The Israeli army announced a unilateral seven-hour humanitarian ceasefire Monday morning from 10am until 5pm local time for the whole Gaza strip except the border town of Rafah.
‘’I hope Hamas don’t abuse this for more attacks.’’ (IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said.
The ceasefire appears to be linked to the redeployment of IDF troops away from major population centres as the current phase of Operation Protective Edge – the destruction of tunnels from Gaza into Israel – comes to an end. Some displaced Palestinians have also been told that it is now safe to return to their homes.
The temporary unilateral ceasefire comes after unusually strong criticism Sunday of a strike on or near a United Nations-run school which was being used as a shelter. The strike killed at least 10 people. The US State Department called the incident “disgraceful” while UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon called it a “moral outrage and a criminal act” and said that those responsible must be held accountable.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said said it was targeting three Islamic Jihad members on motorcycles riding in the vicinity school and did not target or hit the school itself. The IDF and security services have also targeted Islamic Jihad’s northern Gaza commander Danyal Mansour and senior Hamas explosives expert Ahmed Mabhouh.
Israel is close to destroying all of the tunnels that it knows about, but is also discovering new tunnels. This phase of the ground operation is expected to continue for another day or two.
Meanwhile, rocket fire from Gaza has continued on Israel. On Sunday, 119 rockets were fired on Israel, an increase on recent days. There have been fewer medium and long-range rockets, but short-range rocket fire on cities closer to Gaza has increased.
In total, 3,250 rockets have been fired since the beginning of Operation Protective Edge.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has come under public and political pressure over the decision to redeploy most of the IDF ground forces out of the Gaza Strip.
Leading columnists Shmon Shiffer in Yediot Ahronot and Ben Caspit in Maariv both criticise Netanyahu’s decision to redeploy the troops without a clear arrangement to restore quiet, and with rockets still falling in large numbers on southern Israel.
According to Caspit, “southern Israel is in a state of collapse, people are afraid to return home, businesses are collapsing and the sense of security sucks.”
Around 300,000 Israelis are believed to have left their homes in the areas close to the Gaza Strip to avoid the threats of rockets and tunnels. Most Israelis have been forced to retreat to bomb shelters at some point over the last few weeks, with rockets triggering air raid sirens throughout the country.
Likud Minister Gideon Saar, considered a future challenger for leadership of the party said Sunday, “After withdrawing from Lebanon brought Hezbollah to power and withdrawing from Gaza brought Hamas to power, the lesson must be not to form a terrorist state in the heart of our land,” Sa’ar said, adding that, “A Palestinian state would endanger Israel’s future.”
Meanwhile, a poll broadcast on Channel 2 News on Sunday evening found that 56 per cent of respondents opposed the troops pulling out, with 35 per cent in favour. According to the same survey, 73 per cent believe Israel’s deterrence has been weakened. Netanyahu still enjoys widespread personal support, with 62 per cent satisfied with his performance, though this is a drop from 74 per cent in a survey last Thursday.
Netanyahu along with Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon have stressed that significant blows have been dealt to Hamas, and that the military operation will continue until the goal of securing long-term quiet for the residents of southern Israel had been achieved.
Labour opposition leader Isaac Herzog urged the Prime Minister to follow up the military operation with a diplomatic initiative, saying: “Now that the troops have withdrawn, the prime minister must show diplomatic courage … There is a one-time diplomatic opportunity.”