NEW YORK, November 24. /TASS/. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will not conduct "any significant maneuvers" during the current humanitarian pause, army spokesperson Jonathan Conricus said.
"What we are going to do is to remain in our positions, our estimated positions as we are now, but of course, we will not be static. So you won’t see any significant maneuvers by the IDF but <...> it may be reported that there will be troop movement," he said in an interview with CNN, when asked if the IDF would move south during the humanitarian pause.
Conricus added that "to be static on the battlefield is a very bad thing to do, unwise, and therefore we are not going to be static."
The four-day ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave took effect at 7:00 a.m. local time (5:00 a.m. GMT) on Friday.
Hamas announced on November 22 that an agreement on a four-day humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip had been reached through the mediation of Qatar and Egypt. The agreement stipulates the release of 50 women and children under the age of 19 who are held in Gaza in exchange for the release of 150 women and children under the age of 19 from Israeli prisons.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier, citing sources, that Israel may take the fighting to the south of the Gaza Strip in a bid to kill Hamas leaders and find the hostages.