UNRWA Chief, Philippe Lazzarini has stated that there is “hope and anticipation” for a ceasefire deal.
In a post on X, he noted that a ceasefire deal is “desperately needed and long overdue.”
“People in Gaza are exhausted after nearly 660 days of war, displacement, bombing and siege. A deal is paramount.”
Philippe Lazzarini
Lazzarini stressed that the starvation of the Palestinian people must end, and the flow of humanitarian aid must resume “uninterrupted and safely under UN mechanisms, including UNRWA.”
“We have the reach, know-how, staff and trust of the communities to deliver assistance at scale across the Gaza Strip.”
Philippe Lazzarini
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 56,647 people and wounded 134,105, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks, and more than 200 were taken captive.
The war has left the coastal Palestinian territory in ruins, with much of the urban landscape flattened in the fighting.
More than 90 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million population has been displaced, often multiple times.
The war has caused a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, pushing hundreds of thousands of people to famine-like conditions.
Earlier today, Hamas confirmed that it had received a 60-day ceasefire offer and was reviewing it.
Hamas said in a statement that it had received proposals from the mediators and is holding talks with them to “bridge gaps” to return to the negotiating table and try to reach a ceasefire agreement.
The group insisted that it was aiming for an agreement that would end the Gaza war and ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the enclave.
Hamas official, Taher al-Nunu said the group is “ready and serious” about reaching an agreement and will accept “any initiative that clearly leads to the complete end to the war.”
Hamas’s announcement, which emphasised its demand that the war end, raised questions about whether the latest offer could materialise into an actual pause in fighting.
Shortly after the Hamas statement, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu said “there will be no Hamas” in post-war Gaza.
Saar Urges For Ceasefire Not To Be Missed
Israeli Foreign Minister, Gideon Saar said any opportunity to free captives held in Gaza should not be missed.
He added that there is a lot of support, both in the cabinet and within the public at large, for the US-backed ceasefire proposal.
The proposal, though, has not been publicly backed by National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich.
According to a US-based news outlet, Israeli officials have warned that the country’s military will escalate its operations in Gaza if ceasefire negotiations do not advance soon.
The outlet quoted a senior Israeli official as saying, “We’ll do to Gaza City and the central camps what we did to Rafah. Everything will turn to dust.”
The official added that it’s not Israel’s preferred option, but if there’s no movement towards a hostage deal, “we won’t have any other choice.”
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