Benjamin Netanyahu issues a warning ahead of the ceasefire in Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his country is ready to resume the war against Hamas if talks on the second phase of the ceasefire fail.

In a televised speech just hours before it was scheduled to begin on Sunday, Netanyahu stressed that the ceasefire was “temporary” and that Israel reserved the right to resume strikes in Gaza — and received the support of US President-elect Donald Trump to do so.

Netanyahu also outlined what he described as the success of the Israeli military campaign over the past 15 months. Including the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

“We have changed the face of the Middle East,” Netanyahu said, before adding that Hamas was now “completely alone.”

The ceasefire is scheduled to take effect at 08:30 local time (06:30 GMT).

Before Saturday's speech, Netanyahu said that Israel would not implement the deal until it received the list of hostages that Hamas would release.

He added, “Israel will not tolerate violation of the agreement.”

Israeli media have already published a longer list of the names of the 33 hostages scheduled to be released by Hamas, but officials have not confirmed this.

But Israeli authorities say they have not yet obtained the names of the three hostages scheduled to be released on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Israel has continued its air strikes on what it says are Hamas and Islamic Jihad sites in Gaza, and Hamas officials say more than 120 people have been killed since the agreement was announced on Wednesday.

It is scheduled that the thirty-three hostages will be released in the next few weeks in exchange for the release of 1,890 Palestinian prisoners. Under the terms of the agreement, Israel will also begin withdrawing its forces from Gaza.

It is not yet clear where the first hostages will be delivered. A senior Israeli military official said that three reception points had been prepared near the border in northern, central and southern Gaza.

Earlier, a source close to Hamas told Agence France-Presse that the first three hostages to be released will be women.

Talks on the terms of the second phase of the ceasefire are scheduled to begin on the 16th day of the first phase and will focus on achieving a “permanent end to the war.”

Details of the second phase of the deal remain uncertain but it is expected that the remaining hostages, including the men, will be released at this stage with the release of more Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons.

There will also be a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. It is also understood that Hamas police – which will only be armed in cases of extreme necessity – will manage the return of hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza.

The third and final phase will include the reconstruction of Gaza – something that may take many years – and the return of the bodies of the remaining hostages.

On Friday night, The Israeli government agreed to a ceasefire and hostage release agreement after hours of discussions.

Two far-right ministers voted against the decision, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

The lengthy structure of the agreement also causes anxiety and division among the families of the hostages. Some fear that their relatives in Gaza will be abandoned after the end of the first phase.

On Saturday evening, thousands of demonstrators gathered in Tel Aviv to demand that the government ensure the release of more hostages by adhering to the first phase of the ceasefire.

Gal Al-Qalai, a member of the Forum for Families of Hostages and Missing Persons, told Reuters news agency: “We could have saved the lives of 200 soldiers and more than 10 hostages.” She added that people died needlessly because the government “couldn't make a decision and waited for Trump.”

Israeli police said earlier today, Saturday, that several people were injured in a stabbing attack near a restaurant in Tel Aviv. The attacker was reportedly shot dead at the scene by a civilian.

Israeli media said that the suspect came to Tel Aviv illegally from Tulkarm in the occupied West Bank.

There has been no respite for Palestinians on the ground in Gaza since the ceasefire agreement was announced on Wednesday evening.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health said that 123 people, including dozens of women and children, have been killed in the raids since then.

On Saturday, the Hamas-run Civil Defense Service in Gaza said that at least five members of one family were killed when a strike hit their tent in Khan Yunis, south of Gaza, Agence France-Presse reported.

Since Thursday afternoon, the Israeli military said it had struck 100 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters who were among several “terrorist targets” struck across Gaza, according to the Reuters news agency.

The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas — which Israel, the United States and other countries classify as a terrorist organization — in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage. .

Some 46,899 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in the Strip. Most of the population of 2.3 million people have been displaced, there is widespread destruction, and there are severe shortages of food, fuel, medicine and shelter due to the struggle to get aid to those in need.