ceasefire-talks-with-israel-won-t-work-says-hamas

Hamas official Bassem Naim has said there is "no sense in engaging in talks or considering new ceasefire proposals as long as the hunger war and extermination war continue in the Gaza Strip.”

 

The ongoing Israeli actions in Gaza pose an existential threat to the population of Gaza, as famine and starvation have killed tens of people since March 19, with thousands more, including children, staring at death by hunger, said the UN.

 

Naim called on the international community “to pressure the Netanyahu government to end the crimes of hunger, thirst, and killings” in Gaza.

 

The appeal from the group comes a day after the Israeli war cabinet approved an extended Gaza offensive on Monday, an operation that will see Israeli forces delivering aid to the local population.

 

The plan has been widely criticised by the international community as a measure to maintain control over the food supplies entering Gaza.

 

Additionally, the famine has already set in, with undernourished children in the hospital staring at painful death.

 

Israeli authorities have imposed a total blockade of the occupied enclave since the resumption of fighting after the ceasefire deal with Hamas broke down following Israel's refusal to accept demands that Hamas put through during negotiations.

 

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Israeli PM Netanyahu said the population of Gaza “will be moved” in an upcoming offensive, and as conditions in the enclave deteriorate from a crippling 65-day blockade.

 

Reports said that hospitals in Gaza are 48 hours away from collapse, and the lives of thousands of sick and wounded are at risk, the Gaza Media Office said.

 

Israel’s war has killed at least 52,567 Palestinians and wounded 118,610, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

 

The Government Media Office updated the death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of people missing under the rubble are presumed dead.

 

An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, and more than 200 were taken captive.