Days before ceasefire ends, Israel says it won’t withdraw from Philadelphi Corridor in Gaza
World: Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was expected to start withdrawing from the corridor on Saturday, the final day of the first phase, and complete the process within eight days. Middle East
Israel has no plans to pull out from the Philadelphi Corridor in Gaza, despite the terms of the ceasefire agreement, an official told CNN on Thursday (Feb 27).
“We will not exit the Philadelphi Corridor. We will not allow Hamas murderers to roam again with trucks and rifles on our borders, and we will not let them strengthen themselves again through smuggling,” the source told CNN.
Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was expected to start withdrawing from the corridor on Saturday, the final day of the first phase, and complete the process within eight days.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday vowed to work "relentlessly" to bring back all the hostages held in Gaza.
"To the dear families, we share in your pain. I pledge that we will continue to act relentlessly until we bring everyone back. Until we return all our sons and daughters home," Netanyahu said in a statement.
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This announcement comes shortly after Hamas handed over the remains of four hostages in exchange for over 600 Palestinian prisoners. That exchange marked the final planned swap in the first phase of the ceasefire, which is set to conclude this weekend.
Negotiations for second phase under wraps
Negotiations for the second phase of the 42-day ceasefire were supposed to start more than three weeks ago, but it remains unclear whether they have.
After delivering the mortal remains of four deceased hostages overnight into Thursday, Hamas said that it is willing to engage in talks for the next stage.
“Any attempts by Netanyahu and his government to backtrack on the agreement and obstruct it will only lead to more suffering for the prisoners and their families,” Hamas said, referring to the hostages.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to hold security discussions on Thursday, after which, according to an Israeli source, a decision will be made on whether to send a delegation to continue negotiations and what terms they would follow.
Also read: Bibas family tells Netanyahu to ‘shut up’ as he describes murders of Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir
A separate Israeli source familiar with the matter told CNN on Tuesday that Netanyahu would prefer to extend the first phase of the ceasefire instead of withdrawing from Gaza, aiming to secure the release of more hostages without making further concessions. The government is trying to prolong this phase “by as much as possible” to achieve that goal, the source added.
(With inputs from agencies)
