Protesters in Tel Aviv calling for an immediate deal to free hostages in Gaza carry a banner reading, ‘Netanyahu is finishing the hostages,’ (Aviv Atlas/Pro-Democracy Protest Movement)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told hostage families Tuesday that a cease-fire deal may not be reached and that the Israeli military will not relinquish control of the Gazan-Egyptian border, a key demand of the Hamas militant group.
The Hostages Families Forum quoted Netanyahu as saying Israel “will under no circumstances leave the Philadelphia axis and the Netzer Corridor” and that he was “not sure” a deal could be struck. The group accused Netanyahu of refusing any hostage deal.
“There is no hope and no heroism in a ‘firm’ stand that will result in the continued death of all the abductees,” the group said in a social media post. “The Israeli government abandoned the abductees on October 7th and is now abandoning them for good.”
Their bodies of the above hostages were retrieved today by IDF. The are : Top row, left to right: Yoram Metzger, Alexander Dancyg, Avraham Munder. Bottom row, left to right: Chaim Peri, Nadav Popplewell, and Yagev Buchshtab. Hostage and Missing Families Forum/Reuters
The Biden administration has been promoting a bridging proposal amid hopes a deal could be hammered out by week’s end. After Netanyahu announced Monday that Israel could accept the plan in principle, Hamas released a statement dismissing the plan as little more than a list of Israel’s demands. Hours later, President Joe Biden accused Hamas of “backing away” from a deal.
Hamas expressed “great astonishment and disapproval” for Biden’s claim, blaming the “complete American bias toward the Zionist occupation and the full partnership in the aggression and war of genocide against defenseless civilians in the Gaza Strip.”
Other Developments:
∎ Delta Air Lines on Tuesday extended suspension of flights to and from Israel from Aug. 31 to Sept. 30. Earlier, American Airlines extended its flight suspensions until March 29, 2025.
∎ Tehran supports any move to end the war in Gaza and help its people but “does not consider the U.S. actions sincere,” Iran’s Revolutionary Guards spokesperson Alimohammad Naini said.
Israel, US blamed for airstrike deaths
Gaza’s Government Media Office condemned Israeli airstrikes on a school and two other locations within several hours Tuesday that it said killed at least 25 Palestinians.
At least 12 women and children perished when the Israeli military conducted a strike on a school Israel said was serving as a Hamas command and control center. The military said it took several steps to ease the risk of harming civilians at the Mustafa Khaft School compound in Gaza City but accused Hamas of “brutally exploiting” the civilian population by operating within schools and other public buildings.
The airstikes, which also blasted a market in Deir el-Balah and a mobile phone charging point in Khan Younis, wounded dozens, Al Jazeera reported.
“We hold the Israeli occupation and the American administration fully responsible for the catastrophic and dangerous consequences of these ongoing massacres,” the media office said it a statement.
Netanyahu sabotaging talks: Lapid
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid led a chorus of opposition to Netanyahu, accusing him of trying to derail the cease-fire talks. Others involved in the talks also complained, telling Israel’s Kan public broadcaster they believe Netanyahu intentionally derailed the negotiations by telling some hostage families that Israel would not relinquish control of the Gaza-Egypt border under any circumstances. Such a pronouncement was sure to be rejected by Hamas, they said.
Lapid said Netanyahu’s tactics could be fatal to the hostages still held in Gaza.
“Enough with the briefings, enough with the tweets, enough with the rhymes in front of cameras,” Lapid wrote in a social media post. “All of Netanyahu’s attempts to sabotage the negotiations should stop. Deal now, before they all die.”
Cause of death for latest recovered hostages unclear
Israel’s chief military spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, said he remained determined to bring home all the hostages, including those alive to medical treatment and counseling and those dead to bury. Hagari declined to say how many hostages were still alive. When asked whether the six bodies of hostages recently recovered were victims of friendly fire, he said army forces would investigate precise circumstances of their deaths.
“We will not give up on any of them,” he said, calling it a moral obligation. “But we will not be able to bring back all of them in rescue operations.”
Blinken meets with Egypt’s El-Sisi
Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Tuesday with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, thanking him for his role in trying to mediate a cease-fire. Blinken stressed the importance of working together to prevent regional escalation of violence, the State Department said in a statement.
The Egyptian state-run media said El-Sisi emphasized to Blinken that a cease-fire in Gaza must mark the beginning of broader international recognition of an independent Palestinian state and the enforcement of the two-state solution. Israel and Netanyahu, however, have repeatedly rejected calls for Palestinian sovereignty.
Body of war hero among hostage remains retrieved by Israel
Israel retrieved the bodies of six hostages from the Gaza Strip, the military said Tuesday. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the bodies of Yagev Buchshtab, Alexander Dancyg, Abraham Munder, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell and Chaim Peri were recovered by Israeli soldiers from tunnels under the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. Zahiro Shahar Mor, the nephew of Munder, said Israeli authorities had “torpedoed” proposals that could have brought the hostages safely home.
“My uncle was a war hero who lived his whole life building the country,” Mor said. “Hamas took him but the continuous abandonment is on the hands of the Israeli government.”
Israeli officials say 109 hostages are believed to be held in Gaza, although many of them are thought to be dead.
Iran retaliation could be delayed
There could be a long wait for Iranian retaliation against Israel for killing Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran three weeks ago, Naini said Tuesday.
“Time is in our favor and the waiting period for this response could be long,” Naini said.
Haniyeh and his bodyguard were killed at an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp ( IRGC) guesthouse after attending an inauguration ceremony for the new Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Israel’s Mossad reportedly hired IRGC members to place a bomb inside his room , which was remotely detonated by Israel . Hamas and Iran immediately blamed Israel, which has pledged to take down Hamas leaders responsible for the Oct. 7 attack that left 1,139 people dead and about 250 taken hostage. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for Haniyeh’s killing
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