Egypt has called for increased pressure on Israel to reach a truce agreement in the Gaza Strip, which has endured a devastating Israeli conflict for the past 10 months. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aty conveyed this message during a phone call with his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, as reported by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
Abdel Aty highlighted Egypt’s efforts to sponsor negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza. Recently, Egypt hosted Israeli and American delegations to discuss crucial points related to the truce agreement. The minister emphasized the importance of pressuring the Israeli government to fully implement Security Council resolutions aimed at ending the conflict and facilitating humanitarian aid.
In parallel, Israeli Security Minister Yoav Galant, in closed-door discussions, warned: “If we cannot reach a deal with Hamas in the next two weeks, the fate of the kidnapped people in Gaza will be decided.” However, specific details were not disclosed.
Galant also acknowledged that conditions for a deal with the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) have matured. Nonetheless, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly introducing obstacles to prevent the loss of two ministers in the government coalition—Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Netanyahu asserted in a Knesset speech that Hamas is feeling the pressure due to Israel’s unwavering military stance. He stated: “Increasing military pressure forces Hamas to make concessions during negotiations.”
Additionally, King Charles of Britain affirmed his government’s commitment to a two-state solution, ensuring Israel’s safety and security alongside a sovereign and viable Palestinian state, according to Reuters.
Also on Wednesday, the Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that during the past 24 hours, the Israeli occupation forces had committed four massacres in the Strip, including 81 dead and 198 injured, raising the toll of the Israeli aggression from 7 October 2023 to 38,794 dead and 89,364 wounded.
In response to the Israeli aggression against civilians, the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, announced that it had targeted an Israeli Merkava tank with an “Al-Yassin 105” shell near the Al-Mashrou’ district, east of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip.
Nevertheless, the Mujahideen Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Mujahideen movement, which broke away from the Fatah movement, announced the bombing of the Nirim settlement in the “Gaza envelope” with two Type 107 missiles.
