Unarmed Palestinians will be allowed to return to the northern Gaza Strip without needing to pass security checkpoints starting next week if Hamas adheres to the ceasefire deal, the Israeli military reiterated on Tuesday.
Jerusalem remains “committed to ensuring all aspects of the agreement are implemented,” tweeted Israel Defense Forces Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee, head of the Arab Media Branch in the IDF’s Spokesperson’s Unit, on Tuesday.
“If Hamas adheres to all the details of the agreement, starting next week, the residents of the Gaza Strip will be able to return to the northern part of the Strip, and directives will be issued in this regard,” wrote Adraee.
In the meantime, the spokesman warned Gazans against approaching the Netzarim Corridor, which divides the Strip’s south from its north.
“Per the agreement, IDF forces will remain deployed in specific areas of the Gaza Strip. Do not approach IDF forces in the area until further notice. Approaching the forces exposes you to danger,” he said.
Adraee also warned against approaching Israeli territory and the buffer zone near the border, calling the latter area “extremely dangerous.”
Video footage aired by Israel’s Kan News public broadcaster on Tuesday showed armed members of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s “armed wing,” burying terrorists in the Jabaliya area in northern Gaza.
הלוויה במחנה הפליטים ג'באליא בצפון הרצועה, הארונות מכוסים בדגלי חמאס ומלווים באנשי הזרוע הצבאית של חמאס pic.twitter.com/BcvbeaTMfk
— Nurit Yohanan (@nurityohanan) January 21, 2025
According to the terms of the deal between the Jewish state and the Palestinian terror group, seven days after the Jan. 19 implementation of the agreement, noncombatants will be allowed to return to the northern Strip by foot, without weapons or security checks, via Al-Rashid Street.
Vehicles may also return northward via the Netzarim Corridor on the seventh day, subject to inspection by a private security company designated by the mediators and coordinated with Jerusalem.
On day 22 of the deal, unarmed Palestinians will be allowed to return to the northern Strip on foot via Salah a-Din road, also without inspection.
On Monday evening, Hamas announced it would next free four more hostages on Saturday, backtracking on previous threats to delay their release by a day.
Hamas reversed course following Israeli appeals to the mediators, Ynet reported. An Israeli government source stressed in comments cited by local media that a Sunday release would violate the terms of the deal, which calls for four captives to be returned seven days after Jan. 19.
Hebrew media had previously reported that the government in Jerusalem was trying to determine whether the terror organization’s reported threat constituted a legitimate announcement or psychological warfare.
