Israeli planes and tanks bombed areas throughout the Gaza Strip overnight and on Sunday, ddestroying several residential buildings, according to witnesses, as Palestinians hoped that a US plan to end the war would soon alleviate their suffering.
US President Donald Trump, who had called for an end to the bombing, said on his Truth Social platform on Saturday that Israel had agreed to an “initial line of withdrawal.” inside Gaza and that “when Hamas confirms it, the ceasefire will be immediately effective.”
Israel intensified its offensive as Egypt prepares to receive delegates from Hamas, Israel and the United States, as well as Qatar, to begin talks about launching the most advanced effort yet to stop the conflict.
Some Palestinians who have seen multiple ceasefire attempts fail since the war began two years ago and then spread across the Middle East, are losing patience.
Displaced Palestinian Ahmed Assad expressed hope when Trump’s plan became known.
“Unfortunately, this does not translate on the ground. We do not see any change in the situation, on the contrarywe don’t know what measures to take, what do we do? Shall we stay on the street? “Are we leaving?” he asked.
Talks with Egypt
Hamas had received a positive response from Trump on Friday by saying he accepted certain key parts of his 20-point peace proposal, including the end of the war, Israel’s withdrawal and the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian captives.
However, the group left some issues in the air to continue negotiating, as well as unanswered questions, as if he would be willing to disarm, a key Israeli demand to end the war.
“Progress would depend on whether Hamas would accept the map, which shows that the Israeli army would continue to control most of the Gaza Strip.”said a Palestinian official close to the talks.
“Hamas could also ask for a strict timetable for the Israeli withdrawal from Gazto. The first phase of the talks will determine how things will proceed,” he told Reuters, asking that his name not be mentioned.
Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said in X that stopping the attacks on Gaza was a “serious mistake.”
Smotrich and Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, also a hardliner, have significant influence in Netanyahu’s government. and have threatened to tear it down if the Gaza war ends.
