Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to suspend all humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza as the first phase of the hostage deal ends, his office said.
Israel had earlier said it would accept a proposal by Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump’s envoy, for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza for the Ramadan and Passover periods.
Both decisions came hours after the first phase of the previously agreed ceasefire expired.
Under Witkoff’s proposal, half of the hostages in Gaza, both dead and alive, would be released on the first day of the extension of the ceasefire. The remaining hostages would be released after a permanent ceasefire is agreed.
Witkoff proposed extending the current ceasefire after realizing that more time was needed for ceasefire talks, Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
Senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mardavi said it was now clear that Israel was abandoning the agreements it had previously signed.
“Continuing this manipulation will not return the hostages to their families. On the contrary, it will lead to their continued suffering and endangering their lives,” Mardavi told Palestinian media.
The ceasefire agreement ended 15 months of fighting and saw the exchange of 33 Israeli hostages and five Thais for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees held by Israel.
photo: illustration
