Israel stops humanitarian aid into Gaza after Hamas rejects extending ceasefire’s first phase

CNN —
Israel said Sunday it has stopped the entry of all humanitarian aid into Gaza after phase one of its ceasefire deal with Hamas expired, citing the militant group’s refusal of a US-backed extension.
The first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza, under which dozens of Israeli hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees have been freed since mid-January, reached its expiration date on Saturday.
The Israelis want phase one to continue – the exchange of hostages, alive and deceased, in return for the continued release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, and the flow of higher volumes of aid into Gaza. There are thought to be 24 Israeli hostages still alive in Gaza.
Hamas has insisted on advancing to the second stage, accusing Israel of “ongoing manipulation” with its proposed extension to cover the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish holiday of Passover, as proposed by US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office said Sunday: “With the completion of Phase A of the hostage deal, and in light of Hamas’ refusal to accept the Witkoff framework for continuing the talks — which Israel had agreed to — Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu has decided that as of this morning, all entry of goods and supplies into the Gaza Strip will be stopped.
“Israel will not allow a ceasefire without the release of our hostages. If Hamas continues its refusal, there will be additional consequences.”
Nearly 17 months of war in Gaza have reduced much of the enclave to rubble, killed more than 45,000 people, and led to dire living conditions for almost all of its residents.
Omer Dostri, a spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, said Sunday that “no trucks entered Gaza this morning, nor will they at this stage.”
“Convoys of goods trucks that are now seen on their way to Gaza arrive at the crossing only to find that it is closed and that there is no entry,” Dostri said.
Mustafa Barghouti, leader of the Palestine National Initiative based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, called the suspension of humanitarian aid “a dangerous Israeli escalation” that is “in violation of the ceasefire agreement.”
Hamas leader Mahmoud Mardawi said in a statement Sunday that “the only path to regional stability and the return of the prisoners is the full implementation of the agreement, starting with the second phase.”
Hamas wants the second phase to include negotiations for a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, the enclave’s reconstruction, “and then the release of prisoners as part of an agreed-upon deal,” Mardawi said.
“This is what we insist on, and we will not back down from it,” he added.
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The original ceasefire agreement stipulates that the truce can continue so long as negotiators are talking, but it’s not clear they are.
An Israeli delegation abruptly returned from Cairo on Friday, a day after arriving in the Egyptian capital. An Israeli source familiar with the matter told CNN earlier in the week that Israel was trying to prolong the first phase of the agreement “by as much as possible” in the hope of releasing more hostages. Most of the hostages were taken during the Hamas-led attack on Israel of October 7, 2023, which sparked the Israeli bombardment of Gaza.
In an apparent attempt to add to the pressure on Israel, Hamas on Saturday released a propaganda video on Saturday showing Israeli hostages in Gaza, including a scene of recently freed captive Iair Horn bidding farewell to his brother Eitan, who remains in captivity after 512 days.
Iair and Eitan’s family authorized media use of the video, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters, saying in a statement: “We demand from the decision-makers: Look Eitan in the eyes. Don’t stop the agreement that has already brought dozens of hostages back to us. They are running out of time! Bring everyone home, now, in one phase,” it said.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office condemned the video as cruel “psychological warfare.”
The ceasefire came into effect in January. Altogether 33 Israeli hostages were released – including two men held in Gaza for a decade – as well as five Thai citizens who had been working on a kibbutz in southern Israel when they were taken hostage. Eight bodies were returned. They included the remains of Shiri Bibas and her two small sons – a hugely emotional moment for Israelis.
A total of 1,737 Palestinian prisoners and detainees were released, including 120 women and children. About 1,000 of those released had been arrested after the October 7 attacks; others were serving long sentences, including life. Some had been in Israeli prisons for decades.