The fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was rescued from the brink of failure on Saturday when the terrorist group freed a second group of 13 Israeli and four foreign hostages after hours of agonizing delay.
Hamas confirmed that the deal was moving forward after initially claiming that Israel breached the terms of the four-day pause in hostilities.
Red Cross vans carrying the freed captives were photographed leaving Gaza through the Rafah crossing into Egypt on their way to Israel.
Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had met for emergency talks with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Minister Benny Gantz and security chiefs over Hamas’ delay in the planned release of a second wave of Israeli hostages, Haaretz reported.
The terrorist group said it was deadlocked due to Israel’s “non-compliance” with the terms of the ceasefire agreement, stating that the number of aid trucks that arrived in northern Gaza on Saturday was only half of what was promised. a claim that Israel dismissed.
At least 70 aid trucks carrying food, water, fuel and medical supplies entered the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing on Saturday, a spokesman for the border crossing told CNN. The aid included 150,000 liters of fuel and four trucks of natural gas for cooking as part of the ceasefire agreement, which will allow 200 trucks of aid to enter the war-torn region.
The atrocious negotiations occurred on the second day of a four-day ceasefire between the terrorist group and the Israeli government, and paralyzed the release of the 39 Palestinian prisoners who would surrender in exchange for the 17 hostages kidnapped in the cruel attack of Hamas. on October 7.
“This is manipulation by [Hamas leader] Yahya Sinwar,” former hostage negotiator Yaron Blum told the Times of Israel.
Gazans flocked to open-air markets nestled among piles of rubble on Saturday as they ventured out to stock up on food on the second day of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. AP Food prices have soared in Gaza since fighting began last month.
In other events on Saturday:
- Shoppers thronged the Nuseirat market in central Gaza as war-weary civilians stocked up on food on the second day of the ceasefire with Israel, according to video captured by photojournalist Attia Darwish. Food and drink prices in the war-torn Gaza Strip have risen 10 percent over the past month, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics said, while vegetable prices soared 32 percent.
- President Biden called the emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, to urge a quick resolution of the hostage backlog, a National Security Council spokesperson told the Times of Israel. Biden, who was in Nantucket over the holiday weekend, ignored shouted questions about American captives still in custody while he went Christmas shopping with his family.
- A suspected suicide bomber is among the convicted Palestinian prisoners being released from Israeli custody in exchange for the second group of hostages. Israa Jaabis was arrested in 2015 after detonating a gas canister in her car during a traffic stop while she was en route to an attempted suicide bombing, the Times of Israel reported.
- A container ship owned by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer was attacked by a suspected Iranian drone while sailing through international waters in the Indian Ocean, a US defense official said. No crew members of the CMA CGM Symi were injured in the attack, but the ship suffered some damage when the drone exploded. Ofer recently resigned from the board of trustees of Harvard Kennedy School to protest his lukewarm response to the Oct. 7 massacre.
- Heartwarming photos and videos have emerged of the first round of releases of hostages who were reunited with their loved ones almost two months after their kidnapping.
- Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters descended on central London to call for a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, holding signs reading “Stop the war in Gaza” and “Ceasefire now!”
No US citizens were expected to be included in Saturday’s hostage release, a US official told CNN.
“The president secured the release of two American citizens as a pilot for this broader hostage release,” the White House official said. “We are early in the process… We are hopeful that it will include three dual national women and children, who are American citizens.”
The container ship CMA CGM Symi, owned by an Israeli billionaire, was attacked by an Iranian drone in the Indian Ocean.AP
Heartbreaking details of the freed hostages’ captivity experiences began to emerge Saturday as the first group of 24 hostages freed on Friday, including 13 Israeli women and children, were reunited with their families.
Some of the hostages were given only rice to eat for the past two weeks as food reserves in Gaza ran out, Channel 12 reported. Others said Gazans threw stones at their Red Cross vans. as they left, causing them to fear for their safety in the final moments before returning home.
Ruti Monder, 78, learned of her son Roy’s murder during her captivity through the radio, she tearfully told loved ones on Friday, the Times of Israel said.
Video footage showed Ruti’s daughter, Keren Monder, learning that her father, Avraham, 78, was also a hostage, proof that the Israeli captives were being held in separate locations.
“So he wasn’t murdered,” Keren, 55, was heard saying.
But Hannah Katzier, 77, discovered her husband had been murdered and her son kidnapped only after her own 49-day ordeal.
Rami Katzier, 79, was killed by Hamas terrorists in the family’s safe room on October 7, the Times of Israel reported. Son Elad remains in captivity.
A series of photographs released by the Israel Defense Forces showed their moving efforts to prepare for the arrival of dozens of children held captive in horrific conditions for nearly seven weeks.
Child-sized noise-cancelling headphones awaited the youths in a transport helicopter, while oversized teddy bears, stickers, toys and pillows were prepared for them at a detention center where they will be examined by medical staff. before joining his waiting companions. families.
Earlier on Saturday, negotiations had been held to extend the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas “for one or two days,” Israel’s Channel 12 reported, citing a report by Egyptian channel Al-Cahra Al-Akhbariya.
“Egypt has received positive indications from all parties to extend the ceasefire,” the report reportedly said.
The four-day temporary truce agreement stipulates that the pause can be extended by one more day for each additional group of 10 hostages returned to Israel, the Times of Israel reported, but the status of the negotiation was unclear amid the delay in release. of hostages on Saturday. .
Israeli soldiers relaxed near the Israel-Gaza border on Saturday as they awaited the release of a second group of hostages.AP An IDF soldier took a nap in a camp in southern Israel as the ceasefire continued. AP
Hamas has located between 10 and 20 additional hostages it could potentially release, Haaretz reported, while Israeli officials estimated that Hamas has easy access to around 30 more hostages, in addition to the 50 included in the current negotiating terms.
Separately, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said the Israeli army has no intention of ceasing its war against Hamas and is taking advantage of the cessation of hostilities to “study, better prepare our capabilities and also rest a little.”
“We do not intend, we do not want to and we are not prepared to stop this effort before we return all the hostages,” Halevi told a group of soldiers on Saturday, adding that the IDF’s intense attacks on Gaza had made the agreement possible. hostages. “It is our moral duty to bring them back.” .
Categories: Trending
Source: vtt.edu.vn