Israeli Airstrikes Continue Amidst Ceasefire Discussions and Political Pressure on Netanyahu
The Israeli military has intensified its airstrikes across the Gaza Strip, causing significant casualties, while officials debate the latest proposals to end hostilities and exchange prisoners.
In the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli air raids targeted multiple areas in Rafah and Khan Younis overnight on Sunday. According to the Palestinian news agency Wafa, at least 12 people, including women and children, were killed in these attacks.
In central Gaza, the Bureji refugee camp was hit by multiple airstrikes, resulting in at least six deaths. Additional strikes on the Nuseirat camp, about 2 kilometers away, killed four more people, and another seven were killed in the az-Zawayda area.
In the northern Gaza town of Jabalia, civil defense crews are still working to recover bodies following the withdrawal of Israeli forces. The area has been heavily damaged, with dozens of bodies recovered after a 20-day Israeli military operation.
Since October 7, the Israeli military has killed at least 36,439 Palestinians, mostly women and children, in Gaza, with over 82,000 injured and thousands still missing, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health.
These latest Israeli attacks coincide with ongoing discussions regarding a new ceasefire proposal.
The three-phase plan aims to end the conflict by exchanging captives for prisoners, withdrawing Israeli forces from Gaza, and rebuilding the enclave.
The White House has communicated to Hamas that if it agrees to the plan, announced by U.S. President Joe Biden last week, then Washington expects Israel will also accept it.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu considers the plan “partial,” according to a government spokesman. Netanyahu stated, “The outline that President Biden presented is partial,” and added that “the war will be stopped for the purpose of returning the hostages” before further discussions on achieving Israel’s goal of eliminating Hamas can take place.
Netanyahu also issued a statement denying any agreement to a ceasefire without meeting Israeli conditions.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has called for a viable alternative to Hamas’s governance of Gaza. War cabinet minister Benny Gantz has threatened to resign unless Netanyahu agrees on post-war plans by June 8.
Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat reported from Amman, Jordan, that Netanyahu is under pressure from ultranationalists and far-right ministers, who have threatened to leave the government if a ceasefire is agreed upon, potentially dissolving the coalition government. Opposition leader Yair Lapid and the families of those held captive are urging Netanyahu to accept the deal, putting him in a difficult position.
Regional Conflict
Amid the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza, the Israeli military is also engaged in low-level conflicts with Iran-linked groups in Lebanon, Yemen, and Syria.
Early on Monday, an Israeli airstrike hit a factory near Aleppo, Syria. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that at least 12 Iran-linked fighters were killed in the strike.
These regional strikes have raised concerns about escalation. A suspected Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Damascus in April led to direct attacks between Iran and Israel, increasing fears of a broader conflict.
