IOF escalation in Gaza followed near-reaching ceasefire, prisoner swap
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Sources tell Al Mayadeen that a ceasefire agreement was supposed to include the release of all imprisoned women, children, and young people under the age of 18 by "Israel".
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This image grab from an AFP TV footage shows balls of fire and smoke rising above Gaza City during an Israeli strike on October 27, 2023. (Photo by Yousef Hassouna / AFP)
Sources told Al Mayadeen that the latest Israeli escalation came as a ceasefire agreement, including the release of all children and women held by the occupation, was approaching. It was also expected that the Resistance would release foreign non-military captives it held since October 7.
Earlier, Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, announced in a statement that its Resistance fighters were repelling an Israeli ground incursion in Beit Hanoun and east of Bureij. Similarly, Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, announced that its advanced units were present in combat zones and were confronting the Israeli occupation forces attempting to advance toward the Gaza Strip.
The sources indicated that the ceasefire agreement was supposed to include the release of all imprisoned women, children, and young people under the age of 18 by the occupation.
The sources noted that, according to the agreement that was being prepared, the number of those released by the Israeli occupation would have been 40 women and 100 young people under 18, in exchange for 100 non-military captives held by the Palestinian Resistance.
It was also one of the conditions of the agreement that "Israel" would open access to the waters for the Gaza Strip and open the Rafah border crossing, allowing the entry of fuel and heavy machinery to facilitate debris removal. Additionally, during the ceasefire days, "Israel" would have been prohibited from flying its military aircraft, helicopters, and drones in the airspace of the Gaza Strip.
The sources pointed out that the Israeli occupation insisted on a ceasefire for only one day, and thus, it would open the Rafah crossing for only one day -- a move rejected by the Resistance.
In the same context, a source in the Palestinian Resistance told Al Mayadeen that Israeli occupation soldiers are in a hit-and-run state and unable to maintain ground gains in incursion points in the north, northeast, and northwest of al-Bureij camp. Consequently, the Israeli army is intensifying its shelling on the frontlines.
لقطات تظهر إطلاق #المقاومة_الفلسطينية صاروخاً مضاداً للدروع على دبابة إسرائيلية شرق بيت حانون#غزة#الثورة_الكبرى #فلسطين_المحتلة #طوفان_الأقصى pic.twitter.com/LYi6rVp4gu
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) October 27, 2023
According to Israeli media, the "first ground test seems to have been disappointing," adding that the Israeli government is apparently "betting on the lives of its soldiers on the gambling table."
This comes after the Israeli occupation army said it expanded the scope of its ground operations to move into Gaza starting Friday, as per Israeli army spokesperson Daniel Hagari.
Read more: UNGA overwhelmingly calls for 'humanitarian truce' in Gaza
