2023-10-24 00:11:00
If Hamas wants a truce in the war with Israel, it must release all the hostages it has held since October 7. It is the condition that the president of the United States, Joe Biden, sets with caution and without exaggerating. “We must have the release of the hostages, then we can talk”, Biden’s position on the evening in which the militiamen released two elderly women who join the two US citizens, mother and daughter, freed at the end of last week.
220 people remain in the hands of Hamas, at the center of mediations that revolve around the role of Qatar, which is crucial in the dialogue carried out so far. Biden’s words reveal a glimmer of light in a picture that remains extremely complicated.
The dialogue for the hostages continues but does not take off
Hamas’ willingness to release 50 civilians, which has been referred to in the last 24 hours, seems linked to the supply of fuel among the aid intended for the civilian population of the Gaza Strip: on petrol and diesel, however, there is no of Israel, as highlighted by the Wall Street Journal.
Public statements are accompanied by behind-the-scenes discussions. The United States would be pressing Israel to freeze the ground offensive. Washington would like to obtain the release of other hostages and encourage the entry of new aid to trigger a virtuous circle.
Israel does not stop: “Attack will eliminate Hamas”
Israel, officially, continues towards the attack. “We are working together like an iron fist for one goal: to eliminate Hamas. We support each other and we support the armed forces, our soldiers and our commanders. I want the people of Israel to know one thing: here in the war cabinet we make decisions unanimously, we do it with responsibility and awareness. We fight together and we will win together”, says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the war cabinet meeting with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and General Herzi Halevi, head of the general staff.
Israel, according to Gallant, will act and will do so in a “lethal” manner. The minister asked the troops to “remain prepared for the offensive because it will take place”. “It will be a lethal attack – he adds – It will be a combined attack from land, sea and sky. Do your job, be ready”.
Halevi calls the armed forces “very well prepared”. “We want to bring Hamas to a point of disintegration: its leadership, its military wing. That’s why we attack with great force. We are eliminating commanders and operational figures, we are destroying the infrastructure. An operation in the south has been prepared to perfection “, he says, addressing the commanders of the 146th division. Delays, if they can be defined as such, should not be interpreted as a postponement: “There are tactical, operational, strategic evaluations that have given us more time. And there is more time to prepare better: we are doing just that”.
The preparation also involves American elements. The Biden Administration recently sent a three-star Marine general and other officers to Israel as advisors to the local military leadership, as revealed by Axios, which cites two US and two Israeli sources.
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