Israel: We destroyed 80% of the tunnels in the Philadelphi Corridor area
The Israeli army announced on Thursday the complete defeat of the Rafah Brigade of Hamas and the killing of 200 of its members.
It said in a statement that it had destroyed 80% of the tunnels in the Philadelphi Corridor area, including 9 that cross the border into Egypt, adding that the rest were ready to be destroyed.
He added that he is waiting for the "political level's decision" regarding the withdrawal of forces from the Philadelphi area.
Ceasefire in Gaza
These developments come as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded earlier Thursday to Hamas’s renewed confirmation on Wednesday that it had agreed to the proposal presented by US President Joe Biden at the end of last May, for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
In a statement, his office accused the Palestinian movement of trying to hide the truth of its position.
He also indicated that Hamas is trying to hide the fact that it continues to oppose and thwart the prisoner release deal.
Netanyahu claimed that Israel accepted “the final mediation offer presented by the United States on August 16, but Hamas rejected it and even killed 6 of our kidnapped people in cold blood.”
He also urged the world to demand that the movement release the prisoners immediately.
Reject any new demands
Hamas announced on Wednesday evening that its negotiating delegation, headed by Khalil al-Hayya, met with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egyptian Intelligence Chief Abbas Kamel in the Qatari capital, Doha, to discuss a ceasefire in Gaza. It also confirmed that it had agreed to Biden's proposal, rejecting any new demands made by the Israeli side.
"Stick to military presence in the Philadelphi corridor"
It is noteworthy that Biden had announced at the end of last May, in a speech from the White House, that "Israel presented a comprehensive proposal regarding a ceasefire and the release of all detainees, consisting of 3 stages, the first of which included a comprehensive and complete ceasefire, then the withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas in Gaza, and then the release of all prisoners."
However, Netanyahu later returned and insisted on the military presence in the Philadelphi Corridor (Salah al-Din Corridor) on the border between Egypt and the Strip, as well as insisting on the military presence in the Rafah crossing and the Netzarim corridor.
While American officials close to the negotiations reported that Hamas had also submitted new requests related to some Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, the movement denied this.