Israel officially confirms ceasefire agreement with Islamic Jihad

Euskaraz irakurri: Israelek ofizialki berretsi du su eten akordioa Jihad Islamiarrarekin

The Government of Isarel has officially confirmed this Sunday a ceasefire agreement to end the three-day war escalation in the Gaza Strip. The truce takes effect at 11:30 p.m.

The Israeli government, which until now had never formally confirmed an agreement with groups it considers terrorist organizations, has warned that it will respond “strongly” if the terms are breached.

“If the ceasefire is broken, Israel reserves the right to respond forcefully. We will not allow either party to disrupt the daily lives of residents of Israel,” the Israeli government said in a statement.

The Directorate of Public Diplomacy of the Israeli Government, reporting to the Prime Minister, Yair Lapid, has thus broken a long tradition by which until now Israel had never confirmed an agreement with the Palestinian militias.

Until now the confirmation came through unidentified sources to preserve the argument that Israel does not negotiate with terrorists.

Confirmation of the body by Islamic Jihad had previously been released. “A moment ago an agreement was reached on the text of the Egyptian truce agreement that includes a commitment to work for the release of two prisoners, (Bassem) al Sadi and (Jalil) Awawdeh,” explained a leader of Islamic Jihad, Mohammad al Hindi, in a message picked up by the Israeli press.

Al Sadi was the head of Islamic Jihad in the West Bank and was arrested last week in Jenin. Awawdeh is also in Israeli custody.

So far the authorities in the Gaza Strip have confirmed 41 Palestinian deaths and more than 311 people injured since the beginning of the spiral of violence.