Host - Israel will increase military pressure on Hamas
During Israel's efforts to force concessions from the Islamic Hamas in the Gaza Strip through increased military pressure during hostage negotiations, the supply of the suffering civilian population is being made more difficult due to the fighting and chaotic conditions. The operation of a provisional port off the coast for the delivery of aid supplies has now been definitively halted by the United States, according to the US Military Regional Command. An alternative route via Ashdod in Israel for Gaza is being planned.
Details about this were initially unknown. However, we are optimistic that the way via Ashdod will be practical and an important route to Gaza, explained Sonali Korda from the US Development Assistance Agency. She added, however, that there are still obstacles. "The biggest challenge in the Gaza Strip is the uncertainty and lawlessness that hinder the distribution of aid once it reaches the Gaza Strip and border crossings," she said.
Netanyahu wants to put more pressure on Hamas
In a heated debate in the Israeli parliament, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu defended his military leadership in the media. Only through further military pressure can one extract more concessions from Hamas, he said. "We were told that Hamas would not release hostages unless we first agree to end the war. Suddenly, they agree," Netanyahu said. "The more pressure we maintain, the more they will give in. And that's the only way to free the hostages," he added.
Netanyahu's critics accuse him of sabotaging indirect negotiations with the Islamists to achieve a deal. He governs with ultra-religious and right-wing coalition partners who reject concessions to Hamas. Netanyahu, who is facing a corruption trial, is politically dependent on these partners. He will give a speech on Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip to both houses of the US Congress on July 24.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid demanded that Netanyahu during his US speech publicly support a hostage agreement. If he did not have that, Netanyahu should cancel his trip to Washington, Lapid said to the "Times of Israel". The head of the Israeli foreign intelligence service Mossad, Daniel Barnea, reportedly told local media at a Security Cabinet meeting that young female hostages of Hamas have "no time left" after more than nine months.
The young women in captivity "have no time to wait for changes in the proposed deal," several Israeli media quoted Barnea at the closed-door meeting. There are concerns that young hostages in the Gaza Strip may have been raped by their captors. In the closed coastal region, about 120 hostages are still believed to be missing, many of whom may no longer be alive. Netanyahu reportedly wants to make changes to the current proposal for an agreement.
The three-tiered plan involves the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons and ways to a permanent weapons truce. In the past week, Israeli negotiators have traveled to Qatar to continue the negotiations. Qatar, Egypt, and the US are mediating between Israel and Hamas. However, no high-level meetings have been announced since then. Participants in the indirect talks had recently shown cautious optimism.
While the supply of people in Gaza remains extremely difficult, for the first time on May 17, trucks with relief supplies entered the restricted coastal areas through the now suspended temporary US port. However, there have been issues ever since. Rough seas heavily damaged the pier belonging to the provisional facility. The distribution of aid also proved to be more than challenging. Nevertheless, large quantities of relief supplies have reached Gaza, according to the US Military.
The provisional port was intended as a temporary solution from the start. Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, deputy commander of the responsible regional command of the US Military, stated that they were entering a "new phase." Man expects that in the coming weeks, larger quantities of relief supplies will reach the Gaza Strip through the new route. Approximately 2,300 tons are still in Cyprus and are waiting for their transit through Ashdod to the restricted coastal areas.
In the coming days, they plan to begin deliveries, said Cooper. Meanwhile, according to the US news outlet "Axios," the US, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority (PA) held a secret meeting last week to discuss the reopening of the Rafah Crossing in the southern part of the restricted Gaza Strip between Egypt and Gaza as part of a hostage and weapons truce agreement.
Report: Discussions on opening the Rafah Crossing
In the opinion of US officials, the opening of the Rafah Crossing could be the first step in the context of a post-war strategy for stabilizing the coastal region, reported "Axios." Israel and Egypt have not yet reached an agreement on how to reopen the important crossing Rafah. Egypt wants PA personnel to operate the crossing in the future, while Israel wants personnel not affiliated with Hamas to manage it. Israel also rejects any official involvement of the PA.
While the US wants the Palestinian Autonomy Authority to be restructured and to regain control in the Gaza Strip in the future, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is against it. Critics accuse him of having no plan for stabilization and administration in Gaza, which allows the coastal region to sink into chaos. Israeli troops risk being drawn into an endless guerrilla war by Hamas.
The trigger for the war was the massacre in Israel, which terrorists from Hamas and other groups committed in Israel on October 7. They killed around 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped around 250 more people into the Gaza Strip. According to the health authorities controlled by Hamas, at least 38,794 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war. The number of people, who cannot be distinguished between civilians and fighters, cannot be independently verified at this time.
- The United States has halted the operation of a provisional port off the coast of Gaza for aid supply delivery due to conflicts.
- The alternative route via Ashdod in Israel for Gaza is being planned, as confirmed by Sonali Korda from the US Development Assistance Agency.
- Netanyahu defends his military leadership in Israel's efforts to force concessions from Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
- Israel's opposition leader, Yair Lapid, demands that Netanyahu publicly support a hostage agreement during his US Congress speech.
- The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, is believed to have young hostages who may have been raped in the Gaza Strip.
- The US, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority held a secret meeting to discuss reopening the Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza.
- Egyptian and Israeli leaders have not agreed on how to reopen the important Rafah Crossing, with Egypt wanting PA personnel to operate it and Israel opposing any official PA involvement.
- Israel is politically dependent on its ultra-religious and right-wing coalition partners, who reject concessions to Hamas.
- The US is optimistic about the new phase of relief supply deliveries to the Gaza Strip through the route via Ashdod.
- Israel and Hamas are engaged in a hostile relationship, with conflicts escalating due to military pressure from both sides, leading to humanitarian crises in the Palestinian territories.
