Jerusalem: A Hamas official said Thursday that a “partial or temporary cessation of aggression” wouldn’t be enough to free the more than 100 hostages who Israel says remain in captivity in Gaza.
The Israeli-Hamas war has already driven around 85 per cent of Gaza’s 2.3 million people from their homes, levelling the northern part of the territory and heightening fears about a similar fate for the south as Israel’s air and ground offensive widens.
Dozens were killed Thursday during Israel’s bombardment of cities, towns and refugee camps across Gaza. More than 20,000 Palestinians, two-thirds of them women and children, have been killed since the start of the war, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants among the dead.
Hamas has put up steep resistance despite Israel’s vow to dismantle the militant group.
About 1,200 people were killed after Hamas raided southern Israel on October 7, with around 240 people taken hostage.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke Thursday with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin about the next steps in the war, with Austin stressing “the importance of protecting Gaza’s civilians and accelerating humanitarian assistance”.
The talks came as a hard-hit Israeli kibbutz announced the death of an American-Canadian-Israeli woman who was believed to have been held hostage and whose husband was recently declared dead.
Currently:
— Israeli strikes across Gaza kill dozens of Palestinians, even in largely emptied north
— As Gaza war grinds on, tensions soar along Israel’s volatile northern border with Lebanon
— Number of wounded Israeli soldiers grows, representing a hidden cost of war
— On foot and by donkey cart, thousands flee widening Israeli assault in central Gaza
Here’s what’s happening in the war:
ISRAELI FORCES FATALLY SHOOT PALESTINIAN WHO STABBED 2 SECURITY WORKERS
JERUSALEM — Israeli security forces have shot and killed a Palestinian man who stabbed two people at a checkpoint between the West Bank and east Jerusalem.
Israeli police say the man got out of his car and stabbed two security workers before he was shot dead.
The Magen David Adom rescue service said the two security workers — a 20-year-old woman and a 25-year-old man — were in moderate condition.
The occupied West Bank has experienced a surge in violence since the Israel-Hamas war erupted on October 7. More than 300 Palestinians have been killed in unrest and clashes with Israeli forces.
NO ACTION AGAINST ISRAELI SOLDIERS IN MISTAKEN KILLING OF 3 HOSTAGES
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military has completed its investigation into the mistaken killing of three Israeli hostages, saying the event “should not have occurred” and could have been prevented but taking no disciplinary action.
The three hostages , Yotam Haim, 28, Samer Al-Talalka, 25 and Alon Shamriz, were mistakenly shot by Israeli forces on December 15 after exiting a building in a Gaza City neighbourhood where intense battles had taken place.
Announcing the results of its investigation, the army on Thursday confirmed initial reports that the men had emerged from the building shirtless and waving a white flag, apparently trying to signal they posed no threat.
Two men were killed immediately, while the third ran back into the building screaming for help in Hebrew. The commander issued an order to cease-fire, but another burst of gunfire killed the third man.
The army said that complex battle conditions, limited visibility and noise from nearby tanks that prevented troops from hearing their commanders’ instructions contributed to the fatal event.
“The fighting creates many complex and difficult situations,” army spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told a news conference.
“After entire days of encountering explosives, watching your friends die, having RPGs fired at you, encountering terrorists wearing civilian clothes without a weapon, pulling you toward all kinds of explosives in the streets — in that situation, a soldier stood at a window with limited visibility. He made a mistake,” he said.
The army’s chief, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, said the soldiers had violated open-fire procedures because the hostages did not pose a threat. But he said “there was no malice in the event” and the soldiers acted “to the best of their understanding.”
US, ISRAELI DEFENSE CHIEFS SPEAK ABOUT NEXT STEPS IN MILITARY CAMPAIGN
WASHINGTON — US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday to discuss Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and preparations for the stabilization phase that will follow major combat operations.
Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, said Austin reiterated US resolve to ensure Hamas can no longer threaten Israel’s security and he also underscored “the importance of protecting Gaza’s civilians and accelerating humanitarian assistance”.
Ryder said Austin and Gallant also discussed other threats to regional security, including Hezbollah’s activities in southern Lebanon, Houthi attacks against ships in the Red Sea, and Iranian-backed militia attacks against American forces in Iraq and Syria.
HAMAS OFFICIAL SAYS END TO WAR MUST BE FINAL, NOT TEMPORARY
BEIRUT — A Hamas official said Thursday that the Palestinian militant group is “open to any ideas or proposals for a complete and final cessation of aggression against our people in the Gaza Strip”.
Osama Hamdan said the group is not interested in a “partial or temporary cessation of aggression” and reiterated the group’s official position that the remaining hostages who have been held in Gaza since the group launched its deadly October 7 incursion into Israel would only be released after a permanent ceasefire is implemented.
He was speaking at a press conference about the ongoing discussions regarding roadmap to end the Israel-Hamas war — including a proposal Egypt recently suggested.
As for the enclave’s post-war governance, Hamdan said it would be a “decision of the Palestinian people alone” and that Palestinians in Gaza would “not accept a leadership that comes on the back of a Zionist or American tank or under the protection of this tank.”
He reiterated the group’s denial of a claim made by a spokesman for Iran’s Revolutionary Guard on Wednesday that the October 7 attack was launched in retaliation for the 2020 killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, head of Iran’s elite Quds Force, in a US drone strike in Iraq. Hamas.
Hamdan said the October 7 attack was “a Palestinian operation in planning, preparation, decision and implementation” and was launched as the “result of international collusion that tried to dispose of the Palestinian cause” in response to Israeli aggression.
KIBBUTZ ANNOUNCES DEATH OF AMERICAN-CANADIAN-ISRAELI HOSTAGE
TEL AVIV, Israel — A hard-hit Israeli kibbutz has announced the death of an American-Canadian-Israeli woman who had been thought to be held hostage in Gaza.
The death of Judith Weinstein was announced days after her husband, Gad Haggai, was also declared dead. Weinstein, 70, and Haggai, 73, were taking an early morning walk in Kibbutz Nir Oz on the morning of Oct. 7 when Hamas militants burst across the border into Israel, killing about 1,200 people and kidnapping 240 others.
Weinstein and her husband had been thought to be among the hostages still in captivity in Gaza. But six days ago, the kibbutz announced that Haggai was killed on October 7 and his body was taken to Gaza.
On Thursday, the kibbutz said it had learned that Weinstein had also been killed on October 7 and her body was also being held in Gaza.
It was not immediately clear how Israeli authorities determined her death. The couple are survived by four children.
“ Judy dedicated her life to serving others, spending years teaching English and using her passions for poetry, puppeteering, and mindfulness to empower children of all backgrounds,” the family said in a statement. She will be remembered for her compassion, her peaceful nature, and the creative life she built with her husband.”
US President Joe Biden mourned Weinstein in a statement released Thursday and pledged to keep working to bring the remaining hostages home.
“They have been living through hell for weeks,” Biden said. “No family should have to endure such an ordeal.”
According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, at least 23 of the approximately 129 hostages believed to be held in Gaza have either died or been killed in captivity.
Nir Oz was one of the hardest-hit Israeli communities on October 7, with roughly one quarter of its residents killed or kidnapped.
The families of missing hostages have drawn widespread support in Israel as they press the government to reach a new cease-fire deal to bring home their loved-ones.
Netanyahu met Thursday in Tel Aviv with some of the families, where he told them there were ongoing behind-the-scene efforts to bring them home, according to a statement from his office.
“I can’t elaborate on the details, we are working to return everyone,” he said.
AP