ISRAEL has warned that Hamas has a “last chance” to secure a hostage deal or its troops will attack the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
The terrorist group is now reviewing the latest Israeli proposal for a ceasefire to prevent a ground offensive on the Strip’s last refuge for displaced Palestinians.
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Negotiations between Israel and Egyptian officials sent a broker an agreement to end the months-long war that ended on Friday.
A senior Israeli official said Egypt appeared willing to pressure Hamas for a deal, but “deep down, there are very serious intentions by Israel to move forward on Rafah,” Channel 12 reports.
The official said Israel would not agree to any delays by Hamas, especially its leader Yahya Sinwar, who is believed to be hiding in a network of tunnels under Rafah, using hostages as human shields.
“This is the last opportunity before we go to Rafah,” the source said. “It’s a case of “either a deal in the near future, or Rafah”.
Today, senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya said the Palestinian terrorist group was evaluating Israel’s proposal and would soon present its response.
He gave no details about Israel’s offer, but negotiations earlier this month included a six-week ceasefire and the release of up to 40 Israeli civilian hostages and sick people in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
The Israeli official revealed that he will only agree that all 33 living captives who fulfill the “humanitarian” designation – women, children, men over 50 and sick – be released.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been under intense pressure from the hostages’ families to bring them home, with almost daily protests.
As the war drags on and the death toll rises, there has been increasing international pressure for Hamas and Israel to reach an agreement.
The center of this focus has been Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have sought refuge after fleeing intense fighting elsewhere in the enclave.
Israel has insisted for months that it will launch a ground offensive on the city bordering Egypt, where it says the last Hamas battalions are hiding.
Despite calls for restraint from the international community, including Israel’s staunchest ally, the USA, the Israeli military has concentrated dozens of tanks and armored vehicles near the city and has been attacking it with air strikes almost daily.
Egypt warned that an offensive in Rafah could have catastrophic consequences for the humanitarian situation, as well as regional peace and security.
Hamas has said it will not back down from its demands for a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops, both of which Israel has rejected.
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However, Prime Minister Netanyahu has ruled out ending the war until Hamas is completely destroyed and said Israel will then maintain a security presence in Gaza.
Hamas sparked the war with its attack on southern Israel on October 7, in which terrorists killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 people hostage.
Israel says the militants still hold about 100 hostages, but it fears only 40 may still be alive.
This week, Hamas released a propaganda video of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 24, who appeared with a mutilated arm.
His parents, Jon and Rachel, have criticized the terror group for releasing the “harrowing” footage of their son, who was taken hostage more than six months ago, and called for his “nightmare” to end.
They bravely added: “We love you, stay strong, survive.”
Since then, more than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s air and ground offensive, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza, about two-thirds of them children and women.
The ministry said today that 32 people had been killed in Israeli strikes in the past 24 hours.
Israel has reported at least 260 of its soldiers killed since the start of ground operations in Gaza.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
