JERUSALEM, September 4 ------ The United States said it was time to "finalize" a deal between Israel and Hamas to end the Gaza war after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to bow to pressure.
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller spoke a day after Netanyahu doubled down despite domestic and international pressure following the recovery by Israel's military of six killed hostages from the war-ravaged Palestinian territory. "There are dozens of hostages still remaining in Gaza, still waiting for a deal that will bring them home. It is time to finalize that deal," Miller said. "The people of Israel cannot afford to wait any longer. The Palestinian people, who are also suffering the terrible effects of this war, cannot afford to wait any longer. The world cannot afford to wait any longer."
Miller said Washington would work "over the coming days" with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar "to push for a final agreement". John Kirby, the US National Security Council spokesman, echoed this sentiment, saying, "we believe we can close this" truce deal. Despite increasing grief and fury among Israelis, who have taken to the streets to pressure the government, Netanyahu said he would "not give in to pressure" during indirect negotiations with Hamas. The military said it recovered six hostages who were captured alive during Hamas's Oct 7 attack but were found shot dead shortly before their discovery.
PHILADELPHI CORRIDOR
UN human rights chief Volker Turk called for an "independent, impartial and transparent investigation" into reports they were summarily executed. US President Joe Biden, meeting with negotiators, replied "no" when asked if he thought Netanyahu was doing enough to secure a hostage deal. Netanyahu, whose ruling coalition relies on the support of far-right ministers who oppose a truce, said Hamas's refusal to make concessions was the real obstacle. "I will not give in to pressure," Netanyahu said, adding Israel must control Gaza's border with Egypt to stop Hamas from rearming.
Egypt on Tuesday rejected accusations its Gaza border was being used to arm Hamas, and accused Netanyahu of seeking to "distract Israeli public opinion and obstruct reaching a ceasefire deal". "We are opposed to the long-term presence of IDF troops in Gaza," Miller said, referring to Israel's military. Netanyahu on Monday said "the achievement of the war's objectives" requires control of the Philadelphia Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border.
OCCUPY INDEFINITELY
Hamas has long demanded a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and Egyptian officials have objected to an Israeli military presence on the border. Netanyahu "wants to occupy Gaza on some level indefinitely" and was now "just saying it more openly", analyst Mairav Zonszein told AFP. Israel occupied the Gaza Strip in 1967 and maintained troops and settlers there until 2005, when it withdrew but imposed a crippling blockade and, since the start of the current war, a total siege. Increasing the pressure on Israel, Britain on Monday said it would suspend some arms exports, citing a "clear risk" they could be used in a serious breach of international humanitarian law.
On Tuesday, the civil defense spokesman in Hamas-run Gaza said an Israeli raid on a college killed two people and injured 30. Israel's military said it had targeted "Hamas terrorists who were operating inside a command-and-control center embedded inside a compound that previously served as the Numaa College in Gaza City". Earlier, civil defense rescuers in Gaza reported two dead in a strike on a displacement camp near Khan Younis. The civil defense agency, witnesses and AFP correspondents also reported air strikes and shelling across southern and central Gaza.
Source: channelnewsasia.com
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