On the evening of December 20 local time, Hamas rejected Israel's offer to cease fire in the Gaza Strip for seven days in exchange for the release of about 40 detainees. Among those requested for release in the proposal are women and children who are still in Hamas custody, as well as elderly men in need of urgent medical care.
Hamas told the Egyptian mediator that Israel must stop its offensive in the Gaza Strip before it is possible to discuss an agreement, i.e., a ceasefire before peace talks. The Israeli army categorically rejected Hamas's demands. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that until a temporary ceasefire agreement is reached, the Israeli army will never cease fire, and only by maintaining strong military pressure can an agreement to rescue the hostages.
It has to be said that no country knows Hamas better than Israel;No UN staff member or other national ** or politician has been more acutely painful than Israelis for the suffering caused by Hamas's decades of terrorist attacks. This time, Hamas itself wants to die, and no one can stop it.
The only way for Palestinian extremist members in the Gaza Strip to survive is to release all the hostages and surrender unconditionally to Israel, which has effectively abolished the death penalty anyway and can spend the rest of their criminal lives comfortably in prison.
On the evening of December 20, local time, IDF spokesman Ichay Adraee (**Ichay Adraee) posted through social media that the Israeli army has completed "full control" of the Hamas command center in Gaza City in the northern Gaza Strip
Based on various information, the Israeli army has indeed routed Hamas, Jihad, and other extremist forces in the northern Gaza Strip, killed and captured about 10,000 armed personnel, and completed the clearance of about 70 percent of the northern area, including the destruction of all the tunnels and facilities that have been discovered. However, in the 30 per cent of the areas that have not yet been cleared, the resistance of Hamas and other armed elements remains stubborn.