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Another round of indirect negotiations on the Gaza war concluded on Sunday in Cairo, with Hamas representatives scheduled to go to Qatar next for consultation with their leadership, according to the group.
The Hamas team responded to the mediators’ ideas and reviewed them with representatives from Egypt and Qatar, according to the organization’s Telegram channel.
According to the statement, the group intended to leave Cairo on Sunday evening to speak with the organization’s leaders in Qatar.
The newest round of negotiations to end the months-long conflict in Gaza began on Saturday. Israel did not send a delegation because the government wanted to wait and see whether Hamas would accept the latest proposal from the mediators, which also includes the US.
This envisions a multi-stage deal between Israel and Hamas that would result in the release of the remaining Israeli captives in Gaza, the release of Palestinian detainees detained in Israeli prisons, and the end of the Gaza war.
Negotiations for a resolution to the war have stuck for months, despite a brief ceasefire in November, with Israel and Hamas sharing blame for the lack of progress.
On October 7, militants from Hamas and other groups in Israel carried out an unparalleled slaughter of over 1,200 people, sparking the Gaza War. They also kidnapped approximately 250 people and took them to Gaza.
Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground offensive. As of Friday, the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry said the death toll in Gaza from Israeli attacks stood at more than 34,600.
In its statement on Sunday, Hamas emphasized that it was conducting the negotiations “in a positive spirit and responsibly.” However, a breakthrough did not appear to be on the horizon.
The Palestinian group is insisting on an agreement in which Israel commits from the outset to ending the war and completely withdrawing its troops from the Gaza Strip.
However, Israel denies such a commitment and wants to reserve the right to take further military action.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday again reiterated his stance that the country will continue the war in Gaza until all of its objectives have been achieved, and again blamed Hamas for the stalled negotiations over a temporary ceasefire.
“Capitulating to Hamas’s demands would be a terrible defeat for the State of Israel,” Netanyahu said on Sunday in a video message. “It would be a great victory for Hamas, Iran and the entire axis of evil. It would exhibit terrible weakness to our friends, and to our enemies.”
French President Emmanuel Macron called on Netanyahu to continue negotiations.
In a phone call on Sunday, Macron encouraged the Israeli premier to bring the negotiations, which could lead to de-escalation in the region, to a good end, according to reports from the Élysée Palace in Paris.
Macron also reportedly stressed that France’s priority remained the release of all hostages.
France fully supports the ongoing negotiations, it said. The fate of Palestinians in Gaza must no longer be subjected to the rule of Hamas while Israeli attacks on the coastal area must cease, according to the statement.
Meanwhile, Hamas’ military arm has claimed responsibility for rocket assaults near the Kerem Shalom border crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
The Qassam Brigades claimed that Israeli troops were the targets of Sunday’s attacks.
Kerem Shalom lies on the border between Egypt, Israel, and Gaza. It is one of the primary transit sites for humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip, where foreign aid agencies report that segments of the population are starving following seven months of conflict.
The crossing was temporarily closed after the incident.
According to the Israeli army, three Israeli troops were killed in the attack, while 11 were injured.
According to a military spokesman, Hamas fired ten rockets at the Kerem Shalom settlement near the same-named crossing. The army replied by bombarding a community near Rafah’s southern crossing, from which the attack originated.
Source:IANS
