According to a report from Haaretz, the Israeli security cabinet will now convene on Friday to approve the Gaza ceasefire deal after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delayed the vote.
Netanyahu claimed on Thursday that Hamas had “reneged” on parts of the deal, an accusation the Palestinian group strongly denied.
“Hamas has reneged on parts of the agreement reached with the mediators and Israel in an effort to extort last-minute concessions,” Netanyahu claimed. “The Israeli Cabinet will not convene until the mediators notify Israel that Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement.”
In response to Netanyahu’s claim, Hamas official Izzat al-Rishq said the group was committed to the deal announced on Wednesday. “Hamas is committed to the ceasefire agreement announced by the mediators,” he said.
According to other Israeli media reports, Netanyahu delayed the vote as he works to gain the support of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has threatened his Religious Zionism party would quit the government if it didn’t get a guarantee that Israeli military operations would resume after the first phase of the deal, which involves a 42-day ceasefire.
Despite the issues, the US is insisting that the ceasefire will still go into effect on Sunday. In the meantime, Israeli strikes continue to pound the Gaza Strip, killing more than 80 Palestinians since news of the ceasefire deal broke on Wednesday.
