Hamas accepts 60 days ceasefire, but Israel keeps offensive in Gaza

Hamas announced on Monday (18) that he accepted a ceasefire proposal prepared by Egypt and Qatar, after weeks of negotiations in Cairo.

The plan foresees an initial 60 -day truce, during which Israeli hostages would be released in two stages, returned bodies of war victims, released Palestinian prisoners and allowed the entry of humanitarian aid under UN and Red Cross supervision.

Israel, however, has not yet formally responded, although it confirmed the receipt of the proposal. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu merely said in video that Hamas would be “under immense pressure.”

According to Palestinian leaders and sources of mediation, the agreement states that ten live hostages and eighteen bodies would be delivered to Israel in the first phase, followed by ten other hostages and more bodies in a second stage.

On the other hand, Israel would free 150 Palestinians sentenced to life imprisonment and another 50 prisoners more than 15 years old. In addition, for each returned Israeli body, Israel would deliver the bodies of ten Palestinian militants. Tel Aviv believes that of the 50 hostages still in Gaza, only 20 would be alive.

The document also foresees the retreat of Israeli troops for a range of one kilometer along the northern and eastern borders of Gaza, including the areas of Beit Lahiya and Shejaia, without full removal of occupancy forces.

The measure seeks to relieve immediate pressure on the civilian population and create conditions for long -term negotiations. Once the ceasefire comes into force, the parties would be required to start conversations about a permanent agreement under international guarantees.

Qatar classified the proposal as “almost identical” to that previously presented by the United States, rejected by Hamas earlier this year for not offering guarantees against genocide.

Palestinian acceptance places Israel in front of a political and military crossroads. Internal pressure grows: on Sunday (17), hundreds of thousands of Israelis went to the streets in one of the biggest demonstrations since the beginning of the war, demanding the immediate end of fighting and the return of hostages.

Recent research indicates that the majority of the population is favorable to end the war if it means the return of captives. Netanyahu, however, faces the opposite pressures of its ultra -decer base, which insists on the continuity of war and the attachment of Gaza, rejecting any temporary respite.

CALL OF 60 thousand reservists and occupation plan Military climbing

Despite the acceptance of the ceasefire by Hamas, the Israeli government advances in its plans to expand the offensive. The Security Office approved at the beginning of August an operation to invade and occupy the city of Gaza, described by Netanyahu as the last major urban bastion of the Palestinian resistance movement.

The army summoned 60,000 reservists for the new phase of the war, although it postponed its incorporation until September, which opens a breach for diplomacy to develop before the invasion.

A military spokesman stated that five divisions already operate at the enclave and that the new stage would consist of “a gradual, accurate and directed offensive” in Gaza and surroundings. Israel currently controls 75% of the territory and maintains that Hamas was reduced to a guerrilla force, even after almost two years of continuous attacks.

The expansion of the offensive, however, directly threatens the life of hostages still in the power of the group, and pushing the war into a prolonged guerrilla scenario.

In recent hours, Israeli bombings have continued against the suburbs of the city of Gaza, killing at least 19 people, according to the Ministry of Health. Witnesses reported the movement of tanks and backhoes towards the suburb of Sabra in the east of the city.

Army Chief Eyal Zamir has stated that Israel is experiencing a “inflection point” and that attacks against Hamas in the region will be intensified. The siege of the city, combined with the massive displacement of civilians, expands the dimension of the humanitarian disaster.

Meanwhile, Arab leaders and Palestinian factions have increased the pressure for Hamas to accept the deal in an attempt to contain the imminent offensive.

For the first time, Arab countries publicly declared support for Hamas’s disarmament if this step was linked to the end of the war and a concrete path for the creation of a Palestinian state.

Diplomatic pressure added to the cry of unions, journalists and community leaders within Gaza, who organized protests demanding the end of the war “at any cost.”

Amnesty International denounces deliberate political hunger against Palestinians

Humanitarian collapse in Gaza is reported daily for international organizations and human rights organizations. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, more than 62,000 people have been killed by Israeli bombings since October 2023, mostly women and children.

The civilian population faces hunger, diseases and forced displacements, with thousands abandoning their homes in the eastern city of Gaza in the face of the imminent offensive offensive.

In a report released on Monday (18), Amnesty International accused Israel of conducting a “deliberate hunger campaign” as part of a genocide policy against Palestinians.

According to the document, extreme scarcity of food and medicines is not a byproduct of war, but “the intentional result of plans and policies designed to inflict calculated living conditions to cause physical destruction of the Gaza population.”

The text states that Israel has been “systematically destroying health, well-being and social fabric of Palestinian life”, characterizing this process as an integral part of the ongoing genocide.

The Israeli siege also prevents the minimum reconstruction of the devastated areas. Schools, hospitals and mosques have been destroyed, forcing families to house in ruins or makeshift fields.

In Beit Lahia, a devastated suburb in the north, nearly 1,000 families were forced to leave the region south. In the midst of precariousness, civilians report not seeing perspectives of survival.

Denunciations of genocide and everyday devastation reinforce the perception that the war has exceeded all limits.

For Palestinians, the acceptance of ceasefire is not just a diplomatic gesture, but an attempt to ensure the survival of a people submitted to daily bombing, planned hunger and incessant displacements.

For Israel, the insistence on expanding the offensive, even in the face of the accepted proposal, exposes the contradiction between the safety rhetoric and the reality of destruction that has already eliminated much of Gaza’s civil infrastructure.

Contradictory pressures on Netanyahu put Israel in the face of a deadlock between diplomacy and war

The acceptance of the ceasefire by Hamas represents the closest movement of a truce since the failure of negotiations in July, but Israel’s response remains undefined.

Internally, Netanyahu faces the contradiction of leading a coalition that requires the continuity of war while dealing with a popular movement that calls for the return of hostages and the immediate end of the fighting.

Recent research indicates that the majority of the population supports the interruption of war if this ensures the return of captives.

In the external level, the pressure of Arab, European and even historical allies of Israel grows. Washington, who had sponsored Steve Witkoff’s proposal months ago, is no longer willing to indefinitely support the offensive, while Qatar and Egypt present themselves as guarantors of a political exit.

Israel is expected to be officially pronounced until Friday (22), a deadline that has become a symbol of the current crossroads.

Testimonials from family members of hostage also give tone to the crisis. Dani Miran, father of a young man kidnapped on October 7, 2023, fears that an earthly offensive aggravates the risk to his son.

“I am afraid that my son will be injured,” said Tel Aviv. On the other side of the siege, Palestinians like Samir Abu Basel, the father of four, describe the sense of abandonment. “If there is no agreement, I fear we will all die. Die here or be pushed out of Gaza gives it. We lose faith in this world and our leaders as well.”

The next few days will be decisive. If Tel Aviv responds positively to the proposal accepted by Hamas, one can make a way for more stable peace negotiations. Otherwise, the offensive about the city of Gaza will mean continuity of the massacre, with the possibility of an even longer scenario of guerrilla war and humanitarian catastrophe.