UPDATE - US Middle East envoy arrives in Israel for talks on Gaza ceasefire

UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS, CHANGES DECK

By Ahmed Asmar and Mohammad Sio

JERUSALEM (AA) – The US envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff arrived in Israel on Wednesday to meet with top Israeli officials to discuss developments of the Gaza ceasefire that took effect on Jan. 19.

According to the Israeli Channel 14, Witkoff is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials.

Shortly after arriving in Israel, Witkoff made a short visit to the Gaza Strip to check on progress in implementing the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

An image published by the Israeli public broadcaster KAN showed the US envoy in a convoy of black four-wheel drive vehicles inside Gaza.

Witkoff told Fox News last week that he plans to inspect the Netzarim Corridor that separates northern Gaza from its south.

On Monday, hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians began returning to northern Gaza under the ceasefire agreement.

Multiple Israeli and international reports suggested that Witkoff played a crucial role in persuading Netanyahu to agree to the Jan. 19 Gaza ceasefire.

Under the agreement, indirect negotiations on the second phase of the deal are set to begin on the 16th day of the ceasefire.

The first six-week phase of the agreement took effect on Jan. 19, suspending Israel’s genocidal war that has killed more than 47,300 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

The Israeli onslaught has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November last year for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.