[🇧🇩] Israel and Hamas war in Gaza-----Can Bangladesh be a peace broker?

[Saif]

Israeli minister Ben-Gvir threatens to quit Netanyahu cabinet over Gaza deal

Israeli far-right police minister Itamar Ben-Gvir threatened on Tuesday to quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government if he agrees to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal being negotiated at talks in Qatar. Ben-Gvir, whose departure would not bring down Netanyahu's government, urged

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Israeli minister Ben-Gvir threatens to quit Netanyahu cabinet over Gaza deal
REUTERS
Published :
Jan 14, 2025 21:48
Updated :
Jan 14, 2025 21:48

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir speaks while a conference on the resettlement of the Gaza Strip takes place, at an unspecified location in southern Israel on October 21, 2024 — Reuters/File

Israeli far-right police minister Itamar Ben-Gvir threatened on Tuesday to quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government if he agrees to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal being negotiated at talks in Qatar.

Ben-Gvir, whose departure would not bring down Netanyahu's government, urged Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to join him in a last-ditch attempt to prevent a ceasefire deal, which he described as a dangerous capitulation to Hamas.

"This move is our only chance to prevent (the deal's) execution, and prevent Israel's surrender to Hamas, after more than a year of bloody war, in which more than 400 IDF (Israel Defence Forces) soldiers fell in the Gaza Strip, and to ensure that their deaths are not in vain," Ben-Gvir said on X.

Smotrich said on Monday that he objects to the deal but did not threaten to bolt Netanyahu's coalition. A majority of ministers are expected to back the phased ceasefire deal, which details a halt to fighting and the release of hostages.

Ben-Gvir echoed remarks by Smotrich, who said on Monday Israel should keep up its military campaign in Gaza until the complete surrender of Palestinian militant group Hamas, whose Oct. 7 2023 attack caused the war.

About 1,200 people were killed in Hamas' 2023 assault on Israel and more than 250 others were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the enclave laid to waste and most its population displaced.

The United States, Qatar and Egypt have been mediating a ceasefire deal and agreements could be imminent, officials have said.

Some hostage families oppose the deal because they fear that the phased deal taking shape will see only some of the remaining 98 hostages freed and others left behind.

Successive surveys have shown broad support among the Israeli public for such a deal.​

 

[Saif]

Thousands across Gaza celebrate ceasefire deal

Crowds of Gazans chanted and embraced as news spread that a ceasefire and hostage release deal had been reached

www.thedailystar.net

Thousands across Gaza celebrate ceasefire deal

Photo: Collected

Crowds of Gazans chanted and embraced on Wednesday as news spread that a ceasefire and hostage release deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas aimed at ending more than 15 months of war in the Palestinian territory.

After a US official and a source close to the negotiations first revealed the agreement, Israel cautioned that several points "remain unresolved" that it hoped would be resolved.

But celebrations were already underway in Gaza, where AFP journalists saw crowds of people hugging and taking photos to mark the announcement.

"I can't believe that this nightmare of more than a year is finally coming to an end. We have lost so many people, we've lost everything," said Randa Sameeh, a 45-year-old displaced from Gaza City to the Nuseirat Camp in the centre of the territory.

"We need a lot of rest. As soon as the truce begins, I will go to the cemetery to visit my brother and family members. We buried them in Deir el-Balah cemetery without proper graves. We will build them new graves and write their names on them."

Outside Deir al-Balah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, where so many of the war's casualties have been taken, hundreds of Palestinians gathered to chant, sing and wave flags, AFPTV footage showed.

At one point, a member of the crowd and a journalist in body armour were raised on people's shoulders to conduct an interview above the mass of elated Gazans.

As an ambulance squeezed through the crowd to reach the hospital, smiling men and women alike chanted "Allahu Akbar", or "God is greatest" in Arabic, and waved the Palestinian flag.

Young children, some looking confused by the commotion, gathered outside the hospital too, milling between adults and watching as they gave interviews to the waiting media.

A gaggle of young boys in the centre of the crowd led a popular pro-resistance chant as adults filmed the moment on their phones.

In Gaza City, 27-year-old Abdul Karim said: "I feel joy despite everything we've lost."

"I can't believe I will finally see my wife and two children again," he added. "They left for the south almost a year ago. I hope they allow the displaced to return quickly."

Large crowds also gathered in Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza, with young men surfing through the crowd on the shoulders of others beating drums and cheering, an AFP photographer saw.

The deal agreed on Wednesday is expected to halt the fighting in the devastated Palestinian territory and see hostages held in Gaza released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.

Hamas carried out the attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.

Palestinian men also took 251 people hostage during the attack, 94 of whom are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel's retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed 46,707 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry that the UN considers reliable.​

 

[Saif]

Trump takes credit for 'epic' Gaza peace deal

Trump also signaled he would push for an elusive deal to normalize relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia

www.thedailystar.net

Trump takes credit for 'epic' Gaza peace deal

Donald Trump

US President-elect Donald Trump hailed an "epic" ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas on Wednesday -- and claimed credit for an accord that comes days before he is due to be sworn in for his second term.

"We have a deal for the hostages in the Middle East. They will be released shortly. Thank you!" Trump said on his Truth Social network, before any official announcement from outgoing President Joe Biden's White House.

Trump had warned Palestinian armed group Hamas of "hell to pay" if it did not free the captives before he took office, and envoys from both his incoming administration and Biden's outgoing one had been present at the latest negotiations.

"This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November," Trump added in a lengthy second post.

The Republican said his 2024 US election win had "signaled to the entire World that my Administration would seek Peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all Americans, and our Allies."

He added that he was "thrilled" about the release of the hostages taken by Hamas in its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. Those taken included several Americans.

The attack sparked a war that has seen Israel level large swaths of Gaza, killing at least 46,707 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry that the UN considers reliable.

Hamas's attack resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, also mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures. The group took 251 people hostage during the attack, 94 of whom are still being held in Gaza. At least 34 are dead, according to the Israeli military.

Trump returns to the White House on Monday -- meaning that much of the implementation of the Gaza deal will play out under his incoming administration.

The 78-year-old said his national security team would "work closely with Israel and our Allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven."

Trump also signaled he would push for an elusive deal to normalize relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

He said he would "build upon the momentum of this ceasefire" to expand the Abraham Accords from his first term, which established diplomatic ties between Israel and the Gulf countries of the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

Trump's incoming National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz, credited the Gaza deal in a post on X to "The Trump Effect."​

 

[Saif]

‘An earthquake struck’

After news of a ceasefire agreement sparked mass rejoicing in Gaza, residents woke up yesterday to columns of smoke, rubble and more deaths following new Israeli air strikes.

www.thedailystar.net

An earthquake struck’
Say Palestinians as air strikes in Gaza crush joy of ceasefire deal

After news of a ceasefire agreement sparked mass rejoicing in Gaza, residents woke up yesterday to columns of smoke, rubble and more deaths following new Israeli air strikes.

"We were waiting for the truce and were happy. It was the happiest night since October 7," said Gaza resident Saeed Alloush, referring to the Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war in 2023.

"Suddenly... we received the news of the martyrdom of 40 people," including his uncle, Alloush said. "The whole area's joy turned to sadness, as if an earthquake struck."

The latest strikes came after Qatar and the United States announced a fragile ceasefire deal that should take effect on Sunday.

AFP has contacted the Israeli military for comment.

Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for Gaza's civil defence agency, told AFP yesterday that at least 73 people had been killed in Israeli air strikes since the announcement on Wednesday.

Among them were 20 children and 25 women, he said, with around 200 others wounded.

As day broke, crowds gathered to inspect and clear the remains of a building reduced to rubble, where chunks of concrete lay interspersed with rebar and personal items scattered across the site.

The scenes mirrored those in other parts of the densely populated territory of 2.4 million people, most of whom have been displaced at least once since the offensive broke out in October 2023.

At Nasser Hospita ln Khan Yunis, AFP journalists saw stained metal mortuary stretchers stained in red as staff drained them of the blood of the dead in a strike.

In Gaza City's Al-Ahli hospital, where several strike casualties were taken, grieving families knelt by the white shrouds enveloping their loved ones' bodies.

Rescuer Ibrahim Abu al-Rish told AFP that "after the ceasefire was announced and people were happy and joyful, a five-storey building was targeted, with over 50 people inside".​

 

[Saif]

What are the details of truce deal in Gaza?

Qatar said Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza starting on Sunday and a hostage and prisoner exchange after 15 months of offensive.

www.thedailystar.net

What are the details of truce deal in Gaza?
PRISONER-HOSTAGE SWAP

Qatar said Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza starting on Sunday and a hostage and prisoner exchange after 15 months of offensive.

Thirty-three Israeli hostages will be released in the first, 42-day phase of the agreement that could become a "permanent ceasefire", said Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani.

Those first released would be "civilian women and female recruits, as well as children, elderly people... civilian ill people and wounded", he said.

Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said on Tuesday Israel was "prepared to pay a heavy price -- in the hundreds" in exchange for the 33 hostages.

ISRAELI POSITIONS IN GAZA

During the initial, 42-day ceasefire Israeli forces will withdraw from Gaza's densely populated areas to "allow for the swap of prisoners, as well as the swap of remains and the return of the displaced people", Qatar's prime minister said.

Negotiations for a second phase would commence on the "16th day" after the first phase's implementation, an Israeli official said. This phase would cover the release of the remaining captives, including "male soldiers, men of military age, and the bodies of slain hostages", the Times of Israel reported.

Israeli media reported that under the deal, Israel would maintain a buffer zone within Gaza during the first phase.

Israeli forces were expected to remain up to "800 metres (yards) inside Gaza stretching from Rafah in the south to Beit Hanun in the north," according to a source close to Hamas. Israeli forces would not fully withdraw from Gaza until "all hostages are returned", the Israeli official said.

END TO THE OFFENSIVE

Joint mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt will monitor the ceasefire deal through a body based in Cairo, Sheikh Mohammed said, urging "calm" in Gaza before the agreement comes into force.

There was "a clear mechanism to negotiate phase two and three", Sheikh Mohammed added.​