By Manal El Warraky
The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Britain called late Friday for an “immediate return” to a Gaza ceasefire, as Israel’s military pressed its renewed assault on the Palestinian territory.
Israel resumed intensive bombing of Gaza on Tuesday, shattering the relative calm since the first stage of a January 19 ceasefire expired this month.
“The resumption of Israeli strikes in Gaza marks a dramatic step backward for the people of Gaza. We are appalled by the civilian casualties and urgently call for an immediate return to a ceasefire,” the ministers said in a joint statement.
The joint appeal came after Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz threatened Friday to annex parts of the Gaza Strip as part of its renewed assault on the densely populated enclave.
Before renewing its assault, Israel attempted to extend the first phase of the agreement, effectively stalling talks on the second phase, which would involve an Israeli withdrawal and a permanent end to the war on Gaza.
Despite the agreement being signed by Tel Aviv, Israel has repeatedly blocked progress toward this next phase, refusing to commit to its implementation. Hamas has firmly rejected this, insisting that the original terms — a phased exchange of captives and prisoners, followed by negotiations for a lasting truce — must be upheld.
The ministers — Germany’s Annalena Baerbock, France’s Jean-Noel Barrot and Britain’s David Lammy — called on “all parties to re-engage with negotiations to ensure the ceasefire is implemented in full and becomes permanent”.
They said Hamas must release the dozens of captives remaining in the Palestinian territory and that the group “must neither govern Gaza nor be a threat to Israel anymore”.
The allies said Israel must “fully respect international law” and allow the flow of aid into the territory.
