Mahmud Hams Agence France-Presse Thursday, like the day before, a crowd of men and women on foot, carrying their children in their arms, empty-handed or carrying small bundles, invaded the road leading to the south of the Gaza Strip.
Israel has agreed to put in place daily “pauses” in the north of the Gaza Strip starting Thursday, the White House announced, even if Joe Biden judged that there was “no possibility” of a ceasefire.
The country “will begin taking daily four-hour breaks in certain areas of the northern Gaza Strip, which will be announced three hours in advance,” said John Kirby, spokesman for the Gaza National Security Council. the White House.
“The Israelis told us that there would be no military operations in these areas during the pause [and] that this operation was starting today.” , he added.
Also read
- Israel tightens its grip on the Gaza Strip
- Who makes it out of the Gaza Strip?
- Justin Trudeau still refuses to call for a ceasefire in Gaza
Questioned by the press on the scope of this announcement, an Israeli army spokesperson responded: “This is not a change. »
“These are local tactical pauses for humanitarian aid, which are limited in time and space,” added Richard Hecht, without giving further details.
Since Sunday, a secure “evacuation corridor”, in the words of the Israeli army, has been organized several hours a day in Gaza to allow the departure of civilians from the north to the south of the territory.
These are local tactical pauses for humanitarian aid, which are limited in time and space
— Richard Hecht
According to the Hebrew State army, more than 50,000 people followed this route on Thursday – a figure almost identical to the day before – to leave the north of the Gaza Strip, where military clashes with the Islamist movement are currently concentrated. Palestinian Hamas. During this interval, however, the Hamas Ministry of Health in Gaza reported deaths and injuries caused by Israeli strikes on these areas.
Still about the pauses mentioned by the White House , Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Thursday evening: “We will not stop the fire as long as there are hostages in Gaza. »
Joe Biden is pressuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to enact humanitarian pauses to allow Palestinian civilians to flee the fighting. The Democratic President thus assured that he had pleaded with Mr. Netanyahu during a call for “a break longer than three days.”
Ground fighting, accompanied by bombings, is now raging in the northern Gaza Strip, including in the heart of the eponymous town, between the Israeli army and Hamas. Joe Biden, however, said there was “no possibility” of a ceasefire in Gaza, speaking to journalists before his departure for Illinois.
The Gaza Strip has been under siege since the attack of unprecedented violence launched in Israel on October 7 by Hamas, which left more than 1,400 dead, mostly civilians.
The strikes by the Jewish state have more than 10,000 dead, mainly civilians, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health.