Israel presses ahead with Gaza truce negotiations

Israel has decided to continue negotiations for a truce with the Islamist group Hamas in Gaza, which according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could delay “to some extent” a ground offensive on Rafah, at the southern end of the Palestinian enclave and where more than 1.4 million people live overcrowded.

Israel's war cabinet decided last night to send a delegation to Qatar in the coming days to indirectly negotiate with Hamas a truce and a new exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

Israeli officials have been “cautiously optimistic” about the possibilities of reaching a new hostage agreement, according to Hebrew media, after the heads of the intelligence services of Israel, the United States and Egypt, as well as Qatari officials held a meeting this Saturday in Paris where they defined the terms of a new agreement.

The document must now be presented to Hamas for consideration, which until last night said it had no knowledge of the new terms. According to the media, the new draft contemplates a six-week truce and the release of some 40 hostages in exchange for the release of between 200 and 300 Palestinian prisoners.

After Hamas declined another draft agreement reached in Paris in early February, Israeli sources point out that the dialogue has resumed because the Islamist group renounced some of its “unacceptable” demands for Israel, such as a complete cessation of hostilities and the departure of its troops from the Strip.

However, the Hamas leadership says it has not given up on those “fundamental” demands. Netanyahu warns that truce will delay but not prevent an offensive against Rafah. In an interview with the American network CBS, the Israeli prime minister offered details this Sunday about his plans for Rafah. Specifically, Netanyahu acknowledged that the offensive on Rafah could be delayed if an agreement is reached for a ceasefire in the Strip.

“If we reach an agreement, (the Rafah offensive) will be delayed a little, but it will happen. If we don't have an agreement, we will do it anyway. It has to be done. Because our goal is total victory, and total victory is within our reach. “Not in a few months, but within a few weeks once we start the operation,” Netanyahu said.

The Israeli prime minister also referred to requests from the White House, which has made clear that it will not support a large-scale Rafah offensive and has urged Israel to present a “credible plan” to protect civilians.

Specifically, Netanyahu said that this Sunday he planned to hold a meeting with his team to draw up a “double plan” for Rafah that includes the elimination of Hamas militants and the evacuation of civilians.

Although Netanyahu reiterated that these plans are progressing, White House national security advisor Jake Sullivan stated this Sunday that US President Joe Biden has not yet been informed about these plans.

Israel and the UN exchange accusations again

The commissioner of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, accused Israel this Sunday, without naming him, of leading to famine for the 300,000 Palestinians who continue to live in the north of the Gaza Strip, where “humanitarian aid has not entered since January 23.”

“This is a man-made disaster,” Lazzarini said on his X account, in a clear allusion to Israel, which blocks the entry of aid to the north of the Palestinian enclave.

For his part, Israel's representative to the UN, Gilad Erdan, once again attacked the United Nations institutions by proclaiming that “in Gaza, Hamas is the UN, and the UN is Hamas.”

During a new session of the Security Council in which the US again vetoed a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, Erdan criticized the recent words of the UN humanitarian coordinator, Martin Griffiths, that Hamas is not a terrorist group, but a political movement