Lazar Berman is the diplomatic reporter for The Times of Israel
Senior Israeli officials expressed optimism Monday morning about clients maintaining the new ceasefire with Palestinian Islamic Jihad, but Jerusalem did not settle for demands for the release of members of the recently arrested terror group.
“Now we can start with the next phase,” said one of the officials who briefed Israeli journalists.
The agreement negotiated through Egypt, which took effect at 11:30 p. m. On Sunday, a three-day standoff that began on Friday ended with Israeli moves that killed a senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad commander. Territory, while the Israel Defense Forces attacked Islamic Jihad targets and killed other of the Iranian-backed organization’s more sensible military leaders in Gaza.
There were also signs that Operation Dawn, and it ended quickly, would lead to further progress in talks with Hamas and the PIJ in Gaza, the officials said.
“Surely we are aware that there is an opportunity we have to miss,” one of the officials said, pointing to ongoing attempts to arrange the return of Israeli civilian captives and the bodies of IDF infantrymen held through Hamas. , among other imperatives.
“Signals have been received from Hamas in recent weeks,” the official continued. “We need to move things forward and settle for a ceasefire with the PIJ. “
The Hamas terrorist organization is keeping alive two Israelis, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, as well as the bodies of two Israeli soldiers: Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin.
Israel and Hamas have held indirect talks to try to reach a prisoner exchange agreement. A deal in 2011 to free Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit from the clutches of Hamas resulted in the release of 1,027 Palestinian security prisoners, many of whom were convicted terrorists.
However, Israel is about to release the PIJ prisoners that the organization needs to see released.
During the ceasefire talks, Israel failed to release Khalil al-Awawda, a member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad who is on hunger strike to protest his detention in Israel without charge, and the leader of the West Bank terror organization Bassam al-Saadi, who arrested last week in a move that would have sparked the wave of violence in Gaza. officials said.
Israel has no plans for prisoners before, The Times of Israel has learned.
The officials also expressed satisfaction with Israel’s diplomatic efforts ahead of the operation and pointed to Egypt, Qatar and the United States as key players.
“They knew in advance all the elements of our decision-making, as well as our efforts to act and make [the operation] as limited as possible,” one of the officials said.
First, Jerusalem expected the PIJ to withdraw under pressure from the aforementioned countries, and Hamas, to abandon its plans to attack Israel, thus avoiding the need for an operation, the officials said.
As tensions escalated, Israel limited movement near the Gaza border to friction and made it difficult for the PIJ to carry out a sniper or anti-tank attack, but understood that it may not keep its border towns in such situations for a long time. .
Once Israel decided that an escalation was inevitable, the purpose was to attack Islamic Jihad cells and high-ranking leaders who were planning attacks, while avoiding reaching Hamas’ targets.
Israel also sought an immediate de-escalation, realizing that an extended operation risked causing unintended damage that would push Hamas into combat.
Ceasefire efforts began on Saturday, the day of the timing of the operation. “We understood that the PIJ didn’t get what it wanted. The movements that opposed it were significant,” one official said.
According to officials, the fact that Palestinian Islamic Jihad Secretary General Ziad Nakhaleh traveled to Tehran to meet with the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps made it more difficult for him to accept a ceasefire.
Talks took a position on Saturday night on a transitional humanitarian ceasefire, with Prime Minister Yair Lapid rejecting the offer and insisting on a full cessation of hostilities.
Israeli political leaders first sought to see the ceasefire take effect Sunday afternoon, officials revealed, but had to wait a few more hours to allow the IDF to complete its operations.
Officials were satisfied with Egypt’s role. ” Egyptian mediation is very intense; our relationship with them is incredibly close.
The official praised the role played by Qatar and called the Gulf country “an actor that creates economic stability. “
Israel has no diplomatic relations with Qatar, the two countries maintained low-level industrial and diplomatic relations between 1996 and 2009. Since then, contacts have taken place, adding to the problems related to the Gaza Strip.
Officials also said Lapid understood the sensitivities of launching an army crusade before an election and tried to fully justify ministers and the public.
Israel is scheduled to hold its fifth elections since 2019 on November 1.
Hamas, which regulates the Gaza Strip and has fought Israel in 4 main operations since Israel left the coastal territory in 2005, insisted that the PIJ consent to the ceasefire, according to the officials, warning that “[the PIJ] is the population at risk. “
“We knew from the beginning that Hamas was seeking to stay out” of the conflict, the officials said.
However, they said, Hamas has failed in its duty to try to confront it by pressuring the PIJ before it begins.
“This is an expectation we have of who claims to govern the gang and its people,” said one of the informants.
Hamas has remained out of combat because of Israel’s military and civilian policies over the past year, the officials argued. “This includes Operation Guardian of the Walls and economic incentives for the population. “
The prospect of economic damage to Gaza families from banning entry into Israel has had the effect on Hamas that Israel wanted, they said. one hundred percent accumulating since last summer.
Israel’s return to normal policies toward Gaza will be done gradually and will be done in a way that will “send a message about the future,” one of the officials said.
These are expected to be put back into position in the coming days.
On Monday, the army’s liaison with the Palestinians announced that the Israeli-Gaza crossings would reopen for humanitarian purposes after a security assessment.
The reopening allowed for new fuel deliveries to Gaza, after closures led to the Strip’s force plant drastically reducing operations.
The Defense Ministry agency, widely known by its acronym COGAT, said an assembly will be taken for the full reopening of crossings if calm remains in the south.
The Erez crossing between Israel and Gaza, which serves as the only pedestrian crossing for Palestinians in the coastal enclave, was hit on Sunday by mortar shells introduced from Gaza, according to the Defense Ministry.
Emmanuel Fabian contributed to this report.
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