PM Netanyahu stated on Sunday that there won’t be a ceasefire in Gaza until Hamas releases hostages.
The Israeli PM has once again rejected calls for a truce as the conflict is about to enter its second month on Tuesday.
Despite over 10,000 deaths in Palestine, Israel’s PM won’t allow a ceasefire. The remarks were televised shortly after the warplanes struck two refugee camps in the Gaza Strip and the American Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, made an unplanned visit to the Israel-occupied West Bank.
In his last visit, Blinken urged Israel to hold back its military invasion across the Gaza Strip temporarily. However, the idea received very little support from the Israeli people, and the PM’s rejection of the plea came just a day later.
According to Reuters first-hand reporting, Netanyahu told officials at the Ramon Air Force base, “There will be no ceasefire without the return of the hostages… We say this to our friends and our enemies. We will simply continue until we defeat them. We have no alternative”.
The remarks of the PM on television further included a clear indication that the Israeli Defence Force will continue attacks and no temporary ceasefire will be approved as Hamas did not promise to release hostages.
Israel, the country that has killed nearly 10,000 Palestinians since Hamas’s first attack on October 7, has received abundant backlash from a number of countries. Among these, some have old rivalries, and some have built new ones.
The situation escalated gravely into uncertainty when a recent attack was made on an ambulance on Saturday. In IDF’s defence, they have claimed that the bombing of the ambulance took place because it was identified as being taken by Hamas militants with the intent of crossing the border.
The ongoing attempt to evacuate foreign nationals and injured Gazans through the Rafah crossing to Egypt has been stopped since the attack. The US officials further remarked on the matter by saying that Hamas has been trying to use the opportunity to evaluate some of the injured fighters.
Israel’s Latest Updates on Hamas Conflict
Despite countless appeals and overseas demonstrations, Israel is continuing its attack on Gaza. Nonetheless, this Middle Eastern conflict has taken a turn since Iran and Lebanon have decided to engage in the war passively.
- Hezbollah retaliated by firing rockets on the northern Israeli region, claiming that IDF airstrikes had taken the lives of three children on the southern Lebanese border.
- Netanyahu suspends heritage minister over his ‘nuclear’ remark, said the PM’s office on Sunday.
- IDF troops have encircled and divided Gaza Strip and Gaza faced its third communication outage since October 7.
- The army of Israel said on Sunday that “significant airstrikes” are being dropped in Gaza, and the area has been divided into two. Israeli troops have reached the coastline and are holding it.
- The US State Secretary, Anthony Blinken, paid his visit to the West back to push Biden’s diplomatic intent on the current situation and assured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that the US administration has been trying to intensify efforts to ease the suffering of Gaza’s civilians. Blinken then proceeded with his agenda by meeting Iraqi PM Mohammed Shia al-Sudani as American forces in the territory faced a tide of attacks by Iranian-allied militias in Iraq and elsewhere.
- Jordan’s Air Force manpower air-delivered medical aid to the Jordanian field hospital in Gaza early on Monday. The country also recalled its ambassador to Israel and instructed the their ambassador to stay away in protest. Jordan has criticised the killing of innocent Palestinian civilians and said Israel has caused a humanitarian cataclysm.
