Israel cuts off Gaza aid to pressure Hamas to accept its ceasefire terms

Israel stopped the entry of all goods and supplies into the Gaza Strip on Sunday and warned of “additional consequences” if Hamas doesn’t accept a new proposal to extend a fragile ceasefire.

Hamas accused Israel of trying to derail the existing ceasefire agreement and said its decision to cut off aid was “cheap extortion, a war crime and a blatant attack” on the truce, which took hold in January after more than a year of negotiations. Both sides stopped short of saying the ceasefire had ended.

The first phase of the ceasefire, which included a surge in humanitarian assistance, expired on Saturday. The two sides have yet to negotiate the second phase, in which Hamas was to release dozens of remaining hostages in return for an Israeli pullout and a lasting ceasefire.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that under the existing agreements Israel could resume fighting after the first phase if it believed negotiations were ineffective. He said the ceasefire would only continue if Hamas kept releasing hostages, telling his Cabinet that “there will be no free lunches.” He said Israel was “full coordinated” with President Donald Trump’s administration.

There was no immediate comment from the United States on the proposal announced by Israel or its decision to cut off aid.

Hundreds of aid trucks have entered Gaza daily since the ceasefire began on January 19, and it was unclear what the immediate impact of the aid cutoff would be.

Israel said the new proposal, which it said came from US West Asia envoy Steve Witkoff, called for extending the ceasefire through Ramadan — the Muslim holy month that began over the weekend — and the Jewish Passover holiday, which ends on April 20.

Under that proposal, Hamas would release half the hostages on the first day and the rest when an agreement is reached on a permanent ceasefire, Netanyahu said.

Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, speaking earlier at a press conference, said “we fulfilled all our commitments (under Phase 1) until the very last day, which was yesterday.” Hamas warned that any attempt to delay or cancel the ceasefire agreement would have “humanitarian consequences” for the hostages and reiterated that the only way to free them was through implementing the existing deal, which did not specify a timeline for freeing the remaining captives.

Hamas has said it is willing to free the hostages all at once in Phase 2, but only in return for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces.

An Egyptian official said Hamas and Egypt would not accept a new proposal aimed at returning the remaining hostages without ending the war. The official noted that the agreement had called on the two sides to begin negotiations over Phase 2 in early February.

The official, who was not authorised to brief media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said mediators were trying to resolve the festering dispute.

Meanwhile, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said on Sunday the Egyptian Gaza reconstruction plan, that ensures Palestinians remain in their land, is ready and will be presented to the emergency Arab summit on March 4.