 "Israel comes under pressure to release Hamas fighters trapped in Gaza tunnels")
Israeli allies, including the US, are pushing the Benjamin Netanyahu-led government to let Hamas terrorists trapped in Gaza tunnels get out in exchange for them laying down their weapons.
The terrorists are currently shut in tunnels located in southern Gaza behind the so-called Yellow Line, which Israeli forces withdrew troops from after the implementation of the US-brokered ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.
Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said on Thursday that he had held talks on the matter with Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. According to Witkoff, the outcome could serve as a “test” for future initiatives aimed at disarming Hamas.
‘Everyone is under pressure’
The fate of the trapped Hamas fighters has become a major sticking point in the ceasefire deal. The issue has reached the Israeli government, with far-right members like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich publicly opposing any deal to release the terrorists.
A source told the Financial Times, “The goal of the war was to disarm Hamas. So if they get out free, it’s going against one of the war goals. Everyone is under pressure. It will probably be resolved eventually, but the creative solution hasn’t been presented yet.”
Since the ceasefire came into effect last month, multiple clashes have erupted between militants confined behind the Yellow Line and Israeli forces. One such skirmish left two Israeli soldiers dead, triggering a wave of Israeli airstrikes that killed dozens, marking the most serious challenge to the ceasefire to date.
‘There are no tunnels’
Hamas claims that it has lost contact with its members trapped in tunnels in southern Gaza since March and that they have not been given orders to attack Israeli forces.
On the other hand, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has said that he has ordered the destruction of all the remaining tunnels. “If there are no tunnels, there is no Hamas,” he wrote on X.
Israeli media have suggested that the militants may be holding the remains of Hadar Goldin, an Israeli soldier killed in the 2014 war between Israel and Hamas, whose return is mandated under the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
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