Israel army prepares for first phase of plan to end Gaza war

Like Aviv, Israel (AP) – The army of Israel said on Saturday that it would advance preparations for the first phase of the plan of American president Donald Trump to end the war in Gaza and to return all the remaining hostages.

The army said that the leaders of Israel had been asked to “advance the preparation” to the implementation of the plan.

An official who was not authorized to speak to the media on the file said that Israel has moved to a position only on the defensive in Gaza and will not actively strike. The manager said that none of the forces had been withdrawn from the band.

The announcement occurred a few hours after Trump ordered Israel to stop bombing Gaza once Hamas said that he had accepted certain elements of his plan. Trump welcomed Hamas’s statement, saying: “I think they are ready for lasting peace.”

Trump seems eager to deliver his promises to end the war and return dozens of hostages before the second anniversary of the attack on Tuesday. His proposal unveiled earlier this week has generalized international support and was also approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On Friday, Netanyahu’s office said that Israel was determined to end the war that started when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, without filling the potential gaps with the militant group. Netanyahu underwent increasing pressure from the international community and Trump to end the conflict.

The official told the Associated Press that Netanyahu had published the rare late evening declaration on the Sabbath saying that Israel had started to prepare for Trump’s plan due to the pressure of the American administration.

The official also said that a negotiation team was preparing to travel, but no date was specified.

A senior Egyptian official indicates that talks are underway for the release of hostages, as well as hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention. The official, who is involved in cease-fire negotiations, also said that Arab mediators were preparing for a complete dialogue among the Palestinians. The talks aim to unify the Palestinian position towards the future of Gaza.

On Saturday, the Palestinian Islamic jihad, the second most powerful militant group in Gaza, said that he had accepted Hamas’ response to the Trump plan. The group had previously rejected the proposal a few days earlier.

However, despite the momentum, there are many questions.

As part of the plan, Hamas would release the remaining 48 hostages – about 20 of them that would be alive – within three days. He would also abandon power and disarm it.

In return, Israel would stop his offensive and withdraw a large part of the territory, would release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and authorize an influx of humanitarian aid and a possible reconstruction.

Hamas said it was willing to release hostages and put power back to other Palestinians, but that other aspects of the plan require new consultations. His official declaration also did not add up the question of the demilitarization of Hamas, a key element of the agreement.

Amir Avivi, a retired Israeli general and president of the defense and security forum of Israel, said that even if Israel can afford to stop Gaza for a few days so that the hostages can be released, he will resume his offensive if Hamas did not lay down his arms.

Others say that if Hamas suggests a desire to negotiate, its position remains fundamentally unchanged.

This rhetoric “yes, but” “simply reconditioned old requirements in a softer language,” said Oded Alam, a researcher at Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs. The gap between appearance and action is as wide as ever and rhetorical change serves more smoke screen than a real movement signal towards resolution, he said.

The next steps are not clear either for the Palestinians of Gaza who try to reconstruct what it means in real terms.

“What we want is a practical implementation. … We want a truce on the ground,” said Samir Abdel-Hady, in Khan Younis de Gaza. He feared that the talks decompose as they have done in the past.

Israeli troops are still the headquarters of Gaza City, which is at the center of its last offensive. On Saturday, the army of Israel warned the Palestinians not to try to return to the city, calling it a “dangerous combat zone”.

Experts determined that Gaza City had slipped into famine shortly before Israel launched its major offensive aimed at occupying it. It is estimated that 400,000 people have fled the city in recent weeks, but hundreds of thousands of others have stayed.

The families of the hostages are also cautious to the hope of hope.

There are concerns on all sides, said Yehuda Cohen, whose son Nimrod is held in Gaza. Hamas and Netanyahu could sabotage the agreement or Trump could lose any interest, but if that will happen, it will be because of Trump, he said.

“We put our confidence in Trump, because he is the only one to do it. … And we want to see him with us until the last step,” he said.

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the results in the War of Israel-Hamas almost two years exceeded 67,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. The number jumped after the ministry said it added more than 700 names to the list whose data had been verified.

The Gaza Ministry of Health does not say how much civilians or combatants were. He says women and children represent about half of the dead. The ministry is part of the government managed by Hamas, and the UN and many independent experts consider that its figures are the most reliable estimate of victims in wartime.