A new ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas was reached in October, Travel Editor, Mary O’Leary discusses how this deal is holding.
Since the ceasefire deal was signed between the Israeli government and Hamas last month, Israel has continued to commit air strikes on Gaza. Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claim that Hamas has violated the ceasefire, specifically in the southern Rafah region. Hamas has denied these claims, stating that for months now Rafah has been under IDF control.
In response to the IDF’s claims, the Government Media Office in Gaza has also released a report stating that Israel has been the one to violate the ceasefire deal over 80 times, killing over 100 civilians. This recent number also includes 11 members of the Abu Shaaban family, whose civilian vehicle was fired upon by the IDF.
Hamas has reported that they are still committed to the ceasefire deal, releasing all 20 living hostages and having returned 24 out of 28 bodies of the hostages. The militant group has also released a statement expressing the difficulties of retrieving the bodies due to the debris of Israeli air strikes. Currently there remains more than 10,000 dead Palestinians still under said debris.
Though the ceasefire is officially still in place, the lack of humanitarian aid and overwhelming number of displaced Palestinians remains at large. Furthermore, most displaced Gazans do not have homes and neighborhoods to return to, with 83% of all infrastructure having been destroyed in Israeli airstrikes.
As of 11 November, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to Israel’s Parliament, stating that “the war has not ended," and that, "those who seek to do us harm are re-arming ... They did not give up their aim of destroying us." Along with their control over the Gaza Strip, the IDF has also reported strikes on southern Lebanon, claiming the strikes were on Hezbollah targets.
Though the ceasefire is still in place, it is not concrete, and the possibility of continued airstrikes on Gaza by the IDF is still quite probable. The humanitarian crisis continues alongside this possibility, with UN organizations such as OCHA and UNRWA working overtime to bring aid to the Strip.