Envoys of US President Donald Trump, who are expected to arrive in Israel this week, have urged Minister Ron Dermer, a close associate of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to respond in a measured manner to Hamas’ violations of the ceasefire.
A regional diplomatic source said there is a strong likelihood that Iran was involved in the attack on the IDF unit.
According to the source, Iran maintains continuous contact with parts of Hamas’ leadership as well as field commanders, and has a clear interest in sabotaging the ceasefire and undermining efforts to end the war.
During a conversation last week between Netanyahu and Trump, the prime minister presented a range of potential responses to possible Hamas violations.
Netanyahu reportedly told the president that Hamas was likely to breach the agreement while testing the limits of Israel’s patience without fully breaking the ceasefire.
US President Donald Trump’s envoys are scheduled to land in Israel this week and have urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s close ally, Minister Ron Dermer, to respond to Hamas’ ceasefire violations in a measured way. Dermer was urged by Trump’s emissaries, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, to make sure that Israel’s response to Hamas’ breach would be measured and refrain from taking any actions that would jeopardize Trump’s ongoing peace initiative, according to an American official who spoke with Dermer on Sunday.
Iran is most likely responsible for the attack on the IDF unit, according to a regional diplomatic source. The source claims that Iran has a clear interest in destroying the ceasefire and undermining attempts to end the war and keeps in constant communication with field commanders and some members of Hamas’ leadership.
Israel’s political leadership has also decided to keep the Rafah crossing closed and ordered a halt to the flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
In a discussion with Trump last week, Netanyahu brought up a number of possible ways to address potential Hamas violations. Netanyahu reportedly warned the president that Hamas would probably violate the deal, pushing Israel’s tolerance to the limit without completely violating the ceasefire.
Israel also gave the Americans a briefing on its response plans today, leaving out specifics but making it clear that it was not going back to the ground offensive just yet.
