U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Hamas cannot remain in power in Gaza after the war

 

Israel News, Tuesday, 11.06.2024     View in browser

Hamas said it accepted a U.S.-drafted UN Security Council resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of all hostages, and is ready to negotiate over its details. Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar referred to Palestinian civilian casualties in Gaza since October 7 as "necessary sacrifices" in messages he sent to Hamas officials, the Wall Street Journal reported. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Hamas cannot remain in power in Gaza after the war. Fifty rockets were fired from Lebanon at the Golan Heights. Rocket sirens blared in the northern Israeli city of Haifa for the first time since January. Here's what you need to know 249 days into the war     What happened today     ■ HOSTAGES/CEASE-FIRE: Hamas accepted the U.S.-drafted UN Security Council resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of all hostages, and is ready to negotiate over its details, senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this was a "hopeful sign," but added that progress still depends on the response of Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar. Earlier on Monday, U.S. President Joe Biden posted on X that "Hamas says it wants a ceasefire. This deal is an opportunity to prove that they mean it." Noa Argamani, rescued from Hamas captivity by Israeli forces on Saturday, was discharged from Tel Aviv's Ichilov Medical Center. The "hundreds" of civilian deaths in Gaza during the Israeli operation to release four hostages, and the holding of these hostages by armed groups in densely populated areas, could both amount to war crimes, the UN's human rights office said. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi and King Abdullah II attended a conference to raise funds for humanitarian aid for Gaza in Jordan. At a meeting in Jordan with UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Blinken "underscored that the current proposal on the table would benefit both Israelis and Palestinians and reiterated that Hamas should accept it without delay," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said In Jordan, Blinken also met with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said. In the meeting, Blinken "welcomed reform announcements by the Palestinian Authority" and discussed the need for "consistent implementation of those reforms to achieve the aspirations of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza." While in Israel, Blinken met with the families of the eight American hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. ■ GAZA: The IDF said the army's Division 98 completed its operation in Deir al-Balah and Bureij, which included Saturday's mission to rescue four Israeli hostages. The division located and destroyed two Hamas offensive tunnels over 2 kilometers (around 1.2 miles) long and killed about 100 militants, according to the IDF. The offensive in southern Rafah continues, with Givati Brigade forces raiding several locations in the city, an IDF statement said. Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar referred to the tens of thousands of Gazans killed in Gaza since October 7 as "necessary sacrifices" in messages he sent to Hamas officials in charge of cease-fire negotiations, the Wall Street Journal reported. The report also quoted a letter Sinwar sent to Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh after three of his sons were killed by an Israeli airstrike in April, where he said their deaths and those of other Gazans would "infuse life into the veins of this nation, prompting it to rise to glory and honor." Speaking at the American Jewish Committee 2024 Global Forum, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Hamas cannot remain in power in Gaza following the war, adding that President Biden has been explicitly clear about this despite claims to the contrary. The U.S. will provide an additional $404 million in humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians in Gaza, the West Bank, and the region, bringing the total U.S. assistance to more than $674 million over the past eight months, the U.S. State Department said. According to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry in Gaza, at least 37,164 Palestinians have been killed and 84,832 wounded since the start of the war. "Their decision to quit the coalition suggests that the National Unity Party's ministers believe that Netanyahu is still sufficiently reined in, mainly by American opposition, to prevent any dangerous military move against Hezbollah in the near future. It seems the main danger is a different one: treading water in both Gaza and on the Lebanese border, without a deal, while Smotrich continues his efforts to ignite the West Bank through economic pressure and encouraging violent settlers to seize Palestinian land" – Amos Harel ■ ISRAEL: Hundreds of parents whose children serve as combat soldiers in the IDF sent an open letter to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Chief of Staff Herzl Halevi, in which they criticized the Knesset's decision to approve a law that exempts ultra-Orthodox men from military service. "We are letting our fighting children know they must stop the fighting right now, put down their weapons and return home immediately," the parents wrote, adding that "We will not sacrifice our children on the altar of public corruption."