The Times of Israel is liveblogging Thursday’s events as they happen.
Palestinian UN envoy calls for pause to become ‘end’ to Israel-Hamas war
The Palestinian UN ambassador called Wednesday for a “definitive end” to Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, warning that a truce to release hostages “cannot be just a pause before the massacre starts all over again.”
“Hundreds of Palestinian children will not be killed thanks to this truce,” Mansour tells the UN Security Council. “We owe it to them and to all the civilians in the Gaza Strip to put a definitive end to this criminal assault on the Palestinian people.”
He thanked the nations of Qatar and Egypt for their roles in paving the way for the deal, and called on all those who contributed to “stopping this madness” to work to “to ensure a way forward that averts the resumption of this aggression.”
Hamas initiated a war on October 7 when thousands of terrorists crossed from Gaza into Israel by land, sea, and air, and killed over 1,200 people, a majority of them civilians, and took some 240 hostages.
Mansour says Palestinians “do not justify the killing of a single Israeli civilian,” adding: “No-one should condone atrocities based on the identity of the perpetrator.”
Israelis and Palestinians must not turn a blind eye to each other’s wounds and histories, but instead build respect on a “common vision of the future where all can live… not where one’s life is at the expense of another,” he says.
Israeli UN ambassador Gilad Erdan responded by saying that, as soon as the truce ends, “we will continue striving towards our goals with full force.”
“We will not stop until we eliminate all of Hamas’ terror capabilities and ensure that they can no longer rule Gaza and threaten both Israeli civilians and the women and children of Gaza,” says Erdan.
No pause in Gaza fighting until hostage deal with Hamas finalized, says official
An Israeli official tells AFP early Thursday thar there would be no halt in the fighting between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers or any release of hostages held by the terrorists “before Friday.”
The agreement was approved by the Israeli government early Wednesday and had been widely expected to take effect on Thursday.
The official’s comments came shortly after national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said in a surprise announcement before midnight Wednesday that none of the hostages seized in the Hamas massacres on southern Israel on October 7 would be freed before Friday.
The negotiations for the hostages “are constantly progressing” and “the release will begin according to the original agreement between the parties, and not before Friday,” said Hanegbi.
According to the agreement, Hamas will free 50 living Israeli hostages — children, their mothers, and other women in groups of 12-13 people — for a four-day lull in fighting and the release of up to 150 Palestinian female and underage prisoners. The deal would also enable an influx of fuel and humanitarian supplies to Gaza during the pause, a first since Hamas initiated war nearly seven weeks ago when its terror members rampaged through southern Israel and slaughtered some 1,200 people, most of them civilians.
Israel has vowed to destroy the terror group and has been waging an air and ground campaign in Gaza for nearly 50 days.
White House: War won’t end after multi-day truce, Hamas still poses a threat
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby indicates that the US anticipates that the Israel-Hamas war will continue after the multi-day truce expires.
“The fight is not over. The war is not over. The threat that Hamas poses is still real and still viable to the Israeli people,” Kirby says during a briefing with American Jewish community leaders.
Kirby reiterates that the US will “continue to make sure that we’re giving [Israel] the tools the capabilities the weapons systems that they need to continue to go after Hamas.”
The White House spokesperson cautions against assuming that the deal has been finalized, speaking hours before Israel announced a one-day delay in implementation due to logistical hiccups.
“Nobody’s doing touchdown dances here. Now’s the time for everybody to watch very, very closely. Because this is this is going to come down now to implementation and execution,” Kirby says.