By Obinna Uballa
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that the war in Gaza will not end until Hamas is fully disarmed and the Palestinian territory completely demilitarised, prompting concern about possible renewal of hostilities.
Speaking on Saturday in an interview with right-wing Channel 14, Netanyahu said the completion of the ceasefire’s second phase, centred on stripping Hamas of its weapons, was essential to achieving lasting peace.
“Phase B also involves the disarming of Hamas, or more precisely, the demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip following the stripping of Hamas of its weapons,” Netanyahu said. “When that is successfully completed – hopefully in an easy way, but if not, in a hard way – then the war will end.”
His comments came as Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, announced plans to hand over the remains of two more hostages on Saturday night. The Israeli military confirmed that a Red Cross team was en route to receive “several” bodies around 11:00 p.m. (2000 GMT).
Dispute Over Rafah Crossing
The fate of hostages’ bodies has become a major obstacle to fully implementing the first phase of the ceasefire, with Israel insisting that the reopening of the Rafah crossing to Egypt depends on Hamas returning all remains still held in Gaza.
Under the truce deal brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump, Hamas has so far released all 20 living hostages, along with the remains of nine Israelis and one Nepalese national. In exchange, Israel has freed nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and handed over 135 bodies since the ceasefire took effect on October 10.
Hamas said it needed more time and technical assistance to locate the remaining bodies, many of which were buried under rubble.
While the Palestinian mission in Cairo announced that Rafah could reopen as early as Monday, initially for Gazans residing in Egypt, Netanyahu’s office later ordered the crossing to “remain closed until further notice.”
“Its reopening will be considered based on how Hamas fulfils its part in returning the hostages and bodies of the deceased, and in implementing the agreed-upon framework,” the Israeli government said.
Humanitarian Challenges Mount
Meanwhile, Tom Fletcher, the UN’s humanitarian relief coordinator, who toured northern Gaza on Saturday, described the devastation as “a wasteland.”
“I drove through here seven to eight months ago when most of these buildings were still standing,” Fletcher said. “To see the devastation, it’s absolutely shocking.”
He said the UN had launched a 60-day emergency plan to deliver a million meals a day, rebuild hospitals, provide tents for displaced families, and get hundreds of thousands of children back into school.
Although Rafah remains closed, Israeli authorities said nearly 950 trucks carrying food, medical supplies, and commercial goods entered Gaza through Israeli checkpoints on Thursday, according to figures released by the UN humanitarian office.
Ceasefire Tensions Persist
Despite the truce, sporadic violence has continued. Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that nine Palestinians, including four children, were killed on Saturday after Israeli tank shells struck a bus carrying members of the Shaaban family.
Two other passengers were reportedly blown apart in the blast, their remains still missing.
At Gaza City’s Al-Ahli Hospital, grieving relatives wept over the victims’ shrouded bodies. “My daughter, her children and her husband; my son, his children and his wife were killed. What did they do wrong?” lamented Umm Mohammed Shaaban.
The Israeli military confirmed that its troops opened fire on a vehicle that “posed an imminent threat” after approaching the so-called “yellow line,” where its forces had withdrawn under the ceasefire terms.
“The troops fired warning shots toward the suspicious vehicle, but it continued to approach,” the military said. “They opened fire to remove the threat, in accordance with the agreement.”
As both sides exchange accusations, the fragile ceasefire remains under strain, with Netanyahu insisting that “only the full demilitarisation of Gaza and the dismantling of Hamas’s war machine” will mark the true end of the conflict, AF
