Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz threatened to annex sections of the Gaza Strip on Friday unless Hamas terrorists released the last Israeli captives held in the war-torn Palestinian enclave.
The warning came as Israel resumed its attack on Tuesday, breaking the relative quiet that had prevailed since a ceasefire on January 19.
A Palestinian source close to the ceasefire discussions told AFP late Friday that Hamas had received a proposal from mediators Egypt and Qatar to re-establish the truce and exchange hostages for Palestinian inmates “according to a timeline to be agreed upon”.
The source stated that the plan “includes the entry of humanitarian aid” into Gaza, which Israel has prevented since March 2.
Israel resumed intensive bombing of Gaza on Tuesday, citing deadlock in indirect negotiations on next steps in the truce after its first stage expired this month.
The territory’s civil defence agency said Israeli strikes killed 11 people on Friday – three in pre-dawn strikes and eight more during the daytime.
On Thursday, it had reported a death toll of 504 since the bombardment resumed, one of the highest since the war began more than 17 months ago with Hamas’s attack on Israel.
In a statement Friday, Katz said: “I ordered (the army) to seize more territory in Gaza… The more Hamas refuses to free the hostages, the more territory it will lose, which will be annexed by Israel”.
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