The first phase of the six-week ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas – which included negotiations and hostage exchanges – expired on March 1st.
After the final hostage exchange, Israel announced it would not withdraw from the Gaza-Egypt border. Additionally, Israel will block the entry of all humanitarian aid into Gaza until Hamas agrees to extend the first phase of the ceasefire agreement – an extension that was proposed by U.S. Mideast envoy and American billionaire Steve Witkoff. Hamas claims it doesn’t make sense to exchange more hostages until Israel agrees to withdraw from Gaza and formally declare an end to the war.
On March 5th, it was revealed that the United States has been having secret talks with Hamas since January. This is unprecedented since the U.S. has not directly talked to Hamas since they were designated as a terrorist organization in 1997.
Some Israeli officials claimed that only President Trump could influence Netanyahu not to continue the war. Trump himself has made a controversial proposal for the U.S. to take over Gaza. This Wednesday, Trump issued a “last warning” to release all of the hostages or it will “be over” for Hamas.
