• UN chief demands immediate truce in Gaza Strip
• UNRWA chief fears many malnourished children will die
• Israeli bombing kills 70 Palestinians in 24 hours

CAIRO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel would immediately resume negotiations for the release of all prisoners held in Gaza, and an end to the nearly two-year-old war, but on terms acceptable to Israel.

It was Netanyahu’s first response to a ceasefire proposal put forward by Egypt and Qatar, which Hamas had accepted earlier this week.

Tel Aviv will dispatch negotiators to talks once a location is set, an Israeli official said.

Speaking to soldiers near Israel’s border with Gaza, Netanyahu said he was still set on approving plans for defeating Hamas and capturing Gaza City.

Thousands of Palestinians have left their homes as Israeli tanks have edged closer to Gaza City over the last 10 days.

Israel’s plan to seize Gaza City was approved this month by the security cabinet, which Netanyahu chairs, even though many of its closest allies have urged the government to reconsider.

His latest remarks underscore the Israeli government view that any deal ensures the release of all 50 prisoners, captured in October 2023.

The proposal on the table calls for a 60-day ceasefire and the release of 10 living prisoners and 18 bodies held in Gaza. In return, Israel would release about 200 long-serving Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Once the temporary ceasefire begins, both sides will begin negotiations on a permanent ceasefire that would include the return of the remaining prisoners.

Ceasefire demanded

United Nations Secre­tary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, after Isra­el announced the first steps of an operation to take over Gaza City.

“It is vital to reach immediately a ceasefire in Gaza,” that was necessary “to avoid the death and destruction that a military operation against Gaza City would inevitably cause,” Guterres said in Japan where he is attending the Tokyo International Conference on African Development.

Guterres also called for the unconditional release of prisoners held by Hamas and also urged Israel to reverse a decision to expand “illegal” settlement construction in the West Bank.

Meanwhile, the head of the UNRWA voiced concern that children suffering from malnutrition in Gaza will die if emergency provisions are not immediately put in place during Israel’s Gaza City military operation.

Philippe Lazzarini said that its data showed a six-fold increase in the number of children suffering from malnutrition in Gaza City since March.

Heavy bombardment

The Gaza health ministry said at least 70 people had been killed in Israeli fire in the enclave in the past 24 hours, including eight people in a house in Sabra suburb in Gaza City.

The Israeli military maintained its pressure on Gaza City with heavy bombardments overnight. A day earlier, the military called up 60,000 reservists in a sign that the government was pressing ahead with the plan, despite international condemnation.

In a sign of growing despair at conditions, hundreds rallied in Gaza City in a march organised by several civil unions.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2025