Israel refuses to withdraw its troops and release prisoners, and Hamas considers a new ceasefire proposal!
On January 30, 2024, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he would not accept any agreement that included the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners of war or the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. Meanwhile, Hamas leader Ismail Haniya said he was willing to travel to Cairo to discuss the proposals. Haniyeh said his organization would continue its efforts to end the Israeli military offensive on Gaza and ensure the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the area.
Although it is difficult for Israel to accept these conditions, Egypt, Qatar and the United States want to see if they can be persuaded to agree to a ceasefire for at least one month, which will give them a chance to release almost all of the hostages. The framework proposal was developed by Egypt, Qatar, the United States and Israel during the Paris negotiations. Hamas negotiators were unable to attend due to the location of the talks.
Netanyahu has been lukewarm about any deal that forces Israeli soldiers to permanently withdraw from Gaza without a clear military victory, according to the UK**. He said the battle for Gaza was not with Hamas"Another round"The war, which will not end until Israel's goals are achieved.
The Israeli prime minister has said that the IDF will not withdraw from Gaza and has no intention of releasing thousands"***"。Leaked information shows that the first phase of the ceasefire plan calls for the release of about 35 hostages in exchange for a six-week pause in fighting between the two sides. Hostages include women, the elderly, and the seriously ill or injured. In return, Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian detainees.
The second phase focused on male and female soldiers, and the third phase was the release of the bodies of dead hostages. Netanyahu is facing a serious cabinet that he knows could bring down his cabinet. On Tuesday, Netanyahu visited an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. He declared:"We will never compromise without a complete victory.
He added that Israel will achieve all its goals,"That means destroying Hamas, freeing all hostages and ensuring that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel"。Netanyahu said that until then, Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons will not be released.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said late Monday:"We have achieved significant and fruitful results. He added:"Hamas must make its own decisions. What I can say is that all the countries concerned have made good and reliable contributions"。
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron has announced that if an agreement is reached, Hamas's military leaders in Gaza must withdraw.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army announced on Tuesday that it was flooding underground tunnels in Gaza in an effort to disrupt the vast underground network that Hamas had set up to counter Israel. According to a study by the United States Military Academy at West Point, at the beginning of the war, there were 1,300 tunnels in Gaza with a total length of 500 kilometers.
After the Hamas attack on October 7, the Israeli army pledged to destroy the tunnels. In December last year, Israel** reported that the Israeli army was in favor of pumping water from the Mediterranean Sea to the tunnels. But experts warn that doing so is dangerous and poses a huge risk to the residents of Gaza.
Lynn Hastings, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Palestinian Territories, said in December:"This will wreak havoc on Gaza's already fragile water and sewerage infrastructure. Buildings and roads in Gaza are in danger of collapsing due to increased atmospheric pressure and receding seawaters.
The Israeli military said they were taking great care not to damage the local groundwater resources during the construction process. "They said:"The water will only be pumped to the correct route and location of the tunnel, which is consistent with previous actions. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Israeli security services have been working for the past few years to combat Hamas's underground facilities in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli army claims that many of the hostages taken by Hamas are trapped in a network of underground tunnels or remain prisoners.
According to the Gaza health department, the death toll continues to rise: 26,751 dead and 65,636 injured.
To that end, Sir Cameron spoke with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on the ceasefire. Safadi warned Cameron that Britain had suspended payments to Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. He said that this decision played a key role in helping the Palestinian people cope with the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
In particular, Israeli intelligence claimed that nine UNRWA employees were involved in the attack on Israel on 7 October. The decision to suspend funding has been put on hold pending an investigation by the United Nations.