فاس نيوز ميديا جريدة الكترونية جهوية تعنى بشؤون و أخبار جهة فاس مكناس – متجددة على مدار الساعة
Amidst the intensifying Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Hamas on Sunday to lay down its arms, proposing that its leaders leave the Strip.
This statement coincided with Israeli airstrikes on Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, which resulted in the death of at least 17 people, mostly children and women, according to Nasser Hospital. One of the strikes targeted a house and a tent sheltering displaced people, killing eight people, including five children, on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, according to Mahmoud Bassal, spokesman for the Gaza rescue service.
These developments come after the collapse of a fragile truce that had taken effect on January 19 and lasted for 15 months, as Israel resumed its aerial bombardment and ground offensive on the Strip on March 18.
Both Hamas and Israel indicated on Saturday that they had received a new truce proposal from mediators, aimed at restoring the ceasefire in Gaza, where the war erupted following Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
In a meeting with his cabinet, Netanyahu stated, “Regarding Hamas in Gaza, military pressure is working… We can see signs of a breakthrough appearing in the negotiations. Hamas must lay down its arms. Its leaders will then be allowed to leave.”
Mediators Egypt, Qatar, and the United States continue their efforts to restore the ceasefire and secure the release of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza.
For his part, Khalil al-Hayya, a Hamas leader, announced on Saturday that the movement had approved the new truce proposal presented by the mediators, urging Israel to support it, while emphasizing that “the weapons of resistance are a red line.”
The Israeli Prime Minister’s office confirmed receiving the proposal, noting that Israel had submitted a counter-proposal in response, without disclosing details of the mediation.
In another development, the Israeli army announced the activation of air raid sirens in several areas of the country after a missile was launched from Yemen, and then announced its interception “before entering Israeli territory.”
The Houthi rebels in Yemen, backed by Iran, claimed responsibility for launching a “ballistic missile” towards Ben Gurion Airport.
Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, the Yemeni rebels, claiming to act in solidarity with the Palestinians, have carried out dozens of missile attacks on Israel and, in the Red Sea – a vital area for global trade – on ships they accuse of having various ties with Israel.
These attacks had ceased with the entry into force of the truce, before the Houthis resumed them after the ceasefire collapsed.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza has deteriorated significantly since Israel closed the crossings for humanitarian aid on March 2, hoping to pressure Hamas to release the hostages.
Nearly all of the 2.4 million residents of the small coastal territory have been displaced.
Netanyahu, who is subject to an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, issued last year, is scheduled to visit Hungary on April 2, his office announced on Sunday.
During his visit, Netanyahu is expected to meet with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and other senior Hungarian officials before returning to Israel on April 6.
The war in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli data.
During the attack, Palestinian armed factions also abducted 251 people, of whom 129 are still held in Gaza, including 34 killed according to the Israeli army.
Israel’s military campaign against the Palestinian movement has killed at least 50,277 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose data is considered reliable by the UN.
