Israeli fire on Monday killed no fewer than two people in Rafah and injured at least three others in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, raising fears among Palestinians that the ceasefire could collapse entirely after Israel imposed a total blockade on the war-torn enclave.
DAILY POST recalls that the first phase of a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which began in January, ended over the weekend with no agreement on what will happen next.
Additionally, aid trucks were stuck in a long queue at Egypt’s Rafah border crossing on Sunday after Israel blocked them from entering Gaza, as tensions over a truce with Hamas escalated.
Hamas has insisted that the agreed second phase must now begin, leading to a permanent Israeli withdrawal and an end to the war.
Instead, Israel has proposed a temporary extension into April, under which Hamas would release more hostages in exchange for Palestinian detainees, without immediate discussions on Gaza’s future.
Later on Monday, at a news conference, Hamas official Osama Hamdan said Israel’s request to extend the first phase of the ceasefire was effectively resetting negotiations to square one.
“The mediators and guarantors bear full responsibility for preventing [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu from sabotaging all efforts made to reach the agreement and for protecting the agreement from collapsing,” Hamdan said.