Israel Has Agreed To Four-Hour Daily Ceasefire In Gaza To Allow People Escape From Conflict Zone, Says US
The United States has revealed that the Israel authorities have agreed to pause military operations in northern Gaza for four hours a day from Thursday.
This was confirmed by the White House national security spokesperson, John Kirby, adding that the decision was to allow people to flee along two humanitarian corridors and could be used for the release of hostages, which were significant first steps.
According to Reuters, US President, Joe Biden, also disclosed to journalists that he was pushing for even longer pauses in Gaza to get hostages held by Hamas Islamist militants out.
Asked if he was frustrated with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden said, “It’s taken a little longer than I hoped.”
Taher Al-Nono, a political adviser to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, said on Thursday that specific conversations were ongoing and that no agreement with Israel had been achieved so far.
According to the Israeli military, there will be no comprehensive ceasefire, only tactical, local pauses for humanitarian relief.
There were no immediate reports of a lull in fighting raging among ruined buildings in the north of the Gaza Strip.
Israel unleashed its assault on Gaza in response to a cross-border Hamas raid on southern Israel on Oct. 7 in which gunmen killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and took about 240 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
It was the single worst day of bloodshed in Israel’s 75-year history and drew international condemnation of Hamas and sympathy and support for Israel.
But Israel’s retaliation in the Hamas-ruled enclave caused great concern as a humanitarian catastrophe unfolded.
It was reported on Monday that the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu gave a condition for a ceasefire in war-torn Gaza.
He had stated that Israel would not agree to any ceasefire activity in the Gaza war without the return of the hostages.
Netanyahu said this during a visit to the Ramon Air Force base in southern Israel, as he explained that he was delivering the message both to the country’s allies and enemies.
