{"id":244970,"date":"2025-02-23T13:03:09","date_gmt":"2025-02-23T13:03:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/23\/israel-and-hamas-trade-accusations-of-violating-fragile-cease-fire-2\/"},"modified":"2025-02-23T13:03:09","modified_gmt":"2025-02-23T13:03:09","slug":"israel-and-hamas-trade-accusations-of-violating-fragile-cease-fire-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/23\/israel-and-hamas-trade-accusations-of-violating-fragile-cease-fire-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel and Hamas Trade Accusations of Violating Fragile Cease-Fire"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2025\/02\/23\/multimedia\/23mideast-ledeall-btgw\/23mideast-ledeall-btgw-facebookJumbo.jpg?ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Israel and Hamas Trade Accusations of Violating Fragile Cease-Fire\" title=\"Israel and Hamas Trade Accusations of Violating Fragile Cease-Fire\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Israel and Hamas on Sunday accused each other of violating the already fragile Gaza cease-fire deal after Israel <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/22\/world\/middleeast\/israel-hostage-hamas-ceasefire.html\" title=\"\">delayed the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners<\/a> who were supposed to be exchanged for hostages.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The office of Israel\u2019s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the prisoners would not be freed until the release of further hostages \u201chas been assured,\u201d and Hamas committed to letting them go without \u201chumiliating ceremonies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The growing tensions come after a week of mutual recriminations and strained nerves on both sides. The delay raised more questions about the future of the cease-fire for Gaza, with a temporary, six-week truce set to expire<span class=\"css-8l6xbc evw5hdy0\">  <\/span>on March 1.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">There is no clarity yet about a possible extension, or even whether serious negotiations have begun. Some members of Israel\u2019s right-wing government are pressing for a resumption of the fighting after the initial phase of the cease-fire, which has provided a brief lull in the devastating war set off by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Saturday, Hamas released six Israeli hostages, the last living captives set to be freed in the first phase of the cease-fire. Earlier it had <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/21\/world\/middleeast\/hamas-israel-shiri-bibas.html\" title=\"\">handed over<\/a> the remains of four hostages, including those of Shiri Bibas and her two young children, who were all taken alive during the 2023 assault.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Israel was supposed to release 620 Palestinian prisoners and detainees in return, the largest group of detainees to be let go since the cease-fire in Gaza began last month, but it delayed the move, citing what Mr. Netanyahu\u2019s office described as Hamas\u2019s \u201ccynical exploitation\u201d of the hostages for propaganda purposes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Late Saturday, dozens of Palestinian families, their faces somber, left a venue in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank where some prisoners were supposed to appear, after waiting there for hours in the hope of reuniting with their loved ones. Many families said they had received no official communication regarding the delayed release, relying instead on media reports and word of mouth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hamas has been releasing hostages in performative ceremonies aimed at showing that it is still in control of Gaza, a practice that many Israeli officials have condemned. On Saturday, five of the six living hostages were paraded on a stage, flanked by masked gunmen, prompting outrage in Israel. One hostage was seen on a stage kissing the heads of masked gunmen, as if in gratitude. His relatives later said he had been instructed to do so by a Hamas cameraman.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Anger was further inflamed when Hamas published a propaganda video footage on Saturday night showing two other Israeli hostages who had been forced to watch three of their fellow captives being released.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Repeatedly putting their shorn heads in their hands, the pair pleaded on camera for their freedom. Rights <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/news\/2023\/11\/10\/gaza-hostage-videos-outrage-personal-dignity\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">groups<\/a> and international law experts say that a hostage video is, by definition, made under duress, and the statements in it are usually coerced. Israeli officials have called past Hamas videos a form of \u201cpsychological warfare,\u201d and experts say their production can constitute a war crime.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a statement Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu\u2019s office accused Hamas of violating its agreement with Israel and said the prisoner releases would be postponed \u201cuntil the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies.\u201d On Thursday, Hamas is supposed to hand over the bodies of four more dead Israelis under the terms of the initial phase of the cease-fire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Izzat Al-Rishq, a member of Hamas\u2019s political bureau, said in a subsequent statement on Sunday that Mr. Netanyahu\u2019s decision to delay the prisoner releases \u201creflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement.\u201d Mr. Al-Rishq also accused Israel of humiliating Palestinian prisoners and detainees during the release process, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/19\/world\/middleeast\/israeli-soldiers-charged-abuse-palestinian-detainee.html?searchResultPosition=1\" title=\"\">mistreating<\/a> them \u201cuntil the very last moments\u201d and banning their families from <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/01\/26\/world\/middleeast\/israel-army-palestinian-prisoners.html?searchResultPosition=2\" title=\"\">holding celebrations<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The recriminations came after an already turbulent week. On Thursday, Hamas returned four bodies it said were those of hostages who had died in captivity, among them that of Ms. Bibas. But forensic testing by Israel determined that the body was not hers. Late Friday, Hamas transferred another set of remains, which Israeli officials confirmed early Saturday as those of Ms. Bibas. The kidnapping and deaths of Ms. Bibas and her young children have become <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/20\/world\/middleeast\/bibas-hostages-israel.html\" title=\"\">a symbol of Israeli grief<\/a> and anguish.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Adding to the uproar, the Israeli authorities rejected Hamas\u2019s assertions that Ms. Bibas\u2019s young sons, Ariel, who was 4 when he was abducted, and Kfir, who was not even 9 months old, were killed in Israeli airstrikes, saying that an autopsy had shown that their captors had killed them \u201cwith their bare hands\u201d then tried to make it look like they had died in a bombardment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Dr. Chen Kugel, Israel\u2019s chief pathologist, said on Saturday night that there was no evidence that Ms. Bibas, who was 32, had been killed in a bombing. He did not elaborate or present evidence for the assertion.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hamas on Saturday accused Israel of lying regarding the fate of the Bibas family, without explaining the discrepancies. Israel\u2019s military has said Ms. Bibas and her sons were held captive by a smaller armed group in Gaza, the Mujahideen Brigades.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">About 60 hostages remain in Gaza, about half of them already assumed to be dead, according to the Israeli government.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Hamas propaganda video of the two captives begging for their release unleashed a maelstrom of emotions in Israel, including a glimmer of hope for their families.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cI saw my son for the first time in 16 months,\u201d Ilan Gilboa-Dalal, the father of Guy Gilboa-Dalal, one of the two hostages in the video, told Kan, Israel\u2019s public broadcaster. \u201cI heard his voice for the first time. For me, that gives me a bit of air, knowing that he\u2019s okay,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On the other hand, he added, there was \u201cnothing more cruel\u201d than forcing his son and his friend, Evyatar David, the second hostage in the car, to watch the release ceremony.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Galia David, the mother of Evyatar, told Army Radio: \u201cThe consolation in that is that Evyatar and Guy are alive. But I could see through his eyes into his soul, and he is agonized.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The two hostages in the car and the three on the stage were all abducted from a music festival, the Tribe of Nova, near the border with Gaza during the October 2023 attack.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Fatima AbdulKarim<!-- --> contributed reporting from Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and <!-- -->Gabby Sobelman<!-- --> from Rehovot, Israel.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/23\/world\/middleeast\/israel-hamas-hostage-cease-fire.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Israel and Hamas on Sunday accused each other of violating the already fragile Gaza cease-fire deal after Israel delayed the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners who were supposed to be exchanged for hostages. The office of Israel\u2019s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the prisoners would not be freed until the release of further hostages [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":244971,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2025\/02\/23\/multimedia\/23mideast-ledeall-btgw\/23mideast-ledeall-btgw-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3322,4757,7275,32965,32652,5552,3096,38,4758,8527,137131,14195,6199],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244970"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=244970"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244970\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":244972,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244970\/revisions\/244972"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/244971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=244970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=244970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=244970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}