Israeli minister Itamar Ben Gvir quit the Benjamin Netanyahu-led government on Sunday amid efforts to implement a ceasefire in Gaza. The six-week truce went into effect on Sunday afternoon after a three hour delay — with three hostages scheduled for release.
“The deal that is taking shape is a reckless deal. It includes the release of hundreds of murderous terrorists, the return of thousands of terrorists to the northern Gaza Strip, a withdrawal from the Philadelphia axis, and a cessation of fighting, and thus the deal will effectively erase the achievements of the war,” he had opined earlier this week.
He had also noted that the recently brokered ceasefire did not guarantee the release of all hostages. Gvir claimed that the agreement would end the war without defeating Hamas and leaving it “with a significant ability to rebuild itself”.
If this reckless deal is approved and implemented, the Otzma Yehudit party will not be part of the government and will withdraw from it," he had vowed on Friday.
Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire deal this week — temporarily pausing the devastating 15-month Gaza war. The deal sets in motion a long and uncertain process aimed at ultimately ending the war and returning nearly 100 hostages (abducted during the October 2023 Hamas attack) to Israel. The ceasefire had initially been slated to begin at 8:30 am local time on Sunday — around noon in India.
Israeli airstrikes however continued on Sunday morning amid a delayed start to the temporary truce — killing at least eight people in the southern city of Khan Younis. Nasser Hospital confirmed that the attack took place around two hours after the truce was supposed to take effect. The Hamas-run Health Ministry reported three more deaths from strikes in Gaza City on Sunday.
(With inputs from agencies)
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