Delegates leave Egypt as sticking points remain in ceasefire talks
The Hamas and Israeli delegations to the Gaza truce talks have left Cairo, with several important issues unresolved.
The departures threaten progress made by mediators from the US, Egypt and Qatar, pushing for the Palestinian group and Israel to agree to pause their seven-month war.
It came after CIA chief William Burns returned to Cairo on Wednesday to rejoin the Gaza ceasefire talks, having briefly visited Israel, as negotiators argued over details of the proposed agreement.
Mr Burns met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During the talks, also attended by Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, Mossad chief David Barnea and Shin Bet director Ronen Bar, the CIA chief said Israel should see an end to the war as a “comma” and “not a full stop”, the country’s Channel 12 reported.
Israeli officials had earlier said that Hamas proposals received on Monday night crossed “every red line”.
Hamas said Israel’s military operations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, and this week’s takeover of the Palestinian side of the border crossing with Egypt, were “aimed at cutting off the path of the mediators, escalating the aggression and the genocide war”.
The main focus of the negotiations in Egypt has been the slow and gradual rate at which Hamas wants to release about 130 remaining hostages, to which Israel is objecting.
More than 30 of those are believed to have been killed in captivity, mostly by Israeli bombing or lack of life-saving medications.
Hamas wants to release up to 20 of the hostages still held in Gaza over the first 42 days of the ceasefire. Israel says at least 33 should be freed in the first phase of the deal.
Hamas also wants to ensure a “permanent ceasefire” is added to any agreement, sources said.
The group wants to use the staggered release of the hostages as bargaining chips until its demands – full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a permanent ceasefire and the unconditional return home of Palestinians displaced by the war – are met.
On Monday, the militant group said it had accepted a
The main focus of the talks in Egypt has been the rate at which Hamas wants to release the remaining hostages
ceasefire proposal following months of talks. It released details of the proposal: a threephase agreement that would lead to a period of “sustained calm”, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a reconstruction plan for the enclave.
Hamas fears that without strong guarantees provided by Qatar, the US and Egypt, Israel would resume military operations in Gaza
Sources told The National progress has been made – with Israel agreeing to release Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences in its jails.
Which prisoners will be freed has yet to be negotiated, they said.
The White House has also expressed optimism a deal can be reached.
“They should be able to close the remaining gaps and we’re going to do everything we can to support that process and achieve that,” US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller also said the US is working “very hard” to get a deal over the line but denied claims that Hamas had accepted a deal.
“Hamas did not accept the ceasefire proposal. Hamas responded, and in their response made several suggestions. It’s not the same as accepting,” he said.