Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas Calls For Full Israeli Withdrawal From Gaza, Says ‘Ready To Assume Full Responsibility’- wna24

Ramallah: The 15-month-long war has finally been paused with the Israeli Cabinet approving the much-awaited Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas; as part of the peace deal, the first set of hostages will be released on Sunday, i.e. tomorrow. Following this ceasefire, Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas has called for a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and that it is ready to ‘assume full responsibility’.

Following the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, President Mahmoud Abbas called for a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, stating that Palestine is ready to “assume full responsibility” in Gaza.
Emphasising Gaza as an integral part of Palestine, the Palestinian President in a statement said, “The Presidency affirmed its firm position of the necessity of an immediate ceasefire in and full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. The Presidency reiterated that it was necessary to establish an immediate ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and pave the way for the State of Palestine to assume full responsibility for the Gaza Strip as an integral part of the occupied territory. The State of Palestine has legal and political jurisdiction over the Strip as it is the case with the rest of the occupied territory of the West Bank and Jerusalem, while affirming rejection of any carving up of the Gaza Strip and forced expulsion of any Palestinian from their homeland.”

It added, “The Palestinian government has completed all preparations to assume full responsibilities in the Strip and that the government administrative and security personnel were fully prepared to carry out their tasks in order to alleviate the suffering inflicted on the Gaza population, allow displaced persons to return to their houses, restore essential services to the Strip, assume responsibility for the border crossings and help commence Gaza reconstruction.”

It also urged international support for humanitarian aid, reconstruction efforts, and a political resolution aligned with UN resolutions. “The Presidency urges the international community along with neighbouring and donor countries to offer urgent humanitarian aid to enable the government to shoulder its responsibilities towards the Palestinian people, whether in the Gaza Strip which has been subjected to a genocidal war or in the West Bank and Jerusalem which have been subjected to grave Israeli violations,” the Palestinian Presidency said.

It added, “The Presidency reiterates the urgent need for a political solution based on the United Nations resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative by holding an international peace conference to mobilize international recognition of the State of Palestine and support its quest for full membership of the United Nations in order to bring about regional security and stability conducive to ending the occupation and realise the establishment of the State of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital, on the 1967 borders, in line with international law and the relevant UN resolutions.”

Israel’s Cabinet approved a deal early Saturday for a ceasefire in Gaza that would release dozens of hostages held there and pause the 15-month war with Hamas. The Cabinet met well past the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath, in a reflection of the moment’s importance. In line with Jewish law, the Israeli government usually halts all business for the Sabbath except in emergency cases of life or death.

The ceasefire — just the second achieved during the war — will go into effect Sunday, though key questions remain, including the names of the 33 hostages to be released during the six-week first phase of the ceasefire and who among them is still alive. Netanyahu instructed a special task force to prepare to receive the hostages returning from Gaza and said that their families were informed a deal had been reached. Hundreds of Palestinian detainees are to be released as well, and the largely devastated Gaza should see a surge in humanitarian aid.

Israel’s justice ministry published a list of 95 Palestinian prisoners to be freed in the deal’s first phase and said the release will not begin before 4 pm local time Sunday. All people on the list are younger or female. Israel’s Prison Services said it will transport the prisoners instead of the International Committee of the Red Cross, which handled transportation during the first ceasefire, to avoid “public expressions of joy.” The prisoners have been accused of crimes like incitement, vandalism, supporting terror, terror activities, attempted murder or throwing stones or Molotov cocktails.

Here are the basics of the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal that mediators say has been reached. There are three phases.

Phase One starts Sunday, according to mediator Qatar. It should include a six-week halt to fighting and the opening of negotiations on ending the war. Thirty-three of the nearly 100 hostages should be released over the period, although it’s not clear if all are alive. They include women, older adults and wounded people. Mediator the United States says this first phase also includes a withdrawal of Israeli forces from densely populated areas of Gaza. That will allow many displaced Palestinians to return to their communities. Humanitarian assistance would surge, with hundreds of trucks entering Gaza each day. Final details still being worked out include the list of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners to be freed.

Phase Two is harder. Negotiations for this phase are to begin on Day 16 of the ceasefire. The phase would include the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers. Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza. But Israel has said it will not agree to a complete withdrawal until Hamas’ military and political capabilities are eliminated. And Hamas says it will not hand over the last hostages until Israel removes all troops.

Phase Three calls for the return of the bodies of remaining hostages and the start of a major reconstruction of Gaza, which is largely devastated and faces decades of rebuilding.