Pressure mounts on Israel for longer war pause
Published: 04:11 PM,Nov 26,2023 | EDITED : 08:11 PM,Nov 26,2023
Relatives take part in a protest asking for the release of Israeli hostages in Tel Aviv. — AFP
TEL AVIV: Israel faces mounting pressure to extend a four-day pause in its war against Gaza, but military officials fear that a longer truce risks blunting its efforts.
After hours of delay and acrimony that underscored the fragility of the truce, a second tranche of 13 Israeli hostages was freed on Saturday in exchange for 39 Palestinian prisoners -- the same number as the previous day.
A total of 15 foreigners have also been released during the ceasefire -- mediated for weeks by Qatar, the United States and Egypt -- that marks the first breakthrough after seven weeks of relentless war.
Under the deal, 50 of the roughly 240 hostages held in Gaza will be freed over four days in exchange for 150 Palestinian captives, with a built-in extension mechanism to prolong the process as long as at least 10 Israelis are released each day.
It increases diplomatic pressure on Israel from the international community, which will become steadily less willing to countenance a return to the pounding of Gaza and the resulting humanitarian crisis.
'Time works against Israel as always and against the IDF,' said Andreas Krieg, of King's College London, referring to the Israeli military.
'On one hand you want all the hostages out knowing that you can't get them out militarily and on the other you don't want to lose completely the momentum of this war,' he said.
And the longer a truce lasted, he said, the more the international community would lose patience with a continuation of the war, he added.
Visiting Israeli troops in the war-battered Gaza Strip on Saturday, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant insisted the timeline for the truce was 'short'.
'It won't take weeks, it will take days, more or less,' he said, flanked by heavily armed soldiers. 'Any further negotiations will take place under fire.'
Israel has defied international criticism of its Gaza offensive, which has killed more than 15,000 people, mostly civilians, and left an unprecedented trail of destruction in the Palestinian territory.
'The real pressure (to prolong the truce) comes from inside Israel -- from the families of the hostages,' said Arik Rudnitzky, from Tel Aviv University's Moshe Dayan Center.
On Saturday, tens of thousands of demonstrators packed the streets of Tel Aviv in support of the remaining hostages, chanting 'Now, now, now, all of them now!' and clutching banners that read 'Get them out of hell'.
An Israeli military official said the country was committed to freeing as many hostages as possible but expressed concerns over a longer truce. — AFP
After hours of delay and acrimony that underscored the fragility of the truce, a second tranche of 13 Israeli hostages was freed on Saturday in exchange for 39 Palestinian prisoners -- the same number as the previous day.
A total of 15 foreigners have also been released during the ceasefire -- mediated for weeks by Qatar, the United States and Egypt -- that marks the first breakthrough after seven weeks of relentless war.
Under the deal, 50 of the roughly 240 hostages held in Gaza will be freed over four days in exchange for 150 Palestinian captives, with a built-in extension mechanism to prolong the process as long as at least 10 Israelis are released each day.
It increases diplomatic pressure on Israel from the international community, which will become steadily less willing to countenance a return to the pounding of Gaza and the resulting humanitarian crisis.
'Time works against Israel as always and against the IDF,' said Andreas Krieg, of King's College London, referring to the Israeli military.
'On one hand you want all the hostages out knowing that you can't get them out militarily and on the other you don't want to lose completely the momentum of this war,' he said.
And the longer a truce lasted, he said, the more the international community would lose patience with a continuation of the war, he added.
Visiting Israeli troops in the war-battered Gaza Strip on Saturday, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant insisted the timeline for the truce was 'short'.
'It won't take weeks, it will take days, more or less,' he said, flanked by heavily armed soldiers. 'Any further negotiations will take place under fire.'
Israel has defied international criticism of its Gaza offensive, which has killed more than 15,000 people, mostly civilians, and left an unprecedented trail of destruction in the Palestinian territory.
'The real pressure (to prolong the truce) comes from inside Israel -- from the families of the hostages,' said Arik Rudnitzky, from Tel Aviv University's Moshe Dayan Center.
On Saturday, tens of thousands of demonstrators packed the streets of Tel Aviv in support of the remaining hostages, chanting 'Now, now, now, all of them now!' and clutching banners that read 'Get them out of hell'.
An Israeli military official said the country was committed to freeing as many hostages as possible but expressed concerns over a longer truce. — AFP