Heartbreaking images have emerged of Palestinians queuing along beaches as they desperately wait for humanitarian aid to arrive amid Israeli attacks and an anticipated invasion of Rafah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that although the military offensive on the southern Gaza city could be “delayed a little” through a ceasefire agreement, complete victory would be “weeks” away once the invasion begins. .
Heartbreaking photos have emerged of hundreds of Palestinians, including children, gathering on a beach in Gaza City. A man was seen praying on the ground in an image that captures the desperation of the Palestinian people.
Others were seen with trucks, bicycles, horses and carriages as large groups of civilians waited for aid to arrive in the midst of the war.
Israel said 245 trucks of aid entered Gaza today, less than half the amount that entered Gaza daily before the war.
In recent weeks, Palestinians have reported having to make bread from animal fodder, while new mothers say baby formula is inaccessible or unaffordable.
Palestinians wait for humanitarian aid on the beach in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, today. A man is seen on the left praying.
Heartbreaking photos have emerged of hundreds of displaced Palestinians, including children, gathering on a beach in Gaza City.
Nearly 30,000 Palestinians have died in the war, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
Nearly 30,000 Palestinians have died in the war, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
The Israeli army has bombed Gaza since Hamas terrorists crossed the border and killed 1,200 people in Israel on October 7.
Amid talks about an offensive in Rafah, Netanyahu confirmed to CBS that a ceasefire agreement is in the works, but did not provide details.
Israeli media reported that mediators were making progress on a deal for a ceasefire and the release of dozens of hostages held in Gaza, as well as Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Several Israeli media outlets, citing unnamed officials, said the War Cabinet tacitly approved it.
Talks resumed on Sunday in Qatar, Egyptian state television Al Qahera reported, citing an Egyptian official who said more discussions would follow in Cairo with the aim of achieving a ceasefire and liberation.
Meanwhile, Israel is developing plans to expand its offensive against the Hamas militant group to Rafah on the Gaza-Egypt border, where more than half of the besieged territory’s population of 2.3 million has sought refuge. .
Humanitarian groups warn of a catastrophe, with Rafah the main entry point for aid, and the United States and other allies have said Israel must avoid harming civilians.
Netanyahu has said he will convene the Cabinet this week to approve operational plans for action in Rafah, including the evacuation of civilians.
Demolished buildings, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike, following the withdrawal of Israeli forces from some areas of Khan Younis.
Rafah is the last refuge for the estimated 1.4 million Palestinians who have been forced to move south.
Israel previously warned that it would begin its invasion of Rafah on March 10, the start of Ramadan, unless Hamas returned the approximately 130 hostages who remain hidden in Gaza.
A car pulled by a donkey passes in front of the Al-Faruq mosque, devastated by Israeli bombings in Rafah
“Once we begin the Rafah operation, the intense phase of fighting will be weeks away from ending, not months,” Netanyahu told CBS. ‘If we don’t have an agreement, we will do it anyway. It has to be done because our goal is total victory and total victory is within our reach.”
He said four of Hamas’ six remaining battalions are concentrated in Rafah.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told NBC that US President Joe Biden had not been briefed on the Rafah plan and said: “We believe this operation should not continue until we see (a plan to protect civilians).
Heavy fighting continued in parts of northern Gaza, the first target of the offensive. Residents have reported days of intense fighting in the Zaytoun neighborhood of Gaza City.
“We are trapped, unable to move due to the intense shelling,” said resident Ayman Abu Awad.
He said hungry residents have been forced to eat animal fodder and scavenge for food in demolished buildings. Northern Gaza has been largely cut off from aid and the UN World Food Program suspended deliveries last week.
Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general of the UN agency for the Palestinians, said they have not been able to deliver food to northern Gaza since January 23, adding on X, formerly Twitter, that “our calls to send food aid have been denied “.
Palestinians wait with empty water drums to refill them with clean water
Smoke rises during an Israeli ground operation in Khan Younis, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
Dust and smoke from airstrikes envelop Palestinians walking along Al Rashid Road after crossing from the northern Gaza Strip into southern Gaza City.
Palestinians walk past destroyed houses in Al Nusairat refugee camp
Four Palestinian houses destroyed in Al Nusairat refugee camp
A senior official in Egypt, which along with Qatar is a mediator between Israel and Hamas, has said the draft ceasefire agreement includes the release of up to 40 women and elderly hostages in exchange for up to 300 Palestinian prisoners, mostly women. , minors and majors. people.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations, said the proposed six-week pause in fighting would include allowing hundreds of trucks to bring desperately needed aid to Gaza every day, including to the north.
He said both sides agreed to continue negotiations during the pause for further releases and a permanent ceasefire.
Negotiators face an unofficial deadline: the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan around March 10, a period when tensions between Israelis and Palestinians often escalate.
Hamas says it has not participated in the latest proposal developed by the United States, Egypt and Qatar, but the reported outline largely coincides with its previous proposal for the first phase of a truce.
Hamas has said it will not release all remaining hostages until Israel ends its offensive and withdraws its forces from the territory, and is demanding the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including high-ranking militants, conditions that Netanyahu has rejected.