Jerusalem (Reuters)-Israel sworn in a new commander of his armed forces on Wednesday, when an impasse on the fragile ceasefire in Gaza increased the risk of a resumption of combat without agreement to take home the rest of the hosts still maintained by Hamas.
Eyal Zamir, who retired after 28 years with the post of Major General, was promoted to Lieutenant General before formally assumed the General’s command because of the security disaster of 7 October 2023.
“The mission given to me is clear: to take the (Israel forces) IDF to victory,” he said.
The fighting in Gaza have been interrupted since January under a respite brokered by Qatar and Egypt and supported by the United States, which allowed the exchange of 33 Israeli and 5 Thai hostages for about 2,000 prisoners and detainees Palestinians.
A related war in southern Lebanon, who broke out after Iran’s supported Hezbollah forces, launched missile attacks against Israel after the October 7 attack was also silenced by a separate ceasefire agreement.
However, Israeli ministers and authorities warn that their forces could resume combat if there is no deal to bring back the remaining 59 hostages.
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The Israeli troops retreated from some of their positions in Gaza, but the conversations aimed at reaching an agreement on the liberation of hostages and the total removal of Israeli forces before the end of the war did not begin.
Israel asked for an extension of the truce until after the Jewish Easter holiday in April to allow the release of the remaining hostages, while Hamas insisted on continuing with conversations about a permanent end of war before agreeing with any other liberation.
Zamir’s appointment occurs as a series of official investigations began to examine the failures that allowed thousands of armed men led by Hamas to invade Israeli communities around the Gaza Strip, killing 1,200 people and hostage to one of the greatest military disaster and security in Israel’s history.
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Halevi led the Armed Forces during the Israeli campaign in Gaza, which killed more than 48,000 Palestinians and destroyed much of the enclave, leaving most of the population sheltered in tents or bombarded buildings.
But he announced in January, shortly after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, which would leave the command, accepting the responsibility for the irregular and uncoordinated response of the military to the October 7 attack.
(Report by James Mackenzie)
