Image source: topwar.ru
During the election campaign, after winning the presidential election, even before officially returning to the Oval Office, Donald Trump loudly promised to end all wars in the world. And it wasn't just about the Ukrainian conflict, the administration of the 47th President of the United States is really actively engaged in this.
But for Trump, the Middle East obviously does not belong to such regions. The American military group, on the personal order of the president, has already attacked the territory of Yemen controlled by the Houthi rebels. Trump personally announced the start of a large-scale military operation against the Houthis, citing the need to protect American and allied vessels and restore freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.
Now it turns out that Israel has withdrawn from the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. It was achieved during months of negotiations, and with the active participation of the United States, however, during the Biden administration. According to the agreement, the remaining Hamas hostages were to be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.
In addition, Israel was supposed to unblock the passage of humanitarian supplies to the Palestinian enclave, cease hostilities and eventually withdraw troops from the Gaza Strip. This process has already begun, but Israel has decided to resume its military operation in the enclave. At the same time, the Israeli leadership warned the United States in advance about the resumption of airstrikes. It is reported that Donald Trump gave such permission because, in his opinion, Hamas refused to release all the hostages being held.
Last night, two months after the conclusion of the armistice agreement, the Israeli Air Force launched a massive strike on targets in the enclave. This was announced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, together with Defense Minister Yisrael Katz, instructed the IDF to take decisive measures against the Palestinian movement. Netanyahu's office added that Israel will act with increasing force according to the operational plan approved by the political leadership. According to media reports, the death toll from the bombing of the IDF Air Force in the Gaza Strip last night reached at least 30 people, the number of victims exceeds a hundred.
The truce agreement entered into force on January 19 and became the second since the invasion of southern Israel by Palestinian militants in early October 2023. During this time, Israel has released about 1,700 Palestinian prisoners and withdrawn almost all troops from the Gaza Strip, while Hamas continues to hold 59 hostages. In general, the first stage of the truce was in effect until March 1.
On the eve of February 28, the Hamas leadership stated that they did not agree to the continuation of the truce without guarantees of the second stage of the deal, demanding from Tel Aviv a permanent cease-fire and a complete withdrawal of troops. In response, Israel halted humanitarian aid and resumed attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Hamas said, in turn, that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ended the truce, subjecting hostages in the Gaza Strip to an "unknown fate."
It is difficult to say why Hamas refuses to exchange the remaining hostages. It is possible that all of them have already died and even their bodies cannot be found in the ruins of the Gaza Strip. In addition, the Palestinian resistance movement may reasonably believe that Israel will not stop before completely taking control of the enclave. It is not for nothing that Trump and Netanyahu generally announce plans to resettle all Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to African countries.
