Israeli army chief Herzi Halevi resigned on Tuesday, acknowledging his responsibility in the “failure” to prevent the attack by Palestinian Hamas on October 7, 2023, on the third day of a fragile ceasefire in Gaza.
After the entry into force on Sunday of the first phase of the truce which allowed the release of three Israeli hostages and 90 Palestinian prisoners, the Islamist movement Hamas announced that it would release four other Israeli women captive in the Gaza Strip on Saturday.
According to the Israeli army, “three or four additional hostages” must be released each week, during this phase which should last 42 days.
This marked the start of a still uncertain process intended to put an end in principle to the war, triggered by the unprecedented attack by Hamas, which took power in Gaza in 2007.
“Recognizing my responsibility for the failure of the army on October 7” 2023 in southern Israel, “I ask to terminate my functions,” General Halevi wrote in his resignation letter.
But he admitted that “the objectives of the war (had not) all been achieved”, stressing that “the army will continue to fight to continue the dismantling of Hamas” and for “the return of (all) hostages” .
In the process, opposition leader Yair Lapid called for the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “Now it is time for them to take responsibility and resign, the Prime Minister and his entire catastrophic government.”
– “20,000 Hamas agents killed” –
The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people on the Israeli side, the majority civilians, according to an AFP count based on official data. Of the 251 people kidnapped that day, 91 are still hostages in Gaza, 34 of whom are dead according to the army.
In retaliation, Israel launched a devastating offensive in the besieged Gaza Strip, which left at least 47,107 people dead, mostly civilians, according to Hamas Health Ministry data, and caused a humanitarian disaster.
According to General Halevi, some “20,000 Hamas agents” were killed during the war, as were “the majority” of its leadership.
After a year of laborious negotiations, Qatar and the United States, two mediator countries with Egypt, announced a ceasefire agreement on January 15, a few days before Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
– Prudence –
After his inauguration on Monday, Mr. Trump nevertheless declared that he was “not sure” that the truce would hold.
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdelrahmane Al-Thani called on Israel and Hamas to show “good faith” in implementing the agreement.
Any violation or political decision “could obviously lead” to its “collapse”, said the spokesperson for Qatari diplomacy.
“I remain optimistic” about the “success” of the truce, Yitzhak, a 59-year-old bus driver, declared in Jerusalem. “Things will change now that Trump is in power.”
-– “Order and security” –
Congratulating Donald Trump on Monday, Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his desire to “destroy the military capabilities of Hamas and put an end to its political power in Gaza”, after having said that he reserved the right to resume the war.
Hamas said the truce depended on Israel “compliance with commitments.”
Considerably weakened, this movement is however still far from being wiped out, according to experts.
After the truce, armed and hooded Hamas fighters were seen in areas of Gaza, while members of the security forces, in uniform, were deployed in several streets, according to AFP images.
“What we want is order and security,” said Abdelrahmane al-Bardawil in Gaza City (north). “The government has deployed in force,” he said.
– Aid trucks –
During the first phase of the truce, 33 Israeli hostages are to be released in exchange for around 1,900 Palestinians held by Israel, and the Israeli army is to withdraw from areas of Gaza.
During the same period, 600 humanitarian aid trucks are expected to enter the Palestinian territory every day. On Monday, 915 trucks entered there, according to the UN.
In the meantime, thousands of Palestinians, displaced like almost all of the territory’s 2.4 million inhabitants, have returned to their homes amid mountains of rubble to find ruins. In Jabalia (north), residents set up tents in front of their destroyed houses.
According to the UN, reconstruction of the territory, where almost 70% of buildings have been damaged or destroyed, will take up to 15 years.
– Ten Palestinians killed in Jenin –
The rest of the timetable for the truce agreement remains uncertain. The terms of the second phase, which should see a definitive end to the war and the release of all hostages, must be negotiated over the next six weeks.
If the first two stages go as planned, the third and final will focus on the reconstruction of Gaza and the return of the bodies of the dead hostages.
In the West Bank, Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967, the Israeli army announced that it had launched a military operation in Jenin to “eradicate terrorism” there. Ten Palestinians were killed according to the Palestinian Authority.
And in Tel Aviv, four people were injured, including one seriously, in a knife attack, emergency services announced. The attacker, described as a “terrorist” by the police, was killed.
