Xinhua Agency, Beijing, October 19: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on the 18th that the war in Gaza will not end until the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) disarms and the Gaza Strip is "demilitarized." The United States accused Hamas of planning new attacks that would violate the ceasefire agreement and threatened to "take measures" against it.

Netanyahu¡¯s government and Hamas have accused each other of violating the ceasefire agreement over the past few days, highlighting the vulnerability of the agreement.Israel has announced the continued closure of the Rafah port in southern Gaza, and humanitarian aid transportation channels are still blocked.

US and Israel pressure Hamas to "disarm"

Netanyahu emphasized in an Israeli TV show on Tuesday that the completion of the second phase of the ceasefire agreement is crucial for the end of the war, the core of which is the disarmament of Hamas and the de-militarization of Gaza.

Hamas has consistently refused to completely disarm. According to US media reports, the United States and Israel have accused Hamas of carrying out actions such as "execution of collaborators" in areas where Israeli troops withdrew from the Gaza Strip after the ceasefire agreement came into effect, indicating that it is regaining control of these areas.

Also on the 18th, the U.S. State Department issued a statement saying that the United States had received "reliable reports" that Hamas was planning to launch attacks on civilians in Gaza soon, a move that would violate the ceasefire agreement. "If Hamas carries out the attack,(the United States) will take measures to protect the people of Gaza and maintain the integrity of the ceasefire agreement." The statement did not explain what "measures" were intended to be taken.

US President Trump previously said that if Hamas fails to fulfill its obligations under the ceasefire agreement, he will consider allowing Israeli troops to resume fighting in Gaza.

"Handover of remains" is linked to port reopening

According to Agence France-Presse, the issue of the transfer of the remains of detained persons has become the focus of dispute between the two sides surrounding the implementation of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement. Israel accuses Hamas of being too slow to hand over the remains, while Hamas says the search for the remains will take time.

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement on the 18th, saying that whether the Rafah port will be reopened depends on whether Hamas can hand over the remains of all detainees. The Rafah port will remain closed "until further notice."

Rafah Border Crossing is located at the southern tip of the Gaza Strip and connects to the Egyptian border. It is the main channel for international humanitarian aid to enter and leave Gaza. It has been basically closed since May 2024. According to the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, the Rafah Border Crossing should reopen on the 15th. On the 14th, the Israeli government continued to close the port on the grounds that Hamas failed to hand over the remains of all detainees on time.

Hamas issued a statement on the evening of 18 condemning the decision of the Israeli side ¡°is a blatant violation of the terms of the ceasefire agreement, and also a rejection of the promises made by the mediator and the guarantor.¡± statements warned that Israel¡¯s continued closure of ports, blocking the passage of wounded patients, and obstructing the shipment of search and rescue equipment, will lead to ¡°delays in the search and transfer of bodies.¡±

Israel confirmed on the same day that it had received the remains of two Israeli detainees transferred by Hamas through the International Committee of the Red Cross. So far, Hamas has handed over a total of 13 bodies to Israel. Earlier, Israel stated that one of the bodies was not a person detained by Israel. According to the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, Israel and Hamas began personnel exchanges on the 13th. Hamas released a total of 20 Israeli detainees in two batches that day, while Israel released nearly 2000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

Highlight the fragility of the ceasefire

The ceasefire agreement also includes increased aid to Gaza.In August this year, relevant UN agencies released the latest comprehensive analysis of the phase of food security, according to which more than half a million people in Gaza are starving.This is the first time a famine has been officially confirmed in the Middle East.

Israel cut off all supplies to the Gaza Strip in March this year and restricted the release of some aid materials into the Gaza Strip until July.The first phase of the ceasefire agreement requires accelerating the opening of the channel for aid materials into the Gaza Strip.According to data from the UN World Food Programme, about 560 tonnes of food has entered the Gaza Strip every day since the ceasefire came into force, but still far below the actual scale.

The controversy around the transfer of corpses and the transportation of humanitarian aid highlights the vulnerability of the ceasefire agreement. Hamas and Israel's differences around these two issues, as well as other key points in the "20 Point Plan" cited by the US, could undermine the ceasefire. Key issues such as Hamas' disarmament, the Gaza governance model, the international "stability force" composition and the establishment of a Palestinian state are still to be resolved, which could hinder the US's plan to end the war in Gaza.