Israel said it is cutting off electricity supply to Gaza. Its full impact is unclear, but the desalted plants in the territory gained the motivation to produce drinking water.
Sunday’s announcement comes a week after Israel cut off all supplies of 2 million people to the territory. It attempts to urge Hamas to accept the extension of the first phase of the ceasefire. The phase ended last weekend. Israel hopes Hamas releases half of the remaining hostages in exchange for a promise to negotiate a protracted truce.
Hamas urged the start of negotiations on the second phase of the ceasefire, which would enable Gaza to release hostages, evacuation of Israeli forces and lasting peace. Hamas is believed to have 24 hostages and 35 bodies.
The militant group said on Sunday it ended the latest round of ceasefire negotiations with Egyptian mediators without changing its position, calling for an immediate start of the second phase of the ceasefire.
Israel’s Energy Minister’s new letter to Israel Electric Company told it to stop selling power to Gaza. Israel warned that the next water and electricity might be water and electricity when it stopped all supplies.
Gaza was largely damaged by war, with generators and solar panels used in certain power supplies.
The ceasefire paused the deadliest and most destructive battle ever between Israel and Hamas, triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. The first phase allowed the return of 25 living hostages, with eight more bodies in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Israeli forces have withdrawn to buffer zones in Gaza, with hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians returning to Northern Gaza for the first time since the early days of the war, with hundreds of aid trucks entering every day until Israel suspended supplies.
US envoy envisions a longer truce
The White House expressed surprise on Wednesday at the direct negotiations with Hamas.
On Sunday, envoy Adam Boehler told CNN: “I think you can see something like a long truce, we forgave Hamas’ lying prisoners who agreed they’re not moving forward in the party. I think it’s reality. It’s really close.”
When CNN asked if he would talk to the militant group again, Boller replied: “You never know.”
“I think it might be possible to merge in a few weeks,” he added, for a deal that would free all hostages, not just Americans.
Hamas reiterated his support for the proposal to establish an independent technocratic committee to run Gaza until the Palestinians hold presidential and legislative elections.
The committee will work “under the protection of the Palestinian authorities occupying the West Bank.” Israel rejected PAs that played any role in Gaza, but did not propose alternatives to post-war rule.
Hamas killed about 1,200 people inside Israel during its October 2023 attack, most of which were civilians and occupied 251 hostages. Most have been published in a ceasefire agreement or other arrangements.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, Israel’s military offensive killed more than 48,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of whom were women and children.
Now, with the cut-off of all supplies in Gaza, Palestinians report that the prices of gradually decreasing items have risen sharply as fear grows again.
“State has improved since the ceasefire began. But before that, it was very bad. “I swear to God that a person cannot satisfy their hunger. ”
