Israeli drone kills Palestinian as Gaza truce hangs by thread

Israeli forces killed at least one Palestinian in Gaza’s Rafah and wounded several others in a drone strike amid threats from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end a ceasefire for the region.

One of the wounded Palestinians is reportedly in a serious condition following the bombing, the Palestinian Information Centre reported on Wednesday.

It comes after Netanyahu issued a stark threat on Tuesday, saying: “If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon [10am GMT], the ceasefire will end, and the [Israeli army] will return to intense fighting until Hamas is finally defeated.”

This follows similar comments from US President Donald Trump who said “all hell is going to break loose” and the ceasefire deal should be cancelled if Israeli captives were not freed on Saturday.

The Israeli military said it was already deploying forces in the country’s south and was calling up more reservists to prepare for any “possible scenario,” fuelling further fears that the truce deal could collapse at any moment.

Hamas officials have maintained that they are postponing the release of captives due to Israel violating the ceasefire deal by limiting the entry of aid, restricting the evacuation of Palestinians out of Gaza and sabotaging the deal by delaying talks on its second phase.

“Trump must remember there is an agreement that must be respected by both parties, and this is the only way to bring back the prisoners. The language of threats has no value and only complicates matters,” the group’s senior official, Sami Abu Zuhri said in a statement.

Trump doubled down on his plan for the US to “take over” Gaza and turn it into a “riviera of the Middle East” by expelling the population in a sit-down with Jordan’s King Abdullah, who became the first Arab leader to meet Trump since his inauguration in January.

Jordan’s king said he would do what was “best” for his country after being further pressured to take in forcibly expelled Palestinians, later writing on social media platform X that the country remains firm on its “position against the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank”.

In Gaza, Palestinians have relayed that they are living in fear that the war could re-start at any moment. Many are still sleeping out amid a harsh winter storm, while others search for their loved ones and try to bury their dead.

Since January, over 2,000 children have been treated for acute malnutrition in Gaza, the UN said, highlighting the misery in the enclave due to the aftermath of the war and little aid trickling in.

Arab states have continued to issue statements to slam Trump and Netanyahu’s comments.

French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed dismay at Netanyahu’s actions in Gaza, saying: “I always reiterated my disagreement with [Israeli] Prime Minister Netanyahu. I don’t believe, once again, that such a massive operation targeting sometimes civilian people is the right answer”.

West Bank raids

Meanwhile, Israeli forces have continued to launch a fierce offensive in the occupied West Bank, raiding mosques and homes and tearing down infrastructure.

Around 40,000 Palestinians have been forced to flee their homes since Israel started the aggression in the West Bank in January, the UN agency UNRWA said.

At least 29 Palestinians have been killed in the attacks and dozens wounded and arrested, the Palestinian WAFA news agency reported.

At least six Palestinians were wounded on Tuesday after Israeli forces beat Palestinians in Jenin, while Palestinian Red Crescent crews also said they treated six people who needed to be referred to hospital for their wounds.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on the widespread attacks, calling on the UN Security Council to “overcome its state of paralysis and take urgent action to stop the crimes of settlement, home demolitions and annexation”.

It further noted Israeli crimes which have led to “ethnic cleansing”.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed over 61,709 Palestinians since 7 October 2023 while 14,222 are believed to be still trapped under the rubble.

At least 884 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank in the same time frame, the Palestinian health ministry and government media office reported.