Israeli army leaders demand an agreement in Gaza

Senior Israeli army commanders called for an agreement to end the Gaza war and release the hostages held in the Strip, after they said that the army had “suffered fatigue” in the battles that have been going on for 15 months, according to Israeli media sources.

In a report by Israeli Channel 13, Israeli leaders considered that the army had “exhausted its energy” in ground operations in the Gaza Strip, demanding what they described as “difficult decisions” in reference to ending the fighting and reaching an agreement with the Hamas movement.

Officials from Hamas and Israel have been holding talks, mediated by Egypt and Qatar, in intense efforts for months to reach a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, but they have not yet succeeded in reaching their goal.

The Israeli leaders said in the report, which did not reveal their identity, that the continuation of the Gaza war “will impose heavy costs and lead to the loss of additional fighters” on the Israeli side.

On Tuesday, Hamas stuck to its demand that Israel completely end its attack on the Gaza Strip, under any agreement to release the hostages, and said that US President-elect Donald Trump was hasty in saying that “the gates of hell will open wide” unless they are released by the time of his inauguration on January 20. .

The administration of US President Joe Biden, whose term is about to end, called for an effort to reach an agreement before he leaves office, and many in the region currently view Trump’s inauguration as an unofficial deadline for that.

But as the date approaches, the two sides are exchanging accusations of adhering to conditions that have obstructed all previous attempts, which took place over more than a year, to reach an agreement.

Hamas says it will release its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraws all its forces from Gaza, while Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is eliminated and all hostages are released.