US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, accompanied by an exchange of hostages from the movement that rules Gaza for Palestinian prisoners, “produced positive results”.
“The hostages have been returned to their families” and the ceasefire also allowed “more humanitarian assistance to reach innocent civilians in Gaza who are in urgent need of assistance,” Blinken said in Tel Aviv.
“This is important and we hope it remains so,” the US Secretary of State added, defending the continuation of the ceasefire.
The ceasefire that came into effect between Israel and Hamas on November 24 was extended for another day today, shortly before it ended, according to both sides of the conflict.
The ceasefire was scheduled to end at 7 a.m. (5 a.m. in Lisbon), but fifteen minutes before that, the Israeli military issued a statement saying the “operational pause” would continue, “taking into account the mediators’ efforts to facilitate the process of the release of hostages in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas said the ceasefire had lasted “a seventh day.”
The extension of the ceasefire until Friday has also been confirmed by Qatar, the mediating country.
Source: DN
