Netanyahu announces blockade of food and aid shipments into Gaza with Trump’s support
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I am beginning to think that claims that the Peace President had ended the Gaza war may be eligible for Fell For It Again Award:
Israel’s decision to cut off humanitarian aid to Gaza for the first time in more than a year signals a renewed zero-tolerance attitude toward Hamas after the group rejected a US-led proposal to extend a ceasefire.
“If Hamas thinks the ceasefire can continue without our hostages being released, they are very wrong,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting on Sunday. “There will be no free lunches.”
After the first stage of the Gaza ceasefire expired early Sunday, Israel is unlikely to relent unless Hamas makes concessions, given the firm support for its approach by the US and Netanyahu’s hawkish coalition partners.
The proposal by President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, would prolong the ceasefire through mid-April and include the phased release of all remaining 59 Hamas-held hostages, with a second-batch release pending agreements on a permanent ceasefire. As many as 24 of them are thought to be alive, Netanyahu said.
Israel hasn’t made it clear how long it will hold off resuming military attacks, though Netanyahu said that “if Hamas continues to entrench itself in its position, there will be further consequences” — a hint at possibly renewing attacks.
Netanyahu said that per the original agreement, Israel can return to fighting after 42 days, meaning Sunday, “yet, we agreed to Witkoff’s proposal because we are committed to freeing our hostages,” he said.
Thousands of Hamas operatives crossed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and abducting 250. In the ensuing war with Israel, more than 48,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Vast stretches of the territory have been reduced to rubble.
The Palestinian Authority, which partially runs the West Bank, said that “it unequivocally rejects the politicization of humanitarian aid and its exploitation as a tool of blackmail.”
This is not to defend Biden’s Gaza policies — if he opposed the worst of Netanyahu’s war crimes, like starvation as a blackmail tactic, he was too unwilling to try to use actual leverage to restrain Netanyahu’s behavior. But having a president who affirmatively supports Netanhayu’s most bloodthirsty behavior is in fact worse.