Foreign Minister: Israel ready for second phase of ceasefire

The release of all hostages and the complete demilitarization of the Gaza Strip are prerequisites, said Gideon Saar in Jerusalem, according to the "Times of Israel".

According to previous reports, Israel wanted to persuade the terrorist organization to accept a proposal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire agreement and release all remaining hostages in two stages. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz had said on Monday evening that Israel would only continue negotiations for a few more days.

Hamas rejects the plan and instead insists on the immediate implementation of a second phase of the agreement. This provides for an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli troops. It should actually begin at the beginning of March. It also provides for the release of all hostages still alive. The dead people kidnapped from Israel are to be handed over in a third phase. The details of the second phase have not yet been negotiated between the two parties to the conflict.

Saar: Aid deliveries are the main source of income for Hamas

According to Saar's office in Jerusalem, the main source of income for Hamas is now humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip. The terrorist organization uses the money for terrorist purposes. According to eyewitnesses, gangs and armed Hamas fighters have repeatedly looted aid shipments in the past and resold many of the looted goods at a high price. Israel had recently stopped aid transports to the extensively destroyed coastal area.