Image source: Reuters
3 hours ago
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, whose country currently holds the presidency of the European Union, warned of what they said was the “danger” of Israel’s invasion of the Palestinian city of Rafah, due to the humanitarian repercussions that would result, which were described as “catastrophic,” during their talks in Cairo. .
The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also renewed its warnings about the dangers of launching any military operation in the Palestinian city of Rafah, due to what it described as “severe humanitarian consequences that will befall Palestinian civilians” who have taken refuge in this city, as it is the “last safe haven” inside the Gaza Strip.
Egypt called on Israel to stop what Cairo considered “the policies of collective punishment against the residents of the Gaza Strip, including the siege, starvation, indiscriminate targeting of civilians, and the destruction of infrastructure, in complete violation of the provisions of international law and international humanitarian law,” according to the statement’s description.
Resuming ceasefire talks
Talks aimed at a ceasefire in Gaza and the completion of the hostage agreement between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in the Qatari capital, Doha, on Sunday, according to Reuters and other media reports, but with the possibility of postponement until tomorrow, Monday, according to what Israeli media reported from unnamed Egyptian officials. .
Reuters quoted a source as saying that the talks are expected to cover the remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas regarding the ceasefire negotiations, including the number of Palestinian prisoners who could potentially be released in exchange for the release of the remaining Israeli hostages in addition to humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Hamas’ proposal in three stages
Media reported that Hamas had presented to the mediators a new proposal with a three-stage plan that would end the fighting, with the first stage including a six-week ceasefire during which 35 hostages – women, the sick and the elderly – would be released in Gaza in exchange for 350 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Hamas will also release at least five female soldiers in exchange for 50 prisoners, including some who are serving long sentences on terrorism charges.
According to the same reports, the proposal includes the withdrawal of Israeli forces from two pivotal roads in Gaza and allowing displaced Palestinians to return to northern Gaza and the free flow of aid to the region.
In the second stage, the two sides declare a permanent ceasefire and Hamas releases the remaining living hostages in exchange for more prisoners.
In the third and final stage, Hamas hands over the bodies it is holding in exchange for Israel lifting the siege on Gaza and allowing reconstruction to begin.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the proposal as unrealistic but agreed to send negotiators to Qatar for further talks.
Netanyahu: International pressure will not prevent the Rafah operation
Image source: Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Sunday that his forces would go ahead with a planned ground attack on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, despite warnings that it might lead to large numbers of casualties.
Netanyahu said at the beginning of the cabinet meeting, “No amount of international pressure will prevent us from achieving all the goals of the war… and to do that, we will also move in Rafah.”
His statements came before the Cabinet discussed the “mandation” of the delegation scheduled to leave for Doha to hold talks on a truce in Gaza, where Israel has been waging a military operation for more than five months.
Netanyahu’s office announced that the security government will meet on Sunday to formulate the position of the Israeli delegation, which will go to Qatar to negotiate a deal to release Israeli detainees in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners as part of a truce in Gaza.
A statement from Netanyahu’s office indicated that the Prime Minister called on “the war government and the security government to meet on Sunday to decide on the mandate of the negotiating delegation before it heads to Doha.”
Aid in light of the risk of famine
Image source: Reuters
Palestinian media reported on Sunday that trucks loaded with flour arrived in northern Gaza to distribute it in areas where aid has not arrived for four months, in light of a looming famine in the Palestinian Strip and moves to resume talks in Qatar on a truce agreement between Israel and the Islamic resistance movement Hamas.
Media outlets and residents said that a convoy of 12 trucks arrived in the northern Gaza Strip yesterday, Saturday – six trucks to Gaza City and another six to Jabalia refugee camp – loaded with supplies that will also be distributed in Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun in the far north of Gaza.
The Home Front – Gaza Strip media platform linked to Hamas stated that aid is distributed through “popular committees,” and a Hamas source said that security personnel from the movement secured the road.
Aid agencies have warned that Gaza’s suburbs are already facing famine, with hospitals in the north reporting children dying from malnutrition and dehydration.
The hunger crisis has increased international pressure on Israel more than five months after the start of its ground and air campaign in Gaza on October 7, and more ceasefire talks and hostage exchanges are expected in the coming days.
Germany calls for more aid
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called for more aid to be delivered to Gaza on the ground, criticizing Israel’s plans to launch a large-scale attack on the southern city of Rafah.
Israel previously defended its plans to attack Rafah, describing it as “necessary to end Hamas’ presence in the Strip.”
Speaking to reporters ahead of a visit to the Middle East, Schultz described the situation in Gaza as “difficult,” adding that “it is essential that aid reaches Gaza on a broader scale now.”
Schultz’s statements come a day after the first naval aid package arrived in Gaza through the American charitable organization World Central Kitchen, in cooperation with the United Arab Emirates. It contained 200 tons of food, including rice, oil, and dates.
Aid has been flowing slowly into Gaza since the beginning of the war, which began after Hamas gunmen attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking 253 hostage.
Since then, more than 31,400 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
2024-03-17 13:17:35
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