Israel said the terms of a ceasefire proposal Hamas accepted on Monday remained “far from” meeting its demands and warned its military operations in Rafah would continue, even as it sent negotiators to talk to mediators.
In a statement Monday, Hamas said the head of its political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, told the Qatari prime minister and Egyptian intelligence minister that the militant group had accepted their proposals for a ceasefire and hostage deal.
Palestinians celebrated that statement in the streets of Gaza, while in Tel Aviv, hostage families and their supporters implored Israel’s leaders to accept the deal.
However, shortly afterwards, Israel said the terms Hamas had accepted were still far from meeting its “requirements,” and reiterated its commitment to an offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, saying its war cabinet had “unanimously decided” to continue with the operation “to exert military pressure on Hamas.” It did agree, though, to send a delegation to the mediators for further talks.
Later on Monday evening, the Israel Defense Forces said it was “conducting targeted strikes against Hamas terror targets in eastern Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.” Video and images obtained by CNN showed multiple explosions in the Rafah area on Monday night.
CNN political and global affairs analyst Barak Ravid said Israeli forces were going to take over the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing in the next few hours, citing two sources with direct knowledge.
The news comes just hours after Israel ordered Palestinians living in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, to “evacuate immediately.”
The order raised fears that Israel’s long-threatened assault on the city could be imminent. More than 1 million Palestinians have fled to Rafah, where Hamas is believed to have regrouped after Israel’s destruction of much of the north of Gaza.
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Sumber: www.cnn.com
