Israel has reportedly threatened to abandon the existing Gaza Strip ceasefire if the leadership of Islamic Jihad follows through on planned Sunday visits. The group’s two leaders were planning to visit at the same time as Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal’s first visit.
For the group it’s likely about avoiding being upstaged by Meshaal’s heavily publicized “first ever” visit, but Israel is saying that if the visit is followed through on, they will consider the truce ended.
The ceasefire has been in place for 22 days, and despite Israel repeatedly saying they are ready to restart the war at any time, so far it has held with surprisingly few incidents.
Israel’s Defense Ministry has so far refused to comment on the threat publicly, making it difficult to gauge how serious it is, or if it is simply part of the usual background noise of threats that come out of the Israeli government so close to an election.
