Israel steps up attacks on Gaza ahead of expected start of ceasefire
- The coalition government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed on the Gaza ceasefire deal with Hamas that will go into force at 06:30 GMT on Sunday.
- At least 122 Palestinians, including 33 children, have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza since the announcement on Wednesday night that a ceasefire deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas.
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Netanyahu presented the ceasefire deal as his victory
In his speech, he presented this as if this was his victory and Israel’s victory, saying, we have the upper hand, and we have changed the face and the reality of the Middle East.
He said that he had the right, approved by the Americans, to return to war if Hamas didn’t stick to its side of the deal.
He represented this as if Israel got this deal, that Israel got Hamas to capitulate on certain terms, that Israel got Hamas to agree to this deal because of the Israeli military’s onslaught on the group.
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Netanyahu says access to Philadelphi corridor, buffer zone set as condition for deal
Netanyahu has said that access to the Philadelphi corridor and Israeli military presence along the border with Gaza were preconditions to accepting the deal.
“We will increase our military presence there,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israel will not allow “the arrival of any weapons” for Hamas.
He added that no Palestinian “prisoners whose hands are stained in blood” will be released as part of the deal.
Smotrich says he received guarantees of a ‘gradual takeover’ of Gaza Strip
Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has said his far-right Religious Zionism party will remain in the government despite having voted against a ceasefire deal, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to a number of demands and to achieving all the goals of the war in Gaza.
“Unfortunately, we were unable to prevent this dangerous deal, but we insisted and were able to ensure, through a government decision, in the cabinet, and other ways, that the war would not end in any way, without achieving its full goals, foremost among them the complete destruction of Hamas in Gaza,” Smotrich was quoted by The Times of Israel as saying.
“We demanded and received a commitment to completely change the method of war,” including “through a gradual takeover of the entire Gaza Strip, the lifting of the restrictions imposed on us by the Biden administration, and full control of the Strip, so that humanitarian aid will not reach Hamas as it has been until now,” he added.
The far-right minister noted that there was “no other way to achieve the goals of the war”.
Final preparations underway in Egypt to deliver aid to Gaza
Final preparations are underway in the Egyptian city of Arish to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza via the Rafah border crossing, with two Egyptian ministers overseeing the efforts.
Minister of Health Khaled Abdel Ghaffar and Minister of Social Solidarity Maya Morsy arrived at Arish Airport early today to inspect hospitals’ readiness to receive injured Palestinians from Gaza and monitor final aid delivery arrangements to the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian state news agency reported.
Arish and its airport in North Sinai serve as a hub for receiving and transporting international relief aid into Gaza.
Aid trucks reported to be carrying tens of thousands of essential food items for Gaza’s residents are currently lined up at the Rafah border crossing.
Israeli police say attack foiled at Qalandia checkpoint
Israel’s police have said an attack was foiled at the Qalandia checkpoint, shortly after a separate attack left a man critically injured in Tel Aviv.
In a statement posted on X, it said a man arrived from the West Bank brandishing a knife.
The soldiers manning the checkpoint disarmed the man and detained him, the statement added.
