Fresh off their joint military assault in Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump met in Washington Monday and Tuesday to take a victory lap. But it’s unclear how much closer the two are to achieving a ceasefire deal in Gaza, as Trump ramps up pressure on his Israeli counterpart to end the 21-month-long war.

Experts expected that the visit, Netanyahu’s third since Trump returned to office in January, would advance discussions of a ceasefire with Hamas. In a show of political theatre ahead of their Monday dinner, Netanyahu handed Trump an envelope with what he called a “well-deserved” nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize — an accolade Trump has publicly coveted for years.

Netanyahu departed the White House Tuesday evening without speaking to reporters.

The U.S. president and his inner circle — including Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East — have repeatedly said a deal to end the war could be reached this week, even as Israel and Hamas keep mum on a potential timeline.

But the narrative Trump is touting about an imminent ceasefire might shed light on the complex dynamic playing out between him and Netanyahu in private, with the U.S. president pushing for a deal at all costs, according to experts who spoke with CBC News.

“Certainly, they are allies. There’s no question that Netanyahu was happy about Trump’s re-election,” said Guy Ziv, an associate professor at American University’s school of international service and the associate director of the U.S. Center for Israel Studies.

“But I think there’s also a lot that happens behind the scenes that we don’t see — and that does include a lot of pressure.”

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Trump’s shifting timelines

Last Tuesday, Trump said Israel had “agreed to the necessary conditions” to finalize a ceasefire deal, a claim Israeli officials didn’t confirm. Then, on the eve of Netanyahu’s visit, the U.S. president said there’s a “good chance” a ceasefire deal could be reached this week.

Both Israel and Hamas have tempered expectations of a deal being reached so soon. Just before the weekend, a representative for the Palestinian militant group said it had submitted a “positive response” to the proposal, but stopped short of confirming whether it had agreed to the terms outlined in that deal.

Netanyahu also hedged. Following the talk on Monday, Israel officials said a ceasefire could be reached, but that it would take more time. Officials from Qatar, who have helped broker the discussions, said the same.

Ziv says it’s unlikely that Trump’s goal for lasting peace in the region could be reached this week.

“The problem is that there are significant obstacles to such a permanent ceasefire deal,” he said.

Without a compromise, Israel and Hamas are an ocean apart on the terms for a pause in fighting. The Palestinian militant group has maintained it wants a complete end to the war before it frees the remaining hostages it abducted from southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Of the 250 people who were taken, 50 remain, and 20 are believed to be alive.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, has said he won’t agree to pause fighting until all the hostages are freed and Hamas disarms, disbands and goes into exile. He recently vowed there “will be no Hamas” in a postwar Gaza, but the group itself has refused to cede power in the territory.

Both Trump and Netanyahu have also mused publicly about transferring Palestinians out of Gaza and having the U.S. take ownership of the territory, a proposal Palestinians in Gaza have fiercely opposed and which spokespeople for Hamas have rejected as “absurd.”

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The most recent ceasefire proposal includes a 60-day pause in fighting, during which time Israel and Hamas would negotiate a permanent end to the war, likely to be carried out in phases. It would also see remaining hostages exchanged for Palestinian prisoners.

The U.S. administration facilitated an initial two-month ceasefire between Israel and Hamas earlier this year, but the pause ended in mid-March when Israel launched airstrikes on the Gaza Strip. Since then, Israel’s military has continued its campaign in the region, including restricting the movement of food and aid into Gaza, which international human rights advocates have said is part of an effort to turn “food into a weapon of war.”

Meanwhile, the U.S. is angling for renewed nuclear talks with Iran, and to move forward on the Abraham Accords, an initiative that began during Trump’s first administration that aimed to normalize relations between Israel and other Mideast countries.

The question is whether Netanyahu came to Washington to continue discussions about Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities or whether Trump summoned him to push for a ceasefire in Gaza, said Gil Troy, a Jerusalem-based distinguished scholar of North American history at McGill University in Montreal.

“What’s fascinating about Donald Trump is he’s very committed to, in a surprising way, having America be very interventionist in its foreign policy,” said Troy. “He doesn’t want forever wars, but he wants America being the king of the world.”

Trump speaks during a meeting with Netanyahu in the Blue Room of the White House on Monday. (Alex Brandon/The Associated Press)

Who’s in charge?

Netanyahu “completely and entirely” depends on Trump’s good will, said former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert during an interview with CBC News Network on Monday. The U.S. president is highly popular in Israel, and Netanyahu is looking to shore up domestic support, which has slowly dwindled as the 21-month-long war in Gaza stretches on.

Netanyahu is currently on trial for corruption charges in Israel, to which he has pleaded not guilty — Trump has called for the trial to be cancelled. The prime minister also faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court, which has accused him of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. He condemned and denied the allegations.

The expectation is that Trump will “force Netanyahu to do what almost everyone — both in Israel and across the world — wants, which is to end the war now, knowing that there is not any objective of great significance that can be achieved by expanding this war,” said Olmert.

Netanyahu beholden to domestic interests

But Samar Ali, a research professor of law and political science at Vanderbilt University and a co-chair of the Project on Unity and American Democracy, said both the Biden and Trump administrations have wrung their hands when it comes to making decisions on Israel.

The U.S. government “does not seem to feel that it has the same agency in making decisions as it has in the past and as it has on other issues,” she said, including on suspending military aid to Israel, even when Israel’s military commits acts the U.S. condemns.

She believes Netanyahu has been the one largely calling the shots when it comes to the U.S.-Israel relationship.

“The question is going to be, is Trump working to move that dynamic in a direction where he has more control over Netanyahu than in the past? He might be doing that,” she said.

LISTEN | Netanyahu in Washington for critical talks:\ Front Burner Netanyahu in Washington, and a Gaza ceasefire?

More than 57,000 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 137,000 injured since Oct. 7, 2023, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. About 1,200 people died in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

Ziv said Netanyahu has largely refused to end the war partly because he’s driven by his own domestic political needs.

“This could change, but up until now, he has been beholden to his far-right coalition partners,” who are opposed to ending the war, Ziv said. The coalition ensures that Netanyahu stays in power, passing laws to protect himself from being removed from office during his corruption trial.

If the U.S. grows frustrated by what it perceives as Netanyahu dragging his feet, Trump could make it publicly clear the Israeli prime minister is standing in the way of the war’s end, said Matt Duss, a former foreign policy adviser to U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders.

“For the U.S. president — especially one as popular inside Israel as Donald Trump is — to say that, I think that … is something that could amount to the appropriate amount of pressure,” he said.

Mass destruction caused by Israeli bombing in northern Gaza. Photo: Reuters

Hamas said it had responded on Friday in “a positive spirit” to a US-brokered Gaza ceasefire proposal and was prepared to enter into talks on implementing the deal, which envisages a release of hostages and negotiations on ending the conflict.

US President Donald Trump earlier announced a “final proposal” for a 60-day ceasefire in the nearly 21-month-old war between Israel and Hamas, stating he anticipated a reply from the parties in coming hours.

Hamas wrote on its official website: “The Hamas movement has completed its internal consultations as well as discussions with Palestinian factions and forces regarding the latest proposal by the mediators to halt the aggression against our people in Gaza.

“The movement has delivered its response to the brotherly mediators, which was characterized by a positive spirit. Hamas is fully prepared, with all seriousness, to immediately enter a new round of negotiations on the mechanism for implementing this framework,” the statement said.

In a sign of potential challenges still facing the sides, a Palestinian official of a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing to Egypt and clarity over a timetable of Israeli troop withdrawals.

Trump said on Tuesday that Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalize” a 60-day ceasefire, during which efforts would be made to end the US ally’s war in the Palestinian enclave.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has yet to comment on Trump’s announcement, and in their public statements the two sides remain far apart. Netanyahu has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the militant group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.

Israeli media cited an Israeli official as saying that Israel had received and was looking into Hamas’ response to the ceasefire proposal.

An Egyptian security official told Reuters that Egypt, which along with Qatar is mediating ceasefire efforts, had seen Hamas’ response and said: “It includes positive signs that an agreement is near, but there are some demands from Hamas that need to be worked on.”

Trump has said he would be “very firm” with Netanyahu on the need for a speedy Gaza ceasefire, while noting that the Israeli leader wants one as well.

“We hope it’s going to happen. And we’re looking forward to it happening sometime next week,” he told reporters earlier this week. “We want to get the hostages out.”

ATTACKS OVERNIGHT

Israeli attacks have killed at least 138 Palestinians in Gaza over the past 24 hours, local health officials said.

Health officials at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, said the Israeli military had carried out an airstrike on a tent encampment west of the city around 2 a.m., killing 15 Palestinians displaced by nearly two years of war.

Mourners attend the funeral of Palestinians killed overnight in Israeli attacks on a tent and on people seeking aid, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza. Photo: Reuters

The Israeli military said troops operating in the Khan Younis area had eliminated militants, confiscated weapons and dismantled Hamas outposts in the last 24 hours, while striking 100 targets across Gaza, including military structures, weapons storage facilities and launchers.

Later on Friday, Palestinians gathered to perform funeral prayers before burying those killed overnight.

“There should have been a ceasefire long ago before I lost my brother,” said 13-year-old Mayar Al Farr as she wept. Her brother, Mahmoud, was shot dead in another incident, she said.

“He went to get aid, so he can get a bag of flour for us to eat. He got a bullet in his neck,” she said.

‘MAKE THE DEAL’

In Tel Aviv, families and friends of hostages held in Gaza were among demonstrators who gathered outside a US Embassy building on US Independence Day, calling on Trump to secure a deal for all of the captives.

Demonstrators set up a symbolic Sabbath dinner table, placing 50 empty chairs to represent those who are still held in Gaza. Banners hung nearby displaying a post by Trump from his Truth Social platform that read, “MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!!”

“Only you can make the deal. We want one beautiful deal. One beautiful hostage deal,” said Gideon Rosenberg, 48, from Tel Aviv.

Rosenberg was wearing a shirt with the image of hostage Avinatan Or, one of his employees who was abducted by Palestinian militants from the Nova musical festival on October 7, 2023. He is among the 20 hostages who are believed to be alive after more than 600 days of captivity.

An official familiar with the negotiations said on Thursday that the proposal envisages the return of 10 of the hostages during the 60 days, along with the bodies of 18 others who had died since being taken hostage.

Ruby Chen, 55, the father of 19-year-old American-Israeli Itay, who is believed to have been killed after being taken captive, urged Netanyahu to return from meeting with Trump with a deal that brings back all hostages.

Itay Chen, also a German national, was serving as an Israeli soldier when Hamas carried out its surprise attack on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking another 251 hostage.

Israel’s retaliatory war against Hamas has devastated Gaza, which the militant group has ruled for almost two decades but now only controls in parts, displacing most of the population of more than 2 million and triggering widespread hunger.

More than 57,000 Palestinians have been killed in nearly two years of fighting, most of them civilians, according to local health officials.

From 2 Jul 2025 14.42 BST Hamas reviews Gaza ceasefire proposals from mediators Reuters reports that Hamas is reviewing new ceasefire proposals from mediators, aiming for an agreement that would end the Gaza conflict and ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory, according to a statement released on Wednesday. Share

2 Jul 2025 15.47 BST Closing summary President Donald Trump has claimed Israel has agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and warned Hamas to accept the deal before conditions worsen, as he sought to reinvigorate peace talks.

Hamas suggested on Wednesday it was open to a ceasefire agreement with Israel but stopped short of accepting the US-backed proposal announced by Donald Trump , insisting on its longstanding position that any deal bring an end to the war in Gaza. AP reports that Hamas official Taher al-Nunu said the militant group was “ready and serious regarding reaching an agreement.”

Reuters reports that Hamas is reviewing new ceasefire proposals from mediators, aiming for an agreement that would end the Gaza conflict and ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory, according to a statement released on Wednesday.

Iran’s western and central airspace is closed to international transit flights for safety reasons, while the country’s eastern airspace is open to flights, Iran’s SNN cited a spokesperson for the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development as saying on Wednesday. Internal and external flight cancellations in the northern, southern and western parts of the country have been extended until Thursday 2pm local time, SNN added, Reuters reports.

Israeli strikes killed at least 14 people on Wednesday, Gaza’s civil defence agency said. Civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal said five members of the same family were killed and several others wounded in an Israeli airstrike that hit a tent housing displaced people in the coastal Al-Mawasi area.

The Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday put into effect a law passed by parliament last month to suspend cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog , the IAEA.

Germany has said that Iran ’s decision to suspend cooperation with UN nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sends a “disastrous signal” . “For a diplomatic solution it is essential for Iran to work with the IAEA,” foreign ministry spokesman Martin Giese told reporters, after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian formally enacted the suspension which followed Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear facilities.

Switzerland has initiated proceedings to dissolve the Geneva branch of the controversial, US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid group, citing legal shortcomings in its establishment. The GHF is registered in the US state of Delaware and had registered an affiliate in Geneva on 12 February, Reuters reports.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Wednesday for the elimination of Hamas in his first public remarks since Donald Trump announced what he called a “final proposal” for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza , Reuters reports.

Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar called for global action against Iran’s nuclear programme , after the move. He also said any opportunity to free hostages held in Gaza “must not be missed”.

The Red Cross has warned that Gaza’s few functioning medical facilities are overwhelmed, with nearly all public hospitals “shut down or gutted by months of hostilities and restrictions” on supplies.

There is rising concern about aid delivery in Gaza , with more than 170 NGOs on Tuesday calling for the dismantlement of the secretive US and Israeli-backed food distributor Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). The death toll from Israeli attacks on Palestinians waiting for food at its sites has risen to more than 500.

The Hamas-run interior ministry on Wednesday ordered Yasser Abu Shabab the leader of a Palestinian gang armed by Israel in Gaza to surrender and face trial, accusing him of treason. A ministry statement said the decision was taken by what it called a “Revolutionary Court”. Yasser Abu Shabab has 10 days to surrender, it said.

The US bombing of Iran’s key Fordow nuclear site has “seriously and heavily damaged” the facility, Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview with CBS News.

The Israeli military says it captured a “terrorist” cell operated by Iran in Southern Syria , Reuters reports.

More than 400 stars and media figures have signed a letter to BBC management calling for the removal of a board member, Robbie Gibb, over claims of conflict of interest regarding the Middle East. Share

2 Jul 2025 15.37 BST Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed that “there will be no Hamas” in post-war Gaza. US president Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Israel had agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and urged Hamas to accept the deal before conditions worsen, AP reported. The US leader has been increasing pressure on the Israeli government and Hamas to broker a ceasefire and hostage agreement, and bring about an end to the war. Hamas said in a brief statement on Wednesday that it had received a proposal from the mediators and is holding talks with them to “bridge gaps” to return to the negotiating table to try to reach a ceasefire agreement. Share

2 Jul 2025 15.12 BST Displaced Palestinians in Gaza City, Gaza, try to meet their daily water needs by filling jerrycans from water delivered by tankers, earlier today. View image in fullscreen Displaced Palestinians in Gaza struggle to access clean water Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images Share

2 Jul 2025 14.42 BST Hamas reviews Gaza ceasefire proposals from mediators Reuters reports that Hamas is reviewing new ceasefire proposals from mediators, aiming for an agreement that would end the Gaza conflict and ensure the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory, according to a statement released on Wednesday. Share

2 Jul 2025 14.40 BST Netanyahu calls for end to Hamas in first remarks since Trump ceasefire call Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Wednesday for the elimination of Hamas in his first public remarks since Donald Trump announced what he called a “final proposal” for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, Reuters reports. Netanyahu told a meeting hosted by the Trans-Israel pipeline: There will not be a Hamas. There will not be a Hamastan. We’re not going back to that. It’s over. Share

2 Jul 2025 14.22 BST Iran’s western and central airspace is closed to international transit flights for safety reasons, while the country’s eastern airspace is open to flights, Iran’s SNN cited a spokesperson for the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development as saying on Wednesday. Internal and external flight cancellations in the northern, southern and western parts of the country have been extended until Thursday 14:00 local time, SNN added, Reuters reports. Share

2 Jul 2025 13.50 BST Switzerland has initiated proceedings to dissolve the Geneva branch of the controversial, US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid group, citing legal shortcomings in its establishment. The GHF is registered in the US state of Delaware and had registered an affiliate in Geneva on 12 February, Reuters reports. “The ESA may order the dissolution of the foundation if no creditors come forward within the legal 30-day period,” the Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations (ESA) said in a creditors notice published in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce on Wednesday. The ESA told Reuters the GHF had not fulfilled certain legal requirements, including having the correct number of board members, a postal address or a Swiss bank account. “GHF confirmed to the ESA that it had never carried out activities in Switzerland…and that it intends to dissolve the Geneva-registered (branch),” the ESA said in a statement. View image in fullscreen Palestinians gather at an aid distribution point set up by the privately-run Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), near the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on 25 June. Photograph: Eyad Baba/AFP/Getty Images Last week, Geneva authorities issued a separate legal notice to the GHF to remedy within 30 days “deficiencies in the organisation” or face potential action. More than 500 people have been killed near GHF distribution hubs in Gaza or along access roads guarded by Israeli forces since the GHF started operating, according to Palestinian medical authorities in the territory. Israel’s military acknowledged on Monday that Palestinian civilians have been “harmed” near the distribution centres and its forces had been issued new instructions following what it called “lessons learned”. Share

2 Jul 2025 13.23 BST Germany has said that Iran’s decision to suspend cooperation with UN nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sends a “disastrous signal”. “For a diplomatic solution it is essential for Iran to work with the IAEA,” foreign ministry spokesman Martin Giese told reporters, after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian formally enacted the suspension which followed Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear facilities. On June 25, a day after a ceasefire took hold, Iranian lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to suspend cooperation with the Vienna-based IAEA. State media confirmed the legislation had now taken effect. The law aims to “ensure full support for the inherent rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran” under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, with a particular focus on uranium enrichment, according to Iranian media. While IAEA inspectors have had access to Iran’s declared nuclear sites, their current status is uncertain amid the suspension. Share

2 Jul 2025 12.51 BST Throughout the nearly 21-month-long war, ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have repeatedly faltered over whether the war should end as part of any deal, as Associated Press reports.

Hamas has said that it is willing to free the remaining 50 hostages, less than half of whom are said to be alive, in exchange for a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war.

Israel says it will only agree to end the war if Hamas surrenders, disarms and exiles itself, something the group refuses to do.

An Israeli official said that the latest proposal calls for a 60-day deal that would include a partial Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a surge in humanitarian aid to the territory.

The official wasn’t authorized to discuss the details of the proposed deal with the media and spoke on condition of anonymity.

It wasn’t clear how many hostages would be freed as part of the agreement, but previous proposals have called for the release of about 10.

Israel has yet to publicly comment on Trump’s announcement that it had agreed to his plan. On Monday, Trump is set to host the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, at the White House, days after Ron Dermer, a senior Netanyahu adviser, held discussions with top US officials about Gaza, Iran and other matters. Share

2 Jul 2025 12.29 BST Summary Here is a summary of events so far: President Donald Trump has claimed Israel has agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and warned Hamas to accept the deal before conditions worsen, as he sought to reinvigorate peace talks.

Hamas suggested on Wednesday it was open to a ceasefire agreement with Israel but stopped short of accepting the US-backed proposal announced by Donald Trump , insisting on its longstanding position that any deal bring an end to the war in Gaza. AP reports that Hamas official Taher al-Nunu said the militant group was “ready and serious regarding reaching an agreement.”

Israeli strikes killed at least 14 people on Wednesday, Gaza’s civil defence agency said. Civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal said five members of the same family were killed and several others wounded in an Israeli airstrike that hit a tent housing displaced people in the coastal Al-Mawasi area.

The Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday put into effect a law passed by parliament last month to suspend cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog , the IAEA.

Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar called for global action against Iran’s nuclear programme , after the move. He also said any opportunity to free hostages held in Gaza “must not be missed”.

The Red Cross has warned that Gaza’s few functioning medical facilities are overwhelmed, with nearly all public hospitals “shut down or gutted by months of hostilities and restrictions” on supplies.

There is rising concern about aid delivery in Gaza , with more than 170 NGOs on Tuesday calling for the dismantlement of the secretive US and Israeli-backed food distributor Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). The death toll from Israeli attacks on Palestinians waiting for food at its sites has risen to more than 500.

The Hamas-run interior ministry on Wednesday ordered Yasser Abu Shabab the leader of a Palestinian gang armed by Israel in Gaza to surrender and face trial, accusing him of treason. A ministry statement said the decision was taken by what it called a “Revolutionary Court”. Yasser Abu Shabab has 10 days to surrender, it said.

The US bombing of Iran’s key Fordow nuclear site has “seriously and heavily damaged” the facility, Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview with CBS News.

The Israeli military says it captured a “terrorist” cell operated by Iran in Southern Syria , Reuters reports.

More than 400 stars and media figures have signed a letter to BBC management calling for the removal of a board member, Robbie Gibb, over claims of conflict of interest regarding the Middle East.

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2 Jul 2025 12.21 BST Lorenzo Tondo The Hamas-run interior ministry on Wednesday ordered the leader of a Palestinian gang armed by Israel in Gaza to surrender and face trial, accusing him of treason. A ministry statement said the decision was taken by what it called a “Revolutionary Court”. Yasser Abu Shabab, who does not recognize the authority of Hamas and accuses the militants of hurting the interests of Gaza, has 10 days to surrender, it said. Clashes between Hamas fighters and members of the militia led by Yasser abu Shabab, known locally for his involvement in criminal activity, erupted in recent weeks. On 7 October 2023, Abu Shabab was languishing in a Hamas-run jail in Gaza on charges of drug trafficking. With the outbreak of the conflict, the Palestinian from Rafah managed to leave prison, though the circumstances of his release remain unclear to this day. For a while, Abu Shabab vanished from sight. That changed last May when Israeli defence officials acknowledged they had begun arming a clan that calls itself the Anti-Terror Service. It consists of about 100 armed men who operate in eastern Rafah under the command of Abu Shabab, whose nickname is “the Israeli agent” and who is described as a “traitor” on social media in the territory. The officials said the Israel Defense Forces’ goal was “reducing Israeli military casualties” while systematically undermining Hamas. Since then, Hamas has killed dozens of his fighters, amid reports that Israeli troops directly intervened to protect Abu Shabab’s faction. In a written interview with the Guardian in June, Abu Shabab blamed Hamas for the war in Gaza, defended himself from the accusations of looting and insisted his clan was providing security to aid trucks passing from the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza. “My activities are humanitarian and it’s for my people only,” Abu Shabab said. “We are providing security in areas controlled by our national forces and providing support to hundreds of families, with hundreds of people flocking to our areas every day.” Abu Shabab’s militia, also named Popular Forces, said Hamas has killed several relatives of their leader in recent months. The court on Wednesday urged Palestinians to inform Hamas security officials about the whereabouts of Abu Shabab, who has so far remained beyond their reach in the Rafah area of southern Gaza held by Israeli troops. There was no immediate response from his group to the surrender order. Share