ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the last minute on Sunday said the Gaza ceasefire would not take effect until Hamas provided a list of the hostages to be released, with the military resuming deadly airstrikes.
Netanyahu’s decision came less than an hour before the ceasefire, which was set to start at 8:30 a.m. Gaza local time. He said he had "instructed the IDF (military) that the ceasefire... will not begin until Israel has received the list.”
Responding to Netanyahu’s decision, the Israeli military said it “continues to carry out attacks in Gaza.”
Gaza’s civil defense rescuers said eight people were killed in Israeli airstrikes shortly after Netanyahu ordered the military to continue their raids.
Hamas confirmed its “commitment to the terms” of the Gaza ceasefire, explaining that “the delay in handing over the names that will be released is due to technical reasons in the field."
Israel and Hamas on Wednesday reached a ceasefire and hostage release agreement following high-level negotiations in Doha.
The ceasefire was set to take effect at 8:30 Gaza local time on Sunday and to involve the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. The terms of a broader peace deal would be finalized once the first phase of the ceasefire has concluded.
Updated at 11:06 a.m with Gaza civil defense rescuers' statement
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