More Palestinian deaths in both Gaza and West Bank as shaky ceasefire barely holds out – escalating fears for hostages held by Hamas if no agreement is reached
Twelve Palestinians have been killed – eight in Gaza and four in the West Bank- as the fragile ceasefire held despite an upsurge in violence.
Israeli forces have killed dozens of Palestinians in Gaza during the ceasefire with the military saying they had approached its troops or entered unauthorised areas. It comes as further peace talks are underway – with Israel demanding more hostages in exchange for a promise to negotiate a lasting truce. Hamas has demanded a start to negotiations for the ceasefire’s more difficult second phase in which hostages would be released and Israel would withdraw from the Strip.
It is believed Hamas still has 24 living hostages and the bodies of 35 others. Israel is trying to force Hamas to accept its plan by cutting off all electricity, food, medicine and other goods to Gaza’s more than two million Palestinians. The United Nations and other humanitarian aid providers say Israel is violating international law. It warns the Israeli ban on food, fuel, electricity and other humanitarian aid entering Gaza for the last ten days is reversing progress in getting supplies to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.
Backup generators at water and health facilities is running low, cooking gas prices are rising, and distribution of flour, fresh produce and tents has been hit. The U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF, is warning that severe water shortages have reached critical levels, with only one in ten people accessing safe drinking water. Rebel Houthis in Yemen, backed by Iran, warned Friday that attacks against Israel-linked vessels would resume by today if Israel didn’t let aid into Gaza. As the deadline passed Tuesday, the Houthis said they were again banning Israeli vessels from the waters off Yemen.
Although no attacks were reported, the warning has put shipping on edge. The rebels have since the Gaza war broke out targeted over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels and killing four sailors. Over 500,000 settlers with Israeli citizenship live in well over 100 settlements across the West Bank, ranging from hilltop outposts to fully-developed suburbs. The territory’s three million Palestinians live under seemingly open-ended Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority administering cities and towns.
Israel has been carrying out a major military operation in Jenin in recent weeks that it says is aimed at rooting out militants. Israel has deployed troops inside a Syria buffer zone after days of violence which has killed 1,000. The latest deaths brought the overall Palestinian toll from the war to 48,503. More than 110,000 people have been wounded in Gaza. The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251 people.
