Concerns grew on Tuesday (September 3, 2024) over the prospects of a ceasefire in Gaza, a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ruled out making any “concessions” in stalled talks for a hostage release deal.
Mr. Netanyahu said in a televised press conference at the end of a day of nationwide protests that he would not “bow to pressure” to back down from demands in indirect talks with Hamas to end the war, which is now nearing its 12th month.
Mairav Zonszein, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, said Mr Netanyahu’s remarks showed “he will not stop the war … until Hamas surrenders, and he basically declared there will be no deal for hostages”.
Following the recovery of six dead hostages from Gaza, Israelis, gripped by grief and anger, took to the streets on Sunday (September 3, 2024) and Monday (September 2, 2024) to increase pressure on their government to secure the release of the remaining captives.
The army said the six men were captured alive during a Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7 that triggered the war, and were shot by their kidnappers shortly before troops found them.
“These murderers killed six of our hostages,” said Mr. Netanyahu, who has been accused by Israeli critics as well as Hamas officials and analysts of prolonging the war for political gain.
US President Joe Biden, who on Monday (September 2, 2024) met with negotiators working with Qatar and Egypt to secure a ceasefire deal, replied “no” when asked by reporters in Washington if he thought Mr Netanyahu was doing enough to secure a hostage agreement.
The veteran Israeli leader, whose ruling coalition relies on the support of far-right ministers opposed to a ceasefire, insisted “we say yes” even though it is Hamas that has refused to make concessions.
“I will not bow to pressure,” Mr Netanyahu said at a press conference. He said Israel must control Gaza’s border with Egypt to prevent Hamas from rearming.
Israeli left-wing daily Haaretz He said Mr. Netanyahu was “cloaking his motives with security concerns” but added that he was primarily concerned about his political survival.
“Their alliance could collapse if the Gaza deal goes through,” it added.
‘Indefinite Possession’
Mr Netanyahu again called for “maximum pressure on Hamas” and said control of the Philadelphia Corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border was essential to “achieving the war aims”.
Hamas has long sought Israel’s full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and Egyptian officials have expressed their objection to the Israeli military presence along the border.
Mr. Netanyahu “wants to occupy Gaza to some extent indefinitely” and now “he is saying it more openly,” Ms. Zonszein said. AFP,
The analyst added that despite “massive opposition” among Israelis who support the Gaza deal, “there is no one even in the political arena who can challenge them.”
Israel occupied the Gaza Strip in 1967 and kept its troops and men there until 2005, when it withdrew, but it has imposed a devastating blockade and siege since the start of the current war.
Stepping up pressure on Israel, Britain said on Monday (September 2, 2024) it would suspend the export of some weapons because of a “clear risk” they could be used in serious violations of international humanitarian law.
Meanwhile, fighting continued in Gaza, where civil defense rescue workers reported two people, including a child, killed in an Israeli attack on a displacement camp near Khan Younis on Tuesday (September 3, 2024).
civil protection agency as well as witnesses and AFP Correspondents reported air strikes and artillery fire in southern and central Gaza.
Vaccination drive
Israel’s military campaign against Hamas has so far killed at least 40,786 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The UN human rights office says most of the dead are women and children.
The Israeli attack on October 7 killed 1,205 people, mostly civilians and hostages, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli figures.
Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the assault, 97 remain in Gaza, 33 of whom the Israeli military says are dead. Many hostages were released during a week-long ceasefire in November – the only one to date.
Abu Obeida, a spokesman for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, said the remaining hostages would be sent back “in coffins” if Israel continued its military pressure on Gaza.
With Gaza in ruins and most of its 2.4 million residents forced to flee, often seeking refuge in cramped and unsanitary conditions, disease has spread.
The vaccination drive began on Sunday (September 1, 2024) with a local “humanitarian pause” after the first polio case was confirmed in 25 years.
Nearly 160,000 children were given the first dose of the polio vaccine on Sunday (September 1, 2024) and Monday (September 2, 2024) in central Gaza, the regional health ministry said.