I'm David Enders, and this is The Take. We're coming to you on Sundays with weekly roundups as Israel's war in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria continues. Israel adopted a U.S. proposal to continue a ceasefire in Gaza, while Hamas has yet to respond. Israel has released its longest-serving Palestinian prisoner. Today is Sunday, March 2.
It is day 513 of the war in Gaza, where more than 48,388 Palestinians have been killed. Israel has endorsed a U.S. proposal for an extension of a ceasefire in Gaza after the first phase of an agreement reached in January expired on Saturday without the completion of negotiations on how the second phase would be implemented. Al Jazeera's Hind Hodri reported from Han Yunis in southern Gaza.
Palestinians are very stressed and they feel that this ceasefire is very fragile. Today, Palestinians were supposed to go to another phase, the phase where the Rafah crossing is going to open and more reconstruction progress is going to...
start being implemented on the ground but what we also need to know the palestinians are still on the move still trying to go to their houses and to rebuild whatever they can rebuild and fix whatever they that they could rebuild now there are palestinians that still have homes where the israeli forces are still stationed and they are unable to reach their homes and what we also need to know is there
are Israeli F-16s and Israeli drones hoovering in the sky. And this is also making Palestinians feel a little bit stressed that in any minute, the Israeli forces can target any place across the Gaza Strip.
Al Jazeera's Hamda Salhoud reported on the ceasefire from Amman, Jordan, as both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority have banned Al Jazeera from operating in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli Prime Minister's office released a statement saying that Israel has agreed to extend phase one of the deal following a proposal by the Americans. During this phase, the fighting would stop.
throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish holiday of Passover. Ramadan ends at the end of March, early April, and Passover begins mid-April, ending on the 20th of that month. During this extension, half of the Israeli captives would be released on the first day of it. There are 59 left. The Israeli military says that around half are deceased and 19
During this time as well, there would be negotiations for phase two. There has been quite an interesting impasse because there are heavy sticking points from both sides. Hamas has said that they do not want an extension of phase one, but rather want to move on to phase two in which they are prepared to release all of the remaining Israeli captives. The Israelis say that they're prepared
prepared to go back to the fighting at any point in time and that they have U.S. guarantees to do so. But nonetheless, there are still a lot of red lines for the Israelis who've been reluctant to agree to a phase two and even more reluctant to start discussions for a phase three because it would mean an end to the war and then rebuilding Gaza and governance in the Palestinian territory. Friday marked the beginning of the second Ramadan since the beginning of the war.
Al Jazeera's Hani Mahmoud reported from Jabalia in northern Gaza. Even with people returning to their homes in Gaza and the northern part of the Strip, they're coming back to pretty much nothing. They end up in other evacuation zones or in tents sites that are not at the site of their homes. So this is something that has been feeding into their permanent sense of permanent displacement. And with the shortage of food and blockade on aid, a lot of Palestinians
first day of Ramadan they were forced to break their fast on whatever they are able to have across the Gaza Strip. There is definitely shortage on many of the essential food supplies. That is something that has been going on for the past month due to the obstruction on the entry of aid from a Karim Abu Salim crossings as well as the kind of supplies that are being allowed into the Gaza Strip. So far what we're noticing is more of the complimentary stuff
over what's really essential and needed for people to sustain their life, let alone now in month of fasting. Israel this week released Palestinian prisoner Nile Barghouti into exile in Egypt. Laura Hahn reported on how Iman Nafe, Barghouti's wife, has been banned from traveling from the occupied West Bank to meet him.
The longest-serving Palestinian prisoner, he was held in Israeli jails for 45 years before being released and exiled as part of a prisoner exchange deal with Israel on Thursday. From being restricted to speaking to him behind bars, a man now relies on a screen to tell him she misses him after she was banned from leaving the occupied West Bank.
His first message on release from jail was one of resistance. Every Palestinian in the world must know that the brutal Israeli occupation will never stay forever and that Palestine will be totally liberated.
But his first priority was a symbol of devotion, sending a man a wedding ring to replace one that had been confiscated by Israeli prison guards. Bar-Guthi was arrested in 1978 and sentenced to life in prison for taking part in attacks against the Israeli military. After his release, he was among 97 released prisoners who had been exiled to Egypt by Israel.
When a man tried to join him, she was turned back by Israeli forces. But her determination to be reunited hasn't changed. She says she's sure she'll see him again. And that's The Take for Sunday, March 2. Please join us again tomorrow. This episode was produced and mixed by me, David Enders. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan.
Alexander Locke is the take's executive producer, and Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera's head of audio.