Israeli officials say to hold Gaza positions, oppose entry of int'l stabilization force into Gaza

JERUSALEM, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- A senior Israeli government official said Monday Israel will maintain its military positions in Gaza, after the country was urged to halt deadly strikes on the Palestinian enclave.

"Israel will not withdraw from its current positions in the Gaza Strip and will continue to thwart any threat to our civilians and soldiers," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The statement followed a meeting on Monday between Nickolay Mladenov, "high representative for Gaza" of the U.S.-led "Board of Peace," and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel's Channel 12 reported that Mladenov told Netanyahu that Israel should halt its strikes on Gaza, in line with commitments it made under the Gaza ceasefire plan.

Also on Monday, two far-right Israeli cabinet ministers called on Netanyahu to block the deployment of the International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza.

In a letter to Netanyahu, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Settlements and National Missions Minister Orit Strock, both members of the Religious Zionism party, said the original decision, which approved an initial entry of the ISF to Gaza, had been based on "misleading information."

They said Washington had promised Israel that the ISF would be tasked with collecting Hamas weapons and demilitarizing Gaza, but recent developments had raised concerns it could also restrict Israeli military activities in the enclave.

The developments followed renewed diplomatic efforts regarding the future of the Gaza ceasefire. On Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the so-called "Board of Peace" had reached an agreement on the "complete disarmament" of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza.

On Friday, Hamas said it had agreed to the "latest version of the roadmap" for the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement after "fierce" negotiations, but conditioned weaponry arrangements on a complete halt to "aggression," Israeli withdrawal from the enclave, and progress on reconstruction. ■