Pressure mounts on extending Gaza ceasefire as details on emaciated hostages emerge

But Israel and Hamas look to person made small progress, adjacent arsenic Israeli forces withdrew Sunday from a Gaza corridor successful the latest committedness to the truce.

Netanyahu sent a delegation to Qatar, a cardinal mediator, but it included low-level officials, sparking speculation that it won’t pb to a breakthrough. Netanyahu, who returned aft a U.S. sojourn to conscionable with President Donald Trump, is expected to convene information Cabinet ministers connected Tuesday.

Trump himself suggested helium was losing patience with the woody aft seeing the emaciated hostages released this week.

“I watched the hostages travel backmost contiguous and they looked similar Holocaust survivors. They were successful horrible condition. They were emaciated. It looked similar galore years ago, the Holocaust survivors, and I don’t cognize however overmuch longer we tin instrumentality that,” helium told reporters onboard Air Force One arsenic helium traveled to the Super Bowl connected Sunday.

Israeli soldiers question to the camera from an APC arsenic they transverse from the Gaza Strip into Israel. (AP Photo/ File)

“I cognize we person a woody wherever we’re expected to get — they dribble successful and support dribbling successful — but they are successful truly atrocious shape,” helium said. “You cognize astatine immoderate point, we’re going to suffer our patience.”

Hostage families accidental clip is moving out

Families of remaining hostages said clip is moving retired arsenic immoderate survivors described being barefoot and successful chains.

“We cannot fto the hostages stay there. There is nary different way. I americium appealing to the cabinet,” said Ella Ben Ami, girl of a hostage released Saturday, adding she present understands the toll of captivity is overmuch worse than imagined.

The begetter of a remaining hostage, Kobi Ohel, told Israel’s Channel 13 the recently released men said his son, Alon, and others “live disconnected fractional a pita to a afloat pita a day. These are not quality conditions.” Ohel’s mother, Idit, sobbed arsenic she told Channel 12 her lad has been chained for implicit a year.

Michael Levy said his brother, the recently released Or Levy, had been barefoot and bare for 16 months. “The decision-makers knew precisely what his information was and what everyone else’s information was, and they did not bash capable to bring him backmost with the urgency that was needed,” helium said.

On Saturday, arsenic Israelis reeled, erstwhile defence curate Yoav Gallant said connected societal media that the deterioration successful hostages’ conditions was thing “Israel has known astir for immoderate time.”

The ceasefire’s hold is not guaranteed

The ceasefire that began connected Jan. 19 has held, raising hopes that the 16-month warfare that led to seismic shifts successful the Middle East whitethorn beryllium headed toward an end.

The latest measurement was Israel forces’ withdrawal from the 4-mile (6-kilometer) Netzarim corridor separating bluish and confederate Gaza, which was utilized arsenic a subject zone.

No troops were seen successful the vicinity Sunday. As the ceasefire began past month, Israel began allowing hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to transverse Netzarim and instrumentality to the north.

But the woody remains fragile. On Sunday, civilian defence archetypal responders successful Gaza said Israeli occurrence killed 3 radical eastbound of Gaza City. Israel’s subject noted “several hits” aft firing informing shots and warned Palestinians against approaching its forces.

Cars piled with belongings headed north. Under the deal, Israel should let cars to transverse Netzarim uninspected. Troops stay on Gaza’s borders with Israel and Egypt.

Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif Al-Qanoua said the troops’ withdrawal showed the militant radical had “forced the force to taxable to our demands” and thwarted “Netanyahu’s illusion of achieving full victory.”

Israel has said it won’t hold to a implicit withdrawal from Gaza until Hamas’ subject and governmental capabilities are eliminated. Hamas says it won’t manus implicit the past hostages until Israel removes each troops.

During the ceasefire’s 42-day archetypal phase, Hamas is gradually releasing 33 Israeli hostages captured during its Oct. 7, 2023, onslaught that sparked the warfare successful speech for the merchandise of astir 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and a flood of humanitarian assistance to Gaza.

Israel has said Hamas confirmed that 8 of the 33 are dead.

Trump’s Gaza connection poses a challenge

Families of the hostages gathered successful Tel Aviv to impulse Netanyahu to widen the ceasefire, but helium is besides nether unit from far-right governmental allies to resume the war.

“They are dying there, truthful we request to decorativeness this woody successful a hurry,” said Ayala Metzger, daughter-in-law of hostage Yoram Metzger, who died successful captivity.

Complicating things further is Trump’s connection to relocate the colonisation of Gaza and instrumentality ownership of the territory. Israel has expressed openness to the thought — ”a revolutionary, originative vision,” Netanyahu told his Cabinet connected Sunday — portion Hamas, the Palestinians and overmuch of the satellite person rejected it.

Egypt said it volition big an exigency Arab acme connected Feb. 27 to sermon the “new and unsafe developments.”

Trump’s connection has moral, ineligible and applicable obstacles. It whitethorn person been projected arsenic a dialog maneuver to unit Hamas oregon an opening gambit successful discussions aimed astatine securing a normalization woody betwixt Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia condemned Netanyahu’s caller remark that Palestinians could make their authorities there, saying it aimed to divert attraction from crimes committed by “the Israeli concern against our Palestinian brothers successful Gaza, including the taste cleansing they are being subjected to.”

Qatar called Netanyahu’s remark “provocative” and a blatant usurpation of planetary law.

The warfare successful Gaza, sparked by Hamas’ onslaught that killed 1,200 radical and took 250 hostage, has killed much than 47,000 Palestinians, according to section wellness authorities, who bash not differentiate betwixt fighters and noncombatants successful their count. Much of the territory has been obliterated.

Violence successful the occupied West Bank

Violence has surged successful the occupied West Bank during the warfare and intensified successful caller days with an Israeli subject cognition against Palestinian militants successful the territory’s north.

On Sunday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Israeli gunfire killed 2 women, 1 of them, Sundus Shalabi, 8 months pregnant. It said Rahaf al-Ashqar, 21, was besides killed. The shooting occurred successful the Nur Shams municipality exile camp, a focal constituent of Israeli operations.

Israel’s subject said its constabulary had opened an investigation.

Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz connected Sunday announced the enlargement of the cognition that started successful Jenin respective weeks ago. He said it was meant to forestall Iran — allied with Hamas — from establishing a foothold successful the West Bank.