On the 214th day of the Israeli occupation’s aggression against the Gaza Strip, ceasefire negotiations continue in Cairo between the delegations of the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli government through mediators, while the occupation army penetrates into the Philadelphia border axis with Egypt.
An official in the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) warned Israel that the current Cairo negotiations would be the “last chance” to recover prisoners detained in the Gaza Strip.
On a related level, Hamas leader Osama Hamdan said – during a press conference – that the movement’s delegation went to Cairo to confirm the continuation of the political process to bind Israel to the agreement and its implementation, stressing that “the ball is now in the court of Netanyahu and the pillars of his extremist government.”
On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Hamas’ proposal is far from Israel’s basic demands.
Netanyahu stressed that Israel will not allow Hamas to rebuild its military capabilities or restore rule in the Gaza Strip.
American media said that Washington adopted the draft ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that was accepted by Hamas, and that it was Israel that withdrew from approving the draft.
The Associated Press reported from sources that the draft agreement included a slight change in wording from the version submitted by Washington with Israel’s approval.
The same sources added to the agency that the changes were made in consultation with CIA Director William Burns, who adopted the draft before sending it to Hamas.
Rafah operation
The Israeli army announced – Tuesday morning – that it had completely taken control of the Rafah crossing in the southern Gaza Strip and was carrying out extensive combing operations in the area, after a night of violent bombardment that targeted the vicinity of the crossing and areas east of the city crowded with displaced people, despite the efforts of the mediators to reach a truce.
For the first time since 2005, Israeli military vehicles entered the eastern side of the Philadelphia axis separating the Gaza Strip and Egypt on Tuesday.
The Israeli army said in a statement on Tuesday that the forces of the 401st Brigade achieved operational control over the Rafah crossing from the Gaza side. He added, “The forces cut off the Rafah crossing from the Salah al-Din axis, and now armored forces from the 401st Brigade are in complete control of the crossing.”
He pointed out that special units launched an attack on the eastern region of Rafah, whose residents were forcibly evacuated. He pointed out that the forces are now conducting combing operations in the areas that were controlled.
Netanyahu said that the entry of Israeli forces into Rafah is a very important step, and that the army is on its way to eliminating the four Hamas brigades there. He added, “Entering Rafah serves two main goals of the war: the return of our kidnappers and the elimination of Hamas.”
In the first Egyptian reaction, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday condemned – in a statement – the Israeli military operations in Rafah, and the resulting Israeli control over the Palestinian side of the crossing.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry called on Israel to exercise “the utmost restraint and to avoid a policy of brinkmanship with long-term impact,” which would threaten the fate of the strenuous efforts made to reach a sustainable truce inside the Gaza Strip.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also warned that an Israeli invasion of the city of Rafah would have devastating humanitarian consequences and a destabilizing effect on the stability of the region.
Guterres expressed his deep concern about the Israeli military movements in Rafah, saying that invading the city would be unacceptable and intolerable given the presence of about 1.5 million displaced people in the region.
For his part, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said that if he were prime minister, he would postpone the military operation in Rafah for 48 hours to give an opportunity to conclude a prisoner exchange deal.
In statements to Israeli Army Radio, Lapid criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying, “You waited two months, so why take the risk? A missile could hit an unintended building and destroy the hope of concluding a deal,” as he put it.
In the same context, the American Wall Street Journal quoted informed officials that the United States is postponing sending precision weapons to Israel in an atmosphere of controversy with Tel Aviv over the invasion of the city of Rafah.
The newspaper quoted current and former American officials as saying that “President Joe Biden’s administration has not notified Congress since last March about other arms deals worth a billion dollars to Israel, including tank ammunition, military vehicles, and mortar shells.”
In a related development, King Abdullah II of Jordan and US President Joe Biden affirmed their joint commitment to facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip.
The White House reported that the two sides stressed during talks at the White House – yesterday, Monday – the need for the immediate release of detainees with a sustainable ceasefire that allows for increased humanitarian aid.
An official Jordanian statement said that King Abdullah II urged Biden to intervene to prevent a new massacre in Rafah.
On the ground, violent clashes continued between the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli occupation forces in the eastern neighborhoods of the city of Rafah, and while the Israeli army took control of the Rafah crossing, the resistance factions bombed the Ra’im military base and the settlements around the Gaza Strip.
Al Jazeera’s correspondent said that the number of martyrs as a result of the Israeli air and artillery bombardment on Rafah neighborhoods since dawn on Tuesday rose to 27 martyrs, and the bombing also caused Abu Youssef Al-Najjar Hospital to go out of work.
In other field developments, occupation aircraft launched a raid on areas in the city of Deir al-Balah and the Nuseirat camp.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health said that, during the past 24 hours, the Israeli occupation committed 6 massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, of which 54 martyrs and 96 wounded arrived at hospitals.
Thus, the total number of victims of the Israeli aggression rose to 34,789 martyrs and 87,204 injured, since the seventh of last October.
Detained prisoners
The families of prisoners detained in Gaza called on the United States and other countries, whose citizens are being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, to pressure Israel to conclude an agreement with the movement to guarantee their return.
The Forum for Families of Hostages and Missing Persons said that in light of indications of progress in the discussions between the two parties, we appeal to a number of countries to “exercise their influence on the Israeli government” and press for an agreement.
Abu Ubaida, spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, announced the death of Israeli prisoner Judy Weinstein (70 years old) as a result of her injuries in a bombing carried out by the occupation in the Gaza Strip a month ago.
Al-Qassam also broadcast a video message documenting the causes of the prisoner’s death, and assuring the Israeli public that their army would be destroyed For hospitals in Gaza Taking it out of service is what caused the suffering and death of their prisoners, which is what the Palestinian people are also suffering from, according to the letter.
Abu Ubaida said, in a statement via Telegram on Tuesday, that prisoner Feinstein died of serious injuries she sustained with another prisoner – whose identity was not revealed – following the occupation bombing of the place where they were being held a month ago.
Developments in the West Bank
Two Palestinian youths were killed on Tuesday by Israeli army gunfire during their storming of the city of Tulkarm in the northern West Bank, while 5 others were injured during confrontations with the occupation army, and the death toll of detainees in the West Bank rose.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced that two young men were killed by the bullets of the occupation forces, which have continued to storm the city since Monday morning, one of whom was targeted by Israeli army snipers.
Lebanon Front
The Lebanese Hezbollah announced that it was able to kill and wound Israeli soldiers during a series of attacks it carried out on Tuesday on barracks and sites near the southern Lebanese border, after the Israeli army acknowledged the killing of two of its officers in a Hezbollah attack on the Metulla settlement yesterday, Monday.
The party said – in a statement – that it carried out an attack today with assault drones that targeted officers and soldiers while they were in the courtyard of the Yiftah Barracks, hitting them accurately and leaving them dead or wounded.
University demonstrations
At the level of the American university movement, the American police carried out new arrests as part of a campaign against the ongoing protests at many American universities in rejection of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip. At the same time, more universities in Europe joined the student movement.
