little. »
Even before Israel took control of the Rafah crossing, the number of aid trucks entering Gaza was far below the total needed. According to the United Nations, at least 500 to 600 trucks are needed every day to feed hundreds of thousands of people on the brink of starvation.
Egyptian, American and Israeli officials met in Cairo on Sunday to discuss the deteriorating humanitarian situation on the ground.
Al-Qahera News, which is linked to Egyptian intelligence, quoted a senior official as saying: “The Egyptian security delegation affirmed Israel’s full responsibility for humanitarian aid not entering the Gaza Strip. Gaza… Egypt has adhered to its strong stance on the need for Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing to resume operations. »