| |
Netanyahu: Israel, Hamas in 2nd Phase 12/08 06:12
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said
Sunday that Israel and Hamas are "very shortly expected to move into the second
phase of the ceasefire," after Hamas returns the remains of the last hostage
held in Gaza.
Netanyahu spoke during a news conference with visiting German Chancellor
Friedrich Merz and stressed that the second phase, which addresses the
disarming of Hamas and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, could begin
as soon as the end of the month.
Hamas has yet to hand over the remains of Ran Gvili, a 24-year-old police
officer who was killed in the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the
war. His body was taken to Gaza.
The ceasefire's second stage also includes the deployment of an
international force to secure Gaza and forming a temporary Palestinian
government to run day-to-day affairs under the supervision of an international
board led by U.S. President Donald Trump.
A senior Hamas official on Sunday told The Associated Press the group is
ready to discuss "freezing or storing or laying down" its weapons as part of
the ceasefire in a possible approach to one of the most difficult issues ahead.
Netanyahu says second phase will be challenging
Netanyahu said few people believed the ceasefire's first stage could be
achieved, and the second phase is just as challenging.
"As I mentioned to the chancellor, there's a third phase, and that is to
deradicalize Gaza, something that also people believed was impossible. But it
was done in Germany, it was done in Japan, it was done in the Gulf States. It
can be done in Gaza, too, but of course Hamas has to be dismantled," he said.
The return of Gvili's remains -- and Israel's return of 15 bodies of
Palestinians in exchange -- would complete the first phase of Trump's 20-point
ceasefire plan.
Hamas says it has not been able to reach all remains because they are buried
under rubble left by Israel's two-year offensive in Gaza. Israel has accused
the militants of stalling and threatened to resume military operations or
withhold humanitarian aid if all remains are not returned.
A group of families of hostages said in a statement that "we cannot advance
to the next phase before Ran Gvili returns home."
Meanwhile, Israeli military Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir on Sunday
called the so-called Yellow Line that divides the Israeli-controlled majority
of Gaza from the rest of the territory a "new border."
"We have operational control over extensive parts of the Gaza Strip and we
will remain on those defense lines," Zamir said. "The Yellow Line is a new
border line, serving as a forward defensive line for our communities and a line
of operational activity."
Germany says support for Israel is unchanged
Merz said Germany, one of Israel's closest allies, is assisting with the
implementation of the second phase by sending officers and diplomats to a
U.S.-led civilian and military coordination center in southern Israel, and by
sending humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The chancellor also said Germany still believes that a two-state-solution is
the best possible option but that "the German federal government remains of the
opinion that recognition of a Palestinian state can only come at the end of
such a process, not at the beginning."
The U.S.-drafted plan for Gaza leaves the door open to Palestinian
independence. Netanyahu has long asserted that creating a Palestinian state
would reward Hamas and eventually lead to an even larger Hamas-run state on
Israel's borders.
Netanyahu also said that while he would like to visit Germany, he hasn't
planned a diplomatic trip because he is concerned about an arrest warrant
issued by the International Criminal Court, the U.N.'s top war crimes court,
last year in connection with the war in Gaza.
Merz said there are currently no plans for a visit but he may invite
Netanyahu in the future. He added that he is not aware of future sanctions
against Israel from the European Union nor any plans to renew German bans on
military exports to Israel.
Germany had a temporary ban on exporting military equipment to Israel, which
was lifted after the ceasefire began on Oct. 10.
Israel kills militant in Gaza
The Israeli military said it killed a militant who approached its troops
across the Yellow Line.
Gaza's Health Ministry says Israeli forces have killed more than 370
Palestinians since the start of the ceasefire, and that the bodies of six
people killed in attacks had been brought to local hospitals over the past 24
hours.
In the original Hamas-led attack in 2023, the militants killed around 1,200
people and took more than 250 others hostage. Almost all the hostages or their
remains have been returned in ceasefires or other deals.
Israel's offensive in Gaza has killed at least 70,360 Palestinians,
according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run
government. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and
combatants, but says that nearly half the dead have been women and children.
The ministry is part of Gaza's Hamas government and its numbers are considered
reliable by the U.N. and other international bodies.
|
|
