Middle East: Israel for the US plan to extend the Gaza cafe rest

The ceasefire in the Gaza war hangs in the balance after the first phase has expired since the early morning. Before a possible rebuild of war, Israel seems to give negotiations with Islamist Hamas a last chance: According to its own, Israel approved a US proposal to continue the ceasefire until mid-April, in return, potentially all remaining hostages.

The plan stipulates that the weapons are still silent during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and the Jewish Pessach festival, it said in a statement of the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It is not threatened with a return to the war. However, it is pointed out that the Israel agreement allows the fights to be picked up again at any time after the 42nd day of the ceasefire – which was Saturday – if Israel gained the impression that the negotiations remained unsuccessful.

Israel: Hamas has so far rejects proposal

Half of the remaining hostages – living and dead – would therefore be released on the first day of the extended ceasefire. The remaining would be handed over at the end of the period if a permanent ceasefire is reached. The Hamas has so far rejected Steve Witkoff, which was proposed by the US special envoy, it said. If she changes her position, Israel will immediately take negotiations on all the details of the plan.

Thousands of demonstrators request continuation of the ceasefire

The Ramadan started on Saturday with the first phase of the ceasefire and ends on March 29. The Pessach Festival lasts from April 12th to 20th. In numerous Israeli cities, thousands of demonstrators called for a continuation of the ceasefire and the release of further hostages. In the coastal metropolis Tel Aviv, activists with iron chains were sitting on a street and wore masks with the faces of hostages, which have been captured in the Gaza Strip since October 2023. In Hebrew, the demand for a release of the remaining hostages was on the ground: “All of them”.

59 hostages in the Gaza Strip

There are currently 59 hostages in the violence of Islamists in the Gaza Strip. Of these, only 24 men should be alive. The U.S. Sonderstanded Witkoff proposed the framework for an extension of the ceasefire after he had gained the impression that there was currently no way to beat a bridge between the positions of the two sides to end the war, the office of the office of Prime Minister Netanyahu continues. Additional time is necessary for discussions about a permanent ceasefire.

HAMAS has so far rejected an extension of the first phase of the Agreement of the Gegenung of further hostages in return for Palestinian prisoners. She demanded that the second phase to continue with the final end of the war. However, Israel has long insisted on the war destination of the full destruction of Hamas. According to Israeli media reports, the country’s army is already training intensively for a possible start of the war.

The Russian-Israelian citizen Alexander (Sascha) Trufanov, who was hostile to the hostage two weeks ago, said in a video message: “Do not allow the feelings of revenge, anger and anger about the values ​​of unity, fraternity and holiness of human life.” He thinks of the hostages remaining in Gaza every day. The thought doesn’t let him go. “He accompanies me every hour, every minute of the day.”

Ramadan in the Gaza Strip between ruins

Meanwhile, the Palestinians in the largely destroyed Gaza strip commemorate the Ramadan despite adverse living conditions. In Chan Junis in the south of the sealed off coastal strip, people were sitting at a long table for breakfast before dawn (Suhur). The meal for children is intended as a resistance to the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, an organizer said. “Israel destroyed Gaza, no house is intact.”

With her initiative, she wants to bring hope to her people. “We will continue to live our lives until a political solution is found to end this war and rebuild our home country,” she said. The war was triggered by the worst massacre in the history of Israel, the terrorists of Hamas and other extremist Palestinian organizations on October 7, 2023 in Israel near the border to the Gaza Strip.

On the Israeli side, more than 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 more were dragged into the Gaza strip. Since the beginning of the war, more than 48,300 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip, according to the health authority controlled by the Hamas. The numbers do not distinguish between fighters and civilians and cannot be confirmed independently, but are classified as fairly credible by the United Nations.