Day 119 of the Israel-Hamas Gaza War
1. Negotiations for New Ceasefire/Hostage Deal Continue:
This week saw the continuation of efforts by the US, Qatar, and Egypt to push for an agreement between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Haaretz, citing a source familiar with negotiations, said the source expressed a concern that PM Netanyahu is trying to sabotage the deal, referred to harsh comments made by Netanyahu who aimed to push Hamas to step away from the negotiations. Some analysts claim that the harsh comments against a new deal are designed to appease far right members of the coalition government.
Sources familiar with the details of the deal said it will include a six-week ceasefire, and the release of all hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners in a ratio of three prisoners for each hostage. The deal also includes increased humanitarian aid for Gaza and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from densely populated Gazan cities. PM Netanyahu, in a meeting with the family members of hostages, said that for the deal to come to fruition, its details must remain secret.
Meanwhile, both Hamas and Israel have yet to agree to the terms of the new deal. In Israel, vigils continue, calling for the immediate release of all hostages, both civilian and soldiers. Women’s groups held, for a second week in a row, vigils around the country and gathered in Tel Aviv near the government head offices, where the security cabinet met to discuss the agreement. Public vigils and protests are planned to continue over the weekend.
2. At Least Twenty Ministers and Members of Knesset Took Part in a Conference Calling to Establish a “New Gaza” without Palestinians
Thousands gathered in Jerusalem at a special event, calling for Jews to re-establish Jewish settlements in Gaza, and encourage Palestinians to leave “willingly” i.e. transfer all Palestinians.
Some of the key participants are members of the Likud party, the party of PM Netanyahu. Others belong to far-right coalition partners like Otsma Yehudit - Jewish Power and National Zionists. When asked about it, PM Netanyahu dismissed the criticism, saying that everything is subject to freedom of speech.
It is important to mention here that in 2005, the Israeli government, led by then PM Ariel Sharon, executed a disengagement plan from Gaza. Almost 8,000 Jewish settlers were evacuated from settlements in the Gaza Strip. This was a unilateral policy plan. Israel did not coordinate it with any Palestinian political entity, therefore there was no one to take responsibility that could be held accountable. Shortly after, general elections were held in the Palestinian Territories in the West Bank and Gaza. Hamas won the elections in Gaza, and soon after took power and dismissed all opposition from the Fatah movement.
The White House issued a statement that the US opposes any Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli defense minister also opposes this plan to resettle Gaza.
3. More Than Ten Countries Decided to Defund the Refugee Agency, UNRWA
Twelve UNRWA staff members were exposed as active Hamas members, reportedly some of then even took part in the October 7th massacre in Israel. These findings were exposed by Israel Defense Force (IDF) soldiers during the ground operation in Gaza. UNRWA is an agency under the UN that was established back in 1948 to care for the Palestinian refugees who were displaced during Israel’s war of independence. UNRWA is responsible for distribution of food, education and medical services for the 75% of Palestinians in Gaza that live in refugee camps. After the revelation, a series of countries, including the US, and other European countries decided to hold back their financial support tfor UNRWA. Defunding the UN Agency puts in jeopardy its ability to continue its mission. During the ground operation, Israeli military forces found ammunition, weapons and operative military tunnels that were used by Hamas militants in schools, medical clinics and other UNRWA facilities.
The future of the organization is now in question.
4. The Future of the Ground Operation in Gaza is Unclear
After more than 114 days of warfare, Israel started to release reservists, and send Israeli soldiers back home. This was the longest period of active military operations in Gaza since the 2005 disengagement. Israel is focusing now on southern Gaza, mainly in the town of Khan Yunis - the second biggest town in the Gaza Strip. Israeli intelligence believe that the headquarters of Hamas operations is concentrated in operational tunnels in Khan Yunis. PM Netanyahu continues to declare that Israel will continue to fight until it achieves the goal of unequivocal victory over Hamas.
Unfortunately, Hamas has not been defeated yet. Earlier this week Hamas launched a rocket attack towards the Tel Aviv greater area.
Hamas also manages to continue to function in Northern Gaza, an area that was supposed to be under the full control of the IDF (Israel Defense Force) after more that three months of intensive house to house military advances into refugee camps and small towns in Northern Gaza. There are a quarter of a million people in Northern Gaza, some of them are Hamas operators who fled to the south and are coming back now to renew their resistance against Israeli forces.
Unequivocal victory is far from the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile the US administration is pushing Israel to announce a plan for ending the war. Israeli officials keep saying it will take months to achieve the goal of eliminating Hamas and destroy its ability to operate. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to grow with starvation, disease, deprivation and a lack of medical services.
5. Israeli Forces Kill Three Palestinian Militants at Jenin Hospital:
According to Israeli security forces senior officials, the forces, disguised as medical personnel, killed three militants affiliated with Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups, who were hiding in the Ibn Sina hospital in Jenin, the West Bank.
Senior sources added that the three of them were hiding in the hospital and planning a raid on a Jewish settlement in the West Bank, similar to the Hamas attack in the south of Israel on October 7th.
A video of the Israeli undercover unit members disguised as medics, with weapons, inside the hospital went viral within hours. In response to the killing, Hamas said that targeting wanted persons inside a hospital was a “vile crime that will not go without a response." The Palestinian Authority's ministry of health accused Israel of carrying out a "new massacre inside hospitals". The Palestinian Islamic Jihad said, in response to the killing, that two of the men killed in the hospital raid were members of the armed organization and were brothers. According to this source, one of them had been receiving treatment at the hospital.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), issued a statement following the raid on the hospital, stipulating that "under international humanitarian law, hospitals and medical patients should be respected and protected at all times”.
The West Bank, especially the Jenin refugee camp, has been another location of tension since the Hamas October 7th attack. Palestinian residents have been under military closure for nearly four months, with all work permits in Israel suspended. According to UN sources, since October 7, more than 350 Palestinians, both militants and civilians, have been killed in IDF raids, and eight Palestinian were killed by Jewish settlers. Ten Israelis were killed in terror attacks by Palestinians in the West Bank during the same period.
In response to reports of growing settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, US President Biden signed a first-time excutive order sanctioning four Israeli settlers. The order includes sanctions such as freezing of assets held in the U.S. The order further allows the U.S. to impose sanctions on additional individuals who commit acts of violence, intimidation, cause damage to property or terror. The executive order stipulated that “the high level of extremist settler violence has reached intolerable levels and constitutes a serious threat to the peace, security, and stability in the region”. Israeli Finance Minister Smotrich of the Religious Zionism party criticized the exectutive order and said that it reflects cooperation with an antisemitic campaign against Jewish settlers.
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