International

Israeli attacks on Gaza continue, what action will the US take this time?

As Israel’s air and ground attacks on Gaza continue, renewed concerns have arisen about the future of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement. US envoys have stepped up diplomatic efforts to save the fragile agreement with Hamas. The Palestinian Civil Defense Agency reported that four people were killed in two incidents in Al-Shaf, east of the Tufa area of ​​Gaza City. Israeli soldiers killed them on their way back from visiting their homes. Al Jazeera reports.
The Israeli army claimed that it opened fire on terrorists who crossed the so-called Yellow Line in the Shujaiya area and advanced towards Israeli troops.
The Yellow Line was marked on a map released by US President Donald Trump on October 4, where Israeli troops are retreating as part of the ceasefire agreement.
Gaza City residents said the entire area was in ruins and it was hard to tell where the border was. “We looked at the map, but in reality there is no border,” said Samir, a 50-year-old local resident.
Israel and Hamas have accused each other of violating the ceasefire amid mounting casualties in Gaza.
Israeli air strikes killed at least 42 people, including children, on Sunday (October 19). Israel said the strikes were carried out in retaliation for the killing of two of its soldiers by Hamas militants in the Rafah area.
Hamas denied the allegations, saying it had no contact with any of its units in Israeli-controlled territory and had no involvement in the incident. It accused Israel of trying to restart the war by creating a pretext.
Meanwhile, the Red Cross handed over the body of another Israeli prisoner held by Hamas to the army.
Israel threatened to cut off humanitarian aid last Sunday, but later said the ceasefire had resumed. However, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that aid deliveries to Gaza were still being disrupted. Al Jazeera’s Tarek Abu Azum said that several checkpoints were blocking aid trucks entering Gaza, cutting off the delivery of food and medicine. “Amid the ongoing violence, President Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner arrived in Israel on Monday and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
US Vice President J.D. Vance and his wife Usha Vance will visit Israel on Tuesday.
The next steps in the deal are to disarm Hamas, withdraw more Israeli troops and rebuild Gaza’s administrative structure with international assistance.
However, Hamas and its allies have rejected the plan for a foreign administration and have also rejected calls for a surrender of arms.
President Trump has said that there are some rebellious elements within Hamas that the group’s leaders need to fix.
Trump has said that they have to get better. Otherwise, they will be wiped out. However, he has made it clear that US ground forces will not be involved.
After the ceasefire, Hamas security forces in Gaza are once again patrolling the streets and clashing with various armed groups. “It’s happening. Trump says that Hamas has destroyed some of the most dangerous groups, which I can accept.”