2024-04-28 13:01:00
Diplomatic efforts for a truce in fighting in Gaza strengthen with the release of hostages this Sunday, as Israel continues its strikes on the besieged Palestinian territory threatened by famine.
A senior Hamas official announced that a delegation from the movement will give its response this Monday in Cairo to a proposal for truce Israeli belonging to hostage releasealmost seven months after the start of the war, which was triggered by the bloody attack by the Palestinian Islamic movement against Israel on 7 October.
On Saturday, Hamas announced “study” this counter-proposal, stating that it is “he will submit his answer as soon as his study is complete”.
Meanwhile, the war knows no relief in the small besieged territory where Hamas came to power in 2007. The Israeli army said on Sunday it had struck “thousands of terrorist targets” in the center of Gaza.
He also claims to be preparing a land offensive in Rafah where there are one and a half million Palestinians, mainly displaced people. Many capitals and humanitarian organizations are afraid of bloodshed in this city which is already regularly bombed by the army.
From Saudi Arabia, where a special meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) is taking place from this Sunday, the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, asked the United States to prevent a ground invasion in Rafah. If it was running, this operation would be on the “the greatest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people”he declared.
American Secretary of State Antony Blinken is also expected in Saudi Arabia, where he will discuss in particular “ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza that allows for the release of hostages”according to the State Department.
In Beirut, French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné will discuss Sunday with Lebanese officials ways to avoid an extension of the conflict.
Since the beginning of the war, there have been daily exchanges of fire on Israel’s northern border between the Israeli army and the Lebanese Islamic movement Hezbollah.
“meal now”
These diplomatic negotiations are ongoing while we await Hamas’s response to Israel’s counter-proposal.
The details of this proposal have not been refined but according to the Axios site, which cites Israeli officials, it includes a desire to discuss “establishing lasting peace” in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the internal pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu’s government continues to grow. On Saturday evening, thousands of people gathered in Tel Aviv to demand the release of the hostages kidnapped on October 7.
That day, Hamas commandos launched an unprecedented attack on Israel that resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP report based on official Israeli data. More than 250 people have been kidnapped and 129 are still in captivity in Gaza, 34 of whom have died according to Israeli officials.
In return, Israel promised to expel Hamas, an organization it considers a terrorist organization, as well as the United States and the European Union. Its offensive in Gaza has left 34,454 dead, mostly civilians, according to a new report from the Hamas Health Ministry on Sunday.
“Do, now!” protesters chanted on Saturday evening, calling for Netanyahu’s government to resign. Shortly before, Hamas released a video showing two hostages, Keith Siegel, 64, and Omri Miran, 47. This is the second video released in several days by Hamas.
At the rally in Tel Aviv, Mr. Miran’s father urged Hamas “show humanity”asking him too “Make a decision now”.
Strikes and artillery fire
On the ground, there was no lull. During Saturday, the Israeli navy targeted Hamas targets and supported the deployment of troops in the center of the territory, the army said on Sunday.
According to an AFP correspondent, the Israeli army carried out airstrikes and artillery fire in various areas of the Gaza Strip, especially in Khan Younes and Rafah, two towns in the south of the territory, as well as in Gaza City (to the north).
In total, 66 Palestinians died in 24 hours, according to Hamas.
“We are tired after seven months of displacement and struggle in the camps.in Khan Younes, Abdelqader Mohammed Qwaider told AFPTV.
In addition to the destruction and heavy human toll, the war has created a humanitarian disaster in the Palestinian territory where 2.4 million people live. Under strict control by Israel, humanitarian aid comes to a standstill.
On Saturday, a British ship left Cyprus to meet hundreds of US military personnel who are building an artificial pier in Gaza to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid.
In the process, Cyprus announced that a ship loaded with aid, which had returned from Gaza in early April after an Israeli strike that killed seven humanitarian workers, had headed back towards Palestinian territory.
The Israeli army said on Saturday that 25,000 trucks of humanitarian aid had entered Gaza since October 7. The UN Office of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) puts the figure at 23,000 trucks.
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