The negotiating session for a ceasefire in Gaza began on Saturday in Cairo, with the presence of the mediators from Egypt and Qatar, the director of the CIA, William Burns, and the delegation of the political branch of Hamas. The media conveyed a “positive” atmosphere regarding the Palestinian Islamist organization. But the Israeli negotiators did not show up…
The mediators urged Israel to send its delegation to Cairo but Prime Minister Beniamin Netanyahu refused. The official Israeli position was that Hamas had to first show signs of approving its proposed agreement, a demand apparently based on the major point of disagreement: the Palestinians want the ceasefire agreement to implicitly end the war. This would, of course, be to prevent the Israeli military invasion of Rafah.
Netanyahu refuses, and according to Israeli media yesterday he played deep with the tension. First, he did not notify ministers Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, members of the so-called war cabinet, of his decision not to send the delegation to Cairo. But he also made it known, hiding as a “diplomatic source” – and then being publicly discovered – that he will in no way end the war in an agreement with Hamas.
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Israel to protest. Numerous relatives of hostages accused the prime minister, once again, of torpedoing an agreement, as did several parliamentarians who consider that his attitude only responds to pressure from his far-right partners, which could lead to the dissolution of the Government. something that would leave Netanyahu on the ropes.
Thus, and according to the Saudi newspaper As Sharq al Awsat, the United States would have offered Hamas certain guarantees that there will be a “sustainable cessation” of hostilities by Israel towards the end of the third phase of the hostage exchange agreement. Israelis for Palestinian prisoners. The truce agreement is made up of several phases; In the first, 40 days, limited releases are planned, while later phases that include more releases and a more robust ceasefire are possible. The idea, at least as a Hamas representative told Israeli Channel 12, is that the end of the third phase would see the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
Hamas, according to Arab and Israeli media, agreed with the first phase of the plan, something that was expected yesterday anyway. However, there would be disagreements over the following exchanges of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners.
If Netanyahu is pressured by the street and his government partners, pressure is also received on the other side. Qatar announced yesterday that it may close the office of Hamas’s political branch in Doha and reassess its role as a mediator, according to a government source. Days ago, the Qataris already expressed discomfort, after months of participating in the negotiations. However, yesterday they did not specify whether closing Ismail Haniyeh’s office would also imply the expulsion of Hamas from the emirate. According to The Washington Post, the closure of the office would respond to pressure from the United States to make Hamas accept the Israeli proposal, although other versions suggest that the idea came from the emirate itself.
