Israel cuts off aid to Gaza as it seeks to change ceasefire deal with Hamas

Israel has suspended the transfer of all humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and has threatened Hamas with further "consequences" if the Palestinian organization does not agree to extend the current fragile ceasefire agreement that has ended.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Sunday that "all goods and supplies entering the Gaza Strip will be stopped," and accused Hamas of refusing to accept the framework for continued negotiations proposed by US envoy Steve Witkoff. The statement said: "Israel will not allow a ceasefire without the release of our hostages. If Hamas insists on refusing, there will be additional consequences."

Hamas accused Israel of trying to undermine the existing ceasefire agreement, and said Israel's decision to cut off aid was "cheap blackmail, a war crime, and a blatant attack on the ceasefire agreement that came into effect in January." The first phase of the agreement ended on Saturday, but Israel has not moved forward with the second phase of the three-phase agreement.

Netanyahu's office said that Israel had agreed to Witkoff's proposal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire by six weeks, covering Ramadan (the Muslim holy month, which began last weekend) and the Jewish Passover holiday, which ends on April 20. Netanyahu said that if negotiations prove "ineffective" during this period, Israel may resume military operations in Gaza.

While Witkoff has not publicly disclosed his proposal, Netanyahu said the proposal would begin with the transfer of half of all remaining living and deceased captives. The remaining captives would be handed over after an agreement on a permanent ceasefire is reached. Netanyahu said that Hamas is currently holding 59 captives: 24 alive and 35 dead. Hamas earlier rejected Israel's "plan" to extend the first phase of the ceasefire during Ramadan and Passover, and instead called for the second phase to begin as originally agreed.

Al Jazeera's Hind Khoudary, reporting from southern Gaza, said Palestinians in the coastal enclave were "very nervous" about the prospect of returning to fighting. She said: "They feel this ceasefire is very fragile. Israeli planes and drones are circling in the air, making Palestinians feel that Israeli forces can attack anywhere in the Gaza Strip at any time."

Humanitarian organizations have repeatedly stated that the ceasefire must continue if they are to provide much-needed assistance to Palestinians in the war-torn coastal enclave, which has been ravaged by 17 months of war. "The impact of safe and sustained humanitarian access is clear," the World Food Programme said in a post on X on Saturday. "The ceasefire must be maintained. There is no turning back." Since the ceasefire began on January 19, hundreds of aid trucks have entered Gaza every day. But residents said that as news of the closure spread, people were scrambling to stockpile supplies, and prices doubled on Sunday.

Sayed al-Dairi, a resident of Gaza City, told the Associated Press: "Everyone is worried, this is simply not life." A woman named Fayza Nassar, who lives in the heavily damaged Jabalia refugee camp, said the closure would exacerbate already dire living conditions. She told the Associated Press: "There will be famine and chaos. Closing the crossing is an outrageous crime."

Stephen Zunes, director of Middle East Studies at the University of San Francisco, said that the United States' apparent support for Israel's proposal follows an established pattern seen since the beginning of the war. He told Al Jazeera: "This is typical. Hamas and Israel will agree on something. Then Israel will try to modify it to its advantage. Then the United States will come up with a new proposal that favors Israel, and then the United States will accuse Hamas of not accepting the proposal."

Netanyahu's refusal to move forward with the second phase of the ceasefire agreement has also been criticized within Israel, with hundreds of Israelis demonstrating outside the homes of several government ministers on Sunday, demanding the completion of the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement. Democratic leader Yair Golan told Israeli media Maariv: "Israel signed an agreement that was supposed to start negotiations on the second phase on the 16th day of the first phase. However, Israel has shied away from these negotiations."

"Those who want to release the hostages need to understand a simple truth - we need to reach a long-term ceasefire and withdraw from most of Gaza. Netanyahu has been looking for ways to keep all Israeli citizens under extraordinary pressure and in a state of emergency, because it suits his political needs."