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The Israeli army recommends easing measures in Gaza to support the ceasefire
An IDF soldier on the Gaza border, for the first time in four years; the bomb attack on Hamas outposts and battalion headquarters; and the threatening announcements of politicians on late-breaking television segments – all of which seem to be the first signs of a large-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip. But the operation is not yet on us. One fact that bears witness to this is the speed with which the Palestinians accepted the ceasefire offers from Egypt and the UN at midnight on Friday.
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Signs that an operation is not imminent were also evident in the nature of military actions on both sides. Israel bombed the headquarters of the Hamas battalion, but was careful not to target senior Hamas officials. Hamas has refrained from firing rockets into Israel even after being caught under fire. The result is a U-turn on the precipice – the war has been avoided, perhaps just for the moment.
The incident on the border fence Friday seems to be related to the events of the day before: On Thursday, the Israeli army fired on a group of Palestinians throwing incendiary kites near a position Hamas at the border, in southern Gaza Strip. A member of the Hamas military wing was killed. The military wing threatened to take revenge. On Friday, during protests east of Khan Younis, a Palestinian gunman fired at an IDF soldier near the border. The soldier died of his wounds (his name has not been released yet).
And yet, there were unusual elements to the incident that could indicate a local Palestinian initiative that did not necessarily get the green light from the summit. The shooting took place while Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh took part in one of the demonstrations on the fence nearby. Usually, Hamas leaders seek to stay away from such incidents. Hamas positions overlooking the site were not evacuated and when the IDF fired back with tank shells at eight Hamas posts, four members of the military were killed.
The Israeli soldier is the first Israeli killed on the Gaza border since the end of the Gaza war in 2014. After the incident, in consultations with the Prime Minister, the Minister of Defense and senior responsible for the IDF and Shin Bet, an unusually strong response was approved. The Israeli air force destroyed three headquarters of the battalion of the Hamas military wing. This time, it was not a limited selective bombardment, and Hamas commanders could not simply move an office – the entire headquarters was cleared.
And yet, the time that has elapsed between the shooting and the IDF response has allowed Hamas to abandon its headquarters. Israel has also refrained from further escalation for the time being – targeted assassinations of senior Hamas officials.
After the first Israeli strikes, one of the Palestinian factions (dubbed "thug" by the IDF) fired several mortar shells at Israeli communities along the border. Hamas has retained its people and the Palestinians have completely refrained from firing on Israel.
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Meanwhile, Egypt and the UN have exerted significant pressure. Nickolay Mladenov, the United Nations envoy to the Middle East, tweeted that "everyone in Gaza must withdraw from the border, not next week, not tomorrow, now! At midnight, the Palestinians announced a ceasefire. Mladenov and the Egyptian intelligence services are now conducting the talks. Qatar plays a more marginal role.
The soldier's death was a sobering reminder that the conflict in Gaza does not begin and end with incendiary kites and balloons. But these could still ignite the flames today or tomorrow. Hamas told the mediators that it would act to reduce these launches, but says it will take time because some airborne incendiary bombs are fired by "grassroots" groups that do not take Hamas orders.
Meanwhile, tensions along the Gaza border are increasing. And despite the relative restraint demonstrated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Chief Avigdor Lieberman and Chief of Staff Tsahal Eisenkot (the cabinet was not convened for consultations), it is clear that more Israeli victims would accelerate a wider conflict. Almost any cycle of violence like that of Friday begins with a more serious incident than the previous turn – and at the same time begins the countdown to the next turn.
On Saturday morning, the Homefront Command announced "a return to routine" for Israeli communities near the Gaza border. This is the most significant sign that Israel believes that the current escalation is behind us.
Meanwhile, the Mideast Trump administration team published an article in the Washington Post calling on Hamas to end the terror in exchange for economic aid for the band from Gaza. Hamas rejected the offer, accusing Trump's adviser, Jared Kushner, Midwestern envoy Jason Greenblatt and US Ambassador David Friedman to be "spokespersons for" Israeli occupation ". in the Gaza Strip) or Israel are doing their utmost to find a solution to the humanitarian problems in Gaza, tensions along the border remain as they were. Sooner or later, they will reappear. If the number of casualties is higher in the next round, the efforts of Mladenov and Egypt may not be enough to restore calm quickly.
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