Israel Gives Hamas Annexation Ultimatum Despite Increased Criticism From West

Israeli officials have reportedly warned Hamas that if it rejects the latest ceasefire proposal, Israel will begin annexing parts of Gaza, according to a fresh Times of Israel report.

The report cites Israel’s Channel 12 which indicated Israel submitted its response to Hamas’s latest counteroffer on Tuesday night, but does not expect the group to accept the terms. Already talks based in Doha had been stalled or essentially called off, after Prime Minister Netanyahu earlier this month recalled his negotiating team.

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Israeli forces have established and for many months overseen a de facto 'buffer zone’ in Gaza which cuts deep into the Palestinian territory.

„Israel will not be patient for much longer,„ a senior Israeli official was quoted in the report as saying.

The Times of Israel report spells out, „With negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal having stalled, Israel has sent a message to Hamas that if it doesn’t accept the proposal on the table in the coming days, Jerusalem will begin to take punitive measures against it, including the annexation of territory on Gaza’s outer perimeter,” citing senior Israeli officials.

As for specifics on where this threatened annexation could begin, the report says:

According to the report, Israel told Hamas that it will not leave the Phildelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border or the buffer zone around the Gaza border; will not allow the opening of the Rafah Crossing; and will not agree to Hamas demands for a prisoner release so far-reaching it will leave few bargaining chips in Jerusalem’s hands to compel Hamas to release the last batch of hostages in a potential ceasefire.

This would effectively ensure that remaining hostages wouldn’t be returned through a deal, as Israel would shut the door on having anything more to offer in terms of enticing Hamas to reach a new exchange agreement.

Channel 12 has observed of the US stance that there is currently „no appetite” within the White House to approve any big Israeli move to formally annex parts of Gaza.

France, the UK, and most recently Canada have said they plan to recognize a Palestinian state at the upcoming UN assembly meeting in September, in a diplomatic blow to the Netanyahu government.

Still, there’s there’s as yet no indication Washington is pressuring Israel to make concessions, and if anything Trump’s earlier rhetoric on turning Gaza into the ’Riviera of the Middle East’ could easily be taken as a green light to annex from Tel Aviv’s point of view.

But at the moment the majority of countries and leaders throughout the world have lambasted Israeli actions in Gaza, particularly for the lack of aid getting in amid the worsening humanitarian catastrophe as civilians starve to death.