Israel ties reopening of Rafah crossing to return of hostages’ bodies; tensions escalate in Gaza despite a ceasefire
Al-Khamisa News Network - Gaza
In an atmosphere of cautious tension over the Gaza Strip, the Israeli government, the official Israeli radio reported, announced its decision not to open the Rafah border crossing, making it conditional on Hamas intensifying its efforts to return the bodies of Israeli captives held by the movement.
The radio quoted a government official as saying that Tel Aviv does not intend to move forward with the second phase of the ceasefire agreement before recovering the bodies of all the abductees, while Israeli sources say the bodies of 19 Israelis remain held inside the Strip.
The decision comes despite the Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announcing on Wednesday evening that it had handed over the bodies of two captives killed during Israeli strikes, saying that recovering the remaining bodies will require special equipment and efforts given the scale of destruction caused by Israeli military operations.
Meanwhile, international pressure is mounting on Israel to open crossings and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. Tom Fletcher, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, has called for thousands of trucks to be allowed in weekly to meet the urgent needs of the population.
In a related development, the White House announced the start of the second phase of the agreement to end the war, which includes forming an international force to stabilize the Strip. But U.S. President Donald Trump returned to a tone of escalation, saying that Israel “can resume fighting in Gaza at a single word” from him if Hamas does not comply with the terms of the agreement.
Despite that escalation, Trump acknowledged that Israel “if it were able to crush Hamas completely, would have done so over the past two years,” hinting at the challenges Tel Aviv faces in achieving its military goals amid the heavy human cost of the recent war.
Amid these developments, the future of the truce remains fragile, with both sides trading accusations of violations and growing fears that the fragile international understandings struck to end the fighting could collapse.
