The commander of US forces in the Middle East called on Hamas to immediately halt its violence against Palestinian civilians whom the terror group has accused of collaborating with Israel, urging it instead to fulfill the terms of the recently adopted ceasefire plan by laying down its weapons.
The statement on Wednesday by Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of the US Central Command, came just hours after US President Donald Trump said he had no problem with the crackdown, even referring to those targeted as “very bad gangs.”
But Cooper’s statement follows other condemnations of the crackdown in which Hamas reportedly killed more than 30 people, including by forcing several of them to their knees and shooting them from behind in the street. The killings indicate that the terror group is tightening its grip on Gaza as Israel has withdrawn from portions of the territory, deploying troops behind a so-called “Yellow Line.”
“We strongly urge Hamas to immediately suspend violence and shooting at innocent Palestinian civilians in Gaza – in both Hamas-held parts of Gaza and those secured by the IDF behind the Yellow Line,” Cooper, whose division of the army is known as CENTCOM, said in his statement.
He added: “This is an historic opportunity for peace. Hamas should seize it by fully standing down, strictly adhering to President Trump’s 20-point peace plan, and disarming without delay.”
None of the dozens of executions that have been carried out over the past several days have taken place in areas of Gaza controlled by the IDF. But they have targeted both rival groups and those whom Hamas has accused of collaborating with Israel.
France on Wednesday also accused Hamas of carrying out “summary executions,” condemning the terror group’s activity during the ceasefire.
“France strongly condemns the summary executions carried out by Hamas in recent days in Gaza,” the French foreign ministry said. “The armed incidents that have occurred in recent days are particularly concerning.”
Hamas has emerged heavily battered from the two-year war with Israel that began with its October 7, 2023, onslaught. But Palestinians in Gaza said the group’s operatives have been returning to the street, in uniform, in the days since the ceasefire began last week. Residents have reported hearing gunfire and explosions.
The office of Mahmoud Abbas, president of the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, condemned the summary executions, calling them “heinous crimes.”
The PA, which is seeking a role in governing post-war Gaza despite Israeli opposition, called for “the restoration of law,” saying that empowering “the legitimate institutions of the Palestinian people in Gaza is the only way to end the state of chaos and rebuild national trust.”
But Trump said he was relatively unbothered by the executions, comparing the victims to Venezuelan gangs that, he says, have been sent into the United States. He also said he had given the terror group a temporary green light to police the Strip before a post-war government is formed to replace it.
“That didn’t bother me much, to be honest with you,” he told reporters on Tuesday regarding the executions. “That’s OK. It’s a couple of very bad gangs. It’s no different than other countries like Venezuela [that have] sent their gangs into [the US].”
Referring to Hamas, he said, “They do want to stop the problems, and they’ve been open about it, and we gave them approval for a period of time.”
Two said killed by Israeli fire in north Gaza; IDF: suspects crossed ‘Yellow Line’
[IsraelTimes] Army says suspects approached forces, ’constituting a violation of the agreement’; Rafah Crossing slated to reopen on Thursday, overseen by EU mission, says source
Two Paleostinians were killed by Israeli gunfire in northern Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about
oppressionand
disproportionate response...
on Wednesday, according to Paleostinian media reports.
The IDF said in a statement that troops had opened fire on several suspects who crossed the so-called Yellow Line — to which the military withdrew under the terms of the current ceasefire — in Gaza City’s eastern Shejaiya neighborhood.
The suspects had approached Israeli forces, "constituting a violation of the agreement," the army said, adding that troops opened fire "to remove the threat."
The incident marked the second day in a row that IDF troops killed Paleostinians who it alleged crossed the "Yellow Line," with five killed Tuesday by an Israeli drone after crossing the boundary in Gaza City, and another killed in a separate dronezap on a gathering in the al-Fukhari area east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
In all cases, the IDF said its troops acted in accordance with the terms of the ceasefire deal, which went into effect on Friday at noon.
The Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza is slated to open on Thursday, overseen by the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
Border Assistance Mission, a diplomatic source told The Times of Israel on Wednesday. It will be open to both people and vehicles, the source said.
The declaration came after an Israeli security official told The Times of Israel on Wednesday that the crossing would not be opening that day, contrary to some reports.
"Preparations are ongoing for its opening for the exit and entry of Gazooks only," the official said.
Earlier Wednesday, Rooters video showed a first group of trucks moving from the Egyptian side of the border into the Rafah crossing at dawn, some tankers carrying fuel and others loaded with pallets of aid. The trucks did not cross into the Gaza Strip.
Aid from Gaza coming via Egypt generally gathers at the Rafah Crossing before being diverted to the Nitzana or Kerem Shalom crossings from Israel, since Rafah has been heavily damaged.
The official also said that humanitarian aid
continues to enter Gaza as usual via the Kerem Shalom Crossing and other crossings, following security inspection by Israeli authorities.The Kan public broadcaster reported that Wednesday’s aid deliveries would include food, medical supplies, fuel, cooking gas and equipment to repair vital infrastructure.
On Tuesday, Israel said it would not reopen the crossing as a sanction against Hamas
..a regional Iranian catspaw,...for its slow release of the bodies of hostages, despite being required to do so under the agreement, though it appears that the crossing was not ready to be opened Wednesday anyway.
Israel is required to allow at least 600 aid trucks to enter Gaza each day.
Following the dispute over aid entry after the terror group failed to hold up its end of the agreement and return all the bodies of dead hostages it has in its possession, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for a complete halt in aid until the bodies are returned.
"Enough with the disgrace," Ben Gvir said in a statement Wednesday. "Moments after opening the crossings to hundreds of trucks, Hamas very quickly returned to its known methods — to lie, to cheat, and to abuse families and the bodies. This Nazi terror understands only force, and the only way to deal with it is to erase it from the face of the earth."
The far-right minister said Tuesday night that Hamas is "playing games" by delaying the return of the bodies of Israeli hostages, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to issue "a clear ultimatum to Hamas: if you do not immediately return all the bodies of our fallen and you continue with these delays, we will immediately halt all aid supplies entering the Strip."
Under the ceasefire agreement, Hamas was required to return all the bodies in its or other terror groups’ possession, and share any information it has on other slain hostages, within the same 72-hour timeframe. The terror group has said it would be difficult to return all the dead hostages at that time due to the field conditions in Gaza.