On Saturday, Khalil al-Hayya, the Hamas leader in Gaza, said the group had agreed to a proposal that security sources said included the release of five Israeli hostages each week. But he said laying down its arms as Israel has demanded was a “red line” the group would not cross.
On Sunday, the first day of the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday, health authorities in Gaza said at least 24 people, including several children, had been killed in Israeli strikes. Nine were killed in a single tent in the southern city of Khan Younis, they said.
Later on Sunday, the Palestinian Red Crescent Service said it had finally been able to get access to search for rescue teams that had come under Israeli fire during a rescue mission in western Rafah, a week after the attack.
It said it had recovered 13 bodies from the scene. Seven were Palestinian Red Crescent members, five were from the Gaza Civil Emergency Service, and one was a UN worker. There was no immediate Israeli comment.
Since Israel resumed its attacks in Gaza on March 18, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed and tens of thousands have been forced to evacuate areas in northern Gaza where they had returned after the ceasefire agreement in January.
Netanyahu said Israel was demanding Hamas lay down its arms and said its leaders would be allowed to leave Gaza. He gave no detail on how long Israeli troops would remain in the enclave, but repeated that Hamas's military and government capacities must be crushed.
“We will ensure general security in the Gaza Strip and enable the implementation of the Trump plan, the voluntary emigration plan,” he said.
“That is the plan, we do not hide it, we are ready to discuss it at any time.”
Trump originally proposed moving the entire 2.3-million population of Gaza to countries including Egypt and Jordan and developing the Gaza Strip as a US-owned resort. However, no country has agreed to take in the population and Israel has since said any departures by Palestinians would be voluntary.