Cairo. The announcement of the signing of the peace plan between Hamas and Israel was released around 2 a.m. in Gaza, while most of its inhabitants were asleep. Celebrations erupted in some areas of the Palestinian enclave, but bombing also continued in several areas of the coastal territory.
Hani Mahmoud, a reporter for the Qatari network Al Jazeera in Zawayda (center), said: “Many people don’t have electricity or internet access, so I don’t hear any reaction (to the signing of the peace agreement). I think they’re trying to get some sleep. But last night it was quieter, with no drones in the background, so it’s giving them peace of mind after a tiring night. It’s a historic moment and, on a personal level, a huge relief. People will be excited and very happy. But we’ll see what happens in the next few hours.”
Russian television showed images of celebrations in Khan Yunis.
They corner the population
Airstrikes continued in Gaza City and Khan Yunis, Al Jazeera reported. Yesterday, the Israeli army corralled the population into small areas of the town while continuing the systematic destruction of entire residential complexes.
“In the last 24 hours, many of these once-standing buildings, many of these once densely populated areas, vibrant neighborhoods and commercial streets, have been decimated by the ongoing attack,” Mani Mahmoud wrote on Al Jazeera.
At least 10 Palestinians were killed and 61 wounded in the hours leading up to the agreement; the death toll since the start of the war reached 67,183 and the number of wounded rose to 169,841.
Doctors of the World, Action Against Hunger, and Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of the"catastrophic sanitary conditions and dramatically increased child malnutrition" in the enclave.
Gaza is a place where “death stalks and strikes everyone,” said Claire Magone, director of MSF’s French branch, after returning from the territory. Speaking to the newspaper Le Monde, Magone described how her teams treated patients while “tanks approached, drones flew over neighborhoods, and water was cut off,” according to Al Jazeera.
Doctors of the World condemned Tel Aviv for systematically obstructing women's access to sexual and reproductive health care in the territory, where genital infections related to a lack of clean water and menstrual products have increased in the last year, and miscarriages have quadrupled."Some women give birth in overcrowded shelters, without anesthesia or medication, sometimes forced to cut their own umbilical cord under fire," said physician Israa Saleh.
And in the reoccupied West Bank, Palestinian journalists and local leaders protested yesterday against Israeli attacks targeting media professionals and marched with empty coffins bearing the names and photos of journalists killed in the enclave since the start of the war. “Each of them had their own story,” said Nasser Abu Baker, president of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate.
At press time, intense airstrikes accompanied by heavy artillery fire, low-flying warplanes breaking the sound barrier, and explosions from booby-trapped armored vehicles were reported in southern and northwestern Gaza.
Gaza's civil defense reported several Israeli airstrikes on Palestinian territory on Thursday following the announcement of the pact.
On social media platform X, the Israeli military warned that the north of the strip “remains a dangerous combat zone” as troops continue to “surround Gaza City,” and asserted that returning to the area is “extremely dangerous,” calling on residents of the Palestinian enclave to “refrain from returning or approaching areas” where the army operates, “including the south and east, until official instructions are issued.”
