Israel's military appears poised to expand into Gaza City amid cease-fire calls
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Attention in Israel and Washington has refocused on Gaza since Israel's 12-day war with Iran ended Tuesday. The military campaign in Gaza -- which was ignited by the Hamas-led October 2023 attack on Israel -- has lasted more than 630 days and is one of Israel's most protracted and deadliest wars.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing increasing pressure at home to end the conflict by agreeing to a ceasefire deal that would see Hamas release the hostages still being held in the enclave. Those hostages include up to 20 people who were taken captive in the October 2023 attack and are believed to still be alive, along with the remains of about 30 others.
Trump on Sunday publicly pressed for a deal. 'MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!! DJT,' he wrote on social media, hours after arguing that Netanyahu's long-running corruption trial be canceled since it would interfere with 'the process of negotiating a deal with Hamas.'
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Later on Sunday, Netanyahu told a group of workers for the Shin Bet, the country's internal security agency, that Israel's campaign in Iran had 'opened up many opportunities, first among them to rescue the hostages.' Israel still must 'resolve the Gaza issue and defeat Hamas,' he said, adding, 'I believe that we will succeed in both these missions.'
In an unusual move, a panel of three Israeli judges agreed Sunday to delay Netanyahu's scheduled testimony by a week. The move was announced after the prime minister attended a special court hearing, behind closed doors and accompanied by two of Israel's security chiefs, to press for a postponement of his upcoming court appearances.
The court has been cross-examining Netanyahu this month in two scheduled court appearances each week. Netanyahu has argued for a delay in his cross-examination based on national security imperatives, the details of which he has not publicly disclosed.
In recent days, the judicial authorities had rejected Netanyahu's requests for a two-week postponement, saying the reasons he had provided were too general and unconvincing. It was not immediately clear what changed their minds. In the decision Sunday, the judges said they would also consider Netanyahu's request to delay his testimony for a second week, based on developments.
Trump had suggested Friday that there could be an agreement between Israel and Hamas within a week. But Trump has offered no details on what may have changed, and analysts said it was unclear what his claim was based on.
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There has been no advancement in the ceasefire talks, according to an Israeli official and another person familiar with the matter.
Israel and Hamas do not negotiate directly. But no Israeli negotiating teams have been dispatched to mediating countries, such as Qatar and Egypt -- a sign that the two sides remain far apart, at least on the contours of the type of two-phased deal that has been discussed so far through the traditional channels. Still, it is possible that higher level discussions might be happening separately and in secrecy.
It was not immediately clear how many people might be affected by Sunday's evacuation orders from the Israeli military. Gaza City and other areas in the northern part of the enclave were largely emptied earlier in the war following previous evacuation orders. But hundreds of thousands of residents of northern Gaza returned home during a two-month ceasefire, which collapsed when Israel resumed fighting in mid-March.
Negotiations since then for a renewed ceasefire have been at an impasse. Israel says it has accepted various versions of a proposal put forward by Steve Witkoff, the White House special envoy, which calls for a roughly two-month ceasefire and the release of about half the living hostages, along with the remains of some others. Talks for a permanent ceasefire would take place during that period, but the long-standing sticking points appear to remain unresolved.
Hamas says it will only release all the hostages in return for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an internationally guaranteed end of the war.
Israel has said the war can only end if Hamas surrenders and disarms, and it has demanded that the group's leaders go into exile. Hamas has rejected those conditions.
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The Hamas-led attack on Israel in October 2023 killed about 1,200 people, the majority of them civilians, according to the Israeli authorities. Israel's counter offensive has killed more than 56,000 people in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its data but has said more than half of the dead are women and children.
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