Benjamin Netanyahu issues warning ahead of Gaza ceasefire

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that Israel is prepared to resume its war against Hamas if negotiations for a second phase of a ceasefire fail. In a televised address hours before the ceasefire was due to take effect on Sunday, Netanyahu stressed that the truce was “temporary,” and that Israel reserves the right to resume attacks in Gaza, a position he said was backed by US President-elect Donald Trump.

Netanyahu also outlined what he described as the successes of Israel’s military operations over the past 15 months, including the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. “We have changed the face of the Middle East,” Netanyahu said, adding that Hamas is now “completely isolated.” The ceasefire was scheduled to take effect at 08:30 local time (06:30 GMT).

Ahead of his Saturday address, Netanyahu stated that Israel would not implement the deal until it received a list of the hostages Hamas would release. “Israel will not tolerate any violation of the agreement,” he said. Israeli media has published a longer list of 33 hostages Hamas is expected to release, though this has not been officially confirmed. However, Israeli authorities said they had not yet received the names of the three hostages due to be released on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Israel continued to conduct airstrikes on what they claim are Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets in Gaza. Hamas officials have said that more than 120 people have been killed since the deal was announced on Wednesday. Over the coming weeks, 33 hostages are to be released in exchange for 1,890 Palestinian prisoners. Under the terms of the agreement, Israel will also begin withdrawing troops from Gaza.

The location where the first group of hostages will be handed over remains unclear. A senior Israeli military official said three reception points had been prepared near the northern, central, and southern borders of Gaza. Earlier, a source close to Hamas told AFP that the first three hostages to be released would be women. Negotiations on the terms of a second phase of the ceasefire are scheduled to begin on the 16th day of the first phase, with a focus on achieving a “permanent end to the war.”

Details of the second-phase agreement remain uncertain, but it is expected that the remaining hostages, including men, would be released during this phase, along with more Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. Israeli forces would also fully withdraw from Gaza. It is understood that Hamas police, who will not carry weapons unless absolutely necessary, will manage the return of hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza. The third and final phase would involve the reconstruction of Gaza, which could take many years, and the return of any remaining hostages’ remains.

The Israeli government approved the ceasefire and hostage release agreement on Friday night after hours of discussions. Two far-right cabinet ministers, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, voted against it. The lengthy structure of the agreement has also caused anxiety and divisions among the families of those kidnapped. Some fear that their loved ones will be abandoned in Gaza after the first phase concludes. On Saturday night, thousands of protestors gathered in Tel Aviv, demanding that the government secure further hostage releases by adhering to the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.

“We could have saved the lives of 200 soldiers and more than a dozen hostages,” Gal Alkalai, a member of the “Hostages and Missing Families Forum” told Reuters, adding that people died unnecessarily because the government “couldn't make a decision and waited for Trump.” Earlier on Saturday, several people were injured in a knife attack near a restaurant in Tel Aviv, Israeli police said. The attacker was reportedly shot dead at the scene by a civilian. Israeli media reported that the suspect had come “illegally” to Tel Aviv from Tulkarem in the occupied West Bank.

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have not had respite since the ceasefire agreement was announced late on Wednesday. The Palestinian health ministry said that 123 people, including dozens of women and children, have been killed in strikes since then. On Saturday, Hamas-run civil defense rescue services in Gaza said that a bomb hit a family’s tent in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, killing at least five family members, AFP reported. Since Thursday afternoon, the Israeli military said they had hit 100 Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants, among several “terror targets” in attacks across Gaza, according to Reuters.

The Israeli military launched an operation to destroy Hamas in response to the unprecedented cross-border attack on October 7, 2023, which resulted in around 1,200 deaths and the kidnapping of 251 people. Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States, and other countries. Since then, around 46,899 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the territory. Most of the 2.3 million population have also been displaced, with widespread destruction and severe shortages of food, fuel, medicine, and shelter due to difficulties in delivering aid to those in need.