The Israeli Cabinet Approves Plans to Occupy Gaza and Discusses Imposing Sovereignty Over the West Bank
The Israeli Security Cabinet (the Cabinet) is scheduled to hold a session today, Sunday, to approve military plans aimed at fully occupying the city of Gaza, according to media reports and statements from officials.
According to a report by the newspaper "Maariv" citing an Israeli official, "the agenda does not include discussing a prisoner deal but only military plans." This indicates a postponement of any negotiations for the release of detainees in Gaza.
In the same context, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (Kan) revealed that the Cabinet meeting will also address the issue of imposing Israeli sovereignty over parts of the West Bank. The agency interpreted this item as a "response from Israel to the wave of recognition of the Palestinian state expected next month" by several countries.
On the other hand, the prospects for a ceasefire still seem distant. "Maariv" quoted another Israeli official saying: "There are no indications of Hamas's willingness to discuss the terms for ending the war."
On the ground, Israeli forces continue their intensive military operations. Palestinian medical sources reported the deaths of more than 85 Palestinians due to Israeli airstrikes targeting various areas of the Gaza Strip since dawn yesterday, Saturday. These airstrikes have been heavily concentrated in the Rimal neighborhood and the Beach Camp west of Gaza City, in addition to the Jabalia area in the northern Gaza Strip.
In a significant development, "Al-Arabiya" reported from Palestinian sources that Muhammad Deif (known as "Abu Ubaida"), the official spokesman for the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, was killed during an Israeli bombing that targeted an apartment he was in in the Gaza Strip.
The same source added that "the Israeli bombing resulted in the deaths of everyone present in the apartment," noting that "members of Abu Ubaida's family and leaders in the al-Qassam Brigades confirmed his death after examining the body." No official comments have been issued from Israel or Hamas to confirm or deny the news definitively at the time this report was published.
These military and political developments come at a time when Gaza is suffering from a devastating humanitarian crisis, as the United Nations declared a state of famine in Gaza last August.
The war erupted in the Gaza Strip following an attack launched by Hamas on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to a count based on official Israeli data. Meanwhile, the Israeli attacks and military operations in the Gaza Strip have resulted in the deaths of more than 63,300 people, mostly civilians, according to the latest statistics released by the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
