Israel security cabinet to discuss new phase of Gaza truce after Rubio visit

Israel security cabinet to discuss new phase of Gaza truce after Rubio visit

Out of 251 hostages seized during Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war, 70 remain in Gaza

Israel's security cabinet was set to discuss on Monday the next phase of the ceasefire in Gaza, after top US diplomat Marco Rubio and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu presented a united front against Hamas and Iran.

Rubio was in Israel on his first Middle East trip as President Donald Trump's secretary of state, and was slated to leave for Saudi Arabia on Monday.

"Hamas cannot continue as a military or a government force... they must be eliminated," Rubio said of the Palestinian Islamist group that fought Israel for more than 15 months in Gaza until a fragile ceasefire took effect on January 19.

Standing beside him, Netanyahu said the two allies had "a common strategy", and that "the gates of hell will be opened" if all hostages still held by militants in Gaza are not freed.

The comments came a day after Hamas freed three Israeli hostages in exchange for 369 Palestinian prisoners -- the sixth such swap under the ceasefire deal, which the United States helped mediate along with Qatar and Egypt.

Israel and Hamas have accused each other of violating the ceasefire, which has been further strained by Trump's widely condemned proposal to take control of rubble-strewn Gaza and relocate its more than two million residents.

"We discussed Trump's bold vision for Gaza's future and will work to ensure that vision becomes a reality," Netanyahu said.

The scheme that Trump outlined earlier this month as Netanyahu visited Washington lacked details, but he said it would entail moving Gazans to Jordan or Egypt. 

- 'The only plan' -

Washington, Israel's top ally and weapons supplier, says it is open to alternative proposals from Arab governments, but Rubio has said for now, "the only plan is the Trump plan".

However, Saudi Arabia and other Arab states have rejected his proposal, and instead favour the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday said establishment of a Palestinian state was "the only guarantee" of lasting Middle East peace.

After visiting Saudi Arabia, Rubio will also travel to the United Arab Emirates.

The United States has been pushing for a potentially historic deal in which Saudi Arabia would recognise Israel, but Trump's Gaza plan is complicating that effort. 

Riyadh has said repeatedly that it needs to see progress towards a Palestinian state before taking such a step.

Hamas and Israel are implementing the first, 42-day phase of the ceasefire, which nearly collapsed last week.

"At any moment the fighting could resume. We hope that the calm will continue and that Egypt will pressure Israel to prevent them from restarting the war and displacing people," said Nasser al-Astal, 62, a retired teacher in southern Gaza's Khan Yunis.

Since the truce began last month, 19 Israeli hostages have been released in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.

Out of 251 people seized in Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war, 70 remain in Gaza, including 35 the Israeli military says are dead.

In a statement, Rubio condemned Hamas's hostage-taking as "sick depravity" and called for the immediate release of all remaining captives, living and dead, particularly five Israeli-American dual nationals.

Negotiations on a second phase of the truce, aimed at securing a more lasting end to the war, could begin this week in Doha, a Hamas official and another source familiar with the talks have said.

Netanyahu's office said he would convene a meeting of his security cabinet on Monday to discuss phase two.

It said the prime minister was also dispatching negotiators to Cairo Monday to discuss the "continued implementation" of phase one.

The team would "receive further directives for negotiations on Phase II" after the cabinet meeting, the office said.

- 'Finish the job' -

The Gaza war has rippled across the Middle East, triggering violence in Yemen and Lebanon, where Iran backs militant groups.  

Israel fought a related war with Hamas's Lebanese ally Hezbollah, severely weakening itbefore a ceasefire took effect on November 27.

Israeli troops were meant to withdraw over a 60-day period but this was later extended to February 18.

Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said Sunday "Israel must fully withdraw" on the Tuesday deadline.

"It is the responsibility of the Lebanese state" to exert every effort "to make Israel withdraw", he said in a televised address.

There have also been limited direct strikes by Iran and Israel against each other.

Rubio called Iran the "single greatest source of instability in the region".

Netanyahu said that with the support of the Trump administration, "I have no doubt that we can and will finish the job" against Iran.

He later hailed Israel's cooperation with Trump, saying "there has never been such a partnership, and there has never been the potential to remove threats and truly bring opportunities we simply never dreamed of".

The October 7, 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,211 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 48,271 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory that the United Nations considers reliable.

On Sunday, Hamas said an Israeli air strike killed three police officers near south Gaza's Rafah in what the militant group called a "serious violation" of the truce. 

Israel said it had struck "several armed individuals" in south Gaza.

It is at least the second Israeli air strike in Gaza since the ceasefire began.

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Originally published as Israel security cabinet to discuss new phase of Gaza truce after Rubio visit