Mediators in Egypt assess latest plan to bring lasting end to war
Negotiators from the US, Egypt, Qatar and Israel are assessing modified proposals to end the Israel-Gaza war, sources told The National yesterday.
The latest proposals could involve a three-month ceasefire, a phased detainee and hostage exchange and an Israeli withdrawal, followed by a handover to an interim Palestinian government in Gaza.
Deliberations began after officials from Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency and the CIA arrived in Egypt at the weekend.
The latest proposals, the sources said, began with a rejected Egyptian draft from last month.
Word of the latest proposals emerged after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hardened his position on the conflict, dimming hopes for a resolution to a situation in which tens of thousands have been killed.
“In exchange for the release of our hostages, Hamas demands the end of the war, the withdrawal of our forces from Gaza, the release of all the murderers and rapists,” Mr Netanyahu said on Sunday.
“I reject outright the terms of surrender of the monsters of Hamas … I will not compromise on full Israeli security control of all territory west of the Jordan river.”
US President Joe Biden on Friday said he had spoken to Mr Netanyahu about possible solutions for the creation of an independent Palestinian state, suggesting one path could involve a non-militarised government.
Yesterday, the EU joined Mr Biden in demanding Israel agrees with his goal. In response to Mr Netanyahu’s comments, senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said his refusal to end military operations in Gaza “means there is no chance for the return of the [Israeli] captives”.
Negotiating a deal is proving much more difficult, with the sides far apart on the details, said a source yesterday.
“It does not help that Israel is divided over what’s next in Gaza and Hamas is fraught with tension between leaders who remain in Gaza and those in exile.”
According to the sources, during the three-month truce included in the latest peace proposals, Palestinians who fled their homes in northern and central Gaza and are now under daily Israeli fire in the southern part of the enclave would be able to return to their homes.
Under the proposed detainee and hostage swap. Hamas would first release about 40 women, children and elderly people held in Gaza in return for a so far undetermined number of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
Hamas wants those to be released from Israel to include high-profile figures such as Fatah’s Marwan Barghouti, who is serving a life sentence for murder, and commanders from Hamas’s military wing.
Those people, the proposals said, would be released in the final phase in exchange for Israeli military personnel held by Hamas.
The exchange would include female Israeli soldiers – five are said to be held – as well as the remains of Israeli soldiers or civilians killed on October 7 and during the subsequent war in Gaza.
The proposals also envisage a multinational force being stationed in the stretch of land along the Palestinian side of the Egypt-Gaza border, known as the Philadelphia corridor.
One source says that not only are Hamas and Israel far apart, there are internal divisions to overcome as well