Israel approves daily humanitarian truce in Gaza amid growing international pressure

Report by Amal Shehadeh, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian

Facing unprecedented international pressure to halt the war and warnings from security and military officials about the impact of spreading images of killing and starvation among Gaza’s children, the Israeli prime minister approved a daily humanitarian truce in Gaza from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

This decision was seen by some ministers as a concession to Hamas.

Meanwhile, the prisoner exchange deal — expected to mark the beginning of the end of the war — still faces many complexities and obstacles.

In response to the stalling of the prisoner deal, voices of soldiers refusing to serve in Gaza have grown louder. Calls have also emerged going beyond the demand for an immediate and comprehensive prisoner exchange, reaching toward ending the suffering of Gaza’s people and stopping the “war of starvation.”

Three hundred forty-one academics signed a document calling for an immediate end to the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and for allowing humanitarian aid to enter. They made a striking demand for what they called setting ethical limits for the army.

This sparked widespread criticism after military officials confirmed that artillery fire would not stop in Gaza.

After Hamas announced its readiness to show flexibility in the prisoner exchange negotiations, some expected Israel’s permission for the United Arab Emirates to prepare to build a water pipeline to Gaza to mark a turning point in the war, which will enter its third year in three months.