The consequences of Israel's decision to stop the flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip will have a negative impact not only on the residents of the enclave, but also on the condition of Israeli hostages who remain there. The Palestinian movement "Hamas" warned about this.
"Continuing this policy will have a negative impact on both the Palestinians and the hostages, as they will face food and medicine shortages just like the residents of Gaza", the radicals said in a statement published on their Telegram channel. "Hamas" added that it holds the Israeli authorities "fully responsible for the consequences of the Gaza blockade" and accused them of “indifference to the fate of the hostages“.
In mid-January, Israel and "Hamas", brokered by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, agreed to implement a ceasefire in Gaza, which came into effect on January 19. The first stage of the agreement's implementation was completed on March 1. Thirty-three Israeli hostages, including the bodies of eight who died, were returned to their homeland as part of the first phase of the deal. In exchange, Israel released more than 1,500 Palestinians from prison, some of whom had been expelled from the Palestinian territories.
On March 2, Israel blocked the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza and closed all crossings in connection with Hamas's refusal to accept US special envoy Stephen Witkoff's plan to continue ceasefire talks in the enclave.