After the crisis that threatened the continuation of the hostage deal was resolved , the IDF opened the Netzarim route at 7:00 a.m. on Monday morning, allowing masses of displaced Palestinians to begin to cross and return to their homes in the northern Gaza Strip.
The crossing was supposed to open on Saturday, but Israel decided to keep it closed until the release of Arbel Yehoud , a civilian woman who was supposed to be freed in the second release of the hostage deal on Saturday, was arranged. Hamas did not honor the agreement and released the IDF observers Karina Ariev, Naama Levy, Daniella Gilboa and Liri Albag, leading Israel to postpone the opening of the crossing.
Displaced Gazans begin moving to northern strip with opening of Netazrim Corridor
The IDF spokesman in Arabic, Lieutenant Colonel Avichai Adraee, informed residents of the Gaza Strip Sunday night that their passage to the northern Strip on foot would be allowed starting at 7:00 a.m., via a-Rashid Street, known as the sea route. Adraee announced that "vehicles will be allowed to move to the northern Strip via the Salah a-Din Road after inspection (from 9:00 a.m.). The entry of armed men or the transfer of weapons to the northern Strip will be considered a violation of the agreement." He added: "It is prohibited to approach the Rafah Crossing area or the Philadelphi Corridor, it is prohibited to swim in the maritime area, and it is prohibited to approach Israeli territory or the buffer zone."
The Gaza Interior Ministry issued instructions to residents Sunday morning, saying that vehicles will be able to enter Salah a-Din Street starting at 9:00 a.m. "However, the entry of vehicles will not begin until after contact has been made with the Egyptian security authorities," it said. Regarding al-Rashid Street, "Israel will not accept any attempt to pass a vehicle, truck, tuk-tuk or donkey-drawn cart through the street without inspection, and it may shoot at the vehicle on the grounds that it is carrying a weapon. Therefore, do not violate the instructions. There is a complete ban on transportation on the street and everyone must adhere to the instructions."
The vehicle crossing on Salah ad-Din Street in Netzarim will be secured by an American company, whose purpose is to prevent the return of armed men and weapons in cars. The company includes about 100 armed security personnel, most of whom are Americans and some of whom speak Arabic. The security personnel are veterans of elite units or former CIA personnel.
The crisis that was resolved with the release of 6 hostages
Starting on Saturday, crowds of Gazans gathered near the closed Netzarim Corridor, and since Sunday night, Palestinian media have released footage from the Gaza Strip, showing thousands of Gazans waiting on the sides of the a-Rashid highway, which is a main crossing from the south to the north of the Gaza Strip. Many Gazans even stayed overnight near the axis, hoping that the crossing would open early in the morning, but it remained closed. At the same time, the Palestinians reported that four Gazans were injured by IDF gunfire in the Nuseirat area, where displaced people were waiting to return to the northern Gaza Strip.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasim addressed this, claiming in an interview with the Qatari channel Al Araby that "Israel's preventing the return of displaced people to the north is a clear violation of the cease-fire agreement." According to him, "Israel is delaying and delaying, even though we have sent confirmation that the hostage Arbel Yahoud is alive. We demand that the mediators put pressure on Israel and force it to allow the return of the displaced people. Direct contacts are taking place with the mediators in order to find a solution and open the Netzarim Corridor."
The crisis in implementing the agreement, came to an end Sunday night when Qatar, followed by the Prime Minister's Office, announced the two rounds of hostage releases expected to take place this week, which include the release of six hostages. Israel announced that an agreement had been reached under which Arbel Yehoud would be released on Thursday, along with IDF lookout Agam Berger and another hostage - and that three additional men would be released alive on Saturday. Israel estimates that the hostage to be released on Thursday is American-Israeli Keith Siegel. Hamas also submitted the list containing the status of the hostages who are to be released in phase one of the deal, which it had also been supposed to submit on Saturday.
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The Prime Minister's Office announced Sunday night that "Following the conducting of vigorous and determined negotiations led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Hamas has backtracked and will carry out an additional phase of releasing hostages this Thursday. In this phase, the civilian Arbel Yehud, the soldier Agam Berger and an additional hostage will be released."
The statement added that, "in parallel, Israel has received from Hamas a list that includes the status of all of the hostages due to be released in the first stage. Under these agreements, Israel will – from tomorrow morning – allow the passage of Gazans to the northern Strip. The Prime Minister reiterates that Israel will not tolerate any violation of the agreement. We will continue to act for the return of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased."