This is a new ultimatum from Israel to Hamas. Israeli Minister Benny Gantz, a member of Benjamin Netanyahu's war cabinet, warned on Sunday that the Jewish state would launch an offensive, particularly against the city of Rafah, if Israeli hostages held in Gaza were not released by Ramadan.
“The world needs to know and Hamas leaders need to know: if the hostages are not home by Ramadan, fighting will continue everywhere, including in the Rafah region,” the former Hamas head of the Israeli army said.
A holy month that must begin around March 10th
“To those who say the price is too high, I say clearly: Hamas has a choice. They can surrender, free the hostages, and the civilian population of Gaza will then be able to celebrate the holiday of Ramadan,” he added in a speech to the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations meeting in Jerusalem . Ramadan, the holy month of Muslims, begins around March 10th.
Despite calls from part of the international community, Benjamin Netanyahu's government is determined to launch an offensive against the city of Rafah, backed by Egypt's closed border, where 1.4 million people are crowded. Most of the displaced people live there in very harsh conditions. Benny Gantz, on the other hand, reiterated that an offensive would be coordinated and carried out within the framework of a dialogue with the Americans and Egyptians “by facilitating the evacuation of civilians” in order to minimize “as much as possible”. the number of victims in their ranks.
OUR FILE ON THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT
Rafah and the city of Khan Younes, located in the south of the Gaza Strip and just a few kilometers apart, as well as other areas of Palestinian territory, were the target of Israeli bombings that killed 127 people in 24 hours, Hamas' health ministry said on Sunday.