Israeli army deployed in Rafah

After Biden's proposal for an agreement on a ceasefire in the Gaza war, pressure on the warring parties is growing. Israel is still attacking in Rafah. Prime Minister Netanyahu confirms his plans. The news at a glance.

Despite international criticism, Israel's army is continuing its operations in the city of Rafah. The military said that its forces had discovered numerous weapons, tunnels and rockets in the town in the south of the Gaza Strip. The operations were precise and based on intelligence findings, it said.

Fighting also continued in the central Gaza Strip. Dozens of Palestinians have been killed there in the past two days. According to the army, they are believed to be terrorists.

In recent days, several important Hamas members have also been killed in the Gaza Strip, including a man who was reportedly involved in planning terrorist attacks in Israel and the West Bank. None of these reports can be independently verified.

Meanwhile, Egypt, the United States and Qatar, the states mediating in the Gaza war, are calling on Israel and the Islamist Hamas to reach an agreement to end the conflict. The conflicting parties should complete an agreement that includes the principles outlined by US President Joe Biden on Friday, said a joint statement from the three countries published by Egypt.

The proposed agreement brings together the demands of all parties. It serves multiple interests and will bring immediate relief to the people of Gaza as well as the hostages and their families. “This deal provides a roadmap for a permanent ceasefire and an end to the crisis,” the statement continued.

According to his office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the proposed plan would allow his country to adhere to the principle that the war will not end until all objectives have been achieved, including the destruction of Hamas. The US and Biden's speech were not mentioned in the brief statement.

“I know there are some in Israel who disagree with this plan and will call for a continuation of the war indefinitely,” Biden said earlier. “I have called on the Israeli leadership to stand behind this deal.” Israel no longer needs to fear for its security.

After several months of war, Hamas is no longer capable of carrying out another massacre like the one on October 7. An unlimited war aimed at an unspecified “total victory” over Hamas – a phrase often repeated by Netanyahu – will only trap Israel in Gaza and increase the country's international isolation, Biden said. Nor will it bring the hostages home or Israel into permanent security.

After the details of the proposal for a hostage agreement became known, tens of thousands of people in Israel demonstrated again for such a deal. For months, many people in the country have been protesting for an agreement with Hamas. But the demonstrations are also directed against the Israeli government. In the center of the coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv, demonstrators loudly demanded new elections on Saturday. They chanted that the time of the right-wing religious coalition is over. Many demonstrators accuse the Israeli leadership, among other things, of not doing enough to secure the release of the hostages.

The Times of Israel reported, citing the organizers, that 120,000 people attended the rally in Tel Aviv alone. It was the largest protest since October 7.

Several hostage families addressed the media on Saturday and called on Israel's government to accept the proposal presented by US President Joe Biden on Friday.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, accepted an invitation from the leaders of both parties in the US Congress to speak to the American parliament. Netanyahu's office said he was excited about the privilege of presenting the truth of Israel's just war to representatives of the American people and the entire world. The war is directed against those who want to kill Israelis.

The Republican leader of the US House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, published a letter to Netanyahu on Friday. The letter is also signed by the Republican minority leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, and the top Democrats in both parliamentary chambers, Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer. A date for the speech is not mentioned in the letter. Johnson had already publicly announced his plans to invite Netanyahu. Amid great tensions in the US over differing attitudes to the Gaza war, such an appearance could lead to political upheaval.