Israeli ambassador to UN calls on Security Council to condemn Hamas
Danny Danon has demanded an emergency session of the UN Security Council “following the findings on the heinous murder of Shiri, Kfir, and Ariel Bibas”.
“The Security Council must convene to condemn Hamas and declare it a terrorist organisation,” said Danon. “Hamas murdered Shiri, four-year-old Ariel, and nine-month-old Kfir with their bare hands and abused their bodies as early as November 2023,” he said in a post on X.
However, the Palestinian armed group has long said an Israeli air strike killed Shiri Bibas and her infant sons, Kfir and Ariel, early in the war.
“The false allegations that the criminal [Israeli] occupation is disseminating about the death of the Bibas children at the hands of their captors are merely baseless lies and fabrications,” Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said in a statement.
Ismail al-Thawabta, director of the Hamas-run Gaza Government Media Office, said Prime Minister Netanyahu “bears full responsibility for killing her and her children”.
Rubio warns Hamas will be ‘destroyed’ if all captives not released
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Hamas will be “destroyed” if it does not release all remaining abductees held in Gaza.
“Hamas’ treatment of hostages, including its brutal murder of the Bibas family, further illustrates their savagery and is yet another reason why we are saying these terrorists must release all of the hostages immediately or be destroyed,” Rubio wrote on X.
More than 600 Palestinian families wait for prisoner release during delay
There has been no real explanation given by Israel for the delay. What we do know is the release of Palestinian prisoners will depend on when the meeting, the security consultations convened by the Israeli prime minister, will end.
Of course, that also means that more than 600 Palestinian families are waiting in the cold in Ramallah, in the Gaza Strip, but also in Cairo, where more than 100 Palestinians will be exiled.
The consultations will not just focus on today, on the exchange of prisoners and detainees and captives, but also on what happens next.
We’re already beginning to hear a little bit about what is being discussed, namely, will Israel withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor? Will it seek an extension of phase one of the ceasefire agreement, rather than entering into phase two?
